JP3507338B2 - Image recording apparatus and control method of the image recording apparatus - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention is a system having a plurality of paper feed / ejection ports, and feeds an image to an image recording apparatus capable of recording an image on a recording medium based on print information input from an external device. Alternatively, the present invention relates to an image recording apparatus to which an optional device for controlling the handling of a recording medium discharged from the image recording apparatus can be connected, and a control method of the image recording apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a sorter for a copying machine which has a plurality of discharge ports and is capable of sorting discharged sheets, the user operates the copying machine to set the number of copies and sorts the copied ones. Since such a method is used, one user on the side of the copying machine exclusively uses the copying machine.

In the above usage method, when the sort designation is set to be larger than the number of bins of the copying machine, the number of bins held is once sorted, the user is allowed to remove the paper from all bins, and then the remaining sorts are performed. I was going.

There is no problem when a stand-alone image recording apparatus equipped with a sorter option, such as a copying machine, is used. However, it can be connected to a plurality of host computers in a network environment to receive print designations from a plurality of users. In such a situation, when the number of sorts specified by the image recording device is equal to or greater than the number of bins, the user must be on the image recording device side to perform the necessary operator operation, or the image recording device must be divided into multiple parts and You need to send data.

[0005]

When the above-mentioned conventional example is used as it is in an image recording apparatus capable of recording an image on a recording medium based on print information input from an external device, there are the following problems. It was That is, in a situation where multiple users are connected to multiple host computers in a network environment and multiple users specify printing from remote locations, there are often no users on the image recording device side, and output is performed by specifying more than the number of retained bins. In such a case, the user must go to the image recording device side to continue the processing without removing all output sheets. Therefore, the job cannot be completed without the user's intervention, and the job is left as it is. If continues, other users on the network cannot use the image recording device. To avoid such a situation, divide the print data sent from the host computer into sort specifications up to the number of holding bins,
There is the annoyance that the data has to be transmitted to the image recording device in a plurality of times.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and controls a plurality of various optional units between a video controller and an engine controller, and also gives a command to the engine controller. An image recording apparatus that uses a general controller, the video controller gives instructions to the general controller, and uses various option units without increasing the cost of the engine controller and the video controller, or a control method for the image recording apparatus, which includes a pin Even if the number of sorts specified is more than one, the sorting can be performed by using the shift paper discharge, and the sorting process of the number of pins or more can be executed without the intervention of the user without shifting the image recording device to the offline state. To do so.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is an image recording apparatus capable of connecting a plurality of optional devices that perform predetermined expansion processing to the image recording apparatus main body, and specifies startup processing when power is turned on. Based on the information acquired by the startup processing designating means, the acquisition means for acquiring the basic information of each option device, and the information acquired by the acquisition means, the command identification information is issued to each option device to acquire the operation specification and the information. An option operation control means, and a centralized control means for confirming command identification information issued by the optional operation control means and centrally controlling each optional device,
A job management unit that creates job control information and manages a job, a page management unit that creates page information and manages designated contents and status of a print page, and an acquisition unit that acquires sortable discharge bin information. Scheduling means for scheduling various settings such as page processing order and designation of a paper feed / discharge port based on the job control information, page information and bin information, and the overall control based on the contents scheduled by the scheduling means. An option designating means for designating the means, an engine designating means for designating printing to the image recording apparatus main body based on the contents scheduled by the scheduling means, and a monitoring means for monitoring the state of the printed page, And the page management means analyzes print data transmitted from an external device. As a result, based on the content specified by the analysis means, a page table creation means for creating page information for managing the page, such as the specified content about the page, the state, and the position of the drawing information expanded in the drawing memory, And a page table updating unit for updating the page table information by the processing of the scheduling unit and the monitoring unit.

Further, in the image recording apparatus, the job managing means includes a job table creating means for creating a job control table for storing information about a job when data of a new job is created, and the scheduling means. And a job table updating unit for updating the job control table based on the scheduled contents.

Further, in the image recording apparatus, the scheduling means includes a sort determination means for determining whether or not to perform sort processing from the job control table, a sort processing means for performing sort processing at the time of sort designation, and a sort designation. It is characterized by having normal processing means for performing processing based on page information when it is not time.

Further, in the image recording apparatus, the sort processing means determines a page to be printed next based on the page table information and the job table information, and shifts and ejects the page. The sorting schedule includes a shift determining unit for determining whether or not the page table updating unit and a shift sheet discharge designating unit for forcibly changing the page to shift sheet discharge designation when the page discharge is performed by the page table updating unit. It is characterized in that which page is to be discharged to which discharge bin is designated by means of means, a sort schedule is performed, and designation is made to the overall control means.

Further, in the image recording apparatus, the normal processing means makes a normal designation to the general control means based on the page table information and the job control table.

Further, in the image recording apparatus, the sort schedule means is based on the usable bin information designated by the schedule means, the priority order of each bin, the page table information and the job control table. It is characterized in that the option designating means designates the integrated control means.

Further, in the image recording apparatus, the shift paper discharge designation means forcibly performs shift paper discharge designation regardless of designation from an external device such as a host computer or panel setting. .

Further, in the image recording apparatus, the option designating means designates the integrated control means on the basis of the page table information.

Further, in the image recording apparatus, the engine designating means designates printing on the main body of the image recording apparatus based on the page table information.

The present invention is also an image recording apparatus capable of connecting a plurality of optional devices for performing predetermined expansion processing to the image recording apparatus main body, the startup processing for designating the startup processing when the power is turned on. Specification means, acquisition means for acquiring basic information of each option device, and option operation control means for issuing command identification information to each option device based on the information acquired by the acquisition means to specify operation and acquire information And a general control means for confirming the command identification information issued by the optional operation control means and controlling each optional device in a centralized manner, a job management means for creating job control information and managing a job, and page information Page management means for creating and managing specified contents and status of print pages, and acquisition of sortable output bin information Based on the contents scheduled by the scheduling unit, a scheduling unit that schedules various settings such as page processing order and designation of a paper feed / discharge port based on the job control information, page information, and bin information. Option designating means for designating to the overall control means, engine designating means for designating printing to the image recording apparatus main body based on the contents scheduled by the scheduling means,
A monitoring unit that monitors the state of the printed page, the monitoring unit monitoring that the page designated for printing has been discharged, and discarding the information for the page that has received the notification of completion. Characterize.

The present invention is also an image recording apparatus capable of connecting a plurality of optional devices for performing predetermined expansion processing to the image recording apparatus main body, the startup processing for designating startup processing when power is turned on. Specification means, acquisition means for acquiring basic information of each option device, and option operation control means for issuing command identification information to each option device based on the information acquired by the acquisition means to specify operation and acquire information And a general control means for confirming the command identification information issued by the optional operation control means and controlling each optional device in a centralized manner, a job management means for creating job control information and managing a job, and page information Page management means for creating and managing specified contents and status of print pages, and acquisition of sortable output bin information Based on the contents scheduled by the scheduling unit, a scheduling unit that schedules various settings such as page processing order and designation of a paper feed / discharge port based on the job control information, page information, and bin information. Option designating means for designating to the overall control means, engine designating means for designating printing to the image recording apparatus main body based on the contents scheduled by the scheduling means,
It has a monitoring means for monitoring the state of the printed page and a notifying means for notifying the operation panel or an external device of the sort status, and the notifying means displays the sort type currently being performed on the operation panel on the status or , Is notified to an external device.

Furthermore, the present invention is a method of controlling an image recording apparatus capable of connecting a plurality of optional devices for performing predetermined expansion processing to the main body of the image recording apparatus, wherein start-up processing is designated when power is turned on. Based on the startup process designation step to be performed, the acquisition step of acquiring the basic information of each option device, and the information acquired in the acquisition step, command identification information is issued to each option device to acquire the operation specification and information. An optional operation control process, a general control process for confirming the command identification information issued in the optional operation control process to perform overall control of each optional device, a job management process for creating job control information and managing jobs, and a page A page management process that creates information and manages the specified content and status of print pages, and acquires sortable output bin information Based on the acquisition step, a scheduling step of performing various setting schedules such as page processing order and supply / discharge port designation based on the job control information, page information and bin information, and contents scheduled in the scheduling step. An option designating step for designating the overall control step, an engine designating step for designating printing on the image recording apparatus main body based on the contents scheduled in the scheduling step,
A monitoring step of monitoring the state of the printed page, wherein the page management step analyzes the print data transmitted from the external device, and based on the content specified by the analysis unit, the specified content related to the page, A page table creating step of creating page information for managing pages such as a state and a position of drawing information expanded in a drawing memory, and a page table updating step of updating page table information by the processing of the scheduling step and the monitoring step. And having.

The present invention is also a method of controlling an image recording apparatus capable of connecting a plurality of optional devices for performing predetermined expansion processing to the main body of the image recording apparatus, wherein start-up processing is designated when power is turned on. A startup process designation step, an acquisition step for acquiring basic information of each option device, and an option for issuing command identification information to each option device based on the information acquired in the acquisition step to specify operation and acquire information An operation control process, a general control process for confirming the command identification information issued in the optional operation control process to control each optional device, a job management process for creating job control information and managing jobs, and page information. Page management process that creates specified pages and manages the specified contents and status of print pages, and the acquisition process that acquires sortable output bin information. And a scheduling step of performing various setting schedules such as the page processing order and designation of a paper feed / eject port from the job control information, page information, and bin information, and based on the contents scheduled in the scheduling step, An option designating process for designating the overall control process, an engine designating process for designating printing on the image recording apparatus main body based on the contents scheduled in the scheduling process, and a monitoring process for monitoring the state of the printed page. And, the monitoring step monitors that the page designated for printing has been discharged,
The feature is that the information is discarded for the page that has received the completion notice.

The present invention is also a method of controlling an image recording apparatus capable of connecting a plurality of optional devices for performing predetermined expansion processing to the main body of the image recording apparatus, wherein start-up processing is designated when power is turned on. A startup process designation step, an acquisition step for acquiring basic information of each option device, and an option for issuing command identification information to each option device based on the information acquired in the acquisition step to specify operation and acquire information An operation control process, a general control process for confirming the command identification information issued in the optional operation control process to control each optional device, a job management process for creating job control information and managing jobs, and page information. Page management process that creates specified pages and manages the specified contents and status of print pages, and the acquisition process that acquires sortable output bin information. And a scheduling step of performing various setting schedules such as the page processing order and designation of a paper feed / eject port from the job control information, page information, and bin information, and based on the contents scheduled in the scheduling step, An option designating process for designating the overall control process, an engine designating process for designating printing on the image recording apparatus main body based on the contents scheduled in the scheduling process, and a monitoring process for monitoring the state of the printed page. And a notifying step of notifying the operation panel or the external device of the sort state, wherein the notifying step displays the sort type currently being performed on the operation panel or notifies the external device. And

[0021]

[0022]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described.

(Embodiment 1) FIG. 1 shows a system configuration including the printer of this embodiment, for example, a laser beam printer. The image recording apparatus to which the present embodiment is applied is not limited to the laser beam printer, and may be a printer of another printing method such as an inkjet printer. Further, in the following description and drawings, an example in which two option units are connected is described, but more option units can be connected, and the functions of the option units may be shared by the main body.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 102 denotes a laser beam printer (printer) to which various optional devices can be connected, and a general-purpose interface (for example, Centronics, RS232) with an external device 101 such as a host computer.
Print information (control information such as code data based on a predetermined printer language, for example, Pos) that is connected by C or the like and is transferred from the external device 101 via the general-purpose interface.
image recording is performed based on tScript, LIPS _III , LIPS _IV , image data, and the like). A video controller 103 is connected to the external device 101 via the general-purpose interface, and is code data (E) transferred from the external device 101 via the general-purpose interface.
SC code, various PDL data, etc.) are received, page information composed of dot data, etc. based on the code data is generated, and image data (2
Value controller or the multi-value controller and the option controller unit 1 described later via the general interface 90.
A command for specifying a paper feed and a paper discharge is sent to 06. The engine controller 105 forms a latent image on the photosensitive drum by a well-known electrophotographic process based on the image data transferred from the video controller 103, and transfers and fixes the latent image on the supplied paper to perform printing. At this time, the option controller 106 is instructed of the timing of paper feeding and discharging.

Reference numeral 104 denotes a panel unit, which is an interface with a user and is composed of various switches (buttons) for operation, an LED display, and the like.
By operating 4, the printer 102 can be instructed to perform a predetermined operation. Various data set by the user is stored in a nonvolatile memory (not shown) such as NV.
It is stored and managed in RAM, EEPROM, and the like.

The optional controller unit 106 is provided with a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, etc. (not shown), and one unit is provided based on the paper feeding / ejecting designation transferred from the video controller 103 and the paper feeding / ejecting instruction from the engine controller 105. It is a general controller that controls the above optional devices (units) in a centralized manner, and communicates with an optional controller unit provided in various optional devices through an optional unit interface 70 to collectively control the various optional devices.

Further, in the RAM of the option controller unit 106, there is a shared memory (shown in FIG. 5 described later) accessible by the video controller 103, and the shared memory is a transport status management area for about 40 pages and a basic state. The video controller 10 includes a status area, a command & status management area, a startup processing area, and the like.
3 designates each option device via each area of the shared memory.

In the transportation status management area, the video controller 103 performs printing methods (paper feed port, paper ejection port, color,
An area for notifying each option device of stapling, shifting, etc., and an area for notifying the video controller 103 of each option status (how far printing has been completed, paper discharge completed, etc.).

The basic status area is an area for notifying the video controller 103 of an abnormality (JAM, no paper, no staples, etc.) of each optional device, and the command & status management area is for the video controller 103 and the command status. In the area of interaction,
The startup processing area is an area in which the video controller 103 specifies startup processing of each option device.

Reference numeral 107 denotes a paper feeding option device (unit)
For example, with a paper deck option unit,
A paper deck controller (large-capacity paper feed cassette controller) 107a is provided inside, and paper feed control is performed based on control information transmitted from the option controller unit 106. The paper deck controller 107a
Includes a CPU, a ROM, and a RAM (not shown), and the CPU controls the paper feed option device 107 based on a program stored in the ROM. Further, the ROM stores extension information of the paper feed option device 107, for example, information on paper sizes that can be stored in the paper deck.

Reference numeral 108 denotes a paper discharge option device (unit)
For example, in a sorter option unit having a sorting function, a sorter controller (large-capacity paper output stacker controller) 108a is internally provided, and based on control information transmitted from the option controller unit 106,
The sort operation and the paper discharge operation are performed. The sorter controller 108a is a CPU, ROM, RAM (not shown).
The CPU controls the discharge option device 108 based on the program stored in the ROM. Also, RO
In M, extended information of the discharge option device 108, for example,
Number of output bins, presence or absence of sort function, presence or absence of stapling function, presence or absence of shift function for shifting the output paper in a predetermined direction,
Information about the presence / absence of a reversing function for reversing the direction of the face of the discharged paper is stored.

The paper feed option device 107 and the paper discharge option device 108 are respectively provided with display units and operation units 107b and 108b having various keys, and display a message to the user and an operation method when each option is used. It is possible to operate.

A control unit 109 controls the printing process of the printer 102, an engine controller 105 for controlling the printing process of the printer 102, and a video controller 103 for analyzing data from an external device 101 such as a host computer and converting the data into image data. An optional controller unit 106 that controls various optional units as a whole.

The option controller 106 is
The common option unit interface 70 manages each option unit and communicates with the video controller 103 via the general interface 90.
In this embodiment, the video controller 1 is routed through each paper feed option unit and the option controller unit 106.
The feature is that 03 controls.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view for explaining the configuration of the printer 102 shown in FIG. 1, and the same parts as those in FIG. 1 are designated by the same reference numerals.

In FIG. 2, reference numeral 230 is a paper cassette,
It has a mechanism for holding the recording paper S and electrically detecting the size of the recording paper S by a partition plate (not shown). A cassette feed clutch 231 separates only the uppermost recording sheet of the recording sheets S placed on the sheet cassette 230, and separates the recording sheet S by a driving unit (not shown) from the feed roller 2
This is a cam that conveys to 04, and intermittently rotates each time paper is fed, and feeds one sheet of recording paper corresponding to one rotation. Two
A recording paper detection sensor 30s detects the amount of the recording paper S held in the paper cassette 230.

A resist shutter 227 presses the paper to stop the paper feeding. The paper feed roller 204 is a recording paper S.
The leading end of the sheet is conveyed to the registration shutter 227. 20
Reference numeral 2 denotes a manual feed tray on which the recording paper S is placed. Reference numeral 203 denotes a manual paper feed clutch, which conveys the recording paper S placed on the manual paper feed tray 202 to the registration shutter 227.
233 is an optional paper feed roller (paper feed relay transport roller)
Then, the recording paper S fed from the paper feed option 107 is supplied into the main body of the printer 102.

The manual paper feed roller 203, the cassette paper feed clutch 231, and the optional paper feed roller 233 are also provided.
A registration roller pair 205 that synchronously conveys the recording sheet S is provided downstream of the registration roller 205, and a toner image is recorded on the recording sheet S by a known electrophotographic method with a laser beam emitted from a laser scanner unit 206 downstream of the registration roller 205. An image recording unit 207 formed by the process is provided.

In the laser scanner unit 206, 215
Is a laser unit that emits laser light based on the image signal (VDO signal) sent from the video controller 103. The laser light emitted from the laser unit 215 is scanned by the polygon mirror 216, and passes through the imaging lens group 218 and the folding mirror 219 to expose the photosensitive drum 22.
A latent image is formed on 0. A beam detector 217 detects the laser light emitted from the laser unit 215 and outputs a main scanning synchronization signal. A light amount sensor 270 detects the light amount of the laser light emitted from the laser unit 215.

Further, in the image recording section 207, 222
Is a primary charger that uniformly charges the surface of the photosensitive drum 220. A developing device 223 is charged by the primary charging device 222, and is subjected to laser exposure by the laser scanner unit to develop the latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 220 with toner. A transfer charging device 224 transfers the toner image on the photosensitive drum developed by the developing device 223 to the recording paper S fed by the registration roller 205. A cleaner 225 removes residual toner on the photosensitive drum 220. Reference numeral 221 denotes a pre-exposure lamp, which optically neutralizes the photosensitive drum 220.

A fixing device 208 thermally fixes the toner image formed on the recording paper S by the image recording paper 207 to the recording paper S. A conveying roller 210 discharges the recording paper S and conveys it. A paper discharge sensor 209 detects the paper discharge state of the recording paper S. A flapper 211 indicates the conveyance direction of the recording sheet S on which the recording is completed on the side of the discharge tray 213 or the discharge option 1
Switch to the 08 side. Paper discharge rollers 214 and 212 discharge the recording paper S conveyed by switching the flapper 211 to the stacking tray 213. A paper discharge stacking amount detection sensor 213 detects the stacking amount of the recording paper stacked on the stacking tray 213.

The engine controller 105 in the control unit 109 controls the electrophotographic process by the laser scanner unit 206, the image recording unit 207, and the fixing unit 208, and controls the conveyance of recording paper in the main body of the laser printer 102.

Further, the video controller 103 is connected to an external device 101 such as a personal computer through a general-purpose interface (for example, Centronics, R232C, etc.), expands the image information sent through the general-purpose interface into bit data, The bit data is sent to the engine controller 105 via the video interface 80 as a VDO signal.

Next, various optional units detachably connected to the main body of the printer 102 will be described. The option controller unit 106 shown in FIG. 1 is provided in the main body shown in FIG. 2, and is configured to be capable of communicating various option units with the same protocol via the option unit interface 70 serving as a common bus.
The option controller unit 106 is also connected to the video controller 103 via the general interface 90.

In the paper feeding option 107 such as a paper deck option unit, 241 is a paper deck,
A large amount of recording paper S is stacked on the ascending / descending deck. 24
A paper deck paper feed roller 2 feeds the recording paper S stacked on the paper deck 241. A transport roller 244 transports the recording paper S fed from the paper deck paper feed roller 242 toward the option paper feed roller 233. Two
Reference numeral 43 denotes a paper feed relay conveyance roller, which is a recording paper fed from another paper feeding option unit (capable of feeding recording paper of different size or same size) detachably connectable to the lower part of the paper deck option. To be transported by relay. Also,
241s is a recording paper storage amount detection sensor, which is a paper deck 2
The placement amount of the recording paper S placed on 41 is detected.

The paper deck option unit 1
07 is controlled by the paper deck controller 107a.

In the discharge option 108 such as a sorter option unit, reference numerals 251 to 257 denote first to seventh discharge bins for face-down discharge, which sort and stack the recorded recording sheets S. is there. Also, 258
Is an eighth discharge bin for directly passing the paper carried into the sorter option and ejecting it face-up. A flapper 280 is a flapper 211 of the printer 102 main body and sorts the recording paper S sent to the sorter option unit 108 to the video controller 10.
Transport switching is performed so that the face of the sheet is switched based on the instruction from 3. Also, 261s to 268s
Is a paper discharge empty detection sensor, which is the first paper discharge bin 251 to
The presence / absence of stacked sheets of recording sheets discharged to the eighth discharge bin 258 is detected.

Further, the discharged paper amount detection sensor 271s-
278s is a full load detection sensor, which is the first paper discharge bin 25
The height of the recording sheets stacked on the first to eighth output bins 258 has reached (detected) 18 mm (equivalent to about 120 sheets).
At this point, the sorter controller 108a is fully loaded with the video controller 1 through the option controller unit 106.
03 is notified.

In addition, each of the first to eighth discharge bins 251 to 258 is about 120 sheets in each bin, that is, about 9 bins in 8 bins.
60 sheets can be stacked, of which the first output bin 251
~ The seventh discharge bin 257 is capable of performing sort discharge.

When face-up is designated by the video controller 103 through the general interface 90, the face-up flapper 280 is turned on to perform sorting, and the sorted recording paper S is sent to the paper discharge port as it is by the roller 290. Further, when face down is designated by the video controller 103 through the general interface 90, the face up flapper 280 is turned off to perform sorting, and the sorted recording paper S is temporarily moved up by the roller 291 so that the trailing edge of the recording paper S faces up. The sheet is conveyed until it passes the flapper 280, then the roller 291 is reversed and fed from the trailing edge of the recording sheet S to the vertical path, and the bin flapper 281 is fed by the designated discharge bin.
.About.286 are driven at predetermined timings to be distributed to the face-down paper ejection ports, and the paper ejection is completed in the face-down state. When the paper discharge bin is the seventh paper discharge bin 257, the face down paper discharge is completed by directly discharging the paper without driving the bin flapper.

Further, a general interface 90 is provided by the video controller 103 by a stapler (not shown).
If the stapling is designated through, the recording sheets S are stored in a staple tray (not shown), the recording sheets S are aligned, and the stapler performs stapling and the first paper output bin 25
The sheet is discharged to any one of the first to eighth sheet discharge bins 258. Also,
When shift is designated by the video controller 103 through the general interface 90, as in the case where stapling is designated, sheets are stored in a staple tray (not shown), the recording sheets S are aligned, and the recording sheets S are shifted with each tray. That is, after shifting the placement area (tray) of the recording paper S to be discharged, the recording paper S is discharged to any of the first to eighth discharge bins 258. Further, it has a staple-needle remaining amount detecting sensor (not shown), and detects the remaining amount of the staples stored in the staple.

The sorter option unit 108
Are controlled by the sorter controller 108a.
The option controller unit 106, the paper deck controller 107, and the sorter controller 108 are connected by connectors, and serial communication is performed by the option unit interface 70. The paper deck option unit 107 and the sorter option unit 1 are connected in series by the same connector.
08 can also be connected by changing the connection order.

Incidentally, the manual paper feed roller 203, the cassette paper feed clutch 231, the paper deck paper feed roller 24.
The registration roller pair 205, the sheet feeding roller 204, and the conveyance roller 244 that convey the recording sheet S are provided downstream of the registration sheet S, and the laser emitted from the laser scanner unit 206 is provided downstream of the registration roller pair 205. The image recording unit 207 that forms a toner image on the recording sheet S by light is provided. Further, the fixing device 208 for thermally fixing the toner image formed on the recording paper S is provided downstream of the image recording unit 207, and the conveyance state of the paper discharging unit is detected downstream of the fixing device 208. A paper discharge sensor 209, a conveyance roller 210 that conveys the recording paper, a flapper 211 that switches the conveyance direction of the recording paper S on which recording has been completed, and the like are provided.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram for explaining the configuration of the printer 102 shown in FIG. 1. The same parts as those in FIG. 1 are designated by the same reference numerals. In FIG. 3, reference numeral 91 denotes a serial communication interface, which is used to specify the paper feed to the paper deck option unit 107 and the sorter option unit 1.
A command for designating a paper ejection bin to 08 is transmitted from the video controller 103 to the option controller unit 106, the paper presence / absence status of the paper deck option unit 107, the stacking status of each paper ejection bin of the sorter option unit 108, the staple needle The status such as the presence / absence status is the option controller unit 106 and the video controller 1.
03, and the option controller unit 106 and the video controller 103 can be directly connected by a CPU bus.

Reference numeral 92 denotes an OPTRDY signal, which functions as a signal indicating whether or not an option designated by the video controller 103, for example, stapling can be used, and is transmitted from the option controller unit 106 to the video controller 103. Reference numeral 93 denotes a POUTT signal, which functions as a timing signal for the main body of the printer 102 to remove the recording paper. Reference numeral 94 denotes a PFEDT signal which functions as a timing signal for the main body of the printer 102 to receive the recording paper from the option unit. 95 is SPCN
The G signal functions as a signal for speeding down the recording sheet S that has been conveyed at high speed in the option unit to match the conveyance speed of the printer 102 main body.

Reference numeral 81 is a communication interface for designating paper feed to the paper feed cassette of the printer 102 main body and the printer 10.
(2) Commands such as paper discharge designation and printing to the paper discharge tray 231 of the main body are transmitted from the video controller 103 to the engine controller 105, and the status of paper presence / absence and paper jam of the cassette 230 of the printer 102 main body is the engine controller 105. It is transmitted to the video controller 103. A VDO signal 82 indicates bit data transmitted from the video controller 103.

Although not shown, the control of each processing by the engine controller 105 is executed based on a signal exchanged with the video controller 103, and the signals are / CPRDY and / PPR.
DY, / RDY, / PRNT, / VSREQ, / VSY
NC, / BD, / SCLK, / CMD, / CBSY, /
STS, / SBSY, / CCRT (Condhition Change
Report) and the details are as shown in Table 1 of the attached sheet.

Of the above signals, the method of using the / CCRT signal will be described as follows in steps 1 and 2. (Procedure 1) The video controller 103 normally checks the / RDY signal and the / CCRT signal, and if there is a change in these signals, it reads the status information.
At that time, the / CCRT signal is "FALSE", and / R
When the DY signal becomes "FALSE", the status of the contents such as misprint, wait, sleep and operator call is first checked. Depending on the result, the details are confirmed by referring to the lower status corresponding to each bit.

(Procedure 2) On the other hand, the / CCRT signal is "TR".
If it becomes "UE", first read the status such as paper size change, paper feed unit function change, warning content change, etc., recognize the type of changed status, and read the status of that group sequentially for details. Recognize./C
Regarding the reset procedure of the CRT signal, the engine controller 105 constantly checks the status change at the end, that is, the change of the paper size, the change of the presence or absence of the paper, the change of the function of the paper feeding unit, and the change of the warning state, and if there is a change Sets the status change status corresponding to the higher order to "1" and sets the hardware signal / CCRT signal to "TRU".
When the status change command is received from the video controller 103 and the status change status is read by the video controller 103, the / CCRT signal is set to "FALSE".

The general interface 90 includes a serial communication interface 91, an OPTDY signal 92,
POUTT signal 93, PFEDT signal 94, SPCNG
The signal 95 is composed of five hard signals. Note that P
The three signals OUTT signal 93, PFEDT signal 94, and SPCNG signal 95 are output from the engine controller 105, passed through the video controller 103, and input to the option controller unit 106 via the video interface 80. Details of each signal are as shown in Table 2 of the attached sheet.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram for explaining the structure of the video controller 103 shown in FIG. 1. The same parts as those in FIG. 1 are designated by the same reference numerals. In FIG. 4, 4
A panel interface (I / F) unit 01 receives various settings and instructions from the operator from the panel unit 104 through data communication with the panel unit 104. A host interface (I / F) unit 402 is an input / output unit for signals with an external device 101 such as a host computer, which sends a data signal from a buffer register (not shown) and controls communication of the engine controller 105.

Reference numeral 403 denotes an image data generation unit, which is an external device 1
Bit map data for actual printing is generated based on the control code data sent from 01. An image memory 405 stores image data. 409 is a CPU
Then, it controls the entire video controller 103. 40
A ROM 4 stores the control code of the CPU 409.
A RAM 407 functions as a temporary storage unit used by the CPU 409. An EEPROM 410 is composed of a non-volatile memory medium.

A DMA control unit 408 transfers the bitmap data in the image memory to the engine interface unit 406 according to an instruction from the CPU 409. 412 is an optional interface (I / F) unit, and CP
Communication with the option controller unit 106 is performed according to an instruction from the U409. In addition, POUTT93, PFE
The DT94 and SPCNG95 are sent from the engine interface unit 406 to the general interface 90 through.

A system bus 411 has an address bus and a data bus. Panel interface section 40
1, the host interface unit 406, the image data generation unit 403, the ROM 404, the image memory 405, the engine interface unit 406, the RAM 407, the DMA control unit 408, the CPU 409, the EEPROM 410, the option interface unit 412, each system bus 41.
1 and can access all the functional units on the system bus 411.

The control code for controlling the CPU 409 includes an OS for time-divisionally controlling load module units called tasks by a system clock (not shown) and a plurality of load modules (described below) operating in function units. Task).

FIG. 5 shows a RAM provided in the option controller unit 106 shown in FIG. 1 in this embodiment.
FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of a shared memory secured with the video controller 103, and FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing a procedure for issuing a command status based on the basic status and acquiring detailed information of each input / output option.

First, based on FIGS. 5 and 7, the video controller 103 passes through the option controller 106,
A control method for integrally controlling each option device will be described.

The shared memory shown in FIG. 5 specifies a page, and a conveyance status management area for knowing the conveyance status of the paper,
It consists of a basic status part for knowing the abnormal state of each option, a command status part for exchanging command statuses, and a startup processing part for specifying startup processing of an option device.

The start-up processing unit is the video controller 10
3 includes a start-up designating unit for designating from 3 and a completion notifying unit for notifying that each option has completed processing as a result of designation. The video controller 103 performs the startup processing of each option by designating this startup processing unit. When the power is turned on, the video controller 103 notifies the startup designation part of initialization designation of the shared memory, configuration information acquisition designation of each option required by the option controller 106, information acquisition completion, etc. The completion notification part is monitored to see if it has completed, and the startup process ends when all are completed.

The transport status management area includes a paper feed port, a paper discharge port,
A part that specifies the printing method such as color / monochrome, stapling position and execution, and a part that tells you how much paper has been fed, whether you can output a print signal, and whether options have been discharged. Consists of. The video controller 103 specifies the above printing method and executes printing while grasping the status of each option.

The above-mentioned designation can be made for up to 40 pages. The designation is performed for each page in order, and the area where the paper discharge is completed is regarded as an empty area, and is initialized so that it can be re-designated. use.

The basic status section is an area for notifying an abnormal state of each device, and there is no paper, paper jam, door open,
The state such as full load is acquired from this area. More detailed information is obtained by the command status from the contents of the basic status.

The command status section is an area for acquiring detailed information of each option and controlling operation of the option, and a command according to need is designated in this area.
Get information. For example, the information that can be acquired is the device name, the size of the paper that is mounted, the remaining amount of the paper that is fed, the position of the paper jam, the type, the access point, the amount of the ejected paper, the details of the failure, etc. As shown in 7, the command is issued according to each situation and the status is received. The command status section is also used for optional control such as shifting to the power saving mode, emergency stop when a paper jam occurs, movement of the discharge bin, and reset execution.

As described above, the video controller 103 obtains the above information, executes printing in a state where there is no abnormality, and when an abnormality occurrence is detected from the basic status, issues a command status specifying the abnormal portion, and further , The contents of the abnormality are specified for the device, and detailed information is collected and controlled according to the abnormality.

FIG. 6 is a flow chart showing a mechanism for accessing the shared memory in the option controller 106, exchanging command statuses with each option, and exchanging information.

When the option information is acquired, it is specified in the command status management area in the memory of the option controller 106 and the information is received. In the command designation area, an ID (S6
01) and the execution command
6, the number of data to be designated (S602) and the data representing the designated content (S603) are designated to a predetermined address, the command is transmitted, and the option controller 1
06 communicates with each optional device and triggers to acquire information (S604).

Based on the trigger and the specified contents in S604,
The option controller 106 performs serial communication with necessary option devices and obtains specified information. on the other hand,
The timer is started until the option controller 106 completely obtains the information, and the video controller 103 monitors whether or not the status information can be obtained (S605, S606).

If the status information cannot be acquired even after a lapse of a fixed time, the status information cannot be acquired, so a retry notification is issued to execute the cond again (S611), and the process is terminated. In S606,
After shifting to the status information obtainable state, the status ID is acquired and it is confirmed whether or not the status information is for the specified command (S607). Next, the number of status data is acquired (S608), the status data for the number of status data is acquired (S609), and the option controller 106 is notified of the completion of status acquisition (S610).

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a data flow from the external device to the option controller section and the engine controller section in this embodiment. The control code for controlling the CPU 409 is composed of an OS that performs time-division control in load module units called tasks by a system clock (not shown) and a plurality of load modules (tasks) that operate in functional units. The translator processing system (analysis expansion task), scheduling system (page operation task), engine I / F system (engine I / F task), and option I / F system (option I / F task) in FIG. It is a task having the CPU 409 as an entity and logically operates in parallel.

FIG. 9 shows the structure of the page table for storing the page information shown in FIG. Page table is CPU
409 is a table for logically recognizing each page. The entity exists as a continuous area in a control information storage area (not shown) of the RAM 407, and acquisition and release are managed by a page management function unit (not shown). It A "raster pointer" in FIG. 9 is a head pointer of an area for one page in the image memory 405, and the CPU 409 sets a corresponding area (not shown) in the image memory 405 for each page at the time of initialization when power is turned on. Split into and link here. For example, the “state flag” is an area for storing a flag indicating the state of the page, and as shown in FIG. 9, an “expansion end flag”, a “page designation end flag”, a “print start flag”, and a “paper discharge end flag”. There is a "release flag" and the like, and it is possible to judge what state the page information created by this state flag is.

For example, the "paper feed mode" is for instructing a method of determining the paper feed means, and "not shown""automatic paper feed""cassette 1 (cassette 230) paper feed""paper deck (cassette 107)""Paperfeeding""MP tray paper feeding" etc. The "automatic paper feed" is a mode in which the paper sizes are the same and the paper feed means on which the paper is placed is searched and determined according to a predetermined priority order.

The "requested paper size" stores a numerical expression of the paper size requested to be fed to the engine controller.

FIG. 10 shows the structure of the engine status table in the RAM 407. The engine state table is the state of the engine controller 105 that is grasped by the video controller 103, is not the same as the actual state of the engine controller 105, and reflects the state of the engine controller 105 by predetermined communication at arbitrary timing. It will be updated.

For example, "/ RDY state" is a flag that reflects the state of the / RDY signal, while the engine I / F task detects "FALSE" of the / RDY signal.
TRUE ".

Further, "/ CCRT state" means / CCRT
This flag reflects the state of the signal, and the actual state of the / CCRT signal is reflected by the engine I / F task. Engine I / F task is / TRT of CCRT signal
By detecting "E" and acquiring the state of the engine controller 105 by a predetermined serial communication, the / CCRT signal becomes "FALSE" as described above.

The "number of paper feed stages" reflects the mounting of the optional cassette unit and the like, and is a selectable number of paper feed stages.

“Presence or absence of paper in cassette 1” is presence or absence of paper in the cassette 230. "Cassette 1 paper size" is Cassette 2
The sheet size is set by a dial (not shown) of 30, and is recognized as the sheet size of the cassette 230 on the assumption that the operator has placed the same sheet as the dial value.

“Presence or absence of paper in paper deck” indicates cassette 107
The presence or absence of paper. “Paper deck paper size” is a paper size set by a partition plate (not shown) of the paper feed option cassette 107, and it is assumed that the operator has loaded the same paper as the partition plate value. It is recognized as the paper size of the option cassette 107.

Although neither table is shown in FIG. 8, both tables are referenced and updated from the analysis development task, engine I / F task, and option I / F task.

The data flow of FIG. 8 will be described below.
Print data (control code, PDL, etc.) input from the external device 101 is stored in a predetermined block unit in the host interface unit 402. The analysis deployment task is
When data is detected by the host I / F unit 402, a page table is acquired. Then, the data is analyzed in the unit of one block, and the image data generation unit 403 (see FIG. 4) is used for the image formation information (PDL graphic drawing command, character code, etc.).
(Not shown), or the CPU 409 itself develops the image and stores it in the area indicated by the "raster point" of the page table. Control information (number of copies, paper feed selection, etc.) for the printer is stored in the page table. After finishing the analysis and development of the data for one page, set "Expand" to "TRUE"
Enqueue to the page queue of IFO structure.

The page operation task simultaneously monitors the "status flags" of all the pages in the page queue and changes the transport procedure according to the status to realize printing. At this time, the option I / F unit 412 designates printing such as paper feeding means, paper discharging means, and printing mode, and the engine I / F
The unit 406 actually sets the sheet feeding unit and the like for the engine controller 105. "Paper end flag"
The page table for which "TRUE" has been set is dequeued from the page queue and returned to the page management function unit.

Engine I / F task and option I / F
The F task is executed by the engine controller 1 via the engine I / F unit 406 and the option I / F unit 412, respectively.
05 and the option controller 106 are communicated at a predetermined cycle, and if a factor that changes the page state occurs,
The "state flag" is updated. Also, the change of the / RDY signal is monitored, and for the change of TRUE → FALSE,
The status of the printer is set to "error occurring" and the error is monitored. Further, the status change such as the / RDY signal and the / CCRT signal is monitored, the "procedure 1" and the "procedure 2" are executed, and the "engine state table" is updated.

The operation mode designation (number of copies, paper feed selection, etc.) from the panel section 104 is temporarily stored in the panel I / F section 401. A printer control task (not shown) cyclically monitors the panel I / F unit 401 at appropriate intervals, and stores data in the EEPROM 410 when there is data, and at the same time stores it as control information in a control information storage area (not shown) of the RAM 407. By storing the data in the EEPROM 410, it is possible to operate the printer in a mode desired by the user even after the power of the printer is once turned off.

FIG. 13 and FIG. 14 explain the processing of the scheduling system which is a system for performing scheduling based on the command information analyzed and converted by the translation processing system based on the control data and print data sent from the host. FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing a method of determining a page to be ejected from the job control information and the page control information and performing a sort designation.

First, in step S701, it is monitored whether or not the analysis / development task has completed analysis of the print data sent from the external device 101 such as the host computer, and there is a page for which new control information and drawing information should be created. . When the scheduling system receives a page for which control information and drawing information should be created, it is determined whether the page is a new job (S702). For a new job, refer to the job completion status in the job control table of the previous job to determine whether to process the pages of the new job or the remaining pages of the previous job. If so, a job control table for storing job control information such as the job ID, the presence or absence of sort designation, the number of copies, etc. is newly created as shown in FIG. 11 (S703, S).
704). This job control table is created for each job and monitors the page designation contents and the state of the page in the job.

Next, in step S705, new drawing information and page control information (page table) are created based on the contents of the layout command specified by the translate.
In step S706, the scheduling process is performed. S7
In 03, if there is an unprocessed page of the previous job, the process proceeds to S706 in order to process that page with priority, and the remaining pages are scheduled.
If the pages are the pages of the same job in S702, the flow advances to S705 to newly create drawing information and a page table based on the contents of the layout command specified by the translate, and the flow advances to S706. Also S70
In step 1, if there is no new page, there is no new page to be created, but it is judged whether or not there is an unprocessed page in the job currently being processed (S713). If there is an unprocessed page, the process proceeds to S706 and remains. The scheduling process for the current page is performed.

If the job is not the sort designation in S706, the designation process based on the control information is performed in S714. That is, when the designated number of copies is C pages, scheduling for C pages is performed for the page. If the job is designated to sort in S706, the copy page having the largest number of undesignated pages among the undesignated pages developed from the page table and the job control table to determine the scheduling order. By selecting the ID page and the youngest copy page ID, it is determined which copy page ID page is designated (S707). The copy page ID here is the same as the page number indicating the page number of the job when the number of copies is 1.

As shown in FIG. 12, "A""I""U"
In the case of a five-page job called “E” and “O”, the copy page ID is “A” no matter how many copies are made.
1, "I" → 2, "U" → 3, "E" → 4, "O" → 5
Is allocated so that On the other hand, if the process number is the number indicating the order in which the printing process is actually performed, the process in FIG.
The lower right number of each page is the processing number.

When only the sort designation less than or equal to the number of usable bins is performed, the processes of S710, S711, and S712 may be performed. In the present embodiment, the bins used for sorting once are sorted by performing shift paper ejection. Since it is also possible to reuse, and is characterized by sorting, the processing is as follows.

First, it is determined whether the page to be processed from now is the first page of the job (copy page ID = 1) (S708), and it is determined whether the shift sheet discharge scheduling is necessary. Here, the shift discharge is a function of shifting only the first page of the job to clarify the boundaries of the job. In the case of the first page, it is determined whether or not the sort discharge designation for that bin is the first order (S709), and if it is the first order, the empty bin information of the sorter is acquired (S71).
0), the used bin is determined based on the copy number information stored in the job control table (S711). When the used bin is determined, sort designation processing is performed for pages with a small usable bin number E or a small copy number C in S712. S
If the page to be processed is not the first page of the job in 708, the bin to be used for sorting is determined and it is not necessary to shift and eject the sheet, so the process proceeds to step S712. Furthermore, if the processing order is not the first in S709, the sorted bundle has already been discharged, so the page table designation is changed to shift sheet discharge designation in order to make the division clear (S715), and the number of usable bins is changed. E
For pages with a small number of copies, sort designation processing by shift discharge is performed (S716).

Here, in each of the designation processes of S712, S714, and S716, the designation for the required number of pages is designated to be printed in the shared memory of the option controller section shown in FIG. 5 through the option interface.

Further, in S717, when the control information and the drawing information are created, but there is a page that cannot be printed, it is further determined whether the engine controller is in the READY state and the video transmission is possible (S718).
Printing is designated for the engine I / F task shown in FIG. 16 described later (S719), and the engine I / F task further designates printing for the engine controller 105. In S717 and S718, when there is no data to be printed and the video transmission is not possible, the engine I / F is not designated and the process proceeds to S720.

Next, in step S720, it is monitored whether or not there has been a paper discharge completion notification of the page that has already started, and when the completion notification is received, the information of the completed page is discarded,
In order to make the memory free, the status of the designated page is updated (S721), and the process returns to the reception determination process of S701. When only the print data for one page is designated, print data to be newly scheduled is not sent, and there is no unprocessed page in the job currently being processed (S701, S71).
In 3), the determination in S720 is repeated, and only the state indicating the state of the already designated page is updated. In addition, when receiving print data for multiple pages and performing continuous printing, in order to obtain throughput, print is normally specified for the engine controller after specifying 2-3 pages ahead for the option controller. To perform, S702 to S712, S71
4, after the processes up to S716 are repeatedly executed, the process by the engine I / F task is started.

Next, the sort scheduling process performed in S712 and S716 will be described with reference to FIG. When the sort designation for the designated page is made, first, the discharge destination of the usable bin determined in S711 to the highest priority bin is determined,
Based on the information in the job table and page table, the required print designation is made to the option controller (S100
2) Then, the highest priority bin is moved to the next priority bin so that the discharge destination of the next sorting designated page becomes the next priority bin (S1003). Here, the priorities are usually assigned in order from the upper bin. For example, in the sorter option 108, the paper ejection bin 251 has the highest priority and the paper ejection bin 257 has the lowest priority. When the sort bin is determined, the designated pages S1002 to S1
The processing up to 003 is repeated.

When the processing for the designated page is completed in S1004, the remaining number of copies is calculated (S1005), and the job table and the page table are updated (S100).
6) The sort scheduling process ends. In the present embodiment, while the end page of a job cannot be determined, such as when the number of pages of the job is large in the processing of the scheduling task, the processing numbers of the second and subsequent orders cannot be determined, so the analysis and expansion of the next page in the same job is performed. After the end page of the job is processed and the number of pages of the job is fixed, normally, the scheduling process is performed after S7.
The processing from 06 onward is repeatedly performed, processing numbers are assigned as shown in FIG. 12, and the processing proceeds. As a result, the page queues are scheduled in the order of the process numbers in FIG. 12, and the print process is performed.

FIG. 14 is a flow chart for explaining the processing of the engine interface system which executes printing based on the page information created by the scheduling system.

The engine interface system is started by the print designation from the page scheduling system, and first, it is determined whether or not there is a print designation from the scheduling task (S801). Status monitoring (printable, paper size, etc.) and abnormality monitoring (no paper, door open, paper jam, etc.) (S802), and notify the necessary system. Next, the engine interface unit 406
The print is designated to the engine controller 105 via the, and the print processing is executed (S803). further,
Through the option interface unit 412, the option controller 106 is notified of status such as paper feed start and print start (S804), and the process returns to S801.

FIG. 17 is a flow chart for explaining the processing of the page state designated by the scheduling system and the option interface for notifying the option controller of the information redesignated from the engine interface and other systems.

If there is a page designated to be printed by the scheduling system in S901, the state of the page is monitored (S902). At this time, if there is a page that has already been printed, the scheduling system is notified that the information can be discarded. If there is no page designated to be printed, the page state is not monitored and the process of S903 follows. Next, the position of the optional movable bin (including whether it is moving or not) is monitored (S
903), and abnormalities such as paper out of options, paper jam, and full load are monitored (S904), the necessary system is notified, and an instruction to display an operator call and execute redesignation is instructed.

In step S905, the states such as the remaining amount of paper in the paper feed option, the stacking amount in the paper discharge option, and the remaining amount of staples are monitored and updated. Further, upon receiving a redesignation notification from the engine interface system or the like, it is determined whether or not there is redesignation data (S90
6) If there is any, the option controller 106 is re-designated based on the re-designation data (S907), and the engine interface system executes the printing process based on the designation. The factors of the re-designation are, for example, the change of the paper feed port due to the absence of paper, the change of the paper ejection port due to the full loading of the discharge bin, and the re-designation is performed by switching each designation.

(Embodiment 2) In Embodiment 1, FIG.
In the processing of S712, the sorting bin was automatically determined from the number of copies and the free bin information of the sorter. However, it is possible to specify the bin to be used for sorting from the host and perform sorting using the designated bin. May be.

(Embodiment 3) In Embodiment 1, FIG.
In the processing of S703, all pages of the old job are scheduled, and the option controller 106
When a page of a new job is created before the print designation is completed for the engine controller 105, the job table creation processing, the drawing information and the page table creation processing for the new job are not performed. When a large amount of memory is available, such as when an external memory such as a hard disk is installed, job table creation processing, drawing information and page table creation processing may be performed for a new job. In this case, S703
Is performed before S706, the job control table for performing the determination in S706 is not switched until there are no unprocessed pages, and the process is advanced to the next job control table that has been processed when there are no unprocessed pages. , It will be possible to respond by judging (see FIG. 18)

(Fourth Embodiment) In the first embodiment, FIG.
Although the number of pages J in the job shown in Fig. 3 cannot be determined until the last page of the job is analyzed, the number of pages J can be determined in advance as control data from the outside so that the number of pages J can be determined at the start of the job. You may allow it. By doing so, scheduling is possible even if the analysis of the last page of the job is not completed.
For example, in FIG. 12, even if the translator analysis is completed only up to “u”,
7, 18 ... CJ-4E, "I" 19, 20, 21
... CJ-3E, "U" 22, 23, 24 ... C
Scheduling up to J-2E is possible, and scheduling processing can be performed at high speed in advance (see the flowchart in FIG. 18).

(Fifth Embodiment) In the first embodiment, when the number of sorts is equal to or larger than the number of usable bins, the sorting is realized by automatically performing the shift discharge to the usable bins. It is possible to misunderstand that the specified number of copies have been ejected to the bins, so to inform the user that the shift has changed to eject paper and multiple bundles have been ejected to one bin. In addition, a warning display such as "shift sort is being executed" may be displayed. Further, instead of displaying a warning, in the case of specifying a sort, it may be possible to display a state indicating what kind of sort is being executed. The above-mentioned display is a display on the operation panel of the image recording apparatus, but the notification may be given to an external device such as a host computer and displayed on the screen of the external device.

[0115]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Between the video controller and the engine controller,
Uses a general controller that controls multiple various option units and also gives commands to the engine controller. The video controller gives instructions to the general controller and uses various option units without increasing the cost of the engine controller and video controller. In the image recording apparatus or the control method of the image recording apparatus, even if the number of pins is equal to or greater than the number of retained pins, the shift discharge is used to perform the sorting, and the image recording apparatus is moved to the offline state. It is possible to execute the sorting process with the number of pins or more held without user intervention.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an image recording apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a configuration of an image recording system including an image recording device and an option unit thereof.

3 is a block diagram for explaining an interface of each controller in the image recording system shown in FIG.

4 is a block diagram showing a detailed configuration of the video controller shown in FIG. 1. FIG.

5 is a schematic diagram of a shared memory with a video controller secured in a RAM provided in the option controller unit shown in FIG.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of a method of acquiring option information via an option controller.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing a procedure of issuing a command status and acquiring detailed information of each input / output option based on the basic status.

FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining a data flow in the first embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining a map relating to a page table in a RAM according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining a map relating to an engine state table in a RAM according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining a map relating to a job control table in the RAM according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a conceptual diagram for explaining an example of a sort status according to job control information according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a scheduling process in the scheduling system according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating an example of print execution and end confirmation processing in the scheduling system according to the first exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart illustrating an example of sort scheduling processing according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an engine interface system according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an option interface system according to the first exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 18 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a scheduling process in the scheduling system according to the third embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

101 External device 102 laser beam printer 103 video controller 104 panel 105 engine controller 106 Option controller section 107 Paper Feed Option Device 108 Paper ejection option device 109 control unit 107a Paper deck controller 108a Sorter controller 401 panel I / F section 402 Host I / F section 403 Image data generator 404 ROM 405 image memory 406 Engine I / F section 412 Option I / F part 407 RAM 408 DMA control unit 409 CPU 410 EEPROM

Claims (14)

(57) [Claims] 1. An image recording apparatus capable of connecting a plurality of optional devices for performing predetermined expansion processing to an image recording apparatus main body, comprising startup processing designating means for designating startup processing when power is turned on, Acquisition means for acquiring basic information of each option device, option operation control means for issuing command identification information to each option device based on the information acquired by the acquisition means, operation specification and information acquisition, and the option It has command control information for checking command identification information issued by the operation control means and controlling each option device in a centralized manner, job control means for creating job control information and managing jobs, and page information for printing. A page management unit that manages the specified content and status of the page, an acquisition unit that acquires sortable discharge bin information, and From the control information, the page information, and the bin information, a scheduling unit that schedules various settings such as a page processing order and a paper feed / discharge port designation, and the integrated control unit based on the contents scheduled by the scheduling unit. Yes and options specifying means, and the engine designation means for printing designated for the image recording apparatus body based on the scheduled content by the scheduling means, the monitoring means for monitoring the status of print pages, to designate against However, the page management means is configured to print data sent from an external device.
As a result of analyzing the data, based on the contents specified by the analysis means,
Expand to the specified contents, status and drawing memory of the page
The page that manages the page, such as the position of drawing information
Page table creating means for creating page information, and
The page table is processed by the processing by the juling means and the monitoring means.
Page table updating means for updating table information
The image recording apparatus characterized by that. 2. The job management means is based on a job table creating means for creating a job control table for storing information about a job when data of a new job is created, and contents scheduled by the scheduling means. The image recording apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a job table updating unit that updates the job control table. 3. The scheduling means, based on the job control table, sort determining means for determining whether or not to perform sort processing, sort processing means for performing sort processing when sort is designated, and when sort is not designated, The image recording apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a normal processing unit that performs processing based on page information. 4. The sort processing means determines a page to be printed next based on the page table information and the job table information, and shifts the shift page to determine whether to shift the sheet. It has a judgment means and a shift paper discharge designating means for forcibly changing the page to a shift paper discharge designation when performing shift paper discharge by the page table updating means, and which page is selected by the sort schedule means. 4. The image recording apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein it is determined whether or not the sheet is to be ejected to the sheet ejection bin, a sort schedule is performed, and the instruction is given to the overall control unit. 5. The image recording apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the normal processing means makes a normal designation to the overall control means based on the page table information and the job control table. 6. The sort schedule means includes usable bin information designated by the schedule means,
5. The image recording apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein the option designating unit designates the general control unit based on the priority of each bin, the page table information, and the job control table. 7. The image according to claim 4, wherein the shift paper discharge designation unit forcibly performs shift paper discharge designation regardless of designation from an external device such as a host computer or panel setting. Recording device. 8. The image recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the option designating unit designates the integrated control unit based on the page table information. 9. The image recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the engine designating unit designates printing on the main body of the image recording apparatus based on the page table information. 10. A predetermined expansion process for the main body of the image recording apparatus.
Image recording device that can connect multiple optional devices
The startup process specifies the startup process when the power is turned on.
Basic information of lifting process specification means and each optional device
The acquisition means to acquire and the information acquired from the acquisition means
Command identification information is issued to each optional device based on
Option operation control hands to specify operation and acquire information
And the command issued by the optional operation control means.
Checks command identification information and controls each optional device
Integrated control means for creating job control information.
Job management means to manage jobs and page information
A page that manages the specified content and status of print pages.
Management means and a function for acquiring sortable output bin information.
Acquiring means, job control information, page information, and bin
Starting from the information, you can specify the page processing order and the paper feed
Scheduling means for scheduling various settings
And is scheduled by the scheduling means
Option to specify to the integrated control means based on the contents
Schedule specifying means and the scheduling means.
Based on the contents of the module,
Engine designating means to specify printing by
A monitoring unit for monitoring the state, the monitoring unit monitors that the page designated for printing has been discharged, and discards the information for the page that has received the notification of completion. images recording apparatus. 11.Predetermined expansion processing for the main body of the image recording device
Image recording device that can connect multiple optional devices
The startup process specifies the startup process when the power is turned on.
Basic information of lifting process specification means and each optional device
The acquisition means to acquire and the information acquired from the acquisition means
Command identification information is issued to each optional device based on
Option operation control hands to specify operation and acquire information
And the command issued by the optional operation control means.
Checks command identification information and controls each optional device
Integrated control means for creating job control information.
Job management means to manage jobs and page information
A page that manages the specified content and status of print pages.
Management means and a function for acquiring sortable output bin information.
Acquiring means, job control information, page information, and bin
Starting from the information, you can specify the page processing order and the paper feed
Schedule to schedule various settings Means
And is scheduled by the scheduling means
Option to specify to the integrated control means based on the contents
Schedule specifying means and the scheduling means.
Based on the contents of the module,
Engine designating means to specify printing by
The monitoring means for monitoring the status and the sorting status
Notification means to notify the device panel or external device.
Then The notification means operates the sort type currently being performed.
Status panel or notification to external devices
Characterized byPictureImage recording device. 12. A predetermined expansion process for the main body of the image recording apparatus.
Image recording device that can connect multiple optional devices
This is a method of controlling the startup of the
The start-up process specification process for
The acquisition process to acquire basic information and the acquisition process
Command identification information for each optional device based on the information
Optional action for issuing information, specifying actions and acquiring information
Issued in the work control process and the optional operation control process
Command option information is confirmed to control each optional device
Create a job control information and a general control process to control
Job management process that manages jobs and page information
Page that manages the specified content and status of printed pages
Acquisition to obtain management process and sortable output bin information
Process, job control information, page information, and bin information
Starting from the information, specify the page processing order and specify the paper feed / eject port
Scheduling process to schedule various settings
And within the schedule scheduled in the scheduling step
Option to specify for the integrated control process based on
Schedule in the designated process and the scheduling process
Based on the content of the
Monitors the process of designating the engine and the status of printed pages
And a page monitoring step for controlling the print data transmitted from an external device.
As a result of analyzing the data, based on the contents specified by the analysis means,
Expand to the specified contents, status and drawing memory of the page
The page that manages the page, such as the position of drawing information
Page table creation process to create page information
The page test is performed by the processing of the juling process and the monitoring process.
Page table update process for updating table information
A method for controlling an image recording apparatus, comprising: 13. A predetermined expansion process for the main body of the image recording apparatus.
Image recording device that can connect multiple optional devices
This is a method of controlling the startup of the
The start-up process specification process for
The acquisition process to acquire basic information and the acquisition process
Command identification information for each optional device based on the information
Optional action for issuing information, specifying actions and acquiring information
Issued in the work control process and the optional operation control process
Command option information is confirmed to control each optional device
Create a job control information and a general control process to control
Job management process that manages jobs and page information
Page that manages the specified content and status of printed pages
Acquisition to obtain management process and sortable output bin information
Process, job control information, page information, and bin information
Starting from the information, specify the page processing order and specify the paper feed / eject port
Scheduling process to schedule various settings
And within the schedule scheduled in the scheduling step
Option to specify for the integrated control process based on
Schedule in the designated process and the scheduling process
Based on the content of the
Monitors the process of designating the engine and the status of printed pages
And a monitoring step for performing printing, in which the page for which printing is designated has been discharged.
Monitors for and informs pages that have received notification of completion
Control method of image recording device characterized by discarding
Law. 14. A predetermined expansion process for the main body of the image recording apparatus.
Image recording device that can connect multiple optional devices
This is a method of controlling the startup of the
The start-up process specification process for
The acquisition process to acquire basic information and the acquisition process
Command identification information for each optional device based on the information
Optional action for issuing information, specifying actions and acquiring information
Issued in the work control process and the optional operation control process
Command option information is confirmed to control each optional device
Create a job control information and a general control process to control
Job management process that manages jobs and page information
Page that manages the specified content and status of printed pages
Acquisition to obtain management process and sortable output bin information
Process, job control information, page information, and bin information
Starting from the information, specify the page processing order and specify the paper feed / eject port
Scheduling step of performing the schedule of various settings
And within the schedule scheduled in the scheduling step
Option to specify for the integrated control process based on
Schedule in the designated process and the scheduling process
Based on the content of the
Monitors the process of designating the engine and the status of printed pages
Operation panel for monitoring process and sorting status
Or a notification step of notifying an external device, wherein the notification step operates the sort type currently being performed.
Status panel or notification to external devices
A method for controlling an image recording apparatus, comprising: