JP5772559B2 - Power monitoring system, power monitoring apparatus, and power monitoring method. - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a power monitoring system that monitors total power consumption in a plurality of image forming apparatuses, a power monitoring apparatus in the power monitoring system, and a power monitoring method.

Various systems have been proposed in which, when power is supplied from a power outlet connected to the same breaker to a plurality of image forming apparatuses, the total power consumption is kept within a predetermined upper limit value to prevent the breaker from shutting down. Yes.
For example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-228620, although it is a case of a general household electrical product, when the use of a plurality of electrical products overlaps, the supply of power to a low-priority electrical device is stopped via a network. A power monitoring system that controls the total power consumption so as not to exceed an allowable amount by reducing the power consumption is disclosed.

However, in an image forming apparatus, it is difficult to set priorities among apparatuses in the first place, and even if a priority order can be set, a user who has issued a print job to an image forming apparatus with a lower priority order This is very inconvenient because it waits until the print job in another image forming apparatus with a higher priority is completed.
Therefore, in the power monitoring system according to Patent Document 2, when a power monitoring apparatus and a plurality of image forming apparatuses are connected via a network and each image forming apparatus receives a print job, a series of jobs are sent to the power monitoring apparatus. Application for permission to use power is applied for each process unit.

Upon receiving this application, the power monitoring mounting sequentially issues power usage permission notifications in units of processes to the corresponding image forming apparatuses so that the total power consumption does not exceed the upper limit value. Is configured to be executed for the process that has received the permission notice.
According to this, for example, an image forming process including a fixing process can be permitted for a print job of one image forming apparatus, and an image reading process can be permitted for another image forming apparatus. Since each image forming apparatus can process a print job in parallel while keeping it below the upper limit, there is no inconvenience that a user who has issued a print job to a specific image reading apparatus is extremely waiting for the execution of the job.

JP-A-9-84146 JP 2008-295134 A

  However, according to the technology of Patent Document 2, the power monitoring device simply issues permission notifications in divided process units in the order of jobs for which permission applications have been received, and the total power exceeds a predetermined value. Since the next process is unconditionally waited, the standby state of a specific process, in particular, a fixing process with relatively large power consumption during standby may become long. In this case, power is consumed wastefully. It will be.

  In order to reduce the power consumption in the standby state of such a fixing process, it may be possible not to perform the temperature control during standby, but the temperature of a heating rotator such as a heating roller in the fixing device decreases, so that the image There is a problem that a time (warm-up time) for heating to the fixing temperature is required immediately before the forming process is performed, and the start time of the image forming process is delayed.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and delays the execution of a job in a specific image forming apparatus more than necessary while preventing the total power consumption in the plurality of image forming apparatuses from exceeding an upper limit. It is another object of the present invention to provide a power monitoring system for an image forming apparatus, a power monitoring apparatus in the system, and a power monitoring method that can suppress the total power consumption during standby as low as possible.

  In order to solve the above problems, one aspect according to the present invention is a power monitoring system in which a plurality of image forming apparatuses and a power monitoring apparatus that monitors the total power consumption of the plurality of image forming apparatuses are connected. Each image forming apparatus executes the plurality of processes based on an instruction from the power monitoring apparatus and an image forming job execution unit capable of dividing a series of image forming jobs into a plurality of processes. The power monitoring device acquires information relating to an image forming job to be executed in the plurality or some of the image forming devices, and performs a process between image forming job steps in each image forming device. Operation order determining means for determining the operation order, and instruction means for instructing the corresponding image forming apparatus to execute the process of each image forming job according to the determined operation order. The operation order determination unit is configured to perform a specific process in any one of the image forming apparatuses when each image forming apparatus executes an image forming job and the total power consumption thereof does not exceed a predetermined upper limit value. It is characterized in that the operation order between steps in each image forming job is determined so that the total amount of power consumption generated when waiting for execution is smaller.

  According to the configuration described above, the power monitoring apparatus is configured so that, when each image forming apparatus executes an image forming job, the total power consumption thereof does not exceed a predetermined upper limit value, and the power monitoring apparatus specifies the specified The execution order of the processes in each image forming job is determined so that the total amount of power consumption generated when waiting for the execution of the process is reduced, and the image forming apparatus side according to the determined operation order, Since the process of the image forming job is executed, the total power consumption in the plurality of image forming apparatuses is monitored so as to be equal to or lower than the upper limit value, and the total power consumption during standby can be suppressed as low as possible.

Further, by performing each process, jobs in a plurality of image forming apparatuses can be executed in parallel, and execution of a job of a specific image reading apparatus is not waited more than necessary.
Here, the operation order determination unit includes a first determination unit that provisionally determines an operation order of each step of the image forming job to be executed by each image forming apparatus, and each image formation in the provisionally determined operation order. A power excess determining unit that determines whether or not a total power consumption when the apparatus executes an image forming job exceeds the upper limit; and a case where the power excess determining unit determines that the power exceeds the upper limit. And a second deciding unit that changes the provisionally decided operation order so as to wait for a process in a predetermined image forming apparatus, and the second deciding unit is generated by a waiting process. The operation order may be changed so that the total amount of power consumption is smaller.

Here, it is preferable that the second determination unit changes the operation order with the highest priority given to minimizing the cumulative value of the power consumption due to the standby of the image forming process including the fixing operation.
Further, it is preferable that the second determination unit changes the operation order by giving second priority to minimizing a cumulative value of power consumption due to standby in a paper feeding process.
In addition, the second determination unit may be configured such that, when the image forming process in one image forming apparatus is put on standby by the image reading process in another image forming apparatus, the image forming process is performed by the image reading process. It is desirable to change the operation order so that the process is executed preferentially.

  In addition, the second determination unit is configured to perform the first image formation when the first image forming process in one image forming apparatus is in a standby state by the second image forming process in another image forming apparatus. The second standby power consumption that occurs when the first image forming process waits for the second image forming process by changing the priority order and the first standby power consumption that occurs when the process is waiting. When the second standby power consumption is smaller than the first standby power consumption by comparing the amounts, the first image forming step is executed in preference to the second image forming step. It is desirable to change the operation order.

  Further, the second determining means is configured to wait for the image forming process when the image forming process in one image forming apparatus is in a standby state by a paper feeding process in another image forming apparatus. The first standby power consumption that is generated is compared with the second standby power consumption that occurs when the priority order is changed and the paper feeding process is made to stand by by the image forming process. Is smaller than the first standby power consumption, it is desirable to change the operation order so that the image forming process is executed in preference to the paper feeding process.

  The second determination unit includes a standby time acquisition unit that acquires a standby time when the image forming process is made to wait by the paper feeding process, and the acquired standby time is equal to or longer than a predetermined time. In this case, it is desirable to change the operation order so that the image forming process is executed in preference to the paper feeding process without comparing the first and second standby power consumptions.

The second determining unit may not change the operation order when the image forming process in one image forming apparatus is put on standby by a post-processing process in another image forming apparatus. .
In addition, when the second determination unit causes the paper feeding process to wait in the image reading process of another image forming apparatus, the operation order of the paper feeding process and the image reading process of the other image forming apparatus It is desirable to change.

  Further, the second determining means is a second determination unit that occurs when the paper feeding process in one image forming apparatus is on standby in the image forming process in another image forming apparatus and the paper feeding process is on standby. The first standby power consumption is compared with the second standby power consumption that occurs when the priority order is changed and the image forming process is made to wait by the paper feed process. It is desirable to change the operation order so that the paper feeding process is executed in preference to the image forming process when the standby power consumption is smaller than 1.

  Further, the second determination unit performs the first paper feeding when the first paper feeding process in one image forming apparatus is put on standby by the second paper feeding process in another image forming apparatus. The second standby power consumption that occurs when the first paper feed process is made to wait by changing the first standby power consumption amount and the priority order that are generated when the process is kept on standby. When the second standby power consumption is smaller than the first standby power consumption by comparing the amounts, the first paper feed process is executed in preference to the second paper feed process. It is desirable to change the operation order.

Further, the second determining unit may not change the operation order when the paper feeding process in one image forming apparatus is put on standby by a post-processing process in another image forming apparatus. .
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a power monitoring apparatus that is connected to a plurality of image forming apparatuses and monitors the total power consumption of the plurality of image forming apparatuses, the plurality or a part of the image forming apparatuses. Obtaining information relating to the image forming job to be executed in step, and determining an operation order between the steps of the image forming job in each image forming apparatus, and an order of each image forming job according to the determined operation order Instruction means for instructing the corresponding image forming apparatus to execute the process, and the operation order determining means has a predetermined total power consumption when each image forming apparatus executes an image forming job. Each of the image forming dice is set so that the total amount of power consumption that does not exceed the upper limit value and is generated when waiting for execution of a specific process in any of the image forming apparatuses is reduced. And determining the order of execution of steps in the drive.

  According to still another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a power monitoring method that is executed by a power monitoring apparatus that is connected to a plurality of image forming apparatuses and monitors total power consumption of the plurality of image forming apparatuses. An acquisition step for acquiring information relating to an image forming job to be executed in a plurality of or a part of the image forming apparatuses, an operation order determining step for determining an operation order between the processes of the image forming job in each acquired image forming apparatus, An instruction step for instructing the corresponding image forming apparatus to execute the process of each image forming job according to the determined operation order, wherein the image forming apparatus executes the image forming job. The total power consumption does not exceed a predetermined upper limit value, and when waiting for execution of a specific process in any of the image forming apparatuses As a total power consumption amount generated is less, and determines the execution order of the steps in each of the image forming job.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the electric power monitoring system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the copying machine connected to the said power monitoring system. FIG. 2 is a system block diagram illustrating configurations of a power monitoring apparatus and a control unit of a copying machine. It is a communication sequence between a copying machine and a power monitoring apparatus for explaining an outline of a power monitoring method executed in the power monitoring system. It is a figure which shows an example of the process information contained in the operation permission application transmitted to an electric power monitoring apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the control content of the operation permission application process performed with the copying machine in the electric power monitoring system which concerns on this Embodiment. It is a main flowchart which shows the control content of the power monitoring process in a power monitoring apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the content of the subroutine of the application list registration process of step S21 of FIG. (A) (b) shows the example of the execution list | wrist and application list which are each created with the said electric power monitoring apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the content of the subroutine of the operation | movement simulation process of FIG.7 S23. FIG. 11 is a flowchart continued from FIG. 10. (A) and (b) are the figures for demonstrating concretely the change of the total standby power consumption before and after the process order change by the process order change process which concerns on Embodiment 1. FIG. (A) (b) shows the example of the present execution list and the execution list after a process order change respectively produced by the operation simulation process of the said electric power monitoring apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the content of the subroutine of the process order change process of step S210 of FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the content of the subroutine of the execution list registration process of step S24 of FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the content of the subroutine of the operation permission notification process of step S26 of FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the contents of a subroutine of process order change processing according to the second embodiment. FIG. 18 is a flowchart continued from FIG. 17. (A) and (b) are the figures for demonstrating specifically the change of the total standby power consumption before and after the process order change by the process order change process which concerns on Embodiment 2. FIG.

Hereinafter, embodiments of a power monitoring system 100 according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
<Embodiment 1>
1. Overall Configuration of Power Monitoring System FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of a power monitoring system 100 according to the present embodiment.

As shown in the figure, a power monitoring system 100 connects a power monitoring apparatus 1 and four copying machines 2 to 5 via a LAN 6, and connects the power monitoring apparatus 1 and each copying machine 2 to 5. It is configured to be able to communicate with.
As will be described later, each of the copiers 2 to 5 transmits an operation permission application to the power monitoring apparatus 1 in advance when an operation such as a print job is executed by the own apparatus. When the power monitoring apparatus 1 accepts the operation permission application, the copying machine 2 can execute the processes of a plurality of copying machines in parallel within a range not exceeding the upper limit power permitted for the system based on the information. The operation permission notification is performed in units of -5. At this time, the execution order is determined so that the waiting time is as small as possible for a process with large power consumption during standby. Details will be described later.

In this specification, “print job” is a general concept of a job including a print job, a copy job for reading and copying an original, and a job for post-processing a printed recording sheet. use.
2. Configuration of Copying Machine Since the copying machines 2 to 5 have substantially the same configuration, only the copying machine 2 will be described as a representative.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the copying machine 2.
As shown in FIG. 1, the copying machine 2 includes an image reading unit 10, an image forming unit 20, a paper feeding unit 30, and a post-processing unit 40.
The image reading unit 10 includes an automatic document conveyance unit (ADF) 11 and a scanner unit 12 that convey a plurality of documents placed on a document tray one by one. The scanner unit 12 moves a carriage 13 mounted with a light source and a reflection mirror along a lower side of the platen glass on which the document is placed, and a sheet through scan mode for reading the document conveyed from the automatic document conveyance unit 11. The mirror scan mode for scanning the document is selectively executed. The reflected light from the document is converted into an electrical signal by the CCD image sensor 14 to generate image data.

The image forming unit 20 forms a toner image on a recording sheet by an electrophotographic method, and includes an image processing unit 21 and a fixing unit 26.
The image processing unit 21 includes a photosensitive drum 22, an exposure device 23, a developing device 24, a transfer charger 25, and the like. The surface of the uniformly charged photosensitive drum 22 is exposed by the exposure device 23 based on the image data. An electrostatic latent image is formed by exposure scanning with a drive-modulated laser, and toner is supplied from the developing unit 24 to form a toner image. This toner image is transferred onto the recording sheet fed from the paper feeding unit 30 by electrostatic force by the transfer charger 25 at the transfer position.

The toner image on the recording sheet is thermally fixed by the fixing device 26 and then sent to the post-processing unit 40 via the paper discharge roller 27.
The paper feeding unit 30 feeds the recording sheet from the paper feeding cassette selected from among the paper feeding cassettes 31 to 33, temporarily stops the timing sheet by the timing roller 34, and then the timing roller at a timing when the image preparation unit 20 is ready for the image. 34 is driven and sent to the transfer position.

In the case of double-sided copying, a recording sheet having an image formed on one side is fed to the automatic double-sided copy paper feeding unit 28 by the conveyance switching claw 27 and conveyed again to the transfer position. The paper is passed through the fixing device 26 and fixed, and sent to the post-processing unit 40 via the paper discharge roller 27.
The post-processing unit 40 includes a punch processing unit 41 for punching a recording sheet, a folding unit 42 for folding the recording sheet in half, a saddle stitching unit 43 for performing a stapling process on the recording sheet folding unit (central portion), and a recording sheet It is a well-known one having an end binding unit 44 that performs stapling processing on the end portion, and after the post-processing instructed by the user is performed on the recording sheet sent from the image forming unit 20, it is placed on the discharge tray 45. Discharge.

3. Configuration of Control Unit of Each Device FIG. 3 is a system block diagram showing a control unit of each device in the power monitoring system 100. Here, only the copying machine 2 is shown as a representative of the copying machine.
The power monitoring apparatus 1 includes a CPU 101, a ROM 102, a RAM 103, and an EEPROM 104.

The ROM 102 stores a control program (a power monitoring process program described later) executed by the power monitoring apparatus 1.
The RAM 103 is a volatile memory, and serves as a work area when the CPU 101 reads the control program from the ROM 102 and executes it.
The EEPROM 104 stores a table and the like necessary for the control. For example, accepting a print job operation permission application from each of the copiers 2 to 5, and referring to process information that stores a process executed for each process for each print job and its power consumption in association with the execution time A table (not shown) is stored.

On the other hand, the copying machine 2 has independent control units in the image reading unit 10, the image forming unit 20, and the post-processing unit 40, in addition to the system controller unit 50 serving as a main control unit.
The system controller unit 50 includes a CPU 251 as a main component, communicates with the power monitoring apparatus 1 via the LAN 6, reads a program from a ROM (not shown), and reads the image reading unit 10, the image forming unit 20, and post-processing. By communicating with the respective control units of the unit 40 and instructing the operation timing and the like for the processes to be executed by them, a series of print jobs are transferred to the image reading process, paper feeding process, image forming process, and post-processing process. It can be divided and executed.

When a print job is received and executed, information relating to power consumption and execution time (hereinafter referred to as “process information”) necessary for each of the divided processes for a print job for one recording sheet is described. It is transmitted to the power monitoring apparatus 1 together with the print job operation permission application.
The control unit in the image reading unit 10 includes a CPU 211 as a main component, reads a program from a ROM (not shown), performs a document conveyance operation in the automatic document conveyance unit 11, a movement operation of the carriage 13 in the scanner unit 12, and a CCD image. The sensor 14 and the like are controlled with timing to execute a series of image reading operations.

The control unit in the image forming unit 20 includes a CPU 221, a ROM 222, a RAM 223, and an EEPROM 224 as main components.
The ROM 222 stores various programs such as a program related to execution of image forming processing in the image forming unit 20.
The RAM 223 serves as a work area when the CPU 221 executes a program.

In the EEPROM 224, for example, a table (not shown) of the process information is stored.
The CPU 221 reads a necessary program from the ROM 222, controls the operations in the image processing unit 21 and the fixing device 26 uniformly as described above, and forms an image on a recording sheet. Further, when the image reading unit 10 or the post-processing unit 40 is newly connected or exchanged as an option, it communicates with those CPUs to acquire process information relating to the image reading process and the post-processing process, respectively. The process information table is updated.

The post-processing unit 40 includes a CPU 241 as a main component of the control unit.
The CPU 241 is connected to the CPU 221 in the image forming unit 20, receives an instruction from the CPU 221, takes a timing, and controls each unit to perform necessary post-processing on the recording sheet.
In FIG. 3, a communication interface such as a LAN board for connecting the power monitoring apparatus 1 and the control units of the copiers 2 to 5 to the LAN 6 is omitted.

4). Power monitoring process in power monitoring system 100 <Overview of power monitoring process>
FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram showing an outline of communication performed between the copiers 2 to 5 and the power monitoring apparatus 1 in the power monitoring process executed by the power monitoring system 100 according to the present embodiment.

When each of the copiers 2 to 5 receives a print job, the copiers 2 to 5 transmit process information regarding the division process executed for the print job and identification information of the own apparatus to the power monitoring apparatus 1 together with the operation permission application (P1).
The EEPROM 224 of the image forming unit 20 in each of the copying machines 2 to 5 includes information on power consumption and execution time necessary for executing each division process for one recording sheet, the size of the recording sheet, and post-processing information. The system controller unit 50 obtains information about the printing conditions from the received print job based on the information obtained from the process information table (not shown), which is obtained in advance for each content. And process information when the job is executed is generated.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a table showing an example of process information when executing a print job received by the copying machines 2 to 5. Each of the documents is read and printed on one side on an A4 size recording sheet. As post-processing, for example, a case where punch holes and a bending process are formed one by one is described.
Print jobs A to C indicate jobs received by, for example, the copying machines 2, 3, and 4 among the copying machines 2 to 5.

  For each job, the dividing step indicates a step in which a series of jobs can be divided and executed. As described above, in the present embodiment, each of the copiers 2 to 5 performs (1) image reading, (1) image reading, The configuration can be divided into four steps: 2) paper feeding, (3) image formation, and (4) post-processing.

Here, the image reading step indicates a step of reading an image of a document using the automatic document feeder 11 by the image reading unit 10.
The paper feeding process is a process in which the recording sheet is fed out from the paper feeding port of the paper feeding cassette selected from among the paper feeding cassettes 31 to 33 and conveyed to the timing roller 34 in the paper feeding unit 30.

In the image forming process, the timing roller 34 is driven, the toner image is transferred onto the recording sheet by the image processing unit 21, and after the fixing operation in the fixing device 26 has elapsed, the recording sheet is stacked on the paper stack of the post-processing unit 40. The process until it is accommodated in the part 46 is shown.
The post-processing process indicates processes such as the above-described punching process, folding process, saddle stitching process, and end binding process for the recording sheet output from the image forming unit 20 (punch process in this example).

  “Standby between (1) and (3)” in (5) means that the heating roller in the fixing unit 26 is in a standby state between the steps (1) to (3). In the present example, “standby other than (5)” in (6) means that the image reading process of (1) is in a standby state (hereinafter, when it is necessary to maintain the fixing temperature). For convenience of explanation, standby is also considered as one process, and may be referred to as “standby process (5)”, for example).

The power consumption column describes the power consumption in each step, and the execution time column shows the time required to execute each step (1) to (4) for each recording sheet. Is described. The time during which the standby processes (5) and (6) are executed is determined by the remaining execution time of the process that causes the standby.
If the print job A is a job received by the copying machine 2, the process information as shown in FIG. 5A is created based on the printing conditions and the process information table of the copying machine 2 itself, The operation permission application is transmitted to the power monitoring apparatus 1 together with the identification information.

When the power monitoring apparatus 1 receives the operation permission application, the power monitoring apparatus 1 once registers the process of the print job that is the object of the operation permission application in the application list (P2).
Then, the power consumption when the processes of each received print job are executed in parallel is calculated, and the total power consumption is within the range where the total power consumption does not exceed the upper limit, and the total power consumption generated during standby is minimized. The execution order of each process is determined so that it may become (P4).

Next, each step is registered in the execution list in the determined execution order (P5), and an operation permission notification is notified to the copying machine that has transmitted the operation permission application in accordance with the order registered in the execution list. (P6). The transmission source of this operation permission application is determined by the identification information attached to the received operation permission application.
Upon receiving this operation permission notification, the copiers 2 to 5 perform the process to be notified (P7), and when the execution is completed, the power monitoring apparatus 1 sends a notification for returning the operation permission right for the executed process. (P8).

The power monitoring apparatus 1 receives the operation permission right return notification and updates the registration of the application list (P9), and thereafter repeats the processes from P4 to P9.
The above processing is performed until all the print jobs of the copying machines 2 to 5 are completed.
<Flowchart executed in power monitoring system>
Hereinafter, based on a specific flowchart, the content of the power monitoring process executed by the power monitoring system 100 will be described in more detail.

(I) Operation Permission Application Process in Copying Machine FIG. 6 is a flowchart of an operation permission application process executed in each of the copying machines 2 to 5, and is executed as a subroutine of a main flowchart related to the control of the entire copying machine (not shown). The This flowchart is executed centering on the system controller unit 50.

First, it is checked whether there is a print job execution request from the user (step S1). For example, when the user places a document on the document tray of the automatic document feeder 11 and performs an input operation of a start key from the operation panel 60, it is determined that a print job execution request has been made.
In the case of “no request”, the process waits until there is a request, and when there is a print job execution request, the processing from step S2 is executed.

In step S2, an operation permission application for the print job is transmitted to the power monitoring apparatus 1 via the LAN 6 (see P1 in FIG. 4).
The notification of the operation permission application includes process information regarding the received print job and identification information of the own apparatus. As described above, the process information relates to the number of processes of the print job, the power consumption in each process including the standby process, the execution time, and the standby power consumption between the processes. Information is included (see FIGS. 5A to 5C).

Thereafter, it is checked whether or not there is an interruption instruction from the user (step S3). This interruption instruction is operated by the user from the operation panel 60, for example. When a print job is issued from an external terminal (not shown) connected to the LAN 6, an interruption is instructed by operating the terminal.
When there is an interruption instruction (step S3: “There is an interruption request”), the power monitoring apparatus 1 is notified that the operation permission application for the remaining execution operation of the print job is withdrawn (step S14). Return to the flowchart.

  In step S3, if “there is an interruption request”, the process proceeds to step S4, where it is determined whether or not the power monitoring apparatus 1 has notified the operation permission, and if there is no notification (step S4: “not permitted”). After returning to step S3 and repeating the interruption instruction check, the process waits until there is an operation permission notification from the power monitoring device 1, and if there is an operation permission (step S4: “permission”), step S5 to step S8. The permitted process is executed at.

First, the operation of the permitted process is started (step S5), and it is checked whether an error such as a jam or a trouble has occurred during the execution (step S6).
If it is determined in step S6 that an error has occurred, the process is interrupted in step S11. For example, when a paper feed error such as a jam occurs in the paper feed process of a print job, processing such as drive stop is performed. Since these error detection methods are known per se, a description thereof will be omitted.

Then, an operation permission right return notification of the process being executed is sent to the power monitoring apparatus 1 (step S12), and if there is a remaining process of the print job, an operation permission application withdrawal for the remaining operation is further notified. (Step S13).
Thereafter, the process returns to the main flowchart, and the process circulates, and in step S1, the process waits until there is a next print job execution request.

If no error is detected in step S6, it is determined in step S7 whether a predetermined time has elapsed.
Since the execution time is determined in advance in the process information of the device itself, if the process is not completed even after the time has elapsed (step S7: “time has elapsed”), an error is detected in step S6. In the same manner as in the case, the job interruption process after step S11 is performed. Here, “time elapsed” means that, for example, in the paper feeding process, after the start of paper feeding due to the absence of recording sheets in the selected paper feeding cassette, arrival at the registration roller 34 is a predetermined time by the paper passing sensor. This indicates the case where it is not detected.

The above processing is performed until the process being executed is completed (“incomplete” in step S8 → steps S5 to S7), and if it is determined that the process of the print job to be permitted has been completed (step S8). : “Complete”), the power monitoring apparatus 1 is notified that the operation permission right of the process for which the execution has been completed is returned (step S9).
Then, the processes from step S3 are repeated until all processes of the print job are completed (step S10: “incomplete” → steps S3 to S9).

When all the processes of the print job are completed (“completed” in step S10), the process returns to the main flowchart, and the process circulates until the next print job execution request is issued in step S1.
(II) Power monitoring process executed by the power monitoring apparatus 1 Next, the power monitoring process executed by the power monitoring apparatus 1 will be described. In the following, each flowchart described will be described unless otherwise specified. This is executed by the CPU 101 in FIG.

(1) Main Flowchart of Power Monitoring Process FIG. 7 is a main flowchart showing the control content of the power monitoring process in the power monitoring apparatus 1.
First, an application list registration process for registering / deleting process information in the application list is executed based on the operation permission application received from each copying machine 2-5 (step S21).

  In the next step S22, it is determined whether or not any process information is registered in the application list. If there is no registration (step S22: “NO”), the process returns to step S21 to repeat the application list registration process. If there is registration in the application list (step S22: “YES”), based on the information in the application list, the operation is simulated to find the optimal execution order for the process registered in the application list, and the execution time An operation simulation process is performed to determine (step S23).

  And the execution list registration process which creates the execution list which registered the execution order of each operation | movement process from the said simulation result is performed (step S24), and the application list created in step S21 is deleted in connection with this (step S24). In step S25, an operation permission notification process (step S26) for notifying operation permission to the copying machine that has issued the operation permission application according to the execution list is executed.

Hereinafter, the contents of the subroutine of each process will be described. For convenience of explanation, it is assumed that each print job is a single print job.
(2) Application List Registration Process FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the control contents in the application list registration process subroutine of step S21 in FIG.

First, it is determined whether or not an operation permission application has been received from any of the copiers 2 to 5 (step S101).
If an operation permission application has been received (step S101: “Yes”), an execution list whose operation order has been registered by the already accepted operation permission application is copied to the application list in order to update the operation order. (Step S102), the execution list is initialized (Step S103).

Then, the newly accepted operation permission application process information is added to the application list (step S104), and the process returns to the main flowchart of FIG.
The execution list and the application list are stored in, for example, the EEPROM 104 of the power monitoring apparatus 1.
FIG. 9A shows an example of an execution list generated for the print job A that has already been received. Each process and its start time are registered in association with each other.

  In the present embodiment, the power consumption and execution time of each process included in the notification of the operation permission application and the information on the standby power consumption between the processes are different when receiving the operation permission application. It is assumed that it is registered in an information reference table (for example, omitted since it has the same contents as FIG. 5A) and stored in the EEPROM 104. Further, identification information of the transmission source of the operation permission application is also stored in the EEPROM 104 in association with the process information.

In the execution list of FIG. 9A, for example, “A (1)” is described as step (1) (image reading step) of print job A shown in FIG. The same applies to the other print jobs B and C.
If an operation permission application for print job B is received immediately after completion of step A (2) in the execution list of FIG. 9A ("Yes" in step S101), the remaining list is updated to update the execution list. Steps (3) and (4) for print job A and steps (1) to (4) for print job B are registered in the application list, as shown in FIG. 9B (hereinafter referred to as the first model). Note that the process A (1), (2) that has already been executed is deleted from the execution list (see step S403 in the execution list registration process of FIG. 15 described later).

If no operation permission application has been received in step S101 in FIG. 8 (step S101: “None”), the process proceeds to step S105 to determine whether or not an operation permission application withdrawal request has been received from the copiers 2 to 5. .
If an operation permission application withdrawal request has not been received (step S105: “None”), the process returns to the main flowchart of FIG. 7, and the process circulates to wait for acceptance of a new operation permission application in step S101.

  If, in step S105, an operation permission application withdrawal request has already been received from any of the copiers 2 to 5 that have issued the print job registered in the execution list (“Yes” in step S105), it has already been accepted. After copying the execution list created by the operation permission application to the application list once (step S106), the execution list is initialized (step S107), and a series of operations relating to the print job for which the operation permission application withdrawal request was issued in step S105 The process is deleted from the application list (step S108), and the process returns to the main flowchart of FIG.

  The operation permission application withdrawal request is notified from the copying machines 2 to 5 to the power monitoring apparatus 1 in the above-described steps S13 and S14 in FIG. When the print job is interrupted due to an instruction from the user to be interrupted or an error such as a jam detected on the copier 2-5 side during the execution of the print job, Therefore, it is possible to delete the operation requested to be withdrawn from the operation in the middle of execution and simulate the operation again.

Based on the created application list created as described above, the next operation simulation process is executed, and the execution list is updated by determining the execution order of each process.
(3) Operation Simulating Process FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the contents of the subroutine of the operation simulating process of FIG.

  In this operation simulation process, a current execution list for simulation is created based on the information on the division process of the print job registered in the application list, and the upper limit power is exceeded in a predetermined time period with reference to the process information reference table. It is determined whether or not the operation is simulated and the start time of each process is determined and the standby time is calculated. In addition, when the standby power consumption generated during standby is equal to or greater than a predetermined amount, the procedure is performed in which the execution order is changed and the operation simulation is executed again. Note that the current execution list is created in, for example, the RAM 103 of the power monitoring apparatus 1.

First, information registered in the application list is acquired (step S201), and the first process (first process) of each print job registered in the application list is registered in the current execution list. (Step S202).
In the process information reference table, there is a column for storing the remaining execution time for the process that has been started in addition to the process information (power consumption and execution time) for each process. Then, the process information about the corresponding process registered in the current execution list and the information regarding the remaining execution time are acquired (step S203). These pieces of information are temporarily stored in the RAM 103, which is a work area, for example. In addition, about the process which execution has not started, the execution time in the process information will be memorize | stored as remaining execution time as it is.

  And by the process from the following step S204 to step S213, it is determined whether or not the total power consumption in the case where the selected processes are executed simultaneously exceeds the upper limit power. The operation simulation is realized by changing the execution order of the steps and repeating the process for determining whether or not the upper limit power is exceeded again even in that case.

First, in step S204, the power consumption of the process to be executed next is added, and it is determined whether or not the value exceeds the upper limit power (step S205). In the present embodiment, the “upper limit power” is set to 1500 W assuming the breaker upper limit, but the upper limit power in the floor or building may be set.
If only the process of the print job A is registered in the application list (the same state as FIG. 9A), the process A (1) is first registered in the current execution list in step S202. In step S205, it is determined that the power is not more than the upper limit power.

In step S206, the process A (1) is determined for the start time of the process to be notified of permission, and is written and stored in the start time column of the current execution list (see FIG. 13A).
Then, if there is a process that has already been executed, the period from the execution time (the time set for the simulation is set to 0.1 seconds with the initial value set to “0”, for example, in step S220 described later) The remaining execution time of the process being executed is calculated and stored in the remaining execution time column of the current execution list (step S207).

Then, it is determined whether or not there is another process for which operation permission is applied in the current execution list (step S214).
In the above example, since only the first process A (1) of the print job A is currently registered in the execution list, “None” is determined in step S214, and the process proceeds to step S216 in FIG. It is determined whether there is a completed process.

  This determination can be made based on, for example, whether or not the remaining time updated and stored in step S207 is “0”. If there is a target process whose execution time has passed (“Yes” in step S216), the process information of the target process is deleted from the current execution list (step S217). At this time, the registration in the current execution list is deleted, but the start time for the deleted process is stored in association with the process in the application list, for example. If there is no process whose execution time has passed in step S216 (step S216: “none”), step S217 is skipped and the determination in step S218 is executed.

  Then, in step S218, it is determined whether or not the simulation of all processes registered in the application list has been completed. In the above example, the process A (2) and subsequent steps still remain (step S218). : “Incomplete”), at the end of the current execution list (in this example, since the process A (1) has already been deleted, it is the end and the top), the next process of the application list (Step A219 in the above case) is registered (step S219).

  Thereafter, in step S220, the cycle time is updated by adding one cycle (0.1 second), and the process returns to step S203 in FIG. 10 and thereafter, the same as above in steps A (2) to (4). When the operation is repeated and the simulation is completed for all the processes registered in the application list in step S218 (step S218: “complete”), the process returns to the main flowchart of FIG.

When the processing of the main flowchart in FIG. 7 circulates and it is determined in step S22 that a new print job has been registered, the operation simulation processing subroutine in step S23 is executed again.
Now, assuming that the power monitoring apparatus 1 accepts an operation permission application for the print job B from the copying machine 3 at the same time when the execution of the process A (2) is completed in the copying machine 2, the registration status of the application list is as follows. As shown in FIG.

In this case, in step S202 of FIG. 10, the earliest processes A (3) and B (1) of each print job are registered in the current execution list, and in step S203, both process information is obtained from the process information reference table. Obtaining and adding the power consumption of these processes, the total power consumption is calculated when they are executed simultaneously (step S204).
If the total power consumption value does not exceed the upper limit power (step S204: “below”), the same start time is set and stored in two target processes to be executed in parallel, and step S207 is executed. The subsequent processing is repeated, but in this example, the power consumption in steps A (3) and B (1) is 1100 W and 500 W, respectively (see FIGS. 5A and 5B), so the total is 1600 W. Thus, it is determined as “excess” in step S205.

In this case, for the time being, since the print job B received later is started and processed in parallel with the print job A, the process B (1) is given priority and the process A (3) is put on standby. Then, the operation order is provisionally set (see the time t11 to t12 in FIG. 12A).
Next, the standby time for waiting for the process A (3) is calculated (step S208). According to FIG.5 (b), in process B (2) following process B (1), since power consumption is 400W, even if process A (3) is performed simultaneously, upper limit power is not exceeded. Therefore, the waiting time for A (5) is the execution time for B (1) (or the remaining execution time if B (1) has already been started).

This remaining execution time is performed by subtracting the cycle time from the original execution time, as in step S207 described above.
Then, in the next step S209, it is determined whether or not the standby time is equal to or longer than a predetermined first time. In the present embodiment, the first time is set to 1 second, for example.

  If it is determined in step S209 that the standby time is less than the first time (step S209: “less than”), the process sequence change process in step S210 and step S211 are skipped, and standby power is added ( Step S212). Specifically, the standby power consumption of the standby process A (5) is added to the power consumption of the process B (1), and it is determined whether or not the added result exceeds the upper limit power (step S213).

  Here, if it is less than the upper limit power (step S213: “below”), the process is executed in the order without changing the above step S214. If the upper limit power is exceeded, it is no longer in a standby state within the same time. Therefore, it is determined that it is impossible to execute a plurality of print jobs in parallel, and the process proceeds to step S221 in FIG. 11 so that each process is executed sequentially so that power consumption does not overlap. The start time of the process is shifted and set, and the process proceeds to step S218 to examine the process information on and after the next. Specifically, the process B (1) is not started until the process A (3) is completed.

  If the waiting time for the target process is 1 second or longer in step S209 (step S209: “above”), a process order changing process for changing the execution order according to a predetermined standard is performed (step S210). ) If the process order is changed ("Yes" in step S211), the process returns to step S201 and the simulation is executed again based on the changed order.

If it is determined in step S211 that the process order has not been changed, the processes in and after step S212 are executed.
In step S218, when the operation simulation has been completed for all the processes, the registration to the current execution list has been completed for all the processes registered in the application list. Then, the process returns to the main flowchart of FIG.

  In step S209, when the standby time is a short time shorter than the first time (1 second), the process order change processing in step S210 is skipped because it is a short time standby. The power consumption during standby is so large, rather, it is based on the value judgment that priority is given to the rapid start of the print job B received later. Of course, without making the determination in step S209, the process may be shifted to the process order changing process to reduce the standby power consumption.

In the example of FIG. 12A, since execution of the process B (1) has not yet started, the waiting time (remaining execution time of the process B (1)) is 2 seconds. In step S209, the first process It is determined that the time is “over”, and the process order changing process in step S210 is executed.
(4) Process Order Change Process FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing the control contents of the process order change process in step S210 of FIG.

First, information is acquired from the current execution list and process information reference table registered in step S202 of FIG. 10 (step S301).
The information acquired here is the standby power consumption of the process assumed to be in the standby state during the operation simulation (hereinafter referred to as “standby process”. In the above example, the process A (3)), and is executed at that time. Processes of other print jobs that are assumed to be in progress (processes of other print jobs that cause the standby target process to be in the standby state. Hereinafter referred to as “waiting factor source process”. In the example, the remaining execution time of the process B (1)) (this remaining execution time is obtained in step S208 of FIG. 10 and stored in the RAM 103 or the like).

First, it is determined whether or not the standby process is an image forming process (step S302). If it is determined that the process is not an image forming process, the power consumption is not high even if the standby process is performed. Without changing the order (step S310), this flowchart is terminated and the process returns to the flowchart of FIG.
If it is determined in step S302 that the standby target process is an image forming process, the execution order is changed in the processes in steps S303 to S309.

First, in step S303, it is determined what is the standby factor source process.
If the standby factor source process is an image reading process, the order of the image reading process and the image forming process of the standby target process is unconditionally changed (step S307).
The image forming process consumes more power during standby, and if the image reading process of another print job is executed first, the power consumption during the subsequent standby will be greater in the other print job. This is because the possibility of entering a standby state before the process (paper feeding process, image forming process) is increased.

This order change is executed by changing the registration order for the information registered in the application list. Using the application list information changed here, the operation simulation is performed again based on the application list whose execution order is changed in step S201 and subsequent steps in FIG.
In the case of the example of FIG. 12A, since the standby factor source process of the standby target process A (3) is B (1) (image reading process) (between times t11 and t12), the order is changed, and FIG. ), The process A (3) is executed first to wait for the process B (1) (time t21 to t23).

In step S303, when the standby factor source process is a paper feed process, the process proceeds to step S304, and the remaining execution time of the standby factor source process is equal to or longer than a second time (for example, 3 seconds in this example). Determine whether or not.
If it is determined in step S304 that the remaining execution time of the standby factor source process is equal to or longer than the second time, the standby factor source paper feeding process and the standby image forming process are executed. The order is changed (step S307).

As a result, the influence on each load due to an increase in the waiting time until the image forming process (for example, in order to shorten the return time from the waiting process, in order to shorten the return time from the waiting process, Deterioration and deterioration of the heating member caused by maintaining the heating roller in the fixing device 26 at the fixing temperature during printing can be reduced.
If the remaining execution time is less than the second time in step S304, the current execution order is determined from the remaining execution time information of the standby factor source process and the standby power consumption of the standby target process. When calculating the amount of standby power consumption when it is operated in, and when the execution order is changed from the information on the execution time of the standby process and the standby power consumption of the standby factor source process The standby power consumption is calculated (step S305).

Then, the calculated standby power consumptions are compared (step S306), and if it is determined that the power consumption is smaller when the order is changed, the process proceeds to step S307 and the execution order is changed. . Thereby, the power consumption during standby can be further reduced.
On the other hand, if it is determined that the current order is smaller in power consumption, the order is not changed (step S309), and this flowchart is terminated.

If it is determined in step S303 that the standby factor source process is an image forming process, the operations in steps S305 and S306 are executed.
That is, the standby power consumption when the standby image forming process and the standby image forming process are in the standby state is calculated (step S305). Based on the comparison result, It is determined whether the order is acceptable or not, and the order should be changed (step S306). Based on the determination result, the process proceeds to step S307 and step S309. This process is the same as when the remaining execution time of the standby factor source process is determined to be less than the second time in step S304 when the standby factor source process is the paper feed process, and thus further description is omitted.

In step S303, when the standby factor source process is a post-processing process, the order is not changed (step S310), this flowchart is terminated, and the process returns to the main flowchart of FIG.
In the case of the post-processing step, since the power consumption during standby is small, the order may be changed to make the post-processing step stand by, but in this embodiment, the post-processing step is the last of the print job. This process is executed first, giving priority to the early termination of other jobs. However, it is desirable to change the order also in this case from the viewpoint of minimizing the power consumption during standby.

As described above, consideration is given to reducing the total power consumption of other processing standbys by executing processing to change the operation order between each step of the print job between the copiers 2 to 5 as necessary. ing.
(5) Execution list registration process The operation simulation process is executed as described above, the operation simulation is completed for all the processes registered in the application list, and the start time of each process is determined and stored in the application list. Then, an execution list registration process is executed (step S24 in FIG. 7).

FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing the control contents in the execution list registration process.
First, a process with the earliest start time is searched from the application list finally created in the operation simulation process (step S401), and this is registered in the execution list (step S402) and registered in the execution list. The process is deleted from the application list (step S403).

  Then, it is determined whether or not there is an unregistered operation process in the execution list in the application list (step S404). If there is, an operation process having the earliest start time of the remaining operation process is searched in step S401. If the registration process to the execution list after step S402 is repeated and it is determined in step S404 that there are no unregistered operation steps in the execution list in the current execution list (step S404: “None”), this flowchart. And return to the flowchart of FIG.

(6) Operation Permission Notification Process After creating the execution list as described above, the application list is unnecessary and is deleted (step S25 in FIG. 7), and the operation permission is notified to the image forming apparatus according to the execution list. Operation permission notification processing is executed (step S26).
FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing the control contents in the operation permission notification process.

First, it is determined whether or not there is a registration for which operation permission is not notified in the execution list (step S501). If there is no registration (step S501: NO), the process returns to the flowchart of FIG. . If there is a registration (step S501: YES), it is next determined whether or not an operation permission right return application is accepted (step S502).
As described above, the operation permission right return application is an application notified from each of the copying machines 2 to 5 when the process being executed is completed (see step S9 in FIG. 6).

When there is an operation permission right return application (step S502: YES), the process for which the return has been made is deleted from the execution list (step S503), and the execution list is updated (step S504).
If there is no operation permission right return application (step S502: NO), steps S503 and S504 are skipped.

Then, referring to the execution list, it is determined whether or not there is a process that has reached the execution start time (step S505). If there is no process that has reached the execution start time (step S505: NO), the main of FIG. Return to the flowchart and wait for the process to circulate.
If there is a process whose execution start time has been reached (step S505: YES), an operation permission notification is sent to the copying machine that is the operation permission application source for that process (step S506), and the main flowchart of FIG. Return. The copying machine as the operation permission application source is specified based on the identification information stored in the EEPROM 104 when the operation permission application is received.

(7) Specific Case FIG. 13B is a result of executing an operation simulation for the above-described model case, that is, when an operation permission application for the print job B is received simultaneously with the completion of the process A (2). FIG. 16 is an example of a final execution list created by the execution list registration process of FIG. 15. FIG.
In this model case, when the division process is sequentially permitted in the order in which the notification of the operation permission application is received as in the prior art, the waiting process for the print job A between times t11 to t12 as shown in FIG. Since A (5) occurs and the standby process B (5) of the print job B occurs between the times t13 and t14, the total standby power consumption generated until the print jobs A and B are completed is 0.666667 Wh.

  However, according to the execution list of FIG. 13B in which the order between the print jobs A and B is changed so that the standby of the image forming process including the fixing operation does not occur as much as possible as in the present embodiment. By issuing an operation permission notice and causing each process to be executed, as shown in FIG. 12B, a section in which the print job A and the print job B are in a standby state before the image forming process does not occur. The total standby power consumption could be reduced to 0.02778 Wh.

Even when an operation permission application is received at a timing other than the above model case, or even when an operation permission application is received from three or more copiers, the total power consumption is limited by executing the power monitoring process described above. It is possible to further reduce the total standby power consumption while executing a plurality of print jobs in parallel as much as possible below the power.
In the above embodiment, for convenience of explanation, each of the print jobs A and B is a single job. However, in reality, most of the print jobs are for a plurality of sheets. In the print job, the operation permission notification application for the steps (1) to (4) is repeated for the number of sheets and continuously notified to the power monitoring device 1, and the power monitoring device 1 executes the operation simulation for each step. Thus, the operation order is determined, and an operation permission notification is issued to the corresponding copying machines 2 to 5.

  In the case of a copy job of a plurality of documents, the number of documents cannot be grasped first, so that the user inputs the number of documents from the operation panel 60 or the document is placed on the document tray of the automatic document feeder 11. When it is detected by a known document detector and the copy start button is pressed, an operation permission application is transmitted to the power monitoring apparatus 1 for one print job, and one document is deleted. When it is detected that there is a next document after scanning, an operation permission application for the second print job is transmitted to the power monitoring apparatus 1 before reading of the document is started. An operation permission application is notified to the power monitoring apparatus 1 until there is no upper document.

The power monitoring apparatus 1 updates the execution list every time the operation permission application of the example is received, and issues an operation permission notification according to the execution list.
Further, it is not necessary for each print job to include all of the steps (1) to (4). When a plurality of terminals composed of personal computers are connected to the copiers 2 to 5 via the LAN 6 and a print job is received from the terminals, the normal dividing step (1) (image reading step) is not included. .

Conversely, a series of print jobs may be further subdivided. In particular, since the post-processing step includes a plurality of processes, it can be subdivided.
In the above description, for the sake of convenience, the description has been given on the assumption that the post-processing process is also performed for each sheet. However, for example, in the saddle stitching process and the edge stitching process (hereinafter collectively referred to as “stapling process”), the user operates the operation panel 60. The operation permission application regarding the stapling process is not transmitted every print job, but is transmitted to the power monitoring apparatus 1 for each specified number of sheets. Will be.

<Embodiment 2>
Also in the second embodiment, the hardware configuration of the power monitoring system 100, the power monitoring apparatus 1, and the copying machines 2 to 5 is exactly the same as that of the first embodiment, and the steps executed by the CPU 101 of the power monitoring apparatus 1 Since only the contents of the subroutine of the order change process (FIGS. 11 and 12) are different, only the flowchart showing the subroutine will be described below, and description of the other flowcharts will be omitted.

(1) Flowchart of Process Order Change Process FIGS. 17 and 18 are flowcharts showing the control contents of the process order change process according to the present embodiment. In the operation simulation process shown in FIG. When the time becomes equal to or longer than the first time, it is executed as a subroutine of step S210. Also in this embodiment, unless otherwise specified, it is executed by the CPU 101 of the power monitoring apparatus 1.

First, steps S601 to S609 in FIG. 17 are common to steps S301 to S309 in FIG.
Briefly, in step S601, information on the current execution list registered in step S202 of FIG. 10 is acquired, and it is determined whether the standby target process is an image forming process (step S602).

If the standby process is an image forming process, the process proceeds to step S603.
In step S603, it is further determined what the process of the standby factor source is, and if the standby factor source process is an image reading process, the image reading process of the standby factor source process unconditionally and the standby target The order of the image forming process in the process is changed (step S607), the order is changed (step S608), and the process returns to the flowchart of FIG.

If it is determined in step S603 that the standby factor source process is a paper feed process, if the remaining execution time of the standby factor source process is equal to or longer than the second time, The execution order of the paper feeding process and the image forming process of the standby process is switched (step S607).
If the remaining execution time is less than the second time in step S604 and if it is determined in step S603 that the standby factor source process is an image forming process, the standby factor source process is determined in step S605. Calculate standby power consumption when operating in the current execution order from the remaining execution time information and standby power consumption information of the standby target process. Also, the standby process execution time and standby factor From the information on the standby power consumption of the original process, the standby power consumption when the execution order is changed is calculated.

In step S606, the calculated standby power consumption is compared, and if it is determined that the standby power consumption is smaller when the order is changed, the execution order is changed (step S607).
On the other hand, if it is determined that the current order is smaller in power consumption during standby, the order is not changed (step S609), and the process returns to the flowchart of FIG.

Further, in step S603, even when it is determined that the standby factor source process is a post-processing process, the order is not changed (step S609), and the process returns to the flowchart of FIG.
As described above, in steps S603 to S609, when the standby target process is determined to be the image forming process in step S602, it is determined whether or not the order change is necessary according to the type of the factor source process.

In the first embodiment, when the standby target process is not the image forming process (step S302 in FIG. 14: “other than the image forming process”), the order is not changed (step S310). In the second embodiment, even in this case, it is considered that the standby power consumption can be further reduced by dividing the case into more detailed cases.
That is, if it is determined in step S602 in FIG. 17 that the standby target process is other than the image forming process, the process proceeds to step S610 in FIG. 18 to determine whether the standby target process is a paper feed process. Is judged.

Here, when it is determined that the standby process is a paper feed process (step S610: “paper feed process”), the standby factor source process further includes an image reading process, an image forming process / paper feed process, It is determined whether it is a post-processing step (step S611).
If the standby factor source process is an image reading process in step S611, the order of the image reading process of the standby factor source process and the paper feeding process of the standby target process is unconditionally changed (S614). (Step S615), the process returns to the flowchart of FIG.

The standby power consumption of the paper feed process is obviously larger, and if the image reading process of another print job is executed first, the process of the power consumption during standby of the other print job is thereafter increased. This is because the possibility of entering a standby state increases.
In step S611, if the standby factor source process is an image forming process or a paper feed process, the current state is determined from information on the remaining execution time of the standby factor source process and standby power consumption of the standby target process. The amount of standby power consumption when operating in the execution order is calculated, and the execution order is switched based on the information on the execution time of the standby process and the standby power consumption of the standby factor source process. If this is the case, standby power consumption is calculated (step S612).

Then, the standby power consumption calculated in step S612 is compared (step S613). If it is determined that the power consumption is smaller when the order is changed, the execution order is changed (step S614), and the order is changed. If yes (step S615), the process returns to the flowchart of FIG. As a result, the standby power consumption can be further reduced.
If it is determined in step S613 that the current order is smaller in standby power consumption, the order is not changed (step S616), the present flowchart is terminated, and the process returns to the flowchart of FIG.

If it is determined in step S611 that the standby factor source process is a post-processing process, the order is not changed (step S616), and this flowchart is terminated.
This is because it is advantageous for the user to preferentially execute the post-processing step and finish one job first. However, the order may be changed to give the highest priority to the power consumption during standby.

Further, if it is determined in step S610 that the process is other than the paper feed process, the order change determination is not performed (step S617), and this flowchart is ended. Here, the processes other than the sheet feeding process are the image reading process or the post-processing process, and none of them consumes much power during standby.
(2) Specific Example In order to explain the effect of the present embodiment, the operation of the print job C (see FIG. 5) is performed simultaneously with the completion of the process A (1) (image reading process) of the print job A in the copying machine 2. A case where the power monitoring apparatus 1 receives a permission application will be described as a model case with reference to FIGS. 19 (a) and 19 (b).

FIG. 19A shows the execution order in the conventional method. The relationship between the power consumption and the elapsed time when the processes of the print jobs A and C are processed in parallel in the order in which the applications are accepted without changing the order. Is shown.
In this example, a period (2 seconds from time t33 to t34) in which the paper feeding process (2) of the print job C is in a standby state by the execution of the image forming process (3) of the print job A occurs. This corresponds to the case where the standby target is determined to be the paper feed process in step S610 and the standby factor process is determined to be the image forming process in step S611 in the flowchart of FIG.
Therefore, when the standby power consumption calculation in step S612 is executed, the period (step C (5)) in which the paper feed (2) of the print job C is in a standby state (step C (5)) by executing the image forming step (3) of the print job A ( Since the standby power consumption of the process C (5) is 400 W (see FIG. 5C) at time t33 to t34), the standby power consumption is about 0.222 Wh (400 W × 2/3600). Will occur. If the order is changed and the process C (2) (1 second) is preferentially executed over the process A (3), the standby process A (5) occurs for 1 second, so that standby power consumption of about 0.111 Wh is obtained. Will occur. When both are compared (step S613 in FIG. 18), since the standby power consumption decreases when the order is changed, processing for changing the order is executed in step S614.

Then, when the operation simulation is repeated again for the application list whose order has been changed in this way and the operation simulation is performed for all the steps, the result is as shown in FIG.
As a result, the total standby power consumption 0.666667 Wh before the order change could be reduced to 0.02778 Wh after the order change.
<Modification>
The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and the following modifications can be implemented.

(1) In each of the above-described embodiments, a series of print jobs is divided into four parts: an image reading process, a paper feeding process, an image forming process, and a post-processing process. For example, the post-processing process is performed according to the content of the post-processing. It is possible to divide the process into a plurality of processes by subdividing it into a plurality of processes, and conversely, for example, the sheet feeding process and the image forming process can be regarded as one process.
(2) In each of the above-described embodiments, when the operation permission application is transmitted from the copying machines 2 to 5 to the power monitoring apparatus 1, it is transmitted together with the process information of the own apparatus. Process information is registered in advance in the EEPROM 104 or the like of the power monitoring apparatus 1, and for each copying machine that has transmitted the application by the power monitoring apparatus when there is a permission application for a print job from the copying machines 2-5. You may comprise so that corresponding process information may be read.

  (3) In the above embodiment, the number of copying machines connected to the LAN 6 is four. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention can be implemented as long as the number is two or more. In addition, the image forming apparatus to be connected is not limited to a copying machine, and has a facsimile function, a function of scanning a document and storing it in a storage unit within the apparatus, and a function of transmitting to an external terminal connected via a network. It may be a multifunctional multifunction peripheral (MFP) or a dedicated machine such as a printer or a facsimile machine. In short, it is possible to divide a series of jobs into a plurality of processes and to have a configuration in which a relatively large standby power consumption occurs like a fixing operation when waiting for one process. The effect when applied is great.

(4) Further, the power monitoring apparatus 1 can be used not only as an independent apparatus but also as one of the control units of the copiers 2 to 5.
(5) The contents of the power monitoring process in the power monitoring apparatus 1 can be understood as an invention relating to a program executed by the CPU 101.
In this case, the program is, for example, a magnetic disk such as a magnetic tape or a flexible disk, an optical recording medium such as a DVD, CD-ROM, CD-R, MO, or PD, Smart Media (registered trademark), COMPACT FLASH (registered trademark). It can be recorded on various computer-readable recording media such as flash memory recording media such as, and may be produced, transferred, etc. in the form of the recording medium, or the Internet in the form of a program. It may be transmitted and supplied via various wired and wireless networks including broadcasting, broadcasting, telecommunication lines, satellite communications, and the like.

  In addition, you may combine the content of the said embodiment and modification as much as possible.

  The present invention can be applied to a power monitoring system that monitors power consumed by a plurality of image forming apparatuses.

1 Power monitoring device 2-5 Copier 6 LAN
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Image reading part 20 Image forming part 30 Paper feed part 40 Post-processing part 100 Power monitoring system 101, 211, 221, 241 CPU

Claims (15)

A power monitoring system in which a plurality of image forming apparatuses and a power monitoring apparatus that monitors the total power consumption of the plurality of image forming apparatuses are connected,
Each image forming device
Image forming job execution means capable of dividing a series of image forming jobs into a plurality of steps and executing the image forming jobs;
Control means for controlling execution of the plurality of steps based on an instruction from the power monitoring device;
The power monitoring device includes:
An operation order determining means for acquiring information relating to an image forming job to be executed in the plurality or a part of the image forming apparatuses and determining an operation order between steps of the image forming job in each image forming apparatus;
Instruction means for instructing the corresponding image forming apparatus to execute the process of each image forming job in accordance with the determined operation order;
The operation order determining means includes
When each image forming apparatus executes an image forming job, the total power consumption of the image forming apparatus does not exceed a predetermined upper limit value, and consumption occurs when waiting for execution of a specific process in any of the image forming apparatuses An operation monitoring order between steps in each image forming job is determined so that a total amount of electric power is smaller. The operation order determining means includes
First determining means for tentatively determining the operation order of each step of the image forming job to be executed by each of the image forming apparatuses;
Power excess determining means for determining whether or not the total power consumption when each image forming apparatus executes an image forming job in the temporarily determined operation order exceeds the upper limit;
A second determination that is performed by changing the provisionally determined operation order so as to wait for a process in a predetermined image forming apparatus when the power excess determination means determines that the power exceeds the upper limit value. Means,
With
2. The power monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein the second determination unit changes the operation order so that a total amount of power consumption generated by a standby process is smaller. The second determining means includes
The power monitoring system according to claim 2, wherein the operation order is changed with the highest priority given to minimizing a cumulative value of power consumption during standby of an image forming process including a fixing operation. The second determining means includes
4. The power monitoring system according to claim 3, wherein the operation order is changed by giving second priority to minimizing a cumulative value of power consumption due to waiting in a paper feed process. 5. The second determining means includes
When the image forming process in one image forming apparatus is put on standby by the image reading process in the other image forming apparatus, the image forming process is performed to be executed with priority over the image reading process. The power monitoring system according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the order is changed. The second determining means includes
When the first image forming process in one image forming apparatus is made to stand by by the second image forming process in another image forming apparatus, the first image generated when the first image forming process is made to stand by Standby power consumption of
The second standby power consumption is compared with the second standby power consumption that occurs when the priority order is changed and the second image forming process is put on standby by the first image forming process. The operation order is changed so that the first image forming process is executed with priority over the second image forming process when the standby power consumption is smaller. The power monitoring system described in 1. The second determining means includes
A first standby power consumption that occurs when an image forming process in one image forming apparatus is put on standby in an image forming process when the image forming process is put on standby in a paper feeding process in another image forming apparatus;
The second standby power amount is higher than the first standby power consumption amount by comparing the second standby power amount generated when the priority order is changed and the paper feeding step is made to stand by by the image forming step. 3. The power monitoring system according to claim 2, wherein the operation order is changed so that the image forming process is executed in preference to the paper feeding process when the size is small. The second determining means includes
The image forming step includes a standby time acquisition unit that acquires a standby time when the image forming step is caused to wait by the paper feeding step,
When the acquired standby time is equal to or longer than the predetermined time, the image forming process is executed in preference to the paper feeding process without comparing the first and second standby power consumptions. The power monitoring system according to claim 7, wherein the operation order is changed. The second determining means includes
3. The power monitoring system according to claim 2, wherein when the image forming process in one image forming apparatus is put on standby by a post-processing process in another image forming apparatus, the operation order is not changed. . The second determining means includes
When waiting for the paper feeding step by the image reading step of another image forming apparatus,
The power monitoring system according to claim 2, wherein an operation order between the paper feeding process and the image reading process of another image forming apparatus is changed. The second determining means includes
A first standby power consumption that occurs when the paper feeding process is made to stand by when the paper feeding process in one image forming apparatus is made to stand by by the image forming process in another image forming apparatus;
The second standby power consumption is compared with the first standby power consumption by comparing the second standby power consumption that occurs when the priority order is changed and the image forming process is put on standby by the paper feeding process. The power monitoring system according to any one of claims 2 to 9, wherein the operation order is changed so that the paper feeding step is executed in preference to the image forming step when the size is small. The second determining means includes
When the first paper feed process in one image forming apparatus is waited by the second paper feed process in another image forming apparatus, the first paper that occurs when the first paper feed process is waited Standby power consumption of
The second standby power consumption is compared with the first standby power consumption that occurs when the priority order is changed and the second paper feeding process is made to wait by the first paper feeding process. The operation order is changed so that the first paper feeding step is executed in preference to the second paper feeding step when the standby power consumption is smaller. The power monitoring system according to any of the above. The second determining means includes
The operation sequence is not changed when the paper feeding process in one image forming apparatus is kept in a standby state by a post-processing process in another image forming apparatus. The power monitoring system described in 1. A power monitoring device connected to a plurality of image forming apparatuses and monitoring the total power consumption of the plurality of image forming apparatuses,
An operation order determining means for acquiring information relating to an image forming job to be executed in the plurality or a part of the image forming apparatuses and determining an operation order between steps of the image forming job in each image forming apparatus;
Instruction means for instructing the corresponding image forming apparatus to execute the process of each image forming job in accordance with the determined operation order;
The operation order determining means includes
When each image forming apparatus executes an image forming job, the total power consumption of the image forming apparatus does not exceed a predetermined upper limit value, and consumption occurs when waiting for execution of a specific process in any of the image forming apparatuses An electric power monitoring apparatus that determines an execution order of steps in each image forming job so that a total amount of electric power is smaller. A power monitoring method that is connected to a plurality of image forming apparatuses and that is executed by a power monitoring apparatus that monitors the total power consumption of the plurality of image forming apparatuses.
An acquisition step of acquiring information relating to an image forming job to be executed in the plurality or some of the image forming apparatuses;
An operation order determining step for determining an operation order between processes of the image forming job in each acquired image forming apparatus;
An instruction step for instructing the corresponding image forming apparatus to execute the process of each image forming job according to the determined operation order,
The operation order determining step includes:
When each image forming apparatus executes an image forming job, the total power consumption of the image forming apparatus does not exceed a predetermined upper limit value, and consumption occurs when waiting for execution of a specific process in any of the image forming apparatuses An electric power monitoring method, comprising: determining an execution order of steps in each image forming job so that a total amount of electric power is smaller.

Images