JP2016027711A - Image forming apparatus, image forming method, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To efficiently develop software designed respectively for a printer, copier, and facsimile device, and improve productivity of an apparatus as a whole.SOLUTION: There is provided an image forming apparatus that has hardware resources and provides user service related to image forming processing, the image forming apparatus having a platform that can mount therein a plurality of applications performing unique processing to respective user services, is interposed between the applications and the hardware resources, and performs management and control of execution of the hardware resources, image forming processing, and creation of jobs, which are commonly required for at least two of the applications, where the platform includes a common system service that performs management and control of execution of the hardware resources and image forming processing, and an application service that is interposed between the plurality of applications and the common system service and at least creates jobs corresponding to the applications.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, an image forming method, and a program which have hardware resources such as a display unit, a printing unit, and an imaging unit, and perform a composite service such as a printer, a copy, or a facsimile. The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, an image forming method, and a program capable of efficiently developing software (applications) corresponding to the apparatus and the like and improving the productivity of the entire apparatus.

  Conventionally, printers, copiers, and facsimiles are generally arranged as separate cases, but recently, an image forming apparatus (hereinafter referred to as “composite”) in which the functions of these devices are housed in a single case. Is known).

  This multifunction device is provided with a display unit, a printing unit, an imaging unit, and the like in one casing, and three types of software corresponding to a printer, a copy machine, and a facsimile machine, respectively. Operates as a printer, copy or factory device.

  By using such a multifunction device, it is not necessary to provide a printer, a copy, and a facsimile separately in the room, so that total cost reduction and space saving can be achieved.

  However, if software (including a dedicated OS) corresponding to a printer, a copy, and a facsimile apparatus is separately provided in such a multifunction machine, it takes a lot of time to develop each software.

  In other words, such a conventional multi-function machine is simply a single case, and printer software, copy software, and facsimile software must be separately developed as in the conventional case.

  Originally, printer software, copy software, and facsimile software can share algorithms in various aspects due to the nature of handling the same kind of images. There is also a problem that causes a cumulative increase.

  For this reason, recently, a general-purpose OS such as UNIX (registered trademark) is often adopted in such a multi-function peripheral in order to eliminate duplication processing when three types of dedicated OSs are separately provided. It is not possible to increase the efficiency of software development by simply making it common.

  In Patent Document 1, the document service architecture is hierarchized by an application layer including a server dialog and a distributed application, a functional layer including a font manager and a network manager, and a control layer including an operating system. Although an electronic printing system has been disclosed, this prior art is merely a part of a common function such as a font, and does not increase the development efficiency of each software.

  A personal computer connected to a multifunction peripheral or printer can be equipped with a plurality of applications, but this personal computer does not manage hardware resources related to the multifunction peripheral. The present invention relates not to a personal computer itself but to an image forming apparatus itself such as a multifunction peripheral to which the personal computer is connected.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems caused by the prior art, and efficiently develops each software (application) corresponding to a printer, a copy and a facsimile apparatus, and the productivity of the entire apparatus. An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus, an image forming method, and a program capable of improving the image quality.

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, an image forming apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention includes hardware resources used in image forming processing such as a display unit, a printing unit, and an imaging unit, and a printer. An image forming apparatus for providing a user service related to image forming processing such as copying or facsimile, wherein a plurality of applications for performing processing specific to each user service such as the printer, copying or facsimile can be installed, and the application Management of the hardware resources, execution control, image forming processing and job generation that are commonly required by at least two of the applications when providing the user service. Having a platform to perform, the platform A common system service that performs management, execution control, and image formation processing of software resources, and an application service that intervenes between the plurality of applications and the common system service and generates a job corresponding to at least the application. It is characterized by that.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, it is possible to install a plurality of applications that perform processing specific to each user service such as a printer, a copy, or a facsimile, and the user service is interposed between the application and the hardware resource. A platform for performing management, execution control, image formation processing, and job generation, which are commonly required by at least two of the applications when the application is provided; Each user has a common system service that performs control and image formation processing, and an application service that intervenes between the plurality of applications and the common system service and generates a job corresponding to at least the application. When you create a-bis application of, it is sufficient to create a screen display control and key operation part.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the image forming apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention, wherein the platform has an application program interface capable of receiving a processing request from the application by a predefined function. And

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, the application program interface is provided in the platform so that the processing request from the application can be received by the function defined in advance. Therefore, the smooth cooperation between the application and the platform is maintained. be able to.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect of the invention, the common system service interprets a processing request from the application and generates a request for acquiring the hardware resource. A control service and a system resource manager that manages one or a plurality of hardware resources and arbitrates the acquisition request from the control service.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, a control service that interprets a processing request from an application and generates a hardware resource acquisition request in the common system service, and one or a plurality of hardware resources are managed. Since the system resource manager that arbitrates the acquisition request from the control service is provided, it is possible to smoothly use hardware resources by each application.

  An image forming apparatus according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is the image forming apparatus according to the third aspect, wherein the control service is formed by a plurality of service modules.

  According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, since the control service is formed by a plurality of service modules, it is possible to realize platform function expansion and function change at the module level.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus according to the fourth aspect, the service module includes an engine control service for controlling an engine, a memory control service for controlling a memory and a hard disk, and an operation for controlling an operation panel. A panel control service, a fax control service for controlling fax communication, or a network control service for controlling network communication is formed by two or more modules.

  According to the invention of claim 5, the service module controls an engine control service for controlling the engine, a memory control service for controlling the memory and the hard disk, an operation panel control service for controlling the operation panel, and a fax control service for controlling fax communication. Alternatively, since it is formed by any two or more modules of the network control service for controlling the network communication, engine control, memory control, operation panel control, fax communication control or network communication control can be performed by the platform.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the service module includes at least a network control service for controlling network communication, and the application is connected by the network control service. It is acquired through a network and installed.

  According to the invention of claim 6, the service module has at least a network control service for controlling network communication, and the application is acquired and installed via a network connected by the network control service. Therefore, a new application can be efficiently loaded via an external network.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus according to any one of the third to sixth aspects, the platform further includes a general-purpose operating system, and the system resource manager includes the general-purpose operating system. The one or more hardware resources are managed through an operating system.

  According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, the platform further includes a general-purpose operating system, and the system resource manager manages one or a plurality of hardware resources via the general-purpose operating system. By executing the processes below, hardware resources can be managed efficiently.

  An image forming apparatus according to an invention of claim 8 is characterized in that, in the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 7, the plurality of applications can be added or deleted for each application. To do.

  According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, since each application can be added or deleted for each application, the function of the image forming apparatus can be optimized in a form desired by the user.

  An image forming apparatus according to a ninth aspect of the present invention is the image forming apparatus according to any one of the first to eighth aspects, wherein the plurality of applications are screen controls for services such as the printer, copying, and facsimile. And key operation control.

  According to the ninth aspect of the present invention, since each application performs screen control and key operation control for each service such as printer, copy, and facsimile, it is easy to perform processing related to the user interface. Various processes can be realized using an application.

  The image forming apparatus according to claim 10 is the image forming apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the plurality of applications include at least a printer application, a copy application, a fax application, a scanner application, a net file application, and a process inspection application. It is characterized by.

  According to the invention of claim 10, since the plurality of applications include at least the printer application, the copy application, the fax application, the scanner application, the net file application, and the process inspection application, the user can use the printer, copy, fax, Can perform scanner, net file and process inspection.

  According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus according to any one of the first to tenth aspects, the application service includes a job generation module that generates a job corresponding to each application, And a data communication module for performing data communication related to the application.

  According to the invention of claim 11, the application service includes a job generation module that generates a job corresponding to each application and a data communication module that performs data communication related to each application. And data communication can be performed in common for each application.

  An image forming method according to a twelfth aspect of the present invention relates to an image forming process such as a printer, a copy, or a facsimile using hardware resources used in the image forming process such as a display unit, a printing unit, and an imaging unit. An image forming method for providing a user service, wherein a plurality of applications that can be installed are used to perform processing specific to each user service such as the printer, copy, or facsimile, and between the application and the hardware resource. An intervening common system service that performs management, execution control, and image formation processing of the hardware resources, and an application that intervenes between the plurality of applications and the common system service and generates a job corresponding to at least the application With a service Using the home, in providing the user service, the application of at least two and performing the management of the hardware resources, execution control, image forming processing and job generation requiring commonly.

  According to the twelfth aspect of the present invention, a process unique to each user service such as a printer, a copy, or a facsimile is performed using a plurality of applications that can be installed, interposed between the application and hardware resources, A platform comprising: a common system service that performs resource management, execution control, and image formation processing; and an application service that intervenes between a plurality of applications and the common system service and generates at least a job corresponding to the application. Therefore, when providing user services, management of hardware resources, execution control, image formation processing, and job generation that are commonly required by at least two of the applications are performed. When you create a down is, we are sufficient to create a screen display control and key operation part.

  According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a program having a hardware resource used in an image forming process such as a display unit, a printing unit, and an imaging unit, and a user service related to the image forming process such as a printer, a copy, or a facsimile. A plurality of application programs that can be installed in an image forming apparatus that provides management of hardware resources, execution control, and image formation processing when providing each user service such as printer, copy, or facsimile. It is executed on a platform provided with a system service and an application service that intervenes between the plurality of applications and the common system service and generates a job corresponding to at least the application.

  According to the invention of claim 13, when providing each user service such as a printer, a copy, or a facsimile, the common system service that performs management, execution control, and image forming processing of the hardware resources, and the plurality of applications Since it is decided to run on a platform that has at least an application service that generates jobs corresponding to the application, it provides a light-weight application program that uses the platform. can do.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, it is possible to mount a plurality of applications that perform processing specific to each user service such as a printer, copy, or facsimile, and provide a user service by interposing between the application and the hardware resource. A platform that performs management, execution control, image formation processing, and job generation that are commonly required by at least two of the applications. The platform includes hardware resource management and execution control. In addition, each user service is configured to include a common system service that performs image formation processing, and an application service that intervenes between a plurality of applications and the common system service and generates a job corresponding to at least the application. When creating a bis application, it is sufficient to create a screen display control and key operation portion.

  Further, according to the invention of claim 2, since the platform is provided with an application program interface capable of receiving a processing request from the application by a predefined function, the smooth cooperation between the application and the platform is maintained. can do.

  According to the invention of claim 3, a control service that interprets a processing request from an application and generates a hardware resource acquisition request in the common system service, and management of one or a plurality of hardware resources. In addition, since the system resource manager that arbitrates the acquisition request from the control service is provided, it is possible to smoothly use the hardware resources by each application.

  According to the invention of claim 4, since the control service is configured to be formed by a plurality of service modules, it is possible to realize platform function expansion and function change at the module level.

  According to the invention of claim 5, the service module controls an engine control service for controlling an engine, a memory control service for controlling a memory and a hard disk, an operation panel control service for controlling an operation panel, and a fax control for controlling fax communication. Since it is configured to be formed by any two or more modules of the service or the network control service for controlling the network communication, the engine control, the memory control, the operation panel control, the fax communication control or the network communication control can be performed by the platform.

  According to the invention of claim 6, the service module has at least a network control service for controlling network communication, and the application is acquired and installed via a network connected by the network control service. Since it is configured, a new application can be efficiently mounted via an external network.

  According to the invention of claim 7, the platform further includes a general-purpose operating system, and the system resource manager is configured to manage one or a plurality of hardware resources via the general-purpose operating system. By executing processes under the system, hardware resources can be efficiently managed.

  According to the invention of claim 8, since each application can be added or deleted for each application, the function of the image forming apparatus can be optimized to a form desired by the user.

  According to the invention of claim 9, since each application is configured to perform screen control and key operation control for each service such as printer, copy, and facsimile, it is easy to perform processing related to the user interface. Various processes can be realized using a simple application.

  According to the invention of claim 10, the plurality of applications are configured to include at least a printer application, a copy application, a fax application, a scanner application, a net file application, and a process inspection application. , Fax, scanner, net file and process inspection.

  According to the invention of claim 11, since the application service is configured to include a job generation module that generates a job corresponding to each application and a data communication module that performs data communication related to each application, Generation and data communication can be performed in common for each application.

  According to the twelfth aspect of the present invention, a process unique to each user service such as a printer, a copy, or a facsimile is performed using a plurality of applications that can be installed, and is interposed between the application and hardware resources. A platform comprising: a common system service that performs management, execution control, and image formation processing of software resources; and an application service that intervenes between a plurality of applications and the common system service and generates a job corresponding to at least the application Is used to manage hardware resources, execution control, image formation processing, and job generation that are shared by at least two applications when providing user services. When you create a Deployment is, it is sufficient to create a screen display control and key operation part.

  According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, when providing each user service such as a printer, a copy, or a facsimile, a common system service that performs management, execution control, and image forming processing of the hardware resources, Since it is configured to run on a platform that includes an application service that intervenes between the application and the common system service and generates a job corresponding to the application, at least, an application program that uses the platform is light. Can be provided.

It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the concept of the multifunctional device which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the platform shown in FIG. FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram illustrating a specific software configuration of the multifunction peripheral illustrated in FIG. 1. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the copy operation | movement using the copy application shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a printing operation using the printer application shown in FIG. 3. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the scanner operation | movement using the scanner application shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the starting process of three applications, a copy application, a printer application, and a scanner application, the process which produces | generates and displays each application screen, and the process when an application screen selection key is pressed down. . It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the fax transmission operation | movement using a fax application or a printer application. FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the multifunction peripheral illustrated in FIG. 1. FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating a detailed configuration of the ASIC illustrated in FIG. 9.

  Exemplary embodiments of an image forming apparatus, an image forming method, and a program according to the present invention will be explained below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the present embodiment, the case where the present invention is applied to a multifunction machine is shown.

  First, the concept of the multifunction peripheral according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the concept of the multifunction peripheral according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the platform shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 1A, a conventional printer 100 has a printer application (printer application) mounted on a dedicated OS 101 that performs a drawing / printing function and engine control. In addition, the facsimile and copy are also configured with separate housings. In addition, although a multi-function machine that brings them together in one housing has appeared, it is not efficient to simply provide printer, copy, and facsimile functions independently.

  For this reason, as shown in FIG. 2B, a conventional dedicated OS 101 is formed by a general-purpose OS portion 111 and an engine control portion 112, which are connected by an engine interface (I / F) and on the general-purpose OS 111. A device configuration in which a printer application 113, a copy application 114, and various applications 115 are installed has been adopted.

  Since the multifunction machine 110 employs a general-purpose OS such as UNIX (registered trademark), for example, the printer application 113, the copy application 114, and the various applications 115 can be easily executed in parallel as processes.

  However, since the printer application 113, the copy application 114, and the various applications 115 also need to be independently developed for the multifunction machine 110, the development burden of each software cannot be alleviated.

  Therefore, in the MFP 120 according to the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1C, common portions of the applications are bundled as a common system service 121a and an application service 121b, and the common system service 121a and the application service 121b. The platform 122 is formed by the general-purpose OS 111.

  In particular, in this multifunction device 120, the application service 121b is configured to be interposed between each of the applications 123 to 125 and the common system service 121a, thereby generating a job that each of the applications 123 to 125 should originally perform independently. And the application service 121b collectively performs data communication. For this reason, the development effort of the printer application 123, the copy application 124, and the various applications 125 installed on the platform 122 can be reduced, and the application can be slimmed.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 2 (a), if the copy application consists of 130,000 steps, the fax application consists of 125,000 steps, and the printer application consists of 100,000 steps, if these are formed as separate applications, a total of 130,000 + 125, 000 + 100,000 = 355,000 steps of code are required.

  Here, if the portion that can be commonly used for each application is 180,000 steps, productivity is improved by consolidating this portion as a platform.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 4B, if a copy application can be formed with 40,000 steps, a fax application with 100,000 steps, a printer application with 35,000 steps, and a platform with 90,000 steps, a total of 40,000 + 100,000 + 35,000 + 90 , 000 = 265,000 steps, improving the productivity of the entire device by 134% (355,000 / 265,000).

  Considering the platform part, productivity is improved by 200% (180,000 / 90,000), and the development efficiency of copy application, fax application and printer application is greatly improved.

  As described above, the MFP 120 according to the present embodiment is configured so that the printer application 123, the copy application 124, and the various applications 125 are mounted on the platform 122 including the application service 121b, the common system service 121a, and the general-purpose OS 111. As a result, the productivity of the entire apparatus can be increased and the development efficiency of each application can be increased.

  Next, the software configuration of the multifunction machine 120 shown in FIG. 1 will be described in more detail. FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram showing a specific software configuration of the multifunction peripheral 120 shown in FIG.

  As shown in the figure, the MFP 120 includes a monochrome line printer (B & W LP) 301, a color line printer (Color LP) 302, other hardware resources 303, and the like. It consists of an application 340.

  The platform 320 includes a general-purpose OS 321, a common system service 330, and an application service 329. The platform 320 has an application program interface that can receive a processing request from the application using a predefined function.

  The general-purpose OS 321 is a general-purpose operating system such as UNIX (registered trademark), and executes each software of the platform 320 and the application 340 in parallel as processes. By using open source UNIX (registered trademark), the safety of the program can be secured, the network can be supported, and the source code can be easily obtained. Furthermore, OS and TCP / IP royalties are unnecessary, and outsourcing is easy.

  The common system service 330 provides a basic common service to the application 340, interprets a processing request from the application 330, and generates a hardware resource acquisition request, It has a system resource manager (SRM (System Resource Manager) 323) that manages one or a plurality of hardware resources and arbitrates acquisition requests from the control service.

  This control service is formed by a plurality of service modules. Specifically, an SCS (System Control Service) 322, an ECS (Engine Control Service) 324, an MCS (Memory Control Service) 325, and an OCS (Operation Panel Control). Service) 326, FCS (FAX Control Service) 327, and NCS (Network Control Service) 328.

  The SRM 323 performs system control and resource management together with the SCS 322, and includes engines such as a scanner unit and a printer unit, memory, HDD files, host I / O (Centro I / F, network I / F, IEEE 1394 I / F). , RS232CI / F, etc.) arbitration is performed according to a request from an upper layer using hardware resources, and execution control is performed.

  Specifically, the SRM 323 determines whether the requested hardware resource is available (whether it is not used by another request), and if it is available, the requested hardware resource is Tell the upper layer that it is available. Also, hardware resource usage scheduling may be performed in response to a request from an upper layer, and the requested contents (for example, paper conveyance and image forming operation by the printer engine, memory allocation, file generation, etc.) may be directly executed. .

  The SCS 322 includes (1) application management, (2) operation unit control, (3) system screen display (job list screen, counter display screen, etc.), (4) LED display, (5) resource management, and (6) interrupt application. Take control. Specifically, in (1) application management, processing for registering an application and notifying other applications of the information is performed. For the registered application, the engine state is notified according to the system setting or the request setting from the application. For registered applications, an inquiry about whether or not to change the state of the system, such as an inquiry about power mode transition and an interrupt mode, is made.

  In (2) operation unit control, exclusive control of the operation unit usage right of the application is performed. Then, the key information from the operation unit driver (OCS) is exclusively notified to the application having the right to use the operation unit. This key information performs mask control for temporarily stopping notification according to system state transition such as during application switching.

  In (3) system screen display, a warning screen corresponding to the engine state is displayed according to the content of a request from an application having an operation unit usage right. Some of them turn on / off warning display according to the state of the application such as a user restriction screen. In a state other than the engine state, display control of a job list screen for displaying job reservation / execution status, a counter screen for displaying total counters, and a screen indicating that CSS is being reported is performed. With respect to these system screen displays, drawing is performed as a system screen that covers the application screen without requesting the application to release the operation unit usage right.

  In (4) LED display, display control of system LEDs such as warning LEDs and application keys is performed. The application-specific LED is directly controlled by the application using a display driver.

  In (5) resource management, a service for exclusive control of engine resources (scanners, staples, etc.) that must be exclusive when an application (ECS) executes a job is provided. (6) In interrupt application control, Control and service to make certain applications have priority operation.

  The ECS 324 controls engines such as a monochrome line printer (B & W LP) 301, a color line printer (Color LP) 302, and other hardware resources 303, and performs image reading and printing operations, status notification, jam recovery, and the like. .

  Specifically, a series of copy / scan / print operations are realized by sequentially issuing print requests to the SRM 323 in accordance with the job mode designation received from the application 340. In the job to be handled by the ECS 324, it is assumed that a scanner (SCANNER) is designated as the image input device or a plotter (PLOTTER) is designated as the image output device.

  For example, “SCANNER → PLOTTER” is specified for a copy operation, “SCANNER → MEMORY” is specified for file storage, and “SCANNER → FAX_IN” is specified for facsimile transmission. In addition, “MEMORY → PLOTTER” is designated for stored file printing or printing from the printer application 311, and “FAX_OUT → PLOTTER” is designated for facsimile reception.

  Although the definition of the job varies depending on the application, here, the processing operation for one set of image groups handled by the user is defined as one job. For example, in the case of a copy ADF (Automatic Document Feeder) mode, an operation for reading one set of documents placed on the document table is one job, and in the pressure plate mode, a reading operation until the final document is determined is one job. . In the case of the copy application 312, the operation of copying a bundle of documents is one job, and in the case of the fax application 313, the transmission operation of one document or the reception operation of one document is one job. In this case, the printing operation for one document is one job.

  The MCS 325 performs memory control. Specifically, the MCS 325 acquires and releases an image memory, uses a hard disk device (HDD), compresses and decompresses image data, and the like.

  Here, as functions necessary for managing information necessary as image data files stored in the hard disk device, (1) file access (generation / deletion / open / close) function (including exclusive processing), ( 2) Various file attribute management (physical) such as file name / ID management (file / user) / password management / accumulation time management / number of pages / data format (compression method, etc.) / Access restriction / creation application / print condition management (Management of image data in page units), (3) Join / insert / cut-off function in file units and page units, (4) File sort functions (accumulation time order / user ID order, etc.), (5) All File information notification (for display / search), (6) Recovery function (file / page discard of damaged file), (7) File Automatic deletion function of the Le and the like.

  The functions for holding and accessing image data to a memory such as a RAM include (1) a function for acquiring file and page / band attribute information from the application 340, and (2) an image data area from the application 340. There are secure, release, read, and write functions.

  The OCS 326 is a module that controls an operation panel serving as information transmission means between the operator and the main body control, and provides a process for notifying the main body control of an operator's key operation event and a library function for each application to construct a GUI. Processing, processing for managing the constructed GUI information for each application, display reflection processing on the operation panel, and the like are performed.

  The OCS 326 includes (1) a library providing function for GUI construction, (2) an operation unit hardware resource management function, (3) a VRAM drawing / LCD display function (hardware display, display application switching, display language switching, Window dark color display, message / icon blink display, message connection display), (4) hard key input detection function, (5) touch panel key input detection function, (6) LED output function, (7) buzzer output function, etc. .

  FCS 327 performs facsimile transmission / reception using the PSTN / ISDN network from each application layer of the system controller, registration / quotation of various facsimile data managed by BKM (backup SRAM), facsimile reading, facsimile reception printing, and fusion transmission / reception. API is provided.

  Specifically, the FCS 327 includes (1) a transmission function for transmitting a document requested to be transmitted from the application layer to a facsimile receiver using the PSTN / ISDN network, and (2) a facsimile reception received from the PSTN / ISDN network. Receiving function for transferring and printing screens and various reports to each application layer, (3) Phonebook quoting / registration function for quoting and registering facsimile management items such as phonebook and group information stored in the fax board (4) Fax log notification function for notifying the application that needs the transmission / reception result history information stored in the BKM installed on the fax board, (5) When the status of the fax board changes, the FCS Has an event notification function that notifies registered applications of events that have changed

  The NCS 328 is a module group for providing a service that can be commonly used for applications requiring network I / O. Data received from the network side according to each protocol is distributed to each application, and data from the application is distributed. Mediates when sending to the network side. Specifically, it has server daemons such as ftpd, httpd, lpd, snmpd, telnetd, and smtpd, and client functions of the same protocol.

  The application service 329 is one of the common services that form the platform 320. Unlike the ECS 324, MCS 325, OCS 326, FCS 327, NCS 328, SRM 323, and SCS 322 that form the common system service 330, the application service 329 stands on the application 340 side. It provides services.

  In other words, the application service 329 is interposed between the application 340 and the common system service 330, and plays a role of bridging between the two.

  Specifically, the application service 329 collectively performs the job generation and data communication functions that the copy application 312, the fax application 313, the scanner application 314, and the like should perform. For this reason, since the copy application 312, the fax application 313, the scanner application 314, and the like need only be targeted for screens and key operations, application development efficiency is improved.

  The application 340 includes a printer application 311 that is a printer application having a page description language (PDL), PCL, and postscript (PS), a copy application 312 that is a copy application, and a fax application 313 that is a facsimile application. A scanner application 314 that is a scanner application, a net file application 315 that is a net file application, and a process inspection application 316 that is a process inspection application.

  Since each of the applications 311 to 316 can execute an operation by using each process on the platform 320, a screen display control program for performing screen control, key operation control, and the like is the main component. In particular, since the application service 329 is provided on the platform 320, there is no need to provide job generation and data communication functions. Note that a new application can also be installed via the network connected by the NCS 328. Each application can be added or deleted for each application.

  Next, the copy operation using the copy application 312 shown in FIG. 3, the print operation using the printer application 311, and the scanner operation using the scanner application 314 will be described more specifically.

  FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a copy operation using the copy application 312 shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the copy application 312 has a copy screen / key operation module 312a. When a copy condition is specified from the operation panel and the start key is pressed, the copy screen / key operation module 312a is connected to the application service 329. Copy conditions are transferred to the application job generation module 329a (step S401). The copy conditions include paper size, number of copies, double-sided, sort, and staple.

  Thereafter, the application job generation module 329a calls the engine job generation function to the engine job execution control module 324a using the API of ECS 324, and sets the job mode. The job mode is a group of parameters necessary for operating the scanner, plotter, finisher, etc., and is generated from the copy conditions. Further, the application job generation module 329a uses the ECS 324 API to call the job execution start function to the engine job execution control module 324a and instructs job execution (step S402).

  The engine job execution control module 324a calls an image memory reservation function to the image memory handling module 325a using the API of the MCS 325, and instructs to secure the image memory (step S403).

  The image memory handling module 325a calls a memory acquisition function to the memory resource management module 323b of the SRM 323 to acquire a memory (step S404). The engine job execution control module 324a calls a resource acquisition function to the engine resource management module of the SRM 323, starts operations of the scanner and plotter, and executes a copy job.

  Next, the printing operation using the printer application 311 shown in FIG. 3 will be described more specifically. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a printing operation using the printer application 311 shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the printer application 311 has a RIP processing module 311a and a printer screen / key operation module 311b.

  When a print data command is input from a host such as a PC to the host I / O resource management module 323d of the SRM 323 via the Centro I / F, USB I / F, network I / F, etc. (step S501), the host I The / O resource management module 323d transfers the print data to the host communication I / F control module 328a of the NCS 328. Here, the host communication I / F control module 328a analyzes the input print data and determines a destination application. The host communication I / F control module 328a receives data from a plurality of communication protocols or host I / Fs, and arbitrates the destination (step S502).

  When the print data is transferred to the application data communication module 329b in the application service 329 (step S503), the print data is further input to the application job generation module 329a and a new print job is generated (step S504).

  The application job generation module 329a transfers the data to the RIP processing module 311a of the printer application 311 according to the language type of the print data (step S505), and the RIP processing module 311a performs image development of the print data. The process is returned to the application job generation module 329a (step S506).

  The image data generated by the application job generation module 329a is output to the image memory handling module 325a of the MCS 325 (Step S507). Since requests from a plurality of applications are generated in the image memory, a memory allocation request is issued to the memory resource management module 323b of the SRM 323 that performs memory resource arbitration, and the image data developed after acquisition is stored in the memory. It is written (step S508).

  When the image data print preparation is completed, the application job generation module 329a calls the engine job generation control function 324a using the ECS324 API, sets the job mode, and then calls the job start function. The job execution is instructed (step S509).

  The engine job execution control module 324a calls an engine resource acquisition function to the engine resource management module 323a of the SRM 323, starts the operation of the plotter, and executes a print job (step S510).

  Next, the scanner operation using the scanner application 314 shown in FIG. 3 will be described more specifically. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a scanner operation using the scanner application 314 shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the scanner application 314 has a scanner screen / key operation module 314a.

  When the scanner application 314 is selected from the operation panel, a scanning condition is input, and the start key is pressed, the scanner screen / key operation module 314a transfers the scanner condition to the application job generation module 329a of the application service 329 (step S31). S601), the application job generation module 329a secures the memory necessary for scanning according to the requested image size, and the memory resource management module 323b of the SRM 323 in which the image memory handling module 325a of the MCS 325 arbitrates memory resources. A memory securing request is issued to the image data, and the image data is written on the memory after the memory is acquired (steps S602 to S603).

  When the scan preparation of the image data is completed, the application job generation module 329a calls the engine job generation function to the engine job execution control module 324a of the ECS 324, sets the job mode, calls the job start function, and executes the scan job. Is instructed (step S604).

  The engine job execution control module 324a calls the engine resource acquisition function to the engine resource management module 323a of the SRM 323, starts the scanner operation, and executes the scanner job (step S605).

  When the application job generation module 329a receives a scan completion event from the ECS 324, the application data communication module 329b transfers the read image to an external PC using a host I / O resource other than the network. The address of the transfer destination PC such as URL and the scanned image data (or the address on the memory) are sent to the communication I / F control module 328a (steps S606 to S607). Here, it is assumed that image data communication is controlled by using a protocol function for performing file transfer such as ftp or http.

  The host communication I / F control module 328a calls a resource securing function of the host I / O resource management module 323d of the SRM 323 in order to secure host I / O resources such as a network, IEEE1394, USB, and SCSI (step S608). . The host I / O resource management module 323d performs image data communication when the requested host I / O resource becomes available (step S609).

  Next, a description will be given of the startup process of the three applications of the copy application 312, the printer application 311, and the scanner application 314, the process of generating and displaying each application screen, and the process when the application screen selection key is pressed. . FIG. 7 illustrates the startup processing of the three applications of the copy application 312, the printer application 311, and the scanner application 314, the process of generating and displaying each application screen, and the process when the application screen selection key is pressed. It is explanatory drawing for doing.

  Application startup process: At power-on or system reset, the application is started after at least the SCS 322 and OCS 326 are started. The copy application 312, the printer application 311, and the scanner application 314 register that they are activated in the application registration management module 322 b of the SCS 322 (steps S 701 to S 703).

  Screen generation processing; OCS 326 has a drawing management function that allows a plurality of applications to have a plurality of virtual screen memories. Therefore, the copy application 312, the printer application 311, and the scanner application 314 can execute screen generation by the window control library module 326 a (steps S <b> 704 to S <b> 708).

  Display processing: One of the plurality of screen memories is drawn on the display panel. A screen obtained by combining the contents of a plurality of screen memories may be displayed. For example, when a fax is received during a copying operation, a message indicating that the fax is being received can be displayed in a screen area common to applications.

  Screen switching processing; The screen memory drawn on the display panel is switched by the system screen display control module of the SCS322. For example, when an application selection key on the operation panel is pressed, the application screen selected according to steps S709 to S714 is drawn. Further, since the SCS 322 includes a device status management module 322c that holds device internal hardware and engine status information, it is possible to switch a display screen in the event of an error or abnormality such as a jam or no paper.

  Next, a fax transmission operation using the fax application 313 or the printer application 311 will be described. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a fax transmission operation using the fax application 313 or the printer application 311.

  As shown in the figure, in the fax transmission operation using the fax application 313, when the transmission destination number is input on the fax operation screen and the start key is pressed, the fax screen / key operation module 313a displays the application service 329. A job generation function is called to the application job generation module 329a (step S801), and the fax job generation module 313b calls a transmission start function to the fax job execution control module 327a of the FCS 327 (step S802).

  Then, the fax job execution control module 327a calls an engine job generation function to the engine job execution control module 324a using the API of ECS 324 and sets the job mode (step S803). The engine job execution control module 324a uses the API of the MCS 325 to call the image memory securing function to the image memory handling module 325a and instruct to secure the image memory (step S804).

  The image memory handling module 325a calls the memory acquisition function to the SRM 323, acquires the memory necessary for scanning the fax document (step S805), and when the memory is secured, the engine job execution control module 324a stores the memory of the SRM 323. A function that requests the engine resource management module 323a to secure the scanner resource is called, and after the function is secured, the scanner operation is started (step S806).

  When the document image data is held in the memory from the scanner, the ECS 324 notifies the FCS 327 of a scan completion event, and when the facsimile job execution control module 327a calls the transmission start function of the fax board resource management module 323g, the PSTN The fax transmission procedure is started using the ISDN line (steps S807 to S808).

  Next, in the fax transmission operation using the printer application 311, the print data is input to the host I / O resource management module 323d and is necessary for facsimile transmission such as the transmission destination number at the same time as the normal print operation. Command information including such information is added (step S809).

  When print data for fax transmission is transferred from the host communication I / F control module of the NCS 328 to the application job generation module 329a via the application data communication module 329b of the application service 329 (steps S810 to S812), a new fax is sent. A transmission print job is generated.

  When the print data is transferred to the RIP processing module 311a and image data is generated, the image data is input to the fax job execution control module 327a of the FCS 327 together with information necessary for facsimile transmission (steps S813 to 815). Thereafter, the same processing as the fax transmission operation is performed (steps S807 to S808).

  Instead of performing the RIP process in steps S813 to S814, the print data can be transmitted by a binary data transfer protocol (BFTP) using a PSTN or ISDN line.

  For convenience of explanation, only the transmission operation has been described here. For example, by performing processing in the order of steps S808, S807, S802, S803, S804, S805, and S806, fax reception and printing can be performed. Note that reception and printing of print data using BFTP can be realized by processing in the order of steps S808, S807, S802, S815, S813, S814, S815, S803, S804, S805, and S806.

  Next, the hardware configuration of the multifunction machine 120 shown in FIG. 1 will be described. FIG. 9 is a configuration diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the multifunction peripheral 120 illustrated in FIG. As shown in the figure, this multifunction machine 120 includes a controller board 900 in which a CPU 902, SDRAM 903, flash memory 904, HD 905 and the like are connected to an ASIC 901, an operation panel 910, a fax control unit (FCU) 920, a USB 930, It consists of IEEE1394940 and printer 950.

  The operation panel 910 is directly connected to the ASIC 901, and the FCU 920, USB 930, IEEE1394 940, and printer 950 are connected to the ASIC 901 via the PCI bus.

  FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing a detailed configuration of the ASIC 901 shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the ASIC 901 includes a CPU interface (CPU I / F), an SDRAM interface (SDRAM I / F), a local bus interface (Local BUS I / F), a PCI interface (PCI I / F), and 1284. MAC (Media Access Control), I / O, OPE interface (OPE I / F), HD interface (HD I / F), Comp / de-comp, and Rotate.

  By adopting such a hardware configuration, it is possible to design at low cost by sharing devices and to facilitate inter-application fusion. In addition, the architecture is scalable from low speed machines to high speed machines, and hardware / software used by each application is shared, so that development efficiency can be improved. In addition, it becomes easy to deal with new functions.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the common part of each application is bundled as the application service 121b and the common system service 121a, and the platform 122 is formed by the application service 121b, the common system service 121a, and the general-purpose OS 111. Since the printer application 123, the copy application 124, and the various applications 125 are mounted on the platform 122, it is possible to reduce the development effort of each application and to make the application slim.

100 Printer 101 Dedicated OS
102 Printer application 110 MFP 111 General-purpose OS
112 Engine control unit 113 Printer application 114 Copy application 115 Various applications 120 Multifunction machine 121a Common system service 121b Application service 122 Platform 123 Printer application 124 Copy application 125 Various applications

Japanese Patent Publication No. 7-79368

Claims (13)

An image forming apparatus that has hardware resources used in image forming processing such as a display unit, a printing unit, and an imaging unit, and provides user services related to image forming processing such as a printer, a copy, or a facsimile,
A plurality of applications that perform processing specific to each user service such as the printer, copy, or facsimile can be installed.
Management, execution control, image formation processing, and job of the hardware resources that are commonly required by at least two of the applications when providing the user service that is interposed between the application and the hardware resources Has a generating platform,
The platform is
A common system service for performing management, execution control and image formation processing of the hardware resources;
An application service that intervenes between the plurality of applications and the common system service, and generates a job corresponding to at least the application;
An image forming apparatus comprising:   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the platform has an application program interface that allows a processing request from the application to be received by a predefined function. The common system service is:
A control service that interprets a processing request from the application and generates a request to acquire the hardware resource;
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a system resource manager that manages one or a plurality of hardware resources and arbitrates the acquisition request from the control service.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the control service is formed by a plurality of service modules.   The service module includes an engine control service for controlling an engine, a memory control service for controlling a memory and a hard disk, an operation panel control service for controlling an operation panel, a fax control service for controlling fax communication, or a network control service for controlling network communication. The image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the image forming apparatus is formed of any two or more modules.   5. The service module according to claim 4, wherein the service module includes at least a network control service for controlling network communication, and the application is acquired and installed via a network connected by the network control service. The image forming apparatus described.   The platform further includes a general-purpose operating system, and the system resource manager manages the one or more hardware resources via the general-purpose operating system. The image forming apparatus described in 1.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of applications can be added or deleted for each application.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of applications respectively perform screen control and key operation control for services such as the printer, copying, and facsimile.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the plurality of applications include at least a printer application, a copy application, a fax application, a scanner application, a net file application, and a process inspection application.   The said application service is provided with the job production | generation module which produces | generates the job corresponding to each application, and the data communication module which performs the data communication which concerns on each application, The any one of Claims 1-10 characterized by the above-mentioned. The image forming apparatus described in 1. An image forming method for providing a user service related to an image forming process such as a printer, a copy, or a facsimile using hardware resources used in the image forming process such as a display unit, a printing unit, and an imaging unit,
Performs processing specific to each user service such as printer, copy or facsimile using an application that can be installed in plural,
Interposed between the application and the hardware resource, a common system service for performing management, execution control and image forming processing of the hardware resource, and interposed between the plurality of applications and the common system service, Management and execution of the hardware resources commonly required by at least two of the applications when providing the user service using a platform including at least an application service that generates a job corresponding to the application An image forming method comprising performing control, image forming processing, and job generation. Applications that have hardware resources used in image forming processing such as display, printing, and imaging units, and that can be installed in multiple image forming apparatuses that provide user services related to image forming processing such as printers, copies, and facsimiles A program,
A common system service that performs management, execution control, and image forming processing of the hardware resources, and between the plurality of applications and the common system service when providing each user service such as the printer, copy, or facsimile; A program that runs on a platform that includes an application service that intervenes and generates at least a job corresponding to the application.