JP2007072953A - Control in network device responding to network type plug and play - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a technique capable of simplifying mounting in a network device responding to network type Plug and Play. <P>SOLUTION: An MFP server 300 transfers, upon receipt of a message to a device other than a printer device by a protocol of network type Plug and Play, the message to an MFP device unit 400 using a printer class. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a control technique in a network device compatible with network type plug and play.

  As is well known, plug and play is a technique that allows a peripheral device to be connected to or disconnected from a computer at an arbitrary timing after the computer is started. In recent years, Universal Plug and Play (hereinafter referred to as “UPnP”, UPnP is a trademark of UPnP Implementers Corporation) has been developed as an application of plug and play technology to a network. When UPnP is used, the network device can be connected to the network or disconnected from the network at an arbitrary timing. In this specification, an architecture that implements plug and play in a network, such as UPnP, is referred to as “network type plug and play”.

JP 2001-290724 A

  A UPnP-compatible network device can function as various service devices. Here, “service device” means a device that executes a service in response to an external request. The service device can be realized as various devices such as a printer, a scanner, a facsimile, a copier, a storage device, a camera, and a clock. It is also possible to realize the functions of a plurality of service devices with one apparatus.

  Thus, UPnP-compatible network devices can take various forms. However, on the other hand, there is a problem that the implementation of the network device tends to be complicated.

  An object of this invention is to provide the technique which can simplify the mounting in the network apparatus corresponding to a network type | mold plug and play.

The device according to the present invention is a network device compatible with network type plug and play,
A plurality of service devices executing services in response to requests from clients on the network;
A device control unit for controlling the plurality of service devices;
A network protocol control unit for receiving a message having a message header and a message body from a client on the network and transferring the content of the message body to the device control unit;
With
The plurality of service devices include a first device and a second device of a different type from the first device,
The network protocol control unit and the device control unit are connected via a packetized logical channel for the first device,
When the network protocol control unit receives a message addressed to the second device using the network-type plug-and-play protocol, the message body of the received message using the logical channel for the first device Is transferred to the device control unit.

  According to this apparatus, when a message addressed to the second device is received by a network-type plug and play protocol, the content of the message body is device-controlled using the packetized logical channel for the first device. Can be transferred to the department. Therefore, even when a message addressed to the second device is sent from a plurality of clients, it is possible to transfer the message to the device control unit while identifying each message using the packet structure. As a result, with regard to message transfer addressed to the second device, it is possible to simplify the implementation in the network device corresponding to the network type plug and play.

The connection between the network protocol controller and the device controller has a non-packetized logical channel for the second device in addition to the packetized logical channel for the first device. And
When the network protocol control unit receives a message addressed to the second device with a network protocol that is not the network type plug and play protocol but with a network protocol that is not the network type plug and play protocol, the network protocol control unit The content of the message body of the received message may be transferred to the device controller using a logical channel for the device.

  According to this configuration, a message received using a network type plug and play protocol and a message received using another network protocol can be transferred to the device control unit in parallel.

  The destination path name of the message addressed to the second device includes a first part indicating that the logical channel for the first device is used, and the final destination is the second device. It is good also as what contains the 2nd part shown.

  According to this configuration, it is possible to easily determine that the logical channel for the first device is used and that the final destination is the second device.

The network control unit and the device control unit are connected by USB,
The first device may be a printer device.

  According to this configuration, it is possible to easily configure a packetized logical packet as a logical channel for a printer device in USB connection.

  Note that the present invention can be realized in various forms, for example, a network device, a network protocol control device, a control method and control device for those devices, and a function of those methods or devices. The present invention can be realized in the form of a computer program, a recording medium recording the computer program, a data signal including the computer program and embodied in a carrier wave, and the like.

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described in the following order.
A. Explanation of terms:
B. System overview:
C. Device configuration of device and device description:
D. Data transfer sequence to service devices other than printer devices:
E. Variation:

A. Explanation of terms:
The meanings of the terms used in the following description are as follows.
DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol): Dynamic host configuration protocol. A protocol that dynamically assigns IP addresses.
GENA (General Event Notification Architecture): General event notification architecture. Used when issuing events in the UPnP architecture.
HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol): Hypertext transfer protocol.
HTTP MU (HTTP Multicast over UDP): HTTP multicast using UDP (User Datagram Protocol).
HTTPPU (HTTP (unicast) over UDP): HTTP unicast using UDP.
MFP (Multi Function Peripheral): a composite peripheral device having a plurality of device functions
SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol): Simple object access protocol. In UPnP architecture, it is used for requesting and responding to actions by RPC (Remote Procedure Call).
SSDP (Simple Service Discovery Protocol): Simple service discovery protocol. In the UPnP architecture, it is used for service discovery.
UPnP (Universal Plug and Play): Universal Plug and Play (UPnP is a trademark of UPnP Implementers Corporation).
URI (Uniform Resource Identifier): Uniform resource identifier. An identifier that is a superordinate concept of URL (Uniform Resource Locator) and indicates a unique position of a resource.
XHTML (eXtensible HyperText Markup Language): An extended hypertext markup language. It is a kind of document description language compatible with HTML, and is a form of XML implementation. XHTML-print described later is a specification for printing an XHTML document.
XML (eXtensible Markup Language): An extensible markup language.

  Although many of the above-described protocols are used in UPnP, these are hereinafter collectively referred to as “UPnP protocol”.

B. System overview:
FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing a configuration of a network system to which an embodiment of the present invention is applied. This network system has a configuration in which a personal computer 100, a digital camera 110, a TV set 120, an image server 130, and a multifunction device 200 are connected to each other via a LAN. The LAN may be a wired network such as IEEE 802.3 or a wireless network such as IEEE 802.11b / g / a. The digital camera 110, the TV set 120, and the multifunction device 200 are UPnP compatible network devices. The digital camera 110 and the TV set 120 include control points 110C and 120C in the UPnP architecture. The UPnP architecture and control points will be described later. The personal computer 100 and the image server 130 are also components of this network system, but do not support UPnP.

  The personal computer 100 has a function of creating print data of an image using the printer driver 100D, transferring the print data to the multi-function device 200 via the LAN, and executing printing. During this printing process, the multifunction device 200 functions as a normal network printer without using the UPnP protocol. On the other hand, when printing is performed in accordance with a request from a control point (for example, 110C), the multi-function device 200 functions as a UPnP compatible printer device.

  The multifunction device 200 includes an MFP server 300 and an MFP device unit 400. The MFP server 300 has a function as a network protocol control unit 302 that mediates messages exchanged between other devices on the LAN and the MFP device unit 400. As will be described later, in a typical case, the MFP server 300 interprets the UPnP protocol with respect to the message header during message transfer, but does not interpret or process the message body. The MFP device unit 400 includes three service devices (a printer 404, a scanner 406, and a storage 408), and a device control unit 402 that controls them. It is also possible to add service devices other than the printer 404, the scanner 406, and the storage 408. The MFP server 300 and the MFP device unit 400 are connected by USB (Universal Serial Bus). However, it is also possible to connect the two with a physical interface other than USB.

  UPnP is an architecture that realizes connecting or disconnecting a network device to a network at an arbitrary timing. The UPnP network is composed of control points 110C and 120C and devices 404, 406 and 408. Here, “device” means an apparatus that provides a service. In this specification, unless otherwise specified, “device” and “service device” are used as synonyms. The “control point” means a controller that detects and controls other devices on the network, and functions as a client for the service device. Various functions of the UPnP-compatible network device will be described later.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an internal configuration of the multifunction device 200. The MFP server 300 includes a central control unit (CPU) 310, a RAM 320, a ROM 330, a network control unit 340, and a USB host control unit 350. The network control unit 340 is connected to a wired network via the connector 342. The USB host control unit 350 has a root hub 352, and two USB connectors 354 and 356 are provided on the root hub 352. The first USB connector 354 is connected to the USB connector 462 of the MFP device unit 400 via a USB cable. An additional device (for example, a wireless communication circuit for communicating with a wireless LAN network) can be connected to the second USB connector 356.

  The MFP device unit 400 includes a central control unit (CPU) 410, a RAM 420, a ROM 430, a print engine 440, a scanner engine 450, two USB device control units 460 and 470, a PC card interface 480, and an operation panel. A control unit 490, a viewer control unit 500, and a USB host control unit 510 are included.

  The print engine 440 is a printing mechanism that performs printing in accordance with given print data. In this embodiment, when the control points 110C and 120C perform printing based on the XHTML data, the central control unit 410 interprets the XHTML data, executes color conversion and halftone processing, and creates print data. This print data is supplied to the print engine 440. However, the print engine 440 may be configured to have color conversion and halftone processing functions instead of the central control unit 410. On the other hand, when printing from the personal computer 100, the central control unit 410 analyzes the page description language generated by the printer driver 100 </ b> D to create print data, and supplies the print data to the print engine 440. In this specification, “print data” means data representing a printed matter by dot data indicating a dot formation state on a print medium. The print data is composed of printer-specific control commands. XHTML does not correspond to print data, and is a document description language for describing a document. The scanner engine 450 is a mechanism that scans an image and generates image data.

  The first USB device control unit 460 of the MFP device unit 400 is connected to the USB host control unit 350 of the MFP server 300 via the USB connector 462. The second USB device control unit 470 has a USB connector 472, to which an arbitrary USB host such as a personal computer can be connected. The PC card interface 480 has a PC card slot 482. An operation panel 492 as input means is connected to the operation panel control unit 490. A viewer 502 as an image display unit is connected to the viewer control unit 500. The user can input various instructions using the operation panel 492 while observing images and menus displayed on the viewer 502. The USB host control unit 510 has a root hub 512, and the root hub 512 is provided with a USB connector 514. The connector 514 can be connected to a USB device such as a digital camera conforming to CIPA DC-001-2003 and the like formulated by the Camera and Imaging Products Association of the limited liability intermediate corporation.

  The central control unit 310, the network control unit 340, and the USB host control unit 350 of the MFP server 300 realize the function as the network protocol control unit 302 in FIG. More specifically, the network control unit 340 transmits and receives messages according to various network protocols. The central control unit 310 interprets the UPnP protocol and determines the transfer destination. The USB host control unit 350 transfers a message to and from the MFP device unit 400. These control units 310, 340, and 350 transfer messages without interpreting or processing the message body.

  The USB device control unit 460 and the central control unit 410 of the MFP device unit 400 realize the function as the device control unit 402 in FIG. More specifically, the USB device control unit 460 transmits and receives messages according to the USB transfer protocol. In addition, the central control unit 410 interprets the content of the message transferred via the MFP server 300, executes processing according to the content of the message, and operates the print engine 440 and the scanner engine 450. The print engine 440 corresponds to the hardware portion of the printer 404 in FIG. 1, and the scanner engine 450 corresponds to the hardware portion of the scanner 406 in FIG. The memory card inserted into the slot 482 of the PC card interface 480 corresponds to the hardware portion of the storage 408 in FIG.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a hierarchical structure of various protocols of the MFP server 300. The MFP server 300 includes a service protocol interpreter 1000 for interpreting various network protocols. The service protocol interpretation unit 1000 includes a lower layer of the network architecture and a lower layer of the USB architecture. As a lower layer of the network architecture, a UPnP device architecture 1100 and three non-UPnP device function units 1210, 1220, and 1230 are provided. Below these are a UDP or TCP layer, an Internet Protocol (IP) layer, a driver layer, and a network interface layer.

  As a lower layer of the USB architecture of the service protocol interpreter 1000, a D4 packet processor 1300, a USB printer class driver 1310, a USB scanner class driver 1320, and a USB storage class driver 1330 are provided. Below these three device drivers 1310, 1320, and 1330 are USB system software and a USB host interface (hardware). As can be understood from this figure, the USB printer class driver 1310 uses the so-called “D4 packet” (packet structure conforming to IEEE1284.4) to transfer data, whereas the scanner class driver 1310 The D4 packet is not used in 1320 or the storage class driver 1330. This is because, among the standard USB device classes, the D4 packet is adopted as the upper protocol in the printer class, but in the scanner class and the storage class, the control stack that does not use the D4 packet (from the application layer to the physical layer). This is because the architecture up to is the standard of the OS.

  The UPnP device architecture is configured according to various protocols such as HTTPMU, HTTPPU, SOAP / HTTP, and HTTP. UPnP uses these protocols to implement the following various processes.

(1) Addressing:
When a UPnP device (hereinafter simply referred to as “device”) is connected to a network, a network address (IP address) is acquired by addressing. For addressing, a DHCP server or Auto-IP is used. If a DHCP server is provided in the network, the device uses an IP address assigned by the DHCP server. If there is no DHCP server, the device determines its own address using an automatic IP addressing function called Auto-IP. In this embodiment, only one IP address is assigned to the multifunction device 200, and the entire multifunction device 200 is recognized as a single network device.

(2) Discovery (detection):
Discovery is a process in which the control point finds out where the device is. Discovery can be realized by the control point multicasting the discovery message, or can be realized by advertising the fact to the control point when the device joins the network. Discovery is performed using HTTPMU / SSDP or HTTPPU / SSDP. As a result of the discovery, the control point and the device can be processed peer-to-peer.

(3) Description:
Details of the device configuration are described in XML as a device description. The details of the device service are described in XML as a service description. These descriptions are owned by the device and provided to the control point. The control point can know the details of the device and service by referring to these descriptions. An example of the device description will be described later.

(4) Control:
Control is a process in which a control point controls a device by transferring a control message including an action request to the device. Control is performed using HTTP / SOAP.

(5) Event:
When a predetermined event occurs, a service in the device notifies the control point of the occurrence of the event. A control point that receives notification of an event occurrence “subscribes” to the service. Events are forwarded to subscribing control points. Notification of an event is performed using HTTP / GENA.

(6) Presentation:
The presentation is a process of acquiring a presentation page whose control point is described in HTML from the URL for presentation registered in the device description. With this presentation, for example, the control point can display various states of the device.

  The present invention can also be applied to future versions of UPnP. As network type plug and play, any control point and device can communicate peer-to-peer by addressing (automatic IP address determination) and device discovery, and the control point and device exchange messages. If it is an architecture, the present invention can be applied to network type plug and play specifications other than UPnP.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a hierarchical structure of various protocols of the MFP device unit 400. The MFP device unit 400 includes a UPnP device function unit 2400 and three non-UPnP device function units 2210, 2220, and 2230. The UPnP device function unit 2400 includes three UPnP device modules (the printer 404, the scanner 406, and the storage 408 in FIG. 1). Each device module includes a service module for executing a service, but is not shown here. Below the UPnP device function unit 2400 and the non-UPnP printer function unit 2210 are a D4 packet processing unit 2300 and a USB printer class driver 2310. A USB scanner class driver 2320 and a USB storage class driver 2330 exist below the non-UPnP scanner function unit 2220 and the non-UPnP storage function unit 2230. Below the three device drivers 2310, 2320, and 2330 are a USB logical device and a USB device interface (hardware). As can be understood from this hierarchical structure, when the UPnP scanner device or the UPnP storage device provides a service to the control point, the USB printer class driver 2310 is used between the MFP server 300 and the MFP device unit 400. Data transfer is performed. Therefore, the D4 packet can also be used when transferring data for UPnP scanner devices and UPnP storage devices.

  As shown in FIG. 4, seven types of UPnP bidirectional communication channels are provided between the USB printer class driver 1310 of the MFP server 300 and the USB printer class driver 2310 of the MFP device unit 400. These are logical channels using D4 packets, and are used when the multifunction device 200 functions as a UPnP device. There are also seven types of UPnP logical channels corresponding to the seven types of logical channels between the printer class drivers 1310 and 2310 between the service protocol interpreter 1000 and the UPnP device function unit 2400. FIG. It is omitted. In the following, a logical channel using D4 packets will be described first.

  FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a USB interface / endpoint configuration and a logical channel configuration. Generally, a USB device has an interface and an endpoint. USB transfer is performed between the USB host and the endpoint. In other words, the “end point” is a logical resource that communicates with the host. In the example of FIG. 5A, seven end points EP # 0 to EP # 6 are shown. The control end point EP # 0 is an end point for transmitting / receiving a standard device request. A “standard device request” is a basic request that needs to be supported by all USBs. Therefore, one control endpoint EP # 0 is always provided for one USB device.

  The printer bulk-out endpoint EP # 1 and bulk-in endpoint EP # 2 are endpoints for receiving and transmitting messages for the print engine 440. Similarly, the bulk-out endpoint EP # 3 and the bulk-in endpoint EP # 4 for the scanner are endpoints for receiving and transmitting messages for the scanner engine 450. The storage endpoints EP # 5 and EP # 6 are endpoints for receiving and transmitting messages for the memory card. In general, in a USB device, endpoints other than the control endpoint EP # 0 are classified by a logical interface. In the example of FIG. 5A, a printer interface IF # 0, a scanner interface IF # 1, and a storage interface IF # 2 are provided as logical interfaces.

  In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5B, nine logical channels are provided in the printer interface IF # 0. The function of each of these channels is as follows.

(1) PRINT-DATA channel CH # 11:
A channel for transmitting / receiving print data transferred from the printer driver 100D (FIG. 1) from the personal computer 100 on the network using a print port (port number or port number 9100 according to the LPR port). It is not shown in FIG.

(2) PRINT-STATUS channel CH # 12:
The MFP server 300 is a channel for transmitting and receiving information indicating the state of the print engine 440, and is provided from the MFP server 300 to the personal computer 100 on the network by a protocol such as SNMP. It is not shown in FIG.

(3) UPNP-LOCALCONTROL channel CH # 21:
A UPnP channel for performing communication between the MFP server 300 and the MFP device unit 400 with the MFP server 300 as a requester and the MFP device unit 400 as a responder. The MFP server 300 can acquire various types of information from the MFP device unit 400 using this channel.

(4) UPNP-LOCALEVENT channel CH # 22:
A UPnP channel for performing communication between the MFP server 300 and the MFP device unit 400 with the MFP device unit 400 as a requester and the MFP server 300 as a responder. The MFP device unit 400 can use this channel to notify the MFP server 300 of the contents of setting changes made by the user, for example, and when the MFP device unit 400 tries to turn off the power, the MFP device unit 400 uses the UPnP protocol. An end request can be notified to the MFP server 300.

(5) UPNP-PRESENTATION channel CH # 23:
A channel for transmitting and receiving UPnP presentation data (Web page data). A channel (down channel) for transmitting presentation data from the MFP device unit 400 to the control point in response to a request from the control point, and a channel (uploading new presentation data from the control point to the MFP device unit 400). Up channel) may be provided separately.

(6) UPNP-CONTROL channel CH # 24:
In UPnP, a channel for transmitting and receiving data related to an action transmitted from a control point. The reason why the above-mentioned UPNP-LOCALCONTROL channel is prefixed with “LOCAL” is that the UPNP-LOCALTONTROL channel is not used for transferring action contents from the control point. In other words, the UPNP-CONTROL channel CH # 24 is used only for transmission / reception of data related to the action transmitted from the control point.

(7) UPNP-EVENT channel CH # 25:
In UPnP, a channel for sending events to subscribing control points. The reason why the above-mentioned UPNP-LOCALEVENT channel is prefixed with “LOCAL” is that this UPNP-LOCALEVENT channel is not used for sending events to the control point. In other words, the UPNP-EVENT channel CH # 25 is used only for transmitting an event generated in the multi-function device 200 to the control point.

(8) UPNP-DOWNCONTENTx channel CH # 26x:
In UPnP, a transmission / reception channel used when downloading content data from a control point to the MFP device unit 400. Here, the suffix “x” means the x-th channel among Ndown (Ndown is an integer of 2 or more) UPNP-DOWNCONTENT channels. The number NUP of available UPNP-DOWNCONTENTx channels can be arbitrarily set to 1 or more, but is preferably set to a value of 2 or more. If Ndown is set to a value of 2 or more, it is possible to receive content data of a plurality of controls in parallel.

(9) UPNP-UPCONTENTx channel CH # 27x:
In UPnP, a transmission / reception channel used when uploading content data from the MFP device unit 400 to a control point. The suffix “x” means the x-th channel among Nup (Nup is an integer of 2 or more) UPNP-UPCONTENT channels. The number Ndown of UPNP-DOWNCONTENTx channels and the number Nup of UPNP-UPCONTENTx channels may be the same or different. It can be understood that the actual number of UPnP logical channels in FIG. 5B is (5 + Ndown + Nup).

  Each logical channel can perform bidirectional communication using both the bulk-out endpoint EP # 1 and the bulk-in endpoint EP # 2. The identification information of the logical channel is registered in the header of the D4 packet.

  The endpoints EP # 3 and EP # 4 of the scanner interface IF # 1 are used for communication via the logical channel between the scanner class drivers 1320 and 2320 (FIG. 4). The endpoints EP # 5 and EP # 6 of the storage interface IF # 2 are used for communication via the logical channel between the storage class drivers 1330 and 2330. These logical channels differ from the logical channels between the printer class drivers 1310 and 2310 (FIG. 5B) in that they are not packetized by D4 packets. However, it should be noted that in the data transfer using the scanner interface IF # 1 and the storage interface IF # 2, the USB physical layer is packetized according to the USB standard.

  FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing the structure of a D4 packet used for USB transfer via the printer interface IF # 0. This is a packet structure conforming to IEEE1284.4. This D4 packet is composed of a header part of 12 bytes and a message part of 0 bytes or more. The header part has a 6-byte D4 standard header, a 4-byte ID field, and a 2-byte error code field. In the D4 standard header, socket IDs (logical channel IDs) for identifying nine types of (7 + 2N) logical channels shown in FIG. 5B are registered. A request ID is registered in the ID field. This request ID is used to identify packets constituting the same message in data transfer between the MFP server 300 and the MFP device unit 400 (in particular, the UPNP-DOWNCONTENTx channel and the UPNP-UPCONTENTx channel). The request ID may be assigned by the MFP server 300 or may be assigned by the MFP device unit 400. Therefore, it is preferable to provide a bit (for example, the most significant bit) that can uniquely identify which of the MFP server 300 and the MFP device unit 400 is assigned to the request ID. The request ID is also referred to as “job ID”.

  In the D4 packet, since various logical channels can be configured using the header portion, various data transfers can be realized using various logical channels. In addition, since header information other than the D4 standard header can be set arbitrarily to some extent, there is an advantage that the degree of freedom of contrivance for executing various controls is high.

  As can be understood from FIG. 4, D4 packets are used for logical channel communication between the printer class drivers 1310 and 2310, while logical channel communication between the scanner class drivers 1320 and 2320 and storage class drivers 1330 and 2330 are used. The D4 packet is not used in communication between the logical channels. Therefore, the printer class can realize more various communications than the scanner class and the storage class. The D4 packet is packetized again at the physical layer according to the USB standard. That is, the D4 packet is packed in a USB packet (data packet) as a payload of a USB physical layer packet (referred to as “USB packet”). As described above, it can be understood that the D4 packet processing units 1300 and 2300 perform packetization in a protocol layer higher than the USB packet.

  When a request is transferred using the D4 packet according to the present embodiment, a URI (notice that the message is sent from the sender of the message to the receiver (receiver)) at the head of the message after the error field (also called “message header”) Usually, a relative URI) is added. The recipient of the message can easily determine the content and destination of the request from this URI. The specific content of the D4 packet message will be described later.

  As shown in FIG. 5B, in this embodiment, as the logical channels for USB transfer, logical channels CH # 11 to CH # 12 for print ports and logical channels CH # 21 to CH # for UPnP. 27x is provided separately. Accordingly, print data transferred to the MFP device unit 400 via the network print port and content data (for example, XHTML data for printing) transferred to the MFP device unit 400 via the UPnP port can be easily obtained. Can be identified. Further, in this embodiment, a plurality of logical channels CH # 21 to CH # 27x having different uses are provided for USB transfer of messages using the UPnP protocol, so that message content processing is performed on the message receiving side. It is possible to process at higher speed. In particular, in this embodiment, in addition to the logical channels CH # 23 to CH # 27x used for communication with the control point, local information is transferred between the MFP server 300 and the MFP device unit 400. The logical channels CH # 21 and CH # 22 to be used are provided separately. Accordingly, for example, a message sent from a client (control) and specific information notified between the MFP server 300 and the MFP device unit 400 can be easily distinguished, and processing suitable for each can be quickly executed. Is possible.

  FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram illustrating a typical example of processing using the UPnP architecture. Here, a case where a message is transferred among the control point 110C, the MFP server 300, and the MFP device unit 400 is shown. In step [1], the control point 110C transfers the HTTP request message F1 to the MFP server 300. The header of the message F1 includes a request command method (POST, GET, etc.), a URI indicating the destination in the MFP device unit 400, and the host name of the MFP 200 (IP address “169.254.100.100” in this example). Is described. Since only one IP address is assigned to the multi-function device 200, this IP address can be considered as the IP address of the MFP server 300 or the IP address of the MFP device unit 400.

  In step [2], the MFP server 300 analyzes the request message F1. Here, only the header portion of the message F1 is analyzed (interpreted), and the content of the transmission data (that is, the message body) is not interpreted. More specifically, in step [2], the URI of the message F1 is analyzed to determine which logical channel is used to transfer the message to the MFP device unit 400. Note that some messages F1 have no substantial message body.

  In step [3], the MFP server 300 transfers the message F2 including the URI and the message body (if present) to the MFP device unit 400 via USB. In this transfer, a logical channel selected according to the URI is used.

  In step [4], the MFP device unit 400 executes processing according to the URI and message body (if any) in the received message F2. This example will be described later. In step [5], the MFP device unit 400 transfers the message R1 including the response data to the MFP server 300 via USB. In step [6], the MFP server 300 adds an HTTP header to the transmission data. This HTTP header includes a status code indicating the processing result of the HTTP request. For example, if the processing result is OK, the status code is set to “200”, and if it is an error, it is set to “500”. In step [7], the HTTP response message R2 thus created is transferred from the MFP server 300 to the control point 110C.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the MFP server 300 analyzes (interprets) the header in the request message received from the control point, but does not interpret the content of the message body, and the message body is the MFP device. Processed by unit 400. This configuration has the following advantages. The first advantage is that the MFP server 300 does not need to know the device configuration of the MFP device unit 400 and the contents of the service, and network protocol control for transferring a message sent to a device unit having an arbitrary configuration. It can function as a part. A second advantage is that even if the device configuration of the MFP device unit 400 and the contents of the service are changed, it is not necessary to change the configuration and functions of the MFP server 300. A third advantage is that since it is not necessary to mount an interpretation unit (parser) that interprets the content of the message body in the MFP server 300, the configuration of the MFP server 300 can be simplified.

C. Device configuration of device and device description:
FIG. 8A is an explanatory diagram showing a device configuration on the UPnP protocol of the multifunction device 200. In the configuration of the MFP 200 as the UPnP device of the present embodiment, the scanner “Scnanner” and the storage device “Storage” are included in the printer “Printer” as the root device. In other words, the scanner device “Scnanner” and the storage device “Storage” are embedded devices in the printer device “Printer”. The printer device “Printer” has two print services “PrintBasic” and “PrintEnhanced”. These two services are standard print services standardized by UPnP. The scanner device “Scanner” has a scan service “Scan”, and the storage device “Storage” has a storage service “Storage”. Each service includes a state table, a control server, and an event server. In the status table, a status variable indicating the status of the service is registered. The control server receives the action request from the control point and executes the process. When the value of the state variable is changed, the event server notifies the control point of the change as an event. The target of notification is a control point that subscribes to the service in advance.

  In this specification, a device including a service is called a “service device”. As can also be seen from FIG. 8, each service device may include any number of one or more services. It is also possible to construct a device configuration so that a certain service device includes other service devices.

  Instead of the configuration of FIG. 8, a basic device “Basic” standardized by UPnP is used as a root device, and three service devices “Printer”, “” are provided in the same hierarchy below the basic device “Basic”. It is also possible to adopt a device configuration in which “Scanner” and “Storage” are juxtaposed. The basic device “Basic” is a device that includes one or more service devices and does not have a unique service executed by itself other than a service executed by the service device. Also in this case, since the multifunction device 200 is represented by one root device, the advantage that only one IP address needs to be assigned to the multifunction device 200 is maintained.

  As shown in FIG. 8, in this embodiment, only one IP address is assigned to the entire multifunction device 200. Therefore, the control point uses this one IP address to control the multifunction device 200 (MFP server 300). There is an advantage that various service devices can be accessed. Further, in this embodiment, since the number of IP addresses is smaller than that in the comparative example, there is an advantage that the management of IP addresses in the network is easier.

  Each UPnP device holds its configuration and functions in advance in the form of a device description, and has a function of providing a device description in response to a request from a control point. The contents of the service are held in the device in the form of a service description and provided to the control point. In the example of FIG. 8, device descriptions for three devices and service descriptions for four services are held in the MFP device unit 400 in advance.

  FIG. 9 shows an example of the device description of the entire multifunction device 200. The device description is described in XML. A portion with an underline indicates a setting specific to the present embodiment. The content “http://169.254.100.100:80” of the element <URLBase> includes the host name (here, IP address) of the multi-function device 200 and the port number when using HTTP. Various URIs in the description are described as relative addresses to this IP address. In the present specification, the term “URI” (or URL) includes both the case of being described by an absolute address and the case of being described by a relative address. Hereinafter, a relative address with respect to the IP address is referred to as a “path name”.

  One element <device> exists under the element <root>, and two more elements <device> are included in this element. The first element <device> is a printer device (root device), and the second and third devices below it are a scanner device and a storage device.

The following contents are described in the description for the printer device.
<Presentation URL>: URL when the control point acquires a page for presentation of the printer device. This URL is composed of a path name “/ PRESENTATION / PRINTER”.
<ServiceList>: A list of services provided by the printer device.
<ServiceType>: Type of service provided by the printer. “PrintBasic” and “PrintEnhanced” are both standard print services of the UPnP architecture.
<SCPDURL>: The path name of the printer device description.
<ControlURL>: Control server path name in the printer device. The control server is a server that provides a control point function (a process in which the control point transfers a control message including an action request to the device to control the device), and is generally included in the service of the UPnP device. Is provided.
<EventSubURL>: Path name of the event server in the printer device. The event server is a server that issues events to subscribing (subscribing) control points, and is generally provided in a device service.

  In the descriptions for the scanner and the storage, items similar to those for the printer are described. In the device description, various other properties such as a friendly name of the device, a manufacturer name, a model name, and an icon are described, but the illustration is omitted here.

D. Data transfer sequence to service devices other than printer devices:
FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram showing a procedure for transferring a message to the storage device according to the UPnP protocol. In step [1], the request message F11 is transferred from the control point 110C to the MFP server 300 according to the UPnP protocol. In this message F11, a request command method (POST method), a destination path name “/ DOWN / PRINTER / CDH”, and an IP address “169.254.100.100” of the multifunction device 200 are described.

  The first part “/ DOWN / PRINTER” of the destination path name “/ DOWN / PRINTER / CDH” means that the UPNP-DOWNCONTENTx channel for the printer device is used, and the latter part “CDH” is the final destination. Is a storage device. When the final destination is a scanner device, the latter half of the address path name is a name indicating the scanner device (for example, “/ SCN”). When the final destination is a printer device, the path name of the destination is “/ DOWN / PRINTER”.

  As described above, the control point can transmit a message to a service device other than the printer device of the multi-function peripheral 200 using the UPnP protocol. At this time, the address of the message includes a part that means that a specific logical channel for the printer device is used and a part that means that a service device other than the printer device is the final destination. Is preferred.

  In step [2], the MFP server 300 analyzes the header of this message F11 and determines that it is necessary to obtain from the MFP device unit 400 a request ID used for data transfer in the POST process. The request ID is an ID used to distinguish from other message packets by attaching to the headers of all D4 packets (FIG. 6) when transferring content data from the MFP server 300 to the MFP device unit 400. It is. In step [3], the MFP server 300 transfers a message F12 requesting a request ID to the MFP device unit 400. In the body of the message F12, a request instruction method (POST method) and a destination path name “/ DOWN / PRINTER / CDH” are described. The UPNP-LOCALCONTROL channel is used for transferring the message F12. As described with reference to FIG. 5, there are content channels (UPNP-DOWNCONTENTx channel and UPNP-UPCONTENTx channel) as channels used for transferring content data. These content channels transfer content data itself. Used only for. Therefore, in the example of FIG. 10, the UPNP-LOCALCONTROL channel is used for transferring the request ID acquisition request message F12. This channel is used when communication is performed between the MFP server 300 and the MFP device unit 400 with the MFP server 300 as a requester and the MFP device unit 400 as a responder. In the network protocol control unit 302 of the MFP server 300, a correspondence relationship between the highest path name “/ DOWN” of the destination of the HTTP request and the UPNP-LOCALCONTROL channel is set in advance. In step [3] in FIG. 10, the MFP server 300 refers to this correspondence and decides to use the UPNP-LOCALCONTROL channel, and transfers a message F12 requesting a request ID to the MFP device unit 400.

  In step [4], the MFP device unit 400 generates a request ID according to the request of this message F12, and also generates a channel ID for designating one of Ndown UPNP-DOWNCONTENTx channels. As the value of the channel ID, for example, the smallest value among the channel IDs of UPNP-DOWNCONTENTx channels that are not used at that time is assigned. The request ID and the channel ID are generated by the device control unit 402 (FIG. 1). In step [5], the MFP device unit 400 returns a message R11 including a request ID and a channel ID to the MFP server 300. In this case, the UPNP-LOCALCONTROL channel is also used.

  In this way, the request ID and the channel ID are notified to the MFP server 300, and when the MFP server 300 completes reception of the content data in step [6], the MFP server 300 causes the content data (for example, JPEG data) in step [7]. Is transferred to the MFP device unit 400. The request ID notified in step [5] is entered in the header of each packet of the message F13. As the logical channel, one channel designated by the channel ID is used among Ndown UPNP-DOWNCONTENTx channels. In the example of FIG. 10, since the value of the channel ID is “1”, the first channel UPNP-DOWNCONTENT1 is used. The MFP device unit 400 can easily recognize that these packets are packets for the processing requested in step [3] by referring to the request ID of the message F13. In addition, during content data transmission processing, one of Ndown logical channels UPNP-DOWNCONTENTx provided in advance is assigned to one content, so that a large number of content transmission processing can be performed in parallel. It is.

  In step [8], the content data thus transferred to the MFP device unit 400 is stored in the storage device that is the final destination. When the storage of the content data is finished, in step [9], a response message R12 indicating that the processing is completed is transferred from the MFP device unit 400 to the MFP server 300. In step [10], the MFP server 300 refers to the error code of the message R12 and adds an HTTP header accordingly. In step [11], the HTTP response message R13 thus created is transferred from the MFP server 300 to the control point 110C.

  As described above, when content data is transferred to the printer device, the message address does not have the last part “/ CDH” of the path name of the message F11 shown in FIG. 10 (“/ DOWN”). / PRINTER ”). At this time, in step [8], the content data is transferred not to the storage device but to the printer device. The other points are the same as the sequence of FIG.

  FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing a path for transferring a message to the storage device according to the UPnP protocol. As indicated by a broken line, a message from the control point is supplied to the service protocol interpreter 1000 via the TCP / IP layer and the UPnP device architecture 1100 in the MFP server 300. The service protocol interpreter 1000 interprets the header part of this message and determines the transfer destination. This message is packetized by the D4 packet processing unit 1300 and then transferred to the USB via the printer class driver 1310.

  If the destination is a UPnP storage device, the message sent to the MFP device unit 400 is supplied to the storage device of the UPnP device function unit 2400 via the printer class driver 2310 and the D4 packet processing unit 2300. .

  Even when a message is transferred to the scanner device according to the UPnP protocol, the transfer is executed using the printer class as in FIG. In this way, a printer class can be used when a message is transferred to a service device other than a print device according to the UPnP protocol. This advantage is as follows. Generally, a mass storage class can be used as a USB class for a memory card. However, in the mass storage class, only one message can be transferred from the host at a time, and a plurality of messages cannot be transferred in parallel. The same applies to the scanner class. On the other hand, in the printer class, the communication used by the D4 packet is standard, and the structure of the D4 packet can be designed arbitrarily to some extent. Therefore, in the printer class, it is possible to transfer a plurality of messages from the host in parallel. At this time, the plurality of messages can be distinguished by, for example, the request ID described with reference to FIG. In the UPnP protocol, messages may be simultaneously transferred from a plurality of control points to the same service device. The USB mass storage class and scanner class are inconvenient because only messages from one control point can be transferred at a time. Thus, as described above, if a printer class using D4 packets is used, there is an advantage that messages from a plurality of control points can be transferred in parallel to the same service device.

  FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram showing a path for transferring a message to the storage device according to a network protocol that is not the UPnP protocol. Here, it is assumed that the storage device 408 of the MFP device unit 400 is recognized as a storage device on the LAN, and the storage device 408 is accessed from a client (for example, the personal computer 100 in FIG. 1) on the network. Yes. At this time, a message from the client is supplied to the service protocol interpretation unit 1000 via the TCP / IP layer and the non-PnP storage function unit 1230. The service protocol interpreter 1000 interprets the header part of this message and determines the transfer destination. This message is transferred by USB via the storage class driver 1330. The message body of the message sent to the MFP device unit 400 is supplied to the non-UPnP storage function unit 2230 via the storage class driver 2330.

  As described above, a message transferred to a device other than a printer device according to a network protocol other than the UPnP protocol is transferred using a device class for each device without using a printer class. Therefore, for example, message transfer to the storage device according to the UPnP protocol (FIG. 11) and message transfer to the storage device according to a network protocol other than the UPnP protocol (FIG. 12) can be executed in parallel. is there.

E. Variation:
The present invention is not limited to the above-described examples and embodiments, and can be implemented in various modes without departing from the gist thereof. For example, the following modifications are possible.

E1. Modification 1:
In the above-described embodiment, the scanner and the storage are used as the service device other than the printer device. However, the multifunction peripheral only needs to have at least one device as the service device other than the printer device.

E2. Modification 2:
As a device using a packetized logical channel, any type of device other than a printer can be used. For example, a packetized logical channel for a scanner may be used. At this time, the packetized logical channel for the scanner can be used when transferring messages of other types of devices (for example, storage).

  In addition, the physical connection between the network control unit 302 and the device control unit 402 is not limited to USB, and can be connected in any form. For example, these control units 302 and 402 may be connected via a bus. However, if the USB connection is used, there is an advantage that a packetized logical channel can be easily configured.

E3. Modification 3:
In the above embodiment, a part of the configuration realized by hardware may be replaced with software, and conversely, a part of the configuration realized by software may be replaced by hardware.

It is a conceptual diagram which shows the structure of the network system to which the Example of this invention is applied. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an internal configuration of the multifunction machine. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a hierarchical structure of various protocols of the MFP server. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a hierarchical structure of various protocols of an MFP device unit. FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the structure of a USB interface / endpoint and a logical channel. It is explanatory drawing which shows the structure of the packet used for USB transfer via a printer interface. It is a sequence diagram which shows the typical example of the process using UPnP architecture. It is explanatory drawing which shows the UPnP device structure of an Example. FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a device description of a multifunction peripheral. FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram showing a procedure for transferring a message to a storage device according to the UPnP protocol. It is explanatory drawing which shows the path | route which transfers a message to a storage device according to a UPnP protocol. It is explanatory drawing which shows the path | route which transfers a message to a storage device according to the network protocol which is not UPnP protocol.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Personal computer 100D ... Printer driver 110 ... Digital camera 110C ... Control point 120 ... TV set 120C ... Control point 130 ... Image server 200 ... Multifunction machine 300 ... MFP server 302 ... Network protocol control part 310 ... Central control part 320 ... RAM
330 ... ROM
340 ... Network control unit 342 ... Connector 350 ... USB host control unit 352 ... Root hub 354, 356 ... USB connector 400 ... MFP device unit 402 ... Device control unit 404 ... Printer 406 ... Scanner 408 ... Storage 410 ... Central control unit 420 ... RAM
430 ... ROM
440 ... Print engine 450 ... Scanner engine 460 ... USB device controller 462 ... USB connector 470 ... USB device controller 472 ... USB connector 480 ... PC card interface 482 ... Slot 490 ... Operation panel controller 492 ... Operation panel 500 ... Viewer control Reference numeral 502 ... Viewer 510 ... USB host control part 512 ... Root hub 514 ... USB connector 1000 ... Service protocol interpretation part 1100 ... UPnP device architecture 1210 ... Non-UPnP printer function part 1220 ... Non-UPnP scanner function part 1230 ... Non-UPnP storage function part 1310 USB printer class driver 1320 USB scanner class driver 1330 USB storage class driver 2210 Non-UPn The printer function unit 2220 ... non-UPnP scanner function unit 2230 ... non-UPnP storage function unit 2310 ... USB printer class driver 2320 ... USB scanner class driver 2330 ... USB storage class driver 2400 ... UPnP device function unit

Claims (5)

A network device that supports network type plug and play,
A plurality of service devices executing services in response to requests from clients on the network;
A device control unit for controlling the plurality of service devices;
A network protocol control unit for receiving a message having a message header and a message body from a client on the network and transferring the content of the message body to the device control unit;
With
The plurality of service devices include a first device and a second device of a different type from the first device,
The network protocol control unit and the device control unit are connected via a packetized logical channel for the first device,
When the network protocol control unit receives a message addressed to the second device using the network-type plug-and-play protocol, the message body of the received message using the logical channel for the first device The network apparatus which transfers the content of the above to the said device control part. The network device according to claim 1, wherein
The connection between the network protocol controller and the device controller has a non-packetized logical channel for the second device in addition to the packetized logical channel for the first device. And
When the network protocol control unit receives a message addressed to the second device using a network protocol that is not the network type plug and play protocol, using the network protocol that is not the network type plug and play protocol, the network protocol control unit A network device that transfers the content of a message body of the received message to the device control unit using a logical channel for a device. The network device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein
The destination path name of the message addressed to the second device includes a first part indicating that the logical channel for the first device is used, and the final destination is the second device. A network device comprising: a second portion shown. A network device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The network protocol control unit and the device control unit are connected by USB,
The first device is a printer device;
Network device. A plurality of service devices that execute services in response to a request from a client on the network, a device control unit that controls the plurality of service devices, and a message received from the client on the network is transferred to the device control unit Including a network protocol control unit for controlling a network device compatible with network-type plug and play,
The plurality of service devices include a first device and a second device of a different type from the first device,
The network protocol control unit and the device control unit are connected via a packetized logical channel for the first device,
The method
(A) receiving a message having a message header and a message body from a client on the network;
(B) transferring the content of the message body of the received message to the device control unit;
With
In the step (b), when the network protocol control unit receives a message addressed to the second device using the network-type plug-and-play protocol, the logical channel for the first device is used. Transferring the content of the message body of the received message to the device controller.

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