JP3002225B2 - Control device for image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a control device for an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, and a facsimile.

[Conventional technology]

In recent years, software for controlling an image forming apparatus has become large-capacity and complicated, and as a method for solving the problem, a document processing apparatus, a copy sorting apparatus, a paper feeding apparatus, an operation display apparatus, a copy sequence control apparatus, etc. It has become common to construct a copying system by dividing units and functions, by software for controlling the respective units, and by means for transmitting information to each other.

[Problems to be solved by the invention]

As described above, recent image forming apparatuses have become multifunctional, and the configuration of the copying system has become complicated.
It has been difficult to effectively detect a failure in the information transmission means and display an alarm to the operator.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a control device of an image forming apparatus capable of effectively detecting a failure of an information transmission unit and displaying a warning to an operator.

[Means for solving the problem]

An object of the present invention is to provide a slave control device including a microcomputer for independently controlling each unit constituting a copy system, such as a document processing device, a copy sorting device, a paper feeding device, an operation display device, and a copy sequence control device, and functions. Group, a main controller connected to and controlled by each of the slave control devices, and an information transmission unit for transmitting information between the slave control device and the main controller. In the device, the main control device, of the slave control device group, constantly monitors a connection state with a unit other than the operation display device, and transmits information to and from the slave control device group. In the case of communication failure or damage, control is performed so as to issue a warning display command to the operation display device, and communication failure or damage between the main control device and the operation display device is performed according to the operation table. The operation display device and monitored by the apparatus is achieved by being controlled to perform its own alarm display.

[Action]

The main control device always monitors a connection state with a unit other than the operation display device in the subordinate control device group, and a communication failure of an information transmission unit that performs information transmission with the subordinate control device group;
In the case of damage, control is performed so that a warning display is issued to the operation display device, and communication failure and damage between the main control device and the operation display device are monitored on the operation display device side, and the operation display device performs its own operation. A warning display is controlled.

〔Example〕

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

 FIG. 4 shows an example of a copying machine to which the present invention is applied.

In the figure, the image of the original sent from the ADF 1 is the optical system 2
Is projected onto the photoreceptor 3. Thereby, the charger 4
A charge image (electrostatic latent image) is formed on the surface of the photoreceptor 3 which has been uniformly charged in advance, and then the electrostatic latent image is developed by the developing unit 5 to form a toner image. The toner image is transferred to the copy paper sent from the paper feeding device 6 under the action of the transfer unit 7, and the copy paper is fixed by the fixing unit 8 and discharged onto the copy tray 9. On the other hand, the toner slightly remaining on the photoreceptor 3 is cleaned by the cleaning unit 10 so that the next image can be formed.

FIG. 2 shows the configuration of a main controller of a general copying machine using a micro CPU.

In the figure, reference numeral 200 denotes a micro CPU for executing a control program of a copying machine, 201 denotes an address, data and control bus of the micro CPU 200, and 202, 203 and 204 denote buses 201 respectively.
A read-only memory (ROM), a read / write memory (RAM) and a non-volatile memory (NVRAM) connected to the micro CPU 200 through the input / output port 205 also connected to the micro CPU 200, and a motor, solenoid,
An output load such as a clutch and an input signal from a sensor are connected. Reference numeral 206 denotes a serial communication control unit, one of which is described as a representative in the figure.
F, sending and receiving signals to and from a copy sorter, a paper feeder, an operation display, and the like.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a slave control device such as an ADF, a copy sorting device, a paper feeding device, an operation display device, etc., 300 is a micro CPU, 301 is a bus, 302 is a ROM, 303 is a RAM, and 305 is an input / output port. , 306 are serial communication control units. By connecting this serial communication control unit 306 to the serial communication control unit 206 shown in FIG.
It communicates information with the main controller shown in FIG.

FIG. 1 is a control block diagram according to an embodiment of the present invention, in which a main control device 100 includes an operation display device 101 and a document processing device.
102, copy sorter 103, copy sequence controller 10
4, paper feeder 105 and information transmission means 106, 107, 108, 109, 11 respectively
Information is transmitted and received by 0.

For example, main controller 100, which has received a print start command from operation cover device 101 through information transmitting means 106, issues a document feed command to document processing apparatus 102 through information transmitting means 107, and performs copy sequence control through information transmitting means 109, 110. A command is issued to each of the device 104 and the paper feeding device 105 to execute a series of printing operations described in the description of FIG.

When sorting the formed copy sheets, a command is issued to the copy sorting device 103 through the information transmitting means 108 to perform the sorting operation. Upon completion of the operation, a completion signal is transmitted from the copy sorting device 103 to the main control device 100 through the information transmission means 108, and in response to this, the main control device 100 causes the operation display device 1
Send a copy end signal to 01.

As described above, the main control device 100 and the subordinate control device group exchange necessary commands at each time, but the information transmission means 106
If a connection failure, damage, or the like occurs in -110, it will be impossible to transmit or receive necessary commands.

In the above control system, in addition to transmitting and receiving necessary commands to each other, the main control device 100 constantly monitors the information transmission means 106 to 110, and when a connection failure, damage, or the like occurs, the operation display device through the information transmission means 106. Causes 101 to display a warning.

Here, FIGS. 5 and 6 are explanatory diagrams of each display state of the operation display device 101. FIG.

In this embodiment, an almost transparent sheet-like matrix switch is superimposed on the full-dot liquid crystal display tube, the pressed position is detected, and each copy mode is selected and displayed.

FIG. 6 shows an example of a warning display when a failure occurs in the system, as described above. In the figure, only “communication system” is displayed as an example, but if the details of the failure can be identified in detail, For example, communication system: paper feed control, drive system: developing motor, etc. may be displayed in more detail.

The monitoring of the information transmission means 106 to 110 includes: i) periodically sending a connection confirmation command from the main control device 100 and waiting for a response from the subordinate control device; ii) connection confirmation spontaneously issued from the subordinate control device. In general, a method of recognizing a failure in the transmission means by not receiving a connection confirmation command for a predetermined time due to the command being received by the main control device 100 or the like.

Further, when a failure occurs in the information transmission unit 106, a warning display cannot be transmitted to the operation display device 101 even if the main control device recognizes a defect in the information transmission unit 106. Therefore, only in this case, the operation display device 101 monitors the failure of the information transmitting means 106, and independently displays a warning without a command from the main control device 100.

However, even if it is said that the warning display is performed without a command from the main control device 100, it is still the main control device 100 that permits the operation display device 101 to perform the warning display independently in the above-described state, In this sense, the main controller 100 controls all the slave controllers.

The information transmission means 106 to 110 shown in FIG.
FIG. 3 shows the serial communication control units 206 and 306.
In general, an optical fiber is used.

〔The invention's effect〕

As described above, according to the present invention, the main control device constantly monitors the connection state with units other than the operation display device in the subordinate control device group, and transmits information to and from the subordinate control device group. In the case of communication failure of the information transmission means to be performed, in the case of damage, control is performed to issue a warning display instruction to the operation display device,
Communication failure or damage between the main control unit and the operation display unit
Since the operation display device is monitored and controlled so that the operation display device independently displays a warning, if any of the information transmission means with a unit other than the operation display device fails, the operation operation is performed. Even when a failure occurs in the information transmission means with the unit of the display device, a warning can be displayed on the operation display device to that effect, so that the operator can easily detect the failure and deal with it. .

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a control block diagram according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
3 and 4 are block diagrams of a main control unit and a subordinate control unit. FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a copying machine to which the present invention is applied.
FIG. 6 and FIG. 6 are explanatory diagrams showing display contents of the operation display device. 100 main control device 101 operation display device 102 document processing device 103 copy sorting device 104 copy sequence control device 105 paper feeder 106 to 110 information transmission means.

Continuation of the front page (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G03G 15/00 303 G03G 15/36 G03G 21/00 370-540 G03G 21/02-21/04 G03G 21/14 G03G 21 / 20

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] A dependent control including a microcomputer for independently controlling each unit and function of a copying system such as a document processing apparatus, a copy sorting apparatus, a paper feeding apparatus, an operation display apparatus, a copying sequence control apparatus, etc. An image forming apparatus comprising: a device group; a main control device that is connected to and controls the slave control device group, respectively; and an information transmission unit that transmits information between the slave control device group and the main control device. In the control device, the main control device constantly monitors a connection state with a unit other than the operation display device in the subordinate control device group,
Communication failure of the information transmitting means for transmitting information between the slave control device group, in the case of damage, controls to give a command of a warning display to the operation display device, the main control device and the operation display device Poor communication between
The control device of the image forming apparatus, wherein the damage is monitored on the operation display device side, and the operation display device is controlled to independently execute a warning display.