JP2002361990A - Image processor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image processor in which an error can be displayed even during operation of a power saving function. SOLUTION: Even if an error is generated in a reading section 14 or a recording section 15 before a transition is made to power saving mode and a transition is made to power saving mode before the error is recovered, the error is stored in a RAM 13 before a transition is made to power saving mode. During operation in power saving mode, an error indicating the jamming of a document or a recording sheet or the end of recording sheet or toner is displayed at a display section 17 based on an error stored in the RAM 13. Consequently, an error can be displayed at the display section 17 even during operation of the power saving function of power saving mode.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus represented by a facsimile machine with a copying function (hereinafter, referred to as a multifunction machine), and more particularly, to a power saving function in an energy saving mode (hereinafter, energy saving mode). The present invention relates to an image processing device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, in order to save energy, a multifunction peripheral has a reading unit when a predetermined time elapses without various operations being performed while the power is on or when a power saving key is operated. And a power saving function for reducing or interrupting the power supply to the recording unit to suppress power consumption, that is, a so-called energy saving mode. In order to impress the user that the mode can be returned to the normal mode quickly and intuitively even after shifting to the energy saving mode, there is also a multifunction peripheral that maintains the power supply to the display unit and displays the operation state on the display unit. is there.

[0003]

By the way, the multifunction peripheral is
Various sensors for detecting errors of the multifunction machine, such as a jam sensor for detecting whether a jam has occurred in the conveyance path of the original or the recording paper, and a presence / absence sensor for detecting the presence / absence of the recording paper or toner, are provided. In order to further reduce the power consumption during the energy saving mode, it is preferable that the power supply to these various sensors is also cut off.

Here, in such a configuration in which the power supply to various sensors is also shut off during the energy saving mode, a jam occurs in the document conveyance path before shifting to the energy saving mode, and the jam is released. It is assumed that the mode has shifted to the energy saving mode before. In such a case, before shifting to the energy saving mode, the fact that a document jam has occurred is displayed on the display unit based on the detection signal from the document jam sensor. Then, when a predetermined time has elapsed in this state and the mode shifts to the energy saving mode, the power supply to the document jam sensor is cut off.

As a result, the detection signal is not output from the original jam sensor based on the interruption of the power supply to the original jam sensor. Therefore, during the power saving mode, even if the power supply to the display unit is maintained, the fact that the document jam has occurred is not displayed on the display unit even though the document jam has not been cleared.

The present invention has been made in view of such a problem, and an object thereof is to provide an image processing apparatus capable of displaying an error even when a power saving function is operating. Is to do.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an error detecting means for detecting an error, and a storing means for storing the error detected by the error detecting means. Display means for displaying an error,
Control means for displaying the error stored in the storage means on the display means.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the image processing apparatus according to the first aspect, the control unit shuts off power supply to the error detection unit while the power saving function is operating.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the image processing apparatus according to the first or second aspect, the image processing apparatus further includes a recovery detecting unit that detects a start of recovery of the error, and the control unit is configured to perform the recovery based on the detection signal from the recovery detecting unit. To cancel the operation of the power saving function.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment in which an image processing apparatus according to the present invention is embodied in a multifunction peripheral will be described below with reference to the drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1, the multifunction device 1 includes an MPU 1
1, ROM 12, RAM 13, reading unit 14, recording unit 1
5, an operation unit 16, a display unit 17, an image memory 18, a codec 19, a modem 20, and an NCU (network control circuit) 21. The units 11 to 21 are connected via a bus 22 respectively. Further, the multifunction peripheral 1 includes a document jam sensor 3
1, recording paper jam sensor 32, recording paper presence / absence sensor 33,
Toner presence / absence sensor 34, document jam open / close sensor 41,
Recording paper jam opening / closing sensor 42, cassette opening / closing sensor 43, toner opening / closing sensor 44, FBS opening / closing sensor 4
5, a document presence sensor 46 and a power supply circuit 50 are provided.

The MPU 11 controls each part of the multifunction device 1. The ROM 12 stores a program for controlling the MFP 1. The RAM 13 temporarily stores various information related to the multifunction peripheral 1, specifically, errors of the multifunction peripheral 1.

The reading unit 14 includes a flatbed scanner (FBS) for reading a stationary document placed on a document placing plate and an automatic document reading unit (ADF) for reading a document placed on a platen while feeding the document. And reads the image of the original one line at a time. Then, the image data of the read image is binarized into black and white, and the binarized image data for one line is sequentially output to the codec 19.

The recording unit 15 is composed of an electrophotographic printer, and records received image data on a recording paper in a facsimile operation and image data read by the reading unit 14 in a copy operation.

The operation unit 16 includes a power saving key 16a for shifting from the normal mode to the energy saving mode, a FAX / copy key for setting the FAX mode or the copy mode,
Various operation keys such as a numeric keypad (including the * and # keys) for inputting a telephone number or the number of copies, and a start key for starting an original reading operation are provided.

A display unit 17 composed of an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) displays various kinds of information indicating the operation state of the multifunction device 1 and the like. The image memory 18 temporarily stores image data read by the reading unit 14 and encoded by the codec 19 and received image data. The codec 19 includes the reading unit 14
MH, MR, MMR, JBI
The data is compressed and encoded by the G method or the like. The codec 19 decodes the image data read from the image memory 18.

The modem 20 is based on ITU (International Telecommunication Union) -T Recommendation T.30. 30 based on a facsimile transmission control procedure according to V.30. 17, V.I. 27ter, V.A. Modulation of the transmission data and demodulation of the reception data according to 29 or the like. The NCU 21 has a function of closing and opening the telephone line L, a function of transmitting a dial signal corresponding to the telephone number of the other party, and a function of detecting an incoming call.

The document jam sensor 31 detects whether a jam has occurred in the conveyance path of a document placed on a document table.
The recording paper jam sensor 32 determines whether or not a jam has occurred in the transport path of the recording paper stored in the recording paper cassette.
Detect each. The recording paper presence / absence sensor 33 detects the presence / absence of recording paper contained in a recording paper cassette, and the toner presence / absence sensor 34 detects the presence / absence of toner contained in a toner case or a toner cartridge. In other words,
These document jam sensors 31 to toner presence sensor 34
Detects an error of the reading unit 14 or the recording unit 15, specifically, an error of a jam of a document or a recording sheet, an error of a recording sheet, or an out of toner.

The document jam open / close sensor 41 detects the open / closed state of an ADF cover that opens and closes to clear the jam when a jam occurs in the transport path of the document placed on the document table. The recording paper jam open / close sensor 42 detects the open / closed state of a recording paper jam release cover that opens and closes to release the jam when the paper jam occurs in the conveyance path of the recording paper stored in the recording paper cassette. . The cassette open / close sensor 43 detects when the recording paper runs out.
The open / close state of a recording paper cassette that opens and closes to replenish recording paper is detected.

The toner open / close sensor 44 detects the open / closed state of a toner replenishing cover that opens and closes to replenish the toner in the toner case or replace the toner cartridge when the toner runs out. FBS open / close sensor 45
Detects the open / closed state of the FBS cover that opens and closes to place the original on the original placing plate when reading the original with the FBS. The document presence sensor 46 detects the presence or absence of a document on the document table. In other words, the document jam open / close sensor 41
The FBS opening / closing sensor 45 includes the reading unit 14 or the recording unit 1.
5, the start of recovery from the error is detected, and the
Detects the start of use of the multifunction peripheral 1.

The power supply circuit 50 includes components 11 to 13, 16 to 21 and various sensors 41 to 41, as shown by broken lines in FIG.
The power is always supplied to 46 regardless of the normal mode or the energy saving mode. In addition, the power supply circuit 50 supplies power to the reading unit 14, the recording unit 15, and the various sensors 31 to 34 in the normal mode and supplies power in the energy saving mode, as indicated by a dashed line in FIG. Cut off.

Next, in the MFP 1, when an error occurs in the reading unit 14 or the recording unit 15 before shifting to the energy saving mode, and the mode shifts from the normal mode to the energy saving mode before the error is recovered. The operation when returning from the energy saving mode to the normal mode will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. Note that this operation is
Based on the program stored in the OM 12, the MPU 11
This is executed under the control of.

If an error occurs in the reading unit 14 or the recording unit 15 during the operation in the normal mode, that is, when a jam of the original or the recording paper, the recording paper, or the toner runs out, at step S1 shown in FIG. Based on the detection signal from the toner presence / absence sensor 34, the display 17 indicates that an error has occurred such as a document or recording paper jam, recording paper or toner out.

In step S2, the normal mode is maintained until the condition for shifting from the normal mode to the energy saving mode is satisfied. Then, when the condition for shifting to the energy saving mode is satisfied, the process shifts to step S3. Specifically, when a predetermined time has elapsed without performing various operations in a state where an error has occurred, or before the predetermined time has elapsed, the power saving key 16 is turned off.
If a has been operated, the process proceeds to step S3.

In step S3, the document jam sensor 31
Based on a detection signal from the toner presence / absence sensor 34, the RAM 13 stores a jam of a document or recording paper, an error of running out of recording paper or toner.

In step S4, the mode shifts from the normal mode to the energy saving mode. Specifically, as shown by a dashed line in FIG. 1, the supply of power from the power supply circuit 50 to the reading unit 14, the recording unit 15, and the document jam sensor 31 to the toner presence / absence sensor 34 is shut off. As a result, the document jam sensors 31 to 31
Based on the interruption of power supply to the toner presence sensor 34, the MPU 11
No detection signal is output. Therefore, during the energy saving mode, the display unit 17 displays that a document or recording paper jam error, a recording paper or toner out error has occurred based on the error stored in the RAM 13 in step S3.

In step S5, the energy saving mode is maintained until a return factor from the energy saving mode to the normal mode occurs. Then, when a return factor to the normal mode occurs, the process proceeds to step S6. Specifically, when the ADF cover or the like is opened or when a document is placed on the document table, the process proceeds to step S6 based on the detection signals from the document jam opening / closing sensor 41 to the document presence sensor 46. I do. The process also proceeds to step S6 when the NCU 21 detects an incoming fax and records the received image data, or when a key is input from the operation unit 16.

In step S6, the energy saving mode is canceled and the mode returns to the normal mode. As described above, according to the present embodiment, the following operations and effects can be obtained.

(1) Even if an error occurs in the reading unit 14 or the recording unit 15 before shifting to the energy saving mode, and the mode shifts to the energy saving mode before the error is recovered, the errors are reduced to the energy saving mode. Are stored in the RAM 13 before shifting to. Therefore, during the operation of the energy saving mode, R
Based on the error stored in the AM 13, the display unit 17 displays that an error has occurred such as a document or recording paper jam, recording paper or toner out. Therefore, an error can be displayed on the display unit 17 even when the power saving function in the energy saving mode is operating.

(2) In addition, during the operation of the energy saving mode, the display unit 17 informs the user of the occurrence of an error such as a jam of a document or a recording paper, a recording paper or toner shortage based on the error stored in the RAM 13. Is displayed. Therefore, it is not necessary to output a detection signal from the document jam sensor 31 to the toner presence / absence sensor 34 to the MPU 11 during the operation in the energy saving mode. As a result, an error in the reading unit 14 or the recording unit 15, specifically, a document jam sensor 31 to 31 that detects a jam of a document or recording paper, an error of running out of recording paper or toner, or the like.
The power supply to the toner presence sensor 34 can be cut off. Therefore, power consumption can be further reduced during the operation in the energy saving mode.

(3) Even if the energy saving mode is in operation,
Document jam opening / closing sensor 41 to FBS opening / closing sensor 4 for detecting the start of error recovery of reading unit 14 or recording unit 15
5 and a document presence sensor 4 for detecting the start of use of the multifunction device 1
6 is supplied with power. Then, for example, when a document jam has occurred, if the ADF cover is opened to clear the jam, the energy saving mode is canceled based on the detection signal from the document jam opening / closing sensor 41 and the normal mode is canceled. Has returned to. In other words, when the ADF cover is opened and the jam is released, it can be determined that the original that has not been normally read due to the jam is to be read again. Therefore, the temperature of the heat fixing device provided in the recording unit 15 can be raised to the fixing temperature by utilizing the time during which the user has cleared the jam. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the time required to return to the normal mode and become operable. In other words, when the original is read again and copied, the time until the first copy is completed can be reduced.

(4) Unlike the configuration of the present embodiment, in the configuration in which the power supply to the display unit 17 is cut off during the operation of the energy saving mode, for example, an error of running out of recording paper is displayed on the display unit 17 simultaneously with the completion of copying. Suppose that it was done. In such a case, for example, when the power saving key 16a is operated,
The mode shifts to the energy saving mode, and the error indication of running out of recording paper is erased from the display unit 17. Therefore, when a third party starts using the MFP 1, the third party must replenish the recording paper. However, in the present embodiment, even if the power saving key 16a is operated and the mode shifts to the energy saving mode, for example, the error indication of the out of recording paper is still displayed on the display unit 17. Therefore, if the recording paper runs out simultaneously with the completion of the copy, the user who has performed the copy can be made aware of the necessity of replenishing the recording paper.

The above embodiment can be embodied with the following modifications. As shown in FIG. 3, latch circuits L1 to L4 are provided between the document jam sensor 31 to the toner presence sensor 34 and the MPU 11 instead of storing the error of the MFP 1 in the RAM 13, The configuration may be such that the detection signals of the jam sensor 31 to the toner presence / absence sensor 34 are held (latched). The configuration is the same as that of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 except that the latch circuits L1 to L4 are provided. With this configuration, the detection signals of the document jam sensor 31 to the toner presence / absence sensor 34 are held by the latch circuits L1 to L4. Therefore, during the energy saving mode, the latch circuit L
Based on the detection signals of the document jam sensor 31 to the toner presence / absence sensor 34 held at 1 to L4, the display unit 17 displays that a document or recording paper jam, recording paper or toner out error has occurred. be able to.

The present embodiment may be embodied in a copier, an ADF type scanner or a printer. Further, technical ideas grasped from the above embodiment will be described below together with their effects.

[1] The image processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising use detecting means for detecting use start, and the control means based on a detection signal from the use detecting means. And an image processing device for canceling the operation of the power saving function. With such a configuration, it is possible to reduce the time required to return to the normal function and become operable.

[2] In the image processing apparatus according to any one of [1] to [3] and [1], the error detecting unit records the original on a recording sheet and a reading unit for reading the original. An image processing apparatus for detecting at least one error of the recording unit. With this configuration, even if the power saving function is operating, an error of the reading unit or the recording unit can be displayed.

[3] Claims 1-3, [1],
In the image processing device according to any one of [2],
The image processing device, wherein the storage unit is a latch circuit that holds a detection signal of the error detection unit. With this configuration, an error can be displayed even when the power saving function is operating.

[0037]

Since the present invention is configured as described above, it has the following effects. According to the invention described in any one of claims 1 to 3, an error can be displayed even when the power saving function is operating.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a multifunction peripheral.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an operation when shifting from the normal mode to the energy saving mode and when returning from the energy saving mode to the normal mode.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a main configuration of a multifunction peripheral according to another embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Multifunction machine as an image processing apparatus, 11 ... MPU which comprises a control means, 12 ... ROM which comprises a control means, 13
... RAM constituting control means and storage means, 14: reading section as reading means, 15 ... recording section as recording means,
17: display section as display means, 31: document jam sensor as error detection means, 32: recording paper jam sensor as error detection means, 33: recording paper presence / absence sensor as error detection means, 34: error detection means , A document jam opening / closing sensor as recovery detecting means; 42, a recording paper jam opening / closing sensor as recovery detecting means; 43, a cassette opening / closing sensor as recovery detecting means; An open / close sensor for toner, 45 ... an open / close sensor for FBS as recovery detection means, 46 ... a document presence / absence sensor as use detection means,
L1 to L4... Latch circuits as storage means.

Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat II (Reference) G03G 21/00 500 G03G 21/00 500 21/14 H04N 1/00 106B H04N 1/00 106 108H 108 108J G03G 21/00 372 F-term (reference) 2C061 AP07 HT03 HT07 HT08 HT13 HV09 HV14 HV32 2H027 DA26 DB07 DC14 DC18 DD02 EE08 EF09 EF16 EH03 EK04 EK06 FA16 FA18 FA22 FA35 FA37 FC07 FD08 GA15 GA23 GB03 GB06 AC52 AB02 AC06 AF15 BA00

Claims (3)

[Claims] An error detecting means for detecting an error, a storage means for storing the error detected by the error detecting means, a display means for displaying the error, and a control for displaying the error stored in the storage means on the display means. Image processing apparatus comprising: 2. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit cuts off power supply to the error detection unit during operation of the power saving function. 3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a recovery detecting unit for detecting a start of recovery of the error, wherein the control unit performs a power saving function based on a detection signal from the recovery detecting unit. Image processing device that cancels the operation of.