JP6862112B2 - Information processing equipment, its control method, and programs - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an information processing device and its control method and a program, and more particularly to an information processing device and its control method and a program in which an optional unit can be attached to a main body.

An image forming apparatus such as a multifunction device includes a CPU of a main body control unit that controls the entire image forming apparatus, and an optional unit CPU that individually controls optional functions such as fax and finishing functions. Each function such as FAX and finishing function is realized by operating the CPU of the option unit based on the control program corresponding to each function stored in the storage device such as ROM (hereinafter referred to as "control program of option unit"). Will be done.

In addition, there is a system that operates in cooperation with a plurality of optional units such as an image forming apparatus. In such a system, when the option unit is connected, there is a mechanism for upgrading the control program of the option unit by using a control program (hereinafter referred to as "main body side control program") saved in the storage area of the main body in advance. However, if a version of the control program newer than the version of the control program on the main unit is installed in the option unit, the control program of the option unit is not upgraded when the option unit is connected. Therefore, the control program of the option unit cannot be matched with the version of the control program on the main body side.

On the other hand, there is known a technique for upgrading or downgrading the control program of the option unit by comparing the versions of the control program on the main body side and the control program of the option unit when the option unit is connected (see Patent Documents 1 and 2).

In the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1, the behavior of the automatic update process is separated by a set value. For example, if you want to correct the inconsistency between the version of the control program of the option unit and the version of the control program on the main unit side, set the setting value to perform both upgrade and downgrade by automatic update processing. On the other hand, if the setting value is set so that only the upgrade is performed by the automatic update process, it is possible to prevent the control program of the option unit from being unintentionally downgraded.

Further, in the technique disclosed in Patent Document 2, when the option unit connected to the image forming apparatus includes an option unit that requires downgrade of the control program by the automatic update process, before the automatic update process is performed. Notify to that effect.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2015-001814 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2014-232424

However, in the technique of Patent Document 1, while the setting value is set so that only the upgrade is performed by the update process, the option unit that requires the upgrade of the control program and the option unit that requires the downgrade may coexist in the update process. In this case, the update process ends as it is without the update being performed. However, when the update process is completed in this way, it cannot be noticed that the operation of the option unit connected to the image forming apparatus is not the operation expected by the user.

On the other hand, in the technique of Patent Document 2, although the user does not want to downgrade the control program of any of the optional units, the image forming apparatus is erroneously instructed to execute the automatic update process after receiving the above notification. It may go away. In this case, a part of the option unit will be downgraded.

An object of the present invention is to provide an information processing device, a control method thereof, and a program capable of correcting a version inconsistency between a control program of an option unit and a control program on the main body side without downgrading.

The information processing device according to claim 1 of the present invention is an information processing device to which a plurality of option units can be connected, and is for updating a control program stored in each storage unit of the plurality of option units. A storage means capable of storing the control program of the above, an update means for updating the control program stored in the storage unit of the option unit by using the control program stored in the storage means, and the information processing apparatus. When the version of the control program stored in the storage unit of at least one of the plurality of option units connected to is a version newer than the version of the control program stored in the storage means. , The version of the control program stored in all the storage units of the plurality of option units without updating the control program stored in each storage unit of the plurality of option units by the update means. In the case of a version older than the version of the control program stored in the storage means, an update method for updating the control program stored in each storage unit of the plurality of option units by the update means is performed. A setting means to be set, an optional unit in which the update method is set by the setting means and a control program having a version newer than the version of the control program stored in the storage means is stored in the storage unit. When an option unit in which a control program having a version older than the version of the control program stored in the storage means is stored in the storage unit is connected to the information processing device, it is connected to the information processing device. It is provided with a notification means for notifying that the control program stored in the storage unit of the optional unit is not updated and that an update instruction for the control program stored in the storage means is required. It is characterized by that.

According to the present invention, it is possible to correct the version inconsistency between the control program of the option unit and the control program on the main body side without downgrading.

It is a block diagram which shows the hardware structure of the image forming apparatus as an information processing apparatus in the 1st Example of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the software which is executed by the CPU of the control part in FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the automatic update process which concerns on 1st Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the operation unit in FIG. 1 in step S309 of FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the screen which is displayed on the operation part in step S313 of FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the automatic update process which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the screen which is displayed on the operation part in step S713 of FIG. It is a figure which shows the version example of the main body side control program and the control program of each option unit before and after the upgrade in the 2nd Example of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the automatic update process which concerns on 3rd Example of this invention.

(First Example)
Hereinafter, the first embodiment for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of an image forming apparatus 100 as an information processing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 1, the control unit 110 is configured to control the entire image forming apparatus 100. The control unit 110 includes the following as a configuration for controlling the image forming apparatus 100.

The CPU 111 reads the program for the control unit 110 stored in the ROM 112, which is a storage area, into the RAM 113 and executes the program. The ROM 112 also stores device information such as licenses, device configuration information, and software versions.

The hard disk drive (HDD) 114 stores print data received from the PC 182 via the network I / F 120. The program executed by the CPU 111 includes a print application program. Then, the print application program converts the print data stored in the HDD 114 into image data that can be printed by the printer unit 140. Image data that can be printed by the printer unit 140 is also stored in the HDD 114. Further, the program executed by the CPU 111 includes a scanning application program. Then, by this scanning application program, the image data is read by the scanner unit 150, and the read image data is transferred to the HDD 114. Then, the read image data is stored in the HDD 114.

The image analysis board 115 is hardware for transmitting an instruction such as whether or not to output to the printer unit 140 to the CPU 111 by analyzing the image data read by the scanner unit 150 and reading the copy prohibition information or the like.

The operation unit I / F 116 is an I / F for transmitting an instruction input by the user of the image forming apparatus 100 to the CPU 111 via the operation unit 130. Further, the operation unit I / F 116 receives the processing content for switching the content displayed on the operation unit 130 from the CPU 111 and transmits the processing content to the operation unit 130. The operation unit 130 is provided with a liquid crystal display unit having a touch panel function, a keyboard, and the like, and receives instructions from the user.

The printer I / F 117 is an interface for connecting the control unit 110 and the printer unit 140. Here, the printer unit 140 prints on the recording medium based on the image data transferred from the HDD 114 via the printer I / F 117.

Further, the finisher unit 170 performs various finishing processes on the recording medium printed by the printer unit 140. The finishing process is, for example, a staple process for the sheet, a punch process (perforation process) for the sheet, a saddle stitch binding process, and the like.

The scanner I / F 118 is an interface for connecting the control unit 110 and the scanner unit 150. Here, the scanner unit 150 (input means for inputting image data) reads an image on a document as image data using a line sensor composed of a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) or the like. Then, the scanner unit 150 transfers the read image data to the HDD 114 via the scanner I / F 118. The image data transferred and stored in the HDD 114 can be printed by the printer unit 140 described above. By printing the image data read by the scanner unit 150 by the printer unit 140, copying processing is possible.

The USB-HostI / F119 is an interface for connecting the control unit 110 and the FAX unit 160. Here, the FAX unit 160 performs FAX transmission via the FAX line 185 based on the image data transferred from the HDD 114 via the USB-Host I / F 118. Further, the FAX unit 160 generates image data based on the data received via the FAX line 185, and transfers the image data to the HDD 114 via the USB-HostI / F119. The image data stored in the HDD 114 is printed on the storage medium by the printer unit 140 as described above. The USB-HostI / F119 can also be connected to the external USB device 184. Examples of the external USB device 184 include a USB memory and a USB keyboard.

The network I / F 120 connects the control unit 110 to the LAN 181 and communicates with the PC 182 on the LAN. The PC 182 is connected to the image forming apparatus 100 by LAN181, and can transmit print data to the image forming apparatus 100, operate the device via a WEB browser, and the like.

Further, the image forming apparatus 100 is connected to the server apparatus 183 via the LAN 181 and can download the update file necessary for updating the control program. The means of downloading the update file here is not limited to HTTP, FTP, and other protocols.

The latest program required for upgrade is always uploaded to the server device 183 for the shipped product, and the latest program can be obtained by making an inquiry from the image forming device 100. However, depending on the installation environment of the image forming apparatus 100, it may not be connected to the server apparatus 183.

The printer unit 140, the scanner unit 150, the FAX unit 160, and the finisher unit 170, which are provided as optional units, have CPUs 141, 151, 161 and 171 and ROM 142, 152, 162 and 172, respectively. These are not as large as the CPU 111 and ROM 112, but each CPU reads the control program stored in the ROM to control itself and communicate with other optional units. In the update process of the control program of the option unit (hereinafter, simply referred to as “automatic update process”) described later, the control programs stored in these ROMs 142, 152, 162, and 172 can also be the update targets.

The scanner unit 150, the fax unit 160, and the finisher unit 170 can be attached and detached according to the application. There are cases where it is installed as an additional option later, and cases where it is replaced due to a failure or the like. The program stored in the ROM of each unit attached at that time may not be a guaranteed combination with respect to the control program stored in the ROM 112 of the control unit 110. Therefore, when each unit is attached, it is necessary to update the programs stored in the ROMs 142, 152, 162, and 172.

Although each option unit can be directly attached to and detached from the image forming apparatus 100 in the present embodiment, it may be configured to be connected via a LAN.

Next, the configuration of the software executed by the CPU 111 of the control unit 110 will be described with reference to FIG. It is assumed that the program shown in FIG. 2 is stored in the ROM 112 of FIG.

In the main system 210, programs for realizing various functions of the image forming apparatus 100 in this embodiment are arranged.

The operation unit control unit 211 is a program for controlling the operation unit 130 via the operation unit I / F 116.

Similarly, the printer control unit 212 is a program for controlling the printer unit 140 via the printer I / F 117, and the scanner control unit 213 is a program for controlling the scanner unit 150 via the scanner I / F 118. Similarly, the USB control unit 214 is also a program for controlling the USB device after that via the USB-HostI / F119.

The application control unit 215 does not directly control the external device, but shows a group of programs for realizing various functions of the image forming apparatus 100. The application control unit 215 includes httpd (HyperTextTransferProtocolDeamon), lpd (LinePrinterDeamon), Wed browser function, device information distribution function, and the like.

The version comparison unit 216 compares the version of the control program stored in the ROMs 142, 152, 162, and 172 in each option unit with the version of each program stored in the control program storage unit 230 for the option unit when the main unit is started. ..

The program update processing unit 217 automatically updates the control program stored in the ROMs 112, 142, 152, 162, and 172. This automatic update process is executed according to the result of version comparison by the version comparison unit 216 or the user's selection.

As a result of version comparison by the version comparison unit 216, the version warning screen notification unit 218 confirms whether or not there is a difference between the control program stored in the option unit side and the control program stored in the main body side. If the update cannot be performed according to the set value acquired by the automatic update setting confirmation unit 220, which will be described later, the control program of the main program needs to be updated because the operation unit control unit 211 cannot be updated. Is displayed. Then, the operation unit 130 receives the result of whether or not the user has confirmed it.

The version inconsistency confirmation screen notification unit 219 notifies the operation unit control unit 211 of the display of a warning that the main body program needs to be updated, and then receives the user selection result of the main body operation from the operation unit 130.

The automatic update setting confirmation unit 220 confirms the setting value stored in the ROM 112 regarding the operation of the automatic update process when the option unit is connected. Here, it is assumed that there are three setting values of "1. do not execute automatic update", "2. execute only upgrade", and "3. execute both upgrade and downgrade". In this embodiment, it is assumed that the user has previously saved "2. Execute only upgrade" as a set value in the ROM 112 via the operation unit 130 (setting means).

The control program storage unit 230 for the option unit stores the control programs 231,232, 233, 234 of each option unit in advance. The control program for each option unit is suitable for the processing realized by each control unit 211,212,213,214,215 of the main system 210, and the optimum operation can be expected.

The control programs 231, 232, 233, and 234 store the optimum version of the image forming apparatus 100 at the time of shipment from the factory in the control program storage unit 230 (storage means) for the option unit. After that, when the automatic update process of FIG. 3 described later is executed by the user, the latest program for the option unit is acquired together with the latest program of the control unit 110 from an external storage device such as the server device 183. The acquired latest program for the option unit is updated in the control program storage unit 230 for the option unit. At this time, the program for the option unit that is not actually connected is also acquired at the same time. By doing so, even if an optional unit is additionally connected later, the latest program can be supported.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a procedure of automatic update processing according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The program that realizes this flowchart is stored in the ROM 112 and executed by the CPU 111.

First, when the power of the main body is turned on in step S301, the automatic update setting confirmation unit 220 confirms the set value related to the operation of the automatic update process in step S302. If the set value is either "2. Execute only upgrade" or "3. Execute both upgrade and downgrade", the process proceeds to step S303. If the set value is "1. Do not execute automatic update", this process ends.

Next, in step S303, it is confirmed whether or not the option unit control program is stored in the option unit control program storage unit 230 of the main system 210. As a result of the confirmation, if the control program for the option unit is not stored (NO in step S303), this process is terminated as it is. On the other hand, as a result of confirmation, if the program is stored (YES in step S303), the process proceeds to step S304.

In step S304, the version of the control program stored in the ROM 142, 152, 162, 172 of the option unit connected to the main body is acquired. After that, in step S305, the version comparison unit 216 compares the program version acquired in step S303 with the version of the control program stored in the option unit control program storage unit 230 of the main system 210. As a result of the comparison in step S305, it is determined in step S306 whether or not there is a difference in the program version. As a result of this determination, if there is a difference in the program version (YES in step S306), the process proceeds to the next step S307. On the other hand, if there is no difference at all (NO in step S306), the control program of each option unit does not need to be updated, and this process ends.

In step S307, it is confirmed whether or not the setting for automatic update of the option unit is set to upgrade for both upgrade and downgrade. Specifically, if the setting value related to the operation of the automatic update process is "3. Execute both upgrade and downgrade", the process proceeds to step S309, and the set value related to the operation of the automatic update process is "2. Upgrade only". If "execute", the process proceeds to step S308.

In step S308, is the version of the control program of the option unit acquired in step S304 newer than the control program held in the control program storage unit 230 for the option unit (hereinafter referred to as "main unit side control program")? Check whether the upgrade process is the only process required for the automatic update process. If the version of the control program of the option unit connected to the main unit is newer than that of the control program on the main unit (NO in step S308), the control program of the option unit will be downgraded if the automatic update process is performed. .. Therefore, in this case, the process proceeds to step S312 in order to switch the processing. On the other hand, when the versions of the control programs of all the option units connected to the main body are the same as or older than the main body side control program (YES in step S308), the automatic update process only performs the upgrade process. Therefore, in this case, the process proceeds to step S309.

In step S309, the version inconsistency confirmation screen notification unit 219 causes the operation unit 130 to display the version upgrade confirmation screen via the operation unit control unit 211 in order to inquire the user whether or not to perform the automatic update process. The version upgrade confirmation screen will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 4, but here the user can select whether to update or skip the control program of the option unit connected to the main body.

If the update button 401 is selected on the version upgrade confirmation screen 400 displayed in step S309 (YES in step S310), the process proceeds to step S311. On the other hand, if the skip button 402 is selected on the version upgrade confirmation screen 400 displayed in step S309 (NO in step S310), this process ends as it is.

When the process proceeds to step S311, the program update processing unit 217 updates the control program of each option unit according to the control program stored in the option unit control program storage unit 230.

In step S312, it is determined whether the processing required for the automatic update processing is only the downgrade processing. This step is performed when the processing required for the automatic update processing is not only the upgrade processing (NO in step S308). Therefore, in step S312, it is actually determined whether or not the control program of the option unit connected to the main body is in a mixed state in which the control program to be upgraded and the control program to be downgraded are mixed (determination means). ..

As a result of the determination in step S312, if there is a mixed state (NO in step S312), the process proceeds to step S313. On the other hand, when the process required for the automatic update process is only the downgrade process, not in the mixed state, the setting value of the operation related to the automatic update process is "2. Execute only the upgrade" (in step S307). NO) Since there is no control program to be updated, this process ends.

In step S313, the version inconsistency confirmation screen notification unit 219 causes the version warning screen 500 to be displayed on the operation unit 130 via the operation unit control unit 211 (warning means). The version warning screen 500 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 5, but a warning is given that the control program cannot be updated because the versions of the control program on the main body side and the control program of the option unit do not match. Further, on this version warning screen 500, since the version is not compatible, a notification is given that the control program on the main body side needs to be updated (notification means). The version warning screen 500 can be closed by selecting the OK button 501.

Since a warning is displayed here, if the user who installed the option unit has a means to update the control program on the main body side, the inconsistency may be corrected by updating. Although it is possible to use the attached option unit in the main body even if it is not updated, the version warning screen 500 is displayed every time the image forming apparatus 100 is started because the inconsistent version continues. To. In this embodiment, the version warning screen 500 can be closed, but it cannot be closed until the control program on the main unit is updated, so that it can be used in a state where the versions are inconsistent. Can also be restricted.

In FIG. 3, it is assumed that the processing after step S302 is performed when the power of the main body is first turned on, but it may be when it is detected that a new option unit is connected to the main body. Perform the same process.

FIG. 4 shows an example of the screen displayed on the operation unit 130 in step S309.

FIG. 4 is a confirmation screen for the automatic update process. On this screen, the update button 401 and the skip button 402 can be selected, and the user can select the process.

FIG. 5 shows an example of the screen displayed on the operation unit 130 in step S313.

The version warning screen 500 of FIG. 5 is an example of a screen displayed on the operation unit 130 in step S313. On this screen 500, the control program of the option unit connected to the main body includes both the control program that requires upgrade and downgrade, and the setting value related to the operation of the automatic update process is set to perform only the upgrade. Is displayed when Therefore, the version warning screen 500 is a warning screen that warns the user that the versions of the control program on the main body side and the control program on the option unit are inconsistent and that the control program on the main body side needs to be updated. The OK button 501 is displayed on this screen, and the user can close the version warning screen 500 by pressing the OK button 501.

As described above, according to this embodiment, while the automatic update process is set to perform only the upgrade, during the automatic update process, the control program of the option unit connected to the main body needs to be upgraded and downgraded. May need something. In this case, a warning that the automatic update process cannot be executed and a notification that the control program on the main body side needs to be updated are given to the user (serviceman). As a result, it is possible to correct the inconsistency between the version of the control program of the option unit and the version of the control program on the main body side without downgrading any of the plurality of option units connected to the main body.

(Second Example)
In the first embodiment, when both the control program that needs to be upgraded and the control program that needs to be downgraded exist, the warning screen shown in FIG. 5 is displayed. On the other hand, in the second embodiment, in such a case, the upgrade confirmation screen 600 shown in FIG. 7 is displayed, and the user is confirmed whether or not to upgrade. Specifically, the flowchart shown in FIG. 6 and an example of the version of each control program shown in FIG. 8 will be described.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the automatic update process according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

Since steps S301 to S312 in FIG. 6 are the same as those in FIG. 3, the description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a version example of each control program before and after the upgrade in this embodiment.

In step S713, the version inconsistency confirmation screen notification unit 219 causes the operation unit 130 to display the upgrade confirmation screen 600 shown in FIG. 7 via the operation unit control unit 211. This notifies that the versions of the control program of the main unit and the control program of the option unit are inconsistent. At the same time, it inquires whether to upgrade only the control programs of the option unit that need to be upgraded, and notifies that the control programs with version inconsistency still remain (other notification means). As an example of the version of each control program at this time, FIG. 8 shows a version example 800 (a) of the control program on the main body side and a version example 800 (b) of the control program of each option unit before the upgrade connected to the main body. .. The version 801 of the scanner unit control program 233 stored in the main body is V4.0, and the version 803 of the control program of the scanner unit 150 connected to the main body is V3.0 before the upgrade. Therefore, it is determined that the control program of the scanner unit 150 needs to be upgraded. Further, the version 802 of the finisher unit control program 232 stored in the main body is V2.0, whereas the version 804 of the control program of the finisher unit 170 connected to the main body is V3.0 before the upgrade. Therefore, it is determined that the finisher unit 170's seigyo program needs to be downgraded.

When the update button 601 is selected as a user instruction for the upgrade confirmation screen 600 displayed in step S713 (YES in step S714), the process proceeds to step S715. On the other hand, when the skip button 602 is selected in step S713 (NO in step S714), this process ends as it is. In step S715, only the control program of the option unit that needs to be upgraded is updated. As a result, the version 805 of the scanner unit 150 is upgraded to V4.0 as shown in the upgraded version example 800 (c) shown in FIG. On the other hand, version 806 of the finisher unit 170 remains V3.0 because it is not downgraded.

As described above, according to this embodiment, while the automatic update process is set to perform only the upgrade, during the automatic update process, the control program of the option unit connected to the main body needs to be upgraded and downgraded. May need something. In this case, only the control programs that need to be upgraded are updated. This makes it possible to bring the version of the control program of a plurality of optional units connected to the main body closer to the version of the control program on the main body side. However, since the version inconsistency still remains, the user is informed that the inconsistency will not be resolved even after the update.

If there is a control program that requires downgrading, the image forming apparatus 100 may make an inquiry to an external content server to update the control program on the main body side as shown in the flowchart shown in FIG. .. As a result, when an option unit is connected to the main body, it is possible to prevent the control program of the option unit from being downgraded by the automatic update process. Further, in step S906 of FIG. 9, the control program for controlling the main body of the image forming apparatus 100 is acquired, but the control program on the main body side may be acquired at the same time.

Further, in the update of step S909, the control program for controlling the image forming apparatus 100 main body is updated to the latest version. As a result, the function of the option unit can be operated regardless of the version of the control program of the option unit connected to the main body. In step S909, the control program of the option unit connected to the main body may also be updated to the latest version acquired in step S906.

Although the present invention has been described in detail based on the preferred embodiments thereof, the present invention is not limited to these specific embodiments, and various embodiments within the scope of the gist of the present invention are also included in the present invention. included. Some of the above-described embodiments may be combined as appropriate. Further, when a software program that realizes the functions of the above-described embodiment is supplied to a system or device having a computer capable of executing the program directly from a recording medium or by using wired / wireless communication, and the program is executed. Is also included in the present invention. Therefore, in order to realize the functional processing of the present invention on a computer, the program code itself supplied and installed on the computer also realizes the present invention. That is, the computer program itself for realizing the functional processing of the present invention is also included in the present invention. In that case, the form of the program does not matter, such as the object code, the program executed by the interpreter, and the script data supplied to the OS, as long as it has the function of the program. The recording medium for supplying the program may be, for example, a hard disk, a magnetic recording medium such as a magnetic tape, an optical / optical magnetic storage medium, or a non-volatile semiconductor memory. Further, as a method of supplying the program, a method in which the computer program forming the present invention is stored in a server on the computer network and the connected client computer downloads and programs the computer program can be considered.

100 Image forming device 110 Control unit 111 CPU
112 ROM
113 RAM
114 HDD
115 Image analysis board 130 Operation unit 140 Printer unit 150 Scanner unit 160 FAX unit 170 Finisher unit

Claims (7)

An information processing device that can connect multiple optional units.
A storage means capable of storing a control program for updating a control program stored in each storage unit of the plurality of optional units, and a storage means capable of storing the control program.
An update means for updating the control program stored in the storage unit of the option unit by using the control program stored in the storage means, and
The version of the control program stored in the storage unit of at least one of the plurality of option units connected to the information processing apparatus is newer than the version of the control program stored in the storage means. In the case of the version, the control program stored in all the storage units of the plurality of option units is not updated by the update means, and the control program is stored in all the storage units of the plurality of option units. When the version of is older than the version of the control program stored in the storage means, the update means updates the control program stored in each storage unit of the plurality of option units. Setting means to set the update method to be performed, and
The update method is set by the setting means, and a control program having a version newer than the version of the control program stored in the storage means is stored in the storage unit and an option unit stored in the storage unit, and stored in the storage means. When an option unit in which a control program having a version older than the version of the control program is stored in the storage unit is connected to the information processing device, the option unit connected to the information processing device Information processing characterized in that the control program stored in the storage unit cannot be updated and a notification means for notifying that the control program stored in the storage means needs to be updated is provided. Equipment . It said notifying means to start time of the information processing apparatus, an information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the performing pre-Symbol notification. The notification unit, the memory until means updates the control program stored in takes place at the time of activation of the information processing apparatus, before Symbol notification information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the performing. The information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the notification means includes a display means for displaying the notification. It said updating means in response to a user instruction to the notification by the notification unit, the update processing 1 to claim, characterized in that to update the control program stored in the storage unit of the optional units required The information processing apparatus according to any one of 4. A control method for an information processing apparatus including a storage means capable of connecting a plurality of option units and storing a control program for updating a control program stored in each storage unit of the plurality of option units. There,
An update step of updating the control program stored in the storage unit of the option unit by using the control program stored in the storage means, and
The version of the control program stored in the storage unit of at least one of the plurality of option units connected to the information processing apparatus is newer than the version of the control program stored in the storage means. In the case of the version, the control program stored in all the storage units of the plurality of option units is not updated in the update step, and the control program is stored in all the storage units of the plurality of option units. If the version of is older than the version of the control program stored in the storage means, the control program update process stored in each storage unit of the plurality of option units is performed in the update step. Setting steps to set the update method to be performed, and
The update method is set in the setting step, and a control program having a version newer than the version of the control program stored in the storage means is stored in the storage unit and an option unit stored in the storage unit, and is stored in the storage means. When an option unit in which a control program having a version older than the version of the control program is stored in the storage unit is connected to the information processing device, the option unit connected to the information processing device and inability to update the control program stored in the storage block, a notification step of notifying that the update instruction of the control program stored is required in the storage means,
A control method characterized by having. A control method for an information processing apparatus including a storage means capable of connecting a plurality of option units and storing a control program for updating a control program stored in each storage unit of the plurality of option units. A program to be executed by a computer
The control method is
An update step of updating the control program stored in the storage unit of the option unit by using the control program stored in the storage means, and
The version of the control program stored in the storage unit of at least one of the plurality of option units connected to the information processing apparatus is newer than the version of the control program stored in the storage means. In the case of the version, the control program stored in all the storage units of the plurality of option units is not updated in the update step, and the control program is stored in all the storage units of the plurality of option units. If the version of is older than the version of the control program stored in the storage means, the control program update process stored in each storage unit of the plurality of option units is performed in the update step. Setting steps to set the update method to be performed, and
The update method is set in the setting step, and a control program having a version newer than the version of the control program stored in the storage means is stored in the storage unit and an option unit stored in the storage unit, and is stored in the storage means. When an option unit in which a control program having a version older than the version of the control program is stored in the storage unit is connected to the information processing device, the option unit connected to the information processing device and inability to update the control program stored in the storage block, a notification step of notifying that the update instruction of the control program stored is required in the storage means,
A program characterized by having.

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