JP2001199126A - Electronic device or printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To realize an electronic device in a constitution using a power source switch of a self reset type in which a power source can be supplied simply by connecting an external power source and its function can be set. SOLUTION: Switches 50 and 51 are connected to a CPU 30. An initial state of the power source is identified by the CPU 30 from a state of the switches and stored in a nonvolatile memory 40. When the power source is supplied from outside, an internal power source Vcpu is supplied to the CPU 30 thereby starting the CPU. Subsequently contents stored in the nonvolatile memory 40 are checked. If the contents show to turn on the initial state of the power source, a power source switch circuit 61 is turned on thereby supplying internal power sources Vcc and Vp to a control circuit and a printing mechanism 10.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electronic apparatus such as a printer, and more particularly to a power supply control technique for an electronic apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, in an electronic apparatus such as a printer, a power switch is provided and turned on / off to turn on and off the power. Recently, a microcomputer (hereinafter referred to as a CPU) is built in and operated at all times, and an automatic reset type switch such as a membrane switch is provided. Each time the switch is pressed, power is supplied to other circuits. A configuration that is turned on / off is often used. When using such a printer, first connect the power supply to the power supply terminal, and then press the power switch to turn on the power supply.

[0003] Such an electronic device may be used alone, but is often used by connecting to another electronic device, for example, a personal computer. In such a case, power is supplied from a power terminal linked to a power switch of a personal computer or a power terminal that can be turned on / off in common to all systems.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In a conventional electronic device,
Set the power switch to the ON state in advance,
By supplying power to the power supply terminal, it was not possible to make it usable. Since the power switch is an automatic reset type, and the CPU detects the state of the power switch, it is necessary to first connect the power supply to the power terminal and then press the power switch as described above. is there.

In the form of a system connected to other electronic devices, it is necessary to turn on the power of all the electronic devices. Therefore, from the viewpoint of usability, it is desirable that this operation can be performed by one operation. For example, it is desired to turn on the power of a personal computer so that the power of an electronic device connected to the personal computer is also turned on, but this is not possible with a conventional electronic device.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems of a conventional electronic device, and has a control circuit which always operates when power is supplied thereto, and a control circuit which is controlled by the control circuit. A power switch circuit for turning on / off the power supply to circuits other than the control circuit, and an initial value for turning the power switch circuit on or off when power is supplied to the control circuit. A nonvolatile memory for storing, and an initial value setting means for setting the initial value in the nonvolatile memory, wherein the control circuit, when power is supplied, according to the initial value stored in the nonvolatile memory, The electronic device is configured to control on / off of the power switch circuit.

In this configuration, the apparatus further comprises a switch connected to the control circuit, wherein the control circuit controls the power switch circuit when the switch is pressed, and a power supply when the power is supplied to the other circuit. Turn off the supply,
The electronic device may be configured to turn on the power supply when the power is not supplied.

Further, the present invention provides a control circuit which always operates when power is supplied, a power switch circuit which is controlled by the control circuit and turns on / off the power supply to circuits other than the control circuit, A nonvolatile memory for storing an initial value for turning on or off a power switch circuit when power is supplied to the circuit, first and second switches connected to the control circuit, and a control circuit And a printing unit connected to the non-volatile memory. The printing unit prints an initial value stored in the non-volatile memory, and after printing, inputs an initial value newly set by the first and second switches. And the control circuit stores
The printer is configured to control on / off of the power switch circuit according to an initial value stored in the nonvolatile memory when power is supplied.

In the printer having this configuration, the control circuit controls the power switch circuit when the first switch is pressed, and turns off the power supply when power is supplied to the other circuit. Alternatively, the power supply may be turned on when the power is not supplied.

[0010] The control circuit may be configured to drive a paper feeding means provided in the printing unit to feed the printing paper when the second switch is pressed.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A printer according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the printer, FIG. 2 is a plan view without the upper case of the printer, and FIGS. 3 to 5 are explanatory views of an operation for storing an initial state of the power supply.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a printer according to the present invention. Reference numeral 10 denotes a printing mechanism for printing on print paper P. In this embodiment, a printing mechanism is provided with a thermal head described later. However, the present invention can use various printing mechanisms other than the thermal method.

Reference numeral 20 denotes a control circuit for controlling the printing mechanism. The control circuit 20, under the control of a CPU 30 described later, outputs print data input from the CPU 30 to the thermal head, and supplies a print signal to the thermal head to cause the thermal head to generate heat according to the print data. In addition, the sheet feeding mechanism described later of the printing mechanism 10 is driven to feed the print sheet P.

Reference numeral 60 denotes a power supply circuit, which receives power supply from the outside, converts the voltage into a necessary voltage inside the printer, and supplies it to each section as an internal power supply. The external power supply may be a commercial power supply, a DC power supply, or a battery. As the internal power supply, a 5 V or 3.3 V system for supplying to the logic unit and a high voltage system (for example, 24 V) applied to the thermal head are often provided, but the voltage is not limited to this.

The power supply circuit 60 includes a CPU 30 described later and C
Power is supplied to other circuits except the PU 30. Of which C
The internal power supply Vcpu is supplied to the PU 30 as long as power is supplied to the power supply circuit 60. On the other hand, in the middle of the power supply line from the power supply circuit 60 to each part, the power switch circuit 6
1 is provided. The power switch circuit 61 includes a CPU
Under the control of 30, the supply of the internal power supply Vcc and Vp to each unit is turned on / off. Since such a structure is employed, when power is supplied to the power supply circuit 60, the CPU 30 starts operating immediately. On the other hand, CPU
The circuits other than 30 operate when the power switch circuit 61 is turned on under the control of the CPU 30.

Reference numeral 30 denotes a CPU (microprocessor) for controlling each section of the printer 1 as described above. CPU3
The nonvolatile memory 40, the power switch 50, and the feed switch 51 are further connected to 0. These switches are constituted by so-called membrane switches, and are push-button switches of an automatic reset type. Therefore, normally, the contacts are open, and only when pressed, the contacts are closed.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the printer with the top cover of the printer removed. As shown in this figure, the power switch 50 and the feed switch 51 are mounted so as to face the upper surface of the printer 1 so that the operator can press the power switch 50 and the feed switch 51 from the upper surface of the printer. As shown in FIG. 1, one terminal of these switches is connected to GND (ground), the other terminal is connected to an internal power supply via resistors R1 and R2, and a connection with the resistor is formed. CPU 30
It is connected to the. The CPU determines the ON / OFF state of the switch by determining the voltage level of the connected terminal. When the switch is not pressed, the Vcc level is input to the CPU, and when the switch is pressed, the GND level is input. Therefore, the CPU can identify ON / OFF based on the voltage level.

The structure of the printer 1 will be further described with reference to FIG. 11 is a thermal head,
This printer is a so-called line head in which a number of heating elements are arranged along the width direction W of the printing paper. Each heating element is heated by the control circuit 20 in accordance with one line of image data to be printed. If the print paper P, which is a heat-sensitive paper, is in contact with the thermal head 11, a portion corresponding to the heated heating element is colored to form an image.

A roller-shaped platen 12 is provided to face the thermal head 11. The platen 12 is rotatably supported, rotates by the action of a platen driving gear provided at one end and a drive mechanism including a motor (not shown), and feeds the print paper P in the paper feed direction X. The platen 12 is configured to be detachable from the thermal head 11 in order to easily sandwich the print paper P between the thermal head 11 and the platen 12, but the details are omitted.

The print paper P is long and in the form of a roll, and is disposed below the printer 1 (Pr). Roll P
The print paper P guided from r passes between the thermal head 11 and the platen 12 from the lower part of the printer 1 upward, is printed here, and is fed in the paper feeding direction X.

A take-up roller 14 for taking up printed print paper is provided downstream of the paper feed direction X. The take-up roller 14 has a flange 1 at one end.
6 are provided to regulate the position of one side of the rolled print paper P. The winding roller 14
Is rotatably supported, and has a take-up roller driving gear 15 at one end. The take-up roller drive gear 15 is rotated by the action of a drive mechanism including a motor (not shown) to wind up the print paper P. In the configuration in which the drive mechanism is driven by one motor, a slip mechanism is provided in a part of the drive mechanism on the take-up roller 14 side so that the rotation of the take-up roller 14 and the rotation of the platen 12 are synchronized with each other. It is preferable to prevent slack between the thermal head 11 and the take-up roller 14.

Power switch 50 and feed switch 51
Is provided on the mounting table 52. Openings are provided in the upper cover (not shown) at positions corresponding to these switches. When the upper cover is put on the case 2, these switches can be operated from the openings. Reference numeral 53 denotes L indicating the status of the printer 1
ED, which is also visible from the opening of the upper cover.

Reference numeral 70 denotes an external power supply for supplying power to the printer 1. A power cable 71 extends from the external power supply 70, and a power jack 72 is provided at the end. On the other hand, a power supply connector 73 is provided on the printer 1 side, and a power supply jack 72 of an external power supply 70 is inserted into the power supply connector 73. The power supply connector 73 is connected to the power supply circuit 60 shown in FIG.

Next, the operation of the present printer will be described.
The present printer is characterized in that, when external power is supplied to the power connector 73, it is possible to set whether the power of the entire printer is turned on or off. The description will be made on the assumption that the power is turned off in the state.

First, when the power supply jack 72 of the external power supply 70 is connected to the power supply connector 73 of the printer 1, the internal power supply Vcpu is supplied from the power supply circuit 60 to the CPU 30.
The PU starts operating according to a predetermined program. This program includes a power switch 50 and a feed switch 51
It also includes a function to monitor the status of the server. In this state, C
The other circuits except for the PU 30 are still in the power-off state.

Subsequently, when the operator presses the power switch 50, the voltage of the terminal to which the power switch 50 is connected becomes Vcc.
Since the level changes from the level to the GND level, the CPU 30 detects this change and recognizes that the switch has been turned on. After recognizing that the power switch has been turned on, the CPU 30 subsequently instructs the power switch circuit 61 to turn it on, and supplies the internal power Vcc and Vp supplied from the power circuit 60 to the control circuit 20 and the printing mechanism 10. Thus, the entire configuration of the printer 1 operates. After that, CPU3
Printing is performed by the print mechanism 10 under the control of 0.

During this operation, the operator operates the feed switch 5
When the user presses 1, the CPU 30 recognizes that the switch is turned on, and controls the control circuit 20 to drive the sheet feeding mechanism of the printing mechanism 10, that is, the platen 12 and the take-up roller 14. As a result, the print paper P is fed in the paper feed direction X, and is taken up by the take-up roller 14.

When the power switch 50 is pressed again during operation, the CPU 30 recognizes that the switch is turned on, instructs the power switch circuit 61 to turn it off, and the power circuit 60 The supply of the internal power supply Vcc and Vp to the print mechanism 20 and the printing mechanism 10 is cut off. Thus, the printer 1 is turned off. However, even in this state, the internal power supply Vcpu is continuously supplied to the CPU 30.

Next, the operation of setting whether the power of the entire printer is turned on or off when the external power is supplied and the operation of the printer will be described.

First, the external power supply 70 is connected to the printer 1, and the power switch 50 is pressed while the feed switch 51 is being pressed in a state where power is not supplied to circuits other than the CPU 30 (power off state). The CPU 30 recognizes that this state is a condition for entering the function setting mode and shifts to the function setting mode, and prints the contents of the current initial state on the print paper P as shown in FIG. The contents of FIG. 3 include 3) Initial: Power Off, which indicates that the power-off state is set in the initial state. This initial state is stored in the non-volatile memory 40 shown in FIG. CP
After printing the initial state, U30 prints a prompt asking whether to set in this state, and waits for an input by the operator.

To change the initial state, the feed switch 51 is pressed here. The CPU 30 recognizes that the feed switch 51 has been pressed, and then prints the current initial state in more detail as shown in FIG. In the print content shown in FIG. 4, the combination of the instruction of 1 and 0 for setting each item and the current setting content are displayed, and the item of a black background and white characters is the current setting content. It is shown that. Regarding the initial state of the power supply, 3) 0: Power Off of the item of Initial is displayed with a white background on a black background, which indicates that the initial state is off. Here, the CPU 30 again prints a prompt asking whether to change this state, and waits for an input by the operator. The reason why the prompt is displayed repeatedly to make the operator judge is to surely recognize the intention of the operator, and in some cases, some of these steps may be simplified or more steps may be performed. May be finely divided.

If it is desired to change the settings, the power switch 50 is pressed here. The CPU 30 recognizes that the power switch 50 has been pressed, and prints the prompt shown in FIG. This prompt prompts the user to input the new settings by using the power switch 50 and the feed switch 51. To input "1" of the item shown in FIG. Indicates that the feed switch 51 should be input in order to input. In the case where only the initial state of the power supply among the items shown in FIG. 4 is changed to 1: Power On and the other items are set as they are, the items shown in FIG. Start typing in order. Since the current setting content is 100 1 1 1 1 1 0 0, this is set to 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 0 0. This is connected to the power switch 50 and the feed switch 5
To enter by 1, press the power switch feed switch power switch power switch power switch power switch power switch feed switch feed switch in order. When all of them are pushed, CPU 30
Prints the prompt shown in FIG. This prompt indicates that the settings just entered are stored in the non-volatile memory 40.
The user presses the power switch 50 in order to store the input contents. CPU
Numeral 30 recognizes that the power switch 50 has been pressed, stores the setting contents in the non-volatile memory 40, prints the prompt shown in FIG. I do.

Next, according to the set initial state of the power supply,
The operation of controlling the power at the time of power supply will be described.

First, when the power supply jack 72 of the external power supply 70 is connected to the power supply connector 73 of the printer 1, the internal power supply Vcpu is supplied from the power supply circuit 60 to the CPU 30.
The PU starts operating according to a predetermined program. In this state, other circuits except the CPU 30 are still in a power-off state. The operation so far is as described above.

Subsequently, the CPU 30 operates as follows:
Of the power supply initial state among the contents stored in the storage device, and determines this. As described above, regarding the initial state of the power supply, 1: Power On is stored. The CPU 30 instructs the power switch circuit 61 to turn it on in accordance with the result of the determination of the initial state, and supplies the internal power Vcc and Vp supplied from the power circuit 60 to the control circuit 20 and the printing mechanism 10. Thus, the entire configuration of the printer 1 operates. Thereafter, printing is performed by the printing mechanism 10 under the control of the CPU 30.

If the item related to the initial state of the power supply among the contents stored in the nonvolatile memory 40 is 0: Power Off, the CPU 30 does not turn on the power supply switch circuit 61 and the control circuit 20 and the printing mechanism 10 remain unpowered. In this case, the power is supplied by the operator pressing the power switch 50 as described above.

[0037]

According to the printer configured as described above, it is possible to set whether the internal power supply is turned on or off when power is supplied to the power supply terminal. If it is set to the ON state, the internal power supply can also be turned on when power is supplied to the power supply terminal. The operation of turning on the switch can be omitted, and the system can be used easily. If the initial state is set to the off state, the internal power can be turned on by pressing the power switch, so that it is possible to cope with a case where the printer is to be used independently. As described above, according to the present invention, there is an effect that the system can be flexibly configured.

Although the configuration of the printer has been described as an embodiment to explain the present invention, the present invention can be implemented in other electronic devices, and the same effects as above can be exerted.

[Brief description of the drawings]

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

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the printer according to the embodiment of the present invention, from which an upper case is removed.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram (1) of an operation for storing an initial state of a power supply of a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram (2) of an operation for storing an initial state of the power supply of the printer according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram (3) of an operation for storing an initial state of the power supply of the printer according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Printer 2 Case 10 Printing mechanism 11 Thermal head 12 Platen 13 Platen drive gear 14 Take-up roller 15 Take-up roller drive gear 20 Control circuit 30 CPU 40 Non-volatile memory 50 Power switch 51 Feed switch 52 Mounting base 53 LED 60 Power supply circuit 61 Power switch circuit 70 External power supply 71 Power cable 72 Power jack 73 Power connector P Print paper Pr Roll print paper X Paper feed direction Y Width direction

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued on the front page F term (reference) 2C061 AQ04 HJ03 HJ10 5B011 DA01 DA06 DB11 DB21 EB01 EB08 MB11 MB16 5G065 FA02 GA06 JA02 KA01 KA04 LA07

Claims (5)

[Claims] A control circuit that operates constantly when power is supplied; a power switch circuit that is controlled by the control circuit and that turns on / off power supply to circuits other than the control circuit; A nonvolatile memory that stores an initial value of whether to turn on or off the power switch circuit when power is supplied to the circuit; and an initial value setting unit that sets the initial value in the nonvolatile memory. The electronic device, wherein the control circuit is configured to control on / off of the power switch circuit according to an initial value stored in the nonvolatile memory when power is supplied. And a switch connected to the control circuit, wherein the control circuit controls the power switch circuit when the switch is pressed, and a power supply when power is supplied to the other circuit. 2. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the power supply is turned off, and the power supply is turned on when the power is not supplied. 3. A control circuit which operates constantly when power is supplied, a power switch circuit which is controlled by the control circuit and turns on / off power supply to circuits other than the control circuit, and A nonvolatile memory that stores an initial value of whether to turn on or off the power switch circuit when power is supplied to the circuit; first and second switches connected to the control circuit; A printing unit connected to the control circuit, wherein the initial value stored in the nonvolatile memory is printed by the printing unit, and after printing, an initial value newly set by the first and second switches is provided. Inputting a value and storing the value in the non-volatile memory, the control circuit, when power is supplied, according to the initial value stored in the non-volatile memory, the power switch circuit Printer, characterized by being configured to on / off control. 4. The control circuit controls the power switch circuit when the first switch is pressed, and turns off the power supply when the power is supplied to the other circuit, so that the power is supplied. 4. The printer according to claim 3, wherein the power supply is turned on when the printer is not in operation. 5. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control circuit drives a paper feeding unit provided in the printing unit to feed the printing paper when the second switch is pressed. The printer according to claim 3, wherein