JP2006103160A - Image i/o unit, its control method, program, and storage medium - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To perform efficient cooling for various operations at an image reading section and an image forming section. <P>SOLUTION: The image I/O unit comprising an image reading section for inputting an image, a section for forming an image being outputted based on an inputted image or image data received from an external device, a section for cooling the heat generating image reading section or image forming section is further provided with a section for judging the content of operation setting of the image reading section or image forming section by receiving information for setting operation of the image reading section or image forming section, and a section for controlling output from the cooling section based on the content of operation setting judged at the judging section. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an image input / output device having an image reading unit that inputs an image, and an image forming unit that outputs the input image or image data received from an external device by performing a predetermined image forming process, and the image input / output device An image input / output device that effectively cools the image reading unit and the image forming unit in accordance with various operation modes related to the image reading unit and the image forming unit, and a control method thereof, The present invention relates to a program and a storage medium.

  An image input / output device (hereinafter referred to as “image input / output device”) having a composite function of an image reading function and an image printing function, which has been widely spread in recent years, is an image scanner unit that reads an image. And a printer unit that prints the input image, management related to operation control of these units, and communication with an external device, for example, connection with a facsimile machine, connection with a PC (personal computer), or communication line such as a LAN A controller unit that is connected to the host device via the network and manages transmission / reception of image data.

  As the configuration of these three units (image scanner, printer, controller) in the image input / output device, the controller unit (hereinafter simply referred to as “controller”) is built in the printer unit (hereinafter also simply referred to as “printer”). In addition, there are image scanner units (hereinafter also simply referred to as “image scanners”) of a type that can be mounted on the printer unit and a configuration that can be mounted separately on the printer unit as an option setting.

  In the image input / output device configured as described above, the controller plays a role of communicating with a host device such as a PC, and controls the image scanner or the printer based on an instruction from the host device. The sequence control for performing the image reading operation of the image scanner and the printing operation of the printer is performed by an electronic control circuit for sequence control incorporated in each unit.

  Further, in the image input / output device having the above-described configuration, several cooling units are provided for cooling heat generated from the printer, the image scanner drive unit and the heat fixing device of the printer, and heat generated from the controller, the power supply unit, and the like. It is provided in the image input / output device.

As the cooling unit, a cooling fan that cools the heat generated from the heat source is generally used, and the rotation of the cooling fan is controlled mainly in synchronization with the operation of the printer unit. Patent Document 1 discloses a cooling unit in which a cooling unit is provided in an image reading unit and an image forming unit and is controlled independently according to the operation of each unit.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-235971

  However, when the power supply unit and the cooling unit are provided only in the image forming unit and power is supplied from the power source in the image forming unit to the image reading unit to operate only the image reading unit, Output of the cooling unit against the heat generated by the power supply unit that supplies power, such as when only the image reading unit is operated without operating the image forming unit, such as when sending to the device or as a PDF image to the host device (In the case of a cooling fan, the number of rotations of the fan) is insufficient or does not support various operations of the image reading unit, and the cooling unit generates excessive cooling output to increase power consumption. There was a problem that.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an image input / output device capable of performing efficient cooling corresponding to various operations of the image reading unit and the image forming unit, and a control method thereof, The object is to provide a program and a storage medium.

  In view of the above problems, an image input / output device according to the present invention mainly includes the following configuration.

That is, an image reading unit that inputs an image, an image forming unit that forms an image to be output based on the input image or image data received from an external device, and the image reading unit or the image forming unit An image input / output device having cooling means for cooling heat generation,
A determination unit that receives information for setting an operation for the image reading unit or the image forming unit and determines the content of the operation setting for the image reading unit or the image forming unit;
Control means for controlling the output of the cooling means based on the contents of the operation setting determined by the determining means.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to perform efficient cooling corresponding to various operations of the image reading unit and the image forming unit by controlling the cooling unit.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

<First Embodiment>
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of an image input / output device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a controller (control unit) that gives an operation instruction to the image reading unit 2 or the image forming unit 3 in accordance with communication with the host device 200 or operation input information from the operation panel 4. ). The controller 1 receives and processes image data input from the host device 200 or the image reading unit 2 via the image reading unit interface (I / F) 21 and processes the processed image data. It has a function of transmitting to the forming unit 3.

  The image reading unit 2 includes an image sensor such as a CCD, and reads desired image data according to an instruction from the controller 1 or the operation panel 4. The image reading unit 2 can read an image using an automatic document feeder (ADF).

  The image forming unit 3 includes an electrophotographic unit or an ink jet unit that forms an image by charging, exposure, development, transfer, fixing process, and the like. The controller 1 is connected via an image forming interface (I / F) 31. In response to the instruction, a desired image forming process is performed. The image forming unit 3 can perform full color image formation by mixing colors of yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (Bk), black and white image formation, and other double-sided printing. To do.

  In the image forming unit 3, a sequence control circuit 6 connected to the controller 1 via the image forming unit I / F 31 and a cooling unit 5 are provided. The cooling unit 5, for example, sends air to the heat source by cooling the cooling fan to cool the heat released from the heat source, and also cools the heat source of the image reading unit 2 in addition to the image forming unit 3. It shall be possible. In this case, air can be sent to the heat source of the image reading unit 2 to cool the heat source through the cooling medium supply member such as an air duct.

  In each embodiment described below, a configuration example of one cooling unit 5 disposed inside the image forming unit 3 is described. However, one or a plurality of cooling units are disposed outside the image forming unit 3. Then, the control signal from the controller 1 or the sequence control circuit 6 may be received, and the image reading unit 2 or the image forming unit 3 may be cooled in accordance with each operation.

  Here, the operation contents of the image reading unit 2 and the image forming unit 3 in the image input / output device 100 include the following four types of operation contents (modes).

(1) Scanning Mode In the scanning mode, the image read by the image reading unit 2 is sent to the controller 1, and the controller 1 performs data processing on the image sent from the image reading unit 2, and then the host device 200. This is the operation to transfer data.

(2) Print mode In the print mode, image data sent from the host device 200 is received and processed by the controller 1, the data is sent to the image forming unit 3, and the image forming unit 3 performs print processing. The image forming operation is performed.

(3) Copy Mode The copy mode is an operation in which image data read by the image reading unit 2 is sent to the image forming unit 3 via the controller 1 and an image is printed.

(4) Standby mode The standby mode is a state in which the image reading unit 2 and the image forming unit 3 are not operating, and is in a state of waiting for an instruction from the controller 1.

  In the above-described four operation modes in the image input / output device 100, the power consumption, that is, the heat generation amount in each operation unit is different, and thus the cooling unit 5 is controlled according to each operation mode.

  FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining the flow of control of the cooling unit.

  First, in step S10, in response to an instruction from the host device 200 or the operation panel 4, the controller 1 sends a command to the image forming unit 3 through the image forming unit interface (I / F) 31, and the image forming unit 3 Command reception processing is performed in accordance with command reception. As the command receiving process, the sequence control circuit 6 in the image forming unit 3 recognizes that the command is transmitted from the controller 1 and stores the received command data.

  When the command reception process in the sequence control circuit 6 is completed, next, in step S11, the sequence control circuit 6 determines whether or not the command is a command for setting an operation mode (operation mode setting command).

  Here, for example, as shown in FIG. 5, the operation mode setting command is information for setting the operation content of any one of the scanning mode, the print mode, the copy mode, and the standby mode. Detailed information that specifically specifies the content can be included. For example, in the scanning mode, it is possible to further specify to use an automatic document feeder (ADF).

  The contents of the operation mode setting command and detailed information are generated by the host device 200 and input to the controller 1. Alternatively, the contents of the operation mode setting command and the detailed information may be generated based on the operation input from the operation panel 4 and input to the controller 1 via the operation panel interface (I / F) 20. It is.

  If it is determined in step S11 that the received command is not an operation mode setting command (S11-NO), the process ends because the process proceeds to the next command determination routine.

  On the other hand, if the determination result of the sequence control circuit 6 is an operation mode setting command (S11-YES), the process proceeds to step S12, and the process proceeds to a determination routine for determining the contents of the operation mode.

  In step S12, it is determined whether or not the operation mode setting command is in the standby mode. If the operation mode setting command is in the standby mode (S12-YES), the process proceeds to step S17, and the sequence control circuit 6 performs the cooling unit (cooling fan). ) Turn off the operation of 5.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S12 that the mode is not the standby mode (S12-NO), the process proceeds to step S13 to determine whether or not the operation mode setting command is set to the scanning mode (S13).

  If it is determined in step S13 that the operation mode setting command is a scanning mode setting (S13-YES), the process proceeds to step S14, and the sequence control circuit 6 turns on the operation of the cooling unit (cooling fan) 5. To do.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S13 that the operation mode setting command is not the scanning mode setting (S13-NO), the process proceeds to step S15 to determine whether the print mode or the copy mode.

  If it is determined in step S15 that the operation mode setting command is set to print mode or copy mode (S15-YES), the process proceeds to step S16, and the sequence control circuit 6 operates the cooling unit (cooling fan) 5. Set to ON.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S15 that the operation mode setting command is not a print mode or copy mode setting (S15-NO), the sequence control circuit 6 ends the processing related to the operation mode setting.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the image reading unit 2 and the image are controlled by controlling the ON / OFF operation of the cooling unit 5 according to the operation content determined by the sequence control circuit 6 based on the operation mode setting command. Efficient cooling corresponding to various operations of the forming unit 3 can be performed.

Second Embodiment
In the first embodiment, according to the operation mode setting command, the cooling unit (cooling fan) 5 is turned OFF in the standby mode, and the cooling unit (cooling fan) in the scanning mode and the print / copy mode other than that. In the present embodiment, the operation level of the cooling unit (cooling fan) 5 is weighted (different) in each of the scanning mode, the print mode, and the copy mode. The contents of the control of the cooling unit (which is controlled by setting the output) will be described.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining the flow of control of the cooling unit in the second embodiment. The same step numbers as those in the flowchart of FIG. 2 in the first embodiment are processing steps for performing the same processing, and a description thereof is omitted to avoid duplication of explanation.

  In step S13, when the sequence control circuit 6 determines that the scanning mode is set based on the operation mode setting command (YES in S13), the process proceeds to step S24. The output of the fan 5 is set to 50% (the rotation speed of the cooling fan is set to 1/2 of the rated rotation speed (= 50%)), and the cooling unit (cooling fan) 5 is operated.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S13 that the operation mode setting command is not the scanning mode setting (S13-NO), the process proceeds to step S25, and the sequence control circuit 6 determines whether or not the operation mode setting command is the print mode setting. Judgment is made.

  If it is determined in step S25 that the operation mode setting command is print mode setting (S25-YES), the process proceeds to step S26, and the sequence control circuit 6 sets the output of the cooling unit (cooling fan) 5 to 50%. The cooling unit (cooling fan) 5 is operated by setting (setting the rotation speed of the cooling fan to 1/2 (= 50%) of the rated rotation speed).

  In this step, set the output of the cooling unit (cooling fan) 5 to 50% (set the number of revolutions of the cooling fan to 1/2 of the rating (= 50%)) in the same way as when setting the scanning mode. However, it is also possible to set the rotation speed so as to output at a different rate.

  If it is determined in step S25 that the operation mode setting command is not print mode setting (S25-NO), the process proceeds to step S27, and the sequence control circuit 6 determines whether or not the operation mode setting command is copy mode setting. I do.

  If it is determined in step S27 that the operation mode setting command is print mode setting (S27-YES), the process proceeds to step S28, and the sequence control circuit 6 sets the output of the cooling unit (cooling fan) 5 to 100%. The cooling unit (cooling fan) 5 is operated by setting (setting the cooling fan speed to 100% of the rated speed (= FULL)).

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S27 that the operation mode setting command is not in the copy mode (S27-NO), the process routine of FIG. 3 is exited and the process ends.

  According to this embodiment, the sequence control circuit 6 can switch and control the output of the cooling unit 5 (the number of rotations of the cooling fan) according to the content of the operation setting determined based on the operation mode setting command.

  In general, in the image input / output device 100, power consumption (in other words, heat generation amount) increases in the order of standby mode <scanning mode <print mode <copy mode. In other words, in the standby mode, the sequence control circuit 6 includes the cooling unit 5 In the scanning mode and print mode, the output of the cooling unit (cooling fan) 5 is set to, for example, 50% as the first output value (the rotation speed of the cooling fan is 1/2 of the rated value). (= 50%)) and in the copy mode, the output of the cooling unit (cooling fan) 5 is set to 100%, for example, as a second output value that makes the output larger than the first output value. Set (set the cooling fan speed to 100% of the rating (= FULL)) and set the cooling unit 5 according to the contents of each operation setting. The force can be controlled, the overload of the cooling unit 5 can be prevented, and the power consumed by the cooling unit 5 can be reduced.

<Third Embodiment>
In the second embodiment, the control of the cooling unit that weights the operation level of the cooling unit (cooling fan) 5 (sets and controls different outputs) in each of the scanning mode, the print mode, and the copy mode has been described. However, in the present embodiment, the contents for controlling the output setting of the cooling unit (cooling fan) 5 more finely according to the specific contents of each operation mode (detailed information shown in FIG. 5). explain. In this embodiment, the scanning mode is taken as an example of the operation content set by the operation mode setting command, when the image reading unit 2 reads an image using an ADF (automatic document feeder), and when the ADF is not used. An example of switching the output setting of the cooling unit (cooling fan) 5 will be described.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining the flow of control of the cooling unit in the third embodiment. Step numbers that are the same as those in the flowcharts of FIGS. 2 and 3 in the first and second embodiments are processing steps for performing the same processing, and description thereof is omitted to avoid duplication of description.

  In step S13, when the sequence control circuit 6 determines that the scanning mode is set based on the operation mode setting command (S13-YES), the process proceeds to step S30, and the sequence control circuit 6 performs the operation mode setting command. The content of the detailed information included in the image (FIG. 5) is determined, and the image reading unit 2 determines whether or not the ADF mode uses the ADF in reading the image (S30).

  If it is determined in step S30 that detailed information for specifying an ADF mode for reading an image using ADF is included in the operation mode setting command (S30-YES), the process proceeds to step S24, and the sequence control circuit 6 The output of the cooling unit (cooling fan) 5 is set to 50% as the first output value (the rotation speed of the cooling fan is set to 1/2 (= 50%) of the rated rotation speed), and the cooling unit (cooling) Fan) 5 is operated.

  On the other hand, when the image is read without using the ADF in the determination of step S30 (S30-NO), the process proceeds to step S31, and the sequence control circuit 6 outputs the output of the cooling unit (cooling fan) 5 to the first As the third output value that is lower than the output value (1/2 of the rated speed (= 50%)), set the cooling fan speed to 1/3 of the rated value, and set the cooling unit (cooling fan) 5 Make it work. In this case, since the power consumption is small and the heat generation amount is small because the ADF is not used, the output of the cooling unit (cooling fan) 5 is set small.

  According to this embodiment, the sequence control circuit 6 can switch and control the output of the cooling unit 5 (the number of rotations of the cooling fan) based on detailed information that specifically specifies the operation content.

  By switching the output of the cooling unit 5 (the number of rotations of the cooling fan) in consideration of the content of specific detailed information in each operation mode, the cooling unit 5 can be operated according to each operation mode. The overload of the cooling unit 5 can be prevented, and the power consumed by the cooling unit 5 can be reduced.

  In this embodiment, the output of the cooling unit 5 (the number of rotations of the cooling fan) is a third output value, which is 1/3 of the rated rotation number of the cooling fan, and the first output value is the rated rotation number of the cooling fan. Although an example is shown in which the rated output speed of the cooling fan (FULL: step S28 in the second and third embodiments) is divided into three stages as the second output value, the gist of the present invention is However, the present invention is not limited to this setting example, and various output values can be set in consideration of power consumption (the amount of generated heat).

  The detailed information in the operation mode is not limited to that in the scanning mode. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, in the print mode and the copy mode, monochrome printing or full color printing is performed. It can be set individually according to various image forming modes, such as when performing double-sided printing.

  The controller 1 sets the output of the cooling unit 5 (the number of rotations of the cooling fan) in consideration of the content of the operation mode setting command and the content of each detailed information in consideration of the power consumption (the amount of generated heat). Shall be able to.

  This content can be held in the form of a data table in a storage unit (not shown) in the image input / output device 100 (FIG. 6), and the sequence control circuit 6 controls this data in the control of the cooling unit 5. With reference to the table, the output of the cooling unit 5 (the number of rotations of the cooling fan) can be controlled.

  The setting of the output of the cooling unit 5 (the number of rotations of the cooling fan) held in the data table format can also be edited by the user in accordance with an operation input from the operation panel 4.

<Fourth embodiment>
An object of the present invention is to supply a storage medium storing software program codes for realizing the functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or apparatus, and the computer (or CPU or MPU) of the system or apparatus stores the storage medium. Needless to say, this can also be achieved by reading and executing the program code stored in the. The storage of the program code is not limited to the client computer, and can be stored in a computer functioning as a server, for example.

  In this case, the program code itself read from the storage medium realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments, and the storage medium storing the program code constitutes the present invention.

  As a storage medium for supplying the program code, for example, a flexible disk, a hard disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, a CD-ROM, a CD-R, a DVD, a magnetic tape, a nonvolatile memory card, a ROM, or the like is used. it can.

  Further, by executing the program code read by the computer, not only the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized, but also an OS (operating system) operating on the computer based on the instruction of the program code. It goes without saying that a case where the function of the above-described embodiment is realized by performing part or all of the actual processing and the processing is included.

  Further, after the program code read from the storage medium is written into a memory provided in a function expansion board inserted into the computer or a function expansion unit connected to the computer, the function expansion is performed based on the instruction of the program code. It goes without saying that the CPU or the like provided in the board or the function expansion unit performs part or all of the actual processing, and the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized by the processing.

  A cooling unit in the image input / output device is controlled by the program provided by the present embodiment and a computer-readable storage medium storing the program, and efficient corresponding to various operations of the image reading unit and the image forming unit Cooling can be performed.

1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of an image input / output device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the flow of control of the cooling unit in 1st Embodiment. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the flow of control of the cooling unit in 2nd Embodiment. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the flow of control of the cooling unit in 3rd Embodiment. It is a figure which illustrates the content of the detailed information which designates the operation mode set by an operation mode setting command, and specific operation content. It is a figure which shows the example of the output setting of the cooling unit currently hold | maintained at the memory | storage part in the format of the data table.

Claims (6)

Image reading means for inputting an image, image forming means for forming an image to be output based on the input image or image data received from an external device, and heat generation from the image reading means or the image forming means An image input / output device having cooling means for cooling,
A determination unit that receives information for setting an operation for the image reading unit or the image forming unit and determines the content of the operation setting for the image reading unit or the image forming unit;
Control means for controlling the output of the cooling means based on the contents of the operation setting determined by the determining means;
An image input / output device comprising: 2. The image input / output apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the cooling unit by setting different outputs in accordance with operation setting contents of the image reading unit and the image forming unit. . The determination means further determines whether or not detailed information for specifically specifying the operation content is added to the information for setting the operation,
The image input / output apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls an output of the cooling unit according to the detailed information. Image reading means for inputting an image, image forming means for forming an image to be output based on the input image or image data received from an external device, and heat generation from the image reading means or the image forming means A method for controlling the image input / output device having cooling means for cooling,
A determination step of receiving information for setting an operation for the image reading unit or the image forming unit and determining the content of the operation setting for the image reading unit or the image forming unit;
A control step of controlling the output of the cooling means based on the content of the operation setting determined by the determination step;
A control method for an image input / output device. A program for causing a computer to execute the control method of the image input / output device according to claim 4. A computer-readable storage medium storing the program according to claim 5.

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