JP2006040297A - Image output device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enhance efficiency of a test in development or product assurance, trouble analysis in an evaluation environment or market and a test in debugging or fault occurrence. <P>SOLUTION: Various kinds of states of one's own device are perceived as status information pieces from a sensor, a monitor or the like belonging to the device; the status information pieces are handled, by respective software modules corresponding to them, whereby information pieces 41-46 related to hardware are handled similarly to communication among modules 53-58 in software; history of operation carried out via an operation means and hardware information pieces 21-23 and 30 of various functional parts in the device are perceived as control information of communication messages or the like, among modules in control software for annunciating an operation state or state change in the control software (51); and the information related to the hardware and the control information are managed collectively. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an image output apparatus having a printing function, such as a printer, a copy, a FAX, and a multifunction peripheral of these.

  Copiers and printers, or image output devices with a FAX function added to them, have become complex and multifunctional, so in order to realize sufficient and efficient troubleshooting, machines and maintenance personnel It is necessary to enhance the interface between. Appropriate interfaces need not only provide the controls, displays, fault codes, and fault histories necessary to maintain and monitor the machine, but also provide them efficiently, relatively easily, and directly.

  Conventionally, at the time of periodic inspection work by specialized maintenance personnel and inspectors, appropriate measures are taken after observing and inspecting the state of the copying machine at that time. For this reason, there is no particular means of grasping the status of the copying machine components and the status of the copying machine as a whole or the occurrence of troubles from the time of the previous inspection of the copying machine to be inspected until the time of the next inspection. Guesses and judges as needed.

  In this way, the current situation is that each counselor depends on his / her own empirical judgment to cope with the change in the printing quality of the copying machine over time, and there is no specific method that is particularly uniform. The difficulty with the prior art diagnostic process is that it cannot easily and automatically indicate the exact part or subsystem of the machine that is malfunctioning or degraded. Rather than spending a lot of time and effort on modifying or repairing a part, it is extremely economical if the part can simply be replaced. Therefore, to reduce machine downtime, a highly intelligent and automated diagnostic system that directs replacement requests for specific parts or subsystems, rather than requiring extensive maintenance troubleshooting. Offer is desirable.

  In a copying system or printing system, for example, an electrophotographic copying machine, a laser printer, or an ink jet printer, a common technique for monitoring printing quality is a technique for artificially generating a “test patch” having a predetermined required density. is there. The actual density of the test patch printing material (toner or ink) is optically measured to determine the effectiveness of the printing process in which this printing material is printed on the printing sheet.

  As an example, in the case of an electrophotographic apparatus, such as a laser printer, the surface that is generally the most interesting in determining the density of a printing material is a charge retaining surface or photoreceptor. An electrostatic latent image is formed thereon, and then toner particles are attached to the charged area by a specific method and developed. In this case, an optical element that measures the density of the test patch, which is called a toner area coverage sensor, or “densitometer”, along the path of the photoreceptor. Arranged immediately downstream of the development process. Usually, a routine is provided in the printer operating system, and the exposure system artificially charges or discharges the surface at a predetermined position by a predetermined amount, and a test patch having a required density is periodically cycled at a predetermined position on the photoreceptor. Generate automatically.

  The test patch is then passed through the developing device, and the toner particles of the developing device are electrostatically attached to the test patch. If the test patch toner is dark, the test patch appears dark in the optical test. The developed test patch is passed through a densitometer placed in the photoreceptor path to test the light absorption of the test patch. If more light is absorbed by the test patch, the toner density of the test patch is higher. Electrophotographic test patches are traditionally printed in the interdocument zone of the photoreceptor. In general, each test patch is printed as a uniform solid area, a halftone area, and a background area. Thus, conventional methods of process control include setting a solid area of test patches, uniform halftone, and background. Certain high quality printers include many test patches.

  Therefore, it would be desirable to be able to use a simple toner area coverage sensor that diagnoses the machine and provides machine data that identifies a particular component or subsystem failure or malfunction. Moreover, it is desirable that this does not become a complicated sensor system. It is also desirable to provide a systematic and logical test analysis method that can evaluate machine operation with a simple sensor system and indicate which parts, components, and subsystems need replacement.

  On the other hand, since the components of the copying machine subject to maintenance and inspection as well as the overall state of the copying machine can only be grasped as discrete state data only at each point in time when the maintenance and inspection is performed, discovery of potential problems in the copying machine The maintenance and inspection work could not always be optimal due to delays. Estimate and judge the steady state of the target copier from such problems, that is, the status of each component at a specific point in time during regular maintenance and inspection work performed at a certain time. The problem of having to do so has been an issue in further improving the maintenance inspection work level. In addition, there is a problem that the level of the periodic inspection work varies because the inspector has different technical or empirical knowledge regarding the periodic inspection that the specialized inspector has.

  Therefore, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-28363 has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and the maintenance and inspection work for the copying machine components and the entire copying machine can be easily performed at a certain level. A method of providing a copier diagnostic apparatus that supports a user-side maintenance inspector or a specialized maintenance inspector is disclosed.

  The copying machine diagnostic apparatus includes storage means for storing state information of component parts output from the copying machine on a regular basis and abnormal state information output at the time of abnormality, and fixed-time state information and abnormal conditions stored in the storage means. Analyzes and evaluates the status and changes / history of the status of the copier based on the status information, outputs diagnostic result information necessary for copier maintenance, and inputs the quality evaluation of the printed matter output from the copier The above-mentioned object is achieved by a configuration characterized by comprising diagnostic means for outputting various adjustment values to be applied to the above.

  With this configuration, the diagnosis means can perform the operation from the past of the copying machine to the time of inspection based on the state information of the component parts output from the copying machine stored in the storage device and the abnormal state information output at the time of abnormality. By accurately grasping the change history in addition to each state and analyzing and evaluating it as a judgment material, it was different from the conventional inconsistent judgment of the inspector based on the state information at the time of inspection. Output the diagnostic result information necessary for the maintenance of the copier, which is obtained by accurately grasping the current status of the target copier and potential problems, and not only for the immediate maintenance work, but also for the planning of the subsequent maintenance plan A method for providing effective information is also disclosed.

  In addition, by inputting the quality evaluation of the printed matter output from the copier and outputting various adjustment values that should be applied to the copier, level variations due to differences in the amount of professional and empirical knowledge possessed by maintenance inspectors are eliminated. Thus, the maintenance inspector can take appropriate measures against the change in the print output of the copying machine over time.

  Further, in JP-A-5-164800, JP-A-5-164801, and JP-A-5-164802, a method using a conventional expert system, for example, a production rule type in which conditions and conclusions are paired. Inference method by the monitoring and control device based on information from the object to be monitored, that is, the problem of the diagnostic method with the inference mechanism, that is, a large number of rules as a knowledge base in advance It should be noted that the accuracy of the diagnosis result by the expert system depends on whether or not the prepared rules are appropriate.

  In the conventional diagnosis method using such an expert system or a diagnosis method equipped with an inference mechanism, the basic principle is clear as a rule, or can be easily predicted from past experience. Because it has been adopted, it is impossible to deal with troubles and failures that cannot be predicted at all. Even when new troubles occur, the newly identified troubles and their causes are considered as new rules. Although it is necessary to incorporate it into the knowledge base, there is a problem that it takes time to update the knowledge base for realizing the expert system. In addition, the expert system itself may not be able to cope with the update of the knowledge base. In this case, it points out the possibility that the knowledge will soon become obsolete.

  Therefore, in these series of inventions, as a diagnostic method and apparatus capable of dealing with unforeseen troubles, a diagnosis apparatus is diagnosed based on operation state information indicating an operation state of the diagnosis apparatus, and a plurality of diagnosis methods and apparatuses are provided. Collecting operation state information indicating an operation state in each diagnosis device from the diagnosis device, extracting universal signs indicating common characteristics with respect to the plurality of diagnosis devices from the plurality of operation state information, and extracting the universal indications Based on the above, a method for determining a trouble that may occur in the diagnostic apparatus is proposed.

  In addition, a diagnosis of the diagnosis target device is performed based on the operation state information including a plurality of factors indicating the operation state of the diagnosis target device, and operation state information indicating the operation state corresponding to each of the plurality of diagnosis target devices is obtained. A universal indication case base for analyzing the operation state information to obtain universal indications showing common characteristics with respect to the plurality of diagnosis apparatuses and accumulating the universal indications obtained from the universal indications We are trying to solve it.

  In this case, the operation state information indicating the operation state of a plurality of devices to be diagnosed, for example, the operation state information sent to the diagnosis device together with the data indicating the type of trouble collected by the diagnosis device is sent to the diagnosis device. Universal signs indicating common characteristics for a plurality of devices to be diagnosed are extracted from the operation state information. This universal symptom indicates a sign of trouble common to all diagnosed devices. If the frequency of a specific trouble is high, the same trouble will occur in the future even if no trouble actually occurs. Since it is predicted to occur, it is also possible to prevent troubles by taking countermeasures in advance based on this.

  However, as in the above-mentioned prior art, it is possible to perform failure diagnosis in maintenance inspection or appropriate measures for quality maintenance, eliminating the influence of technical and empirical differences of the maintenance inspector in charge as much as possible. Various techniques have been disclosed that enable reliable, efficient, and stable fault diagnosis / quality maintenance management of complex multifunctional devices.

  Neither of these technologies considers data related to user operations per se regarding failure diagnosis and quality maintenance management. As in the past, when the ratio of image output devices as hardware is large centering on copying machines, there is almost no problem by grasping and maintaining the functions, performance, durability, etc. of each part of the device as parts. Equipment maintenance was possible at the level. However, as in recent years, the image output apparatus itself has a number of intelligent functions, and when the image output apparatus has various functions such as a copying machine, a printer, and a FAX, the specific gravity of the software that controls these functions is high. There is no doubt that it is growing.

  In JP-A-5-164800, JP-A-5-164801, and JP-A-5-164802, information relating to a plurality of diagnosed devices is treated statistically to quickly deal with unpredictable troubles. Although it seems to be effective as a long-term solution, it is not necessarily effective to deal with the uniqueness of the device or to deal with a single case.

  In view of such circumstances, the present invention realizes faster problem resolution and early quality stabilization by realizing problem location prediction at the time of failure from an analytical approach to software centering on device control software. It is an object. In particular, since it can be used as a powerful tool for failure analysis in all stages, from the stage in which the device is under development, to the product testing stage, to the actual market stage, it has advanced functions and performance. Confirmation or program debugging can be performed, which is effective in improving development efficiency and evaluation test efficiency.

  Furthermore, basically, sufficient quality inspection, load test, acceleration test, and reliability test are performed before being put on the market as a product, but it is virtually impossible to perform a complete test. No matter how many tests are repeated, it must be said that there is still a possibility that defects will occur in the market. Therefore, after conducting the product test as much as possible, when it comes to the market as a product, the problem is how quickly and effectively it can be dealt with when a defect occurs in the market. It becomes.

  In many cases, problems that become apparent for the first time in the market occur only in a specific combination of both the user's device operation and the device control program. Or, there may be a problem that occurs only at delicate timings of operation and control.

  Basically, defects that are easy to obtain reproducibility are mostly detected by a test before product shipment, and are therefore relatively easy to deal with. In the case of a defect that becomes apparent for the first time in the market, the reproducibility of the occurrence of the defect is not always obtained. Therefore, there is a case where it is impossible to deal with the cause because the failure cannot be reproduced even when the cause is clarified.

  In addition, when conducting product tests and evaluations, it is possible to perform evaluations and tests using various tools in the manufacturing process before product shipment, and there are some standards for using them. Although it can be expected, it is difficult to conduct highly specialized evaluation and testing for products once shipped to the market. Therefore, as an effective method for pre- and early detection of defects in the market, there is a self-diagnosis function of the device itself.

  When performing self-diagnosis, it is necessary to incorporate judgment criteria and judgment process for the diagnosis, but the judgment criteria must be changed between the time of shipment and the time of use to some extent. There are also things. It takes a lot of labor to update and maintain these as needed.

  The present invention can specify a module having an operation different from the design from comparison with an actual operation using a sequence of function calls, inter-process communication, hardware status information notification, etc. exchanged in the control software as reference data. It can be expected to provide analysis support in the event of problems at all stages, such as during development, various test stages such as quality and reliability, and after entering the market. In particular, since the problem location can be predicted at the control software level, quick feedback to the developer is possible.

  In the case of a device that has been on the market once, when a user reports a failure, one clue to clarify the failure occurrence mechanism is obtained, and the user's unexpected usage status, etc. The purpose is to grasp and use as an index in future product development.

  In addition, devices that have been used in the market and have undergone repairs, parts replacement, option additions, etc., and whose internal conditions and parameter fluctuation range have changed from the time of device manufacture, are also included in the system of the device itself. By using the built-in internal parameter recording function and the function to replace these recorded results with reference data, it is possible to easily carry out appropriate diagnosis even for a device whose situation has changed since the time of manufacture. . In addition, it is possible to easily update the self-diagnosis system without requiring a particularly skilled technique or deep knowledge when performing these treatments.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it is possible to improve the efficiency of testing and evaluation environments in development and product warranty, or failure analysis in the market, and debugging or testing when a failure occurs. An object of the present invention is to provide an image output apparatus.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, an image output apparatus according to the present invention is an image output apparatus including an operation unit and a display / printing apparatus having a control unit, and various states of the apparatus are attached to the apparatus. By capturing the status information from sensors, monitors, etc., and handling the status information with the corresponding software modules, the hardware-related information is handled in the same way as inter-module communication within the software, and via the operation means. The hardware history of various function units inside the device is regarded as control information such as inter-module communication messages inside the software that notifies the operating state / state change inside the control software. Having control software for centrally managing information related to hardware and the control information And butterflies.

  The image output apparatus according to the present invention is the external control apparatus connected via the external communication function or the internal control apparatus or control regardless of the presence or absence of the external communication function. The operation history performed through the operation means of the device is recorded in the unit, and at the same time, the hardware information of various functional units in the device is recorded as control information for notifying the operation state / state change in the software It is characterized by doing.

  The image output apparatus according to the present invention, in the above-described invention, sequentially notifies communication information between modules in the control software of the own apparatus, and an operation procedure when the apparatus is used by an arbitrary operator, When acquiring detailed information inside the device at the same time, and having a shared timer inside the device, and obtaining detailed information inside the device, time information is promptly generated when information to be notified by each information generating mechanism is generated. And a mechanism for notifying internal state information with occurrence time information to the inter-module communication information management function unit in the control software.

  The image output apparatus according to the present invention includes a mechanism for sequentially notifying communication information between modules in the control software of the own apparatus in the above invention, and an operation procedure when the apparatus is used by any operator. When the detailed information inside the device is acquired at the same time, and the detailed information inside the device is obtained, the event occurrence time information is quickly added, and the internal status information with the occurrence time information is controlled by the message management function of the control software. To record all or part of the detailed inter-module communication information in the device during normal operation in advance, and the criteria for the order of generation, movement, timing, etc. of information related to the operation for each operation It is used as data or the like, and the correctness of the operation is verified by comparing with the actual operation.

  The image output apparatus according to the present invention is the image output apparatus according to the present invention, wherein the self apparatus performs a self-diagnosis on all or a part of the functions thereof, stores the result in an internal nonvolatile recording apparatus, and performs a predetermined operation. Therefore, the storage information is called up.

  In the image output apparatus according to the present invention, in the above invention, when the self apparatus performs a self-diagnosis for all or a part of the function and stores the result in an internal nonvolatile recording apparatus, an abnormality occurs. It is characterized by detecting location and timing information.

  In addition, the image output apparatus according to the present invention may not be used for the user of the apparatus when the apparatus has a function that the apparatus itself has in its entirety or part of its functions. Notify that it is possible or that repair is necessary, and stop acquiring the internal operating state information and the operation information by the user at the moment when it is determined that the device cannot be used or needs repair. At the same time, the failure occurrence information is notified to the monitoring / management apparatus connected to the outside, and the notification of the information is stopped.

  Further, the image output apparatus according to the present invention provides all the functions inherent to the self-apparatus when the operation state of the hardware and software of the self-apparatus is compared with the operation state during normal operation. Even if it is possible to achieve this, when it is determined that a sign of malfunction has occurred, a message prompting the user of the device to contact a service representative is displayed and connected to the outside. If a monitoring / management apparatus exists, failure occurrence information is notified to this.

  In the image output apparatus according to the present invention, in the above-described invention, when comparing the operating state of the hardware and software of the own apparatus at the time of executing the self-diagnosis with the operating state at the time of normal operation, The generation order, temporal timing of the information generation, and tolerance information regarding a specific parameter are internally included as reference data, and the type and timing of each information generated in the actual operation are compared with the reference data. The difference between the reference data and the information generated in the actual operation is compared with the allowance information, and when it deviates from the allowable range, depending on the degree, nature, content, etc. of the deviation, It is stored as information with warning information according to the warning level set in advance, etc., or notified to an externally connected monitoring / management device. To.

  In the image output apparatus according to the present invention, in the above invention, the reference data at the time of normal operation and the tolerance information for the actual operation among the information stored internally as the reference data when executing the self-diagnosis are externally provided. It is characterized by being transferred and set from a connected monitoring / management apparatus.

  In the image output apparatus according to the present invention, in the above-described invention, the reference data at the time of normal operation and the tolerance information for the actual operation among the information stored therein as reference data at the time of executing the self-diagnosis It is characterized in that it is set via a display / input device attached to the.

  In the image output apparatus according to the present invention, in the above-described invention, the reference data at the time of normal operation and the tolerance information for the actual operation among the information stored therein as reference data at the time of executing the self-diagnosis It is transferred and set via the memory card interface provided in the above.

  The image output apparatus according to the present invention is the function name, process name, message name or message content in inter-process communication used in the control software, and hardware of various functional units in the apparatus. For information, the communication message name or message content notified from the software module corresponding to each hardware is recorded when the device is actually operated, and the information obtained during normal operation is normal during self-diagnosis. It is used as reference data during operation.

  In the image output apparatus according to the present invention, the self-diagnosis execution result and information associated with the self-diagnosis execution result held in the self-apparatus are not used in the above-described invention without using an operation function or display device attached to the apparatus. And reading from a storage device installed inside the apparatus.

  As described above, according to the present invention, an image output apparatus capable of performing testing / evaluation environment in development and product assurance, or failure analysis in the market, and improving efficiency of debugging or testing when a failure occurs is obtained. There is an effect that is.

  Exemplary embodiments of an image output apparatus according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  In the present invention, in addition to means for transmitting information to a module such as an application program that should originally receive the information, a module for controlling information such as signals and messages issued from input devices such as various keys of operation means and a touch panel. By providing a means for transmitting equivalent information to the monitor module simultaneously with the transmission of the information, it is possible to monitor the information input from the operation means.

  In addition to information from the input device, the apparatus has a mechanism for acquiring information exchanged between each function unit in the apparatus, or between each function unit and the control unit, and between each function unit and the application. By monitoring internal transmission information, information from the input device provided in the device and various information transmitted inside the device are stored inside the device, or connected via an interface with the outside of the device. Can be stored in an external system.

  At this time, in the means for monitoring the information input from the operation means by the means for transmitting the information to the test monitor module added to the module for controlling the information emitted from the input device, the monitoring result, that is, Information stored when operating an input device such as a touch panel is temporarily stored in the memory, and this data is sequentially issued to the operation information acquisition means from other than the input device in a predetermined order and timing. The operation procedure recording function for recording / reproducing the procedure from the operation panel becomes possible.

  Furthermore, by providing a function for converting information such as signals and messages recorded in the above-described operation procedure recording function into a display format corresponding to the information, it is possible to express in a format with good visibility. . By providing a function to sequentially convert operations input via an input device into the above format, the converted description language is displayed in sequence, making it easy to handle operations and expressions in the description language. It is possible to automatically understand the operation procedure and to convert the operation procedure into a description language.

  In this way, the operation means has input devices such as various keys and a touch panel, a display / printing apparatus having a CPU / MPU or other control unit therein, and a copier, facsimile, printer, Alternatively, the various statuses of the image output device having these composite functions are regarded as information from sensors, monitors, etc. attached to the device, and these pieces of information are handled by corresponding software modules, so that information on hardware can be stored in the software. Control software that can be handled in the same way as the inter-module communication.

  Then, an operation history performed through the input device such as the above-described various keys and a touch panel, and various function units inside the device, such as an image forming unit, a fixing unit, a charging process, a conveyance system, a paper feed, Unit, operation panel, image reading unit, memory-related mechanism (compression / decompression, transfer, processing, etc. of image data), communication-related mechanism (public line communication, USB, IEEE 1394, Ethernet (registered trademark), RS232C, parallel, etc.) Hardware information (physical information such as voltage, temperature, transition time, state parameters of each part of the device, and their changes, etc.) is also communicated between the modules inside the software to notify the operating state and state changes inside the control software. It can be considered as control information such as messages, and this information is centrally managed by the control software. Can.

  It also has control software that can handle information about the hardware of each part of the device in the same way as inter-module communication inside the software, such as an external personal computer or workstation connected via an external communication function. Regardless of the presence or absence of a communication function with the control device or the outside, it is possible to record the operation history performed through the operation means (input device) of the device in the internal control device or control unit, At the same time, various functional units in the apparatus, such as an image forming unit, a fixing unit, a charging process, a conveyance system, a paper feeding unit, an operation panel, an image reading unit, and a memory-related mechanism (compression / decompression, transfer, processing, etc. of image data) Communication related mechanisms (public line communication, USB, IEEE 1394, Ethernet (registered trademark), RS232C, parallel, etc.) The hardware information (physical information such as voltage, temperature, transition time, state parameters of each part of the device, and their changes) can also be recorded as control information to notify the operating state / state change inside the software. is there.

  In addition, it is equipped with a mechanism that sequentially notifies communication information (messages) between modules in the control software of the device, and simultaneously acquires the operation procedure when the device is used by any operator and detailed information inside the device. When a detailed information inside the device is obtained, time information is quickly added when information to be notified by each information generation mechanism is generated. And a mechanism for notifying internal status information with occurrence time information to the inter-module communication information (message) management function unit in the control software, and the inter-module communication information (message) due to delay of inter-module communication in the control software. Even if the order of arrival at the management function unit is changed, it is possible to correctly grasp the order of occurrence of events.

  In addition, it is equipped with a mechanism that sequentially notifies communication information (messages) between modules in the control software of the device, and simultaneously acquires the operation procedure when the device is used by any operator and detailed information inside the device. When the detailed information inside the device is obtained, the event occurrence time information is quickly added, and the internal state information with the occurrence time information is notified to the message management function unit of the control software. In a possible image output apparatus, all or part of detailed inter-module communication information (message) in the apparatus during normal operation is recorded in advance, and the generation order and movement of information related to the operation for each operation ( Sequence), reference data such as time timing, etc., and compare the actual operation and verify the correctness of the operation to self-diagnose the device It is possible to run.

  In addition, the apparatus can perform self-diagnosis for all or part of its functions, store the result in an internal nonvolatile recording apparatus, and call the stored information in accordance with a predetermined operation.

  In addition, when the device performs self-diagnosis for all or part of its functions and saves the result in the internal nonvolatile recording device, marking is performed on the data part that is the reason for determination when it is determined to be abnormal, The occurrence location and timing information can be easily detected.

  In addition, when it becomes impossible to perform all or some of the functions inherent to the device, it notifies the user of the device that it cannot be used or that repair is required. At the moment when it is judged that it has such a mechanism and is in an unusable state or a state that requires repair, the acquisition of internal operation state information and operation information by the user is stopped, and at the same time, it is connected to the outside. It has a function of notifying the monitoring / management device of the occurrence information of the failure and stopping the notification of the information.

  In addition, the operating state of both the hardware and software of the device (voltage, temperature, transition time, physical information such as state parameters of each part, and control information such as communication messages inside the device control software) during normal operation Even when it is possible to perform all of the functions that the device originally has, it is possible to determine the signs of malfunctioning and notify the user of the device to the service personnel. It has a function of displaying a message for prompting contact and the like, and at the same time, when there is a monitoring / management apparatus connected to the outside, it has a function of notifying malfunction occurrence information.

  In addition, when performing self-diagnosis, the operating status of both the hardware and software of the device (voltage, temperature, transition time, status parameters of each part, etc., and control information such as communication messages inside the device control software) ) Are compared with those during normal operation, the expected generation order of information, the temporal timing of the information generation, and the tolerance information regarding a specific parameter are internally included as reference data, Compare the reference data and the type / timing of each information generated in the actual operation, compare the difference between the reference data and the information generated in the actual operation with the above tolerance information, and the degree of deviation when deviating from the allowable range -Information with warning information according to the warning level set in advance, such as the stop state of the specific function, the stage before the function stop, etc., depending on the nature, content, etc. Te storage, or it is possible to notify the externally connected monitor and manage devices.

  Also, when performing self-diagnosis, the reference data during normal operation and the tolerance information for the actual operation among the information stored internally as reference data are transferred and set from an external monitoring / management device. It has a function.

  Also, when performing self-diagnosis, a function for setting the reference data for normal operation and the tolerance information for the actual operation among the information stored internally as reference data via the display / input device attached to the device main body Have

  When self-diagnosis is executed, the reference data during normal operation and the tolerance information for the actual operation among the information stored inside as reference data are transferred via the memory card interface provided in the main body of the device. Function to set.

  Also, function names, process names used in the control software (program), message names or message contents in inter-process communication, and various functional units in the apparatus, such as an image forming unit, a fixing unit, a charging process, and conveyance System, paper feed unit, operation panel, image reading unit, memory-related mechanism (compression / decompression, transfer, processing, etc. of image data), communication-related mechanism (public line communication, USB, IEEE 1394, Ethernet (registered trademark), RS232C, parallel Etc.) also has a function of recording the communication message name or message content notified from the software module corresponding to each hardware when the apparatus is actually operated. Information obtained during normal operation It has the ability to use as a normal operation time of the reference data.

  In addition, the self-diagnosis execution result and the information accompanying it can be read from the storage device installed inside the device without using the operation function or display device attached to the device. It is.

  The configuration of the control unit of the image forming apparatus will be described with reference to FIG. The control of the image forming apparatus main body by the control unit shown in FIG. 1 is performed based on the control program and data stored in the ROM 12 with the CPU 11 as the center. The RAM 13 is used for storing intermediate results of processing. The CPU 11 is connected to various devices as described below. The communication interface unit 21 is a part that communicates with the communication control device, and an address unique to the image forming apparatus can be set by an address setting switch 22.

  The communication permission switch 23 sets permission / prohibition of communication with the communication control device. The operation unit 30 includes a keyboard or the like and can be input from the outside. The optical system control unit 41 performs drive control of the exposure lamp. The high-voltage power supply unit 42 supplies power to the charging charger, separation charger, transfer charger, pre-transfer charger (PTC), and developing bias. The motor control unit 43 controls the main motor. The heater control unit 44 performs drive control of the fixing heater. The sensor sensitivity control unit 45 is used to vary the light reception gain of the P sensor, the light emission voltage of the P sensor LED, the light reception gain of the ADS sensor, and the like. The A / D control unit 46 is used to input a lamp voltage, a P sensor light emission voltage, a P sensor light reception voltage, a potential sensor output, an ADS sensor output, a lamp light quantity sensor output, a drum current sensor output, and a fixing thermistor voltage.

  The hardware of the optical system control unit 41, the high-voltage power supply unit 42, the motor control unit 43, the heater control unit 44, the sensor sensitivity control unit 45, and the A / D control unit 46 of the image forming apparatus includes a corresponding control software module, optical Status information (system control module 53, high-voltage power supply control module 54, drive system (motor) control module 55, heating system (heater) control module 56, sensor sensitivity control module 57, A / D converter control module 58, etc.) For example, communication status, key input, display status, lamp light quantity, various charger status, development bias status, conveyance motor status, fixing heater status, heater temperature, sensor sensitivity information, control information by A / D converter, etc.) The resource control module is It is notified to the Yuru 50.

  Here, the communication state control module 52 and the operation means control module 51 are also notified of the communication state, the display of the operation means, the key operation information, etc., and it is possible to collectively manage not only software but also hardware information. It becomes.

  In the present invention, there are software modules corresponding to the hardware modules as described above, and these software modules communicate various device states, parameter setting statuses, etc. with respect to the higher-level control software. ) As a feature. As a result, in the apparatus, it becomes easy to collectively manage various hardware states in the apparatus as communication in the software.

  FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration of the operation panel controller unit of the image output apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. Input from the operation panel performed by the user is notified via the system key monitor 201 to the application 202 requesting input, the engine, other system services, or the like.

  3, 4, and 5 show the system outline of the present invention. The control unit of the apparatus is mounted on a base composed of an OS and various device drivers (system unit (OS, driver)) 350. An interface 300 with an external system is constructed on this OS, and communication with the external system is realized via this interface (FIGS. 3 and 4).

  Information from each functional unit of the device is handled by the corresponding software module, and all the information of each unit of the device can be handled as a communication message (information) between software modules regardless of software information / hardware information.

  The verification module 301 sequentially acquires various information (communication messages) exchanged by the control software inside the device, such as function calls inside the control software, interprocess communication, hardware control commands, and status notification information from the hardware. To do. The verification module selects reference data according to the operation of the device, and performs a comparison on the reference data and information that is actually exchanged inside the device to make a determination for each acquired information.

  An interface corresponding to the present apparatus is constructed on the external system, and data exchange and the like are realized through these interfaces. In the development stage, for example, an acquisition log display program and acquisition log data can be stored.

  FIG. 4 shows an example having no external interface. In this case, a display log display program and an information display program for each warning level are held in the apparatus itself, and log data is stored.

  FIG. 5 shows the configuration of the lower module (function) group 302 in FIGS.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 6 shows the configuration of the first embodiment. In the present embodiment, the modules and applications on the apparatus side are described in C language, a personal computer is used as the external system, and C and C ++ are used as the description language of the external system. These may use other programming languages or assembler languages. Ethernet (registered trademark) was used for communication between the apparatus and the external system. This is because a device including a function of a so-called network printer having an Ethernet (registered trademark) interface inside the device is a target. Also, RS-232C, IEEE488 / IEEE488.2 (GP-IB), etc. can be used depending on the mounting situation.

  The key press information (FIG. 2) sent from the operation panel on each device side to each application (program) 603 via the operation panel controller 601 and the system monitor / manager 602 is sent via the interface unit 604 with the external system. It has a function to transmit to an external system. Thereby, a series of procedures input from the operation panel 606 can be recorded in the external system. Here, the operation panel 606 includes a key, a touch panel, a display device, an indicator such as an LED, a buzzer, etc., which are not shown. The operation panel controller 601 controls these operation panels and functions as a device driver for the operation panel.

  The system monitor / manager 602 performs overall resource management of the in-device control unit. In this embodiment, the system monitor / manager 602 exchanges information with the interface unit 604 with an external system for processing functions related to key operation information of the system monitor / manager 602. By adding a function, a function to record and play back key press information has been realized. Of course, depending on the configuration of the system, an operation / drawing information recording function can be realized by adding a similar function to a portion corresponding to the operation panel controller 601. Alternatively, a similar recording function can be realized by adding a similar function to the application program itself.

  In actual usage situations where the user or evaluator manually inputs keys from the operation panel 606, there is no guarantee that the user has memorized his / her own operation, and when various tests are performed. However, when a more complicated operation is performed, the evaluation person may make an operation error. Therefore, in such a situation, when an unexpected result is obtained, it may be difficult to determine whether it is an operation mistake or a problem such as an application program. In particular, when performing a huge amount of tests according to a wide variety of models, the evaluator often performs operations as quickly as possible in order to shorten the time required for the tests, resulting in an operation error. The possibility becomes high.

  In this embodiment, when a user or an evaluator manually inputs a key from the operation panel, an unexpected result is obtained by recording the series of operation procedures using the recording function. In addition, it is possible to distinguish between an operation error or a malfunction of an application or the like.

  In the present embodiment, not only the key press information is recorded but also display information (commands) for each operation panel of each application can be acquired, and the operation is performed before the display is completed. It is also possible to detect an operation error, and it is possible to distinguish a malfunction when a predetermined operation is performed from such an operation error.

  In this embodiment, the operation information using the operation panel is notified to each application via the system monitor / manager 602, and the operation information is simultaneously notified to the log holding mechanism inside the system monitor / manager 602. A function to log operation information has been realized.

  Similarly, in addition to the applications, systems, and services that should be notified of the generated transmission information, a function for notifying the log holding mechanism at the same time is added to various systems in the apparatus. The transmission information includes inter-process communication of control software, control commands to various hardware, status notification from hardware, and the like.

  As a result, the present apparatus can acquire operation information from the operation panel and event information from various services and subsystems within the apparatus. Also, it has a function of adding the generation time of these various types of information. As a result, even when a slight time lag occurs depending on the operating state of the OS or system in the apparatus and the information transmission order of the event occurrence is changed, the data is rearranged in the order of the acquisition time information, thereby providing a more accurate log. Information can be acquired.

  In the present embodiment, these key operation information on the operation panel 606, inter-process communication information in the control software, control commands to various hardware, status notification information from the hardware are sequentially acquired to obtain a specific event. Are collated with reference data that describes the movement of these various information in a series of operations. At this time, it is determined whether or not to add a warning flag to the permissible range described simultaneously in the reference data file. This allowable range is determined based on the importance of the target information and the allowable range of timing, and is mainly set by the developer.

  In addition, by setting the allowable range in multiple stages, a plurality of warning levels are provided to verify the operation. In addition, fine adjustment of each part is required as it is used in the market, and the timing and the allowable range of each parameter also shift accordingly, so it is necessary to change the allowable range data according to the adjustment amount during adjustment. is there. At that time, except for some special parameters, after confirming that it is operating normally by actually operating it, by registering the operation itself as reference data, the adjusted deviation is absorbed to some extent. Can do.

  Usually, the operation of the apparatus is determined by the user's panel operation. For example, when the copy function is used, a series of operations is started by pressing a start key after setting the number of copies, a variable magnification, and the like.

  In the present embodiment, for the copy function, the reference data to be used is determined by the setting when the start key is pressed. When the user requests another operation using the interrupt key between operations using a series of copy functions, the reference data determined at the start of the interrupt process is used until the interrupt process is completed.

  Further, when a fatal malfunction or an error of a preset level occurs in the apparatus, data writing to the internal log holding mechanism is stopped. As a result, it is possible to retain information such as the actual operation procedure and the change of the internal state until the occurrence of the failure when such a failure occurs, without loss.

  Further, even when a defect occurs in a product that is actually provided on the market, it is possible to obtain accurate operation procedures and information on the internal state, and it is possible to quickly respond to the occurrence of a defect in the market. Conventionally, it has been difficult to obtain accurate information on operation information at the time of occurrence of a defect even if circumstances are collected from the user. However, according to the present invention, accurate information at the time of occurrence of a defect can be obtained.

  The operation information and detailed state information inside the apparatus acquired as the log data are held inside the apparatus, and are connected to an external control system via an interface unit 604 with the external system.

  In the present embodiment, a personal computer equipped with FreeBSD as an OS is used as the external control device. Of course, this may be a personal computer equipped with another OS, or a workstation.

  In this way, when connected to an external control device, it is possible to store detailed state information inside the device and user operation information using the operation panel acquired inside the device in the external device. .

  Usually, when storing data inside the device, it is difficult to secure such a large capacity, but when connecting to an external control device as described above, for example, when acquiring a log of the internal state in continuous operation before product shipment By doing so, it becomes possible to acquire a large amount of data. As a result, a series of data that can correlate detailed information in the device with user operations via the operation panel is acquired. It is now possible to obtain the internal information in the form of a sequence of internal information as expected, and to clarify what information is caused when it deviates from the predetermined operation. .

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 7 shows the configuration of the second embodiment. This embodiment is effective for testing / evaluation of a copying machine having only a copying function, for example. In the present embodiment, an interface unit with the outside is not particularly provided, and means for recording an operation procedure input from the operation panel is provided inside. Since other mechanisms are the same as those in the first embodiment, description thereof is omitted.

  The acquired operation procedure is stored in the internal memory, and can be deleted by a specific panel operation. Thereby, the test and evaluation by the input performed via an operation panel can be implemented, without preparing a special evaluation system. In particular, even for devices on the market, it is possible for a service person or the like to easily check.

  In the present embodiment, the warning level is set to 5 levels, the setting lower than the specified level (the level considered to have few problems) is not recorded, and all levels are recorded and the operation is performed. The display level can be specified when a display is requested from the panel 606. It is also possible to specify multiple levels and level ranges when specifying levels.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the acquired log can be displayed on a display device provided in the operation panel 606 of the apparatus main body by a predetermined operation. In this embodiment mode, the display device is provided on the operation panel, but it may of course be mounted individually.

  In this embodiment, in order to reduce the size of the code of the test / evaluation module incorporated in the apparatus as much as possible, the communication function unit with the external system is not provided. The above-described operation procedure recording function may be provided in both the external system and the inside.

(Embodiment 3)
FIG. 9 shows a third embodiment. This is to directly read log data of internal information acquired inside the apparatus. This is based on the assumption that when a fatal problem occurs in the apparatus, the situation described in the second embodiment cannot be used.

  In the present embodiment, internal state log data acquired inside the apparatus is held in a memory completely separated for log acquisition. In this embodiment, the memory of the IC card is used as the memory device, but other than this, smart media or the like may be used. Of course, the purpose is to obtain internal information that has been acquired so far, even if a malfunction occurs that prevents the device itself from functioning properly. Therefore, in some cases, a method using a flexible disk or an internal hardware disk may be considered. Of course, when using an internal hardware disk, it is necessary to take out the hardware disk, install it in another device, and read it out.

  As a result, even when a problem occurs such that the device itself does not function, it is possible to obtain user operations and detailed internal state information until such a problem occurs.

It is explanatory drawing which shows the structure of the control part of the image forming apparatus of the image output device concerning embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the structure of the operation panel controller part of the image output device concerning embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the system outline | summary of the image output device concerning embodiment of this invention. It is another explanatory drawing which shows the system outline | summary of the image output device concerning embodiment of this invention. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration of a lower module (function) group 302 in FIGS. 3 and 4. It is explanatory drawing which shows the structure of the image output device concerning Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the structure of the image output device concerning Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows another structure of the image output device concerning Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the structure of the image output device concerning Embodiment 3 of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

11 CPU
12 ROM
13 RAM
21 Communication Interface Unit 22 Address Setting Switch 23 Communication Enable Switch 30 Operation Unit 41 Optical System Control Unit 42 High Voltage Power Supply Unit 43 Motor Control Unit Unit 44 Heater Control Unit 45 Sensor Sensitivity Control Unit 46 A / D Control Type Knit (A / D Converter) )
53 Optical System Control Module 54 High Voltage Power Supply Control Module 55 Drive System (Motor) Control Module 56 Heating System (Heater) Control Module 57 Sensor Sensitivity Control Module 58 A / D Converter Control Module

Claims (14)

An image output device comprising an operation means and a display / printing device having a control unit,
Information on hardware is handled in the same way as inter-module communication inside the software by capturing the various statuses of the device as status information from sensors, monitors, etc. attached to the device, and handling these status information with corresponding software modules. And
An image output apparatus characterized in that an operation history performed through the operation means and hardware information of various functional units in the apparatus itself are used as control information such as an inter-module communication message in the software.   Operation performed via the operation means of the external control device connected via an external communication function, or an internal control device or control unit regardless of the presence or absence of the external communication function 2. The image output apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a history is recorded, and at the same time, hardware information of various functional units in the apparatus is recorded as control information for notifying an operation state / state change in the software. .   The communication information between the modules in the control software of the device itself is sequentially notified, the operation procedure when the device is used by any operator, and detailed information inside the device are acquired at the same time. When acquiring detailed information inside the device, the time information is quickly added when information to be notified by each information generating mechanism is generated, and the internal state information with the generated time information is stored in the control software. The image output apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a mechanism for notifying the inter-module communication information management function unit.   It is provided with a mechanism that sequentially notifies communication information between modules in the control software of the device itself, and obtains an operation procedure when the device is used by an arbitrary operator and detailed information inside the device at the same time, When the detailed information inside the device is obtained, the event occurrence time information is quickly added, the internal state information with the occurrence time information is notified to the message management function part of the control software, and the details inside the device during normal operation All or part of the communication information between modules is recorded in advance and used as reference data such as the generation order, movement, and time timing of information related to each operation. The image output apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the validity is verified.   5. The self-diagnosis device performs self-diagnosis on all or part of its functions, stores the result in an internal nonvolatile recording device, and calls the stored information according to a predetermined operation. The image output device described.   5. The self-diagnosis device performs self-diagnosis for all or a part of its functions, and when the result is stored in an internal non-volatile recording device, the location and timing information of the occurrence of abnormality are detected. Or the image output device of 5.   When it becomes impossible to perform all or some of the functions inherent to the device itself, it informs the user of the device that it cannot be used or that repair is necessary. At the moment when it is determined that the device cannot be used or needs to be repaired, the acquisition of the internal operating state information and the operation information by the user is stopped, and at the same time, the monitoring / management device connected to the outside is stopped. 6. The image output apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the failure occurrence information is notified and the notification of the information is stopped.   When the operation state of the hardware and software of the device itself is compared with the operation state during normal operation, an operation failure occurs even in a state where all of the functions of the device itself can be performed. When a warning sign is determined, a message prompting the user of the device to contact a service representative is displayed, and if there is an externally connected monitoring / management device, The image output apparatus according to any one of claims 4 to 7, wherein defect occurrence information is notified.   When performing the self-diagnosis, when comparing the operation status of the hardware and software of the device with the operation status during normal operation, specify the expected generation order of information, the time timing of the information generation, and And the tolerance information regarding the parameters of the reference information are internally stored as reference data, the type and timing of each information generated in the actual operation is compared with the reference data, and the difference between the reference data and the information generated in the actual operation is determined. Warning information according to the warning level set in advance, such as the stop state of the specific function, the stage before the function stop, etc. The image output apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the information is stored as information to which the information is added, or is notified to an externally connected monitoring / management apparatus.   At the time of self-diagnosis execution, the reference data during normal operation and the tolerance information for the actual operation in the internal information as reference data are transferred and set from the monitoring / management device connected to the outside. The image output apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the image output apparatus is an image output apparatus.   When self-diagnosis is executed, the reference data for normal operation and the tolerance information for the actual operation among the information stored inside as reference data are set via the display / input device attached to the main body. The image output device according to any one of claims 4 to 10.   When performing self-diagnosis, the reference data for normal operation and the tolerance information for the actual operation in the information stored internally as reference data are transferred and set via the memory card interface provided in the device body. The image output apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the image output apparatus is an image output apparatus.   The function name, process name used in the control software, message name or message content in inter-process communication, and hardware information of various functional units in the device are notified from the software module corresponding to each hardware. 5. A communication message name or message content to be recorded when the apparatus is actually operated, and information obtained during normal operation is used as reference data during normal operation during execution of self-diagnosis. The image output apparatus as described in any one of -12. The self-diagnosis execution result and information associated therewith held in the device itself are read from a storage device installed in the device without using an operation function attached to the device or a display device. The image output apparatus according to any one of claims 2 to 13.

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