JP2004364018A - Scanner head, scanner apparatus, manufacturing method of contact image sensor, and data processing method of scanner apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a scanner head and a scanner apparatus capable of easily acquiring attribute information of a replaced scanner head without the need for revising an output means of the scanner head provided with a CIS. <P>SOLUTION: The task above is achieved with the scanner apparatus that is provided with: the scanner head 11 for storing its own attribute data to a dummy element; a data separation section 31 for separating output data outputted from the scanner head 11 into output data of the dummy element and output data of valid elements, and outputting the output data; a discrimination processing section 32 for extracting the attribute data from the output data of the dummy element received from the data separation section 31 and selecting control software corresponding to the scanner head 11 particularized on the basis of the attribute data; and a data processing section for processing the output data of the valid elements received from the data separation section on the basis of the control software selected by the discrimination processing section 32. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a line scanner head and a scanner device using a CIS (Contact Image Sensor) as an image reading element.
[0002]
[Prior art]
There are many types of CIS. For example, there are various types of CIS according to differences in size, reading speed, number of pixels, resolution, etc., differences in monochrome / color, and the like. These CISs have different shift clock pulses, transfer speeds, and other attributes according to their types. Therefore, the scanner device processes and controls the read data according to the function or attribute unique to the attached image reading element (imaging element). In order to perform these controls, the scanner device has control software suitable for CIS. Therefore, when replacing the CIS with another type of CIS, the control software must be changed in accordance with the function and attribute. Therefore, as a conventional scanner device, a CIS and a control software are integrally configured as a pair, or a plurality of firmware corresponding to each CIS is built in, and the corresponding firmware is set according to the type of the CIS. Some of them are used by manually switching or changing the settings. There is also a conventional technique for monitoring the peak output level of a CIS to determine the type of the CIS (see Patent Document 1).
[0003]
[Patent Document 1]
JP 2000-69289 A
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
As described above, in order to replace the CIS, a scanner head block (hereinafter, referred to as a scanner head) including the CIS is provided so as to be replaceable, and control is performed in accordance with attribute data including the CIS resolution and function of the replaced scanner head. Software type or settings need to be changed. However, these changing operations and switching operations are complicated and complicated operations that must be performed while accurately recognizing the type and attribute of the CIS. If these operations are performed each time the scanner head is replaced, it is difficult to perform these operations. There is a problem from the viewpoint of practicality. On the other hand, it is not preferable from the viewpoint of economy to manufacture individual scanner devices according to individual scanner heads. In addition, in order to monitor the CIS output level, determine the CIS peak level, and determine the type, it is necessary to install a white reference plate or the like at the reading position. There is a problem that attribute information cannot be acquired.
[0005]
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the problems of the related art, and a scanner head and a scanner capable of easily acquiring attribute information of a replaced scanner head without changing output means of the scanner head having a CIS. An object is to provide an apparatus and a data processing method thereof.
[0006]
The present invention also provides a scanner device capable of acquiring attribute data of an attached CIS without using a special port or the like, and automatically changing the installed CIS control software according to the attribute of the CIS. And the provision of a method.
[0007]
Another object of the present invention is to provide a CIS capable of providing CIS attribute data and a method of manufacturing the same.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The present invention has solved the above-described problem by storing attribute data of the CIS used in the scanner head in a dummy element of the CIS and providing the attribute data of the scanner head to the scanner device by an image reading operation. The scanner device selects corresponding control software from a plurality of control software stored therein based on the acquired attribute data, and executes image data processing.
[0009]
A scanner head according to a first aspect of the present invention is a scanner head including a contact image sensor having a plurality of effective elements used for reading an image and a plurality of dummy elements not used for reading an image. The attribute data of the scanner head is stored. According to this aspect, the attribute data can be directly extracted from the scanner head, and the scanner device itself can determine the attribute of the scanner head and select control software. Note that the attribute of the scanner head is a concept that includes not only the attribute of the CIS used for the scanner head block but also the attributes such as the width and size of the scanner head.
[0010]
A scanner head according to another aspect of the present invention is characterized in that each of the plurality of dummy elements is pulled up or down to a predetermined voltage in accordance with each bit value of the attribute data to be stored. . According to this aspect, it is possible to store attribute data by effectively using elements that are not normally used. These data are preferably stored when the scanner is manufactured.
[0011]
A scanner head according to another aspect of the present invention is characterized in that the attribute data is stored in some of the dummy elements. It is not necessary to use all of the dummy elements, and the first few bits or the last few bits of the dummy elements should not be used to improve data storage accuracy or to use the dummy elements for other purposes. Is also possible.
[0012]
A scanner head according to another aspect of the present invention is characterized in that a dummy element is not provided with a pixel sensor and an output is pulled up or down to a predetermined voltage in accordance with each bit value of the attribute data. According to this aspect, the manufacturing cost can be reduced without providing unnecessary pixel sensors.
[0013]
In a scanner head according to another aspect of the present invention, a dummy element and an effective element are configured by the same element, a pixel sensor of the dummy element is set to be inoperable, and an output thereof is adjusted to a predetermined voltage according to the attribute data. Is set. In this aspect, it is possible to enjoy the advantage of having a uniform configuration of the effective element and the dummy element.
[0014]
A scanner device according to a first aspect of the present invention is configured to separate any one of the above-described scanner heads and output data output from the scanner head into output data of a dummy element and output data of an effective element. A data separation unit to be output, a determination processing unit that extracts attribute data from output data of the dummy element received from the data separation unit, and selects control software corresponding to the scanner head specified by the attribute data, and a determination processing unit. A data processing unit that processes output data of the effective element received from the data separation unit based on the selected control software. According to this aspect, the function of the scanner device can be flexibly changed by replacing the scanner head. Also, simply by replacing the scanner head, its attributes are automatically read and the corresponding control software is selected, so that the scanner head can be easily replaced at the work site.
[0015]
A scanner device according to another aspect of the present invention is characterized in that the scanner head is replaceably provided with a different type of scanner head.
[0016]
A method of manufacturing a scanner head according to a first aspect of the present invention includes a step of aligning and forming a plurality of elements for reading each pixel data of an image, and a method of stopping an image reading function of some of the elements, Forming a dummy element storing the above data.
[0017]
A method of manufacturing a scanner head according to another aspect of the present invention includes a step of aligning and forming a plurality of effective elements for reading each pixel data of an image; forming a dummy element different from the effective element; And a step of storing predetermined data.
[0018]
The data processing method of the scanner device according to the first aspect of the present invention is characterized in that (a) output data of each element of a scanner head including a contact image sensor having a dummy element storing attribute data and an effective element for reading an image. Sequentially receiving; (b) separating and outputting the output of the dummy element and the output of the effective element from the received output data; and (c) reading the attribute data from the output of the separated dummy element. A control software corresponding to the attribute data; and (d) a data processing step of processing the output data of the effective element separated by the specified control software.
[0019]
Another embodiment of the present invention is a program that causes a computer to execute each step of the data processing method. The computer includes a CPU, a logic circuit, a memory, various control programs, and the like, and executes each step of the data processing method by reading the program.
[0020]
Another embodiment of the present invention is a computer-readable recording medium that describes a program that causes a computer to execute each step of the data processing method.
The computer includes a CPU, a logic circuit, a memory, various control programs, and the like, and executes each step of the data processing method by reading a program recorded on the recording medium.
[0021]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described.
[0022]
There are many types of scanner heads used in scanner devices. For example, they are variously classified according to differences in attributes such as size, shape, number of image elements, difference in resolution, difference in monochrome or color, and performance and functions. In the scanner device, it is necessary to set control software according to the attributes of these scanners. However, at the time of development of a scanner device, since it is developed using only a specific type of scanner head to be developed, the necessity of directly obtaining the above information from the scanner head has not been recognized. For this reason, in the related art, the difference in the attribute information cannot be determined by the scanner head.
[0023]
However, there are cases where it is required to improve the reading accuracy of the scanner device or to improve functions such as enabling color reading. In order to provide a scanner device capable of flexibly changing its function in response to such a demand, it is necessary to make various scanner heads interchangeable. At that time, in order to operate the changed scanner device normally, (1) commonize various circuits and control software, and (2) determine the attribute of the replaced scanner head by the scanner device. It is desirable that control software corresponding to the scanner head can be automatically selected.
[0024]
In order to select appropriate control software, a process for causing the scanner device to recognize the attribute data of the scanner head after replacement is required. It is also possible to provide a switch or the like and input the attribute data by the user.However, this method has various problems such as an input error, troublesome setting, arrangement of setting switches, and cost. Absent. The present invention solves these points.
[0025]
This will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a multifunction device equipped with a scanner head according to the present invention. The multifunction device 10 has various functions such as a magnetic ink reading device, a printing device, and a scanner. Such a multifunction device is used, for example, for check processing by a POS system. The present invention is applicable not only to such a multifunction device but also to a scanner device having a line scanner head. FIG. 1 shows the arrangement of the scanner head 11, the MICR head 12, the print head 13, and the pressing rollers 14, 15 in order to simply show the configuration of the multifunction device. The paper 50 such as a check inserted from the insertion slot 17 is conveyed through the conveyance path 18 and discharged from the discharge port 19. Meanwhile, the magnetic ink characters are read by the MICR 12 and performed by the print head 13. The scanner head 11 is used for reading and storing an image such as a check, or for optically reading characters.
[0026]
As described above, a CIS head can be used as the scanner head 11. Therefore, in the following description, a CIS head will be described. The CIS head is an abbreviation of a contact image sensor, in which image sensors are arranged in a row in the horizontal or vertical direction, and reads an image while moving paper or the sensor. In a line scanner head such as a CIS head, reflected light of a read image is read by a plurality of image elements, and data output from each image element is extracted as analog serial data by a synchronous clock.
[0027]
The CIS head usually has a dummy element in addition to an effective image reading element (referred to as an effective element) used for image reading, and data of the dummy element is discarded. Usually, the first several tens of elements of the CIS are discarded as output data of the dummy elements. The dummy element is provided for various reasons such as manufacturing reasons and improving the accuracy of read data.
The number of image reading elements (hereinafter referred to as "image elements") provided in the CIS head depends on the resolution and the readable size, but usually a line scanner head in which 1000 or more image elements are arranged in one direction. It has become. The line scanner head outputs analog serial data by applying a synchronous clock. In the prior art, since several tens of dummy elements are provided before the first effective image element, the data of the first several tens of elements are discarded. The present invention provides a scanner head in which unique information is fixedly stored at the element level by embedding information (called attribute data) about the scanner head in the dummy element portion.
[0028]
FIG. 2 shows a basic electric structure of an image sensor element portion of the CIS head according to one embodiment of the present invention. Image sensor elements are arranged in a row corresponding to the pixels from which an image is read. Normally, a CIS head has several tens of dummy elements, but the CIS of the present embodiment has only three dummy elements (referred to as dummy elements) for easy understanding of the drawing. There are 1216 elements for acquiring an image (referred to as "effective elements").
[0029]
One effective element includes a pixel sensor c and a transistor b. One end of each of the pixel sensors c1 to cn is connected to the power supply line VCC, and the other end is connected to the emitter of each of the transistors b1 to bn. The collector end of the transistor is connected to the output line 25. The output line is connected to the amplifier 22, and is taken out as the output A0 of the amplifier 22. The output of the shift register 21 is input to the gates of the transistors b1 to bn. The shift register 21 is activated by an output start trigger SI and is driven to shift in accordance with a shift clock SCLK.
[0030]
An object to be read (such as a check) is irradiated by the issue LED 20, and the intensity of the reflected light is captured by the pixel sensors c1 and c2. VLED is an issue LED voltage, and GGND is an issue LED ground.
[0031]
Although the pixel sensor c is provided in the dummy element of the prior art similarly to the effective element, the dummy element of the present embodiment is constituted only by the transistor a. The emitter terminals of the transistors a1 to a3 are connected to the power supply line CC or the ground so as to indicate a bit value of desired attribute data. When connected to the power supply line CC, the bit value becomes “1”, and when connected to the ground, the bit value becomes “0”. Therefore, in the embodiment of FIG. 2, the dummy element indicates “101” as the attribute data. As described above, by fixing the dummy element to the power supply voltage or the ground level, the dummy element outputs fixed information.
[0032]
Reading is started by an output start trigger SI. When the output start trigger SI is output, the shift register 21 is activated, and outputs S1 to Sx of the shift register 21 are sequentially output according to the shift clock SCLK. When the outputs S1 to Sx of the shift register 21 become "high", the transistors a1 to a3 and b1 to bn are sequentially turned "on". Thus, the state of the emitter of each transistor is sequentially and serially output to the output line 25 according to the shift clock SCLK, and becomes the output A0 of the amplifier 22. In the scanner head of FIG. 2, the data for the first three clocks is the output of the dummy element, that is, the attribute data, and the subsequent output data is the effective element, that is, the analog output corresponding to the state of the pixel sensors c1 to cn. Become.
[0033]
FIG. 2 shows an embodiment, and the dummy element and the effective element are not limited to this configuration. The dummy element can store predetermined attribute data, and the effective element detects light. Any configuration that can be output by the user in the present technical field and related technical fields can be adopted. For example, the dummy element can also be composed of a pixel sensor c and a transistor like the effective element, and the emitter input of the transistor can be pulled up or down according to the attribute data without connecting the pixel sensor c to the power supply voltage. is there. As a result, the dummy element and the effective element can have the same configuration, and a simple integrated circuit configuration can be realized.
[0034]
FIG. 3 is a timing chart showing the relationship between the shift clock SCLK and the output A0 of the amplifier 22 according to the related art and the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 shows an example in which eight dummy elements are used (attribute data is composed of 8 bits).
[0035]
When the shift clock SCLK is output after the output start trigger SI is output, outputs from the eight dummy elements are sequentially taken out from the output A0 of the amplifier 22 at first in synchronization with the shift clock SCLK. In the conventional scanner head, the pixel sensor is also provided in the dummy element. Therefore, the output A0 of the amplifier 22 (the middle part in FIG. 3) also changes according to the light sensing state of the pixel sensor of the dummy element.
[0036]
On the other hand, in the present invention, since each bit of the dummy element is pulled up or down, predetermined 8-bit attribute information (10110010) is output from the output A0 (the lowermost stage in FIG. 3) of the amplifier 22. . Thereby, the attribute information stored at the time of shipment can be obtained by the normal image reading process. By increasing the number of bits of attribute data (the number of dummy elements), more attribute data can be encoded and stored. As the attribute data, for example, color information, information on the total number of elements, resolution information and the like can be exemplified, but other various attribute data can be arbitrarily stored.
[0037]
After the output of the dummy element, the effective elements are sequentially output according to the shift clock. Since the output of the effective element is obtained by capturing the reflected light of the image by the pixel sensor c, the same output is obtained in both the prior art and the present invention.
[0038]
Although FIG. 3 shows an example in which an effective element is output immediately after eight bits of attribute data, a dummy element can be further provided between the attribute data and the effective element. Before the start of the attribute data, a dummy element irrelevant to the attribute data can be provided.
[0039]
The reading process of the scanner device according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram illustrating a main part of the scanner device according to the embodiment of the present invention.
[0040]
The data output from the scanner head 11 is sent to the data separation unit 31. The data separation unit 31 separates dummy element data from the received data, and extracts attribute data from the dummy element data. Further, the data separation unit 31 outputs the extracted attribute data to the determination processing unit 32, and discards the remaining dummy element data. The valid element data separated from the received data is output to the data processing unit 35.
[0041]
Various methods can be adopted for extracting dummy element data from the received data. For example, it is also possible to determine how many dummy element data from the beginning are dummy element data, and which number is attribute data. It is also possible to determine the bit patterns at the end of the dummy element data and the start and end positions of the attribute data.
[0042]
The determination processing unit 32 includes a head determination unit 33 and a control software selection unit 34. The head determination unit 33 decodes a code indicated by the attribute data received from the data separation unit 31. This can be achieved by, for example, providing a table corresponding to various attribute data codes. The type, function, and the like of the scanner head 11 decoded and specified by the attribute data are output to the control software selection unit 34. The control software selection unit 34 stores control software corresponding to the control of various scanner heads 11, selects control software corresponding to the specified scanner head, and outputs the information to the data processing unit 35. The data processing unit 35 processes output data from the effective elements based on the control software selected by the control software selection unit 34 and outputs the processed data to the output unit 36.
[0043]
In this way, the attribute information such as the type and function of the scanner head 11 is automatically acquired at the time of image reading, and the image reading processing is executed by the corresponding control software. Therefore, even when the scanner head is replaced, additional processing such as input of attribute data is not required at all. As a result, it is possible to change to various types of scanners having different functions simply by attaching / detaching and replacing the scanner head 11, and it is possible to provide a multipurpose scanner which can flexibly change to various functions.
[0044]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, the scanner head of the present invention stores the attribute data in the dummy element and provides the scanner device with the attribute data of the scanner head by the image reading operation. Further, the scanner device selects corresponding control software from a plurality of control software stored therein based on the acquired attribute data, and executes image data processing. Thus, the scanner device can acquire attribute data as output data from the scanner head, and can automatically select the corresponding control software. Therefore, it is possible to provide a scanner head and a scanner device in which different types of scanner heads can be exchanged and functions can be flexibly changed.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a multifunction device equipped with a scanner head according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram showing a basic electric structure of an image sensor element portion of the CIS head according to one embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a timing chart showing a relationship between a shift clock SCLK and an output A0 of an amplifier 22 according to a related art and an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram illustrating a main part of the scanner device according to the embodiment of the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Multi-processing apparatus 11 Scanner head 12 MICR head 13 Print head 14, 15 Paper press roller 17 Paper insertion port 18 Transport path 19 Paper discharge port 20 Issue LED 21 Shift register 22 Amplifier 25 Output line 31 Data separation unit 32 Judgment processing Unit 33 head determination unit 34 control software selection unit 35 data processing unit 36 output unit a dummy element transistor b valid element transistor c pixel sensor A0 amplifier output S1 output start trigger SCLK shift clock 50 paper

Claims (12)

In a scanner head including a contact image sensor having a plurality of effective elements used for reading an image and a plurality of dummy elements not used for reading an image, attribute data of the scanner head is stored in the dummy element. A scanner head. 2. The scanner head according to claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of dummy elements is pulled up or down to a predetermined voltage in accordance with each bit value of the attribute data to be stored. The scanner head according to claim 1, wherein the attribute data is stored in some of the dummy elements. 3. The scanner head according to claim 1, wherein a pixel sensor is not provided in the dummy element, and an output is pulled up or down to a predetermined voltage in accordance with each bit value of the attribute data. The method according to claim 1, wherein the dummy element and the effective element are configured by the same element, a pixel sensor of the dummy element is set to be inoperable, and an output thereof is set to a predetermined voltage in accordance with the attribute data. 3. The scanner head according to 1 or 2. A data separation unit for separating the scanner head according to any one of claims 1 to 5, and output data output from the scanner head into output data of the dummy element and output data of the effective element and outputting the separated data. Department and
A determination processing unit that extracts the attribute data from the output data of the dummy element received from the data separation unit and selects control software corresponding to the scanner head specified by the attribute data;
Based on the control software selected by the determination processing unit, a data processing unit that processes output data of the effective element received from the data separation unit,
A scanner device comprising: 7. The scanner device according to claim 6, wherein the scanner head is provided so as to be replaceable with a different type of scanner head. A scanner comprising a step of aligning and forming a plurality of elements for reading each pixel data of an image, and a step of stopping an image reading function of some of the elements and forming a dummy element storing predetermined data. Head manufacturing method. A step of aligning and forming a plurality of effective elements for reading each pixel data of an image, and a step of forming a dummy element different from the effective element and storing predetermined data in the dummy element. Manufacturing method for a scanner head. (A) sequentially receiving output data of each element of a scanner head including a contact image sensor having a dummy element storing attribute data and an effective element for reading an image;
(B) outputting the output of the dummy element and the output of the effective element separately from the received output data;
(C) reading the attribute data from the output of the separated dummy element and designating control software corresponding to the attribute data;
(D) a data processing step of processing output data of the separated effective element by designated control software;
A data processing method for a scanner device comprising: A program for causing a computer to execute each step of the data processing method according to claim 10. A computer-readable recording medium that describes a program for causing a computer to execute each step of the data processing method according to claim 10.

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