JPS61208059A - Electrophotographic copying machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To allow everyone to input securely and easily copy information for a short time by providing a recording medium where copy information is recorded and a reproducing means thereof as a copy information input means. CONSTITUTION:First, a control panel 17 is operated with the use of a control console 18 to record information on the recording medium 60. When the copy information and other signals are inputted through the control panel 17, a controller 16 energizes and controls a recording device 19 and transporting device 20, whereby the copy information is recorded on the recording medium 60. At the time of copying actually the recording medium 60 where the copy information is recorded is inserted into the recording device 8 of a copying machine, and a reproducing device 9 reads the information. According to the copy information read out by the recording medium reproducing device 8 a microcomputer 1A controls the action of the copying machine main body 6. Thus the work efficiency of copying can be improved.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Industrial Application Field) The present invention relates to an electrophotographic copying machine, and in particular,
The present invention relates to an electrophotographic copying machine that allows easy input of various types of copy information.

<<Prior Art>> A conventional copying machine will be briefly described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a conventional copying machine.

In FIG. 7, the microcomputer 1 includes a CPU 2. ROM3. RAM 4, input/output interface 5, and common bus 9 that connects each of the above components
0.

The copying machine main body 6 and the control panel 7 are connected to the input/output interface 5.

The control panel 7 is a means for setting the number of copies, copy density, etc., and is composed of a numeric keypad and various switches.

The microcomputer 1 controls the copying operation of the copying machine main body 6 based on copy information inputted from the control panel 7, such as the number of copies and copy density.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) The above-described conventional techniques had the following problems.

(1) In recent years, research and development of copying machines has progressed, and the main body of the copying machine is often provided with various functions. In other words, in addition to the settings for the number of copies per copy and copy density mentioned above, recent copying machines also have settings for paper size, original size, reduction ratio, use of a sorter, and folding of created copies in half. It is necessary to input information such as the selection of whether or not to the microcomputer 1 via the control panel 7.

In the control panel 7 of a copying machine having such a large number of functions, the numeric keypad and various switches are generally arranged to facilitate inputting the various information described above. , is laid out.

However, the input operation is still troublesome for an operator who is not familiar with the copying machine, and it takes a lot of time.

In extreme cases, the user may not be able to make a copy because he or she does not know which switch to press, or may not be able to obtain the desired copy due to an incorrect input operation.

As described above, it is difficult for an inexperienced operator to handle a copying machine having many functions, and as a result, labor, time, copying costs, etc. are wasted.

In order to make a copy using the above-mentioned copying machine, it is necessary to input the above-mentioned copy information before making the copy. Therefore, even if an operator who is accustomed to handling the copier performs input operations,
The time required for copying (one hour for copying) is the sum of the time for the operator to input information and the time for the copier to actually perform the copying operation, and it is not possible to minimize the one hour for copying. .

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems.

(Means and effects for solving the problems) In order to solve the above problems, the present invention takes a step of using a recording medium on which copy information is recorded and a reproduction means for the same as a copy information input means. This system is characterized by the effect that any person can input copy information extremely easily, in a short time, and reliably.

(Example) The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1(A) is a schematic block diagram of one embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 1(A), the microcomputer 1A is
Similar to the microcomputer 1 described with reference to FIG. 7, the CPU 2A and the ROM 3A.

It includes a RAM 4A, an input/output interface 5A, and a common bus 90A that connects each of the above components.

The copying machine main body 6 and the control panel 7 are connected to the input/output interface 5A.

The microcomputer 1A receives input from the control panel 7 or from a recording medium playback device @8 which will be described later.
The operation of the copying machine main body 6 is controlled based on copy information such as the number of copies, copy density, reduction ratio, and paper size read by the copying machine main body 6.

The recording medium playback device 8 includes a playback device 9 and a transport device 10.
It is equipped with The recording medium reproducing device 8 is shown in FIG.
) The recording medium 60 recorded in the manner described later with respect to ) is, for example, a reproducing means for a magnetic card. The playback device 9 and conveyance device 10 of the recording medium playback device 8 are connected to the input/output interface 5A.

FIG. 1(B) is a schematic block diagram showing an example of a recording means of the recording medium.

In FIG. 1(B), the recording device 19 and the conveyance device 20 for the recording medium 60 are connected to the control device 16.

A control panel 17 is also connected to the control device 16, and information to be recorded on the recording medium is inputted through the control panel 17.

The control panel 17 has almost the same functions as the control panel 7 shown in FIG. 16 can be input.

In this embodiment of the invention, the recording medium recording means shown in FIG. 1B, namely the control console 18, is independent of the copying machine shown in FIG. 1A. .

Now, the operation of one embodiment of the present invention will be explained.

First, copy information is recorded in advance on the recording medium 60 using the control console 18. Recording of copy information is performed by operating the control panel 17.

When the control device 16 receives copy information and other signals from the control panel 17, it energizes and controls the recording device 19 and the transport device 2o, thereby recording the copy information on the recording medium 60. .

Next, when actually copying, the recording medium 6° on which the copy information has been recorded as described above is inserted into the recording medium reproducing device 8 of the copier, and the information is transferred to the reproducing device 9. read As a result, copy information can be input into the microcomputer 1A without operating the control panel 7.

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view showing an example of a mechanical part of the control console 18 shown in FIG. 1(B). In the figure, the same reference numerals as in FIG. 1(B) represent the same or equivalent parts.

FIG. 2 depicts a mechanical part when a magnetic card 6o as shown in FIG. 3 is used as the recording medium.

In FIG. 2, a drive roll 33 connected to a drive motor 32, a guide roll 34, and pinch rolls 35, 36 are arranged on both sides of the conveyance path 31 of the magnetic card 6o, as shown in the figure. . Said vinci rolls 35, 36 are always biased in the direction of the arrow 6 by means of spring means 37, 38.

The sensor 39 detects that the magnetic card 6o has reached the innermost part of the transport path 31. The magnetic head 4° is the drive a
- Copy information input from the control panel 17 is recorded on the magnetic body 61 of the magnetic card 6o that is conveyed onto the conveyance path 31 by the rotation of the wheel 33.

The drive motor 32, the sensor 39, and the magnetic head 4
0 is connected to the control device 16.

In the control console 18 having the above configuration, first, necessary copy information is input to the control device 16 using the control panel 17 .

Then, the magnetic card 60 is inserted into the control console 18 through a medium insertion slot (not shown), and the side surface of the magnetic card 60 is brought into contact with the drive roll 33 and the pinch roll 36.

In this state, when an information writing start button (not shown) is pressed or when a sensor (not shown) detects the contact, the control device 16 energizes the drive motor 32 to rotate the drive roll 33 in the direction of arrow B. .

As a result, the magnetic card 60 moves along the transport path 31 along the arrow C.
conveyed in the direction. As the conveyance progresses, the control m+ device 16
energizes the magnetic head 4o according to the copy information,
As a result, the copy information is recorded on the magnetic body 61 of the magnetic card 60.

After the recording of the information is completed, when the tip of the magnetic card 60 is detected by the sensor 39, the control bag @16 energizes the drive motor 32 so that the rotation direction of the drive roll 33 is reversed. As a result, the magnetic card 60 is ejected from the medium insertion slot.

Note that the input of the copy information through the control panel 17 may be performed after the magnetic card 60 is transported into the control console 18.

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view showing an example of the appearance of the control console 18.

In FIG. 4, a control panel 17 of a control console 18 is provided with a numeric keypad and various operation switches having almost the same information input function as the control panel of the copying machine.

That is, the control panel 17 includes a numeric keypad 51 for setting the number of copies, a density selection key 52 for setting the amount of toner to be deposited on the recording paper, and a paper feed size selection key 53 for selecting the recording paper size. , a magnification selection key 55 for selecting whether to perform a same size copy or a reduced/enlarged copy, an arbitrary magnification setting key 54 for setting the magnification when performing a reduced/enlarged copy, and whether to use a sorter or not. A sorter selection key 56 for selecting whether or not to output the copy after being folded in half, and a program write key 57 for starting writing of copy information are arranged.

Further, a magnetic card 60 is attached to the outer wall of the control console 18 through the transport path 3 inside the control console 18.
A medium insertion port 58 for introducing the medium into the medium is open.

As described above, in one embodiment of the present invention, a multifunctional copying machine is provided with a recording medium playback device 8, and the copy information to be input from the control panel 7 of the copying machine is transferred to a copying machine in which the copy information has been recorded in advance. Since reading is performed from the recording medium, if there is a recording medium on which the desired copy information is recorded, even an operator who is not accustomed to inputting copy information using the control panel 7 can input the information extremely easily. It can be done easily and in a short time.

Therefore, the time required for the copying can be reduced as much as possible, and at the same time, there are no copying errors, so the copying cost can be minimized.

In addition, in the above embodiment, the recording means for recording copy information on the recording medium is provided separately from the copying machine as the control console 18, so that each time information is recorded on the medium, the copying machine is installed. It is convenient because there is no need to go to a certain place.

Roughly speaking, in this case, for example, an operator who specializes in making copies can obtain correct copies simply by receiving the original and the recording medium on which the copy information is recorded from the copy making requester, so that he can make accurate copies of each original. This eliminates the hassle of memorizing and memoing copy information each time, increasing the efficiency of copying operations.

Now, as mentioned above, when the magnetic card 6o is used as a recording medium, the copy information recorded on the magnetic body 61 of the magnetic card can be erased and re-recorded, but if the re-recording is not necessary, As a recording medium, a punch card 70 or a mark card 80 as shown in FIG. 5 or 6 may be used.

Copy information is recorded on the punch card 70 by the presence or absence of a punch 71 (small hole), and on the mark card 80 by a mark 81 such as a bar code display.

Furthermore, in the embodiment described above, the electrophotographic copying machine is provided with a control panel 7.
It is clear that there is no particular need to provide the control panel 7.

Furthermore, although the control console 18 - that is, the recording means for the recording medium has been described as being provided separately from the electrophotographic copying machine, the present invention is not limited to this, and the It goes without saying that it may be provided within the copying machine.

In this case, when the magnetic card 6o is used as a recording medium, the recording means and reproduction means of the magnetic card 60 are wm
It is possible to have the same configuration.

Furthermore, only the recording means and the reproducing means may be detachable from the electrophotographic copying machine.

Note that the recording means and reproducing means for the recording medium can be easily implemented by those skilled in the art, so a detailed explanation thereof will be omitted, but the conveying device 1 for the recording means and reproducing means will be omitted.
0.20 is a means for conveying the recording medium, instead of
It may also be a means for moving the reproducing device [9 or the recording device 19] relative to the recording medium.

Further, in particular, the recording medium reproducing device 8 can be configured to read the recording medium by manually moving the recording medium with respect to the reproducing device 9, and in this case, the conveying device Needless to say, 10 is unnecessary.

(Effects of the Invention) As is clear from the above description, according to the present invention, the following effects are achieved.

(1) Since the electrophotographic copying machine is equipped with a means for reproducing the recording medium on which copy information is recorded, it can be easily distributed to any number of people.
Copy information can be input in a short time and reliably. Moreover, this eliminates copy errors and is therefore economical.

Furthermore, when actually performing a copying operation, it is possible to complete the operation of inputting copying information to the electrophotographic copying machine in a short time. Therefore, one copying time can be substantially reduced.

Furthermore, when copying is performed multiple times using the same copy information, the time actually required for copying can be shortened.

(2) Furthermore, if the electrophotographic copying machine is provided with copy information recording means for the recording medium, arbitrary copy information can be recorded on the recording medium in advance.

Generally speaking, in this case, it is convenient if the recording means is provided separately from the electrophotographic copying machine, since there is no need to visit the copying machine every time copy information is recorded.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 (A> is a schematic block diagram of an embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 1 (B) is a schematic block diagram showing an example of a recording means of a recording medium, and Fig. 2 is a schematic block diagram showing an example of a recording means of a recording medium. FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view of a magnetic card, FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view showing an example of the appearance of the control console, and FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view of a punched card. 6 is a schematic perspective view of a mark card, and FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a conventional copying machine. 1A...microcomputer, 6...copying machine main body, 7... Control panel, 8... Recording medium playback device, 9... Playback device, 10... Conveyance device, 16.
...Control device, 17...Control panel, 18.
...Control console, 19...Recording device, 2
0... Conveyance device, 60... Magnetic card, 70...
Punch card, 80...mark card number 1 1 color

Claims (5)

[Claims] (1) An electrophotographic copying machine comprising a copy information input means and a control means for controlling a copy operation based on the copy information input by the copy information input means, wherein the copy information input means includes at least the following: An electrophotographic copying machine characterized in that it is a means for reproducing a recording medium on which copy information is recorded. (2) An electrophotographic copying machine comprising a copy information input means and a control means for controlling a copy operation based on the copy information input by the copy information input means, and a record for recording copy information on a recording medium. An electrophotographic copying machine further comprising means, wherein the copy information input means is at least means for reproducing a recording medium on which copy information is recorded. (3) The electrophotographic copying machine according to claim 2, wherein the recording means and the reproducing means are the same mechanism. (4) The second claim characterized in that the recording means is provided separately from the electrophotographic copying machine.
The electrophotographic copying machine described in Section 1. (5) The electrophotographic copying machine according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the recording means is removable from the electrophotographic copying machine.