JP2019038186A - Image formation apparatus, control method of image formation apparatus, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a mechanism which can execute preceding rendering processing while maintaining an image formation apparatus in the state of the low power consumption.SOLUTION: An image formation apparatus performs preceding rendering processing of processing at least a partial page of retained PDL data and generating image data corresponding to the page, and stores the data before the printing instruction from a user. The image formation apparatus executes the printing processing of the PDL data by using information on the image data generated by the preceding rendering processing according to the printing instruction from the user. In the preceding rendering processing, the image formation apparatus performs the preceding rendering processing by selecting a hardware rendering unit RIP 253 or software rendering unit (image data generation unit) in accordance with the activation state or the like of the hardware rendering unit RIP 253.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus capable of printing after accumulating a print job once, and more particularly to control of rendering processing according to the state of the image forming apparatus.

  In recent years, with the spread of network environments, it has become common for a plurality of users to share and use a plurality of image forming apparatuses. Accordingly, there is an increasing demand for “retained printing” in which printing is executed after user authentication is executed in the image forming apparatus so that other users cannot see the printed matter with high confidentiality.

  In the reservation printing, since a print job rendering process is started after a print instruction is input from the user, the user waits for output. Therefore, as a mechanism for reducing the waiting time for the user to output, "preceding rendering process" that generates image data by processing print data described in a page description language in a print job before a print instruction is input There is technology to do.

  Patent Document 1 proposes an image forming apparatus having a software rendering processing unit that performs drawing by software and a hardware rendering processing unit that performs drawing by hardware. In the case of this configuration, the image forming apparatus can assign the preceding rendering process to either the software rendering processing unit or the hardware rendering processing unit included therein.

  Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-228867 proposes a technique for appropriately shifting an image forming apparatus to a mode for reducing power consumption that does not affect processing when a predetermined function can be executed.

JP 2009-269179 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2006-82252

  However, the image forming apparatus may receive a print job in the sleep state, and in order to use the hardware rendering processing unit, it is necessary to activate the hardware rendering processing unit and hardware connected thereto. On the other hand, from the viewpoint of energy saving, the image forming apparatus generally has a function of shifting to a power saving state when the user has not operated for a certain time. When the image forming apparatus is returned from the sleep state for the preceding rendering process, there is a problem that power consumption unintended by the user occurs.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above problems. An object of the present invention is to provide a mechanism capable of executing a pre-rendering process while maintaining an image forming apparatus in a low power consumption state.

  The present invention is an image forming apparatus for storing received print data and performing image formation based on the stored print data when a print instruction is input from a user. Using the first rendering means or the second rendering means before the print instruction is input, the first rendering means for rendering processing by the software, the second rendering means for rendering the print data by software, Preceding processing means for processing at least a part of pages of the stored print data and generating image data corresponding to the page; and image data generated by the preceding processing as the print data Storage means for storing the print data in correspondence with the print command from the user for the stored print data And print execution means for executing print processing of the print data using image data corresponding to the print data, wherein the preceding processing means is in accordance with a power state of the image forming apparatus. The preceding process is performed by selecting the first rendering means or the second rendering means.

  According to the present invention, the preceding rendering process can be executed while maintaining the image forming apparatus in a low power consumption state.

1 is a diagram illustrating a system configuration and a hardware configuration of an image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment. 1 is a hardware configuration diagram of a controller provided in the image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment. Sequence diagram showing the printing process of the printing system of the present embodiment Flowchart for explaining a print job holding process according to the first embodiment. Flowchart for explaining the preceding process of the first embodiment Flowchart for explaining print execution processing according to the first embodiment. The figure explaining an example of UI displayed on an operation part after user authentication Flowchart for explaining target page advance rendering processing according to the first embodiment. Flowchart for explaining image data image compression format selection processing of the present embodiment 2 is a diagram illustrating a system configuration and a hardware configuration of an image forming apparatus according to a second embodiment. Block diagram showing power supply status in Connected Sleep state Block diagram showing power supply state in sleep state Flowchart for explaining a print job holding process according to the second embodiment. Flowchart explaining the preceding process of the second embodiment Flowchart for explaining target page advance rendering processing according to the second embodiment. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a UI displayed on an operation unit related to power saving setting according to the second embodiment. Flowchart for explaining target page advance rendering processing according to the third embodiment

  Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, in each figure, the same reference number is attached | subjected about the same member thru | or element, and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a system configuration including the image forming apparatus according to the first exemplary embodiment and a hardware configuration of the image forming apparatus.

  As shown in FIG. 1A, in the system of this embodiment, a host computer 101 and an image forming apparatus 110 are connected via a LAN. Note that a plurality of computers and image forming apparatuses may be connected to the LAN 102 in the system shown in FIG. The user generates PDL data indicating page information to be printed in the host computer 101 and transmits the data from the host computer 101 to the image forming apparatus 110 via the LAN 102. The image forming apparatus 110 according to the present embodiment has an MFP (Multi Function Printer) configuration and includes a scanner unit 118. The image forming apparatus 110 may be a printer other than the MFP (for example, a printer that does not include a scanner unit such as an SFP (Single Function Printer)).

[Hardware Configuration in Image Forming Apparatus]
Hereinafter, a hardware configuration example of the image forming apparatus 110 according to the first exemplary embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
The image forming apparatus 110 includes, for example, a printer unit 119 that is an image output device. The image forming apparatus 110 includes a network I / F 113 and acquires (receives) PDL data (print data described in a page description language) from the host computer 101 via the LAN 102.

  The power switch unit 111 is connected to the controller 201. When the power switch unit 111 is on, power is supplied to at least a part of the controller 201, the operation unit 115, and the main board 210 (FIG. 2) of the controller 201.

  A hard disk (hereinafter “HDD”) 112 stores image data, various programs, and the like. The program includes a program for executing the operations of the following embodiments. The operation unit 115 includes a touch panel and hard keys for receiving a user setting operation on the image forming apparatus 110 and displaying a job processing state, an apparatus state, and the like. The operation unit I / F 114 is an interface for connecting the controller 201 and the operation unit 115. The FAX unit 117 transmits and receives image data and the like via a telephone line or the like.

  The scanner unit 118 includes a document feeding unit that can continuously feed a document bundle to an image reading position, and a scanner unit that optically reads an image at a reading position on a document table and converts it into image data. The image data converted by the scanner unit 118 is transmitted to the controller 201 via the device I / F 116.

The printer unit 119 prints an image on a recording medium such as paper (hereinafter “paper”) based on the image data converted by the scanner unit 118, the image data received from the computer 101, and the like.
The FAX unit 117 transmits and receives facsimile data via a telephone line.
The device I / F 116 is an interface for connecting the controller 201 to the FAX unit 117, the scanner unit 118, and the printer unit 119 operation unit 115.

  The controller 201 is connected to each module of the scanner unit 118, the printer unit 119, the operation unit 115, the HDD 112, and the FAX unit 117. The controller 201 controls each module to execute a job corresponding to each function of the image forming apparatus 110 (for example, a print job or a scan job).

<System functions>
Hereinafter, an example of a job (function) executable by the image forming apparatus 110 will be described.
[Copy function]
The image forming apparatus 110 has a copying function of recording an image read from the scanner unit 118 in the HDD 112 and simultaneously printing using the printer unit 119.
(Image transmission function)
The image forming apparatus 110 has an image transmission function for transmitting an image read from the scanner unit 118 to the host computer 101 via the LAN 102.
(Image saving function)
The image forming apparatus 110 has an image storage function that records an image read from the scanner unit 118 in the HDD 112 and performs image transmission and image printing as necessary.
(Image printing function)
The image forming apparatus 110 has an image printing function for analyzing, for example, a page description language transmitted from the host computer 101 and printing it by the printer unit 119. Hereinafter, an instruction to use this function transmitted from the host computer 101 is referred to as a “print job”.

  FIG. 1B is a diagram illustrating a software configuration of the controller 201 that controls the operation of the image forming apparatus 110 that executes the image printing function according to the first embodiment. The configuration shown in FIG. 1B corresponds to a software configuration executed in a main processor (CPU) 211 shown in FIG.

  The controller 201 includes, as a software configuration, an authentication unit 131, a setting unit 132, a bibliographic management unit 133, a print control unit 134, a job analysis unit 135, a reservation control unit 136, a preceding processing unit 137, a print execution unit 138, and a PDL analysis unit 139. The intermediate data generation unit 140 and the image data generation unit 141 are realized. That is, each of these units 131 to 141 is a functional unit realized by the CPU 211 reading and executing the program stored in the boot ROM 212 (FIG. 2) or the HDD 112 to the memory 213 as necessary.

  The image data generation unit 141 is a software function unit that generates image data (raster data) from the intermediate data (display list) generated by the intermediate data generation unit 140. In addition, the image data generation unit 141 compresses the image data in a predetermined file format (for example, JPEG, TIFF, PackBits format) included in the intermediate data and outputs the image data to the memory It also has a function. The image forming apparatus 110 according to the present exemplary embodiment includes a RIP (raster image processor) 253 (FIGS. 2B to 2C described later) as hardware for generating image data from intermediate data in addition to the image data generation unit 141. )). In other words, the image forming apparatus 110 according to the present exemplary embodiment includes a hardware rendering unit (RIP253) and a software rendering unit (image data generation unit 141).

  The authentication unit 131 receives the authentication information from the operation unit 115 through the operation unit I / F 114 and notifies the reservation control unit 136 of the authentication information. The setting unit 132 controls input / output of setting information to the operation unit 115 through the operation unit I / F 114. The bibliographic management unit 133 controls and manages the print job received by the reservation control unit 136 and information related to the print job. The print control unit 134 acquires the print instruction and the print job information input through the network I / F 113 and instructs the reservation control unit 136 and the print execution unit 138 to process the print job.

  The reservation control unit 136 performs print job analysis, management, control of preceding processing, and print instruction to the print execution unit 138 for the print job received from the print control unit 134. The job analysis unit 135 analyzes the print job received by the reservation control unit 136. The preceding processing unit 137 issues a print job rendering instruction to the image data generation unit 141 according to the analysis result of the print job received by the reservation control unit 136 by the job analysis unit 135. More precisely, the preceding processing unit 137 controls the PDL analysis unit 139, the intermediate data generation unit 140, and the image data generation unit 141 according to the analysis result by the job analysis unit 135.

  The print execution unit 138 controls the PDL analysis unit 139, the intermediate data generation unit 140, the image data generation unit 141, the RIP 253, the image processing unit 254, and the like for the print job received from the print control unit 134 or the reservation control unit 136. To generate an image. Further, the print execution unit 138 outputs the generated image to the printer unit 119 through the device I / F 116, and executes print processing.

  The PDL analysis unit 139 performs PDL analysis of a print job that has received an instruction from the print execution unit 138. PDL is an abbreviation for Page Description Language, and indicates a page description language. The intermediate data generation unit 140 generates intermediate data based on the information analyzed by the PDL analysis unit 139. The image data generation unit 141 generates image data from the intermediate data generated by the intermediate data generation unit 140.

[Block configuration of controller 201]
A block configuration of the controller 201 will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the controller 201. Hereinafter, a power supply state in which power is supplied to all devices (modules or units) of the controller 201 illustrated in FIG. 2 is referred to as a “standby state”.

  In FIG. 2A, the controller 201 includes a main board 210 and a sub board 230. The main board 210 and the sub board 230 are so-called general-purpose CPU systems.

  The main board 210 includes a CPU 211, BootROM 212, memory 213, USB controller 214, Bus controller 215, Disk controller 216, Flash Disk 217, and Network controller.

  The CPU 211 is a main processor that controls the entire main board 210. The BootROM 212 stores a boot program. The memory 213 is used as a work memory for the CPU 211. The Bus controller 215 has a bridge function with an external bus. The disk controller 216 controls a storage device such as the HDD 112. The flash disk 217 is a relatively small-capacity storage device configured by a semiconductor device, for example, an SSD (Solid State Drive). The USB controller 214 controls access to various USB devices connected to the image forming apparatus 110. The power switch unit 111, the HDD 112, and the operation unit 115 are connected to the main board 210.

The sub board 230 includes a general-purpose CPU system that is smaller than the main board 210 and device controllers 234, 235, and 236 that control each device.
The sub processor 231 controls the entire sub board 230. The memory 233 is used as a work memory for the sub processor 231. The Bus controller 232 has a bridge function with an external bus. The device controllers 234, 235, and 236 are control units that control the FAX unit 117, the scanner unit 118, and the printer unit 119 in real time, respectively, and control devices to be controlled based on instructions from the sub processor 231.

[Block configuration of sub-processor 231]
A block configuration of the sub processor 231 will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 2B is a block diagram illustrating an internal configuration of the sub-processor 231 in FIG. In this embodiment, the sub processor 231 has a CPU core (central control unit 251) having basic functions. In addition to the CPU core, the sub-processor 231 takes a form having a dedicated circuit having a complicated calculation function specialized for each image processing function.

  The central control unit 251 is a module that issues a control instruction to each block in the sub processor 231. For example, the central control unit 251 acquires a value at a predetermined address from the memory 233 by issuing an instruction to the memory control unit 263.

  The memory control unit 263 is an intermediary between the memory 233 and each block in the sub processor 231. As described above, the central control unit 251 issues an instruction to the memory control unit 263 to acquire or rewrite a value at a predetermined address, but the same instruction can be given to other blocks. For example, the central control unit 251 and the RIP 253 can issue instructions to the memory control unit 263 from each. The memory control unit 263 executes each instruction in the order in which the instructions are received.

  The clock control unit 252 controls clock supply to each block. The central control unit 251 instructs the clock supply. In the specific seat, when the central control unit 251 executes a job (function) that can be executed by the image forming apparatus 110 as a function of the system, the clock control unit 252 is configured to supply a clock to each necessary block. Apply. Clock gate control is performed on the block (arithmetic circuit cell) from which the clock supply is cut off to dynamically reduce power consumption. In other words, the clock control unit 252 controls the start / stop of the block by the clock supply control, and performs power control for stopping the unused blocks and reducing the power consumption.

  The RIP 253 is hardware that analyzes a PDL data code and intermediate data and develops them into image data (raster data) based on an instruction from the central control unit 251. In this embodiment, as an instruction method from the central control unit 251, the central control unit 251 develops a series of instruction sets (firmware) executable by the RIP 253 in the memory 233, and interrupts the RIP 253 for executing the instructions. Use a method to send a signal. In addition, there is a method in which the central control unit 251 writes a series of instruction sets to the internal SRAM of the RIP 253, or a method in which the RIP 253 has a series of instruction sets in advance and the central control unit 251 only sends an interrupt signal. Naturally, this is possible in this embodiment.

  The RIP 253 analyzes the intermediate data and develops it into image data using a predetermined dedicated circuit based on the series of instruction sets and the intermediate data developed in the memory 233. The image data developed by the RIP 253 is in an uncompressed state, and is compressed into a predetermined file format (for example, JPEG, TIFF, or PackBits format) using the image compression units 255 and 257. In this embodiment, when printing image data to be developed using RIP 253, a predetermined file format is selected according to the color space of the image data. Of course, the image data itself developed by the RIP 253 can be compressed in the above-described JPEG, TIFF, or PackBits format.

  The image processing unit 254 performs processing according to the printer unit 119 and settings on the image data developed by the RIP 253 and the image data read by the scanner unit 118. For example, when the image data developed by the RIP 253 is expressed in an RGB color space, the image processing unit 254 converts the color space to CMYK. In addition, the image processing unit 254 executes processing (for example, photo or character outline correction) according to the settings performed on the job instructed by the user via the operation unit 115 or the host computer 101.

  The image compression units 255 and 257 compress the image data expanded by the RIP 253 according to the printing process into a predetermined file format, and store the compressed image data in the memory 233 via the memory control unit 263. The image compression units 255 and 257 are in charge of different compression formats. For example, when the user uses the image transmission function as a system function, the central control unit 251 selects the image compression units 255 and 257 in accordance with the image file format (image format) specified by the user.

  The image decompression units 256 and 258 decompress the image data obtained by decompressing the above-described compressed image through the memory control unit 263 in accordance with the printing process into the memory 233.

  The bus access control unit 265 has a bridge function with an external bus. Processing contents and processing data corresponding to the job executed by the image forming apparatus 110 are sent from the CPU 211 to the sub-processor 231 via the Bus controllers 215 and 232. The central control unit 251 receives processing contents and processing data via the bus access control unit 265, and gives instructions about clock supply to related blocks via the clock control unit 252 and sends jobs to each block. Give instructions accordingly.

  The FAX control unit 267 is a block that controls the FAX unit 117, and issues a control instruction to the device controller 234 based on an instruction from the central control unit 251. Similarly, the scanner control unit 268 is a block that controls the scanner unit 118, and issues a control instruction to the device controller 235 based on an instruction from the central control unit 251. The printer control unit 269 is a block that controls the printer unit 119, and issues a control instruction to the device controller 236 based on an instruction from the central control unit 251. For example, when the central control unit 251 instructs the printer control unit 269 to print image data to be developed in the memory, the printer control unit 269 transmits predetermined image data together with the print instruction to the device controller 236 via the memory control unit 263. To do.

  1 and 2 are simplified diagrams. For example, the CPU 211, the sub processor 231 and the like include a large number of CPU peripheral hardware such as a chip set, a bus bridge, and a clock generator, but are simplified because they are not necessary for the granularity of explanation. These block configurations do not limit the present invention.

  In the example of FIG. 2, the HDD 112 and the Flash Disk 217 are connected to the Disk controller 216, but it is possible to take a form in which only one or a plurality of HDDs and Flash Disks are connected. Further, the CPU 211 and the sub processor 231 are not limited to a general-purpose CPU, but can be configured by an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) or an ASSP (Application Specific Standard Produce). The CPU 211 and the sub processor 231 can naturally be configured to be an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) or other dynamic reconfigurable processor.

  As described above, the image forming apparatus 110 according to the present exemplary embodiment includes the image data generation unit 141 that performs rendering processing using software, and the RIP 253 that performs rendering processing using hardware. The RIP 253 has a dedicated circuit for rendering, and can execute rendering processing faster than the image data generation unit 141. The RIP 253 is instructed by the central control unit 251 to use a dedicated circuit and operates. However, the RIP 253 cannot be used because the dedicated circuit does not operate in the state where the clock supply is stopped by the clock control unit 252 described above. Note that when a clock is supplied from the clock control unit 252, power for using the circuit is consumed.

FIG. 2C shows a power supply state in the sub processor 231 when the image storage function is used.
A clock is supplied to blocks other than the RIP 253, the image compression unit 257, the image expansion unit 258, the FAX control unit 267, and the printer control unit 269.
FIG. 2D shows the power supply state in the sub processor 231 when the print job is executed.
A clock is supplied to blocks other than the image compression unit 255, the image expansion unit 256, the FAX control unit 267, and the scanner control unit 268.
In FIG. 2C and FIG. 2D, a clock is supplied to the circuits except for the shaded portions in the drawings, and these circuits are in a state where power is supplied and consume power.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a sequence when a print job is received from the host computer 101 and printed by the image forming apparatus 110 in the printing system having the image forming apparatus 110 of the present embodiment. In the figure, “S” is added to each step. The processing executed by the image forming apparatus 110 in FIG. 3 is executed by the CPU 211 and the sub processor 231 of the image forming apparatus 110 reading out the programs stored in the BootROM 212 or the HDD 112 to the memories 213 and 233 as necessary. It is realized by. Further, the processing executed by the host computer 101 in FIG. 3 is realized by a CPU (not shown) of the host computer 101 reading out a program stored in the HDD or the like to a RAM as necessary and executing it.

  When a user logs in to the host computer 101 (S301) and operates the host computer 101 to request printing of data from an arbitrary application (S302), the host computer 101 first acquires user information (S303). Then, the host computer 101 adds the user information acquired in S303 to the print job to generate a print job (S304), and transmits the print job to the image forming apparatus 110 (S305).

  Upon receiving the print job, the image forming apparatus 110 stores the print job in the HDD 112 (S306). Then, the image forming apparatus 110 extracts user information given to the print job, creates bibliographic information (S307), and stores (registers) the bibliographic information in the HDD 112 (S308). When the image forming apparatus 110 finishes storing the bibliographic information, the image forming apparatus 110 starts the preceding process (S309), and sequentially stores the result of the preceding process in the HDD 112 (S310). In the preceding process, a rendering process time is predicted for each page of the print job, and a page that needs to be rendered in advance is rendered. The preceding process will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

  When the user logs in to the image forming apparatus 110 (S311), the image forming apparatus 110 acquires the user information of the user (S312), and the user's print job list is stored in the operation unit 115 based on the bibliographic information of the user. Displayed (S313).

  Further, upon receiving a print instruction from the user (S314), the image forming apparatus 110 adds the result of the preceding process stored in S310 to the print job (S315). Details of adding the result of the preceding process to the print job will be described later. Further, the image forming apparatus 110 uses the preceding processing result of the print job to which the preceding processing result is added to perform a finishing rendering process (S316) and perform printing (S317).

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a print job holding process executed by the controller 201 included in the image forming apparatus 110 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 4A is a flowchart for explaining an example of a print job holding process executed by the controller 201. FIG. 4B is a diagram for explaining an example of the configuration of a print job received by the image forming apparatus 110. FIG. 4C is a diagram for explaining an example of a user print job list stored in the HDD 112 by the controller 201.

  Note that the processing shown in FIG. 4A and FIGS. 5, 6, 8, and 9 described later is performed by the CPU 211 and the sub processor 231 storing the programs stored in the BootROM 212 or the HDD 112 in the memories 213 and 233 as necessary. This is realized by reading and executing.

  In S401, when the print control unit 134 receives a print job transmitted from the host computer 101 or the like via the network I / F 113, the process proceeds to S402. The print job has a configuration as shown in FIG. 4B, for example. The print job has header information including various setting information at the beginning of the data, and then includes data for each page (PDL data). “P1”, “Line1”, “Text1”, “Rect1”, “Image1”, “Rect2”, etc. in the information of each page are examples of drawing commands for configuring the page.

  In step S402, the print control unit 134 determines whether the print job received in step S401 is a “reserved job” or a “print job”. The determination method of whether or not it is “reservation job” is based on whether the parameter stored in the image forming apparatus indicates reservation or analysis of information embedded in the print job header. However, since it is publicly known, details are omitted. If it is determined in S402 that the job is to print as it is (No in S402), the print control unit 134 advances the process to S403.

  In step S403, the print control unit 134 notifies the sub board 230 that a print job has occurred. On the sub board 230 side, the central control unit 251 receives the above notification via the bus controller 232 and the bus access control unit 265, and performs activation processing of each block in the sub processor 231. The activation processing of each block in the sub-processor 231 is executed by the central control unit 251 setting the clock control unit 252 as described above. Based on the setting, the clock control unit 252 performs clock gate control, so that a module necessary for job execution can be operated. In the case of a print job in this embodiment, a clock is supplied to blocks other than the image compression unit 255, the image expansion unit 256, the FAX control unit 267, and the scanner control unit 268. FIG. 2D shows the state of the sub processor 231 when a print job is executed. In addition, the printer control unit 269 activated in response to the supply of the clock executes the activation process (such as fixing device temperature adjustment) of the printer unit 119 via the device controller 236, and prepares for printing.

  In step S404, the print control unit 134 instructs the print execution unit 138 to process the print job print job. The print execution unit 138 controls the PDL analysis unit 139 and the intermediate data generation unit 140 to analyze the print job and generate intermediate data, and the generated intermediate data is stored in the memory 233 via the bus controllers 215 and 235. expand. Further, the print control unit 134 sends a rendering processing request to the RIP 253 to the central control unit 251 in the same manner. The central control unit 251 issues a rendering processing instruction to the RIP 253 based on the received instruction, and generates image data. The central control unit 251 corrects the image data generated in S404 with respect to the image processing unit 254, compresses the image data using the image compression unit 257, and stores the compressed image in the memory via the memory control unit 263. Control to store in 233.

  As described above, the image data generated in S404 is compressed into JPEG, TIFF, or PackBits format. In this embodiment, when printing image data to be developed using the RIP 253, a predetermined file format is selected according to the color space of the image data. Of course, the image data itself developed by the RIP 253 can be compressed in the above-described JPEG, TIFF, or PackBits format.

  In this embodiment, the RIP 253, the image processing unit 254, and the image compression unit 257 are connected to each block so as to be able to directly exchange data, and the generated image data of the RIP 253 is not directly expanded in the memory 233. Configured as follows. As a result, the memory size required for storing the image data and the memory bandwidth required for the writing process at the time of storage are reduced.

  In step S405, the print execution unit 138 sends a print request for the compressed image of the image data generated in step S404 to the central control unit 251. The central control unit 251 decompresses the compressed image by the image decompression unit 258, transfers it to the printer unit 119 via the printer control unit 269, and executes printing.

If it is determined in S402 that the print job received in S401 is a “reserved job” (Yes in S402), the print control unit 134 advances the process to S406.
In step S406, the print control unit 134 instructs the reservation control unit 136 to process the print job received in step S401. The reservation control unit 136 acquires user information included in the print job. In the example of FIG. 4B, the user information is indicated by “user name: user A”. The user information may not be included in the header information of the print job, but may be configured to separately send user information from the transmission source host computer 101. The user information may be any information as long as it is information that can identify the user who has executed printing, such as a user name and a user ID.

  In step S <b> 407, the reservation control unit 136 instructs the job analysis unit 135 to analyze the print job. The job analysis unit 135 acquires print setting information and information such as a document name (including the number of pages, for example) included in the print job. The print setting information includes, for example, information indicating single-sided printing or double-sided printing, information on whether to print in color or monochrome, information on the paper size to be output, and the like. FIG. 4B is an example, and print data without a part of the print setting information may be used. At that time, the initial setting value of the HDD 112 or BootROM 212 is set, or the configuration is set by the user at the time of printing execution. It may be.

  In step S408, the reservation control unit 136 associates the user information acquired in step S406 with the print setting information acquired in step S407 and information such as a document name. Then, the reservation control unit 136 creates bibliographic information corresponding to the user information with the associated information as one record (for example, FIG. 4C). Note that the storage destination included in the file information includes information for specifying the image forming apparatus that is executing the processing.

  FIG. 4C is a diagram illustrating an example of bibliographic information for each user according to this embodiment. Here, bibliographic information of user A is illustrated. The bibliographic information of this embodiment includes, for example, a job ID, file information, print setting information, number of pages, rendering prediction time, advance processing information, and the like. The job ID is set to a unique value for each job.

  Next, in S409, the reservation control unit 136 instructs the bibliographic management unit 133 to register the bibliographic information to which one record has been added in S408. The bibliographic management unit 133 saves (registers) in the HDD 112 the bibliographic information to which one record has been added in S408. Further, the reservation control unit 136 stores the print job received in S401 in the HDD 112 as a print job corresponding to the one record added this time. Note that at the time of registration of the bibliographic information in S409, the rendering prediction time is not set, the preceding process information is registered in a state where the preceding process is “not set” and the preceding process result is not set.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the preceding process executed by software (135, 136, etc.) provided in the controller 201 provided in the image forming apparatus 110 according to the first embodiment. The preceding process in FIG. 5 is a process executed after the print job is retained in the HDD 112 by the print job retention process in FIG.

  In step S <b> 501, the job analysis unit 135 predicts a time required for rendering processing of each page included in the print job for the print job held in the HDD 112. The prediction method may be any method that can estimate the rendering processing time such as the size of the print job and the content of the PDL command included in the print job. The job analysis unit 135 instructs the bibliographic management unit 133 to register the prediction result in the bibliographic information associated with the print job being processed in advance.

  In step S502, based on the prediction result in step S501, the preceding processing unit 137 determines a page that requires time for rendering processing among pages included in the print job as a page that needs to be rendered in advance. For example, it is assumed that the estimated rendering time of the document “job ID: 1” is as shown in FIG. In this case, the preceding processing unit 137 determines that pages that take time are 1 page and 9 pages. The criterion for determining the page that takes time may be determined according to the printing speed of the image forming apparatus that performs printing, or a threshold value (for example, “10 seconds”) held by the preceding processing unit. Alternatively, it may be determined that rendering is necessary for all pages. That is, the preceding processing unit 137 predicts the time required for rendering from the PDL data included in the print job in units of pages, and determines a page on which the preceding processing is performed based on the prediction result. Note that the rendering prediction time may be predicted based on, for example, the size of PDL data of the page to be predicted, may be predicted based on the number or types of PDL commands included in the page, or may be other methods. It may be predicted.

  In step S503, the preceding processing unit 137 determines whether there is a page that needs to be rendered in advance based on the determination result in step S502. If it is determined that there is no page that needs to be rendered in advance (No in S503), the preceding processing unit 137 ends the process of this flowchart. On the other hand, when it is determined that there is a page that needs to be rendered in advance (Yes in S503), the preceding processing unit 137 advances the process to S504. In this case, information “medium” indicating that the preceding process is being performed may be added to the preceding process information of the corresponding bibliographic information so that “preceding process: medium” is performed.

  In step S504, the preceding processing unit 137 performs rendering processing (preceding rendering processing) for one page that is determined to require rendering processing in advance in step S502, and generates image data. Note that if there are a plurality of pages that are determined to require rendering processing in advance in S502, the preceding processing unit 137 may perform control so that the rendering processing is executed in the order of pages of the print job. Alternatively, the rendering process may be controlled in order from the page that takes a long time for the rendering process. Alternatively, the rendering process may be controlled in order from the page that does not take a long time for the rendering process. The processing in this step will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

  In step S505, the preceding processing unit 137 stores the image data generated in step S504 in the HDD 112 in units of pages. The preceding processing unit 137 associates the stored page-by-page image data with the bibliographic information associated with the print job being processed in advance, and manages the image data so as to correspond to each page of the print job. .

  Next, in S506, the preceding processing unit 137 determines whether or not the preceding rendering processing for all pages (target pages) determined to require rendering processing in advance in S502 is completed. If it is determined that the preceding rendering processing for all the target pages has not been completed yet (No in S506), the preceding processing unit 137 advances the processing to S508.

  In step S508, the preceding processing unit 137 determines whether there is a print execution instruction from the user for the print job that is executing the rendering process. If it is determined that there is no print execution instruction (No in S508), the preceding processing unit 137 returns the process to S504 and shifts to the process for the next target page. On the other hand, when it is determined that there is a print execution instruction (Yes in S508), the preceding processing unit 137 interrupts the preceding process and ends the processing of this flowchart. The print execution instruction will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in S506 that the preceding rendering processing for all target pages has been completed (Yes in S506), the preceding processing unit 137 advances the processing to S507.

  In S507, the preceding processing unit 137 instructs the bibliographic managing unit 133 to add information storing the result of the preceding rendering processing in S505 to the corresponding bibliographic information. For example, as in the preceding process information in the bibliographic information of FIG. 4C, information “completed” indicating whether the preceding process has been completed and information “/ xxx / yyy / where the result of the preceding process is stored are stored. Add "image1" and "/ xxx / yyy / image2". After S507, the preceding processing unit 137 ends the process of this flowchart.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a print execution process executed by the controller 201 included in the image forming apparatus 110 according to the present exemplary embodiment.

  In S601, the authentication unit 131 authenticates the user using a known authentication method such as a method of performing user authentication by inputting user information and a password from the operation unit 115 or the like. If the authentication process is successful, the authentication unit 131 notifies the setting unit 132 of the user information.

  Next, in S602, the setting unit 132 receives bibliographic information corresponding to the same user information as the user information acquired in S601 from the bibliographic management unit 133, generates a print job list based on the bibliographic information, and operates the operation unit The information is displayed on the operation unit 115 through the I / F 114.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a user interface (UI) displayed on the operation unit 115 after user authentication.
The information displayed on the operation unit 115 is, for example, that shown in 701 in FIG. 7, and the print job list is displayed as an example in 702 in FIG. The user can issue a print instruction for the selected print job by selecting a desired print job from the print job list 702 and pressing a print start button 703. The user can change the print setting of the selected print job by selecting a desired print job from the print job list 702 and pressing the print setting button 704. The logout button 705 is for logging out.

  In step S <b> 603, the setting unit 132 determines whether the user has issued a print execution instruction for the print job displayed in the print job list 702. For example, when the user selects a print job from the print job list 702 and presses the print start button 703, it is determined that there is a print execution instruction. For example, when the user presses the logout button 705 without pressing the print start button 703, it is determined that there is no print execution instruction. If it is determined that there is no print execution instruction (No in S603), the setting unit 132 ends the process of this flowchart. On the other hand, if it is determined that there has been a print execution instruction (Yes in S603), the setting unit 132 advances the process to S604.

  In step S604, the setting unit 132 notifies the reservation control unit 136 that a print execution instruction has been issued. The reservation control unit 136 determines whether the print job instructed to execute printing has been processed in advance. This determination is made by referring to the bibliographic information and acquiring the preprocessed information added in S507 of FIG. If it is determined in S604 that the print job has been processed in advance (Yes in S604), the reservation control unit 136 advances the process to S605.

  In step S605, the reservation control unit 136 performs processing for adding information on the result of the preceding processing to the PDL data, and generates a print job. Further, the reservation control unit 136 instructs the print execution unit 138 to print a print job. In response to the instruction, the print execution unit 138 executes the process of S608 described later. If it is determined in S604 that the print job has not been processed in advance (No in S604), the reservation control unit 136 proceeds to S606.

In step S606, the reservation control unit 136 determines whether the print job instructed to execute printing is being processed in advance. This determination may be made by referring to the bibliographic information in the same manner as in the above-described S604, and determining whether or not the preceding processing is being performed. You may judge by whether it exists.
If it is determined in S606 that the print job instructed to execute printing is being processed in advance (Yes in S606), the reservation control unit 136 advances the process to S607.

  In step S607, the reservation control unit 136 interrupts the preceding process for the print job being processed in advance. Information on the interruption of the preceding process is notified to the preceding processing unit 137, and is used to determine whether or not there is a print execution instruction described in S508 of FIG. After the above S607, the reservation control unit 136 obtains the preceding processing result (image data associated with the corresponding bibliographic information in S505 in FIG. 5) stored as the preceding processing information at the time when the preceding processing is interrupted. In S605, it is added to the print job. After S605, the reservation control unit 136 instructs the print execution unit 138 to print a print job. In response to the instruction, the print execution unit 138 executes the process of S608 described later.

  On the other hand, when it is determined in S606 that the print job instructed to execute printing is not in the preceding process (No in S606), the reservation control unit 136 instructs the print execution unit 138 to print the print job. In response to the instruction, the print execution unit 138 executes the process of S608.

  In step S608, the print execution unit 138 performs finishing rendering processing. The finishing rendering process is a process similar to S404 in FIG. 4 for a print job generated by adding information on the result of the preceding process to the print job.

  In step S609, the reservation control unit 136 instructs the print execution unit 138 to perform printing, and the print execution unit 138 executes printing. Execution of printing by the print execution unit 138 is the same processing as in S405 of FIG. After S609, the print execution unit 138 ends the process of this flowchart.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart for explaining the target page preceding rendering process (the process in S504 of FIG. 5) according to the first embodiment.
In S801, the preceding processing unit 137 inquires the central control unit 251 via the bus controller 215 about the information of the block activated on the sub board side (the clock is supplied). The central control unit 251 notifies the preceding processing unit 137 of the setting information of the clock control unit 252 via the bus controller 232.

In S802, the preceding processing unit 137 determines whether the RIP 253 has been started (clock supply) based on the information acquired in S801. When it is determined that the RIP 253 is not activated (clock supply) (No in S802), the preceding processing unit 137 advances the process to S808.
In S808, the preceding processing unit 137 selects to use the image data generating unit 141 for generating image data for the preceding rendering process, and proceeds to S806 described later.

On the other hand, if it is determined in S802 that the RIP 253 has been activated (activated) (Yes in S802), the preceding processing unit 137 advances the process to S803.
In step S803, the preceding processing unit 137 acquires the contents of a job that is being executed and is scheduled to be executed other than reservation in the image forming apparatus 110.

  In S804, the preceding processing unit 137 determines whether there is a job that uses RIP253 from the contents of the job being executed and scheduled to be executed acquired in S803, and can use RIP253 for preceding rendering. Determine whether or not. For example, in the image forming apparatus according to the present exemplary embodiment, it is not necessary to use the RIP 253 even when the copying function, the image transmission function, or the image saving function is being executed, or when the image printing function is used. Need to use. In this embodiment, a job including a function that uses the RIP 253 is determined as a job that uses the RIP 253. If it is determined that there is a job that uses RIP253 among the jobs that are being executed and are scheduled to be executed, it is determined that RIP253 cannot be used for the preceding rendering. If there is no job that uses the RIP 253 in the job being executed or scheduled to be executed, it is determined that the RIP 253 can be used for the preceding rendering.

In S804, when it is determined that RIP253 cannot be used for the preceding rendering (No in S804), the preceding processing unit 137 advances the process to S808.
In S808, the preceding processing unit 137 selects to use the image data generating unit 141 for generating image data for the preceding rendering process, and proceeds to S806.

On the other hand, if it is determined in S804 that RIP253 can be used for the preceding rendering (Yes in S804), the preceding processing unit 137 advances the process to S805.
In S805, the preceding processing unit 137 selects that the RIP 253 is used for image data generation in the preceding rendering process, and the process proceeds to S806.
Note that if S803 and S804 are omitted and the RIP 253 has already been activated (Yes in S802), it may be selected in S805 to use the RIP 253 for the preceding rendering process.

  In S806, the preceding processing unit 137 selects the image compression format of the image data of the preceding rendering process generated by the method selected in S805 or S808. The processing of S806 will be described later with reference to FIG.

  Next, in S807, the preceding processing unit 137 performs rendering processing using the rendering method selected in S805 or S808, and stores the rendered image data in the compression format selected in S806. Execute. After the processing of S807, the preceding processing unit 137 ends the processing of this flowchart.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing image data image compression format selection processing (processing in S806 of FIG. 8) of the present embodiment.
In S901, the preceding processing unit 137 determines whether or not the use of the RIP 253 is selected for the preceding rendering. When it is determined that RIP253 is used for the preceding rendering (S805 in FIG. 8) (Yes in S901), the preceding processing unit 137 advances the processing to S902, and the usable image compression processing unit is The process proceeds to a determination process of whether or not it exists.

  In step S902, the preceding processing unit 137 determines whether the image compression unit 257 can be used for preceding rendering. First, the preceding processing unit 137 determines whether the image compression unit 257 has been activated based on the information acquired in S801 of FIG. If the image compression unit 257 has not been activated, the preceding processing unit 137 determines that the image compression unit 257 cannot be used for preceding rendering. On the other hand, when the image compression unit 257 has been activated, the preceding processing unit 137 determines whether there is a job being executed or scheduled to be executed using the image compression unit 257 based on the information acquired in S803 of FIG. For example, in the image forming apparatus of the present embodiment, one of the image compression units 255 and 257 is selected according to the image format selected by the user in the image transmission function or the image storage function. The image format selected by the user includes JPEG and TIFF formats, and PDF and XPS can also be selected. Further, when the user selects PDF or XPS, the image compression units 255 and 257 are not used. If it is determined that there is a job that uses the image compression unit 257 among the jobs being executed and scheduled to be executed, it is determined that the image compression unit 257 cannot be used for the preceding rendering. If there is no job that uses the image compression unit 257 in the job being executed or scheduled to be executed, it is determined that the image compression unit 257 can be used for the preceding rendering.

In S902, when it is determined that the image compression unit 257 is usable (Yes in S902), the preceding processing unit 137 advances the process to S903.
In step S903, the preceding processing unit 137 selects use of the image compression unit 257, and ends the process of this flowchart.

On the other hand, when it is determined in S902 that the image compression unit 257 is unusable (No in S902), the preceding processing unit 137 advances the processing to S904.
In S904, the preceding processing unit 137 makes the same determination as in S902 and S903 for the image compression unit 255.

If it is determined in S904 that the image compression unit 255 is usable (Yes in S904), the preceding processing unit 137 advances the process to S905.
In S905, the preceding processing unit 137 selects the use of the image compression unit 255, and ends the process of this flowchart.

On the other hand, if it is determined in S904 that the image compression unit 255 cannot be used (No in S904), the preceding processing unit 137 advances the processing to S906.
In S901, if the preceding processing unit 137 determines that the image data generating unit 141 is selected to be used for preceding rendering (S808 in FIG. 8) (No in S901), the sub-board side Since the image compression units 255 and 257 cannot be used, processing is recommended to S906.

The processing after S906 is processing for selecting a compression method of image data when the image compression units 255 and 257 cannot be used.
In step S906, the preceding processing unit 137 controls the RIP 253 and the image data generation unit 141 to expand the uncompressed image data in the memories 213 and 233 and perform image compression by software.

The processing after S907 is a process for selecting an image compression format, which is selected according to the output color space specified on the target page of the preceding rendering.
In step S907, the preceding processing unit 137 determines whether or not the output color space specified by the target page for the preceding rendering is color (the target page is specified for color output). If it is determined that the output color space specified by the target page for the preceding rendering is monochrome (the target page is specified for monochrome output) (No in S907), the preceding processing unit 137 advances the processing to S908.
In S908, the preceding processing unit 137 selects PackBits compression for a monochrome image, and ends the processing of this flowchart.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in S907 that the output color space specified in the target page for the preceding rendering is color (the target page is color output specified) (Yes in S907), the preceding processing unit 137 performs processing in S909. Proceed.

In step S909, the preceding processing unit 137 determines whether or not the output color space specified by the target page of the previous rendering is color RGB (the target page is RGB output specified). If it is determined that the output color space specified by the target page for the preceding rendering is color RGB (the target page is RGB output specified) (Yes in S909), the preceding processing unit 137 advances the process to S910.
In S910, the preceding processing unit 137 selects JPEG compression, and ends the process of this flowchart.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in S909 that the output color space specified in the target page for the preceding rendering is not color RGB (the target page is RGB output specified) (No in S909), the preceding processing unit 137 determines in S911. Proceed with the process.

In S911, the preceding processing unit 137 determines whether or not the output color space designated by the target page for the preceding rendering is color CMYK (the target page is designated as CMYK output). If it is determined that the output color space specified by the target page for the preceding rendering is color CMYK (the target page is CMYK output specification) (Yes in S911), the preceding processing unit 137 advances the process to S912.
In S912, the preceding processing unit 137 selects TIFF compression, and ends the processing of this flowchart.

  On the other hand, when it is determined in S911 that the output color space specified on the target page for the previous rendering is not color CMYK (the target page is CMYK output specification) (No in S911), for example, CMYK + α is specified The preceding processing unit 137 advances the process to S913. In S913, the preceding processing unit 137 selects to retain the image data without compression, and ends the process of this flowchart.

  In the preceding rendering process for the target page illustrated in FIG. 8, the configuration in which the rendering unit is selected according to the activation state of the RIP 253 has been described. However, the rendering unit may be selected according to the activation state of the image compression units 255 and 257. That is, when either of the image compression units 255 and 257 is activated, RIP253 is selected, and when neither of the image compression units 255 and 257 is activated, the image data generation unit 141 is selected. It may be configured.

  As described above, in the first embodiment, the rendering unit used in the preceding rendering process is selected and controlled in accordance with the state of the image forming apparatus 110 (particularly the activation state of the RIP 253) when the preceding rendering process is executed. As a result, for each hardware on the sub-board 230, the preceding rendering process can be performed without restarting the supply to the hardware (RIP253, image compression unit 255, 257, etc.) whose clock supply has been stopped during the previous rendering process. Become executable. Thus, the preceding rendering process can be performed using each usable hardware while preventing an increase in power consumption of the image forming apparatus 110.

The power saving setting of the image forming apparatus according to the present exemplary embodiment can be changed by the user. In this embodiment, the preceding rendering processing method is switched according to the user setting.
FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a system including the image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment and a hardware configuration of the image forming apparatus. Description of FIG. 10A is omitted because there is no difference in configuration from FIG.
FIG. 10B is a diagram illustrating a software configuration of the controller 201 that controls the operation of the image forming apparatus 110 that executes the image printing function of the second embodiment, and FIG. Is added. The configuration shown in FIG. 10B corresponds to the software configuration executed in the main processor (CPU) 211.

The power saving setting control unit 142 acquires and holds the power saving setting set by the user using the operation unit 115, and shifts / returns the image forming apparatus 110 to the power saving state corresponding to the condition. In addition, since it is a well-known technique about transfer and return to a power saving state, detailed description is abbreviate | omitted.
The power saving setting control unit 142 also has a function of notifying the preceding processing unit 137 of the power saving setting content in response to an inquiry from the reservation control unit 136 and the preceding processing unit 137.
Hereinafter, the power saving states that the image forming apparatus 110 can take in the present embodiment will be described.

[Controller 201 power supply state 1: Standby state]
Hereinafter, the power supply state in which power is supplied to all the devices (modules or units) illustrated in FIG. 2A is referred to as “power consumption 1: standby state”. Here, the power consumption N indicates that the smaller the number N, the higher the power consumption. In addition, the power states shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, which consume less power than the standby state, are collectively referred to as a power saving state.

[Controller 201 power supply state 2: Connected Sleep state]
FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating the connected sleep state of the controller 201. Hereinafter, the power supply state of the controller 201 in FIG. 11 is referred to as “power consumption 2: connected sleep state”. The block configuration of the controller 201 is not different from that in FIG.

  FIG. 11 shows a power supply state in which power is supplied to a device related to execution of a function necessary for a response (network response) to communication received from the outside via a network. The shaded portion in the figure indicates a portion where power is not supplied. In this embodiment, the connected sleep state refers to a state in which the image forming apparatus 110 can execute a network transmission / reception function with an apparatus on the network while suppressing power consumption. In the Connected Sleep state, power is supplied to a specific circuit and supply of power to other parts is stopped.

  For example, the image forming apparatus 110 transitions to a connected sleep state when a part of the network function such as the network transmission / reception function is valid and the state in which the user does not operate has passed for a certain period of time.

  As shown in FIG. 11, in the connected sleep state, power is not supplied to the sub board 230, the scanner unit 118, and the printer unit 119. That is, in the connected sleep state, power is supplied to the device excluding the shaded portion in FIG. However, since the service provided by the network function varies depending on the system, the power supply location in the connected sleep state is not limited to the configuration shown in FIG. 11, and the power supply location may be set according to each system. Good.

[Controller 201 power supply state 3: sleep state]
FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a sleep state of the controller 201 in FIG. The shaded portion in the figure indicates a portion where power is not supplied. Hereinafter, the power supply state of the controller 201 in FIG. 12 is referred to as “power consumption 3: sleep state”.

  In the sleep state, power is supplied only to the minimum necessary parts such as the memory 213 and the network controller 218 on the controller 201, and power is supplied to a part that receives an interrupt for returning from sleep. That is, power is supplied to the network controller 218, the USB controller 214, the power saving key on the operation unit 115, various sensors, the FAX unit 117, and the power switch unit 111. However, since the sleep return factor varies depending on the system, the “power supply location in the sleep state” is not limited to the configuration shown in FIG. 12, and the power supply location may be set according to each system.

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating an example of a UI related to the power saving setting displayed on the operation unit 115 by an operation from the operation unit 115.
In the UI 1601 related to the power saving setting, the timer / power setting 1602 is a menu for setting the timer and the power setting. When the timer / power setting 1602 is selected, a menu as shown in 1603 to 1606 is displayed.

  The auto sleep transition time 1603 is for setting the time until the sleep state is automatically shifted. The process 1604 permitted during sleep is for setting a process permitted in the sleep state (for example, “preceding job predecessor process”). The power consumption 1605 at the time of sleep is for setting the power consumption (for example, “more” / “less”) in the sleep state. The auto sleep time setting 1606 is for setting a time for automatically shifting to the sleep state. The user can change the timer / power setting (power saving setting) by making a desired setting in 1603 to 1606 and pressing an OK button 1607. The power saving setting content is stored in the HDD 112 or the like under the control of the CPU 211.

  FIG. 13 is a flowchart for explaining a print job holding process that is executed in accordance with a user setting when the controller 201 included in the image forming apparatus 110 according to the second embodiment is in the sleep state. When a job is received from the host computer 101 in the sleep state, the power saving setting control unit 142 shifts the state from the sleep state to the connected sleep state. Therefore, strictly speaking, the image forming apparatus 110 in the sleep state does not execute the print job holding process, and the holding control unit 136 or the like performs the print job holding process in a state in which the state is shifted from the sleep state to the connected sleep state. Run. That is, the process of FIG. 13 is a process in the power saving state. As described above, detailed description is omitted because it is a known technique for shifting to and returning to the power saving state. The processing shown in FIG. 13 and FIGS. 14 and 15 to be described later is realized by the CPU 211 and the sub processor 231 reading the program stored in the BootROM 212 or the HDD 112 to the memories 213 and 233 as necessary. Is done.

First, S1301 to S1309 are not different from S401 to S409 in FIG.
Next, in S1310, the reservation control unit 136 inquires of the power saving setting control unit 142 about the power saving setting content. More specifically, the user inquires about a process that is permitted when the image forming apparatus 110 is in the sleep state (a process that is permitted in the “process 1604 permitted during sleep” in FIG. 16).

In step S1311, the reservation control unit 136 determines whether the preceding process of the reservation job is permitted when the image forming apparatus 110 is in the sleep state. If it is determined that the preceding process of the reservation job is permitted (Yes in S1311), the reservation control unit 136 advances the process to S1312.
In S1312, the reservation control unit 136 reserves the preceding process of the reservation job, and ends the process of this flowchart.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in S1311 that the preceding process of the reservation job is not permitted when the image forming apparatus 110 is in the sleep state (No in S1311), the reservation control unit 136 does not perform the above-described reservation process. Then, the process of this flowchart is finished.

  FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the preceding process executed by software (135, 136, etc.) included in the controller 201 included in the image forming apparatus 110 according to the second embodiment. The preceding process in FIG. 14 is a process executed after a print job is retained in the HDD 112 by the print job retention process in FIG. That is, the process of FIG. 14 is a process in the power saving state that is executed after the print job is received in the sleep state, transitioned from the sleep state to the connected sleep state, and the print job is retained in the HDD 112. is there.

  In step S1401, the preceding processing unit 137 determines whether the preceding processing is reserved for the print job held in the HDD 112. If it is determined that no reservation has been made (No in S1401), the preceding processing unit 137 ends the processing of this flowchart.

  On the other hand, when it is determined in S1401 that the preceding process is reserved for the print job held in the HDD 112 (Yes in S1401), the preceding processing unit 137 advances the process to S1402. Since S1402 to S1409 are the same as S501 to S508 in FIG. 5 except for the preceding rendering process of the target page in S1405, the description thereof will be omitted. Note that the preceding rendering processing of the target page in S1405 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 15 (described later).

FIG. 15 is a flowchart illustrating the target page advance rendering process (the process in S1405 in FIG. 14) according to the second embodiment.
In S1501, the preceding processing unit 137 inquires the power saving setting control unit 142 about the power saving setting content. More specifically, the user is permitted to increase the power consumption while the image forming apparatus 110 is in the sleep state (“Power consumption during sleep 1605” in FIG. 16 described later is set to a value other than “Low”. Inquires).

  In step S1502, the preceding processing unit 137 determines whether or not the use of the RIP 253 is permitted during the sleep state based on the power saving setting content acquired in step S1501. When “sleep power consumption 1605” in FIG. 16 to be described later is set to other than “low”, it is determined that the use of RIP253 is permitted during the sleep state, and otherwise, the sleep state It is determined that there is no permission to use RIP253.

In S1502, when it is determined that the use of RIP253 is not permitted during the sleep state (No in S1502), the preceding processing unit 137 executes the processing after S1503.
On the other hand, if it is determined in S1502 that the use of RIP253 is permitted during the sleep state (Yes in S1502), the preceding processing unit 137 executes the processing after S1507 so that RIP253 is used for preceding rendering. To do.

  Since S1503 to S1510 are the same processing as S801 to S808 in FIG. 8, description thereof is omitted, but when the image forming apparatus 110 is in the connected sleep state or the sleep state, the RIP 253 is activated as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12. Not done. Therefore, the preceding processing unit 137 selects to use the image data generating unit 141 for the preceding rendering. Therefore, if the result in S1502 is No, the process may directly proceed to S1510 and select to use the image data generation unit 141 for the preceding rendering process. The same applies to S1508. In the connected sleep state or the sleep state, the image compression units 255 and 257 are not activated, and the image data generation unit 141 is used for compression. Details of the processing of S1508 are not different from FIG.

  As described above, in the second embodiment, in the power saving state, the rendering unit used in the preceding rendering process is selectively controlled based on whether or not the use of the RIP 253 during sleep in the power saving setting is permitted. Accordingly, in the image forming apparatus 110 having a power saving setting that can be changed by the user, the rendering unit can be switched during the preceding rendering process according to the user setting. Since rendering units having different power consumptions can be selected according to user settings, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of power consumption unintended by the user.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the sub processor 231 according to the second embodiment can control the power of the internal circuit by the clock control unit 252. With respect to the connected sleep state, the state is further subdivided, and the rendering unit can be selected according to the state even in the state shown in FIG.

  The power saving setting of the image forming apparatus 110 can be set by the user for the transition time to the sleep state. More specifically, as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the RIP 253 is not activated in the connected sleep state or the sleep state. Therefore, when a transition is made to any one of the power saving states during the preceding rendering process of RIP253, the process is stopped midway, and the preceding rendering process becomes an invalid state. Also, if control is performed so as not to shift to any of the power saving states during the RIP253 operation, the transition to the sleep state will not be performed even though a predetermined time has elapsed from the non-operation state of the operation unit 115. End up.

  In the third embodiment, the preceding rendering processing method is switched in consideration of the transition time to sleep. The present embodiment is a process when the image forming apparatus 110 is in a standby state, as in the first embodiment, and a process that takes into account the transition time to sleep is added to the process corresponding to FIG. Therefore, the system configuration example of this embodiment and the hardware configuration example of the image forming apparatus are not different from those of the second embodiment, and the controller 201 is also not different from FIG. Also, the flowcharts for explaining the print job reservation process, the preceding process, and the print execution process are not different from those in FIGS.

  FIG. 17 is a flowchart illustrating target page advance rendering processing according to the third embodiment. Note that the processing shown in FIG. 17 is realized by the CPU 211 and the sub processor 231 reading out the program stored in the BootROM 212 or the HDD 112 to the memories 213 and 233 as necessary.

  In S1701, the preceding processing unit 137 inquires of the power saving setting control unit 142 about the power saving setting content. More specifically, the user inquires about the time (“auto sleep transition time 1603” in FIG. 16) from the standby state set in the image forming apparatus 110 to the sleep state and the remaining time until the sleep transition.

  Next, in S1702, the preceding processing unit 137 determines whether or not the preceding rendering process using the RIP 253 of the target page can be completed within the remaining time until the sleep shift based on the information acquired in S1701.

  If it is determined in S1702 that the pre-rendering process using RIP253 of the target page cannot be completed within the remaining time until sleep transition (cannot be completed) (No in S1702), the pre-processing unit 137 performs S1710. Proceed with the process. In S1710, the preceding processing unit 137 selects to use the image data generating unit 141 for the preceding rendering process.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in S1702 that the pre-rendering process using the RIP253 of the target page can be completed within the remaining time until sleep transition (can be completed) (Yes in S1702), the pre-processing unit 137 The process proceeds to S1703. In S1703 to S1707, the preceding processing unit 137 selects to use the RIP 253 for the preceding rendering process. Steps S1703 to S1710 are the same as steps S801 to S808 in FIG.

  Thereby, even when the transition time to sleep is set by the user, the preceding rendering process can be safely completed by the transition time to sleep.

  As described above, according to each embodiment, the preceding rendering process can be performed while maintaining the image forming apparatus in a low power consumption state according to the power saving setting by the user and the power saving state of the image forming apparatus. it can. Therefore, for example, the RIP253 is activated for the preceding rendering process to prevent the image forming apparatus 110 from returning from the sleep state to prevent unintended power consumption by the user and perform the preceding rendering while maintaining power saving. be able to.

In addition, the structure of the various data mentioned above and its content are not limited to this, You may be comprised with various structures and content according to a use and the objective.
Although one embodiment has been described above, the present invention can take an embodiment as, for example, a system, apparatus, method, program, or storage medium. Specifically, the present invention may be applied to a system composed of a plurality of devices, or may be applied to an apparatus composed of a single device.
Moreover, all the structures which combined said each Example are also contained in this invention.

(Other examples)
The present invention supplies a program that realizes one or more functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or apparatus via a network or a storage medium, and one or more processors in the computer of the system or apparatus read and execute the program This process can be realized. It can also be realized by a circuit (for example, ASIC) that realizes one or more functions.
Further, the present invention may be applied to a system composed of a plurality of devices or an apparatus composed of one device.
The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications (including organic combinations of the embodiments) are possible based on the spirit of the present invention, and these are excluded from the scope of the present invention. is not. That is, the present invention includes all the combinations of the above-described embodiments and modifications thereof.

110 Image forming device
141 Image data generator
201 controller
253 RIP

Claims (9)

An image forming apparatus that stores received print data and performs image formation based on the stored print data when a print instruction is input from a user,
First rendering means for rendering print data by hardware;
A second rendering means for rendering the print data by software;
Before the print instruction is input, the first rendering unit or the second rendering unit is used to process at least a part of the pages of the stored print data to obtain image data corresponding to the pages. A preceding processing means for performing the preceding processing to be generated;
Storage means for storing the image data generated by the preceding process so as to correspond to the print data;
Print execution means for executing print processing of the print data using image data corresponding to the print data in response to a print instruction from the user for the stored print data;
The image forming apparatus, wherein the preceding processing means performs the preceding processing by selecting the first rendering means or the second rendering means in accordance with a power state of the image forming apparatus. First control means for controlling activation of the first rendering means;
The preceding processing means selects the first rendering means in a power state in which the first rendering means is activated, and selects the second rendering means in a power state in which the first rendering means is not activated. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1.   Even if the first rendering means is used by another job being executed or scheduled to be executed even if the first rendering means is in the power state in which the first rendering means is activated, the second rendering means The image forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein means is selected. A plurality of first compression means for compressing the image data generated by the first rendering means into a predetermined format by hardware in the preceding process;
A second compression unit that compresses the image data generated by the first rendering unit or the second rendering unit into a predetermined format by software in the preceding process;
The preceding processing means selects use of the second compression means when the second rendering means is selected, and each first compression when the first rendering means is selected. 4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first compression unit or the second compression unit is selected based on an activation state of the unit. 5. A second control unit configured to transition the power state of the image forming apparatus to a plurality of power states including a first power state and a second power state that is more power-saving than the first power state based on a power saving setting; ,
In the second power state, the preceding processing means selects the first rendering means when the power saving setting is set to permit the use of the first rendering means in the second power state. The second rendering means is selected when the power saving setting is set not to permit the use of the first rendering means in the second power state. The image forming apparatus according to any one of the above. Reserving means for reserving execution of the preceding process when print data is received in the second power state, and when the setting for permitting the preceding process is made in the second power state as the power saving setting; Have
6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 5, wherein, in the second power state, the preceding processing unit performs the preceding processing when execution of the preceding processing is reserved by the reservation unit. A second control unit configured to control the power state of the image forming apparatus to a plurality of power states including a first power state and a second power state that is more power-saving than the first power state based on a power saving setting;
In the first power state, the preceding processing unit predicts a time required for generating image data from the print data in units of pages, and before the transition to the second power state, the first rendering unit. It is determined whether or not rendering of the target page using can be completed. If it cannot be completed, the second rendering unit is selected. If it can be completed, the first rendering unit is activated. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first rendering unit or the second rendering unit is selected according to the selection. A first rendering unit that renders print data by hardware; and a second rendering unit that renders print data by software; the received print data is stored; and a print instruction from a user is input A method for controlling an image forming apparatus that performs image formation based on the stored print data in a case,
Before the print instruction is input, the first rendering unit or the second rendering unit is used to process at least a part of the pages of the stored print data to obtain image data corresponding to the pages. A preceding processing step for performing the preceding processing to be generated;
Storing the image data generated by the preceding process in a storage unit so as to be compatible with the print data;
A print execution step of executing print processing of the print data using image data corresponding to the print data in response to a print instruction from the user for the stored print data,
In the preceding processing step, the first rendering means or the second rendering means is selected according to the power state of the image forming apparatus, and the preceding processing is performed, and the control method for the image forming apparatus is characterized in that:   A program for causing a computer to execute the control method according to claim 8.

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