JP3570555B1 - Image recording system - Google Patents

Abstract

When an image recording operation is interrupted by a trouble in any one of image recording devices in a system and then recovered, the image recording operation can be distributed using another image recording device in the system, and the operation is started. An image recording system capable of improving efficiency is provided.
When a trouble occurs in a digital copying machine constituting a system, another device connected to the system is selected as a device to perform image forming processing for image data in which a trouble has occurred (s21). , S22). When the digital copier which has caused the trouble during the proxy processing is recovered, the processing for the image data undergoing the proxy processing is redistributed to one or more devices including the recovered digital copier.
[Selection diagram] FIG.

Description

  The present invention relates to an image recording system in which an image recording device such as a digital copying machine or a laser printer is connected via data communication means.

  A digital copying machine, which is an example of an image recording apparatus, reads an image of a document in an image reading unit, performs image processing on the read image in an image processing unit, and forms an image on a sheet in the image recording unit. . There is an image forming system configured by connecting a plurality of image recording apparatuses including such a digital copying machine via a data transmission line. The image forming system may be connected to devices such as a facsimile, a personal computer, a printer, and a scanner in addition to the digital copying machine.

  For example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H11-163, in a system including a plurality of image reading apparatuses and a plurality of image forming apparatuses, an image read by any one of the image reading apparatuses is processed by a single control unit, and any one of the plurality of image forming apparatuses is processed. A configuration in which a forming apparatus is configured to form an image is disclosed.

Patent Document 2 discloses a configuration in which image data is distributed and supplied to one of image forming units constituting a system in accordance with a set original copy mode.
JP-A-53-116834 JP-A-61-198958

  However, in the conventional image recording apparatus, when a trouble occurs during image recording and the image recording operation is interrupted, there is no apparatus that performs image recording on behalf of another image recording apparatus constituting the system. It is necessary to restart the image recording operation after clearing the trouble in the image recording device, or to provide the image data of the document related to the interrupted image recording operation by moving the operator to another image recording device, and the system There was a problem that the operating efficiency of the system was reduced.

  An object of the present invention is to distribute an image recording operation using another image recording device in a system when an image recording operation is interrupted due to a trouble in any one of the image recording devices in the system and then recovered. It is another object of the present invention to provide an image recording system capable of improving operation efficiency.

The present invention includes a plurality of image recording apparatuses connected by data communication means, and when a trouble occurs during a copying operation on image data in an arbitrary image recording apparatus, an image forming apparatus in which the trouble has occurred is used. In an image recording system in which the remaining image data is processed on behalf of another image forming apparatus,
When the image forming apparatus in which the trouble has occurred is recovered while the proxy processing is being performed in the other image forming apparatus, a plurality of image forming apparatuses including the recovered image forming apparatus and the other image forming apparatuses are returned. And distributing means for distributing the image data being copied by the other image forming apparatus.

  According to the present invention, when the image recording operation is interrupted, the interrupted image is transmitted by transmitting the image data relating to the interrupted image recording operation to another single or plural image recording devices via the data communication unit. The recording operation can be performed by another image recording apparatus, and when the image recording apparatus whose operation has been interrupted recovers, the image forming apparatus whose image formation has been subjected to proxy processing is restored. Since the image data is distributed to one or more image recording apparatuses, the operation efficiency of the image recording apparatuses constituting the system can be improved.

FIG. 1 is a schematic front sectional view showing the configuration of a digital copying machine which is an image recording apparatus showing an example of an embodiment of the present invention. The digital copying machine 30 includes a scanner unit 31 and a laser recording unit 32. The scanner unit 31 is mounted on a document table 35 made of transparent glass, a double-sided automatic document feeder (RADF) 36 for automatically supplying and conveying a document onto the document table 35, and a document table 35. And a scanner unit 40 for reading the image of the original. The image of the document read by the scanner unit 31 is sent to an image data input unit described later as image data, and predetermined image processing is performed on the image data.

  The RADF 36 automatically conveys a plurality of documents set on a predetermined document tray one by one onto the document table 35. Further, the RADF 36 includes a single-sided document conveyance path, a double-sided document conveyance path, and a conveyance path switching unit for selectively causing the scanner unit 40 to read one side or both sides of the document in accordance with an operator's selection. The scanner unit 40 includes a copy lamp 41 for exposing the image surface of the document, a photoelectric conversion element (CCD) 44 for converting the reflected light from the document into an electric image signal, and distributes the reflected light from the document to the CCD 44. It is composed of scanning units 40a and 40b provided with mirrors 42a to 42c, and a lens 43 for imaging reflected light from a document on a CCD 44.

  The scanner unit 31 moves the scanner unit 40 horizontally along the lower surface of the document table 35 while sequentially placing the documents to be read on the document table 35 by an operation related to the RADF 36 and the scanner unit 40. Scan the image of the original. The image data read by the scanning of the scanner unit 40 is sent to an image processing unit described later, and after being subjected to various image processing, is temporarily stored in a memory. The image processing unit supplies the image data in the memory to the laser printer unit 32 according to the output instruction, and forms an image on a sheet.

  The laser printer section 32 includes a sheet storage / transport section 33, a laser writing unit 46, and an electrophotographic processing section 47. The laser writing unit 46 includes a semiconductor laser that irradiates a laser beam corresponding to the image data supplied from the image processing unit, a polygon mirror that polarizes the laser beam at a constant angular velocity, and a laser beam that is polarized at a constant angular velocity. An fθ lens or the like for correcting the light so as to be polarized at the same speed on the photosensitive drum 48 of the section 47 is provided.

  The sheet storage and transport section 33 includes a first cassette 51, a second cassette 52, a duplex copying unit 53, and a manual tray 54. A plurality of sheets are stored in each cassette of the sheet storing and transporting unit 33 for each size. When an operator selects a cassette storing a desired size, sheets are fed one by one from the cassette. The laser light is sequentially conveyed to the laser printer unit 32 via the conveyance path 55.

  The electrophotographic process unit 47 is provided on a charging device, a developing device, a transfer device, a peeling device, a cleaner, and a static eliminator provided around the photosensitive drum 48, and on the downstream side of the photosensitive drum 48 in the sheet conveying direction. And a fixing device 49. On the downstream side of the fixing device 49, there is formed a sheet discharge conveyance path 50 branched into a conveyance path 57 continuing to the post-processing device 34 and a conveyance path 58 continuing to the double-sided copying unit 53.

  In the copying operation, an electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 48 of the electrophotographic processing unit 47 by the laser light emitted from the laser writing unit 46. This electrostatic latent image is visualized into a toner image by toner supplied from a developing device, and then is electrostatically transferred to a sheet fed from the sheet storage / feed unit 33, and heated and heated by the fixing device 49. Fixes on paper under pressure. The sheet on which the toner image has been formed is transported to the post-processing device 34 via the transport paths 50 and 57, or is transported to the duplex copying unit 53 via the transport paths 50 and 58.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an image processing unit of the digital copying machine. The image processing unit includes an image data input unit 70, an image processing unit 71, an image data input unit 72, a memory 73 including a RAM and a hard disk, and a CPU 74. The image data input unit 70 includes a CCD unit 70a, a histogram processing unit 70a, and an error diffusion processing unit 70c. The image data input unit 70 processes the image data by the error diffusion method and stores it in the memory 73 while binarizing the image data read from the CCD 42 and obtaining a histogram as a binary digital amount.

  That is, in the CCD unit 70a, after an analog electric signal corresponding to each pixel density of image data is A / D-converted, MTF correction, black-and-white correction or gamma correction is performed, and a 256-level (8-bit) digital signal Is output to the histogram processing unit 70b. In the histogram processing unit 70b, the digital signal input from the CCD unit 70a is added for each of the 256 grayscale pixel densities to obtain density information (histogram data). The data is output to the error diffusion processing unit 70c as data. The error diffusion processing unit 70c uses the error diffusion method, which is a kind of pseudo intermediate processing, that is, a method in which a binarization error is reflected in the binarization determination of an adjacent pixel, and the 8-bit / pixel output from the CCD unit 70a is used. Is converted into one bit (binary), and a redistribution operation is performed to faithfully reproduce the local area density in the document.

  The image processing unit 71 includes multi-value processing units 71a and 71b, a synthesis processing unit 71c, a density conversion processing unit 71d, a scaling processing unit 71e, an image processing unit 71f, an error diffusion processing unit 71g, and a compression processing unit 71h. ing. The image processing unit 71 is a processing unit that finally converts the input image data into image data desired by the operator, and performs processing until it is stored in the memory 73 as finally converted output image data. . However, the processing units 71a to 71h constituting the image processing unit 71 selectively function as necessary.

  That is, the multi-value processing units 71a and 71b convert the data binarized by the error diffusion processing unit 70c into 256 gradations again. The synthesis processing unit 71c selectively performs a logical operation for each pixel, that is, an operation of a logical sum, a logical product, or an exclusive logical sum. The data to be subjected to this calculation is the pixel data stored in the memory 73 and the bit data output from the pattern generator (PG). The density conversion processing section 71d arbitrarily sets the relationship between the input density and the output density for the 256-level data signal based on a predetermined tone conversion table. The scaling unit 71e performs interpolation with known data input according to the designated scaling factor, thereby obtaining pixel data (density value) for the target pixel after scaling, and scaling in the sub-scanning direction. After the magnification, the magnification in the main scanning direction is changed. In the image processing unit 71f, various image processing is performed on the input pixel data, and information collection on a data sequence such as feature extraction is performed. The error diffusion processing unit 71g performs the same processing as the error diffusion processing unit 70c of the image data input unit 70. The compression processing unit 71h compresses the binary data by encoding called run length. This compression of the image data is executed in the final processing loop when the final output image data is completed.

  The image data output unit 72 includes a restoration unit 72a, a multi-value processing unit 72b, an error diffusion processing unit 72c, and a laser output unit 72d. The image data output unit 72 restores the image data stored in the memory 73 in a compressed state, converts the image data back to the original 256 gradations, and generates an error in the quaternary data that provides a smoother halftone expression than the binary data. The spread is performed, and the data is transferred to the laser output unit 72d.

  That is, the decompression unit 72a decompresses the image data compressed by the compression processing unit 71h. The multi-value processing section 72b performs the same processing as the multi-value processing sections 71 and 71b of the image processing section 71. The error diffusion processing section 72c performs the same processing as the error diffusion processing section 70c of the image data input section 70. In the laser output unit 72d, digital pixel data is converted into a laser on / off signal based on a control signal from a sequence control (not shown), the semiconductor laser in the laser writing unit 46 is turned on / off, and the photosensitive drum 48 is turned on. An electrostatic latent image is written thereon.

  Note that the data handled by the image data input unit 70 and the image data output unit 72 is basically stored as binary data in order to reduce the capacity of the memory 73, but in consideration of the deterioration of the image data. It can also be processed as quaternary data.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a processing state of each unit by the CPU in the digital copying machine. The CPU 74 manages each drive mechanism such as the RADF 36, the scanner unit 31, and the laser printer unit 32 by sequence control, and outputs a control signal to each drive mechanism. Further, an operation board unit 75 of an operation panel is connected to the CPU 74 so as to be able to communicate with each other. The CPU 74 transfers a control signal to the CPU 74 in accordance with the copy mode set and input by the operator, and causes the digital copier 30 to operate in the copy mode. Operate according to. On the other hand, CPU 74 transfers a control signal indicating the operation state of digital copier 30 to operation board unit 75, and displays the current operation state of digital copier 30 on operation board unit 75.

  The sorter control unit 76 manages the operation of a post-processing device such as a sorter that sorts copy sheets discharged from the digital copying machine 30. The image data communication unit 77 performs image communication with other digital image devices such as image information and image control signals.

  FIG. 4 is a plan view of an operation panel of the digital copying machine. A liquid crystal display device 1 having a touch panel is arranged at the center of the operation panel, and various mode setting keys are arranged around it. On the screen of the liquid crystal display device 1, there is always provided a screen switching instruction area for switching to a selection screen for accepting selection of an image editing function. By pressing this area, various image editing functions are displayed in a list. Is done. When the operator presses an area in which a desired function is displayed from among the image editing functions displayed in a list on the liquid crystal display device 1, the image editing function is set.

  The dial 2 is operated when adjusting the brightness of the screen of the liquid crystal display device 1. The automatic magnification setting key 3 is operated when setting a mode for automatically selecting a copy magnification. The zoom key 4 is operated to change the copy magnification in units of 1%. The fixed magnification keys 5 and 6 are operated to select a fixed magnification. The same-size key 7 is operated when returning the copy magnification to the standard magnification. The density switching key 8 is operated when switching the copy density adjustment to any one of the automatic mode, the manual mode, and the photograph mode. The density adjustment key 9 is operated to finely adjust the density level when adjusting the copy density in the manual mode or the photo mode. The tray selection key 10 is operated when a desired paper size is selected from paper sizes set in the digital copying machine 30.

  The copy number setting key 11 is operated when setting the number of copies. The clear key 12 is operated to clear the set value of the number of copies or to interrupt the continuous copying operation halfway. The start key 13 is operated when instructing the start of a copying operation. The all release key 14 is operated to release all the currently set modes and return to the standard state. The interrupt key 15 is operated when performing a copying operation of another document during the continuous copying operation. The operation guide key 16 is operated when displaying guidance on the operation method. The forward key 17 is operated to display a continuation of the guidance of the operation method being displayed. The two-sided mode setting key 18 is operated when setting a two-sided copy mode for copying on both sides of a sheet. The post-processing mode setting key 19 is operated when setting a method of sorting copied paper by the post-processing apparatus.

  The setting keys 20 to 22 are operated in the facsimile mode. The memory transmission mode key 20 is operated when image data of a transmission document is temporarily stored in a memory and then transmitted. The mode switching key 21 is operated when the operation mode of the digital copying machine 30 is selectively switched to either the copying machine or the facsimile. The one-touch dial key 22 stores a telephone number of a transmission destination in advance, and is operated when a call is transmitted to the transmission destination by one-touch operation.

  The liquid crystal display device 1 displays a plurality of display screens in a hierarchical manner. FIG. 5 shows a hierarchical structure of the plurality of display screens. The liquid crystal display device 1 displays the display screens shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 according to the hierarchical structure shown in FIG.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a system configuration of the digital copying machine. This system is configured by connecting a plurality of digital copying machines 30 via communication means. In the office, a digital copying machine having a fax function capable of transmitting and receiving data via a telephone line together with a scanner and a printer, and a printer function for printing out document data output from a personal computer or a word processor, etc. Information devices exist. These information devices are interconnected via a general-purpose interface such as SCSI, and transmit and receive data. This data includes bit codes such as a control command code and image density data.

  As described above, there are digital copiers having various functions. For example, the digital copier 30a is a memoryless, low-function, inexpensive digital copier, such as black-and-white inversion, italic, and mirror image. It has basic editing functions that do not require memory. An Ethernet (registered trademark) that can transfer image data at high speed is provided as a communication interface. The digital copying machine 30a is a low-speed type having a copying speed of about 20 CPM (the number of copies per minute).

  The digital copying machine 30b is provided with a 64 MB memory (400 DPI, 8 bits / pix for four A4 sizes), and has editing functions such as synthesis and repeat in addition to the basic editing functions described above. The digital copying machine 30b is provided with an Ethernet (registered trademark) capable of transferring image data at a high speed similar to that of the digital copying machine 30a as a communication interface, and is a medium speed type having a copying speed of about 40 CPM.

  The digital copier 30c has a large capacity memory of 500 MB (400 DPI, 8 bits / pix, compression rate of 1/4 and 100 sheets of A4 size), and in addition to the editing function of the digital copier 30b, changes the page order. Or stores various formatted document data. Further, the digital copier 30c is equipped with character recognition software for extracting characters from the read image data, and can also code bit data. The digital copying machine 30c is a high-speed type having a copying speed of about 60 CPM. The digital copying machine 30c is provided with not only Ethernet (registered trademark) for high-speed image data transfer but also a general-purpose communication interface such as SCSI or RS232C.

  In the system, in addition to the digital copying machines 30a to 30c, a color scanner 81 having a reading resolution of 600 DPI and a full-color printer 82 having a recording density of 600 DPI are connected, and digital copying is performed via a general-purpose communication interface. Mutually exchanges data with the device 30c.

  In the system 80 configured as described above, by setting the digital copying machine 30c having an abundant image editing function and having a large capacity memory as the main copying machine, the digital copying machine 30c connected via communication means can be used. The rich image editing functions of the digital copying machines 30a and 30b to 30c can be utilized. Since image data can be transmitted and received between the digital copying machines 30a to 30c, an image read by a certain digital copying machine or a color scanner 81 can be copied by another digital copying machine or a color printer 82.

  By setting the communication data in the system 80 to bit data such as image data (hierarchical data in units of one pixel, for example, 8 bits: 256 gradations), a high gradation image can be transmitted with high definition. Also, text data such as characters can be coded and transmitted at a high speed with a small amount of data. In particular, image data having a gradation such as a natural image should be transmitted as data represented by a dither method or an error diffusion method, which is one of the area gradation methods generally intended to compress data. There is also. The conversion into the error diffusion image is performed in advance in each device.

  The format of the transmission data is determined by the settings of each digital copying machine or printer. Therefore, after the image data from each scanner is transferred to the printer unit, the image data is converted into a data string required for writing in the image processing unit, and the image data is output. Each interface is defined by a prescribed protocol and communication speed, and is selected based on the content (data amount) of data to be transmitted and the positional relationship (distance, etc.) of each device.

  Further, each interface is not limited to one that connects each device one-to-one. For example, each device may be connected to a common communication line such as a daisy chain, and in such a case, an address is set for each device so that a data transmission destination can be specified.

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure in a copying operation of the digital copying machine. The digital copier 30 waits for the operation of the start key 13 while receiving the setting of the copy mode on the operation panel. When the start key 13 is operated, the central processing unit 74 changes from the standby state to the copy execution state (s1). After resetting the image processing unit 71, the central processing unit 74 outputs a command for mode setting to the image processing unit 71 based on the setting conditions set in the operation board unit 75, and sets the mode conditions. Is performed (s2).

  Next, the central processing unit 74 outputs an image input command to the image processing unit 71 and causes the image reading device 31 to start reading an image (s3). When the input of the image for one scan of the scanner unit is completed (s4), the central processing unit 74 outputs an image processing command to the image processing unit 71, and the image processing is started in the image processing unit 71 (s5). ). When there are a plurality of originals, reading of the image is continued in parallel with the image processing.

  When the image reading and the image processing are completed (s6, s7), the image processing data is saved in the memory, and the laser is driven to start recording the image (s8). At the same time, paper feeding is started (s9), image recording for all pages is completed, and the paper discharge is completed, thereby completing the copying process (s10 to s12).

  In this process, if the image recording operation or the ejection of the paper does not end even after the lapse of a predetermined time, it is determined that a trouble has occurred (s13), and the trouble process is executed (s14).

  FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing an example of trouble processing in the digital copying machine. When a trouble occurs in the digital copying machine that constitutes the system, another device connected to the system is selected as a device that should perform image forming processing on image data related to the copying operation that caused the trouble (s21). , S22). The digital copying machine 30a transmits a command for requesting a substitute to the selected device (s23), and after accepting the substitute, transmits the set mode and condition (s24, s25). Further, image data relating to the copying operation in which the trouble has occurred is transmitted (s26, s27).

  For example, in the system according to the configuration shown in FIG. 11, when a trouble occurs during the copying process in the digital copying machine 30a, the proxy processing is executed by the digital copying machine 30b or the printer 82. With this process, the copying process for the image data related to the copying operation in which the trouble has occurred can be performed by another device.

  As shown in FIG. 12, regardless of whether or not the copying process has been completed at the time of occurrence of the trouble, the copying process is executed by the device that performs the proxy process for all the image data in the copying operation in which the trouble has occurred. be able to. For example, if a problem occurs during the copying operation for the five originals and the copy processing for the third original is completed, the copy processing for all the originals from the first original is performed in the proxy processing. I do. As a result, even when post-processing such as sorting is set, a copied image can be obtained in a state desired by the operator in the device that has performed the proxy processing.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 13, it is possible to cause a device that performs proxy processing only for image data for which copying processing has not been completed at the time of occurrence of a trouble to execute copying processing. For example, in the above example, the device that performs the proxy process executes the copy process only on the image data of the fourth and subsequent documents. As a result, it is possible to prevent duplication of the same image data from being duplicated, and to prevent a decrease in operating efficiency.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 14, when a trouble occurs in a multi-copy copying operation for a plurality of documents, the proxy process can be started from the leading image data of the document group. For example, if a trouble occurs when the copying process for the second document of the m-th copy is completed during the multi-copy of n copies of the three documents, if the first document of the m-th copy has a problem. The proxy process is started from the copying process. As a result, even when post-processing such as sorting is set, it is possible to obtain a copy image in a state desired by the operator while minimizing duplicate copy processing.

  It is also possible to automatically set from which image data the proxy process is started according to the mode or condition set in the copying operation in which the trouble has occurred.

  In addition, the method of selecting a device that requests the proxy processing includes, for example, whether or not a memory for storing the transmitted image is provided and whether or not the copying process can be performed under the same conditions as the digital copying machine in which the trouble has occurred. It is determined based on whether the installation locations are close, whether the management departments are the same, and the like.

  This determination can also be made when the digital copier having received the proxy processing request command transmits a response permitting the proxy processing. For example, when another user is using the printer, when a trouble has occurred, or when necessary paper is not set, a response permitting the proxy processing may not be transmitted.

  Further, the device requesting the proxy processing may be displayed on the operation panel of the digital copying machine in which the trouble has occurred, so that the operator can easily recognize the place where the proxy processed copy sheet exists. In this case, the proxy processing request can be executed only when the proxy processing is instructed by the operator who has checked the display contents. Alternatively, it is also possible to wait for the clearing of the trouble at a predetermined time, and to request the proxy processing only when the trouble is not cleared even after the predetermined time has elapsed. Further, by displaying on the operation panel of the digital copying machine that has permitted the proxy processing that the proxy processing has been accepted, it is possible to prevent another operator from erroneously using the digital copying machine that has permitted the proxy processing. In this case, the copying operation related to the proxy processing may be started after a predetermined time has elapsed from the display indicating that the proxy processing has been accepted, so that other operators can use the copying operation within the predetermined time.

  Further, the result of the proxy processing may be displayed on the operation panel of the digital copier in which the trouble has occurred.

  FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing trouble processing in the digital copying machine. When a trouble occurs in a digital copying machine constituting a system together with another digital copying machine having a different copying speed, proxy processing is performed according to the copying speed of the other digital copying machine. Therefore, the transmission of the image data is started after the proxy processing amount is determined (s30 → s26). In this proxy processing amount determination processing, the remaining number C of image data for which image formation was not possible due to the occurrence of a trouble is calculated (s31), and the copying speed CPMm of another digital copying machine connected to the system is processed to the processing capacity Tm. Is read (s32), and the proxy processing amount is calculated according to the processing capacity Tm (s33). Image data to be transmitted is prepared according to the calculated proxy processing amount (s34).

  For example, in the system configured as shown in FIG. 16, when a trouble occurs while leaving eight image data in the digital copying machine 30a whose copying speed is 40 CPM, the copying speed from the digital copying machine 30a is 60 CPM. 8 × 60 / (60 + 20) = 6 image data is transmitted to a certain digital copying machine 30b, and 8 × 20 / (60 + 20) = 2 images for a digital copying machine 30c having a copying speed of 20 CPM. Of image data is transmitted. By this processing, when a trouble occurs during the copying operation in the digital copying machine 30a, the copying process can be performed by each of the other digital copying machines 30b and 30c connected to the system in accordance with the copying ability. Copy processing of image data that could not be processed due to occurrence of a trouble can be completed quickly.

  FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing another example of the trouble processing in the digital copying machine. With respect to image data that could not be copied due to the occurrence of a trouble in one digital copying machine, it is determined whether or not the trouble has been cleared during execution of proxy processing by another device constituting the system (s41, s42). If the trouble is solved during the proxy process, the operation stop command is transmitted to the device that is performing the proxy process on condition that the own device processing mode is selected (s44). When the device that is performing the proxy process stops operating (s45), a transmission mode of the image data is transmitted to the device that is performing the proxy process after setting the processing mode (s46 to s48). Thus, the image data transmitted from the device undergoing the proxy process is received and the copy process is executed (s49 → s8).

  For example, in the system according to the configuration shown in FIG. 11, if a trouble occurs during the copying process in the digital copying machine 30a and the proxy process is being executed by the digital copying machine 30b, the digital copying machine 30a When the trouble described above is resolved, the proxy process by the digital copying machine 30b is stopped, and the digital copying machine 30a executes the copying process on the image data remaining after the cancellation. By this processing, the time for using the devices installed in other departments can be reduced.

  FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing a redistribution process in the digital copying machine. Redistribution processing for image data that could not be copied due to the occurrence of a trouble in one digital copying machine when the trouble was resolved (recovered) while proxy processing was being performed by a plurality of other devices constituting the system. If the mode is selected, an operation stop command is transmitted to the device under proxy processing (s51, s44). When the device that is performing the proxy process stops operating (s45), a transmission command for image data is transmitted to the device that is performing the proxy process after setting the processing mode (s46, s47), and is transmitted from the device that is performing the proxy process. The received image data is received (s48, s49). Thereafter, a device to be subjected to proxy processing is selected, a proxy request command is transmitted, and a processing mode is transmitted to the device to which proxy permission has been returned (s22 to s25). Further, the proxy processing amount including the own device is determined based on the processes of s31 to s34 (s30), and the image data of the determined proxy processing amount is transmitted to each device (s26, s27), and the remaining The copying process for the image data is executed in its own device (s61 to s64 → s8).

  For example, in the system according to the configuration shown in FIG. 11, when a trouble occurs during the copying process in the digital copying machine 30a and the proxy process is executed by the digital copying machine 30b and the printer 82, the digital When the trouble of the copying machine 30a is resolved, the proxy process by the digital copying machine 30b and the printer 82 is stopped, and the copying process relating to the image data remaining by the cancellation is executed by the digital copying machine 30a, the digital copying machine 30b and the printer 82. . By this process, the copying process for the image data remaining after the trouble can be completed more quickly.

  FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing still another example of the trouble processing in the digital copying machine. When a trouble occurs in the digital copier constituting the system, another device connected to the system as a device to perform image forming processing for image data for which image formation could not be performed on paper due to the trouble Is selected (s21, s22). At this time, the digital copying machine 30a determines the proxy request mode (s70). In the proxy request mode determination process, it is determined whether or not each of the other devices selected as the devices for which the proxy process is to be performed is operating (s71, s72, s77, s78). If it is not operating, the normal request mode is set (s74). If the selected device is operating, it is determined whether or not the device accepts the interrupt processing (s74). The mode is set to the interrupt request mode (s75). If the interrupt process is not accepted, the device is excluded from the devices that perform the interrupt process (s76).

  For example, in the system shown in FIG. 20, when a trouble occurs while the digital copying machine 30a is performing the copying process, the interruption process can be performed when the digital copying machines 30b to 30d are selected as the devices for performing the proxy process. When the digital copier 30b and the digital copier 30c capable of interrupt processing are in operation, the digital copier 30b is requested to perform a proxy process as an interrupt process, and the digital copier 30d is subjected to a normal proxy process. And the digital copier 30c is excluded from the devices that perform the proxy processing. By this process, a substitute process can be requested in accordance with the operation states and functions of other devices constituting the system.

  FIG. 21 is a flowchart showing still another example of trouble processing in the digital copying machine. When a trouble occurs in the digital copier that constitutes the system, and the device selected as the device to perform the image forming process for the image data for which image formation could not be performed on the paper due to the trouble is operating Then, a time until the operation is completed is calculated from the remaining number of processings in operation and the processing capacity of the device (s81), and a substitute process is performed as an interruption process depending on whether or not this time is within a predetermined time. It is determined whether to request processing (s82 to s84).

  For example, in the system shown in FIG. 22, when a trouble occurs while the digital copying machine 30a is performing the copying process, the digital copying machine 30b operates when the digital copying machine 30b to 30d is selected as the device for performing the substitute process. If the time T is less than or equal to 5 minutes, for example, the time T until the end of the operation is calculated from the remaining number C and the copy speed CPM in the digital copying machine 30b. Request proxy processing by processing. By this processing, it is possible to request the proxy processing more finely in accordance with the operation states of other devices constituting the system.

  FIG. 23 is a flowchart showing still another example of the trouble processing in the digital copying machine. When a trouble occurs in the digital copier constituting the system, a device for requesting the management of a substitute process for the copy process is selected for image data for which the copy process could not be performed on the sheet due to the trouble (s91, s92). . A command for requesting management of the proxy process is transmitted to the selected device (s93), and after receiving an acceptance response to the management of the proxy process (s94), the processing mode and image data are transmitted (s95 to s97). On the other hand, the device that has received the proxy process management request command transmits a reception response (s103) after determining whether the proxy process can be managed (s101, s102), and receives the processing mode and image data. (S104 to s106). Thereafter, for example, the processing of s22 to s25, s30, s26, s27, and s61 to s64 shown in FIG. 18 is executed.

  For example, in the system shown in FIG. 11, when a trouble occurs in the digital copying machine 30a, the digital copying machine 30b is requested to manage the proxy processing. The digital copier 30b selects its own device and the printer 82 as devices to perform proxy processing, distributes the image data received from the digital copier 30a to itself and the printer 82, and performs the copying process according to the received processing mode. Execute. With this process, even when the power is turned off after the trouble has occurred in the digital copying machine 30a, the substitute process can be managed by another device and the copy process for the image data remaining due to the trouble can be executed.

  FIG. 24 is a flowchart showing still another example of the trouble processing in the digital copying machine. If a trouble occurs in the digital copier that constitutes the system, for the image data that could not be copied to paper due to the trouble, select a device that requests a substitute process for the copy process, and before sending the image data Next, it is determined whether or not all image processing for the image data has been completed (s110). If the image processing has not been completed, after the image data for which the image processing has been completed is transmitted (s111, s112), the image data for which the image processing has not been completed is transmitted (s113, s114). An image processing request command is transmitted (s115).

  With this processing, for example, when a trouble occurs in the image processing unit or the image recording unit, a trouble occurs in a state where the image processing of some image data is not completed after the reading of the original image is completed. Even if the operation is stopped, the copying process can be executed in a state where the image processing desired by the operator has been performed. FIG. 25 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing in the digital copying machine requested to perform the proxy processing. The digital copier having received the request for the proxy processing determines whether or not the proxy processing is possible (s120, s121). If the proxy processing is possible, the digital copier transmits a response for receiving the proxy processing (s122). If the processing is not possible, a rejection response is transmitted (s123). When the proxy processing is accepted, the received processing mode is set (s124), and the reception of the image data is started (s125). When the reception of the image data is completed, it is determined whether or not the image processing is requested (s126, s127). When the image processing is requested, the image processing is executed (s128), and the image recording related to the copying operation is executed by the processing of s8 to s15 in FIG.

  The digital copier that has accepted the proxy process waits for the operation of the start key even during the execution of the copy operation related to the proxy process (s129 → s1), and operates the start key during the execution of the copy operation related to the proxy process. In this case, the reading and image processing of the image of the original are executed by the processing of s2 to s7 in FIG. 9, and the image data on which the image processing has been completed is stored in the memory. Then, when the copy process related to the proxy process is completed, it is determined whether or not there is image data in the memory (s129 → s130). If there is image data, the image is recorded by the processes of s8 to s15 in FIG. I do. FIG. 26 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a process for determining whether to request a proxy process. If the trouble is caused by the absence of consumables such as toner and paper in the digital copier in which the trouble has occurred, the trouble is not requested to other devices (s131, s132). If the cause is not related to consumables, for example, if it is a mechanical trouble of the digital copying machine, a request is made to another device connected in the system for proxy processing (s133).

  FIG. 27 is a flowchart illustrating another example of the process for determining whether or not to request a proxy process. If the trouble is a mechanical trouble of the digital copying machine and the trouble is a minor one that can be resolved by the user through guidance on the operation panel, substitute processing is performed. Without making a request (s141, s142), a proxy process is requested to another device only when the trouble cannot be easily repaired by the user (s143).

1 is a schematic front sectional view showing a configuration of a digital copying machine. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an image processing unit included in the digital copying machine. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a processing state of each unit by a CPU in the digital copying machine. FIG. 3 is a plan view of an operation panel of the digital copying machine. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a hierarchical structure of a plurality of display screens in the liquid crystal display device of the operation panel. It is a figure showing the example of the display screen in the above-mentioned liquid crystal display. It is a figure showing the example of the display screen in the above-mentioned liquid crystal display. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a system configuration of the digital copying machine. It is a flow chart which shows a processing procedure in a copy operation of a digital copier which constitutes the above-mentioned system. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example of trouble processing in the digital copying machine. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a system when the trouble processing is performed. It is a figure showing the execution state of trouble processing. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an execution state of another trouble process. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an execution state of another trouble process. 11 is a flowchart illustrating still another example of trouble processing in a digital copying machine. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a system when the trouble processing is performed. 11 is a flowchart illustrating still another example of trouble processing in a digital copying machine. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a redistribution process in the digital copying machine. 11 is a flowchart illustrating still another example of trouble processing in a digital copying machine. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a system when the trouble processing is performed. 11 is a flowchart illustrating still another example of trouble processing in a digital copying machine. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a system when the trouble processing is performed. 11 is a flowchart illustrating still another example of trouble processing in a digital copying machine. 11 is a flowchart illustrating still another example of trouble processing in a digital copying machine. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing in a digital copying machine requested to perform proxy processing. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the process which concerns on the determination whether to request a proxy process. It is a flowchart which shows the other example of the process which concerns on the determination whether to request a proxy process.

Explanation of reference numerals

30-Digital Copier 71-Image Processing Unit 74-Central Processing Unit 75-Operation Board Unit 80-Image Forming System 81-Color Scanner 82-Color Printer

Claims (1)

A plurality of image recording apparatuses connected by data communication means, when a trouble occurs during a copying operation on image data in any image recording apparatus, the remaining image data in the image forming apparatus in which the trouble has occurred; In an image recording system configured to perform proxy processing in another image forming apparatus,
When the image forming apparatus in which the trouble has occurred is recovered while the proxy processing is being performed in the other image forming apparatus, a plurality of image forming apparatuses including the recovered image forming apparatus and the other image forming apparatuses are returned. An image recording system provided with distribution means for distributing the image data being copied by the other image forming apparatus.

Images