JP2009225183A - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make effective use of finite shortcut key resources and enable use efficiency in a whole apparatus to be kept at a high level. <P>SOLUTION: If a user selects and operates a shortcut key related to a required function, then a display control section reads out a registered function of the selected shortcut key by referring a registered content of a function registering section, and develops a function presentation window for presenting the read registered function to a temporary area and causes a touch panel section to display the developed function presentation window in accordance with a setting change location related to a shortcut key selecting operation in question. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus including, for example, a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile machine, or a complex machine thereof, and in particular, functions related to one or two or more combinations among various functions related to image forming processing are registered. The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus capable of significantly improving the usability of shortcut keys.

  For example, in an image forming apparatus including a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile machine, or a complex machine of these, multi-functionalization is progressing to meet various needs of users. In addition, along with such multi-functionalization, the number of items for realizing various functions is steadily increasing. However, the expansion of the space related to the display screen of the operation panel cannot follow the progress of multi-function. Therefore, in order to efficiently use the limited space, only items related to representative functions are listed in an index form, and items related to other functions are displayed in the lower layer of items related to each representative function. In general, it is arranged in a hierarchical manner over a plurality of stages. In this case, for example, when the function item related to the user's request exists in a deep hierarchy such as the fifth level in the hierarchical structure, the selection is sequentially made by following the hierarchy of multiple levels until reaching the function item related to the user's request. The problem that the operation | work which operates manually is troublesome arises.

  As one approach for solving such a problem, the applicant of the present application detects the frequency of use of each key corresponding to the recent usage status of various functions, and compares the frequently used shortcut keys with other keys. A display control technique for enlarging display has been proposed (see Patent Document 1). According to the technique of Patent Document 1, the user can easily discriminate a frequently used key, and the operability when using the key can be improved.

By the way, according to the inventor's research, for example, when the image forming apparatus is related to sharing, and in the case of a shortcut key set by someone other than the user, the details of the registered contents are not known, It has been found that not only limited shortcut key resources can be used effectively, but also the utilization efficiency of the entire apparatus may be impaired.
JP 2004-348085 A

  The problem to be solved is to provide an image forming apparatus that can effectively use limited shortcut key resources and maintain the efficiency of use of the entire apparatus at a high level by dramatically improving the usability of shortcut keys. It is to be.

  The present invention selects various functions related to image forming processing for the purpose of providing an image forming apparatus that can effectively utilize limited shortcut key resources and maintain the utilization efficiency of the entire apparatus at a high level. A plurality of function keys operated at the time of performing, at least one shortcut key operated at the time of directly selecting a function related to one or two or more combinations registered in advance among the various functions, and the shortcut A display unit for displaying key information related to the function selection including the key, and when any of the keys related to the function selection is operated, an image forming process corresponding to the operated key is executed. A function registration unit in which functions related to one or more combinations are registered in association with the shortcut key; and the show When a cut key is selected, the shortcut key registration function is read from the function registration unit, and a function presentation screen for presenting the read registration function is displayed as a setting change location related to the shortcut key selection operation. Accordingly, the main feature is that it includes a display control unit that performs control for display on the display unit.

  The image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes a function registration unit in which functions related to one or two or more combinations are registered in association with the shortcut key, and a display control unit described below. When a shortcut key is selected and operated, the function registration section reads the registered function of the shortcut key from the function registration unit, and displays a function presentation screen for presenting the read registered function as a setting change location related to the shortcut key selection operation. Accordingly, since the control to display on the display unit is performed, the setting change location related to the shortcut key selection operation is presented together with the function presentation screen. Therefore, for example, even if the user who uses the device is a user who is not familiar with the presence or usage of shortcut keys, the user can grasp the registered contents at a glance from the function presentation screen presented on the display unit. As a result, it is possible to effectively use limited shortcut key resources and maintain the utilization efficiency of the entire apparatus at a high level by dramatically improving the usability of the shortcut keys.

  When the shortcut key is selected and operated for the purpose of effectively utilizing the limited shortcut key resources and maintaining the utilization efficiency of the entire device at a high level through greatly improving the usability of the shortcut key. A control for reading out the shortcut key registration function from the function registration unit and causing the display unit to display a function presentation screen for presenting the read registration function along with a setting change location related to the shortcut key selection operation. Realized by the display controller to perform.

  Hereinafter, an image forming apparatus according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[Schematic configuration around the image forming apparatus]
FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram showing a schematic configuration of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an external view of an operation panel unit in the image forming apparatus.

  This apparatus can use various functions including, for example, a copy job, a facsimile transmission job, a print job, or a network transmission (mail transmission or data transmission) job, and a main control including a microcomputer and a dedicated hardware circuit. Controlled by the unit 11. As an input / output device connected to the main control unit 11 and responsible for various functions, this apparatus includes a scanner unit 21, an image processing unit 31, an engine unit 41, an operation panel unit 51, a facsimile communication unit 61, and an HDD (hard disk drive) 63. And a network I / F (interface) unit 65.

  The main control unit 11 includes a scanner controller 13 that performs operation control for realizing a scanner function, a facsimile controller 15 that performs operation control for realizing a facsimile function, and a printer controller that performs operation control for realizing a printer function. 17 and a copy controller 19 for controlling the operation for realizing the copy function are incorporated, and the overall operation of the apparatus is controlled.

  The scanner unit 21 includes an image irradiation lamp 23 and a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) sensor 25 constituting a scanner (not shown). The scanner unit 21 irradiates the document with the image irradiation lamp 23, receives the reflected light with the CCD sensor 25, reads an image from the document, and outputs image data corresponding to the read image to the image processing unit 31. .

  The image processing unit 31 includes a correction unit 33, an image processing unit 35, and an image memory 37. The image processing unit 31 processes the image data read by the scanner unit 21 with the correction unit 33 and the image processing unit 35 as necessary, and stores the processed image data in the image memory 37, the engine unit 41, Output to the facsimile communication unit 61 or the like. The correction unit 33 performs predetermined correction processing such as level correction and gamma correction on the image data read by the scanner unit 21. The image processing unit 35 performs various types of processing such as image data compression or expansion processing and enlargement or reduction processing.

  The engine unit 41 includes a sheet conveying unit 43 including a sheet feeding cassette and a sheet feeding roller (not illustrated), an image forming unit 45 including a photosensitive drum, an exposure device, a developing device, and the like (not illustrated), a transfer roller (not illustrated), and the like. And a fixing unit 49 including a fixing roller (not shown). The engine unit 41 stores image data read by the scanner unit 21, image data transmitted from a client PC (personal computer) or the like by a LAN (Local Area Network) via the network I / F unit 65, and a facsimile communication unit 61. The image is printed on a sheet using image data such as fax data received from an external facsimile machine. Specifically, the paper transport unit 43 transports the paper to the image forming unit 45, the image forming unit 45 forms a toner image corresponding to the image data, the transfer unit 47 transfers the toner image to the paper, The fixing unit 49 fixes the toner image on a sheet to form an image.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the operation panel unit 51 includes a touch panel unit 53 and an operation key unit 55. The operation panel unit 51 is used for a user to perform operations related to a scanner function, a facsimile function, a printer function, a copy function, and the like, and gives an operation command and the like by the user to the main control unit 11.

  The touch panel unit 53 functioning as a display unit in the present invention includes a touch panel unit that combines a touch panel and a color LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) and the like. When executing various operation screens, for example, a copy function, the document size and the copy size In addition to displaying information relating to the number of copies, etc., operation buttons for inputting various operation commands when the user touches the corresponding part are displayed. Further, the touch panel unit 53 directly selects a function related to one or two or more combinations registered in advance among a plurality of function keys and various functions operated when selecting various functions related to the image forming process. This is used to display shortcut keys that are operated at the time and a function presentation screen related to the shortcut keys.

  The operation key unit 55 is used, for example, when the user operates and inputs the number of copies and a copy execution command.

  The facsimile communication unit 61 includes an encoding / decoding unit (not shown), a modem unit (not shown), and an NCU (Network Control Unit) (not shown). The facsimile communication unit 61 transmits image data of a document read by the scanner unit 21 to a facsimile apparatus or the like via a telephone line, or receives image data transmitted from the facsimile apparatus or the like.

  The HDD (hard disk drive) 63 stores image data read by the scanner unit 21 and various data such as an output format set in the image data. The image data stored in the HDD is not only used inside the image forming apparatus, the program, and the recording medium, but also can be confirmed from a client PC or the like via the network I / F unit 65 if necessary. It is transferred to a predetermined folder such as a PC or FTP server.

  The network I / F unit 65 uses a network interface (10 / 100Base-TX) or the like to control transmission / reception of various data to / from a user terminal 67 such as a client PC connected via a LAN.

  In order to effectively improve the usability of the shortcut keys and effectively use the limited shortcut key resources and maintain the utilization efficiency of the entire apparatus at a high level, the main control unit 11 allows the user to An operation information acquisition unit 71 that acquires operation information such as keys via the operation panel unit 51, and a shortcut key function registration unit that registers functions related to one or more combinations in association with a plurality of shortcut keys. (Hereinafter, abbreviated as “function registration unit”) 73, a temporary area 75 and a temporary area management unit 76, and when a shortcut key is selected and operated, the registered function of the shortcut key is read from the function registration unit 73. At the same time, the function presentation screen for presenting the read registration function is displayed on the shortcut. A display control unit 77 performs control to display on the touch panel unit 53 with the setting change portion according to the key selection operation is configured to include a. When the shortcut key is selected and operated, the display control unit 77 expands the function presentation screen related to the shortcut key in the temporary area 75. In response to this, the temporary area management unit 76 has a function of managing the contents stored in the temporary area 75.

[Operation of Image Forming Apparatus According to Present Invention]
Next, the operation of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 3 shows a flowchart relating to selection or confirmation of shortcut keys in the image forming apparatus, and FIG. 4 shows an example of a display screen on the touch panel unit 53 relating to selection or confirmation of shortcut keys.

  As shown in FIG. 3, for example, a certain user is required among the shortcut keys (aggregation key 101, pagination key 103, double-sided → double-sided 105) presented on the display screen 81 shown in FIG. When the “aggregation key 101” is selected and operated as a shortcut key related to the function (step S11), the display control unit 77 refers to the registration content of the function registration unit 73, thereby selecting the “aggregation key 101” selected in step S11. The registration function “101” is read out and a function presentation screen for presenting the readout registration function is developed in the temporary area 75 (step S12). Next, the display control unit 77 causes the touch panel unit 53 to display the function presentation screen developed in step S12 along with the setting change location related to the shortcut key selection operation (step S13). At this time, as shown in FIG. 4B, for example, as a function presentation screen related to the “aggregation key 101”, the display screen 81 has 4in1 (aggregating four documents into one) 107 as an aggregation mode. Is selected as the layout of the aggregated document (upper left → upper right → lower left → lower right) 109 and (no line) 111 is selected as the boundary information between a plurality of consolidated documents (shortcut key selection operation) The setting change part) is identified and displayed in such a manner that it can be visually distinguished from other parts. In identifying and displaying the setting change portion, the density, design, density gradation (for example, including identification using a hatching pattern or gray scale), or the like, is included between the setting change portion and other portions. What is necessary is just to employ | adopt the identification display aspect which concerns on the change of a color, or these combination. Therefore, even a user who is not familiar with the existence or usage of the shortcut key can grasp the registered content at a glance from the function presentation screen presented on the display screen 81. Through greatly improving the usability, it is possible to effectively use limited shortcut key resources and maintain the utilization efficiency of the entire apparatus at a high level.

  Now, the user viewing the function presentation screen presented on the display screen 81 is forced to make a determination as to whether or not the “aggregation key 101” selected this time is in line with his / her intention.

  At this time, if the user determines that the user's intention is not met, the “return key” (corresponding to the “cancel key” of the present invention) 113 may be selected and operated (step). “No” in S14). Then, the display control unit 77 regards the “collection key 101” selected this time as cancelled, and executes a process for returning the setting contents related to the image forming process to the previous state (step S15).

  On the other hand, when the user determines that the user's intention is met, the “confirmation key” (corresponding to the “confirmation key” of the present invention) 115 may be selected and operated (“Yes” in step S14). "). Then, the display control unit 77 considers that the “collection key 101” selected this time is adopted, and executes a process of reflecting the stored contents in the temporary area 75 as the set contents related to the confirmed image forming process. (Step S16).

  After executing the processing according to step S15 or S16, the display control unit 77 clears the stored contents in the temporary area 75 (from the viewpoint of effective use of memory resources), thereby preparing for the next shortcut selection and a series of shortcuts. The selection confirmation process is terminated.

[Effect of Example]
As described above, according to the image forming apparatus of the present invention, when a user selects and operates a shortcut key related to a required function, the display control unit 77 refers to the registration content of the function registration unit 73. Then, the registration function of the selected shortcut key is read out, a function presentation screen for presenting the readout registration function is expanded in the temporary area 75, and the expanded function presentation screen is set for the shortcut key selection operation. Because the touch panel unit 53 displays the changed part, even a user who is not familiar with the presence or usage of the shortcut key can be registered at a glance from the function presentation screen presented on the display screen 81. As a result of being able to grasp the contents, through improving the usability of shortcut keys , Effective use of shortcut keys limited resources, and can be maintained at a high level use efficiency of the entire device.

[Others]
The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be appropriately changed without departing from the gist of the invention read from the claims and the entire specification or the technical idea, and image formation accompanied by such changes The apparatus is also included in the scope of the technical scope of the present invention.

  That is, in the embodiment of the present invention, the example in which the “aggregation key 101” is selected and operated as a shortcut key related to a required function has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment, and various functions are provided. Among them, a required function relating to one or a combination of two or more can be appropriately employed.

  Finally, in the embodiment of the present invention, an example in which three shortcut keys are provided on the display screen has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment, and for example, six shortcut keys are displayed on the display screen. It goes without saying that the present invention can be applied as it is even when any number of shortcut keys are installed.

1 is a functional block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2 is an external view of an operation panel unit in the image forming apparatus. FIG. FIG. 10 is a flowchart relating to selection or determination of a shortcut key in the image forming apparatus. It is a figure which shows the example of a display screen in the touch panel part 53 which concerns on selection or determination of a shortcut key.

Explanation of symbols

11 Main control unit 53 Touch panel unit (display unit)
71 Selection information acquisition unit 73 Shortcut key function registration unit (function registration unit)
75 Temporary area 76 Temporary area manager 77 Display controller

Claims (5)

A plurality of function keys operated when selecting various functions related to image forming processing, and operated when directly selecting a function related to one or more combinations registered in advance among the various functions. At least one shortcut key and a display unit for displaying information on a key related to function selection including the shortcut key, and when the key related to function selection is operated, the operated key An image forming apparatus having a function of executing image forming processing corresponding to
A function registration unit in which functions related to one or two or more combinations are registered in association with the shortcut key;
When the shortcut key is selected and operated, the function registration screen for reading the registered function of the shortcut key is read from the function registration unit, and the function presentation screen for presenting the read registered function is displayed. A display control unit that performs control to display on the display unit,
An image forming apparatus comprising: The image forming apparatus according to claim 1,
The display control unit
When the shortcut key is selected and operated, the registration function of the shortcut key is read from the function registration unit, and a temporary area in which a function presentation screen for presenting the read registration function is developed,
The function presentation screen developed in the temporary area is controlled to be displayed on the display unit along with the setting change location related to the shortcut key selection operation.
An image forming apparatus. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:
The display control unit
A setting change part related to the shortcut key selection operation is controlled to be displayed on the display unit in a manner that can be visually distinguished from other parts.
An image forming apparatus. The image forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein
Confirm key operated when confirming the presentation registration function related to the shortcut key;
A temporary area management unit for managing storage contents in the temporary area;
Further comprising
The temporary area management unit
When the confirmation key is selected, management is performed to reflect the stored contents in the temporary area as setting contents related to the confirmed image forming process.
An image forming apparatus. An image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 2 to 4,
A cancellation key operated when not reflecting the presentation registration function related to the shortcut key,
The temporary area management unit
After reflecting the stored contents in the temporary area as the setting contents related to the confirmed image forming process, or when the cancel key is selected and operated, the stored contents in the temporary area are cleared.
An image forming apparatus.