JP4492194B2 - Image forming apparatus and job management method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus and a job management method suitable for being applied to a copying machine, a multifunction machine, a printer, and the like that execute a plurality of registered jobs (JOBs) in a predetermined order and form an image on a recording sheet. Is.

  Conventionally, in an image forming apparatus, after issuing a print request, the information processing apparatus, the printing apparatus, the printing system, and the printing system that can hold the print request until it is convenient for the user to start printing. A data processing method has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  In this case, a hold option is selectively added to the print request issued from the information processing apparatus, the added print request is identified, different identification information is added and held individually, and the identification information is processed. By notifying the device, inputting identification information for the print request to which the hold option is added, from the printing device, and additionally storing the print request in the hold state on the print request side to process the print request as needed, After the print request is issued, the print request can be held until it is convenient for the user to start printing.

  In addition, there is a print control apparatus and method for skipping a job that can be transferred to the next job if there is a job that cannot be printed during image formation in a predetermined order in a plurality of registered jobs. It has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 2).

  In this case, immediately before executing the print job, it is determined whether printing based on the print job is possible. If printing is not possible, the execution of the print job is suspended and the reason is displayed. The print job is shifted to.

  As a result, when executing a plurality of print jobs, if there is a print job that cannot be printed in the middle, it is possible to skip the print job that cannot be printed and move to the next print job. Efficiency can be improved.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 09-269880 (pages 3, 4 and 10) Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-26169 (pages 4, 5 and 2)

  However, in the case of Patent Document 1 described above, if it is not desired to execute immediate print output, a print job can be suspended. However, in order to place a job on hold, an operation for that purpose or a hold from an external device is possible. Since an operation such as designation is necessary, there is a problem that the operation is complicated.

  In addition, the print control apparatus and method described in Patent Document 2 have an automatic hold function for print jobs. However, since the jobs to be automatically held are limited to jobs that cannot be printed, printing is possible. However, there is a problem that it is not possible to cope with a job for which immediate printing is not desired.

  Therefore, according to the present invention, when the image of the job is confirmed by the confirmation unit, the job is automatically set to the hold state, and when the output order comes to the job being confirmed, the next registered job is set. An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus and a job management method capable of improving the user-friendliness by outputting first.

The image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes a registration means for registering the job, and storage means for storing a plurality of jobs registered by the registration means, executes the jobs registered in a predetermined order, recorded An operation unit that selectively designates hold, thumbnail image display, or image editing for a job selected from a plurality of jobs registered in a registration unit in an image forming apparatus that forms an image on a sheet ; selectively manages the job stored in the storage means, and control means for controlling to execute the jobs registered in a predetermined order, said control means, from among the jobs registered in the registration means against jobs, hold, display of the thumbnail images, or when a specified image editing has been performed by the operation unit, the changing the job from the reservation state on hold, pending When came around the output order on the job, and controls to output the next registered job of the job first.

For example, further comprising control means a detection means for detecting the job end is performed distearate job, when the job end of previous job of the job is detected by the detecting means, before the job is next registered Control to output to

The designation of image editing is a request for image editing from an image editing apparatus connected to the image forming apparatus .

Whether or not to end each operation after the operation means selectively designates hold, thumbnail image display, or image editing for a job selected from a plurality of jobs registered in the registration means or further comprising a determination means for determining, the control means, if it was Ritsui completion by the the determination unit operations each designated selectively determined by the operating means, releases the hold state of the job .

In the present invention, for a job selected from a plurality of jobs registered in the registration means, an operation means for selectively designating hold, thumbnail image display, or image editing is stored in the storage means. And a control unit that controls the registered jobs to be executed in a predetermined order, and holds, thumbnails for jobs selected from the jobs registered in the registration unit. When an image display or image editing is specified by the operation unit, the job is changed from the reserved state to the hold state, and when the output order of the job in the hold state comes, it is registered next to the job. The processed job is output first.

As a result, when displaying a thumbnail image of a registered job or specifying editing of an image, an operation for putting the job on hold is not required, and the job is automatically set to hold. Can be improved.

Job management method according to the present invention includes a registration means for registering the job, and storage means for storing a plurality of jobs registered by the registration means, executes the jobs registered in a predetermined order, recorded A job management method in an image forming apparatus for forming an image on a sheet, the step of selecting one of a plurality of jobs registered in a registration unit, and a hold, thumbnail for the selected job A step of selectively specifying image display or image editing, and a step of placing the selected job on hold in response to selectively specifying hold, thumbnail image display, or image editing. when a step of detecting the job end is performed distearate job, if the job end of the previous job selected job pending condition is detected, the selected pending di Before the blanking, the steps of output the next registered job of the job, for the selected job on hold, hold, display of the thumbnail image, or an image editing is designated selectively after having determining whether each task is completed, when each of the work is determined that the completion for the selected job on hold, and releasing the held state of the job It is characterized by this.

As a result, when displaying thumbnail images of registered jobs or specifying image editing , the job is automatically set to hold without requiring an operation to put the job on hold . Since it is possible to automatically cancel the hold of the job after the designation of display or image editing and execute the output, it is possible to improve the usability of the user.

According to the image forming apparatus and the job management method according to the present invention, for a job selected from a plurality of jobs registered in the registration unit , hold, thumbnail image display, or image editing is selectively designated. Operating means for controlling the jobs stored in the storage means, and control means for controlling the registered jobs to be executed in a predetermined order, and selected from the jobs registered in the registration means. When the operation unit designates hold, thumbnail image display, or image editing for the selected job , the job is changed from the reserved state to the hold state, and the output order is changed to the hold job. In this case, the job registered next to the job is output first.

This configuration, display of the thumbnail images of the jobs registered, or when performing the specified editing image, without requiring an operation for the job on hold, the job is automatically set to hold, also, the thumbnail image Since the job suspension is automatically canceled after designation of image display or image editing , the user-friendliness can be improved.

  Hereinafter, an image forming apparatus and a job management method according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of an image forming apparatus 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
An image forming apparatus 100 shown in FIG. 1 is an apparatus that forms an image based on predetermined program information, and executes a plurality of registered jobs in a predetermined order to form a black and white image on recording paper, It is suitable for application to a printer, a multifunction machine (digital copier), or the like. In this example, the image forming apparatus 100 constitutes a direct transfer type multifunction peripheral or the like that obtains a monochrome image, and has an apparatus main body A. Of course, the post-processing apparatus 90 may be connected to the apparatus main body A for use. The apparatus main body A includes paper feed trays 30a and 30b, a document reading unit 11, a control unit 15, a writing processing unit 60, an image forming unit 70, and the like.

  An automatic document feeder (ADF) 40 is attached to the upper part of the apparatus main body A and operates to automatically feed an arbitrary document 20. For example, the ADF 40 includes a document placing portion 41, a roller 42 a, a roller 42 b, a roller 43, a conveyance roller 44, and a paper discharge tray 46. One or a plurality of documents 20 are placed on the document placing portion 41. Rollers 42a and 42b are provided on the downstream side of the document placing portion 41, and when the automatic paper feeding mode is selected, the document 20 fed out from the document placing portion 41 is rotated in a U-shape by the roller 43 on the downstream side. So that it is conveyed. When the automatic paper feeding mode is set, the recording surface of the document 20 is placed upward by the document placement unit 41.

  On the other hand, a document reading means 11 is provided in the main unit. A reduction type image sensor is used for the document reading unit 11. Further, the document reading unit 11 reads the surface of the document 20 and outputs image data on the document surface (hereinafter referred to as document image data Din), for example, when the document 20 is reversed in a U shape by the roller 43. To be made.

  The document reading unit 11 includes a first platen glass 51, a second platen glass (ADF glass) 52, a light source 53, mirrors 54, 55, and 56, an imaging optical unit 57, a CCD imaging device 58, and an optical drive unit (not shown). Have. The document 20 read by the document reading unit 11 is transported by the transport roller 44 and discharged to the discharge tray 46.

  The document reading means 11 is provided with a CCD image pickup device 58 constituting a reduction type image sensor. A control means 15 is connected to an output stage of the CCD image pickup device 58, and an original image after image processing by the control means 15 is performed. Data Din is output to the image forming unit (image forming means) 70. In the image forming unit 70, for example, an image is formed on the paper 30 fed out from any one of the paper feed trays 30a and 30b. The image forming unit 70 includes an organic photosensitive drum (hereinafter referred to as a photosensitive drum) 71, a charging unit 72, a developing unit 73, a transfer unit 74, a separation unit 75, a cleaning unit 76, a transport mechanism 77, and a fixing unit 78. .

  A charging unit 72 is disposed above the photosensitive drum 71, and the photosensitive drum 71 is uniformly charged in advance based on a predetermined charging potential. An image writing 60 is provided, for example, on the upper right side of the photosensitive drum 71, and laser light having a predetermined intensity based on the original image data Din after image processing is irradiated to expose the photosensitive drum 71. An electrostatic latent image is formed.

  On the right side of the photosensitive drum 71, a developing unit 73 containing toner and a carrier (developer) is disposed, and the electrostatic latent image exposed by the writing processing unit 60 is developed with toner. Below the developing unit 73, a registration roller 62, paper feed trays 30a and 30b, and the like are provided. A manual feed tray 63 is attached to the right side of the apparatus main body A. The paper set in the paper feed trays 30a and 30b, the manual feed tray 63, and the like is conveyed under the photosensitive drum 71 through the conveyance roller 61, the registration roller 62, and the like by paper feed control.

  A transfer unit 74 is disposed below the photosensitive drum 71, and the toner image formed on the photosensitive drum 71 through charging, exposure, and development is transferred to the paper 30 whose conveyance timing is controlled by the registration roller 62. Is done. A separation unit 75 is provided adjacent to the transfer unit 74, and the paper 30 onto which the toner image has been transferred is separated from the photosensitive drum 71. A transport mechanism 77 is provided on the downstream side of the separation unit 75, and a fixing unit 78 is provided at the end thereof. The fixing unit 78 fixes the toner image transferred to the paper 30. A cleaning unit 76 is provided between the conveyance mechanism unit 77 and the above-described charging unit 72 so as to face the photoconductive drum 71, and the toner remaining on the photoconductive drum 71 is cleaned.

  When duplex copying is selected in this example, an image is formed on one paper surface (front surface), and an image is also formed on the back surface of the paper 30 discharged from the fixing unit 78. The sheet 30 discharged from the fixing unit 78 is branched from the sheet discharge path by the branching unit 91, and the front and back are reversed by the lower reversing roller 92 and the reversing unit 93 constituting the sheet feeding unit 23. The sheet 30 passes through the reverse conveying path 94 and joins the normal sheet feeding path before the sheet feeding roller 61.

  The sheet 30 that has been reversed and conveyed passes through the registration rollers 62 and is again conveyed to the transfer unit 74, and the toner image is transferred onto the other surface (back surface) of the sheet 30. The sheet 30 to which the toner image has been transferred is subjected to fixing processing by the fixing unit 78, is sandwiched between the discharge rollers 95, and is discharged to a discharge tray 96 or the like outside the apparatus. The paper 30 on which image formation has been completed by the above-described processing is not limited to the paper discharge tray 96, and the post-processing device 90 may perform stapling processing, binding processing, and the like.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a control system of the image forming apparatus 100.
An image forming apparatus 100 shown in FIG. 2 is an apparatus that forms an image based on predetermined program information, and includes an original reading unit 11, a control unit 15, an image processing unit 21, an operation unit 48, and an image forming unit 70. ing.

  In FIG. 2, a document reading means (scanner) 11 is connected to a control means 15. The document image data Din after image processing by the control means 15 is output to the image forming unit 70.

  The image processing unit 21 constitutes a print & scanner controller, and includes a LAN control unit 12, a DRAM control IC 13, an image memory 16, and a controller control unit 17. The image processing means 21 is connected to the control means 15 through the PCI bus 19.

  The LAN control unit 12 executes communication control with an external information processing device when the image forming apparatus 100 is used as a printer or when a program is rewritten.

  A DRAM control IC 13 is connected to the LAN control unit 12, and an image memory 16 and a controller control unit 17 are connected to the DRAM control IC 13. In the image memory 16, print data taken from an external computer or the like is stored under the control of the controller control unit 17 and the DRAM control IC 13 in the print mode or when the program is rewritten.

  The control means 15 reads the print data from the image memory 16 and performs image processing. The control unit 15 is used by connecting the document reading unit 11, the image processing unit 21, the image forming unit 70, and the operation unit 48.

  The document reading unit 11 includes a scanner control unit 59 in addition to the CCD imaging device 58 described with reference to FIG. The scanner control unit 59 controls input / output of the CCD image pickup device 58. For example, when the automatic paper feeding mode is selected, the scanner control unit 59 controls the conveyance of the document 20 fed out from the document placement unit 41 illustrated in FIG. . The CCD image pickup device 58 reads the image information on the surface of the document by reading the surface of the document 20 when the document 20 is reversed in a U shape by the roller 43. The analog image acquisition signal obtained from the CCD imaging device 58 is converted from analog to digital into digital document image data Din.

  In FIG. 2, the control unit 15 includes a reading processing unit 31, a compression / decompression IC 32, an image memory (DRAM) 33, a nonvolatile memory 34, a DRAM control IC 35, a decompression IC 38, and a write processing unit 60. The above document image data Din is output to the reading processing unit 31. The reading processing unit 31 is connected to the document reading unit 11 and the PCI bus 19. The reading processing unit 31 reads and processes the document image data Din transferred from the document reading unit 11. A compression / decompression IC 32 is connected to the reading processing unit 31, and the original image data Din is compressed and encoded. The original image data Din after compression encoding is compressed image data.

  An image memory 33 is connected to the compression / decompression IC 32 through a DRAM control IC 35. The image memory 33 is composed of a DRAM and has a compression memory 36 and a page memory 37. The image memory 33 functions as a storage unit that stores a plurality of registered jobs. The compressed memory 36 stores compressed image data under the memory control of the DRAM control IC 35. Further, the decompression IC 38 is connected to the DRAM control IC 35 so that the compressed image data is decompressed and decoded at the time of image formation. The image data after decompression decoding is document image data Din. The original image data Din after decompression / decoding is stored in the page memory 37. The DRAM control IC 35 also functions as a detection unit that detects a job end.

  A write processing unit 60 is connected to the PCI bus 19 described above, and a laser drive signal Sout is generated based on the document image data Din read from the page memory 37. The laser drive signal Sout is output to the image forming unit 70. Note that the writing processing unit 60 may be connected to the decompression IC 38 so that the document image data Din after decompression decoding is directly supplied to the writing processing unit 60 without using the page memory 37.

  Further, an operation unit 48 is connected to the control means 15 shown in FIG. The operation unit 48 is an example of a job registration unit, and is operated when setting image forming conditions such as the number of copies and image density, selecting one of the paper feed trays 30a and 30b, or registering a job. Is done.

The operation unit 48 is provided with an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) 18 in addition to an operation panel (not shown), and operates to display image forming conditions such as the size of the paper 30, the number of copies, and image density. The operation unit 48 is combined with a touch panel on the LCD 18 to constitute a GUI (Graphic User Interface) type operation panel. The operation unit 48 includes an operation unit control unit 14 in addition to the LCD 18. The operation unit control unit 14 controls display of the LCD 18 and controls output of a touch detection signal generated on the touch panel .
Furthermore, the operation unit 48 also functions as a thumbnail display unit. In the case of thumbnail display, by selecting a “thumbnail display” button on the operation screen displayed on the LCD 18, a registered job image can be displayed as a thumbnail.

  The operation data D3 input by the operation unit 48 is registered in the nonvolatile memory 34.

  The image forming unit 70 shown in FIG. 2 includes a laser diode (LD) 64 and a printer control unit 65, and operates to form an image based on the contents set by the operation unit 48 described above.

  The laser diode (LD) 64 generates laser light based on the laser drive signal Sout. The laser beam is scanned on the photosensitive drum by the scanning mechanism of the writing processing unit 60. By this scanning, an electrostatic latent image is formed on the photosensitive drum. The electrostatic latent image is developed with toner in the image forming unit 70, and the toner image is transferred to a desired paper 30. The printer control unit 65 outputs the document image data or print data after image processing to the image forming unit 70 and controls image formation.

  Further, the control unit 15 includes a backup control unit 81, a communication control unit 82, a flash memory 83, a large capacity DISK (HDD) 84, and an image control CPU 85. An image control CPU 85 is connected to the DRAM control IC 35 described above. The image control CPU 85 is further connected to the above-described nonvolatile memory 34 and a backup control unit 81. The backup control unit 81 writes the nonvolatile memory 34 when backing up the old version of the program data Dp ′ at the time of program rewriting to the nonvolatile memory 34 or when registering the operation data D3 input by the operation unit 48 described above. Readout control is performed.

  The image control CPU 85 is connected to a flash memory 83 such as an EEPROM and stores program data Dp for operating the image forming unit 70. The flash memory 83 stores system program data, which is an example of the program data Dp, for controlling the entire image forming apparatus. The image control CPU 85 is provided with a RAM (not shown) that is used as a work memory, and a control command or the like is temporarily stored in the RAM. When the power is turned on, the image control CPU 85 reads the system program data from the flash memory 83 to activate the system, and controls the entire image forming apparatus based on the operation data D3 from the operation unit 48. Note that the image control CPU 85 also functions as a determination unit that determines whether or not the image confirmation work is to be completed.

  In addition to the flash memory 83, the image control CPU 85 is connected to a hard disk (hereinafter referred to as a large capacity DISK) 84 as an example of a second storage means. The flash memory 83, the large-capacity DISK 84, and the like are memories that can rewrite data and are not erased even when the power is turned off.

  The LAN control unit 82 is connected to a communication line such as a LAN, and is used when performing communication processing with an external computer or the like (see FIG. 3).

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of connection with an external device. As shown in FIG. 3, an image forming apparatus 100 and an image editing apparatus (for example, PC) 200 are connected to the same communication network via a LAN 101 so that they can communicate with each other. In this case, the job image registered in the image forming apparatus 100 is transferred to the image editing apparatus 200 page by page, edited by the image editing apparatus 200, the edited image is returned to the image forming apparatus 100, and print output is executed. be able to.

  Job registration can be performed by the operation unit 48. Note that job registration can also be performed by an external apparatus (for example, a PC) connected via a LAN or the like.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a display example of a job registration operation screen. The screen shown in FIG. 4 is a screen before the start of copying. In this state, when the “free” tag on the screen is pressed, a reservation screen is displayed, and a message “Copying can be reserved” is displayed. When the start button is pressed, the reading of the document is started, and the message becomes “scanning document”. In this case, the tag changes to “read”. After reading is complete, the message changes to “Waiting for output. Press the empty tag to reserve a copy”. A job is reserved by pressing an empty tag. At this time, the tag changes to “reserved”.

  The reserved job is stored in the image memory 33. In this case, the image data is read by the CCD imaging device 58, sent to the reading processing unit 31, and then processed by the DRAM control IC 35, compressed by the compression IC 32, and stored in the compression memory 36. Further, when outputting, the image data is read from the compression memory 36, decompressed by the decompression IC 38, processed by the write processing unit 60, and a write signal is supplied to the LD 64.

  The reserved job is managed in a job queue. FIG. 5 shows the structure of the job queue. FIG. 5A shows a state in which four reserved jobs are received while job A is being output. FIG. 5B shows a state in which job A has ended and the output order has moved to job B.

  The job queue shown in FIG. 5 corresponds to the reservation tag of the operation unit 48, and performs such operations as input of an accepted job (output or reservation), deletion of a completed job (execution with the slide of the queue), and the like. Manage the job of the entire system including the status display.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a data configuration of a job stored in the job queue. As shown in FIG. 6, the job data includes job management data, JOB data, and page data. The job management data is a job status.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing job status types. As shown in FIG. 7, the job status is “reading”, “outputting”, “reservation”, “interrupt”, “JAM generation”, “paper supply”, “stopping”, “pending”. There are types. “Pending” indicates that execution of output is set to a holding state. If the job status is "Reserved" and the job status is "Pending", the output is suspended and the output order is changed to the next reserved job even if the output order of the job is turned. The

  FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining overtaking of a held job. FIG. 8A shows a state where job A is being output and job B is on hold. Further, FIG. 8B shows a state where the output order has been moved to the job C because the job A has ended and the job B is on hold.

  In this case, the job B is in a “pending” state due to a hold instruction operation, or is automatically put in a “pending” state by performing thumbnail display, and the image editing apparatus 200 or the image By editing the image of the job registered by the forming apparatus 100, the job is placed in the “pending” state by any one of the three methods of automatically entering the “pending” state. When the hold is released, the job status becomes “reserved”.

To set and release a job hold:
1. Select a job from the operation unit and specify hold (manual hold). In this case, the job status changes from “reserved” to “pending”. The release is performed by releasing the hold from the operation unit. In this case, the job status changes from “pending” to “reserved”. This method has been applied conventionally.

  2. The job hold is set by displaying the thumbnail image of the reserved job on the operation unit LCD from the operation unit (automatic hold). In this case, the job status changes from “reserved” to “pending”. The release is canceled when the thumbnail display screen displayed on the operation unit is closed. In this case, the job status changes from “pending” to “reserved”.

  3. Job editing is set by starting image editing of the specified job from the image editing apparatus 200 (automatic holding). In this case, the job status changes from “reserved” to “pending”. The release is canceled when image editing from the image editing apparatus 200 is completed. In this case, the job status changes from “pending” to “reserved”. Note that image editing may use an image editing function provided in the image forming apparatus 100.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a display example of an operation screen when putting a reserved job on hold. A job list is displayed in FIG. This screen is displayed by selecting the “reservation list” button on the registration operation screen described above.

  In the case of method 1 described above, a job to be held is selected from this job list, and a “hold / release” button on the right side of the screen is pressed to place the job on hold. When a job that is already “pending” is selected and a “hold / release” button is pressed, the hold is released.

  In the case of the method 2 described above, by selecting a job to be held from this job list and pressing the “Thumbnail Display” button on the right side of the screen, the thumbnail display screen shown in FIG. Goes on hold. That is, the job status changes from “reserved” to “pending”.

  In this case, for example, an image of one page is displayed on the thumbnail screen. When confirming another page image, the screen can be switched by pressing a “previous page” or “next page” button on the right side of the screen. When the “CLOSE” button on the right side of the screen after confirmation is pressed, the thumbnail screen is closed and the hold is released.

  In the case of the method 3 described above, when an image editing request is received from the image editing apparatus 200, the designated job is put on hold. When the image editing from the image editing apparatus 200 is completed, the hold is released. Alternatively, on the job list screen shown in FIG. 9, select the job you want to put on hold from this job list and press the “Edit” button on the right side of the screen to display the edit screen and hold the job on hold. It becomes a state. The editing here can be performed, for example, by changing the page order or deleting a predetermined page.

  Next, an operation example when displaying thumbnails in the image forming apparatus 100 will be described regarding the job management method according to the present invention. FIGS. 11 and 12 are flowcharts illustrating an example of job management operations in the image forming apparatus 100.

  In the present embodiment, it is assumed that a job is put on hold by displaying thumbnails of registered jobs and that the hold is released by checking the thumbnail display and then closing the thumbnail screen.

  Based on this assumption, first, in step S11 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 11, it is determined whether or not the request for job management is a job registration request. If it is determined that the job is registered, the job is registered in the job queue in step S12.

  If it is determined in step S11 that the request for job management is not a job registration request, the process proceeds to step S13. In step S13, it is determined whether the request for job management is a job end request. If it is determined that the request is a job end request, the job is deleted from the job queue in step S14.

  In step S15, it is determined whether there is a next job. If it is determined that there is a next job, it is determined in next step S16 whether or not the status of the next job is “pending”. If it is not “pending”, in step S17, the job queue is slid to set the next job as an output job. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S15 that there is no next job, the operation is terminated. If it is determined in step S16 that the status of the next job is “pending”, the process returns to step S15 to repeat the above operation.

  If it is determined in step S13 that the request for job management is not a job end request, the process proceeds to step S18. In step S18, it is determined whether it is a job status change request. If it is determined that the job management request is a job status change request, the status of the job is changed according to the request in step S19. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S18 that the request for job management is not a job status change request, the process proceeds to step S20.

  In step S20, it is determined whether the request is for thumbnail display. If it is determined that the request is a thumbnail display request, the job status is changed from “reserved” to “pending” in step S21. At the same time, in step S22, the designated job is displayed as a thumbnail.

  Next, in step S23, it is determined whether or not there is a hold release signal (end of thumbnail display). If it is determined that there is a hold release signal, the job status is changed from “pending” to “reserved” in the next step S24. At the same time, the thumbnail display screen is closed in step S25. In this case, the operation is terminated after the thumbnail display screen is closed.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S23 that there is no hold release signal, the hold release signal is repeatedly detected to make a determination.

  Even when editing is performed by the external image editing apparatus 200, as in the case of the thumbnail display described above, for example, it is determined whether there is an editing request from the image editing apparatus 200, and the editing request from the image editing apparatus 200 is received. If there is, change the job status from “Reserved” to “Pending”. When there is an editing end signal, the job status is changed from “pending” to “reserved”. FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a processing operation when editing is performed by the external image editing apparatus 200.

  If it is determined in step S20 of FIG. 11 that the request is not a thumbnail display request, the process proceeds to step S30 (FIG. 12). In step S30, it is determined whether the request is a job editing request. If it is determined that the request is a job editing request, the job status is changed from “reserved” to “pending” in step S31.

  Next, in step S32, it is determined whether there is a job editing end signal. If it is determined that a job editing end signal has been received, the job status is changed from “pending” to “reserved” in the next step S33. Then, the operation ends. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S32 that there is no job edit end signal (hold release signal), the job edit end signal is repeatedly detected and determined.

  If it is determined in step S30 that the request is not a job edit request, the process returns to step S11 in FIG. 11 and the above-described operation is repeated.

  If there is a job end request during thumbnail display or job editing (step S13), the processing from step S14 to step S17 described above is performed.

  As described above, in this embodiment, confirmation means for confirming the image of a registered job, for example, thumbnail display means or job editing means is provided, and job image confirmation or editing is performed by the thumbnail display means or job editing means. Is automatically put on hold, and upon completion of image confirmation or editing, the job is automatically placed in a reserved state. Further, when the output order comes to a job that is being confirmed or edited, the next registered job is output first.

  As a result, when checking or editing the image of a registered job, there is no need to hold the job, the job is automatically set to hold, and the job is automatically held after checking or editing. Therefore, user convenience can be improved.

  In the above-described embodiment, the multifunction peripheral having the copy and scan functions has been described as the image forming apparatus. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the present invention can be applied to a printer or the like.

1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a control system of the image forming apparatus 100. FIG. It is a figure which shows the example of a connection with an image editing apparatus. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of a job registration operation screen. It is a figure which shows the structure of a job queue. It is a figure which shows the structural example of job data. It is a figure which shows the kind of job status. It is an explanatory diagram of overtaking of a held job. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a display example of an operation screen when a “reserved” job is set to “pending”. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of a thumbnail display screen. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of job management operation in the image forming apparatus 100 (No. 1). 6 is a flowchart illustrating an operation example of job management in the image forming apparatus (part 2).

Explanation of symbols

11 Document Reading Unit 12 Communication Control Unit 13 DRAM Control IC
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 14 Operation part control part 15 Control means 16 Image memory 17 Controller control part 21 Image processing means 23 Paper feed means 33 Image memory (storage means)
35 DRAM control IC (detection means)
48 Operation unit (registration means)
60 Write Processing Unit 70 Image Forming Unit 82 Communication Control Unit 83 Flash Memory 84 Large Capacity DISK
85 Image control CPU
90 Post-processing device 100 Image forming device 101 LAN
200 Image editing device

Claims (5)

Image forming that includes a registration unit that registers a job and a storage unit that stores a plurality of jobs registered by the registration unit, and executes the registered jobs in a predetermined order to form an image on a recording sheet. In the device
Operation means for selectively designating hold, thumbnail image display, or image editing for a job selected from a plurality of jobs registered in the registration means ;
Control means for managing jobs stored in the storage means and controlling the registered jobs to be executed in a predetermined order;
The control means includes
When the operation unit designates hold, thumbnail image display, or image editing for a job selected from jobs registered in the registration unit, the job is changed from the reserved state to the hold state. And an image forming apparatus that controls to output the job registered next to the job first when the output order of the job in the hold state changes . A detection unit for detecting a job end of the job to be executed;
The control means includes
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the job end of the job preceding the job is detected by the detection unit, control is performed so that the next registered job is output first. 3. The image formation according to claim 1, wherein the designation of image editing is a request for image editing from an image editing apparatus connected to the image forming apparatus. apparatus. Each job is completed after the operation unit selectively designates hold, thumbnail image display, or image editing for a job selected from a plurality of jobs registered in the registration unit. A determination means for determining whether or not
The control means includes
If it was Ritsui completion by the said determining means on the work of each designated selectively is determined by the operation means, an image according to claim 1, characterized in that to release the hold state of the job Forming equipment. Image forming that includes a registration unit that registers a job and a storage unit that stores a plurality of jobs registered by the registration unit, and executes the registered jobs in a predetermined order to form an image on a recording sheet. A job management method in an apparatus,
Selecting any job from a plurality of jobs registered in the registration means;
Selectively specifying hold, thumbnail image display, or image editing for the selected job;
Placing the selected job on hold in response to selectively specifying the hold, thumbnail image display, or image editing ;
Detecting the job end of the executed distearate job,
If the job end of the previous job selected the jobs pending condition is detected, prior to the selected said jobs on hold, the method comprising output the next registered job of the job,
Determining whether or not to end each work after selectively specifying hold, thumbnail image display, or image editing for the selected job in the hold state ;
If each of the work for the selected the job pending is determined that the completed job managing method characterized by a step of releasing the hold state of the job.

Images