JP2004070970A - Information processing device, method and storage medium - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image processing device, a method and a storage medium efficiently operating various functions possessed by a plurality of processing devices in the whole system. <P>SOLUTION: This information processing device communicable with a plurality of devices via a network is provided with a first acquisition means acquiring function information of the plurality of devices, a storage means storing the device function information acquired by the acquisition means, a receiving means receiving an update request of the function information stored in the storage means, or the update request of the function information transmitted from the device newly connected to the network, a second acquisition means, when the receiving means receives the update request, acquiring the function information of the device transmitting the update request, and an update means updating the function information stored in the storage means based on the function information acquired by the second acquisition means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

The present invention relates to an information processing device, an information processing method, and a storage medium configured by a plurality of devices connected to a network.

In a conventional image processing system, functions such as document processing, image reading, image transfer, and the like are incorporated in one apparatus. A device having a function is selected in accordance with a process desired by the user (for example, see Patent Document 1).
JP-A-8-328781

利用 In order to use the devices as in the conventional example, the user needs to know to some extent the functions installed in each device. Further, in an environment where some of such devices are installed, the user must select a device as needed at that time based on knowledge of the functions mounted on each device. .

An object of the present invention is to provide an image processing system that can efficiently operate various functions provided in a plurality of processing apparatuses in the entire system.

According to the present invention, in an information processing apparatus capable of communicating with a plurality of devices via a network, a first acquisition unit for acquiring function information of the plurality of devices, and a function of the device acquired by the acquisition unit Storage means for storing information; receiving means for receiving a function information update request transmitted from a device newly connected to a network, the function information update request being stored in the storage means; When the means receives the update request, the second acquisition means for acquiring the function information of the device which has transmitted the update request, and the information is stored in the storage means based on the function information acquired by the second acquisition means. And an updating unit for updating the function information.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the information processing apparatus acquires the function information of a plurality of devices on the network, and further stores the function information in the storage unit of the information processing apparatus transmitted from a device newly connected to the network. The function information update request is received, the function information of the device that has transmitted the update request is acquired, and the function information stored in the storage unit is updated, so that when the device is newly connected, the function information of the device is updated. Can be obtained immediately. Furthermore, the connection status of network devices can be efficiently grasped without performing processing such as periodically acquiring function information of network devices.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the information processing apparatus acquires the function information of the device on the network when the power is turned on, and further acquires the dynamic attribute information of the device on the network when the processing is requested by the user. Then, since the device to execute the processing request is determined based on the acquired information, it is possible to avoid a situation in which a device in an unusable state is selected when performing the processing, Network devices can be used efficiently.

最 良 The best mode for carrying out the invention is the following embodiment.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an image processing system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 1, system controllers 101 and 120 for controlling the entire system include a CPU serving as a control center, a memory for storing various information, and a communication unit for performing communication via a network 100. .

Further, in this system, the image reading devices 102 and 121, the document processing device 103, the image memories 112 and 113, the image processing devices 114 and 115, the printers 104 to 107, and the output processing devices 108 to 111 are connected to the network 100. Each of these devices also has its own control CPU, memory and communication unit.

{Circle around (1)} In the system, an operation is designated by an operation unit (not shown) in the system controller 101 and processing is started. When the processing is started, the document processed by the document processing device 103 is sent to the image reading device 102, and the image information read by the image reading device 102 is sent to the image memory 112 or 113 for storage.

The image information stored in the image memory 112 or 113 is sent to the image processing device 114 or 115 for processing, and further sent to any of the printers 104 to 107. Images are recorded on recording media such as paper by the printers 104 to 107, and predetermined processing is performed on the recorded recording media by the output processing devices 108 to 111. The predetermined process refers to, for example, a stapling process for binding output recording media into one or a bookbinding process.

FIG. 2 is a list expressing the functions of the respective constituent devices connected on the network described in FIG. This list is hereinafter referred to as a profile.

As shown in the figure, the profile of each component device includes a profile 200 of an image reading portion, a profile 201 of an image memory portion, a profile 202 of a printer portion, and a profile 203 of an image processing portion.

Next, details of the profile 200 of the image reading portion will be described.

First, the main scanning resolution indicates the resolution at which the reading unit reads a document image. Usually, there are resolutions such as 400 dpi and 600 dpi, and among these, the resolution at which the read portion can be output is set in the profile.

解像度 The resolution of the sub-scan is determined by the upper and lower limits. An image reading apparatus configured to irradiate a document with light and input reflected light to a photoelectric conversion element and extract the reflected light as an image signal has a configuration in which a light source for document irradiation is moved in a sub-scanning direction. Therefore, by changing the moving speed of the optical system, it is possible to change the density of the image signal read into the photoelectric conversion element, that is, the resolution. Therefore, the upper and lower limits are set as the profile.

読 取 The reading color is a kind of color that can be read by the optical system. In a normal image reading apparatus, there are full-color (RGB) reading, black-and-white reading, and the like. Therefore, which reading method is possible is set in the profile.

画像 In the image output mode, the method of outputting the read image data is set. For example, in the case of full-color reading, is it possible to simultaneously output three colors by scanning the original once, or to scan the original in three scans and output sequentially?

The document reading mode is how the document processing unit 103 performs document processing. For example, whether to read both the front and back images of a document, whether to read only one side, or whether to read each half of an A3-size image sequentially and so on.

(4) The readable size indicates the size of a document that can be read by the document reading unit.

Next, details of the profile 201 of the image memory portion will be described.

First, the usable capacity is the remaining capacity of the image memory that can receive an image. The image receiving mode indicates an image output mode in which the image can be received. As described above, depending on the output mode of the image sent from the image reading unit 102, the image memory may not be able to receive the image. In particular, it is set whether or not a mode capable of simultaneously outputting image data for the three colors as described above can be handled.

保存 The storage function means whether or not a function to store the image after outputting the stored image is provided. Depending on the image memory, a configuration that is not suitable for storage may be adopted, so that such a function is explicitly notified.

Next, the profile 202 indicates the profile of the printer portion as described above. This profile is in a format having information of the output processing devices 108 to 111 in addition to the printers 104 to 107. I have.

First, the main-scanning resolution and the sub-scanning resolution represent the respective main-scanning and sub-scanning resolutions of the output image of the printer. The outputable size is a list of paper sizes of the printer. The output possible mode indicates an output mode that can be realized by an application such as the presence or absence of a duplex unit or a sorter, and includes a “duplex output mode”, a “sort mode”, a “staple mode”, and the like.

The color mode is information on colors that the printer can handle, and includes information such as “black and white”, “color”, “binary”, and “multi-value”.

The image receiving mode indicates what image interface the printer can receive image data. For example, a one-drum type color printer receives four color image data in four times. On the other hand, the four-drum type color printer uses the area to describe the difference such as receiving the data of each of the four colors simultaneously at independent timing.

Next, the profile 203 of the image processing part indicates a template of the profile of the image processing devices 114 and 115.

First, the image processing group represents the image processing of the unit, and expresses “filter processing”, “γ table processing”, and the like.

The receivable parameters indicate which of the setting parameters input from a user interface unit (not shown) connected to the system controller can be received as input parameters, and are stored in the image processing unit. The type of the data table is shown.

For example, “filter processing” is a user setting parameter such as a document type (text / photo / map) and a sharpness adjustment value, and “γ table processing” is a user setting parameter such as a density correction and a color balance adjustment value. It indicates the type of the non-linear data table built in the unit.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an operation of collecting static information, that is, one type of profile, in the present embodiment. This flowchart is executed, for example, when the power of the system controller 101 is turned on and when the profile of each device connected to the network 100 is collected.

First, when collecting information, an address uniquely assigned to each of the devices 101 to 111 connected to the network 100 in FIG. 1 is used.

Step 301 is a step of inquiring each device about a function, and inquiring a function to a certain device using the address. In step 302, the profile obtained in step 301 is stored in the memory inside the system controller 101.

Step 303 is a step for judging whether or not inquiry has been completed for all addresses, that is, for all devices connected to the network 100. If not, the process branches to step 301, and the process is performed for the next address. If the processing has been completed, the technique moves to step 304, and the collection flow ends.

The above-described collection processing operation is also performed when a new device is added to the network 100 after the power is turned on. In this case, the newly added device issues a static information update request to the system controller 101, and the system controller 101 that has received the request updates the static information by the collection processing operation of FIG.

Next, how the respective profiles are used when the copy processing is started in the image processing system will be described with reference to FIG.

First, profiles are collected again for each functional unit connected to the image processing system (400). This is because there are some profiles whose contents dynamically change. For example, the image memory units (112 to 113) can know the storable capacity at that time here. It is also for confirming whether the functional unit connected at the time of starting the system can be used at this time.

Next, the setting parameters input from a user interface unit (not shown) connected to the system controller are analyzed and decomposed into settings for each functional unit (401). For example, in response to a user setting of “A3 double-sided color original composed of photographs is output at full-size A3 sides with density adjusted slightly brighter at the same magnification”, “A3 original”, “photo mode”, “color original reading”, RDF, "100% magnification in main scanning", "100% magnification in sub-scanning", "density adjustment value", "full-color output", and "A3-sided output".

(4) Further, it is checked whether the functions in the collected profiles can be realized (402). In this case, “A3 document” is the image reading device 102 and the image memories 112 and 113, and “Photo mode” is the filter processing function unit (image processing device 114), the γ table processing unit (image processing device 115), and the “color document”. “Reading”, “RDF”, “main scanning scaling factor 100%”, “sub-scanning scaling factor 100%”, etc., are the image reading device 102 and the printers 104 to 107, and “density adjustment value” is the γ table processing unit (image processing device 115) For "full color output" and "A3 double-sided output", the printers 104 to 107 and each profile are checked to determine whether the above settings are possible.

Then, the desired functional unit is temporarily unavailable for some reason (for example, being used in another work) and there is no substitute, but the state of the functional unit changes in the future (to be released from other work). Then, when it is found from the collection of the dynamic profile that there is a possibility of being usable, the fact is notified via a user interface unit (not shown) connected to the system controller. stand by.

{Circle around (4)} When it is determined that the copying is not possible, the copying process is interrupted as an exception process (405), and the fact is notified via a user interface unit (not shown) connected to the system controller.

(4) Further, a functional unit is selected for each function, and the analyzed parameters are set (403). For this setting, an image reading unit (102) and a printer capable of A3 full-color double-sided output (in this case, it is assumed that the printer 104 satisfies the conditions), a filter processing function unit (image processing device 114) And a γ table processing unit (image processing device 115) are selected, and various setting parameters are set in each unit.

Assuming that the selected image reading device 102 and printer 104 handle an image resolution of 400 dpi, an image memory capable of storing an A3 image at 400 dpi (in this case, it is assumed that the image memory 112 satisfies the condition). ) Is selected.

(4) Thereafter, the system enters a copy operation (404).

As described above, in the present embodiment, the two system controllers 101 and 120 can select the respective units in the system as needed and perform the optimum processing operation without interfering with each other. Resources in the system can be used effectively.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, but can be similarly applied to a system provided with more functional units.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a system configuration according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a configuration example of a profile according to the embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the processing operation of the said Example. It is a flowchart which shows the processing operation of the said Example.

Explanation of reference numerals

100 ... network,
101, 120 ... system controller,
102, 121 ... image reading device,
103: Document processing device,
104-107: Printer,
108 to 111 ... output processing device,
112, 113 ... image memory,
114, 115 ... image processing devices.

Claims (6)

In an information processing apparatus capable of communicating with a plurality of devices via a network,
First acquisition means for acquiring function information of the plurality of devices;
Storage means for storing the function information of the device acquired by the acquisition means;
Receiving means for receiving a function information update request transmitted from a device newly connected to the network, the function information update request being stored in the storage means;
A second acquisition unit that, when the reception unit receives the update request, acquires function information of a device that has transmitted the update request;
Updating means for updating the function information stored in the storage means based on the function information obtained by the second obtaining means;
An information processing apparatus comprising: In an information processing apparatus capable of communicating with a plurality of devices via a network,
Acquisition means for acquiring function information of the plurality of devices;
Determining means for determining a device to execute the processing request based on the content of the processing request specified by the user and the function information of the device obtained by the obtaining means;
Wherein the obtaining means obtains the function information when the information processing apparatus is powered on, and further obtains the dynamic attribute information of the device when the user requests the processing. An information processing apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. In claim 2,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the dynamic attribute information is information indicating function information of a device whose state changes with time. In an information processing method capable of communicating with a plurality of devices via a network,
A first acquisition step of acquiring function information of the plurality of devices;
A storage step of storing the function information of the device obtained in the obtaining step;
A receiving step of receiving a function information update request transmitted from a device newly connected to the network, the function information update request being stored in the storage step;
A second acquisition step of acquiring the function information of the device that has transmitted the update request when the update request is received in the reception step;
An updating step of updating the function information stored in the storage step based on the function information obtained in the second obtaining step;
An information processing method comprising: In an information processing method capable of communicating with a plurality of devices via a network,
An obtaining step of obtaining function information of the plurality of devices;
A determining step of determining a device to execute the processing request based on the content of the processing request specified by the user and the function information of the device obtained in the obtaining step;
Wherein the acquiring step acquires the function information when the information processing apparatus is powered on, and further acquires dynamic attribute information of the device when the user makes the processing request. An information processing method, comprising: A recording medium recording a program executed by an information processing device capable of communicating with a plurality of devices via a network,
A first acquisition step of acquiring function information of the plurality of devices;
A storage step of storing the function information of the device obtained in the obtaining step;
A receiving step of receiving an update request transmitted from a device newly connected to the network, the request being an update of the function information stored in the storage step;
A second acquisition step of acquiring the function information of the device that has transmitted the update request when the update request is received in the reception step;
An updating step of updating the function information stored in the storage step based on the function information obtained in the second obtaining step;
A computer-readable recording medium on which a program for executing the program is recorded.

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