JP2006181967A - Operation panel, image forming apparatus, and method and program of displaying operation panel - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an operation panel in which a hierarchically displayed operation menu on a screen is easily operated to rapidly select a desired setting item, and also to provide an image forming apparatus and an information processing apparatus, each having such an operation panel, and a method and program for displaying the operation panel. <P>SOLUTION: The operation panel 200 comprises: a displaying means 220 (221); a control means 223 for displaying on the displaying means an operation menu screen for various kinds of settings corresponding to displaying information according to the displaying information inputted from outside; and an operating means 210 for selecting an item on the display screen displayed on the displaying means. The operation panel 200 is constituted such that the displaying means displays: index information 225 for a plurality of operation menu screens 224; and an index item name 226 and its content now on the screen. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, and a facsimile machine, and more particularly to a panel operation unit, an image forming apparatus, an operation panel display method, and a display program thereof.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for example, an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, or a facsimile machine is provided with an operation panel as shown in FIG.
In FIG. 13, the operation panel 900 includes a display unit 910 and an operation unit 920 provided adjacent to the display unit 910.
The display unit 910 displays an operation menu screen for referring to and setting parameters for setting various functions of the image forming apparatus, and a status screen for displaying the operation content in the busy state of the image forming apparatus. It has become.
The operation unit 920 is configured in a small size and includes a plurality of operation buttons 921 including a scroll button 921a.

Here, the operation menu screen displays setting items for setting various functions of the image forming apparatus, thereby displaying individual setting items to the user and facilitating an input operation by the operation unit 920. Is.
In this case, the display means 910 includes display segments for two rows, and can display only one setting item at the same time.
Therefore, as shown in FIG. 14, the operation menu screen displays each item by scrolling the cursor up and down by operating the up and down scroll buttons 921a of the operation means 920 and moving the cursor to a desired item. You can choose.

  Furthermore, when there are detailed setting items in each setting item, selecting the setting item with the cursor as described above causes the detailed setting item to be displayed as a hierarchical menu for the setting item. When there are a plurality of setting items, a desired detailed setting item can be selected by moving the cursor up and down by operating the scroll button 921a.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 15, when the operation panel 900 is configured in a large size, the display means 910 is also expanded and displayed in the vertical and horizontal directions, and a plurality of setting items are simultaneously displayed. Will be displayed.
In this case, the display unit 910 is configured as a touch panel, and when selecting each setting item displayed on the display unit 910, the operator touches the display unit of the display unit 910 of the operation panel 900 with a finger. Thus, any setting item can be selected from the setting items expanded in the vertical and horizontal directions.
Therefore, when selecting a setting item, a desired setting item can be quickly displayed.

On the other hand, Patent Document 1 discloses an image forming apparatus in which an operation menu screen displayed on a display device at the time of setting a function is gradually shifted and displayed as a pop-up screen for each layer. Yes.
According to the image forming apparatus having such a configuration, the pop-up screen currently displayed at the top is obtained by looking at the pop-up screens of the individual layers that are shifted and overlapped on the operation menu screen displayed on the display device. It is possible to easily grasp what level the screen is.
JP 2004-289691 A

  However, in the image forming apparatus described above, in the case of the image forming apparatus provided with the small display device described at the beginning, in order to display the detailed setting items in the lower layer, the operator must display each operation menu displayed on the operation menu. While looking at the setting items, it is necessary to select a predetermined setting item and move up the hierarchy, and the operation is complicated and time-consuming, so it is difficult to quickly display the desired setting item. there were.

Further, in the image forming apparatus provided with the large display device described below, when the setting item is selected, the operator operates the up / down / left / right scroll buttons 921a of the operation means 920 of the operation panel 900, A desired setting item can be quickly displayed by selecting an arbitrary setting item from the setting items expanded in the xy direction.
However, a large display device has a large occupation area and a high cost.

On the other hand, in the image forming apparatus according to Patent Document 1, the operation menu screens of the respective layers are displayed as multiple pop-up screens so as to be shifted from each other. Is easily visible.
However, in this case as well, since a plurality of operation menu screens are displayed in a multiplexed manner, a large-sized and high-resolution display device is required. Similarly, the area occupied by the display device increases and the cost increases. End up.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and even in a small display device, a desired setting item can be quickly selected by easily operating an operation menu screen displayed hierarchically. It is an object of the present invention to provide an operation panel that can be used, an image forming apparatus including such an operation panel, a display method of the operation panel, and a display program.

  In order to achieve this object, an operation panel according to claim 1 of the present invention includes an operation menu for various settings corresponding to the display information on the display means based on display information input from the outside. In an operation panel including control means for displaying a screen and an operation means for selecting an item of screen display displayed on the display means, the display means includes index information of a plurality of operation menu screens The item name and contents of the index being displayed are displayed.

When the operation panel has such a configuration, the user can grasp the hierarchical structure of the operation menu screen by looking at the index information and confirm the item name and contents of the currently selected index. Can do.
Therefore, when the user knows which index of the index information is the desired index, the user can easily and quickly respond to the desired index by operating the operation means and selecting the index. Setting items can be selected.

In the operation panel according to claim 2, the index information is map information composed of a plurality of indexes arranged in a matrix in the vertical and horizontal directions, and the display of the selected index is different from the display of other indexes. The display has a different display that can be identified.
When the operation panel has such a configuration, it is possible to easily view a plurality of operation menus by looking at the map information displayed in a matrix, and for example, by displaying different display colors and lighting states, The selected index can be easily grasped.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, the index information is expanded beyond an area where the index information can be displayed vertically and horizontally, and the display means scrolls and displays the index information in the vertical and horizontal directions.
When the operation panel has such a configuration, when there is a larger number of index information than the limited number of display units in the index information display area of the display means, the index information is scrolled vertically or horizontally to The whole can be displayed.

The operation panel according to claim 4 is configured such that the index information has a hierarchical structure, and at least one index is associated with index information of another hierarchy.
When the operation panel has such a configuration, it is possible to easily move to the upper or lower hierarchy index information and the operation menu by creating hierarchical index information corresponding to the hierarchical operation menu screen. it can.

An image forming apparatus according to a fifth aspect includes the operation panel according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, and an operation menu for setting various functions of the image forming apparatus on a display unit of the operation panel. In addition to displaying the screen, the input operation from the operation means of the operation panel is accepted corresponding to the operation menu screen.
When the image forming apparatus has such a configuration, it is possible to easily move to a desired setting item by using index information regarding an operation menu screen having a complicated hierarchical structure for setting various functions of the image forming apparatus. Can do.

The operation panel display method according to claim 6 displays an operation menu screen for function setting of various devices on the display means, and inputs for function setting from the operation means corresponding to the operation menu screen. In the operation panel display method for accepting an operation, a step of displaying index information of a plurality of operation menu screens on the display means, and one index is selected from the index information by the operation of the operation means. And displaying the item name and contents of the index.
Thus, the present invention can also be realized as a method.

The display program for the operation panel according to claim 7 displays an operation menu screen for setting functions of various devices on the display means, and inputs for setting functions from the operation means corresponding to the operation menu screen. In a display program method for an operation panel for causing a computer to execute a process for receiving an operation, a procedure for displaying index information of a plurality of operation menu screens on the display means, and an operation of the operation means, When one index is selected, a procedure for displaying the item name and contents of the index is executed by the computer.
Thus, the present invention can also be realized as a program.

In this way, according to the present invention, in various devices such as an image forming apparatus and an information processing apparatus, the index information is used for an operation menu for setting functions and the like, and desired setting items are handled. By selecting an index from the operation means, it is possible to move to the setting item.
Therefore, the user can easily and quickly select a desired setting item even with an operation menu having a complicated hierarchical structure.

[First embodiment]
A first embodiment of an image forming apparatus to which the present invention is applied will be described below with reference to FIG.
FIG. 1 shows the configuration of a first embodiment of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention.
As shown in FIG. 1, the image forming apparatus 10 includes an image forming apparatus main body 100 and an operation panel 200.

  The image forming apparatus main body 100 has a known configuration, for example, configured as a printer, and performs print output based on the print data when the print data is input.

As shown in FIG. 1, the operation panel 200 is disposed, for example, on the upper surface of the image forming apparatus main body 100. As shown in FIG. 2, the operation panel 200 includes an operation unit 210 and a display unit 220. .
Here, the operation means 210 and the display means 220 are integrally disposed on the surface of the operation panel 200.

  The operation unit 210 includes a plurality (eight in the illustrated example) of operation buttons 211, and the user operates the operation buttons 211 to set various functions of the image forming apparatus main body 100. These parameters can be set, or various items related to print output, such as the number of prints, can be set.

Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the display means 220 is provided with a display 221, an indicator lamp 222, and a control means 223.
The display 221 has a known configuration, and displays an operation menu screen by being controlled by the control means 222.
The indicator lamp 222 has a known configuration. In the illustrated case, the indicator lamp 222 is composed of four indicator lights of “READY”, “DATA”, “ATTENTION”, and “CANCELING”, and each of them is lit to perform display. Yes.

The control means 223 is composed of a computer such as a microcomputer, for example, and operates as follows according to a program operating on the computer.
The control unit 223 displays a status screen (information indicating the printed material being printed by the image forming apparatus main body 100 in the busy state of the image forming apparatus main body 100 in accordance with the operation state of the image forming apparatus main body 100. When the menu button 211a of the operation means 210 is operated in a ready state other than the busy state, an operation menu screen 224 is displayed as shown in FIG.
In this case, the operation menu screen 224 displays index information 225 as an index map of each operation menu in the left end area, and an item name corresponding to the index currently selected by the index information 225 (and necessary). Accordingly, the setting content) 226 is displayed.

Here, the index information 225 is composed of a 6 × 6 small square display 225a arranged in a matrix in the illustrated case.
The uppermost display 225a shows the subject menu of each column, and the other display 225a shows the menu items.
As a result, the contents of the menu assigned to each column index can be easily understood by moving the current index to the left and right at the top.
These displays 225a are normally displayed in a predetermined color, for example, and the currently selected index display 225b is displayed in a different display color as the current index. Thereby, the current index can be easily visually recognized.

Further, the current index display 225b moves in the direction assigned to the cursor button 211b by operating one of the operation buttons 211 of the operation unit 210 shown in FIG. For example, when the lower cursor button is operated three times, an operation menu as shown in FIG. 5 is displayed.
In this case, the current index corresponds to the item “TCP / IP”. From this state, when the enter button 211c of the operation buttons 211 is operated, the item “TCP / IP” is displayed as shown in FIG. The setting screen of “TCP / IP” is displayed, the current setting “On” of the setting item “DHCP” is displayed as the item name 226, and the setting is performed by operating the cursor button 211b. It has become.

When the above-described operation menu has a hierarchical structure, a hierarchical display 227 is present at the lower right side of the index information 225, and the current hierarchy is indicated by a number.
In FIG. 7A, when the menu item display 225c or 225d having a lower hierarchy is selected by operating the enter button 221c, as shown in FIG. 7B or FIG. Lower layer index information 225 associated with the display 225c or 225d is displayed. At this time, since the hierarchy is lower, the hierarchy display 227 changes from “0” to “1”.
The index display 225a is displayed with diagonal lines as shown in FIG. 5 or 6 when no item is assigned, but the display 225a itself may be omitted. .

On the other hand, when the levels of the operation menus are connected to each other, as shown in FIG. 8A, all the indexes 225a of the index information 225 of the first level are assigned as subjects. Each title name may be associated with the index information 225 of the corresponding item in the lower hierarchy.
In this case, when a menu item display 225c or 225d having a lower hierarchy is selected by operating the enter button 221c, the display is associated with the display 225c or 225d as shown in FIG. 8B. Common lower hierarchy index information 225 is quickly displayed.

Next, the operation of the image forming apparatus 10 of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a display control operation in the display unit of the operation panel of the image forming apparatus 10.
In FIG. 9, first, when the menu button 211a of the operation unit 210 is operated in step A1, the control unit 223 performs menu display processing, and on the display 221 of the display unit 220 in step A2, FIG. The operation menu screen 224 shown in FIG.

  When the cursor button 211b of the operation unit 210 is operated in step A3, the control unit 223 moves the current index in accordance with the operation of the cursor button 211b, and in step A4, for example, FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, the index display 225a selected at that time is displayed in a different display color as the current index, and the item names of the setting items associated with the index display 225a are displayed.

Next, when the enter button 211c of the operation means 210 is operated in step A5, it is determined in step A6 whether or not the current index display 225a corresponds to the setting item, and the setting item is set. In the case where it corresponds, the control means 223 displays an operation menu screen (setting screen) for setting the setting item as shown in FIG. 6, for example, on the display 221 of the display means 220 in step A7. . In step A8, when setting decision / cancellation is executed on the operation menu screen, the process returns to step A3.
On the other hand, if it does not correspond to the setting item, the control means 223 displays the index information 225 of the lower hierarchy associated with the index display 225a in step A9 as shown in FIG. indicate.
When the cancel button 211d of the operation unit 210 is operated in step A10 while the lower layer index information 225 is displayed, the control unit 223 causes the upper layer to be displayed in step A11. Index information 225 is displayed.
This completes the display control operation process by the control means.
[Second Embodiment]

FIG. 10 shows the configuration of the operation panel in the second embodiment of the image forming apparatus to which the present invention is applied.
The image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment has substantially the same configuration as the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1, but the index information 225 to be displayed on the operation means 210 of the operation panel 200 is as shown in FIG. Furthermore, the configuration differs only in that the number of display areas for the index information 225 of the display 211 exceeds the number of display areas.

In this case, when the control unit 223 displays the index information 225 on the display unit 220 of the operation panel 200, for example, the region A surrounded by the chain line in FIG. 11 is selectively displayed on the display 221 of the display unit 220. In addition, the index information 225 is scroll-displayed in the vertical direction or the horizontal direction in accordance with the operation of the cursor button 211b of the operation means 210.
As a result, even if the index information 225 includes a number of indexes exceeding the display area for the index information 225 of the display means 220 of the operation panel 200, the individual index display 225a is displayed on the display 221. be able to.
Note that the index information 225 includes column information 228 and row information 229 as shown in FIG. 11 so that the display area of the index information 225 partially displayed on the display 221 can be recognized. As shown in FIG. 5, these column information and row information 229 are also displayed on the display 221.

According to the image forming apparatus having such a configuration, the same operation as that of the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1 is performed, and each index display 225a of the index information 225 is operated by operating the scroll button 211c of the operation unit 211. It is surely displayed on the display 221 of the display means 220. Accordingly, a large number of setting items can be easily and quickly selected by using the index information 225, and the setting can be easily confirmed or changed.
[Third embodiment]

FIG. 12 shows a configuration of an embodiment of a mobile phone as an information processing apparatus to which the present invention is applied.
The cellular phone 30 uses the operation buttons 300 including a numeric keypad as the operation means 210 of the operation panel 200 in the image forming apparatus 10 described above, and uses the back illumination of the display 310 and the operation buttons 300 as the display means 220. is doing.
Specifically, in the operation menu screen 224, when the index information 225 uses the operation button 300, the numeric keypad 300 corresponding to the current index is lit up, and the item name and the item corresponding to the current index are displayed. A hierarchical display 227 is displayed on the display 310.

According to the mobile phone having such a configuration, it functions in the same manner as a conventional mobile phone, and when various settings are performed, the menu screen is called by the operation button 300, whereby the index information of each setting item on the menu screen. Is displayed using the operation button 300, the current index is lit up, and the item name 226 and the hierarchy display 227 corresponding to the current index are displayed on the display 310.
Accordingly, for example, by appropriately operating the “4” button, “7” button, “2” button, or “9” button of the operation button 300 as a cursor button, the current index is moved in the vertical direction or the horizontal direction. Alternatively, by operating, for example, the “#” button of the operation button 300, the setting item is confirmed or the lower layer is selected, and by operating, for example, the “*” button of the operation button 300, the upper layer is selected. Selection is performed, and a number of setting items can be selected easily and quickly in the same manner as the operation panel 200 in the image forming apparatus 10 described above.

Next, a display program for the operation panel will be described.
The operation panel display function (function for executing the operation panel display method) of the computer (image forming apparatus or information processing apparatus) in each of the above embodiments is the display of the operation panel stored in the storage means (for example, ROM). This is realized by a program (hereinafter simply referred to as “display program”).

The display program is read by a computer control means (CPU or the like) to send commands to each component of the computer, and predetermined processing, for example, display processing of an operation menu on the display means, function setting processing on the operation means Index information display processing on the display means, index selection processing on the operation means, index item names and contents display processing on the display means, and the like are performed.
As a result, the operation panel display function is realized by the cooperation of the display program as software and each component of the computer (image forming apparatus, information processing apparatus) as hardware resources.

The display program for realizing the operation panel display function is stored in a computer ROM, hard disk, or the like, or may be stored in a computer-readable recording medium such as an external storage device or a portable recording medium. it can.
The external storage device is a memory expansion device that incorporates a storage medium such as a CD-ROM and is externally connected to the image forming apparatus or the information processing apparatus. On the other hand, the portable recording medium is a recording medium that can be mounted on a recording medium driving device (drive device) and is portable, and refers to, for example, a flexible disk, a memory card, a magneto-optical disk, and the like.

The program recorded on the recording medium is loaded into the RAM of the computer and executed by the CPU (control means). By this execution, the functions of the above-described image forming apparatus or information processing apparatus of the present embodiment are realized.
Furthermore, when a display program is loaded by a computer, the display program held by another computer can be downloaded to its own RAM or external storage device using a communication line. The downloaded display program is also executed by the CPU, and realizes an operation panel display function of the image forming apparatus or information processing apparatus of the present embodiment.

  The operation panel, the image forming apparatus, the operation panel display method, and the display program thereof according to the present invention have been described with reference to the preferred embodiments. However, the operation panel, the image forming apparatus, the operation panel display method, and Needless to say, the display program is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the present invention.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, the case where the image forming apparatus is a printer has been described. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the present invention may be applied to other types of image forming apparatuses such as a copying machine, a facsimile apparatus, and a scanner apparatus. It is clear that the invention can be applied.
In the above-described embodiment, the case where the present invention is applied to a mobile phone as an information processing apparatus has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and it is obvious that the present invention can be applied to other information processing apparatuses. is there.

  As described above, according to the present invention, even in a small display device, an operation menu screen that is displayed in a hierarchical manner can be easily operated to quickly select a desired setting item. A panel, an image forming apparatus and an information processing apparatus including such an operation panel, and a display method and display program for the operation panel can be provided.

  Since the present invention relates to a display format of the operation panel, the present invention can be used for an apparatus, an apparatus, or the like that includes the operation panel.

1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a first embodiment of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a configuration of an operation panel in the image forming apparatus of FIG. 1. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the display means in the operation panel of FIG. It is the schematic which shows the display state of the operation menu screen in the display means of the operation panel of FIG. It is the schematic which shows a display state when one item is selected on the operation menu screen of FIG. It is the schematic which shows a display state when one item is decided on the operation menu screen of FIG. It is the schematic which shows the change of the display state of index information when the item linked | related with the lower hierarchy is selected on the operation menu screen of FIG. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating a change in display state of index information associated with one hierarchy on the operation menu screen of FIG. 4. 3 is a flowchart showing a display operation of an operation panel in the image forming apparatus of FIG. 1. It is the schematic which shows the display means of the operation panel which shows the display state of the index information by 2nd embodiment of this invention. It is the schematic which shows the whole structure of the index information displayed on the operation panel of FIG. It is the schematic which shows the structure of the mobile telephone by this invention. It is the schematic which shows the structure of an example of the operation panel in the conventional image forming apparatus. It is the schematic which shows the scroll display of the operation menu screen in the operation panel of FIG. It is the schematic which shows the example of a display of the operation menu in the large sized operation panel in the conventional image forming apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Image forming apparatus 100 Image forming apparatus main body 200 Operation panel 210 Operation means 211 Operation button 211a Menu button 211b Cursor button 211c Enter button 211d Cancel button 220 Display means 221 Display 222 Indicator lamp 223 Control means 224 Operation menu screen 225 Index information 225a Index 225b Current index display 225c, 225d Menu item display with lower hierarchy 226 Item name 227 Hierarchy display 30 Mobile phone 300 Operation buttons 310 Display

Claims (7)

Display means, control means for displaying an operation menu screen for various settings corresponding to the display information on the display means based on display information input from the outside, and items of screen display displayed on the display means And an operation means for selecting
An operation panel, wherein the display means displays index information of a plurality of operation menu screens, and item names and contents of the index being displayed. The index information is map information composed of a plurality of indexes arranged vertically and horizontally in a matrix, and the display of the selected index is different from the display of other indexes. The operation panel according to claim 1, wherein: The operation panel according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the index information is expanded beyond an area that can be displayed vertically and horizontally, and the display means scrolls and displays the index information vertically and horizontally. The operation panel according to claim 1, wherein the index information has a hierarchical structure, and at least one index is associated with index information of another hierarchy. An operation panel according to claim 1 is provided, and an operation menu screen for setting various functions of the image forming apparatus is displayed on the display means of the operation panel and corresponds to the operation menu screen. An image forming apparatus characterized in that an input operation from an operation means of an operation panel is received. An operation panel display method for displaying an operation menu screen for function setting of various devices on the display means and accepting an input operation for function setting from the operation means corresponding to the operation menu screen.
Displaying index information of a plurality of operation menu screens on the display means;
And a step of displaying an item name and contents of the index when one index is selected from the index information by the operation of the operation means. The operation menu screen for setting functions of various devices is displayed on the display means, and an operation panel for causing the computer to execute an input operation for setting functions from the operation means corresponding to the operation menu screen is displayed. In the display program method,
A procedure for displaying index information of a plurality of operation menu screens on the display means;
An operation panel display program for causing a computer to execute a procedure for displaying an item name and contents of an index when one index is selected from the index information by operating the operation means. .

Images