JP2016012774A - Image processing apparatus and image processing system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image processing apparatus and image processing system capable of determining a more optimum power saving schedule.SOLUTION: A schedule information acquisition unit 301 acquires schedule information on a user designated in advance. A power information acquisition unit 302 acquires power information showing a state of using power. An operation schedule generation unit 303 generates an operation schedule of an image processing apparatus 100 on the basis of the schedule information acquired by the schedule information collection unit 301 and the power information acquired by the power information acquisition unit 302. A power control unit 304 changes over a power supply mode according to the operation schedule generated by the operation schedule generation unit 303.

Description

  The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus and an image processing system.

  In recent years, multi-function peripherals (MFPs) having a plurality of functions such as an image reading function, a printing function, a facsimile function, and a document storage function have been widely used in offices and the like. In an office or the like, a multifunction peripheral is often connected to an information processing terminal such as a personal computer through a network such as a LAN (Local Area Network) and shared by a plurality of users.

  In such a multifunction device, in order to reduce the environmental load, when not in use, the power supply mode (standby mode) for supplying power to the entire multifunction device is changed to a low power consumption mode (sleep mode) with reduced power consumption. The function of switching the power supply mode is widely adopted. Various techniques relating to optimization of power supply mode switching timing (power saving schedule) have been proposed for the purpose of application to a multifunction machine having such a function (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 to 3).

  Patent Document 1 discloses an image forming apparatus that manages an energy saving operation pattern by combining learning and manual setting. In this technique, the total result of the operation status in each time zone of each day of the week is compared with the schedule of the transition time set by the user, and a time zone having a different transition time is specified and notified. As a result, when the transition time set by the user is different from the operation status of the apparatus, the user can easily know the difference.

  Patent Document 2 discloses a printing apparatus that sets a transition time to a sleep mode based on a printing frequency history. In this technique, the time for shifting to the sleep mode is set short in the time zone where the number of times of printing is short, and the time for shifting to the sleep mode is set long in the time zone where the number of times of printing is high.

  Further, Patent Document 3 discloses a printing apparatus that controls the transition to the sleep mode based on the operating state and schedule information (business trip / conference information, etc.) acquired from the client computer.

JP 2013-125123 A JP 2007-030325 A JP 2008-217539 A

  The techniques disclosed in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2 are configured to determine the time until switching from the standby mode to the power consumption reduction state based on the operating state of the apparatus. Therefore, it is possible to determine a power saving schedule according to the actual usage status of the device.

  As a problem of such a configuration, there is a case where an appropriate power saving schedule is determined according to the operation status until the operation history is accumulated to a certain degree of regularity. In addition, when an irregular schedule that deviates from a certain regularity occurs, there is a problem that the power saving schedule based on the operation history cannot be dealt with. Patent Document 1 discloses a configuration in which manual settings are combined, but is not intended to cope with irregular schedules as needed. If an attempt is made to cope with an irregular schedule, manual setting by the user is required.

  On the other hand, according to the technique disclosed in Patent Document 3, since the power saving schedule is determined based on the schedule information, it is possible to appropriately switch the power supply mode even in a situation where the operation history is not accumulated. it can. Moreover, even if the schedule has no regularity, it can be dealt with at any time by registering the schedule in the schedule information.

  However, the techniques disclosed in Patent Documents 1 to 3 described above are only for user situations in a specific area where a device such as a multifunction peripheral is installed, that is, in a limited area within a range where a user using the device exists. The power saving schedule is determined based on the above. Therefore, for example, other factors such as the situation outside the specific area are not considered in the power saving schedule. For this reason, the determined power saving schedule may not be optimal in relation to other factors.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems of the prior art, and an object thereof is to provide an image processing apparatus and an image processing system that can determine a more optimal power saving schedule.

  In order to achieve the above object, the image processing apparatus according to the present invention employs the following technical means. That is, the image processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a schedule information acquisition unit, a power information acquisition unit, an operation schedule generation unit, and a power control unit. The schedule information acquisition unit acquires schedule information of a user designated in advance. The power information acquisition unit acquires power information indicating a power usage state. The operation schedule generation unit generates an operation schedule based on the schedule information acquired by the schedule information collection unit and the power information acquired by the power information acquisition unit. The power control unit switches the power supply mode according to the operation schedule generated by the operation schedule generation unit. The power supply mode can include, for example, a standby mode in which image processing can be performed and a low power consumption mode in which the amount of power consumption is smaller than that in the standby mode.

  In this image processing apparatus, since an operation schedule is generated based on schedule information, an appropriate power saving schedule can be generated even when operation history is not accumulated or the operation state is not regular. In addition, since the power information indicating the power usage state is taken into consideration in the operation schedule, for example, an appropriate power saving schedule in a situation where it is required to further reduce the amount of power usage due to the recent tightening of power supply and demand, etc. Can be executed.

  In the above-described image processing apparatus, the operation schedule generation unit can employ a configuration that generates an operation schedule that is in a low power consumption mode in a time zone in which less than a specified number of users are present. In addition, the operation schedule generation unit can employ a configuration that determines the designated number of people according to the power information. The power information can use, for example, a power usage prospect or a real-time power usage status provided by a power supply source such as a substation facility of an electric power company or business office.

  On the other hand, from another viewpoint, the present invention can also provide an image processing system. That is, an image processing system according to the present invention includes a schedule management device and an image processing device connected to the schedule management device. The schedule management apparatus includes a schedule information storage unit, and the image processing apparatus includes a schedule information acquisition unit, a power information acquisition unit, an operation schedule generation unit, and a power control unit.

  The schedule information storage unit stores the schedule information of the user specified in the image processing apparatus. The schedule information acquisition unit acquires schedule information from the schedule information storage unit. The power information acquisition unit acquires power information indicating a power usage state. The operation schedule generation unit generates an operation schedule of the image processing apparatus based on the schedule information acquired by the schedule information collection unit and the power information acquired by the power information acquisition unit. The power control unit switches the power supply mode according to the operation schedule generated by the operation schedule generation unit.

  According to the present invention, since power information indicating a power usage state is taken into consideration, a more optimal power saving schedule can be determined.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating an overall configuration of an image processing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The figure which shows the hardware constitutions of the multifunctional device in one Embodiment of this invention. 1 is a functional block diagram illustrating an image processing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The flowchart which shows an example of the operation schedule production | generation procedure which the image processing system in one Embodiment of this invention implements The figure which shows an example of the operation schedule which the image processing system in one Embodiment of this invention produces | generates

  Hereinafter, the present invention is embodied as an image processing system including a schedule management device including a server device and a digital multifunction peripheral. The digital multi-function peripheral of this embodiment is configured to be able to execute a plurality of functions including an image reading function, an image forming function (copying function and printer function), a facsimile transmission / reception function, and a network transmission / reception function. As will be described in detail below, each function is realized by one or more of an image reading unit, an image forming unit, a FAX interface, and a network interface. The image reading unit, the image forming unit, the FAX interface, and the network Each interface is configured as one or a plurality of units capable of supplying power independently.

  In addition, this digital multi-function peripheral is a standby mode in which power is supplied to one or a plurality of units and at least one function (image processing) can be executed, and the minimum necessary for receiving an instruction input from the outside. By supplying limited power, a plurality of power supply modes including a low power consumption mode (sleep mode) in which the amount of power consumption is reduced compared to the standby mode can be switched.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of the image processing system in the present embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the image processing system 10 includes a multifunction peripheral 100 and a schedule management apparatus 200.

  The multifunction device 100 includes a main body 101 including an image reading unit 120 and an image forming unit 140, and a platen cover 102 attached above the main body 101. An operation panel 171 is provided on the front surface of the multi-function device 100 so that a user can give a copy start or other instruction to the multi-function device 100, and can check the status and settings of the multi-function device 100.

  An image reading unit 120 is provided on the upper portion of the main body 101. The image reading unit 120 reads an image of a document with the scanning optical system 121 and generates digital data (image data) of the image.

  The generated image data can be printed on paper in the image forming unit 140. Further, the data can be transmitted to other devices (not shown) through the network 162 by the network interface 161. Further, facsimile transmission can be performed through the public line network 164 by the FAX interface 163.

  The image forming unit 140 prints the image data obtained by the image reading unit 120, the image data received from another device connected to the network 162, or the image data received through the public network 164 on a sheet. The image forming unit 140 feeds paper from the manual feed tray 151, the paper feed cassettes 152, 153, and 154 to the transfer unit 155 that transfers the toner image. The sheet on which the toner image has been transferred in the transfer unit 155 is discharged to a discharge tray 149.

  FIG. 2 is a hardware configuration diagram of a control system in the multifunction machine. The MFP 100 according to the present embodiment includes a central processing unit (CPU) 201, a random access memory (RAM) 202, a read only memory (ROM) 203, a hard disk drive (HDD) 204, an image reading unit 120, and an image forming unit 140. A driver 205 corresponding to each drive unit is connected via an internal bus 206. The ROM 203, the HDD 204, and the like store programs, and the CPU 201 controls the multifunction peripheral 100 in accordance with instructions from the control program. For example, the CPU 201 uses the RAM 202 as a work area, and controls the operation of each driving unit by exchanging data and commands with the driver 205. The HDD 204 is also used to store image data obtained by the image reading unit 120, image data received from another device through the network interface 161, and image data received through the FAX interface 163.

  An operation panel 171 and various sensors 207 are also connected to the internal bus 206. The operation panel 171 receives a user operation and supplies a signal based on the operation to the CPU 201. The operation panel 171 displays an operation screen on a display included in the operation panel 171 according to a control signal from the CPU 201. The sensor 207 includes various sensors such as an open / close detection sensor for the platen cover 102, a document detection sensor on the document table, a temperature sensor for the fixing device, and a detection sensor for the conveyed paper or document.

  The CPU 201 executes, for example, a program stored in the ROM 203 to realize the following means (functional blocks), and controls the operation of each means according to signals from these sensors.

  FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram of the image processing system of the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 3, in the present embodiment, the multifunction peripheral 100 and the schedule management apparatus 200 are connected via a network 162 in a state where data can be exchanged.

  First, the schedule management apparatus 200 will be described. The schedule management apparatus 200 includes a server apparatus and is connected to the network 162 via the network interface 211. The schedule management apparatus 200 includes a schedule information storage unit 305. The schedule information storage unit 305 stores schedule information of a plurality of users including users who are permitted to use the multifunction device 100. For example, when the multifunction device 100 is installed in an office (room) such as a staff room, a user who is permitted to use the multifunction device 100 is a person who has the office as a room, or the office. It is a part of those who are living rooms. Although not particularly limited, in this embodiment, a user who is permitted to use the multifunction device 100 is registered in the multifunction device 100 in advance.

  Note that the schedule management apparatus 200 includes a CPU, a RAM, a ROM, and an HDD, as with the multifunction peripheral 100. For example, the CPU executes schedule management by executing a program stored in a ROM or HDD using the RAM as a work area.

  Such a schedule management apparatus 200 can be realized by a server apparatus that executes schedule data of a plurality of users as a database and executes so-called groupware (schedule table software). In this case, the schedule information storage unit 305 stores a schedule table database. Note that the schedule management apparatus 200 may hold not only schedule information of a plurality of users but also facility reservation information such as a conference room, for example.

  On the other hand, as illustrated in FIG. 3, the multifunction peripheral 100 includes a schedule information acquisition unit 301, a power information acquisition unit 302, an operation schedule generation unit 303, and a power control unit 304.

  The schedule information acquisition unit 301 acquires schedule information of a user designated in advance from the schedule information storage unit 305 of the schedule management apparatus 200. The user designated in advance is a user who is permitted to use the multifunction device 100. As described above, in this embodiment, a user who is permitted to use the multifunction device 100 is registered in the multifunction device 100 in advance. Therefore, the schedule information acquisition unit 301 acquires the schedule information of each registered user from the schedule information storage unit 305.

  The method for acquiring schedule information by the schedule information acquisition unit 301 is not particularly limited. In the present embodiment, the schedule information acquisition unit 301 acquires schedule information by making an inquiry to the schedule management apparatus 200 at predetermined time intervals. Not limited to such a configuration, the schedule management apparatus 200 may input the schedule information in the schedule information storage unit 305 to the schedule information acquisition unit 301. Further, each time the schedule information is updated, the schedule management apparatus 200 may input the schedule information in the schedule information storage unit 305 to the schedule information acquisition unit 301. In addition, the schedule information acquisition unit 301 may acquire all schedule information after the current time, but may adopt a configuration in which the schedule information is acquired for a predetermined period such as 12 hours or 24 hours. preferable. The schedule information includes information that can determine whether the user is present in the office, such as a meeting or a business trip.

  The power information acquisition unit 302 acquires power information indicating a power usage state. As the power information, any information can be used as long as it is information indicating the usage status of power. For example, it is possible to use, as power information, a power usage prospect or a real-time power usage status provided by a power supply source such as a power company or a substation facility of an office. Here, the power usage forecast is a prediction of the daily power consumption (power usage rate) like a so-called electric power forecast, and the margin of power supply and demand (degree of tightness) is expressed as a time zone (for example, 1 hour). ). In addition, the real-time power usage status is information indicating the margin (tightness) of power supply and demand at that time.

  The power usage prospect and the real-time power usage status may be information targeting all power supplied by the power supplier, and when the power supplier divides the supply destination to which the power is supplied into multiple groups, Information regarding power supplied to the group to which the multifunction peripheral 100 belongs may be used. Although not particularly limited, in the present embodiment, the power information is configured to be provided by the power information transmitting apparatus 321 through the network 162. The power information transmission device 321 is managed by, for example, a power supply source, and the information is appropriately updated according to the power usage state.

  The method for acquiring power information by the power information acquisition unit 302 is not particularly limited. In the present embodiment, the power information acquisition unit 302 is configured to acquire power information by making an inquiry to the power information transmission device 321 at predetermined time intervals. The power information transmission device 321 is not limited to such a configuration, and the power information may be input to the power information acquisition unit 302. In addition, each time the power information is updated, the power information transmission device 321 may input the power information to the power information acquisition unit 302.

  The operation schedule generation unit 303 generates an operation schedule (power saving schedule) of the MFP 100 based on the schedule information acquired by the schedule information acquisition unit 301 and the power information acquired by the power information acquisition unit 302. Although not particularly limited, in the present embodiment, the operation schedule generated by the operation schedule generation unit 303 is held in the operation schedule storage unit 311. Moreover, in this embodiment, every time the schedule information acquisition unit 301 acquires schedule information, the operation schedule generation unit 303 generates an operation schedule.

  For example, as described above, when the schedule information acquisition unit 301 acquires the schedule information of the users specified in advance, the operation schedule generation unit 303 indicates that the number of people in the office (the number of seats) is the specified number of users. Identify the time period when it will be less than. And the operation schedule production | generation part 303 produces | generates the operation schedule which sets the time slot | zone when the number of persons in an office is less than a designated number of persons to a state with low power consumption.

  Further, when the power schedule acquired by the power information acquisition unit 302 predicts that the power supply and demand will be tight in a specific time zone, or when the power supply and demand at that time is in a tight state In addition, the designated number of persons is determined according to the power information. That is, the number of persons more than the designated number of people in the state where the power supply and demand is not tight (here, the default value) is determined as the designated number of people in the state where the power supply and demand is tight. As a result, when power supply and demand is tight, a new decision is made even if there are a number of users in the office who are not in power supply and demand and will not enter the low power consumption mode. If the number is less than the designated number, the mode is shifted to the low power consumption mode.

  The power control unit 304 switches the power supply mode according to the operation schedule generated by the operation schedule generation unit 303 and held in the operation schedule storage unit 311. Although not particularly limited, in the present embodiment, the power control unit 304 switches between a plurality of power supply modes including the above-described standby mode and low power consumption mode. The operation schedule reference method by the power control unit 304 is not particularly limited. For example, a configuration in which the power control unit 304 confirms the operation schedule at predetermined time intervals, a configuration in which the operation schedule in the operation schedule storage unit 311 is confirmed by the operation schedule generation unit 303, or the like is employed. can do.

  The standby mode includes a mode in which only one of the functions (image reading function, image forming function, facsimile transmission / reception function, network transmission / reception function) that can be executed by the multi-function device 100 can be immediately executed. Mode in which only a plurality of functions can be immediately executed (for example, a mode in which power supply to a device with high power consumption such as a fixing device is stopped and an image forming function cannot be executed immediately) or a state in which all functions can be executed immediately Some modes are included. In the low power consumption mode, by supplying power to only a part of the multifunction peripheral 100, it is possible to detect whether or not the transition condition from the low power consumption mode to another power supply mode is satisfied. The multi-function device 100 is maintained. For example, a sensor (for example, a platen cover open / close detection sensor, a document detection sensor, etc.) irrelevant to detection of whether the transition condition is satisfied, RAM 202, HDD 204, each unit (image reading unit 120, image forming unit 140), etc. Power supply is stopped. Further, only the minimum power necessary for the detection is supplied to the CPU 201.

  In the present embodiment, the transition from the standby mode to the low power consumption mode and the transition from the low power consumption mode to the standby mode basically follow the operation schedule held in the operation schedule storage unit 311. However, even when the operation schedule is designated as the low power consumption mode, when an instruction to the multi-function device 100 is input, the low power consumption mode is shifted to the standby mode as necessary. In the time zone in which the operation schedule is designated as the low power consumption mode, when the standby mode is entered, if the state in which the instruction to the multifunction peripheral 100 is not input continues for a predetermined time, the standby mode is started. Transition to low power consumption mode.

  The schedule information acquisition unit 301, the power information acquisition unit 302, the operation schedule generation unit 303, and the power control unit 304 are realized by the CPU 201 executing, for example, a program stored in the ROM 203 or the HDD 204 using the RAM 202 as a work area. The For example, the HDD 204 can be used as the operation schedule storage unit 311.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of an operation schedule generation procedure executed by the image processing system 10. The procedure starts with the arrival of the information acquisition timing of the schedule information acquisition unit 301 or the information acquisition timing of the power information acquisition unit 302 as a trigger.

  When this procedure starts, the schedule information acquisition unit 301 acquires the schedule information of a user designated in advance from the schedule information storage unit 305 of the schedule management apparatus 200 (step S401). Further, the power information acquisition unit 302 acquires power information from the power information transmission device 321 (step S402). Here, it is assumed that the acquired power information includes both a power usage prospect (predicted value of power usage rate) and a real-time power usage status (power usage rate at that time).

  The schedule information acquisition unit 301 inputs the acquired schedule information to the operation schedule generation unit 303. In addition, the power information acquisition unit 302 inputs the acquired power information to the operation schedule generation unit 303. In response to these inputs, the operation schedule generating unit 303 first determines whether or not there is a time zone in which the designated number of persons needs to be changed based on the power information (step S403).

  If there is a time zone in which the power usage rate is greater than or equal to a predetermined threshold (for example, 90%), the operation schedule generation unit 303 determines that the designated number of people needs to be changed in the time zone (Yes in step S403). ). And the operation schedule production | generation part 303 increases the designated number of persons of the time slot | zone which self hold | maintains (step S404). In addition, the operation schedule generation unit 303 determines that it is not necessary to change the designated number of people in a time zone in which the power usage rate is less than a predetermined threshold (for example, 90%) (No in step S403). ). Then, the operation schedule generation unit 303 sets the designated number of people in the corresponding time zone held by itself to an initial value (default value) (step S407).

  The operation schedule generation unit 303 that has determined the designated number of people in each time zone specifies a time zone in which the number of people in the office is less than the designated number of people, and the time zone in which the number of people in the office is less than the designated number of people is low in power consumption An operation schedule is generated (step S405).

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of an operation schedule generated by the operation schedule generation unit 303. In FIG. 5, the solid line indicates the number of users in the office room (at the seat) among the users who are permitted to use the multifunction peripheral 100 and are obtained based on the schedule information. In the figure, the horizontal axis corresponds to time, and the vertical axis corresponds to the number of users in the office. In this example, in the power information, the power usage rate is expected to be 93% in the time zone from 14:00 to 16:00. Therefore, between 14:00 and 16:00, the designated number of people indicated by a broken line in the figure is changed from 9 (default value) to 15 people.

  In the example of FIG. 5, the number of occupancy is 0 between 0:00 and 9:00, the number of occupancy is 20 between 9:00 and 10:00, and between 10:00 and 11:00. Number of occupants is 24, 13 from 11:00 to 11:15, 8 from 11:15 to 12:00, 12:00 to 12:30 The number of people in the room is 15, the number of people in the room from 12:30 to 13:30, the number of people in the room from 13:30 to 14:30, the number of people in the room is 6 people, 14:30 to 15:30 There are 13 people in the room, 24 people in the period from 15:30 to 17:00, 18 people in the period from 17:00 to 17:30, 17:30 to 19:00 The number of occupants is 10 during the period, and the number of occupants is 0 between 19:00 and 24:00. Therefore, between 0:00 and 9:00, between 11:15 and 12:00, between 12:30 and 13:30, between 13:30 and 14:30, and between 14:30 and 15:30 Between 19:00 and 24:00, the number of people in the room is less than the designated number.

  In this case, the operation schedule generation unit 303, as shown below in FIG. 5, between 0:00 and 9:00, between 11:15 and 12:00, between 12:30 and 15:30, The operation schedule is generated in the low power consumption mode between 2:00 and 24:00 and in the standby mode in other time zones.

  The operation schedule generation unit 303 that has generated the operation schedule as described above stores the generated operation schedule in the operation schedule storage unit 311 (step S406). Then, the power control unit 304 switches the power supply mode according to the operation schedule stored in the operation schedule storage unit 311.

  Note that, as described above, the above procedure is stored in the operation schedule storage unit 311 because it starts each time the information acquisition timing by the schedule information acquisition unit 301 or every time the information acquisition timing by the power information acquisition unit 302 starts. The operation schedule will be updated as appropriate. In other words, the operation schedule is updated when the user's schedule information registered in the multifunction peripheral 100 is changed, or when the power information is updated. Therefore, even when the conference is extended, the extension can be updated to an appropriate operation schedule by registering the extension in the schedule information. In addition, since real-time power usage is also acquired as power information, if the power supply and demand at that time is tight, the designated number of people is quickly changed and updated to an appropriate operation schedule. Can be made.

  As described above, since the image processing system 10 generates the image schedule based on the schedule information, an appropriate power saving schedule is generated even when the operation history is not accumulated or the operation state is not regular. be able to. Therefore, an appropriate power saving schedule can be executed immediately after installation. In addition, since the power information indicating the power usage state is taken into consideration in the operation schedule, for example, an appropriate power saving schedule in a situation where it is required to further reduce the amount of power usage due to the recent tightening of power supply and demand, etc. Can be executed.

  The above-described embodiments do not limit the technical scope of the present invention, and various modifications and applications other than those already described are possible within the scope of the present invention. For example, in the above embodiment, the operation schedule is configured by two modes, that is, the standby mode and the low power consumption mode, but the operation schedule may be configured by using two or more power modes. In other words, even when the number of users is more than the specified number, if there are relatively many users in the office, etc., the image forming process is likely to be performed. When there are a relatively small number of users who are present, the standby mode B in which power is not supplied to the fixing device can be set because there is a low possibility of image forming processing. Further, it is possible to adopt a configuration in which the threshold value of the number of people used for switching between the standby mode A and the standby mode B is changed according to the power information like the designated number of people described above.

  In the flowchart shown in FIG. 4, the order of the steps can be changed as appropriate within a range in which equivalent actions can be achieved. For example, schedule information may be acquired after acquiring power information, and power information and schedule information may be acquired simultaneously. Further, it is possible to adopt a configuration in which only schedule information is acquired when the schedule information acquisition timing arrives and only power information is acquired when the power information acquisition timing comes. In this case, the information acquired most recently may be used as the other information.

  In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the present invention is embodied by a digital multifunction peripheral. However, the present invention can be applied not only to a digital multifunction peripheral but also to an arbitrary image processing apparatus such as a scanner, a printer, and a copying machine. It is.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the more optimal power saving schedule can be determined in consideration of the electric power information which shows the use condition of electric power, and it is useful as an image processing apparatus and an image processing system.

10 image processing system 100 multifunction peripheral (image processing apparatus)
200 Schedule Management Device 301 Schedule Information Acquisition Unit 302 Power Information Acquisition Unit 303 Operation Schedule Generation Unit 304 Power Control Unit 305 Schedule Information Storage Unit 311 Operation Schedule Storage Unit

Claims (6)

A schedule information acquisition unit that acquires schedule information of a user specified in advance;
A power information acquisition unit for acquiring power information indicating a power usage state;
An operation schedule generation unit that generates an operation schedule based on the schedule information acquired by the schedule information collection unit and the power information acquired by the power information acquisition unit;
A power control unit that switches a power supply mode according to the operation schedule generated by the operation schedule generation unit;
An image processing apparatus comprising:   The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the power supply mode includes a standby mode in a state where image processing can be performed, and a low power consumption mode that consumes less power than the standby mode.   The image processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the operation schedule generation unit generates an operation schedule that is in a low power consumption mode in a time zone in which less than a specified number of users are present.   The image processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the operation schedule generation unit determines the designated number of people according to the power information.   The image processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the power information is a power usage prospect provided by a power supply source or a real-time power usage status. An image processing system comprising a schedule management device and an image processing device connected to the schedule management device,
The schedule management device is
A schedule information storage unit for storing schedule information of a user designated in the image processing apparatus;
With
The image processing apparatus is
A schedule information acquisition unit for acquiring the schedule information from the schedule information storage unit;
A power information acquisition unit for acquiring power information indicating a power usage state;
An operation schedule generation unit that generates an operation schedule of the image processing apparatus based on the schedule information acquired by the schedule information collection unit and the power information acquired by the power information acquisition unit;
A power control unit that switches a power supply mode according to the operation schedule generated by the operation schedule generation unit;
An image processing system comprising:

Images