JP2001130102A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce power consumption of a printer arbitrarily. SOLUTION: The printer comprises a clock generating section 12 delivering a clock signal of an arbitrary frequency to an electronic device 13, and a control section 11 for controlling the frequency of a clock signal generated from the clock generating section 12 wherein the control operation is carried out by an external signal 14 or the internal signal 15 of an operation panel or an internal timer.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a printer which operates in synchronization with a clock signal.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional printer, a power supply is always turned on and consumes power even in a print waiting state. AC
In a printer without a power switch, a control circuit is provided in a power supply or the like to control power supplied to a device.

[0003]

First, the above-mentioned conventional printer has a problem that the power consumed by the device in the print waiting state is not so different from that in the printing.

Secondly, in a printer having no AC power switch, the power is always turned on. However, conventionally, a control circuit is provided in the power supply or the like, and the power supply to the device is controlled. There was a problem that becomes high.

An object of the present invention is to solve these problems and to provide a printer capable of performing energy saving control.

[0006]

According to the present invention, there is provided a printer comprising:
A clock generator for outputting a clock signal of an arbitrary frequency to a built-in device, and a controller for controlling the frequency of the clock signal output from the clock generator are provided.

Further, the present invention is characterized in that the control is performed by inputting an external signal, a signal from an operation panel, or a signal from an internal timer.

According to the present invention, the power consumption of the apparatus can be reduced by arbitrarily controlling the oscillation frequency of the internal device of the printer and changing the oscillation frequency.

[0009]

Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a printer according to the present invention. The printer 1 shown in FIG. 1 includes a control unit 11 to which an external signal 14 and an internal signal 15 are input, and a clock generation unit 12 which generates a clock signal based on a control signal from the control unit 11 and outputs the clock signal to an electronic device 13. And

The control unit 11 has a function of receiving an external signal 14 or an internal signal 15 and outputting a control signal to the clock generation unit 12. The clock generation unit 12
It has a function of outputting an arbitrary clock to the electronic device 13 by receiving a signal from the control unit 11.
The electronic device 13 operates by receiving a clock from the clock generator 12. The external signal 14 and the internal signal 15 output arbitrary signals to the control unit 11.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the signal input from the external interface 26 corresponds to the external signal 14, and the signal input from the operation panel 24 and the signal input from the internal timer 25 correspond to the internal signal shown in FIG. 1
Equivalent to 5.

Next, the operation of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. First, as a first control, when the device power is turned on, the clock generator 22 outputs an arbitrary clock signal a (MHZ). The device 23 receives the clock signal a (MHZ) and operates. The power consumed by the device 3 at the time of the clock signal a (MHZ) is A (W).

Next, when a signal from the operation panel 24 enters the control unit 21, a signal is output from the control unit 1 to the clock generator 22. The clock generator 22 that has received the signal from the control unit 21 generates a clock signal b (MH) that is a fraction of the clock signal a (MHZ).
Z) is output. In this embodiment, the clock signal b is １ ／ of the clock signal a.

At this time, the device 23 receives the clock signal b (b = a / 2) (MHZ) and operates.

As described above, as a result of reducing the operating speed (operating frequency) of the device 23, the power consumed by the device 23 becomes A / n (W), and the power consumption of the device can be reduced.

Further, as a second control, when the power supply of the device is turned on, the clock generator 22 outputs an arbitrary clock signal a (MHZ). The device 23 receives the clock signal a (MHZ) and operates.
The power consumed by the device 23 at the time of the clock signal a (MHZ) is A (W).

Next, the internal timer 25 monitors how much time has elapsed inside the apparatus, and outputs a signal to the control unit 21 when an operation such as printing for an arbitrary time has not been performed.

When a signal from the internal timer 25 enters the control unit 21, the control unit 21 outputs a signal to the clock generator 22. The clock generator 22 that has received the signal from the control unit 21 generates a clock signal b (b = a /
2) Output (MHZ). At this time, the device 23
Receives the clock signal b (MHZ) and operates.

As described above, as a result of lowering the operating speed (operating frequency) of the device 23, the power consumed by the device 23 becomes A / n (W), and the power consumption of the device can be reduced.

As a third control, the control unit 21
It monitors whether or not a print command is input from the external interface 26.
Output a clock signal b (b = a / 2) (MHZ), and the power consumption is A / n (W).

When the control unit 21 receives a print command from the interface 26, it sends a signal for outputting a clock signal a (MHZ) to the clock generator 22. Control unit 2
Clock generator 22 that has received a signal from
Outputs a clock signal a (MHZ). At this time,
The device 23 operates by receiving the clock signal a (MHZ).

The power consumed by the device at the time of the clock signal a (MHZ) is A (W).

As described above, in this embodiment, the power consumption of the apparatus can be reduced in the print waiting state.

Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing another embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 3, the clock signal c is output from the clock generator to the device A33, and the clock signal d is output to the device B34.

By controlling each clock signal input to each built-in device, it is possible to control power consumption in more detail.

In the above-described embodiment, an example of a printer that operates in synchronization with a clock signal has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and other devices that operate in synchronization with a clock signal may be used. Needless to say, it can be used for

[0029]

As described above, according to the present invention, the operation panel is operated, and the oscillation frequency of the clock signal is controlled by an arbitrary signal from the operation panel, a signal from an internal timer, and a signal from an external interface. However, since the power consumption can be changed, the power consumption can be arbitrarily reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing another embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Printer 11, 21, 31 Control part 12 Clock generation part 13 Electronic device 14 External signal 15 Internal signal 22, 32 Clock generator 23 Device 24, 35 Operation panel 25, 36 Internal timer 26, 37 External interface 33 Device A 34 Device B

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A printer comprising: a clock generator for outputting a clock signal of an arbitrary frequency to a built-in device; and a controller for controlling the frequency of the clock signal output from the clock generator. 2. The printer according to claim 1, wherein the control is performed by inputting an external signal, a signal from an operation panel, or a signal from an internal timer. 3. The printer according to claim 1, wherein a clock signal output from the clock generator to the built-in device is controlled for each built-in device. 4. A clock signal synchronizing operation, comprising: a clock generator for outputting a clock signal of an arbitrary frequency to a built-in device; and a controller for controlling the frequency of the clock signal output from the clock generator. apparatus. 5. The clock signal synchronous operation device according to claim 4, wherein the control is performed by inputting an external signal, a signal from an operation panel, or a signal from an internal timer. 6. The clock signal synchronous operation device according to claim 4, wherein a clock signal output from the clock generator to the built-in device is controlled for each built-in device. 7. A clock signal control method, wherein the frequency of a clock signal output from a clock generator to an internal device is controlled by inputting an external signal, a signal from an operation panel, or a signal from an internal timer. 8. The clock signal control method according to claim 7, wherein a clock signal output from the clock generator to the built-in device is controlled for each built-in device.