JP2017134607A - Image forming apparatus and data processing program - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming apparatus that can process data at an appropriate speed and extend the product life, and a data processing program.SOLUTION: An MFP comprises: an SSD; an HDD; data writing means that writes data in at least one of the SSD and HDD; and writing destination switching means that switches a destination of data writing performed by the data writing means to at least one of the SSD and HDD according the type of data. The writing destination switching means receives designation of a mode, of a plurality of modes to which a destination according to the type of data is set, with which the writing destination switching means itself operates, and switches between designatable modes according to the remaining life of the SSD (S301 to S305).SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 14

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus including a semiconductor storage device and a hard disk drive, and a data processing program.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an image forming apparatus that includes an SSD (Solid State Drive) as a semiconductor storage device and a hard disk drive (HDD) and writes data to either the SSD or the HDD is known (for example, see Patent Document 1). ). The image forming apparatus described in Patent Document 1 switches the data writing destination according to the number of times of writing to the SSD. Specifically, in the image forming apparatus described in Patent Document 1, when the number of times of writing to the SSD is equal to or less than a specific number of times, the data write destination is set to SSD, and the number of times of writing to the SSD If it exceeds, the data write destination is the HDD.

JP 2012-234458 A

  SSDs have the advantage of faster access speed than HDDs. Here, the access speed with respect to the storage device affects the processing speed of the image forming apparatus including the storage device.

  On the other hand, SSDs have a drawback that the amount of decrease in remaining life corresponding to the number of data writes is larger than that of HDDs. Here, when the storage device becomes unusable, the image forming apparatus including the storage device cannot appropriately perform the operation. Therefore, the remaining life of the storage device is the image including the storage device. Affects the remaining life of the forming equipment.

  In the conventional image forming apparatus, if the number of times of writing to the SSD is equal to or less than a specific number, the kind of data whose access speed may be relatively slow, that is, the kind of data whose processing speed may be relatively slow. However, since writing is performed on an SSD having a high access speed, there is a problem in that the remaining life of the SSD, that is, the remaining life of the image forming apparatus itself is quickly lost by increasing the number of times of writing to the SSD more than necessary.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is that it provides an image forming apparatus and a data processing program capable of processing data at an appropriate speed and extending the product life.

  The image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes a semiconductor storage device, a hard disk drive, data writing means for writing data to at least one of the semiconductor storage device and the hard disk drive, and a data write destination by the data writing means as the semiconductor A write destination switching unit that switches to at least one of the storage device and the hard disk drive according to the type of data, and the write destination switching unit includes a plurality of write destinations that are set according to the type of data, respectively. Among the modes, the specification of the mode in which the write destination switching unit itself operates is received, and the write destination switching unit switches the specifiable mode according to the remaining life of the semiconductor memory device.

  With this configuration, the image forming apparatus of the present invention switches the data write destination to at least one of the semiconductor storage device and the hard disk drive according to the type of data, and can process the data at an appropriate speed. Can prolong the product life. Furthermore, the image forming apparatus according to the present invention switches the specifiable mode among the plurality of modes in which the write destinations according to the data types are respectively set according to the remaining life of the semiconductor memory device. Can be processed at a high speed, and the product life can be further extended.

  In the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the write destination switching unit may switch the mode in which the write destination switching unit itself operates according to the remaining life of the semiconductor memory device.

  With this configuration, the image forming apparatus of the present invention switches modes according to the remaining life of the semiconductor memory device, so that data can be processed at an appropriate speed and product life can be extended. On the other hand, the image forming apparatus of the present invention writes data in the mode specified by the user unless the mode is switched according to the remaining life of the semiconductor memory device, so that the user attaches importance to the data processing speed. When the remaining life of the semiconductor memory device is sufficient, even if the total size of data written to the write destination during a specific period is large, switching of the data write destination from the SSD to the HDD can be suppressed.

  According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a data processing program comprising: an image forming apparatus including a semiconductor storage device and a hard disk drive; a data writing unit that writes data to at least one of the semiconductor storage device and the hard disk drive; Functioning as a write destination switching unit that switches a data write destination to at least one of the semiconductor storage device and the hard disk drive according to the type of data, and the write destination switching unit includes the write destination according to the type of data Of the plurality of modes, each of which is set, accepts designation of the mode in which the write destination switching unit itself operates, and the write destination switching unit determines the mode that can be designated according to the remaining life of the semiconductor memory device. switching It is characterized in.

  With this configuration, the image forming apparatus that executes the data processing program of the present invention switches the data write destination to at least one of the semiconductor storage device and the hard disk drive according to the type of data. It can be processed and the product life can be extended. Furthermore, the image forming apparatus that executes the data processing program of the present invention switches the specifiable mode among a plurality of modes in which write destinations are set according to the data type according to the remaining life of the semiconductor memory device. Therefore, the data can be processed at a more appropriate speed, and the product life can be further extended.

  The image forming apparatus and the data processing program of the present invention can process data at an appropriate speed and extend the product life.

1 is a block diagram of an MFP according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the access management table shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the mode initial value shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the write-destination switching rule shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the mode switching rule shown in FIG. 2 is a flowchart of the operation of the MFP shown in FIG. 1 when setting an access management table. It is a figure which shows an example of the table setting screen displayed in the operation | movement shown in FIG. It is a flowchart of the panel setting process shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the panel setting screen displayed in the panel setting process shown in FIG. It is a flowchart of the import process shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the import screen displayed in the import process shown in FIG. It is a flowchart of the export process shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the export screen displayed in the export process shown in FIG. 2 is a flowchart of the operation of the MFP shown in FIG. 1 when receiving designation of a writing destination determination mode. It is a figure which shows an example of the mode reception screen displayed in the operation | movement shown in FIG. FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating an example of a mode reception screen displayed in the operation illustrated in FIG. 14 and different from the example illustrated in FIG. 15. It is an example of the mode reception screen displayed in the operation | movement shown in FIG. 14, Comprising: It is a figure which shows the example different from the example shown in FIG. 15 and FIG. 3 is a flowchart of the operation of the MFP shown in FIG. 1 when updating the value in the “automatic” column of the access management table. It is an example of the access management table shown in FIG. 1, and is a figure which shows an example different from the example shown in FIG. FIG. 20 is a diagram illustrating an example of the access management table illustrated in FIG. 1, which is different from the examples illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 19. 3 is a flowchart of the operation of the MFP shown in FIG. 1 when changing a mode. 3 is a flowchart of the operation of the MFP shown in FIG. 1 when writing data. 2 is a flowchart of the operation of the MFP shown in FIG. 1 when backing up target data to the HDD shown in FIG. 1.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  First, the configuration of an MFP (Multifunction Peripheral) as an image forming apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram of MFP 10 according to the present embodiment.

  As illustrated in FIG. 1, the MFP 10 includes an operation unit 11 that is an input device such as buttons for inputting various operations, and a display unit 12 that is a display device such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) that displays various information. And a printer 13 that is a printing device that executes printing on a recording medium such as paper, a scanner 14 that is a reading device that reads an image from a document, an external facsimile apparatus (not shown), and a communication line such as a public telephone line Controls the fax communication unit 15 that is a fax device that performs fax communication, a network communication unit 16 that is a network communication device that communicates with an external device via a network such as a LAN (Local Area Network), the Internet, and the entire MFP 10. Control 17, a SSD (Solid State Drive) 20 as a semiconductor memory device for storing various information, and a hard disk drive (HDD) 30 as a storage device for storing various types of information.

  The semiconductor storage device such as the SSD 20 has an advantage that the access speed such as the data writing speed and the data reading speed is faster than the HDD 30. Here, the access speed with respect to the storage device affects the processing speed of the MFP 10 including the storage device.

  On the other hand, a semiconductor storage device such as the SSD 20 has a drawback that the amount of decrease in remaining life corresponding to the number of data writes is larger than that of the HDD 30. Here, if the storage device becomes unusable, the MFP 10 including the storage device cannot appropriately perform the operation, and therefore the remaining life of the storage device is the remaining life of the MFP 10 including the storage device. Affects lifespan.

  The control unit 17 can acquire the remaining life [%] of the SSD 20 by any method. For example, the control unit 17 includes TBW (Tera Byte Written) indicating the total size of data that the SSD 20 can write during the guarantee period, and X indicating the total size of data actually written to the SSD 20 so far. (1−X / TBW) × 100 may be acquired as the remaining life [%] of the SSD 20. Further, the control unit 17 obtains (1− (actual average number of erases of the SSD 20) / (average number of erases of the SSD 20 guaranteed by the vendor of the SSD 20)) × 100 as the remaining life [%] of the SSD 20. Also good. Regarding the values necessary for the above calculation, S.D. M.M. A. R. T. T. (Self-Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting Technology) information. In addition, the control unit 17 performs S.I. M.M. A. R. T. T. If the remaining life information is included in the information, S.E. M.M. A. R. T. T. The remaining life included in the information may be acquired as the remaining life [%] of the SSD 20.

  The semiconductor memory device will be described by taking the SSD 20 as an example in the present embodiment, but a semiconductor memory device other than SSD such as a NAND flash memory other than SSD may be used.

  The HDD 30 stores a data processing program 30 a that controls data processing in the MFP 10. The data processing program 30a may be installed in the MFP 10 at the manufacturing stage of the MFP 10, or may be additionally installed in the MFP 10 from an external storage medium such as an SD card or a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory, or a network It may be additionally installed in the MFP 10 from above.

  The HDD 30 stores an access management table 30b for managing access to the SSD 20 and the HDD 30.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the access management table 30b.

  The access management table 30b shown in FIG. 2 includes a “speed” indicating the access speed requested for the data specified by the “data type” column and the “data type” column for specifying the data type. The “requirement” column, the “backup type” column indicating whether or not the data is backed up to the HDD when the data specified by the “data type” column is written to the SSD 20, and the “data type” column “Access size” indicates the total size of the data specified in the “Access frequency (number of times / month)” field indicating the frequency of access to the write destination in the current month and the “Data type” field. (MB / month) "column and a" mode "column indicating the mode for determining the write destination for the data specified by the" data type "column It contains.

  The “data type” column is composed of a “major category” column indicating a large category of data types and a “minor category” column indicating a category obtained by further dividing the category indicated by the “major category” column. ing.

  The value of the “major classification” column is, for example, “PRINT image” indicating image data received by the network communication unit 16 and printed by the printer 13, read from the document by the scanner 14, and printed by the printer 13. “Copy image” indicating image data, “user setting” indicating setting data regarding the user, and “device management” indicating data managed by the MFP 10 are included.

  The value of the “minor classification” column of “PRINT image” is, for example, “JobRetention” indicating data of an image that is stored in advance in the MFP 10 and printed by the printer 13 in response to an instruction via the operation unit 11. , “Copy printing” indicating image data for copy printing. The values in the “Small classification” column of “Copy image” are, for example, “Copy image storage” indicating the image data itself read from the document by the scanner 14 and printed by the printer 13, and read from the document by the scanner 14. In addition, “Copy image attribute” indicating attribute data of an image printed by the printer 13 is included. The value in the “subcategory” column of “user setting” includes, for example, a “user list” indicating user list data and an “address book” indicating user address book data. The value in the “Small category” column of “Device management” includes, for example, “counter” indicating counter data other than billing such as the number of maintenance, and billing counter data such as billing for color printing and billing for number of copies printing. "Billing mode" indicating

  The values in the "Speed requirement" column are "medium" indicating that normal speed access is required, "high" indicating that higher speed access is required, and normal speed. Contains “low” to indicate that slower access is required. The value in the “speed requirement” field may be fixed or may be set by the user.

  The reason why the access speed requested for the “Job Retention” data is “low” is that the image is transferred from the installation position of the client PC (Personal Computer) (not shown) to the MFP 10 via the client PC. Since a certain amount of time elapses after the data is transmitted and before the user moves to the position of the MFP 10 and operates the operation unit 11 of the MFP 10, high-speed access is requested to the “Job Retention” data. Because there is no meaning. In addition, the reason why the access speed required for the “user list” data is “low” is that the “user list” data is compared with the “address book” data by the user. Because there are few. In addition, the reason why the access speed required for the “counter” and “billing mode” data is “high” is that these data are extremely important data that requires real-time performance.

  According to the “backup” column in the example shown in FIG. 2, the data of “user list”, “address book”, “counter”, and “billing mode” is backed up to the HDD when written to the SSD 20. The value in the “backup” column may be fixed or may be set by the user.

  The value in the “access frequency (number of times / month)” column and the value in the “access size (MB / month)” column are updated each time an access to the data specified by the “data type” column occurs. . That is, the write destination switching unit 17b described later of the control unit 17 sets the value in the “access frequency (number of times / month)” field and the value in the “access size (MB / month)” field to the “data type” field. It is updated every time access to the data specified by is generated. Note that the value in the “access frequency (number of times / month)” column is the number of times the user has instructed access to the data specified by the “data type” column, the actual number of writes to the SSD 20 or HDD 30, The actual number of readings does not necessarily match. For example, when the user has issued an instruction to print the number of copies once, even if actual writing to the SSD 20 or the HDD 30 or actual reading has occurred a plurality of times during the number of copies printing, the “access frequency (number of times / month)” column The value of increases by one.

  The “mode” field includes at least one of a value in the “speed requirement” field, a value in the “access frequency (number of times / month)” field, a value in the “access size (MB / month)” field, and the remaining life of the SSD 20. `` Automatic '' column indicating the automatic mode as the mode for automatically switching the data write destination according to the `` Speed important '' column indicating the speed priority mode as the mode in which the data processing speed is important, the product life, In other words, a “life-oriented” column indicating a life-oriented mode as a mode in which the life of the MFP 10 is important, and a standard mode in which product life is more important than the speed-oriented mode and data processing speed is more important than the life-oriented mode. And a “standard” column indicating

  Note that the value in the “speed requirement” field and at least a part of the value in the “mode” field may be associated with each other. For example, the value in the “mode” field may not be changed from “SSD” for the type of data whose value in the “speed requirement” field is “high”.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the HDD 30 has mode initial values 30c (indicating initial values of the “speed-oriented” column, “standard” column, and “life-oriented” column for each piece of data specified by the “data type” column. (See FIG. 3).

  The value in the “speed requirement” field may be associated with at least one of the initial value in the “emphasis on speed” field, the initial value in the “standard” field, and the initial value in the “life-oriented” field. For example, the initial value in the “standard” column is “SSD” for the type of data in which the value in the “speed requirement” column is “high” or “medium”, and the value in the “speed requirement” column is “ It may be “HDD” for a type of data that is “low”. In addition, the initial value of the “life-oriented” column is “SSD” for the type of data whose “speed requirement” column is “high”, and the value of the “speed requirement” column is “medium” or “HDD” may be used for the type of data “low”. In addition, the initial value of the “speed priority” column may be “SSD” for all types of data regardless of the value of the “speed requirement” column.

  The HDD 30 stores a rule for switching values in the “automatic” column, that is, a write destination switching rule 30 d indicating a rule for switching the write destination in the automatic mode.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of the write destination switching rule 30d.

  The write destination switching rule 30 d shown in FIG. 4 stores a large number of rules including the rule 41 and the rule 42. Rule 41 indicates that when the remaining life of the SSD 20 exceeds 50%, the frequency of access to the write destination in the current month exceeds 1000 times, and the write destination for the type of data for which low-speed access is requested is It includes a condition of being an HDD and a process of switching the write destination to SSD. Rule 42 states that when the remaining life of the SSD 20 is less than 50%, the total size written in the current month exceeds 100 MB, and the write destination for the type of data for which normal speed access is required is SSD. And a process of switching the write destination to the HDD.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the HDD 30 stores a mode switching rule 30e indicating a switching rule among the speed-oriented mode, the standard mode, and the life-oriented mode.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of the mode switching rule 30e.

  The mode switching rule 30 e shown in FIG. 5 includes a rule 51 and a rule 52. The rule 51 includes a condition that when the remaining life of the SSD 20 is 50% or less, the write destination determination mode is a speed-oriented mode, and a process of switching the write destination determination mode to the standard mode. Yes. Rule 52 includes a condition that when the remaining life of the SSD 20 is 10% or less, the write destination determination mode is the standard mode, and a process of switching the write destination determination mode to the life-oriented mode. Yes.

  The control unit 17 includes, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory) storing a program and various data, and a RAM (Random Access Memory) used as a work area of the CPU. Yes. The CPU executes a program stored in the SSD 20, HDD 30, or ROM.

  The control unit 17 executes the data processing program 30a stored in the HDD 30, thereby the data writing unit 17a for writing data to at least one of the SSD 20 and the HDD 30, and the data writing destination by the data writing unit 17a. And the write destination switching means 17b for switching to at least one of the HDDs 30 according to the type of data.

  Note that the MFP 10 stores the data processing program 30a, the access management table 30b, the mode initial value 30c, the write destination switching rule 30d, and the mode switching rule 30e in the HDD 30 as described above. However, the MFP 10 may store at least a part of these pieces of information in the SSD 20 or may be stored in a non-illustrated nonvolatile storage device that is neither the SSD 20 nor the HDD 30.

  Next, the operation of the MFP 10 will be described.

  First, the operation of the MFP 10 when setting the access management table 30b will be described.

  When the start of the operation for setting the access management table 30b is instructed via the operation unit 11, the write destination switching unit 17b of the MFP 10 executes the operation illustrated in FIG.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the operation of the MFP 10 when setting the access management table 30b.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the write destination switching unit 17b displays a table setting screen 60 (see FIG. 7) for setting the access management table 30b on the display unit 12 (S201).

  A table setting screen 60 shown in FIG. 7 includes a panel button 61 for setting the access management table 30b, an import button 62 for inputting the access management table 30b, and an export button 63 for outputting the access management table 30b. And a reset button 64 for returning at least a part of values of the access management table 30b to an initial state, and a return button 65 for closing the table setting screen 60.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the write destination switching unit 17 b continues to determine that any of the panel button 61, the import button 62, the export button 63, the reset button 64, and the return button 65 has been pressed after the process of S <b> 201. It is determined whether any of the panel button 61, the import button 62, the export button 63, the reset button 64, and the return button 65 has been pressed (S202).

  When the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S202 that any one of the panel button 61, the import button 62, the export button 63, the reset button 64, and the return button 65 has been pressed, it determines the pressed button (S203).

  When the writing destination switching unit 17b determines in S203 that the panel button 61 has been pressed, the display of the table setting screen 60 is terminated (S204), and then panel setting processing described later is executed (S205), and the processing of S201 is performed. Run.

  When it is determined in S203 that the import button 62 has been pressed, the writing destination switching unit 17b ends the display of the table setting screen 60 (S206), and then executes an import process described later (S207) and executes the process of S201. To do.

  When it is determined in S203 that the export button 63 has been pressed, the writing destination switching unit 17b ends the display of the table setting screen 60 (S208), and then executes an export process described later (S209) and executes the process of S201. To do.

  If the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S203 that the reset button 64 has been pressed, it initializes the value in the “mode” column of the access management table 30b (S210), and executes the process of S202. In the initialization in S210, the values in the “speed-oriented” column, “standard” column, and “life-oriented” column of the access management table 30b are set to the initial values set in the mode initial value 30c. At the same time, the value in the “automatic” column is aligned with the value in the “standard” column. Note that the initialization in S210 does not have to initialize the value in the “automatic” column. The initialization in S210 is performed by the operation unit 11 among the values in the “automatic” field, the “speed-oriented” field, the “standard” field, and the “life-oriented” field. It may be specified via.

  When the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S203 that the return button 65 has been pressed, the display of the table setting screen 60 is terminated (S211), and the operation illustrated in FIG. 6 is terminated.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart of the panel setting process in S205.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the write destination switching unit 17b displays a panel setting screen 70 (see FIG. 9) for setting the access management table 30b via the operation unit 11 on the display unit 12 (S231).

  A panel setting screen 70 shown in FIG. 9 includes a speed emphasis setting button 71 for setting a value in the “speed emphasis” column of the access management table 30 b via the operation unit 11 and an access management table 30 b via the operation unit 11. A standard setting button 72 for setting a value in the “standard” column, a life-oriented setting button 73 for setting a value in the “life-oriented” column of the access management table 30b via the operation unit 11, and a panel setting. Of the values in the “mode” column of the access management table 30b, the values set via the speed emphasis setting button 71, the standard setting button 72, and the life emphasis setting button 73 are actually accessed. And an apply button 75 for applying to the management table 30b.

  When the speed emphasis setting button 71 is pressed via the operation unit 11, the writing destination switching unit 17 b displays a screen (not shown) on the display unit 12 for setting a value in the “speed emphasis” field for each data type. And accepting the setting of the value in the “emphasis on speed” column via the operation unit 11. Although the speed emphasis setting button 71 has been described, the standard setting button 72 and the life emphasis setting button 73 similarly accept the setting of the value in the “standard” column and the value of the “life emphasis” column, respectively. Note that the value in the “mode” column may not be changeable from “SSD” for the type of data in which the value in the “speed requirement” column is “high”.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the write destination switching unit 17b determines whether or not the apply button 75 has been pressed after the process of S231 (S232).

  When the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S232 that the apply button 75 has been pressed, the value is set via the speed emphasis setting button 71, the standard setting button 72, and the life emphasis setting button 73 among the values in the “mode” column of the access management table 30b. The set value is actually applied to the access management table 30b (S233).

  The writing destination switching unit 17b determines in S232 that the apply button 75 has not been pressed, or determines whether or not the return button 74 has been pressed when the processing in S233 is completed (S234).

  If the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S234 that the return button 74 has not been pressed, it executes the process of S232.

  When the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S234 that the return button 74 has been pressed, the display of the panel setting screen 70 is terminated (S235), and then the panel setting process shown in FIG. 8 is terminated.

  FIG. 10 is a flowchart of the import process in S207.

  As illustrated in FIG. 10, the write destination switching unit 17 b displays an import screen 80 (see FIG. 11) on the display unit 12 for inputting the access management table specified via the operation unit 11 as the access management table 30 b. It is displayed (S261).

  The import screen 80 shown in FIG. 11 displays a text box 81 in which a path indicating the location of the access management table of the import source is input via the operation unit 11 and a directory structure in a tree format, thereby displaying the import source. A button 82 for designating an access management table, a return button 83 for closing the import screen 80, and an input for inputting the access management table indicated by the path displayed in the text box 81 as the access management table 30b. Button 84. A path indicating the location of the access management table designated by the button 82 is automatically input to the text box 81.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the write destination switching unit 17b determines whether or not the input button 84 has been pressed after the process of S261 (S262).

  When the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S262 that the input button 84 has been pressed, the write destination switching unit 17b inputs the access management table indicated by the path displayed in the text box 81 as the access management table 30b (S263).

  The writing destination switching unit 17b determines in S262 that the input button 84 has not been pressed, or determines whether or not the return button 83 has been pressed when the processing of S263 is completed (S264).

  If the write destination switching means 17b determines in S264 that the return button 83 has not been pressed, it executes the process of S262.

  When the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S264 that the return button 83 has been pressed, the display of the import screen 80 is terminated (S265), and the import process shown in FIG. 10 is terminated.

  In the import processing described above, the entire access management table 30b is imported. However, the access management table 30b includes the values in the “speed-oriented” column, the “standard” column, and the “life-oriented” column. Only a part of may be imported.

  FIG. 12 is a flowchart of the export process in S209.

  As illustrated in FIG. 12, the write destination switching unit 17 b displays an export screen 90 (see FIG. 13) on the display unit 12 for outputting the access management table 30 b as the access management table specified via the operation unit 11. It is displayed (S291).

  The export screen 90 shown in FIG. 13 displays a text box 91 for inputting a path indicating the location of the access management table of the export destination via the operation unit 11 and the directory structure in a tree format, thereby displaying the export destination. A button 92 for designating the access management table, a return button 93 for closing the export screen 90, and an output for outputting the access management table 30b as the access management table indicated by the path displayed in the text box 91. Button 94. A path indicating the location of the access management table designated by the button 92 is automatically input to the text box 91.

  As illustrated in FIG. 12, the write destination switching unit 17b determines whether or not the output button 94 has been pressed after the process of S291 (S292).

  If the write destination switching means 17b determines in S292 that the output button 94 has been pressed, it outputs the access management table 30b as the access management table indicated by the path displayed in the text box 91 (S293).

  The writing destination switching unit 17b determines in S292 that the output button 94 has not been pressed, or determines whether or not the return button 93 has been pressed when the processing of S293 is completed (S294).

  If the write destination switching means 17b determines in S294 that the return button 93 has not been pressed, it executes the process of S292.

  When the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S294 that the return button 93 has been pressed, the display of the export screen 90 is terminated (S295), and then the export process shown in FIG. 12 is terminated.

  In the above export processing, the entire access management table 30b is exported, but the access management table 30b includes the values in the “speed-oriented” field, the “standard” field, and the “life-oriented” field. Only a part of may be exported.

  Next, the operation of the MFP 10 when receiving designation of the writing destination determination mode will be described.

  The write destination switching unit 17b of the MFP 10 performs the operation illustrated in FIG. 14 when an operation start instruction for accepting the designation of the write destination determination mode is instructed via the operation unit 11.

  FIG. 14 is a flowchart of the operation of the MFP 10 when accepting the designation of the write destination determination mode.

  As shown in FIG. 14, the write destination switching unit 17b determines whether or not the remaining life of the SSD 20 is equal to or less than 50%, which is the same as the condition of the rule 51 of the mode switching rule 30e (S301).

  When the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S301 that the remaining life of the SSD 20 is 50% or less, it determines whether or not the remaining life of the SSD 20 is 10% or less, which is the same as the condition of the rule 52 of the mode switching rule 30e. (S302).

  When the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S301 that the remaining life of the SSD 20 is not 50% or less, the display unit 12 displays a mode reception screen 100 (see FIG. 15) for receiving designation of a write destination determination mode. It is displayed (S303).

  A mode reception screen 100 shown in FIG. 15 includes a radio button 101 for selecting an automatic mode, a radio button 102 for selecting a speed-oriented mode, a radio button 103 for selecting a standard mode, and a life-oriented mode. A radio button 104 for selecting the mode, a Cancel button 105 for closing the mode reception screen 100, and an OK button 106 for setting the mode selected by the radio buttons 101 to 104 as the current mode. . Only one of the radio buttons 101 to 104 is always selected. The radio buttons 101 to 104 are in a state in which the currently set mode is selected when the mode reception screen 100 is displayed.

  As shown in FIG. 14, when the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S302 that the remaining life of the SSD 20 is not less than 10%, the mode reception screen 100 (see FIG. 16) in which the speed priority mode cannot be selected. The information is displayed on the display unit 12 (S304).

  A mode reception screen 100 shown in FIG. 16 displays a message 107 notifying that the speed priority mode cannot be selected. Further, in the mode reception screen 100 shown in FIG. 16, the radio button 102 is grayed out and cannot be selected. In the mode reception screen 100 shown in FIG. 16, when the currently set mode is the speed priority mode, the Cancel button 105 is grayed out and cannot be operated, and the radio button 101, radio button 103 or Until the radio button 104 is selected, the OK button 106 may be grayed out to be disabled.

  As shown in FIG. 14, when the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S302 that the remaining life of the SSD 20 is 10% or less, the mode acceptance screen 100 in which the speed priority mode and the standard mode cannot be selected (see FIG. 17). .) Is displayed on the display unit 12 (S305).

  A mode reception screen 100 shown in FIG. 17 displays a message 108 notifying that the speed-oriented mode and the standard mode cannot be selected. In the mode reception screen 100 shown in FIG. 17, the radio button 102 and the radio button 103 are grayed out and cannot be selected. In the mode reception screen 100 shown in FIG. 17, when the currently set mode is the speed priority mode or the standard mode, the Cancel button 105 is grayed out and cannot be operated, and the radio button 101 or radio Until the button 104 is selected, the OK button 106 may be grayed out and disabled.

  As shown in FIG. 14, the write destination switching unit 17b determines whether or not the OK button 106 has been pressed after the processing of S303, S304, or S305 (S306).

  When it is determined in S306 that the OK button 106 has been pressed, the writing destination switching unit 17b sets the mode selected by the radio buttons 101 to 104 as the current mode (S307).

  If the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S306 that the OK button 106 has not been pressed, it determines whether or not the Cancel button 105 has been pressed (S308).

  If the write destination switching means 17b determines in S308 that the Cancel button 105 has not been pressed, it executes the process of S306.

  When the write destination switching unit 17b ends the processing of S307 or determines in S308 that the Cancel button 105 has been pressed, the operation illustrated in FIG. 14 ends.

  Next, the operation of the MFP 10 when updating the value in the “automatic” column of the access management table 30b will be described.

  The write destination switching unit 17b of the MFP 10 executes the operation shown in FIG. 18 at the end of each month.

  FIG. 18 is a flowchart of the operation of the MFP 10 when the value of the “automatic” column of the access management table 30b is updated.

  As shown in FIG. 18, the write destination switching unit 17 b includes a value in the “speed requirement” field, a value in the “access frequency (number of times / month)” field, a value in the “access size (MB / month)” field, Based on the remaining life of the SSD 20, the value of the “automatic” field, and the condition of the writing destination switching rule 30d, it is determined whether or not there is a value of the “automatic” field that satisfies the condition of the writing destination switching rule 30d. (S331). For example, when the access management table 30b is as shown in FIG. 2 and the write destination switching rule 30d is as shown in FIG. 4, the write destination switching unit 17b has a remaining life of the SSD 20 exceeding 50%. , It is determined that the value of the “automatic” column for the “Job Retention” data satisfies the condition of the rule 41 of the write destination switching rule 30d. Further, the write destination switching unit 17b is configured such that when the access management table 30b is as shown in FIG. 2 and the write destination switching rule 30d is as shown in FIG. 4, the remaining life of the SSD 20 is less than 50%. It is determined that the value in the “automatic” field for the “copy image storage” data satisfies the condition of the rule 42 of the write destination switching rule 30d.

  If the write destination switching unit 17b determines that there is a value in the “automatic” field that satisfies the condition of the write destination switching rule 30d, the write destination switching rule 30d sets the value in the “auto” field that satisfies the condition of the write destination switching rule 30d. It changes according to the processing in (S332). For example, when the access management table 30b is as shown in FIG. 2 and the write destination switching rule 30d is as shown in FIG. 4, the write destination switching unit 17b has a remaining life of the SSD 20 exceeding 50%. , The value in the “automatic” column for the “Job Retention” data is changed to SSD as shown in FIG. 19 according to the processing in the rule 41 of the write destination switching rule 30d. Further, the write destination switching unit 17b is configured such that when the access management table 30b is as shown in FIG. 2 and the write destination switching rule 30d is as shown in FIG. 4, the remaining life of the SSD 20 is less than 50%. As shown in FIG. 20, the value in the “automatic” field for the “Save Copy Image” data is changed to HDD as shown in FIG.

  When the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S331 that there is no value in the “automatic” column that satisfies the condition of the write destination switching rule 30d, or executes the process of S332, the operation illustrated in FIG. 18 ends.

  In this embodiment, the write destination switching unit 17b updates the value of the “automatic” column of the access management table 30b every month, but the period of updating the value of the “automatic” column is other than one month. It may be a period.

  In addition, in the present embodiment, the write destination switching unit 17b determines that the access frequency and size collection period used for updating the value in the “automatic” column is the time when the value in the “automatic” column is updated, that is, the end of the month. In addition to the past one month as a reference, the period for updating the value in the “automatic” column is one month. However, the write destination switching unit 17b may have a collection period of the access frequency and size used for updating the value of the “automatic” column longer than the period of updating the value of the “automatic” column. For example, the write destination switching unit 17b has the access frequency and size collection period used for updating the value of the “automatic” column for the past month based on the time of updating the value of the “automatic” column. The period for updating the value in the “automatic” column may be 10 days.

  Further, the write destination switching unit 17b does not periodically update, but updates the value in the “automatic” column when any of the access frequency, the access size, and the remaining life of the SSD 20 changes. You may do it.

  Next, the operation of the MFP 10 when changing the mode will be described.

  The writing destination switching unit 17b of the MFP 10 executes the operation shown in FIG. 21 at the end of each month.

  FIG. 21 is a flowchart of the operation of the MFP 10 when the mode is changed.

  As shown in FIG. 21, the write destination switching unit 17b determines whether the remaining life of the SSD 20 is equal to or less than 50%, which is the same as the condition of the rule 51 of the mode switching rule 30e (S361).

  When the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S361 that the remaining life of the SSD 20 is 50% or less, it is determined whether or not the write destination determination mode is the same speed priority mode as the condition of the rule 51 of the mode switching rule 30e. Is determined (S362).

  When the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S362 that the write destination determination mode is the speed-oriented mode, the write destination determination mode is switched to the standard mode according to the processing in the rule 51 of the mode switching rule 30e (S363). ).

  When the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S362 that the write destination determination mode is not the speed-oriented mode or when the process of S363 is terminated, the remaining life of the SSD 20 is the same as the condition of the rule 52 of the mode switch rule 30e. It is determined whether it is 10% or less (S364).

  If the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S364 that the remaining life of the SSD 20 is 10% or less, it determines whether or not the write destination determination mode is the same standard mode as the rule 52 of the mode switch rule 30e. Judgment is made (S365).

  When the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S365 that the write destination determination mode is the standard mode, the write destination determination mode is switched to the life-oriented mode according to the processing in the rule 52 of the mode switching rule 30e (S366). ).

  The write destination switching unit 17b determines in S361 that the remaining life of the SSD 20 is not 50% or less, or determines in S364 that the remaining life of the SSD 20 is not 10% or less, or the write destination determination mode is the standard mode. If it is not determined in S365 or the processing in S366 is terminated, the operation shown in FIG. 21 is terminated.

  The write destination switching unit 17b updates the mode every month in the present embodiment, but the mode update period may be a period other than one month.

  In addition, the write destination switching unit 17b may update the mode when the remaining life of the SSD 20 changes, instead of periodically updating the mode.

  Next, the operation of the MFP 10 when writing data will be described.

  When the controller 17 of the MFP 10 is requested to write data from another process (not shown), it executes the operation shown in FIG.

  FIG. 22 is a flowchart of the operation of the MFP 10 when writing data.

  As shown in FIG. 22, the write destination switching unit 17b determines the type of data requested to be written by another process (hereinafter referred to as “target data”) (S391).

  Next, the write destination switching unit 17b confirms the current write mode (S392). Here, the current writing mode is the mode set by the latest processing of S307 when the mode has not been switched by the processing of FIG. 21 after the latest processing of S307. Further, the current writing mode is the mode after switching by the processing of FIG. 21 when the mode is switched by the processing of FIG. 21 after the latest processing of S307.

  After the process of S392, the write destination switching unit 17b determines the write destination of the target data based on the type determined in S391, the mode confirmed in S392, and the current access management table 30b (S393). For example, when the type determined in S391 is “Job Retention”, the mode confirmed in S392 is the automatic mode, and the current access management table 30b is as shown in FIG. The HDD 30 is determined as the target data write destination. Further, the write destination switching unit 17b determines that the type determined in S391 is “Job Retention”, the mode confirmed in S392 is the automatic mode, and the current access management table 30b is as shown in FIG. The SSD 20 is determined as a target data writing destination.

  After the process of S393, the data writing unit 17a writes the target data to the write destination determined in S393 (S394).

  Next, the write destination switching unit 17b determines whether the target data needs to be backed up based on the type determined in S391 and the current access management table 30b (S395). For example, when the type determined in S391 is “Job Retention” and the current access management table 30b is the one shown in FIG. 2, the write destination switching unit 17b “Job Retention” in the access management table 30b shown in FIG. Based on the value in the “backup” column for the data, it is determined that the target data need not be backed up. On the other hand, when the type determined in S391 is “address book” and the current access management table 30b is the one shown in FIG. 2, the write destination switching unit 17b “address” in the access management table 30b shown in FIG. Based on the value in the “backup” column for the “book” data, it is determined that the target data needs to be backed up.

  If the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S395 that the target data needs to be backed up, it reserves the target data for backup (S396).

  When the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S395 that the target data does not need to be backed up or ends the process of S396, the operation illustrated in FIG. 22 ends.

  Next, the operation of the MFP 10 when backing up target data will be described.

  The data writing unit 17a of the MFP 10 performs backup to the HDD at a preset timing for the target data reserved for backup in S396. For example, the preset timing may be a timing immediately after the operation shown in FIG. 22 or may be a timing such as a specific time at night when the MFP 10 is unlikely to be used by the user. If the HDD for backing up the target data is an HDD other than the HDD 30, the data writing unit 17a may back up the target data to the HDD as usual, but the HDD for backing up the target data is the HDD 30. In this case, the backup is executed by the operation shown in FIG.

  FIG. 23 is a flowchart of the operation of the MFP 10 when the target data is backed up to the HDD 30.

  As shown in FIG. 23, the data writing unit 17a determines whether or not other access to the HDD 30 is being performed until it is determined that another access to the HDD 30, that is, writing or reading is not performed. Is determined (S401).

  If the data writing unit 17a determines in S401 that no other access is executed to the HDD 30, the data writing unit 17a starts backup of the target data to the HDD 30 (S402).

  Next, the data writing unit 17a determines whether another access is being performed on the HDD 30 (S403).

  If the data writing unit 17a determines in S403 that another access to the HDD 30 is being executed, the data writing unit 17a temporarily stops the backup of the target data (S404).

  Next, the data writing unit 17a determines whether or not another access is being performed on the HDD 30 until it is determined that another access is not being performed on the HDD 30 (S405).

  When the write destination switching unit 17b determines in S405 that no other access is executed to the HDD 30, the write destination switching unit 17b resumes the backup that was temporarily stopped in S404 (S406).

  The data writing unit 17a determines in S403 that no other access to the HDD 30 has been executed, or when the process of S406 is completed, determines whether the backup of the target data has ended (S407).

  If the data writing unit 17a determines in S407 that the backup of the target data has not been completed, the data writing unit 17a executes the process of S403.

  If the data writing means 17a determines in S407 that the backup of the target data has been completed, the operation shown in FIG.

  As described above, since the MFP 10 switches the data write destination to at least one of the SSD 20 and the HDD 30 according to the data type (S393 and S396), the MFP 10 can process the data at an appropriate speed. The product life, that is, the life of the MFP 10 itself can be extended. Further, since the MFP 10 switches the mode that can be specified among the plurality of modes in which the write destinations according to the data types are set, according to the remaining life of the SSD 20 (S301 to S305), the data can be transferred at a more appropriate speed. And the product life can be further extended.

  The MFP 10 switches the mode according to the remaining life of the SSD 20 (S363 and S366), so that the data can be processed at an appropriate speed and the product life can be extended. On the other hand, since the MFP 10 writes data in the mode designated by the user unless the mode is switched according to the remaining life of the SSD 20, the remaining life of the SSD 20 is sufficient when the user places importance on the data processing speed. In some cases, even if the total size of the data written to the write destination during a specific period is large, switching the data write destination from the SSD 20 to the HDD 30 can be suppressed.

  Note that the MFP 10 may not execute at least one of the operation illustrated in FIG. 18 and the operation illustrated in FIG.

  The image forming apparatus of the present invention is an MFP in the present embodiment, but may be an image forming apparatus other than an MFP, such as a printer dedicated machine, a copy dedicated machine, a fax dedicated machine, or a scanner dedicated machine.

10 MFP (image forming apparatus)
17a data writing means 17b writing destination switching means 20 SSD (semiconductor memory device)
30 HDD (Hard Disk Drive)
30a Data processing program 30b Access management table

Claims (3)

A semiconductor memory device;
A hard disk drive,
Data writing means for writing data to at least one of the semiconductor memory device and the hard disk drive;
Write destination switching means for switching the data write destination by the data writing means to at least one of the semiconductor storage device and the hard disk drive according to the type of data;
The write destination switching unit accepts designation of the mode in which the write destination switching unit itself operates among a plurality of modes in which the write destination according to the type of data is set,
The image forming apparatus, wherein the writing destination switching unit switches the specifiable mode according to a remaining life of the semiconductor memory device.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the write destination switching unit switches the mode in which the write destination switching unit itself operates according to a remaining life of the semiconductor memory device. A semiconductor memory device;
An image forming apparatus comprising a hard disk drive,
Data writing means for writing data to at least one of the semiconductor memory device and the hard disk drive; and
Function as write destination switching means for switching the data write destination by the data write means to at least one of the semiconductor storage device and the hard disk drive according to the type of data;
The write destination switching unit accepts designation of the mode in which the write destination switching unit itself operates among a plurality of modes in which the write destination according to the type of data is set,
The data processing program characterized in that the write destination switching means switches the specifiable mode according to the remaining life of the semiconductor memory device.

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