JP4983901B2 - Printing device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a printing apparatus using an IC tag. More specifically, the present invention relates to a printing apparatus that automatically determines a job to be printed based on information obtained from an IC tag.

  Conventionally, an image forming apparatus accumulates a plurality of print jobs in a printer queue, and sequentially executes the accumulated print jobs. Some image forming apparatuses have a function of changing the execution order of print jobs by raising or lowering the execution priority of print jobs as necessary.

  In addition, as an image forming apparatus that changes the execution priority of print jobs, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-133867 recognizes a user near the image forming apparatus by wireless communication using an IC tag, A technique for automatically changing the priority order is disclosed.

JP 2006-27170 A

  However, the conventional printing apparatus described above has the following problems. That is, in the technique of Patent Document 1, it is assumed that there is one user before the image forming apparatus. In other words, it is not assumed that there are a plurality of users in front of the image forming apparatus. For this reason, when a plurality of users wait in front of the image forming apparatus, the execution priorities of the users collide, and appropriate processing cannot be performed.

  The present invention has been made to solve the problems of the conventional printing apparatus described above. That is, an object of the present invention is to provide a printing apparatus that can smoothly determine a print job to be executed even when a plurality of users are waiting in front of an image forming apparatus.

Resolution printing apparatus has been made for the purpose of this exercise is, an identification unit that acquires a user ID stored in the storage device by wireless communication, based on the obtained results of the identification section, waiting around those the printing device A measuring unit for measuring a waiting time of a user, a recording unit for recording the waiting time measured by the measuring unit for each user (or for each print job) corresponding to the user ID, and each standby recorded by the recording unit Based on the time, a selection unit that selects the user (or print job) with the longest waiting time, and a print job (or selected print job) of the user that has a print function and is selected by the selection unit, And a print unit that executes printing preferentially over print jobs (or other print jobs) of other users.

  In the printing apparatus of the present invention, the identification unit accesses a storage element existing around the identification unit, and acquires a user ID stored in the storage element. Access to the storage element uses a general wireless communication technology represented by an IC tag. By acquiring the user ID, users located around the identification unit are specified. Then, the waiting time for each predetermined condition corresponding to the user ID is measured by the measuring unit. The predetermined condition corresponds to a user or a print job. In other words, this printing apparatus manages the waiting time for each user or print job.

  The printing unit selects a print job to be printed based on the standby time. For example, when the waiting time is measured for each user, a print job for a user with a long waiting time is printed with priority over a print job for a user with a short waiting time. When measuring the waiting time for each print job, the print job with a long waiting time is printed with priority over the print job with a short waiting time. As a result, even when a plurality of users are waiting, the highest priority job can be determined from them, and the printing process is executed smoothly.

  According to the present invention, there is realized a printing apparatus capable of smoothly determining a print job to be executed even when a plurality of users are waiting in front of the image forming apparatus.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a print system according to an embodiment. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an appearance of a printer according to an embodiment. 1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of an image forming unit according to an embodiment. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the printing part concerning embodiment. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a situation where a user exists around a printer. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of a display part. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an electrical configuration of a printer according to an embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the management process of the waiting time table concerning a 1st form. It is a figure which shows the example of the time slot | zone of the waiting time of a waiting user. It is a figure which shows the example of the waiting time table concerning a 1st form. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the printing process concerning a 1st form. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the management process of the waiting time table concerning a 2nd form. It is a figure which shows the example of the waiting time table concerning a 2nd form.

  DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of a printing apparatus according to the invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the present embodiment, the present invention is applied to a printing system including an IC tag reading device and a printing device.

[Print system configuration]
As shown in FIG. 1, the printing system 100 according to the present embodiment includes a printer 10 as a printing device and PCs 20a, 20b, and 20c as information terminal devices. In the print system 100, the PCs 20 a, 20 b, 20 c and the printer 10 are connected via a network 40. Note that the number of printers constituting the printing system 100 is not limited to one, and a plurality of printers may be connected. Further, the number of PCs constituting the print system 100 is not limited to three, and any number of PCs may be connected.

  In the print system 100 according to the present embodiment, the user operates the PCs 20a, 20b, and 20c, and edits image data such as documents, diagrams, tables, and photographs using an application built in the PCs 20a, 20b, and 20c. Is possible. Then, it is possible to send print data to the printer 10 and output an image by the printer 10 in accordance with a user instruction.

  The printer 10 is a multifunction machine having a copy function. As shown in FIG. 2, the printer 10 forms an image on a recording medium based on an image reading unit 200 that reads a document and image data of the read document. An image forming unit 300 (an example of a printing unit) that performs the operation and an operation unit 400 (an example of a notification unit) for operating the printer 10 are provided.

The image reading unit 200 is for realizing a copy function, and includes an ADF (Automatic Document Feeder) 210 that conveys a document and reads the document, and a supply tray 220 on which the document before reading is stacked. And a discharge tray 230 on which the document after reading is placed. The original is read by placing the original on a glass plate provided below the discharge tray 230, moving the CCD sensor in the X direction along the plate surface of the glass plate, and reading the original line by line. Alternatively, the document is conveyed by the ADF 210 and read by the line by the CCD sensor fixed to the left end.

  The image forming unit 300 stacks and holds sheets as recording media, and includes a paper feed cassette 310 that is detachably mounted from the front side of the printer 10 and a paper discharge tray 320 that stacks and holds sheets after image formation. I have. There are a plurality of paper feed cassettes 310 and paper discharge trays 320, and they are selectively used as necessary.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 3, the image forming unit 300 sends a printing unit 330 (an example of a printing unit) that forms a toner image by a known electrophotographic method and a sheet in a paper feed cassette 310 to the printing unit 330. A paper feed roller 341, a paper discharge roller 361 that discharges paper to the paper discharge tray 320, and an IC tag reader 370 (an example of an identification unit) that reads electronic information of the IC tag are provided.

  The printing unit 330 includes a laser beam generator 7, a drum-shaped photosensitive member 2, a roller-shaped transfer device 5, a fixing device 8, and the like. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, a charging device 3, a developing device 4, a cleaning device 6 and the like are provided around the photosensitive member 2. Laser light from the laser light generation device 7 is irradiated to a position downstream of the charging device 3 and upstream of the developing device 4 in the rotation direction of the photosensitive member 2. Further, the fixing device 8 is located downstream of the transfer device 5 in the paper transport direction.

  The laser light generator 7 turns on the laser light source based on the image data, and scans the surface of the photoreceptor 2 with the laser light. The image data is created based on images read by the image reading unit 200 and images sent from the PCs 20a, 20b, and 20c via the network 40.

  The photoreceptor 2 rotates while its surface is uniformly charged by the charging device 3. On the surface of the photoreceptor 2, the potential of the irradiated portion of the laser beam scanned by the laser beam generator 7 changes. As a result, an electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface of the photoreceptor 2 due to the potential difference generated between the non-irradiated portion. Thereafter, development is performed on the photosensitive member 2 with toner supplied from the developing device 4 to form a toner image. Thereafter, the toner image is electrically attracted by the transfer device 5 facing the photoconductor 2 and transferred to a sheet passing between the photoconductor 2 and the transfer device 5. The toner remaining on the photoreceptor 2 after the transfer is mechanically or electrically collected by the cleaning device 6. The fixing device 8 heats and pressurizes the paper on which the toner image is transferred, and fixes the toner image onto the paper.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the IC tag reader 370 is located on the upper surface side of the image forming unit 300 and in the housing of the image forming unit 300. The IC tag reader 370 operates at a predetermined interval and transmits a predetermined electromagnetic wave around the printer 10. When the IC tag receives the electromagnetic wave, it sends back an electromagnetic wave including its own information. The IC tag reader 370 receives electromagnetic waves from the IC tag and acquires information on the IC tag.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 5, when a user who has an IC tag is present around the printer 10 (IC tag reader 370), the IC tag reader 370 receives electromagnetic waves emitted from the IC tags 51 and 52, The electronic information of the IC tags 51 and 52 (in this embodiment, a user ID for identifying the user) is read. Therefore, if a user who owns an IC tag (hereinafter referred to as “standby user”) is within a predetermined range (that is, within a range in which the IC tag reader 370 and the IC tag can transmit and receive electromagnetic waves), the IC tag's It is possible to recognize that the user is waiting by reading the electronic information.

  The printer 10 of this embodiment acquires the user ID of the standby user at a predetermined interval by the IC tag reader 370, and waits around the printer 10 for each standby user corresponding to the user ID (hereinafter referred to as “standby time”). Is calculated). The waiting time of each user is recorded in the waiting time table. Details of the method of calculating the standby time will be described later.

  The operation unit 400 is a panel-like input / output device, and is provided with a plurality of switches, buttons, and the like for the user to operate the printer 10. For example, the copy button 410 is a button for notifying the printer 10 of a start instruction when the user starts copying a document. The display unit 420 is a liquid crystal display that displays messages such as errors and instructions.

  The display unit 420 of the operation unit 400 has a function of displaying the waiting time of each user recorded in the waiting time table. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, the display unit 420 displays the user name, job name, and waiting time of the user. In addition, the users are displayed in the order of the longest waiting time. In addition, the users who are not currently waiting are shaded. As a result, the user can know his / her superiority or inferiority. Furthermore, by knowing the superiority or inferiority of the user, the user can dispel the distrust of not being able to execute his / her print job.

  Next, the functional configuration of the printer 10 will be described. As shown in FIG. 7, the printer 10 includes a control unit 500 (an example of a measurement unit), a motor control unit 510, an A / D converter 520, a screen drive unit 530, an input detection unit 540, and a printing unit. 330 and the IC tag reader 370 are electrically connected.

  The control unit 500 controls the entire printer 10 and executes various programs. Further, the waiting time is measured based on information from the IC tag reader 370. The motor control unit 510 controls drive motors such as various rollers of the image reading unit 200 and the image forming unit 300. The A / D converter 520 converts the document image read by the image reading unit 200 into digital data as image data.

  The screen driving unit 530 performs control for displaying characters, images, and the like on the display unit 420. The input detection unit 540 detects an input of the copy button 410 provided on the operation unit 400. The input detection unit 540 is also connected to other switches and buttons provided on the operation unit 400.

[Printer operation]
[Management process of waiting time table (first form)]
Next, an operation procedure of the printer 10 performed by the control unit 500 of the printer 10 will be described. First, the waiting time table management process will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. This process is executed every T seconds (for example, 1 second).

  First, the IC tag reader 370 is operated to acquire information on the standby user (S101). That is, the standby user is recognized by the user ID included in the information obtained from the IC tag.

  Next, it is determined whether there is a standby user (S102). If there are waiting users (S102: YES), the waiting time of each waiting user is added (S103). Specifically, for a user who was also present in the previous process, the waiting time corresponding to the user is added for T seconds. That is, when the same user ID is acquired continuously, the standby time of the standby user corresponding to the user ID is updated. When there is a user who is not registered in the waiting time table, the user is registered in the waiting time table. When there is no waiting user (S102: NO), the process of S103 is bypassed and the process proceeds to S104.

  Next, it is determined whether there is a user who does not have a print job (S104). If there is a user who does not have a print job (S104: YES), the waiting time of the user is initialized (S105). That is, if the waiting time is accumulated even though there is no print job, the waiting time of a user who frequently uses the printer 10 becomes longer, and that user always has a higher execution priority. Therefore, it can be considered that the execution priority is different from the urgency of the original print job. Therefore, the waiting time of a user whose print job is not in the printer queue is reset. If there is no user without a print job (S104: NO), the process of S105 is bypassed. As a result, the management process ends.

  In this embodiment, the waiting time of the user is not initialized while the print job is in the printer queue. Therefore, even if there are a plurality of standby times in different time zones for the same user, the sum of them becomes the standby time. That is, even when the user goes back and forth in front of the printer 10 and the standby time is divided, the total of the divided standby times becomes the standby time of the user. As a result, even if the user temporarily leaves the printer 10 due to paper replenishment or the like, there are few disadvantages to the user.

  Specifically, it is assumed that there are three users, user A, user B, and user C, and each user is waiting in front of the printer 10 in a time zone as shown in FIG. In this case, as shown in FIG. 10, the user A and the user C are continuously waiting for the user A and the user C, and the waiting time for the user A is 300 seconds, and the waiting time for the user C is 150 seconds. Become. On the other hand, user B has two waiting times of 50 seconds, and the sum of them is 100 seconds. The waiting time of each user A, B, C is recorded in the waiting time table.

[Print processing]
Next, the printing process of the printer 10 will be described based on the flowchart of FIG. This print processing is started periodically (for example, every second) and is executed until the print job is completed.

  First, the presence or absence of a print job is confirmed (S201). If there is no print job (S201: NO), this process ends without performing the print process. On the other hand, if there is a print job (S201: YES), whether or not there is a standby user by operating the IC tag reader 370 and acquiring the information of the standby user as in the above-described processes of S101 and S102. (S202).

  If there is no waiting user (S202: NO), the head job in the printer queue (the print job that has been submitted in the past in the print job submission order in the print queue) is selected as the print target (S211). In other words, the execution order is not changed, and the print target is selected in the normal order. After the process of S211, the process proceeds to S206 to execute printing of the job.

  On the other hand, if there is a waiting user (S202: YES), the waiting time of the user who is actually waiting at the present time is acquired by referring to the waiting time table (S203). For example, in the previous example (FIGS. 9 and 10), since the user A is away from the printer 10, the standby times of the user B and the user C are acquired, but the standby time of the user A is not acquired.

  Next, the standby user having the longest standby time among the acquired standby times is selected (S204). For example, in the previous example (FIGS. 9 and 10), the user B comes before the printer 10, but the user C is selected because the total waiting time is longer for the user C. .

  Next, the first job of the selected user (the print job submitted in the past in the print job submission order in the print queue) is determined as a print target (S205). For example, in the previous example (FIGS. 9 and 10), the first job of user C is to be printed.

  Thereafter, the selected print job is executed (S206). As a result, the print job of the user who is waiting in front of the printer 10 and has the longest standby time is preferentially executed. In other words, even if there are a plurality of standby users, the printing process can be executed without their execution order colliding. After the process of S206, the print process is terminated.

  This printing process is executed again after a predetermined time has elapsed after ending one print job. For this reason, after one print job is completed, if another print job still exists in the printer queue, this print processing is performed again, and one print job is executed. That is, there may be a situation change such as the user C leaving the printer or the user A returning in front of the printer. In other words, the situation of the standby user changes every moment. Therefore, the execution priority order is reviewed each time a predetermined condition (in this embodiment, the end of the unit print job) is satisfied. This increases fairness and convenience.

[Standby table management processing (second form)]
In the first mode, the waiting time is measured in units of users, and if there is one user who waits for a long time, a plurality of print jobs of the user are continuously printed. That is, even if the user adds a print job later, the print job is preferentially executed over the print jobs of other users. Therefore, other users have distrust.

  Therefore, in the second embodiment, the waiting time is measured for each print job. Hereinafter, the waiting time table management processing of this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. This process is also executed every T seconds (for example, 1 second) as in the first embodiment.

  First, the IC tag reader 370 is operated to acquire information on the standby user (S301). That is, the standby user is recognized by the user ID included in the information obtained from the IC tag.

  Next, it is determined whether there is a waiting user (S302). If there is a waiting user (S302: YES), the waiting time is added for each print job for the print job corresponding to the waiting user (S303). Specifically, for a user who also existed in the previous process, the waiting time of the user's print job is added for T seconds. Thereby, in the waiting time table, for example, as shown in FIG. 13, the waiting time is set for each print job. The order shown in FIG. 13 indicates the execution priority order when all of the users A, B, and C are waiting in front of the printer 10. If there is no waiting user (S302: NO), the process of S303 is bypassed and the process proceeds to S304.

  Next, it is determined whether or not there is a print job that has been printed (S304). If there is a print job that has been printed (S304: YES), the print job is deleted from the waiting time table (S305). If there is no print job that has been printed (S304: NO), the process of S305 is bypassed. As a result, the management process ends.

  The printing process of the printer 10 is the same procedure as the printing process shown in FIG. However, the waiting time stored in the waiting time table is in units of users in the printing process of the first form, but in units of print jobs in this form.

  That is, the waiting time of the print job corresponding to the user actually waiting at the present time is acquired by referring to the waiting time table (S201 to S203). Then, the print job having the longest standby time among the acquired standby times is selected (S204, S205).

  For example, in the previous example (FIG. 13), job 1 is selected because user A's job 1 wait time is the longest. If the user A is absent in front of the printer 10 and the users B and C are waiting in front of the printer 10, the job 2 of the user B is selected instead of the job 1 of the user A.

  Thereafter, the selected print job is executed (S206). As a result, the print job that is waiting in front of the printer 10 and has the longest standby time is preferentially executed. In other words, even if there are a plurality of standby users, the printing process can be executed without their execution order colliding.

  As described above in detail, in the printing system 100 of this embodiment, the IC tag reader 370 accesses the IC tag existing around the printer 10 (that is, the IC tag reader 370), and acquires the user ID stored in the IC tag. . Thereby, users located around the printer 10 are specified. Then, the waiting time is measured for each user (or for each print job). That is, the printing system 100 manages the waiting time for each user (or for each print job). The printer 10 executes the print job of the user with the longest standby time (or the print job with the longest standby time) in preference to the print job (or other print job) of other users. As a result, even when a plurality of users are waiting, the highest priority print job can be determined from them, and the printing process is executed smoothly.

  In addition, when there are a plurality of waiting times for the same user (or print job) in different time zones, the printing system 100 sets the waiting time as the sum of these waiting times. That is, if the standby time is reset every time the user leaves the printer 10 (that is, the IC tag reader 370), the standby time until then is wasted. In other words, the user does not leave the periphery of the printer 10. Therefore, fairness and convenience are improved by setting the waiting time as the sum of waiting times.

  Also, the printing system 100 determines a print job to execute printing from among the user's print jobs actually waiting at the time of determining the print job to execute printing. That is, a print job to be printed next is determined among print jobs of users actually waiting around the printer 10. Users who are actually waiting tend to be more urgent than users who are not waiting. Therefore, convenience is enhanced by determining a print job among the waiting users.

  Note that this embodiment is merely an example, and does not limit the present invention. Therefore, the present invention can naturally be improved and modified in various ways without departing from the gist thereof. For example, the image forming apparatus can be applied to any apparatus that forms images, such as a printer, a copier, a scanner, and a FAX. Further, the image forming method of the printing unit is not limited to the electrophotographic method, and may be an ink jet method. Further, even if a color image can be formed, it may be dedicated to a monochrome image.

  In this embodiment, the IC tag reader 370 is built in the printer 10, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, it may be externally attached to the housing of the printer 10 or attached to a position (for example, a ceiling) away from the printer 10. In the present embodiment, the printer 10 performs the waiting time measurement and the waiting time table management. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, it may be performed by an information processing apparatus other than the printer 10 connected to the printer 10 and the IC tag reader 370.

  Further, in the waiting time table management process of the present embodiment, the waiting time is only added with the time T, but is not limited thereto. For example, for the absent user, the absence time may be subtracted. Further, a weighting coefficient may be set for each user or print job, and the weighting coefficient may be integrated in the standby time.

  In the print processing according to the present embodiment, the print job for executing printing is determined from the print jobs of the users actually waiting at the time of determining the print job for executing printing. It is not a thing. In other words, the user who has the longest waiting time may be printed with priority. In this case, for example, if a job as shown in FIG. 10 exists in the printer queue, the priority order is configured in the order of user A, user C, and user B.

  In the printing process according to the present embodiment, the priority of printing is determined for each job, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the printing process may be executed in units of pages, and the priority order may be determined in units of pages.

  Further, it is better that the embodiment has a function for preventing a known job from being mixed. As a function for preventing the mixing of jobs, partition paper discharge, shift paper discharge, vertical / horizontal switching paper discharge, and the like can be applied. Further, if the image forming apparatus includes a plurality of paper discharge trays, the paper discharge tray may be divided for each job.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Printer 51, 52 IC tag 300 Image formation part 330 Printing part 370 IC tag reader 400 Operation part 420 Display part

Claims (2)

An identification unit for acquiring the user ID stored in the storage element by wireless communication;
Based on the acquisition result of the recognition unit, a measuring unit for measuring the waiting time of the user waiting around those the printing apparatus,
A recording unit for recording the waiting time measured by the measuring unit for each user corresponding to a user ID;
Based on each waiting time recorded by the recording unit, a selection unit for selecting the user with the longest waiting time;
A printing apparatus having a printing function, comprising: a printing unit that prints a print job of a user selected by the selection unit with priority over print jobs of other users. An identification unit for acquiring the user ID stored in the storage element by wireless communication;
Based on the acquisition result of the recognition unit, a measuring unit for measuring the waiting time of the user waiting around those the printing apparatus,
A recording unit for recording the waiting time measured by the measuring unit for each print job corresponding to a user ID;
A selection unit that selects a print job with the longest standby time based on each standby time recorded by the recording unit ;
A printing apparatus having a printing function and having a printing unit that executes printing of a print job selected by the selection unit with priority over other print jobs.