JP2000029648A - Data-for-operation updating device for network equipment and printer utilizing the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To update data for operation of firmware or the like without making a person in charge of maintenance visit the spot. SOLUTION: This device is equipped in a network equipment 8 operated corresponding to the data for operation and provided with an electronic mail processing part 13 for receiving electronic mail in which the data for operation are written from a network and updating the data for operation written in the electronic mail to be stored to the storage part 14 of the data for operation at present.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an operation data updating apparatus for a network device and a printing apparatus using the same, and for example, an operation data updating apparatus for updating firmware of a printing apparatus as a network apparatus, and an operation data updating apparatus for updating the firmware. It relates to the printing device used.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, when upgrading the firmware of a printing apparatus, an old version of the
M was manually replaced one by one. However, since it is not possible for the operator to withstand the trouble, a method of updating the firmware loaded from the portable recording medium to the firmware storage unit of the printing apparatus and the like have been proposed.

[0003]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional example, the maintenance staff had to go to the site and work for upgrading the firmware and setting various data, which required a large amount of labor. .

[0004]

An object of the present invention is to improve the inconvenience of the prior art and, in particular, to provide an operation data updating apparatus for network equipment in which maintenance staff can update operation data such as firmware without having to go to the site. It is an object of the present invention to provide a printing apparatus that utilizes the printing apparatus.

[0005]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, an electronic mail which is provided in a network device operating according to operation data and which receives operation data written from a network is received. And an e-mail processing unit for updating the operation data written in the e-mail into the current operation data storage unit.

According to the present invention, when an e-mail describing operation data is transmitted from an external terminal to a network device, the e-mail data is received by the network device, and the operation data described in the e-mail is stored. Will be updated in the department.

[0007] The invention according to claim 2 adopts a configuration in which the operation data is a print processing program (firmware data).

[0008] The invention according to claim 3 adopts a configuration in which the operation data is function setting data.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a printing apparatus which operates in accordance with operation data, receives an e-mail in which the operation data is written from a network, and transmits the operation data written in the e-mail. Is provided with an e-mail processing unit for updating the operation data storage unit.

The invention according to claim 5 adopts a configuration in which the operation data is a print processing program (firmware data).

The invention according to claim 6 employs a configuration in which the operation data is function setting data.

Thus, the above-mentioned object is achieved.

[0013]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG.
This will be described with reference to FIG.

The printing device 8 shown in FIG. 1 is a network device that operates according to operation data, and is equipped with an operation data updating device. FIG. 2 shows the configuration of the operation data updating device 9 provided in the printing device 8. The e-mail processing unit 13 has a function of receiving an e-mail in which operation data is written from a network and updating the operation data written in the e-mail to the current operation data storage unit 14. . In the present embodiment, the operation data is a print processing program (firmware program).

Hereinafter, this will be described in more detail. Referring to FIG. 1, this embodiment includes a terminal 1 installed in an area A and capable of transmitting an e-mail, and a LAN 2 of a network in the area A.
A router 3 for enabling communication to the outside of the area A; a WAN 4 for the external network; a router 5 for enabling communication to the outside of the area B;
N6, a mail server 7 installed in the area B, and a printing device 8 installed in the area B.

Referring to FIG. 2, the printing apparatus 8 includes an interface unit 11 for transmitting and receiving data on the network LAN 6, a buffer 12 as a storage unit, an e-mail processing unit 13 for receiving e-mail, And a storage unit (print processing program storage unit) 14 for a print processing program that performs the following. The e-mail processing unit 13 checks the e-mail server 7 for e-mail addressed to the printing device 8, and if so, receives the e-mail data in the buffer 12. Then, it has a function of converting the received data into a program execution format and updating the storage unit 14 with a new print processing program.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 1, FIG. 2 and FIG.

A maintenance person in the area A sends a print processing program by e-mail from the terminal 1 in the area A to the printing device 8 in the area B (step A1). The transmitted e-mail passes through the network LAN 2 in the area A, and enters the router 5 as the gateway to the network in the area B where the printing apparatus 8 is located via the external network WAN 4 from the router 3 as the gateway for the network in the area A. . From there, it is passed to the mail server 7 through the network LAN 6 of the area B (step B1). Thereafter, when the e-mail processing unit 13 of the printing device 8 is activated (step B2), the e-mail processing unit 13
The mail server 7 checks whether there is an e-mail addressed to the printing device 8 via the server 1 (step B3). If there is an e-mail addressed to the printing device 8, it passes through the network LAN 6,
The data is received by the buffer 12 via the interface unit 11 (step B4). Then, the e-mail processing unit 13
The received data is converted into a program execution format (step B5). Then, the storage unit 14 stores the converted data.
Is updated (step B6). Thereafter, the new print processing program in the storage unit 14 is restarted (step B7).

On the other hand, if there is no e-mail addressed to the printing device 8, steps B4, B5 and B6 are skipped and the process proceeds to step B7. Thereafter, the process proceeds to the printing process (step B8) according to the request. Thereby, the maintenance staff in the area A can rewrite the print processing program of the printing apparatus 8 in the area B without going to the area B.

According to this, since a new program required for printing can be rewritten from a remote location, the maintenance staff does not need to go to the site where the printing apparatus is located to rewrite the program and rewrite the program. Such costs are no longer incurred. In addition, since the program can be rewritten from a remote location, the program can be rewritten easily, quickly, and efficiently. The reason is that the printing apparatus itself can receive general-purpose e-mail, and the received data can be rewritten as a print processing program.

[0021]

Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

Referring to FIG. 4, the present embodiment is different from the printing apparatus 8 shown in FIG. 2 in that a function setting storage unit 15 is provided. Further, referring to FIG. 5, in the next step after the processing of step B4 (processing of receiving the e-mail data in the buffer 12) shown in FIG. 3, whether the e-mail data is the print processing program or the function setting data. The difference lies in that a determination process (step C1) is provided.
The function setting storage unit 15 stores various functions of the printing apparatus 8 (for example, paper feed tray selection, font selection, double-sided printing selection, and the like).
Is stored. The data in the function setting storage unit 15 is transmitted by e-mail from a remote place, and the printing apparatus 8 receives the e-mail, thereby rewriting the function setting storage unit 15 of the printing apparatus 8. After the e-mail data is received by the buffer 12 in step B4, it is determined whether the e-mail data is the print processing program or the function setting data, and the function setting is changed by performing the processing according to each. It is not necessary for the maintenance staff to go to the site where the printing device 8 is located and change the function settings, and it is possible to easily, quickly, efficiently, and change the settings desired by the user from a remote location. Can be done.

Next, the operation of the present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1, 4 and 5.

The operation of steps B1 to B8 in FIG.
Since the operation is the same as the operation of B1 to B8 shown in FIG. In step A1 of this embodiment, the maintenance staff in the area A sets the code of the function setting data in the discrimination code, and sends the code to the printing device 8 in the area B from the terminal 1 in the area A together with the function setting data. Send by e-mail. Then, the processing of steps B1 to B4 is performed in the area B. Then, the e-mail processing unit 13 determines a code in the data of the e-mail received by the buffer 12 (step C).
1). If it is a print processing program, the processing of steps B5 and B6 is performed. If the determination result is the function setting data, the e-mail processing unit 13 converts the received data into a function setting data format (step C).
2). Then, the converted data is stored in the function setting storage unit 1.
5 (step C3). Then step B7,
The process of B8 is performed.

In this embodiment, when the user changes the function settings of the printing apparatus as desired, the maintenance staff in charge
By using e-mail, it is possible to rewrite the function setting storage unit of the printing device from a remote location, and it is not necessary to go to the site where the printing device is located, and it is possible to change the function setting of the printing device easily, quickly and efficiently Can be done. Further, the e-mail processing unit 13 has a function of determining whether the content of the received e-mail is the print processing program or the function setting data. Operation can be ensured.

In addition, according to each of the above embodiments, the e-mail transmitted from the terminal is temporarily stored in the mail server, and the printing device checks whether the e-mail addressed to the printing device has reached the mail server. Therefore, the printing apparatus itself does not need to have the function of a mail server, the cost of the printing apparatus itself can be suppressed, and it is relatively economical even in an environment where a plurality of printing apparatuses are connected to a network.

Here, in each of the above embodiments, the printing device is exemplified as the network device, but other network devices may be used. Although the print control program and the function setting data are illustrated as the operation data, other operation data may be used.

[0028]

According to the present invention, since the present invention is constructed and functions as described above, a network device is provided with a device for updating operation data, the operation data to be updated is received in the form of e-mail, Since the new operation data extracted from the e-mail is updated in the current operation data storage unit, the operation data of the network device can be updated by remote operation, and the maintenance work can be reduced. .

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the printing apparatus in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an operation of the embodiment of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the embodiment of FIG. 4;

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 8 printing device 9, 19 operation data updating device 13 e-mail processing unit 14 print processing program storage unit (storage unit) 15 function setting storage unit (storage unit)

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. An electronic apparatus equipped with a network device that operates according to operation data, receives an e-mail in which the operation data is written from a network, and replaces the operation data written in the e-mail with the current operation data. An operation data updating device for a network device, comprising an e-mail processing unit for updating a storage unit. 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the operation data is a print processing program. 3. The operation data updating device for a network device according to claim 1, wherein the operation data is function setting data. 4. A printing apparatus which operates according to operation data, receives an e-mail in which the operation data is written from a network, and replaces the operation data written in the e-mail with a current operation data. A printing apparatus comprising an e-mail processing unit for updating a storage unit. 5. The printing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the operation data is a print processing program. 6. The printing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the operation data is function setting data.