JP2016117195A - Image processor, method for controlling image processor, and control program of image processor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce an unnecessary waiting time until executing restarting when a failure that needs restarting of a device occurs in a unit constituting the device and a processing program.SOLUTION: An image processor for executing various processing by a plurality of processing parts includes a failure detection part for detecting that a failure occurs in the image processor, a processing request part for requesting processing for restarting the image processor from the plurality of processing parts when detecting the failure, and a restart execution part for executing restarting of the image processor when receiving response to the request from processing parts other than a processing part which cannot response due to the detected failure among all processing parts that are requested to perform processing.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

  The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, a control method for the image processing apparatus, and a control program for the image processing apparatus.

  In recent years, there has been a tendency to digitize information, and image processing apparatuses such as printers and facsimiles used for outputting digitized information and scanners used for digitizing documents have become indispensable devices. Such an image processing apparatus is often configured as a multifunction machine that can be used as a printer, a facsimile, a scanner, or a copier by providing an imaging function, an image forming function, a communication function, and the like.

  In such an image processing apparatus, there has been proposed a method of automatically restarting an apparatus when a failure of a unit or a processing program constituting the apparatus is detected (see, for example, Patent Document 1). The apparatus to which the method disclosed in Patent Document 1 is applied is configured so that each processing unit that executes each process can safely restart after waiting for execution of the process in progress to a point where the process is in progress. The operation of the part is suppressed and the restart is executed.

  In the technique disclosed in Patent Literature 1, restart is executed after receiving notification of completion of operation suppression from all the processing units of the apparatus. Therefore, if the processing unit is abnormally terminated due to a failure that has occurred in the device, the device will not receive an operation suppression completion notification from the abnormally terminated processing unit, and will be forcibly restarted after waiting for timeout, which is unnecessary. Waiting time occurs.

  The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and is unnecessary until a restart is executed when a failure that requires the restart of the apparatus occurs in a unit or a processing program constituting the apparatus. The purpose is to reduce waiting time.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, an aspect of the present invention is an image processing apparatus that performs various types of processing using a plurality of processing units, and a failure detection unit that detects that a failure has occurred in the image processing device; A processing requesting unit that requests processing for restarting the image processing apparatus to the plurality of processing units when the failure is detected, and among all of the processing units for which the processing is requested A restart execution unit that restarts the image processing apparatus upon receiving a response to the request from the processing unit other than the processing unit that has become unresponsive due to the detected failure. .

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, when the failure which requires the restart of an apparatus generate | occur | produces in the unit and processing program which comprise an apparatus, the unnecessary waiting time until it performs a restart can be reduced.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of an image processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration of an image processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart which illustrates the outline | summary of operation | movement of the main-control part which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a sequence diagram which illustrates the outline | summary of the whole operation | movement of the image processing apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a sequence diagram which illustrates the outline | summary of another whole operation | movement of the image processing apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which illustrates the functional composition of the main control part concerning the embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which illustrates the failure information stored in the failure information storage part which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a sequence diagram which illustrates operation | movement by each part contained in the main control part which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a sequence diagram which illustrates another operation | movement by each part contained in the main control part which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a sequence diagram which illustrates another operation | movement by each part contained in the main control part which concerns on embodiment of this invention.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the present embodiment, an image processing apparatus as an MFP (Multi Function Peripheral) that can be used as a printer, a facsimile, a scanner, and a copier by providing an imaging function, an image forming function, a communication function, and the like will be described as an example. To do.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of an image processing apparatus 1 according to this embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the image processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment includes the same configuration as an information processing apparatus such as a general server or a PC (Personal Computer).

  That is, the image processing apparatus 1 according to this embodiment includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 10, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 20, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 30, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) 40, and an I / F 50. 80 is connected through 80. Further, an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) 60 and an operation unit 70 are connected to the I / F 50.

  In addition, the image processing apparatus 1 includes a dedicated device that executes image formation output and scanning. For example, the dedicated device includes a transport mechanism that transports a sheet of image formation output target, a plotter device that executes image formation output on a paper surface, a reading device that reads an image output on the paper surface, and the like. In addition, the dedicated device may include a dedicated arithmetic device for performing image processing at high speed. Such an arithmetic unit is configured as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), for example.

  The CPU 10 is a calculation unit and controls the operation of the entire image processing apparatus 1. The RAM 20 is a volatile storage medium capable of reading and writing information at high speed, and is used as a work area when the CPU 10 processes information. The ROM 30 is a read-only nonvolatile storage medium and stores programs such as firmware. The HDD 40 is a nonvolatile storage medium that can read and write information, and stores an OS (Operating System), various control programs, application programs, and the like. In addition to the HDD, a semiconductor storage device such as an SSD (Solid State Drive) may be used.

  The I / F 50 connects and controls the bus 80 and various hardware and networks. The LCD 60 is a visual user interface for the user to check the state of the image processing apparatus 1. The operation unit 70 is a user interface for a user to input information to the image processing apparatus 1 such as a keyboard, a mouse, various hard buttons, and a touch panel.

  In such a hardware configuration, a program stored in a storage medium such as the ROM 30, the HDD 40, or an optical disk (not shown) is read into the RAM 20, and the software control unit is configured by the CPU 10 performing calculations according to those programs. . A functional block that realizes the functions of the image processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment is configured by a combination of the software control unit configured as described above and hardware.

  Next, a functional configuration of the image processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a functional configuration of the image processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 2, the image processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment includes a controller 100, an ADF (Auto Document Feeder) 110, a scanner unit 111, a paper discharge tray 112, a display panel 113, and a paper feed table. 114, a print engine 115, a paper discharge tray 116, and a network I / F 117.

  The controller 100 includes a main control unit 130, an engine control unit 101, an image processing unit 102, an input / output control unit 103, an operation display control unit 104, and a function realization unit 105. As shown in FIG. 2, the image processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment is configured as a multifunction machine having a scanner unit 111 and a print engine 115. In FIG. 2, the electrical connection is indicated by solid arrows, and the flow of paper is indicated by broken arrows.

  The display panel 113 is an output interface that visually displays the state of the image processing apparatus 1, and an input when the user directly operates the image processing apparatus 1 or inputs information to the image processing apparatus 1 as a touch panel. It is also an interface (operation unit). The network I / F 117 is an interface for the image processing apparatus 1 to communicate with other devices such as an administrator terminal via the network. For example, Ethernet (registered trademark), USB, Bluetooth (registered trademark), Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity), or the like is used as the network I / F 117.

  The controller 100 is configured by a combination of software and hardware. Specifically, a control program such as an application program or firmware stored in a nonvolatile storage medium such as the ROM 30 or the HDD 40 is loaded into the RAM 20. And the controller 100 is comprised by hardware, such as a software control part comprised by CPU10 calculating according to those programs, and an integrated circuit. The controller 100 functions as a control unit that controls the entire image processing apparatus 1.

  The main control unit 130 plays a role of controlling each unit included in the controller 100 and gives a command to each unit of the controller 100. The engine control unit 101 serves as a driving unit that controls or drives the print engine 115, the scanner unit 111, and the like. The input / output control unit 103 inputs a signal or a command input from the information processing apparatus or the like connected to the image processing apparatus 1 via the network I / F 117 to the main control unit 130. The main control unit 130 also controls the input / output control unit 103 to access other devices via the network I / F 117.

  The image processing unit 102 generates drawing information based on image information to be printed and output under the control of the main control unit 130. The drawing information is information for drawing an image to be formed in the image forming operation by the print engine 115 as the image forming output unit. The image processing unit 102 processes image data input from the scanner unit 111 and generates image data. The image data is information stored in the image processing apparatus 1 as a result of the scanner operation or transmitted to another device via the network I / F 117. The operation display control unit 104 displays information on the display panel 113 or notifies the main control unit 130 of information input via the display panel 113.

  The function implementation unit 105 implements various functions of the image processing apparatus 1 by exchanging information with the main control unit 130 in accordance with application programs stored in a nonvolatile storage medium such as the ROM 30 or the HDD 40. For example, the function realization unit 105 realizes a printer function using a printer application, a scanner function using a scanner application, and a copying function using a copy application.

  When the image processing apparatus 1 operates as a printer, the function implementation unit 105 operates according to the printer application. First, the input / output control unit 103 receives a print job via the network I / F 117. The input / output control unit 103 transfers the received print job to the main control unit 130. When receiving the print job, the main control unit 130 controls the image processing unit 102 to generate drawing information based on document information or image information included in the print job.

  When drawing information is generated by the image processing unit 102, the engine control unit 101 executes image formation on a sheet conveyed from the paper feed table 114 based on the generated drawing information. As a specific mode of the print engine 115, an image forming mechanism using an ink jet method, an image forming mechanism using an electrophotographic method, or the like can be used. A document on which an image is formed by the print engine 115 is discharged to a discharge tray 116.

  When the image processing apparatus 1 operates as a scanner, that is, an image reading apparatus, it operates according to a scanner application. Specifically, the operation display control unit 104 or the input / output control unit 103 controls the main control unit 130 according to a user's operation of the display panel 113 or a scan execution instruction input from an external device via the network I / F 117. The scan execution signal is transferred to. The main control unit 130 controls the engine control unit 101 based on the received scan execution signal.

  The engine control unit 101 drives the ADF 110 and conveys the document to be imaged set on the ADF 110 to the scanner unit 111. Further, the engine control unit 101 drives the scanner unit 111 and images a document conveyed from the ADF 110. If no original is set on the ADF 110 and the original is directly set on the scanner unit 111, the scanner unit 111 captures the set original under the control of the engine control unit 101. That is, the scanner unit 111 operates as an imaging unit.

  In the imaging operation, an imaging element such as a CCD included in the scanner unit 111 optically scans the document, and imaging information based on the optical information is generated. The engine control unit 101 transfers the imaging information generated by the scanner unit 111 to the image processing unit 102. The image processing unit 102 generates image information based on the imaging information received from the engine control unit 101 under the control of the main control unit 130.

  Image information generated by the image processing unit 102 is stored in a storage medium attached to the image processing apparatus 1 such as the HDD 40. The image information generated by the image processing unit 102 is stored in the HDD 40 or the like as it is according to a user instruction, or is transmitted to an external device by the input / output control unit 103 via the network I / F 117.

  Further, when the image processing apparatus 1 operates as a copying machine, it operates according to a copy application. Specifically, the image processing unit 102 generates drawing information based on imaging information received by the engine control unit 101 from the scanner unit 111 or image information generated by the image processing unit 102. Based on the drawing information, the engine control unit 101 drives the print engine 115 as in the case of the printer operation.

  As described above, the image processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment executes various processes by various components included in the controller 100 and various engines such as the scanner unit 111 and the print engine 115. Hereinafter, each component or engine that executes various processes may be referred to as a “processor”. The processing unit illustrated in FIG. 2 is merely an example, and other components or engines that execute various processes in the image processing apparatus 1 may function as the processing unit.

  Next, an outline of the operation of the main control unit 130 according to the gist of the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an outline of the operation of the main control unit 130 according to the gist of the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 3, the main control unit 130 detects that a failure has occurred in the processing of any of the processing units (S301).

  The main control unit 130 that has detected that a failure has occurred determines whether or not the processing unit has ended abnormally due to the failure (S302). When the processing unit is abnormally terminated due to a failure (S302 / YES), the main control unit 130 requests a processing unit other than the abnormally terminated processing unit to suppress the operation (S303). The process for suppressing the operation is executed for restarting the image processing apparatus 1 due to the occurrence of a failure. When there is a process in progress, the process in progress is performed until it can be safely restarted. After the execution, the subsequent operation is suppressed.

  For example, if the image processing apparatus 1 is restarted while the paper being printed remains in the image processing apparatus 1, a paper jam may occur and the apparatus may be damaged. For this reason, as a preparation for restarting, by suppressing the operation, for example, the transport unit, which is a processing unit that transports the paper, discharges all the paper and then suppresses the operation so that no new paper is transported into the device. To do. Hereinafter, the process request for suppressing the operation is referred to as an “operation suppression request”, and the process for suppressing the operation is referred to as an “operation suppression process”.

  On the other hand, when the processing unit has not ended abnormally due to a failure (S302 / NO), the main control unit 130 transmits an operation suppression request to all the processing units (S304). The main control unit 130 that has transmitted the operation suppression request to the target processing unit determines whether a response indicating that the operation suppression process has been completed is received from all the processing units to which the operation suppression request has been transmitted ( S305). When the responses are received from all the processing units to which the operation suppression request is transmitted (S305 / YES), the main control unit 130 restarts the image processing apparatus 1 (S306).

  On the other hand, if no response has been received from all the processing units to which the operation suppression request has been transmitted (S305 / NO), has the main control unit 130 elapsed (timed out) a predetermined time (response waiting time)? It is determined whether or not (S307). When the timeout has occurred (S307 / YES), the main control unit 130 executes the restart of the image processing apparatus 1 (S306). On the other hand, when the timeout has not occurred (S307 / NO), the main control unit 130 returns to the process of S305 and waits for a response from the target processing unit.

  Next, an overview of the overall operation of the image processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram illustrating an overview of the overall operation of the image processing apparatus 1 according to this embodiment. In the description shown in FIG. 4, an example is given in which a failure that causes the function realization unit 105 to abnormally terminate, that is, cannot respond, occurs due to a software error of the function realization unit 105 as a copy function. In the description shown in FIG. 4, components other than the function realizing unit 105 and the main controller 130 among the components included in the controller 100 shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 4, when a failure due to a software error occurs during execution (S401), the function realizing unit 105 transmits a failure signal to the main control unit 130 (S402). The failure signal includes information for determining whether or not the termination is abnormal. Details will be described later. The function implementation unit 105 that has transmitted the failure signal ends the process due to abnormal termination (S403).

  Further, the main control unit 130 detects a failure of the image processing apparatus 1 by receiving a failure signal from the function realizing unit 105 (S404), and based on the received failure signal, the function realizing unit 105 in which the failure has occurred. Is determined to be abnormally terminated (S405). Details of the abnormal termination determination process will be described later. The main control unit 130 that determines that the function realization unit 105 has ended abnormally transmits an operation suppression request to a processing unit other than the function realization unit 105, that is, the configuration unit 106, the scanner unit 111, and the print engine 115 ( S406).

  The configuration unit 106, the scanner unit 111, and the print engine 115 that have received the operation suppression request from the main control unit 130 perform an operation suppression process (S407, S408, S409). The configuration unit 106, the scanner unit 111, and the print engine 115 that have performed the operation suppression process transmit a response to the operation suppression request when the operation suppression process is completed (S410, S411, S412).

  In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4, the case where the response is transmitted in the order of the configuration unit 106, the scanner unit 111, and the print engine 115 is described as an example. However, this is only an example, and there is no dependency on the order in which each processing unit transmits a response, and each processing unit transmits a response independently at the timing when the operation suppression processing is completed. The main control unit 130 that has received responses from the configuration unit 106, the scanner unit 111, and the print engine 115 executes the restart of the image processing apparatus 1 (S413).

  Next, an outline of an overall operation different from the overall operation of the image processing apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 4 will be described. FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram illustrating an outline of another overall operation of the image processing apparatus 1 according to this embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 5, the function implementation unit 105 performs the same processing as the processing from S401 to S403 illustrated in FIG. 4 (S501 to S503).

  Further, the main control unit 130 performs the same processing as S404 to S406 shown in FIG. 4 (S504 to S506). Further, the configuration unit 106, the scanner unit 111, and the print engine 115 perform processing similar to the processing from S407 to S409 shown in FIG. 4 (S507 to S509). The configuration unit 106 and the scanner unit 111 that have executed the operation suppression process transmit a response to the operation suppression request to the main control unit 130 (S510, S511).

  In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 5, the case where responses are transmitted in the order of the configuration unit 106 and the scanner unit 111 is described as an example. However, this is only an example, and there is no dependency on the order in which each processing unit transmits a response, and each processing unit transmits a response independently at the timing when the operation suppression processing is completed.

  Then, before receiving a response from the print engine 115, the main control unit 130 times out when a predetermined time elapses from the timing at which the operation suppression request is transmitted (S512). When time-out occurs, the main control unit 130 forcibly restarts the image processing apparatus 1 without receiving a response from the print engine (S513).

  Next, details of the functional configuration of the main control unit 130 according to the present embodiment for realizing the operations shown in FIGS. 3 to 5 will be described. FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration related to a restart process due to the occurrence of a failure among the functions of the main control unit 130 according to the present embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 6, the main control unit 130 includes a failure detection unit 131, an operation control unit 132, a failure information storage unit 133, a time measurement unit 134, and a restart execution unit 135.

  The failure detection unit 131 detects a failure that has occurred in the image processing apparatus 1 by receiving a failure signal from the processing unit, and outputs the received failure signal to the operation control unit 132. The operation control unit 132 refers to the failure information stored in the failure information storage unit 133 and identifies the type of failure based on the failure signal input from the failure detection unit 131.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating failure information stored in the failure information storage unit 133 that is a storage medium. The failure information shown in FIG. 7 includes a list of identification information of failures in which the processing unit (process) abnormally ends among information for identifying the type of failure (hereinafter referred to as “identification information”). For example, the identification information “SIGHUP” shown in FIG. 7 means that the process is stopped due to a hang-up, “SIGQUIT” means that the process is forcibly stopped detected from a keyboard or the like, and “SIGILL” is Means the occurrence of an illegal instruction.

  The failure signal received by the operation control unit 132 includes identification information, and the operation control unit 132 includes the identification signal included in the received failure signal in the list of identification information stored in the failure information storage unit 133. If it is, it is determined that the processing unit that has transmitted the failure signal has ended abnormally. The operation control unit 132 transmits an operation suppression request to all the processing units other than the processing unit that has been determined to have ended abnormally. In other words, the operation control unit 132 functions as a processing request unit that requests processing for restarting all processing units other than the processing unit that has ended abnormally.

  In addition, the operation control unit 132 transmits an operation suppression request, and requests the time measurement unit 134 to start measuring an elapsed time after starting the operation suppression request. The time measurement unit 134 starts measuring the elapsed time in response to a request from the operation control unit 132, and ends the measurement of the elapsed time when a predetermined time (for example, 3 minutes) has elapsed, A time-out is notified to the control unit 132.

  In addition, when the operation control unit 132 receives a response from all of the processing units that transmitted the operation suppression request or receives a time-out notification from the time measurement unit 134, the operation control unit 132 requests the restart execution unit 135 to execute the restart. To do. The restart execution unit 135 executes restart of the image processing apparatus 1 in response to a request from the operation control unit 132.

  In the present embodiment, the case where the operation control unit 132 receives a timeout notification from the time measurement unit 134 and requests the restart execution unit 135 to execute restart is described as an example. In addition, the time measurement unit 134 may notify the restart execution unit 135 of a timeout, and the restart execution unit 135 may execute the restart when receiving the timeout notification.

  In the present embodiment, the case where the failure information stored in the failure information storage unit 133 is a list of identification information of failures that are abnormally terminated has been described as an example. However, this is only an example, and the failure information stored in the failure information storage unit 133 may be an aspect in which identification information of a failure that ends abnormally can be grasped. For example, the failure information is a list of identification information of all types of failures, and may be stored in the failure information storage unit 133 by distinguishing failures that end abnormally from other failures. For example, information in which each piece of identification information is associated with the content of the failure may be stored in the failure information storage unit 133 as failure information.

  Next, the flow of operation by each unit included in the main control unit 130 shown in FIG. 6 will be described. FIG. 8 is a sequence diagram illustrating the operation of each unit included in the main control unit 130. As shown in FIG. 8, when detecting a failure (S801), the failure detection unit 131 transmits a failure signal received from the processing unit to the operation control unit 132 (S802).

  The operation control unit 132 to which the failure signal is transmitted from the failure detection unit 131 refers to the failure information stored in the failure information storage unit 133 (S803). The operation control unit 132 that refers to the failure information determines whether or not the processing unit that has transmitted the failure signal is abnormally terminated based on the referenced failure information and the received failure signal (S804).

  The operation control unit 132 that has determined whether or not it has terminated abnormally transmits an elapsed time measurement start request, that is, a timeout monitoring request, to the time measurement unit 134 (S805). The time measuring unit 134 to which the timeout monitoring request is transmitted from the operation control unit 132 starts measuring elapsed time, that is, monitoring timeout (S806).

  Further, the operation control unit 132 transmits an operation suppression request to all the processing units other than the processing unit determined to have ended abnormally according to the result of the abnormal end determination (S807). In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 8, the operation control unit 132 is described as an example in which the operation control request is transmitted (S807) after transmitting the timeout monitoring request (S805). However, it is not essential to perform the process of S807 after the process of S805, and it is only necessary to be able to count the waiting time for a response to the operation suppression request. For example, the processes of S805 and S807 may be performed at the same timing, or the process of S805 may be performed after the process of S807.

  The operation control unit 132 that has transmitted the operation suppression request receives a response to the operation suppression from all the processing units that have transmitted the operation suppression request (S808). The operation control unit 132 that has received responses from all the processing units transmits a restart request to the restart execution unit 135 (S809). The restart execution unit 135 to which the restart request is transmitted from the operation control unit 132 executes restart of the image processing apparatus 1 (S810). When the image processing apparatus 1 is restarted, the time-out monitoring by the time measuring unit 134 is also terminated.

  Next, the flow of operation by each unit included in the main control unit 130 when a timeout occurs before receiving a response to the operation suppression from all the processing units that have received the operation control request will be described. FIG. 9 is a sequence diagram illustrating another operation by each unit included in the main control unit 130. As shown in FIG. 9, in S901 to S907, processing similar to the processing in S801 to S807 shown in FIG. 8 is performed.

  In the case illustrated in FIG. 9, after the operation control unit 132 transmits the operation suppression request to the target processing unit, the response from the processing unit that transmitted the operation suppression request is not received in advance, but is determined in advance. Time has passed. When a predetermined time elapses, the time measuring unit 134 notifies the operation control unit 132 of a timeout (S908).

  The operation control unit 132 that has received the timeout notification from the time measurement unit 134 transmits a restart request to the restart execution unit 135 (S909). The restart execution unit 135 to which the restart request is transmitted from the operation control unit 132 executes restart of the image processing apparatus 1 (S910).

  As described above, when the image processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment detects the occurrence of a failure, the image processing device 1 performs an operation suppression process on processing units other than the processing unit that has ended abnormally due to the detected failure and has become unresponsive. Request. When the image processing apparatus 1 receives responses from all the processing units that have requested the operation suppression process, the image processing apparatus 1 executes the restart. As a result, since the operation suppression process is not requested for the processing unit abnormally terminated due to the detected failure, the apparatus is restarted until a time-out occurs because no response is obtained from the abnormally terminated processing unit. It is possible to avoid a situation where it is impossible. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to reduce unnecessary waiting time until the restart is executed when a failure requiring restart of the device occurs in the units or processing programs constituting the device. .

  Note that the image processing apparatus 1 according to the above-described embodiment has been described as an example in which an operation suppression process is requested to a processing unit other than the processing unit that has become unresponsive due to a detected failure. However, the image processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment performs restart when receiving a response from a processing unit other than the processing unit that has become unresponsive among all the processing units that have requested the operation suppression processing. Any other configuration may be used.

  For example, when the failure detection unit 131 detects the occurrence of a failure, the operation control unit 132 according to the present embodiment requests an operation suppression process from each processing unit including the processing unit that has become unresponsive. Then, the restart execution unit 135 according to the present embodiment, from all the processing units that have requested the operation suppression processing, from processing units other than the processing unit that has become unresponsive due to the failure detected by the failure detection unit 131. When the response is received, the restart may be executed.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, when the operation control part 132 received the failure signal from one process part, it demonstrated as an example the case where the abnormal end determination of the process part is started. In addition, when the operation control unit 132 receives a failure signal from one processing unit, the operation control unit 132 may wait for a predetermined period without immediately starting the abnormal end determination.

  FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram illustrating the flow of operation by each unit included in the main control unit 130 when waiting for a predetermined period when a failure signal is received. As illustrated in FIG. 10, when the failure detection unit 131 detects a failure (hereinafter referred to as “failure A”) from one processing unit (hereinafter referred to as “processing unit A”) (S1001), the processing unit A The failure signal received from (hereinafter referred to as “failure A signal”) is transmitted to the operation control unit 132 (S1002).

  The operation control unit 132 to which the failure A signal is transmitted from the failure detection unit 131 transmits a waiting time measurement request to the time measurement unit 134 (S1003). The time measuring unit 134 to which the waiting time measurement request is transmitted from the operation control unit 132 starts measuring a predetermined waiting time (for example, 10 seconds) (S1004).

  While the time measurement unit 134 is measuring the waiting time, a failure other than the failure A (hereinafter, “failure B”) from a processing unit (hereinafter referred to as “processing unit B”) different from the processing unit A. (S1005), the failure signal received from the processing unit B (hereinafter referred to as "failure B signal") is output to the operation control unit 132 (S1006).

  On the other hand, when a predetermined waiting time elapses, the time measuring unit 134 notifies the operation control unit 132 that the waiting time has elapsed (S1007). The operation control unit 132 that is notified that the waiting time has elapsed from the time measurement unit 134 refers to the failure information stored in the failure information storage unit 133 (S1008). The operation control unit 132 that refers to the failure information determines whether or not the processing unit A that has transmitted the failure A signal is abnormally terminated based on the referenced failure information and the received failure A signal (S1009).

  Furthermore, the operation control unit 132 determines whether or not the processing unit B that has transmitted the failure B signal has ended abnormally based on the referenced failure information and the received failure B signal (S1010). Thereafter, each unit included in the main control unit 130 performs the processing after S805 shown in FIG. 8 or the processing after S905 shown in FIG. In addition, since there is no restriction | limiting in the context of the process of S1009 and the process of S1010, you may perform in reverse order and may be performed in parallel.

  When a failure occurs in one processing unit, a failure may occur in another processing unit due to the influence of the failure. According to such a configuration, the operation control unit 132 can request the operation control process based on the result of the abnormal end determination for the plurality of processing units in which the failure has occurred, and thus further reduce unnecessary waiting time. It becomes possible. In this embodiment, the case where one failure occurs in one processing unit has been described as an example. However, in the present embodiment, even when a plurality of failures occur in one processing unit. The same applies.

  In the embodiment in which a plurality of failures are detected, the operation control unit 132 also suppresses the operation of each processing unit including the processing unit that has become unresponsive when the failure detection unit 131 detects the occurrence of a failure. The structure which requests | requires a process may be sufficient. Then, in this case, the restart execution unit 135 is configured by processing units other than the processing units that have become unresponsive due to a plurality of failures detected by the failure detection unit 131 among all the processing units that have requested the operation suppression processing. When a response is received, restart is executed.

1 Image processing apparatus 10 CPU
20 RAM
30 ROM
40 HDD
50 I / F
60 LCD
70 Operation Unit 80 Bus 100 Controller 101 Engine Control Unit 102 Image Processing Unit 103 Input / Output Control Unit 104 Operation Display Control Unit 105 Function Realization Unit 106 Configuration Unit 110 ADF
111 Scanner Unit 112 Paper Discharge Tray 113 Display Panel 114 Paper Feed Table 115 Print Engine 116 Paper Discharge Tray 117 Network I / F
130 main control unit 131 failure detection unit 132 operation control unit 133 failure information storage unit 134 time measurement unit 135 restart execution unit

JP 2005-219247 A

Claims (7)

An image processing apparatus that executes various processes by a plurality of processing units,
A fault detection unit that detects that a fault has occurred in the image processing apparatus;
A processing request unit that requests processing for restarting the image processing apparatus to the plurality of processing units when the failure is detected;
When a response to the request is received from the processing unit other than the processing unit that has become unable to respond due to the detected failure among all the processing units for which the processing has been requested, the image processing apparatus is restarted An image processing apparatus comprising: a restart executing unit. The image processing according to claim 1, wherein the processing request unit requests the processing unit other than the processing unit that has become unresponsive due to the detected failure to perform the process for the restart. apparatus. The restart execution unit executes restart of the image processing apparatus when a predetermined time has elapsed since the restart processing was requested. An image processing apparatus according to 1. The failure detection unit detects that the failure has occurred based on a failure signal indicating the occurrence of a failure transmitted from the processing unit,
The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the failure signal includes information for identifying a type of the failure for which the processing unit cannot respond. The failure detection unit further detects the other failure when a failure other than the failure detected in a predetermined period after the failure is detected,
The said process request part requests | requires the process for the said restart with respect to the said process parts other than the process part which became unable to respond respectively by the detected several said faults. The image processing apparatus according to any one of the above. A control method of an image processing apparatus that executes various processes by a plurality of processing units,
Detecting that a failure has occurred in the image processing apparatus;
Requesting the plurality of processing units to restart the image processing apparatus when the failure is detected;
When a response to the request is received from the processing unit other than the processing unit that has become unable to respond due to the detected failure among all the processing units for which the processing has been requested, the image processing apparatus is restarted And a step of controlling the image processing apparatus. A control program for an image processing apparatus that executes various processes by a plurality of processing units,
Detecting that a failure has occurred in the image processing apparatus;
Requesting the plurality of processing units to restart the image processing apparatus when the failure is detected;
When a response to the request is received from the processing unit other than the processing unit that has become unable to respond due to the detected failure among all the processing units for which the processing has been requested, the image processing apparatus is restarted And a step of causing the image processing apparatus to execute the step of: