JP3424488B2 - Printing equipment - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a printing apparatus capable of printing information in a specific server on the Internet directly from the printing apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, the use of the Internet has expanded more and more with the spread of the Internet and the performance and speedup of personal computers. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a general Internet usage system. Normally, the Internet accesses a desired server on the Internet via a telephone line 2 connected to a personal computer 1 via a modem or the like, and stores information such as image data such as a home page stored in the server on the personal computer 1. Read into.

When the information read by the personal computer 1 is displayed on, for example, a display and the information is printed, information such as image data is output to the printing device 3 connected to the personal computer 1, and the printing process is performed. To do.

[0004]

However, in the above-mentioned printing system, when it is desired to print the information on the home page from the beginning, the personal computer 1 is interposed, and the processing becomes complicated.

Further, even when accessing the Internet, the personal computer 1 is a device only for accessing the Internet when regularly accessing a predetermined server to print information such as image data in the server. I will end up. Moreover, in such a usage form,
It is not necessary to arrange an operator in the personal computer 1.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention can perform data printing processing by periodically fetching data from a predetermined server without using a personal computer or by using the personal computer as an auxiliary. A printing device is provided.

[0007]

[0008]

[0009]

[0010]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention according to claim 1 addresses the location address (URL: of the information resource of the information resource of the specific server connected through the Internet).
Uniform resource locator) , an address storage means, a clock means, a time storage means for storing the time to read information from the server based on the address, and a time of the clock means for the time stored in the time storage means. When reaching, the instruction means for instructing an external host device to search for the server and read information from the server,
This can be achieved by providing a printing device having a printing unit that prints the information read from the server on the Internet according to the instruction of the instruction unit.

In this case, the printing device does not directly access the server on the Internet, but uses an instruction means to send a command to an external host device such as a personal computer.
The host device obtains print information related to a program or product such as a version upgrade of the printing device from the server according to an instruction from the instruction unit, in order to search the server and read information from the server. Further, this information is printed out by the printing means.

Therefore, also with this configuration, it is possible to regularly obtain information from a specific server at a predetermined time stored in the time storage means, and further print information such as information of a printing device. You can get useful information.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention according to claim 2 stores an address storing means for storing the address of a specific server on the Internet, a clock means, and a time storage for storing the time at which information is output to the specific server. Means, and when the time of the clock means reaches the time stored in the time storage means, it is determined whether or not there is contact information to be output to the specific server, and if there is the contact information, the information is output to the specific server. This can be achieved by providing a printing device having an information output means.

With this configuration, the printing apparatus of the present invention can send the information to the desired specific server, and also periodically determines whether or not the contact information is generated in the printing apparatus, and the contact information is obtained. Information can only be sent if there is.

The third aspect of the present invention is more specific to the invention of the first or second aspect , wherein the address storage means and the time storage means are provided, for example, in a detachable manner in the apparatus. It is composed of a rewritable non-volatile memory card.

With this configuration, the RAM in which the address of the home page that needs information is stored in advance
The information can be easily read from the homepage simply by preparing a card and a RAM card storing the time. Moreover, when changing the address of the home page or changing the time, it is possible to easily change the data of the RAM card or simply by replacing the RAM card.

The RAM card is, for example, an SRAM.
(Static RAM), EEPROM (electrical eraseable PROM), and other RAMs.

[0018]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. <First Embodiment> FIG. 1 illustrates a first embodiment of the present invention, and is a system configuration diagram of a printing apparatus according to the first embodiment. In the figure, the printer 5 is a CP.
U6, an address storage memory 7 connected to the CPU 6 via a bus, a designated time storage memory 8, a clock circuit 9, a browser circuit 10, an operation panel 11, an interface controller (hereinafter referred to as an I / F controller) 12, printing It is configured by the mechanism control unit 13. The printer 5 of this example is connected to the Internet 15 via a telephone line 14 by a modem (not shown), for example.

In the address storage memory 7, among the servers registered on the Internet 15, the addresses (URL, IP address) of the servers desired to be accessed are regularly registered. Further, time data desired to be accessed by the specific server is registered in the designated time storage memory 8. Also,
The clock circuit 9 is a circuit that measures a reference time, and divides a pulse signal created by an oscillation circuit (not shown),
Outputs a time signal.

On the other hand, the browser circuit 10 as the information reading control means is a circuit for accessing the Internet, connecting to a desired server from the Internet, and processing for fetching information such as image data in the server into the printer 5.

The CPU 6 controls the above-mentioned circuits and system control of this system. The CPU6
Drive according to a program stored in a ROM (not shown). Further, the I / F controller 12 has a function of connecting to a personal computer (not shown), performing command analysis of print data output from the personal computer, and creating image data. A printing mechanism control unit 13 as a printing unit is a circuit for driving and controlling an image forming unit such as a print head, and HTML (Hyper Text Markup Language) in a specific server searched by the browser circuit 10.
), The image data created by the I / F controller 12, or the image data created by the I / F controller 12 is supplied.

The processing operation of the printing apparatus having the above configuration will be described below. FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating the processing operation of the printing apparatus of this example. Note that this flowchart is a pre-process of registering data in the address storage memory 7 and the designated time storage memory 8 of the specific server, and image information or the like is searched from the specific server on the Internet according to the registered data, and the searched image information Includes search and print processing to print etc. Hereinafter, both processes will be described separately.

First, the pretreatment will be described. This processing is performed by the address storage memory 7 of the specific server as described above.
And a process of registering data in the designated time storage memory 8. First, the address of the information resource (UR
L) is input (step (hereinafter referred to as S) 1). In this input processing, the address of the specific server may be input by operating the keyboard of the operation panel 11, or the address (URL) of the specific server may be transferred and registered from a personal computer (not shown) or the like. Good. If you enter the addresses of multiple servers,
The same operation is repeated to input the address of the specific server into the address storage memory 7.

Next, the designated time is stored in the designated time storage memory 8 by operating the keyboard of the operation panel 11. This designated time is a registration of the time when the information of the designated server is searched periodically and the information is taken out. If the search time differs for each server to be searched, the time is registered for each.

Next, the CPU 6 outputs the time data registered in the designated time storage memory 8 to the clock circuit 9, and the clock circuit 9
The designated time is set to (S3). As described above, the address storage memory 7, the designated time storage memory 8, and the clock circuit 9
The data corresponding to is registered or set, and the preprocessing is ended.

Next, the search / print processing will be described.
This processing describes the information retrieval of the server designated as described above, the retrieval data downloading, and the retrieval data printing processing.

After inputting the designated time data to the clock circuit 9 as described above, the clock circuit 9 counts the time and determines whether the clock circuit 9 has reached the search time of the specific server. Then, when the designated search time is reached, the CPU 6 outputs a start signal to the browser circuit 10 (S4). When the above-mentioned activation signal is input, the browser circuit 10 reads the address of the specific server registered in the address storage memory 7 (S
5) The Internet is searched (S6). Specifically, for example, by connecting to the Internet via a provider, the URL address storing the desired information of the specific server read from the address storage memory 7 as described above is output from the browser circuit 10, and the corresponding address is output. Search the server.

After searching the target server in this way, the information in the server is input to the printing apparatus. The information entered at this time is, for example, the image data of the home page,
It is HTML document data and is information set in advance as a search item. The information input to the printer 5 in this way is compared with the information stored in the browser circuit 10, for example, the information before one search, and if the data (information) has not been updated (NO in S7), the data described below. Is output to the printing mechanism controller 13 (S8), and the state before the designated time is returned (S9). That is, in this case, the information received from the specified server address is the same as the previous information,
It is necessary to inform that there is no information update, and for example, output printing as shown in FIG. 3 is performed.

On the other hand, if the information received from the specific server includes address update information, the address stored in the address storage memory 7 is updated (YES in S7, S1).
0), and outputs the received information to the printing mechanism controller 13 (S
11) and returns to the state before the designated time (S9).

As described above, according to this example, necessary information can be obtained from a server on the Internet registered in advance, and further, necessary information can be periodically obtained from the server.

Further, the necessary information can be obtained very easily by printing out from the printer 5 at regular intervals. For example, information about version upgrades of printing devices,
Other desired information can be obtained as needed.

When a specific URL address of a specific server is designated, a file transfer processing program according to the file transfer protocol can be started between the specific server and the browser circuit 10, and program data prepared in the specific server, etc. Information can be downloaded via the Internet. As a result, for example, the latest version of the control program data for the printing apparatus prepared in the specific server can be downloaded and stored in the printing apparatus.

Therefore, by registering the program download address of the site operated by the printer maker or its service center in the address storage memory 7 as the above-mentioned specific address on the Internet, the above-mentioned information is automatically obtained. The control information acquired and automatically stored in the rewritable non-volatile storage means inside the apparatus can be rewritten to the latest information for use. That is, in this case, the browser circuit 10 overwrites the program data downloaded in this way on the program data stored in the control program storage memory (flash memory) (not shown) included in the CPU 6 to obtain the latest control processing. Can be automatically upgraded to be executed.

Further, when a trouble occurs in the printing apparatus, the specific address (URL) of the specific server of the printer manufacturer is automatically set in the browser circuit, and the document (HTML) data of the troubleshooting manual is downloaded from the server. It is also possible to display it on an indicator provided on the operation unit of the printing apparatus or to automatically print it on a sheet. <Second Embodiment> Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described.

FIG. 4 is a system configuration diagram of the printing apparatus of this example. The configuration of this drawing different from that of FIG.
Is not directly connected to the Internet, but an I / F
Personal computer 19 via controller 18
And the personal computer 19 accesses the Internet 20. However, the personal computer 19 used in this example has a function, as compared with the conventional computer, that only assists the control in this example. In FIG. 4, the same circuits as those in FIG. 1 are designated by the same reference numerals.

That is, as compared with FIG. 1 described above, the browser circuit 10 'of the present example functions as an instruction means, issues an instruction to the personal computer 19 via the I / F controller 18, and the personal computer 19 simply operates the browser. According to the instruction output from the circuit 10 ', the connection to the Internet 20 is made, and when the time set in the designated time storage memory 8 comes, the address registered in the address storage memory 7 as a storage means is accessed. Then, the information read from the specific location of the registered server is output to the printing device 17. The printing device 1
In 7, the printing mechanism control unit 13 prints the information read via the personal computer 19.

Also with this configuration, the desired information in the server can be printed out periodically by the printing device 17, and the required information can be obtained very easily.

Further, when the specific URL address of the specific server is specified by the instruction of the browser circuit 10 ', the file transfer processing program according to the file transfer protocol can be started, and information such as program data prepared in the specific server can be obtained. Can be downloaded into the personal computer 19 via the Internet. Thus, for example, the latest version of the printer driver program for the printing apparatus prepared in the specific server can be downloaded and stored in the memory in the personal computer.

The personal computer 19 can execute the latest print control process by executing the printer driver program data downloaded in this way by a CPU (not shown) during the print process. <Third Embodiment> Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described.

The printing apparatus of this example is basically the same as that shown in FIG.
The system configuration is the same. However, in the above-described embodiment, the configuration is such that the information is read (received) from the specific server, but the printing device 5 or 17 is set to the Internet address (IP address) registered in the address storage memory 7.
The contact information is output using FTP (File Transfer Protocol) or the like. FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining this. It is judged whether or not there is contact information (step (hereinafter referred to as STP) 1), and if there is contact information, the contact information is uploaded to a desired Internet address. (STP2).

With this configuration, the printing apparatus of the present invention can be used to send information to a desired server. The contact information includes information indicating the state of the inside of the printing device (for example, the number of operations, error occurrence items, number of error occurrences) and the like, and the address is set to send the information to the site operated by the printing device service center. It <Fourth Embodiment> Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described.

The printing apparatus of this example is basically the same as that shown in FIG.
6 is the same as the system configuration of FIG. 6, except that the address storage memory 7 and the designated time storage memory 8 are composed of RAM cards 21 and 22, respectively, as shown in FIG. still,
Other configurations are the same as those in FIG. 1 described above.

Even with this configuration, the SR
S for the server address registered in the AM card 21
It is possible to connect to the Internet at the time set in the RAM card 22 and access the server to periodically obtain necessary information.

Further, in the case of this example, when changing the address of the specific server or changing the time, it is easy to simply change the data of the SRAM cards 21 and 22 or replace the SRAM card. You can

In the description of the above-mentioned four embodiments,
After inputting the information from the desired server to the printing device 5 or 17 under the control of the browser circuit 10 or 10 ', it is determined whether the input information is the same as the previous information. However, when accessing the desired homepage, as shown in FIG. 7, it is determined whether or not the latest information is available (step (hereinafter referred to as ST) 1), and only when the latest information is available, the information is downloaded and the information is downloaded. You may make it update (ST2). In this case, the printing apparatus judges the print instruction of the supplied new print information (ST3), and if there is the print instruction, the print mechanism control unit 13 executes the print processing (ST4).

[0046]

As described above, according to the present invention, the following effects can be obtained .

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the information of the specific server can be read out to the printing device by using a personal computer or the like as an auxiliary, and the information of the printing device or the like can be easily printed out.

According to the second aspect of the invention, information can be transmitted by using the printing apparatus of the present invention, and the printing apparatus has extremely high utility. According to the third aspect of the invention, by mounting the RAM card on the printing apparatus, it is possible to read information from a desired server and perform print processing, and it is possible to more easily print out the server information. it can.

Further, by registering the address of the site operated by the printer manufacturer or its service center as the address of the specific server on the Internet stored in the address storage memory, the above-mentioned information is automatically obtained. Then, it becomes possible for the printing apparatus to automatically rewrite the control information stored in the rewritable non-volatile storage means inside the apparatus to the latest information for use.

It is also possible to automatically receive important notice information from the printer manufacturer to the user, troubleshooting information, etc. from the Internet and display it on an indicator or automatically print it on paper. It is possible.

Further, the printing apparatus itself automatically sends the operation information (management information and failure information) in the printing apparatus to a specific homepage address or Internet mail address on a regular basis, so that the printing apparatus manufacturer can operate all printing apparatuses. It is also possible to manage and deal with failure situations.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram of a printing apparatus according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating a processing operation of the printing apparatus according to the first exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 3 is an example of printing when there is no update data.

FIG. 4 is a system configuration diagram of a printing apparatus according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating processing of the printing apparatus according to the third exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a partial configuration of a printing apparatus according to a fourth exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a modified example of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a connection configuration to a general Internet.

[Explanation of symbols]

5 Printing device 6 CPU 7 Address storage memory 8 Specified time storage memory 9 clock circuit 10, 10 'browser circuit 11 Operation panel 12 I / F controller 13 Print mechanism controller 14 telephone lines 15 Internet 17 Printing device 18 I / F controller 19 personal computer 20 Internet 21, 22 SRAM card

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (56) Reference JP-A-10-214163 (JP, A) JP-A-8-328773 (JP, A) JP-A-10-240457 (JP, A) (58) Field (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G06F 3/12

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. An address storage means for storing a location address of an information resource of a specific server connected via the Internet, a clock means, and a time storage means for storing a time at which information is read from the server based on the address. And when the time of the clock means reaches the time stored in the time storage means, an instruction means for instructing an external host device to search the server and read information from the server, and an instruction of the instruction means. Printing means for printing the information read from the server on the Internet according to
A printing apparatus comprising: 2. An address storage means for storing the address of a specific server connected via the Internet, a clock means, a time storage means for storing the time at which information is output to the server, and a time for the clock means. When the time stored in the time storage means is reached, it is determined whether or not there is contact information indicating the state in the printing device to be output to the server, and if there is such contact information, the information output means that outputs the information to the server. And a printing device. Wherein said address storage means and the time storage means printing apparatus according to claim 1 or claim 2, characterized in that a rewritable nonvolatile memory card which is provided detachably to the apparatus.