JP2007148553A - Image formation controller device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a printer controller device, capable of easily updating firmware for adding a storage medium for supporting or addition of a function while suppressing increase in cost without loading a large-capacity flash memory. <P>SOLUTION: This device is designed to perform a control for storing, when the size of firmware to be updated is smaller than the capacity of a flash memory, the firmware in the flash memory, and dividedly storing, when it is larger than the capacity of the flash memory, the firmware in the flash memory and a magnetic disk device. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming controller that can be connected to an image forming engine to constitute an image forming apparatus, and more particularly to an image forming controller that can appropriately update firmware including parameter information and program codes.

  With the rapid development of information communication technology, information devices such as personal computers are widely used for both office use and home use. In addition, with the widespread use of such devices, the demand for printer devices as output devices is also increasing. In particular, ink jet printer apparatuses that form images with ink droplets of a plurality of colors are used in various industrial fields and for home use. In particular, in recent years, the advancement of inkjet printer technology has led to the development of printer devices capable of outputting high-definition color images such as color photographs and printer devices capable of outputting to large recording media of A0 and B0 widths. ing. In addition, since the size of image data to be handled is large in a printer device capable of outputting to a large recording medium, an ink jet printer device including a magnetic disk device capable of storing a large amount of data has been put into practical use.

  Such an ink jet printer apparatus ejects ink supplied to a printer head from an ink tank storing ink of each color as fine droplets from a large number of pores (nozzles) formed in the printer head. By reciprocating in a certain direction (main scanning direction) parallel to the recording medium, the recording medium is moved in a plane (including the same) in a direction substantially perpendicular to the main scanning direction (sub-scanning direction). An image is formed on.

  As a recording medium that can be printed with an inkjet printer device, it has been necessary to use a special coated paper with an ink absorbing layer laminated. However, with recent advances in ink technology, in addition to coated paper, high-quality paper, recycled paper, etc. Printing on various recording media other than paper, such as various paper types, OHP sheets, cloths, and plastic sheets, has become possible.

  In an inkjet printer apparatus, image data for printing expressed in RGB format, for example, is received from a host apparatus such as a connected personal computer or workstation, and the received data is converted into a color space for the ink color of the printer. The image processing is performed, and finally converted into binary data indicating whether or not ink droplets are ejected from the nozzles of the printer head, and stored in the RAM constituting the printer apparatus. Such image processing requires the use of parameters that match the characteristics of the recording medium. By storing parameters suitable for each recording medium in a flash memory or the like in the printer, printing on various recording media is possible. Can be realized. Also, by updating the firmware including parameters, it is possible to support new recording media, add new functions, and upgrade existing functions even after the printer is shipped. Become. In particular, in a printer device provided with a magnetic disk device, it is possible to cope with many recording media by storing a part of firmware such as parameters in the magnetic disk device. It has become important to efficiently share the information that is stored.

  Therefore, Patent Document 1 discloses a communication terminal device that moves a data file with low importance to a magnetic disk device and writes an inspection / recovery program in a flash memory.

Patent Document 2 discloses an image forming apparatus that stores the same activation program in a flash memory, a magnetic disk device, and a flash memory card.
JP 2004-62425 A JP 2004-118267 A

  However, in the above-described method of moving a low-importance data file to a magnetic disk device, the importance is set for each parameter or program code, and the importance is compared and determined when updating the firmware. There is a problem that the configuration is complicated. Further, in the method of storing the same activation program in a plurality of storage media such as a flash memory and a magnetic disk device, there is a problem that the required storage area increases and the cost of the device increases.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the problems of the conventional example described above, and suppresses a significant increase in cost and realizes updating of firmware including parameters without significantly increasing the circuit scale with a simple configuration. An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming controller device that can be used.

  In order to achieve the above object, in the image forming controller device according to claim 1, even if the supply of power is interrupted in the image forming controller device that performs image processing on input image data to generate and output image forming data. Firmware comprising a first storage means configured by a nonvolatile, electrically rewritable semiconductor storage element that retains contents, a second storage means configured by a magnetic disk device, parameter information, and a program code And the comparison determination means for determining the size of the first storage means and the storage capacity of the first storage means, and the comparison determination means determines that the size of the firmware is not larger than the storage capacity of the first storage means In this case, the firmware is stored in the first storage means, and the size of the firmware is determined by the comparison determination means. Firmware storage control means for performing control to divide and store the firmware into the first storage means and the second storage means when it is determined that the storage capacity is larger than the storage capacity of the first storage means; It is provided with.

  In order to achieve the above object, in the image forming controller device according to claim 2, in the image forming controller device according to claim 1, the firmware storage control unit uses the comparison determination unit to determine the size of the firmware. Is determined to be larger than the storage capacity of the first storage means, a portion of the firmware having the same size as the storage capacity of the first storage means is stored in the first storage means, Control is performed to store the remaining part of the firmware in the second storage unit.

  In order to achieve the above object, according to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided the image forming controller device according to the second aspect, wherein the second storage means stores the size of the remaining portion of the firmware. The present invention is characterized by comprising free storage area determination means for determining whether or not there is a free storage area having a larger capacity.

  In order to achieve the above object, according to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the image forming controller device according to the third aspect, the empty storage area determination means determines the size of the remaining portion of the firmware. In the case where there is no free storage area having a larger capacity, alarm means for warning and notifying that is provided.

  In order to achieve the above object, in the image forming controller device according to claim 5, in the image forming controller device that performs image processing on the input image data to generate and output the image forming data, the supply of power is cut off. Storage means constituted by a non-volatile electrically rewritable semiconductor storage element that retains the contents, a function expansion slot in which a magnetic disk expansion unit equipped with at least a magnetic disk device can be mounted, and the function expansion slot Expansion unit determination means for determining whether or not the magnetic disk expansion unit is mounted, comparison determination means for determining the size of the firmware composed of parameter information and program code, and the storage capacity of the storage means, The size of the firmware is stored in the storage unit by the comparison determination unit. If it is determined that the firmware is not larger than the amount, the firmware is stored in the storage means, the comparison determination means determines that the size of the firmware is larger than the storage capacity of the storage means, and the expansion If it is determined by the unit determining means that the magnetic disk expansion unit is installed in the expansion slot, the firmware is divided and stored in the storage means and the magnetic disk device mounted in the magnetic disk expansion unit. And firmware storage control means for performing control.

  In order to achieve the above object, in the image forming controller device according to claim 6, in the image forming controller device according to claim 5, the firmware storage control means uses the comparison determination means to determine the size of the firmware. Is determined to be larger than the storage capacity of the storage unit, and the expansion unit determination unit determines that the magnetic disk expansion unit is installed in the expansion slot, the storage unit of the firmware A portion having the same size as the storage capacity is stored in the storage means, and the remaining portion of the firmware is controlled to be stored in the magnetic disk device mounted on the magnetic disk expansion unit.

  In order to achieve the above object, in the image forming controller device according to claim 7, in the image forming controller device according to claim 6, the expansion unit determination unit attaches the magnetic disk expansion unit to the expansion slot. When it is determined that there is a free storage area having a capacity larger than the size of the remaining part of the firmware in the magnetic disk device mounted on the magnetic disk expansion unit A storage area determination means is provided.

  In order to achieve the above object, in the image forming controller device according to claim 8, in the image forming controller device according to claim 7, the size of the remaining part of the firmware is determined by the free storage area determination unit. In the case where there is no free storage area having a larger capacity, alarm means for warning and notifying that is provided.

  According to the present invention, even when the firmware size is larger than the capacity of the flash memory, the firmware is divided and stored in the flash memory and the magnetic disk device, so that it is easy to suppress an increase in cost. In addition, it is possible to realize the addition of functions and the addition of corresponding recording media.

  DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments when the present invention is applied to a printer controller device of an ink jet printer will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the printer controller apparatus of Example 1 according to this embodiment. The printer controller device provides a function of receiving printing data from a host device such as a personal computer device, converting the received data into data having a configuration that can be printed by the printer engine, and outputting the data.

  Reference numeral 100 in the figure denotes a printer controller device, which includes a CPU 101, an image processing unit 102, an engine interface unit 103, a communication interface unit 104, an expansion bus circuit unit 105, a RAM controller 106, and a ROM controller 107. The blocks are connected to the system bus bridge 108 via bus lines 109a to 109g, respectively. In the present embodiment, these blocks are implemented as a printer controller ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) 110 sealed as a system LSI in a single package.

  The printer controller device 100 also includes a magnetic disk controller 112, a magnetic disk device 114, an expansion slot 115, a RAM unit 117, and a ROM unit 119 connected to the printer controller ASIC 110 via the expansion bus 111.

  In addition, the printer controller device includes a display unit and an operation unit (not shown).

  The CPU 101 is responsible for overall control of the printer controller device 100, and by sequentially reading and executing control procedures (programs) stored in the ROM unit 119 or the RAM unit 117, a communication interface unit for communication with the host device. 104, interpretation of the communication protocol, control of the image processing unit 102 for converting image data received from the host device into data that can be printed by the printer engine, and image formation data generated by the image processing unit 102 Control of the engine interface unit 103 for transfer to the printer engine is performed.

  The image processing unit 102 has a function of converting print data received from the host device into output image data that can be printed by the printer engine. The image data transmitted from the host device is, for example, data in RGB 8-bit format or RGB 10-bit format, and the image processing unit 102 performs color space conversion on the RGB format data to CMYK format that is an ink color, and the like. It has a function of binarizing 8-bit or 10-bit data.

  The engine interface unit 103 has a function of transmitting and receiving data between the printer controller apparatus 100 and the printer engine.

  The communication interface unit 104 has a function of transmitting / receiving data to / from a host device such as a personal computer or a workstation, and stores print data received from the host device in the RAM unit 117 via the RAM controller 106. It has a function. As a communication method of the communication interface unit 104, any method such as high-speed serial communication such as USB (Universal Serial Bus) or IEEE 1394, parallel communication such as IEEE 1284, or network communication such as 100BASE-TX may be used. You may have these several communication systems. Further, the present invention is not limited to a wired communication system, and a wireless communication system is also included.

  The expansion bus circuit unit 105 has a function of controlling the function expansion unit installed in the magnetic disk controller 112 or the expansion slot 115, and controls transmission of data to the magnetic disk controller 112 and the function expansion unit via the expansion bus 111 and magnetic function. Control is performed to receive data output from the disk controller 112 and the function expansion unit. As the function expansion unit mounted in the expansion slot 115, USB, IEEE 1394, IEEE 1284, or a communication unit that provides a communication function with a host device such as network communication can be mounted.

  In the printer controller apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present embodiment, the format of the expansion bus 111 is such that the address information and the data information are time-division multiplexed by a common address / data signal and transmitted, and synchronized with the clock signal. Assume that the clock / synchronous bus format changes the state of the address / data signal and the control signal.

  Each block of the image processing unit 102, the engine control unit 103, the communication interface unit 104, and the expansion bus circuit unit 105 has a DMAC (Direct Memory Access Controller) and has a function of issuing a memory access request. I have.

  The RAM controller 106 has a function of controlling the RAM unit 117 connected via the RAM bus 116. The RAM controller 106 generates necessary control signals from each circuit block having the CPU 101 and the DMAC via the system bus bridge 108 in response to a write request to the RAM unit 117 or a read request from the RAM unit 117 to generate a RAM unit. Data is written to 117 and data is read from the RAM unit 117, and data is relayed between the CPU 101 and each circuit block.

  The ROM controller 107 has a function of controlling the ROM unit 119 connected via the ROM bus 118. The ROM controller 107 generates necessary control signals in response to a read request from the CPU 101, reads control procedures (programs) and data stored in the ROM unit 119 in advance, and reads them to the CPU 101 via the system bus bridge 108. Send back the contents. In addition, when the ROM unit 119 is configured by an electrically rewritable device such as a flash memory, a control signal is generated in accordance with a write command from the CPU 101 and a function of rewriting the contents of the ROM unit 119 is provided. Yes. Hereinafter, the control procedure and data stored in the ROM section are collectively referred to as “firmware”.

Among the circuit blocks described above, the image processing unit 102 having the CPU 101 and the DMAC, the engine interface unit 103, the communication interface unit 104, and the expansion bus circuit unit 105 are bus master blocks, and the RAM controller 106 and the ROM controller 107 are buses. It is a slave block.
The system bus bridge 108 has a function of connecting the bus master block and the bus slave block for each circuit block constituting the printer controller ASIC 110, and when a request for access to the RAM controller 106 is issued simultaneously from a plurality of circuit blocks. In addition, it has a function to arbitrate bus rights. The system bus bridge 108 is configured by a crossbar switch system, and when a plurality of bus master blocks issue access requests to different bus slave blocks, the bus master blocks and the bus slave blocks are simultaneously connected according to the access request. Connecting. For example, the bus access between the CPU 101 and the ROM controller 108 and the bus access between the image processing unit 102 and the RAM controller 106 can be processed simultaneously.

  The magnetic disk controller 112 is connected to the printer controller ASIC 110 via the expansion bus 111, and writes and reads data to and from the magnetic disk device 114 connected via the magnetic disk interface 113 in accordance with instructions from the expansion bus circuit unit 105. Control.

  The magnetic disk device 114 is a non-volatile storage device that can store a large amount of data and retains the stored contents even when the power is turned off. In this embodiment, the magnetic disk device 114 temporarily stores print data received from the host device. A function for storing and storing a part of firmware described later is provided.

  The RAM unit 117 is composed of a synchronous DRAM such as a DDR (Double Data Rate) type SDRAM or an SDR (Single Data Rate) type SDRAM, and stores a control procedure executed by the CPU 101 and an output converted by the image processing unit 102. Temporary storage of data, temporary buffering of print data received from the host device by the communication interface unit 104, and transfer between the magnetic disk controller 112 and the function expansion unit connected via the external bus 111 This memory block provides functions such as temporary storage of data and work memory of the CPU 101.

  The ROM unit 119 is configured by a flash memory or the like, and stores control procedures executed by the CPU 101 and parameters necessary for printer control. A flash memory is an electrically rewritable and non-volatile device, and a control procedure and parameters can be rewritten by following a predetermined sequence.

  In addition, each circuit block includes a register for setting an operation mode, and the CPU 101 can set an operation mode of each circuit block via a register access bus (not shown).

  Note that the data bus width of the bus lines 109a to 109g of the printer control apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment of the present embodiment is 256 bits, the address / data signal bus width of the expansion bus 111 is 32 bits, and the RAM It is assumed that the data bus width of the bus 116 is 64 bits and the data bus width of the ROM bus 118 is 8 bits.

  Hereinafter, the operation of the printer controller apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an operation procedure of update processing of firmware stored in the flash memory and magnetic disk device constituting the ROM unit of the printer controller device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

  When the printer controller apparatus 100 is instructed to update the firmware, the CPU 101 expands (copies) the control procedure stored in advance in the ROM unit 119 or the magnetic disk unit 114 to the RAM unit 117 and executes the control procedure from the RAM unit 117. Reading is executed sequentially, and the processing procedure shown in FIG. In the following, the size of firmware to be updated is represented by S [Byte], and the capacity of the flash memory is represented by F [Byte].

  In step S <b> 201, the CPU 101 determines whether a part of firmware is stored on the magnetic disk device 114. When a part of the firmware is stored, the process proceeds to step S202. When the firmware is not stored, the process proceeds to step S203.

  Next, in step S202, the CPU 101 deletes the firmware stored on the magnetic disk device 114, and proceeds to step S203.

  Next, in step S203, the CPU 101 compares the size of the firmware to be updated with the capacity of the flash memory constituting the ROM unit 119, and if the firmware size is smaller than or equal to the capacity of the flash memory, that is, S ≦ F If S is satisfied, the process proceeds to step S204. If the firmware size is larger than the capacity of the flash memory, that is, if S> F is satisfied, the process proceeds to step S205.

  Next, in step S204, the CPU 101 erases the contents of the flash memory, writes the firmware to be updated into the flash memory, and ends the processing operation.

  When the size of the firmware to be updated is larger than the capacity of the flash memory, the CPU 101 determines in step S205 whether there is a free area for writing a part of the firmware to be updated in the magnetic disk device 114. The size of the firmware to be written to the magnetic disk device 114 can be expressed by (SF) [Byte]. If the magnetic disk device 114 has a free space of (SF) [Byte], the process proceeds to step S206. F) If there is no free space of [Byte], the process proceeds to step S208.

  Next, in step S206, the CPU 101 erases the contents of the flash memory, writes F [Byte] of the firmware to be updated to the flash memory, and proceeds to step S207.

  Next, in step S207, the CPU 101 writes (S-F) [Byte], which is the remaining part of the firmware to be updated, in the magnetic disk device 114, and ends this processing operation.

  If there is no (SF) [Byte] free area in the magnetic disk device 114, the CPU 101 performs error processing in step S208 and displays on the display unit (not shown) that the update could not be performed. Exit.

  As described above, if the size of the firmware to be updated is smaller than or equal to the capacity of the flash memory by performing the processing according to the flowchart shown in FIG. 2, the entire firmware is written in the flash memory, and the size of the firmware is Is larger than the capacity of the flash memory, the firmware can be divided and written to the flash memory and the magnetic disk device.

  Next, the operation at the time of start-up of the printer apparatus of Example 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 3 shows that the firmware stored on the magnetic disk is expanded (copied) in the RAM unit when the printer apparatus of Example 1 according to the present embodiment is activated by operating the power switch of the operation unit. It is a flowchart which shows an operation | movement procedure.

  When the printer apparatus 100 is activated by operating the power switch, the CPU 100 executes a startup control procedure stored in advance in the ROM unit 119, and executes the processing procedure shown in FIG.

  That is, in step S301, the CPU 101 determines whether a part of firmware is stored in the magnetic disk device 114. When a part of the firmware is stored, the process proceeds to step S302, and when the firmware is not stored, this processing operation is terminated.

  Next, in step S302, the CPU 101 reads the firmware stored in the magnetic disk device 114 via the expansion bus circuit unit, and writes the read firmware to the RAM unit 117 via the RAM controller 106. Exit.

  As described above, by performing the processing according to the flowchart shown in FIG. 3, it is possible to expand the firmware stored in the magnetic disk device to the RAM unit when the printer device is activated.

  The control procedure of the flowchart shown in FIG. 3 is stored in advance in the ROM unit 119, and when the firmware is updated, the control procedure of the flowchart shown in FIG. 2 is stored in the ROM unit 119. Perform the procedure.

  In the first embodiment described above, the magnetic disk controller and the printer controller device equipped with the magnetic disk device have been described. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiment of the first embodiment. The present invention can be configured even with a printer controller apparatus capable of mounting a magnetic disk unit on which a magnetic disk is mounted. A second embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a printer controller apparatus to which a magnetic disk unit can be mounted will be described below.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the printer controller apparatus of Example 2 according to the embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 4, the same parts as those in FIG. It is.

  In FIG. 4, reference numeral 400 denotes a printer controller device, which includes a printer controller ASIC 110, an expansion slot 115, a RAM unit 117, and a ROM unit 119.

  Next, a magnetic disk unit that is mounted in the expansion slot of the printer controller apparatus of Example 2 according to the present embodiment and provides a large capacity storage function will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the magnetic disk unit. The magnetic disk unit 500 includes an expansion slot connector 501, a magnetic disk controller 503, and a magnetic disk device 505 as components.

  The expansion slot connector 501 connects the magnetic disk unit 500 and the printer controller device 400. By fitting the expansion slot connector 501 with the expansion slot 115 of the printer controller 400, the magnetic disk unit 500 and the printer controller device 400 are mechanically coupled, and the expansion bus 502 of the magnetic disk unit 500 and the printer The expansion bus 111 of the controller device 400 is also electrically connected.

  The magnetic disk controller 503 controls writing and reading of data to and from the magnetic disk device 505 connected via the magnetic disk interface 504 in accordance with instructions from the printer controller device connected via the expansion slot connector 501.

  The magnetic disk device 505 is a non-volatile storage device that can store a large amount of data and retains the stored contents even when the power is turned off. In the second embodiment, a printer connected via an expansion slot connector is used. It provides a function for temporarily storing data transferred from the controller device and storing a part of firmware to be described later.

  Hereinafter, the operation of the printer controller apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 6 shows the operation of updating the firmware stored in the magnetic disk device of the flash memory constituting the ROM unit of the printer controller device of Example 2 according to this embodiment and the magnetic disk unit installed in the expansion slot. It is a flowchart which shows a procedure.

  When the printer controller 400 is instructed to update the firmware, the CPU 101 expands (copies) the control procedure stored in advance in the ROM unit 119 to the RAM unit 117 and sequentially reads and executes the control procedure from the RAM unit 117. In the middle, the processing procedure shown in FIG. 6 is executed. The firmware size to be updated is represented by S [Byte], and the flash memory capacity is represented by F [Byte].

  In step S601, the CPU 101 determines whether or not the magnetic disk unit 500 is installed in the expansion slot 115. If the magnetic disk unit 500 is installed, the process proceeds to step S602, and if the magnetic disk unit 500 is not installed. Advances to step S604.

  In step S <b> 602, the CPU 101 determines whether a part of firmware is stored on the magnetic disk device 505 of the magnetic disk unit 500. If a part of the firmware is stored, the process proceeds to step S603, and if no firmware is stored, the process proceeds to step S604.

  Next, in step S603, the CPU 101 deletes the firmware stored on the magnetic disk device 505 of the magnetic disk unit 500, and proceeds to step S604.

  Next, in step S604, the CPU 101 compares the size of the firmware to be updated with the capacity of the flash memory constituting the ROM unit 119, and if the firmware size is smaller than or equal to the capacity of the flash memory, that is, S ≦ F If the condition is satisfied, the process proceeds to step S605. If the firmware size is larger than the capacity of the flash memory, that is, if S> F is satisfied, the process proceeds to step S606.

  Next, in step S605, the CPU 101 erases the contents of the flash memory, writes the firmware to be updated into the flash memory, and ends the processing operation.

  If the size of the firmware to be updated is larger than the capacity of the flash memory, the CPU 101 determines in step S606 whether the magnetic disk unit 500 is installed in the expansion slot 115, and if the magnetic disk unit 500 is installed. The process proceeds to step S607, and if the magnetic disk unit 500 is not mounted, the process proceeds to step S610.

  Next, in step S <b> 607, the CPU 101 determines whether there is a free area for writing a part of firmware to be updated in the magnetic disk device 505 of the magnetic disk unit 500. The size of the firmware to be written to the magnetic disk device 505 can be expressed by (SF) [Byte]. If the magnetic disk device 505 has a free space of (SF) [Byte], the process proceeds to step S608. F) If there is no free space of [Byte], the process proceeds to step S610.

  Next, in step S608, the CPU 101 erases the contents of the flash memory, writes F [Byte] of the firmware to be updated to the flash memory, and proceeds to step S609.

  In step S609, the CPU 101 writes (S-F) [Byte], which is the remaining part of the firmware to be updated, in the magnetic disk device 505 of the magnetic disk unit 500, and ends this processing operation.

  If the size of the firmware to be updated is larger than the capacity of the flash memory and the magnetic disk unit is not installed in the expansion slot, or if the magnetic disk unit is installed (S-F) [ If there is no free space in [Byte], the CPU 101 performs error processing in step S610, displays that the update could not be performed on a display unit (not shown), and ends the processing operation.

  As described above, by performing the processing according to the flowchart shown in FIG. 6, if the size of the firmware to be updated is smaller than or equal to the capacity of the flash memory, the entire firmware is written to the flash memory, and the firmware size Is larger than the capacity of the flash memory and the magnetic disk unit is mounted, it is possible to divide the firmware and write it to the flash memory and the magnetic disk device on the magnetic disk unit.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a printer controller device of Example 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a flow of firmware update processing of the printer controller of Example 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of an operation of a startup process of the printer controller device according to the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the printer controller apparatus of Example 2 which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the magnetic disk unit which can be mounted in the printer controller apparatus of Example 2 which concerns on embodiment of this invention. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of an operation of firmware update processing of the printer controller device according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols

100 Printer Controller Device 101 CPU
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 102 Image processing part 103 Engine interface part 104 Communication interface part 105 Expansion bus circuit part 106 RAM controller 107 ROM controller 108 System bus bridge 109a-109g Bus line 110 Printer controller ASIC
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 111 Expansion bus 112 Magnetic disk controller 113 Magnetic disk interface 114 Magnetic disk apparatus 115 Expansion slot 116 RAM bus 117 RAM part 118 ROM bus 119 ROM part 400 Printer controller apparatus 500 Magnetic disk unit 501 Expansion slot connection connector 502 Expansion bus 503 Magnetic disk controller 504 Magnetic disk interface 505 Magnetic disk device

Claims (8)

In an image formation controller device that performs image processing on input image data to generate and output image formation data,
A first storage means composed of a nonvolatile and electrically rewritable semiconductor storage element that retains its contents even when the supply of power is interrupted;
Second storage means configured by a magnetic disk device;
Comparison determination means for determining the size of the firmware comprising the parameter information and the program code and the storage capacity of the first storage means,
When the comparison determination unit determines that the size of the firmware is not larger than the storage capacity of the first storage unit, the firmware is stored in the first storage unit, and the comparison determination unit stores the firmware. If the firmware size is determined to be larger than the storage capacity of the first storage means, the firmware performs control to store the firmware divided into the first storage means and the second storage means An image forming controller comprising: a wear storage control unit.   The firmware storage control means, when the comparison determination means determines that the firmware size is larger than the storage capacity of the first storage means, the firmware storage control means 2. The image according to claim 1, wherein control is performed to store a part having the same size as a storage capacity in the first storage unit and to store the remaining part of the firmware in the second storage unit. Forming controller device.   3. The free storage area judging means for judging whether or not there is a free storage area having a capacity larger than the size of the remaining part of the firmware in the second storage means. Image forming controller device.   When there is no free storage area having a capacity larger than the size of the remaining part of the firmware by the free storage area determining means, the warning means is provided to warn and notify that effect. The image forming controller device according to claim 3. In an image formation controller device that performs image processing on input image data to generate and output image formation data,
A storage means composed of a nonvolatile and electrically rewritable semiconductor storage element that retains its contents even when the supply of power is interrupted;
A function expansion slot in which a magnetic disk expansion unit equipped with at least a magnetic disk device can be mounted; and
Expansion unit determination means for determining whether or not the magnetic disk expansion unit is mounted in the function expansion slot;
Comparison determination means for determining the size of firmware composed of parameter information and program code and the storage capacity of the storage means;
When the comparison determination unit determines that the firmware size is not larger than the storage capacity of the storage unit, the firmware is stored in the storage unit, and the firmware size is determined by the comparison determination unit. When it is determined that the storage capacity is larger than the storage capacity of the storage means, and the expansion unit determination means determines that the magnetic disk expansion unit is installed in the expansion slot, the firmware is stored in the storage means and the magnetic field. An image forming controller device comprising: firmware storage control means for performing control to divide and store in the magnetic disk device mounted on a disk expansion unit.   The firmware storage control means determines that the firmware size is larger than the storage capacity of the storage means by the comparison determination means, and the expansion unit determination means mounts the magnetic disk expansion unit in the expansion slot. If it is determined that the firmware is stored, a part of the firmware having the same size as the storage capacity of the storage unit is stored in the storage unit, and the remaining part of the firmware is mounted on the magnetic disk expansion unit. 6. The image forming controller according to claim 5, wherein control is performed to store in the magnetic disk device.   When the expansion unit determination unit determines that the magnetic disk expansion unit is installed in the expansion slot, the remaining portion of the firmware is stored in the magnetic disk device mounted on the magnetic disk expansion unit. 7. The image forming controller device according to claim 6, further comprising a free storage area determination unit that determines whether or not a free storage area having a capacity larger than the size exists.   When there is no free storage area having a capacity larger than the size of the remaining part of the firmware by the free storage area determining means, the warning means is provided to warn and notify that effect. The image forming controller device according to claim 7.

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