JPH03256966A - Recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To select an output destination candidate optimum to the printing data to be inputted, by installing a selecting means which automatically selects and sets an output destination for a recorded medium, to either of a face-up loading means or face-down loading means on the basis of the analyzed result of the printing data by a data analytic means. CONSTITUTION:A selecting means 1b of a central processing unit 1 investigates the contents of a discharge register being set on the basis of analysis by a data analytic means 1a, and when there is no designation of a paper discharge destination loading means, it also investigates the contents of a page number register 5 and whether the page number of one job is a known datum or not is judged. When it is the known datum, a face-down loading part 17, where page order is correctly loaded, is selected in the case where the page number of the one job is larger than the specified value, but when it is smaller, a face-up loading part 16, where the recorded contents can be known at a glance, is selected. In addition, if the page number of the one job is unknown, it investigates the contents of a type register 6, and if the input data are of character data alone, in addition to the loading part 17 and the character data, it sets the loading part at, so to say, a processing time.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to a recording apparatus that forms an image on a sheet-like recording medium based on data input manually from the outside.

[Conventional technology]

There are two methods for stacking recorded media in this type of recording apparatus: face-down, in which media are stacked with the recording surface facing down, and face-up, in which media are stacked with the recording surface facing up.

Among these methods, the face-down method has the advantage that recorded media are stacked in the correct page type, but on the other hand, the output recorded media side must be turned over in order to determine the output result.

On the other hand, with the face-up method, you can see the output results at a glance, but the pages are reversed, so both methods have their advantages and disadvantages.

This type of recording device is equipped with a type that performs loading processing using only one of the above-mentioned loading methods, and a loading means that is compatible with both loading methods. A type in which the loading means can be switched is now in practical use.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

However, in the case of manual switching, the operator is not necessarily in the vicinity of the recording device, and there is no guarantee that the output will be output to the appropriate loading means.

on the other hand,! When switching the loading means using an IJ command, the host application program (word processing software, etc.) that outputs the print data must be compatible with the control commands of the recording device, so it is especially important to avoid using multiple types of recording devices. In such cases, such detailed responses are difficult.

Additionally, this type of recording device often emulates other more popular printers (such as wire dots), but in that case, the original printer often does not have the ability to switch the loading method. Therefore, there were problems such as the inability to use control commands.

This invention was made to solve the above problems, and automatically determines the output destination for any one of a plurality of loading means based on information obtained by analyzing manually printed data. By automatically selecting the output destination of recorded media while making judgments, it is possible to
It is an object of the present invention to provide a recording device capable of loading recorded media while selecting an optimal output destination candidate for input print data.

[Means to solve the problem]

The recording device according to the present invention includes a data analysis means for analyzing manually printed data, a face-down loading means for loading recorded media with the recording side facing down, and a face-down loading means for loading the recorded media with the recording side facing up. and a selection means that automatically selects and sets the output destination of the recorded medium to the face-up loading means or the face-down loading means based on the analysis result of the print data by the data analysis means.

In addition, the selection means is one that is analyzed by the data analysis means.
The output destination of the recorded medium is automatically selected and set to face-up loading means or face-down loading means based on the amount of data or the number of pages in a job.

Furthermore, the selection means selects an output destination of the recorded medium based on the type of print data analyzed by the data analysis means.
This configuration is configured to automatically select and set either face-up loading means or face-down loading means.

Further, the selection means is configured to automatically select and set the output destination of the recorded medium to the face-up loading means or the face-down loading means based on the processing time of unit page light analyzed by the data analysis means. It is.

Further, the data analysis means is configured to perform analysis based on the presence or absence of an output destination designation command in the print data.

Further, an output destination specifying means is provided for manually specifying a destination for loading and outputting recorded media on the face-up loading means or the face-down loading means.

Further, the data analysis means is configured to perform analysis based on the presence or absence of the output destination designation state by the output destination designation means.

(Operation) In the present invention, when the input print data is analyzed by the data analysis means, the selection means selects the output destination of the recorded medium from the face-up loading means or the face-down loading means based on the analysis result of the print data. Automatically select and set the optimal loading output destination.

In addition, the selection means is one that is analyzed by the data analysis means.
Automatically selects and sets the output destination of recorded media to face-up loading means or face-down loading means based on the amount of data or number of pages in a job, and selects the optimal loading output destination for the amount of data or number of pages in one job. Select and set.

Furthermore, the selection means selects an output destination of the recorded medium based on the type of print data analyzed by the data analysis means.
Automatically selects and sets the face-up loading means or face-down loading means, and selects and sets the optimal loading output destination for the type of print data.

In addition, the selection means automatically selects and sets the output destination of the recorded medium to face-up loading means or face-down loading means based on the processing time per unit page analyzed by the data analysis means, and The most suitable loading means candidate for the time is selected and set as the loading output destination.

Furthermore, the data analysis means analyzes the print data based on the presence or absence of an output destination designation command, and if an output destination designation command exists in the print data, selects the loading method candidate of the output destination designation command as the loading output destination. Priority setting as

Further, the output destination specifying means allows the face-up loading means or the face-down loading means to manually specify the loading output destination of recorded media, thereby expanding the range of selectivity of loading means candidates.

Furthermore, the data analysis means prioritizes the analysis based on whether or not the output destination is designated by the output destination designation means, and sets the desired operator-designated loading means candidate as the loading output destination.

〔Example〕

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of a recording apparatus showing an embodiment of the present invention. Reference numeral 1 denotes a CPU that controls the entire print control including image processing, and a control program (described later) stored in a ROM (not shown). (including each procedure of the flowchart shown in FIG. 3). 1a
is a data analysis means, which analyzes the input print information according to different analysis values ① to ②, which will be described later, and sets the results as status flags for each register, which will be described later.

Reference numeral 1b denotes a selection means, which selects the output destination of the recorded medium from the face-up loading means FU or the face-down loading means F based on the analysis result of the print data by the data analysis means 1a.
D, that is, the drive of the branching mechanism to be described later is controlled (according to the flowchart shown in FIG. 3), and the output destination of the recorded medium is automatically selected as the face-up loading means FU or the face-down loading means FD. let

Reference numeral 2 denotes a host serving as a data supply source, which inputs edited print information to the main body 9 of the apparatus through a predetermined interface. A page buffer 3 stores print data obtained by the CPU 1 by analyzing input data from the host 2 in units of pages.

Reference numeral 4 denotes a printing mechanism, which includes file-up and face-down loading output means that can be selected in response to an instruction from the CPU 1, and prints the print data in the page buffer 3 on paper by known electrophotographic processing. 5 is a page number register which stores the number of pages in one job when it is known or can be estimated. Reference numeral 4a denotes an output destination specifying means for manually instructing the face-up loading means FU or the face-down loading means FD as to the output destination for loading recorded media.

6 is a type register that stores information about the type of print data;
7 is a timer that measures the time required to process one page; 8
is a discharge destination register that stores a control command in print data or a designation of paper discharge and stacking means by an instruction means (not shown). 10 is a scanning panel, and output destination specifying means 4a
is located.

Note that thick arrows in the figure indicate the flow of data, and thin arrows indicate the flow of control data.

In the recording apparatus configured in this manner, when the manually inputted print data is analyzed by the data analysis means 1a, the selection means 1b selects the output destination of the recorded medium based on the analysis result of the print data. Alternatively, the face-down loading means FD is automatically selected and set, and the optimum loading output destination is selected and set.

Further, the selection means 1b selects the output destination of the recorded medium based on the amount of data or the number of pages in one job analyzed by the data analysis means 1a.
U or face-down loading means FD is automatically selected and set, and the loading output destination that is most suitable for the amount of data or number of pages in one job is selected and set.

Furthermore, the selection means 1b automatically selects and sets the output destination of the recorded medium to the face-up loading means FU or the face-down loading means FD based on the type of print data analyzed by the data analysis means 1a. Select and set the optimal loading output destination for the type.

Further, the selection means 1b automatically selects and sets the output destination of the recorded medium to the face-up loading means FU or the face-down loading means FD based on the processing time per unit page analyzed by the data analysis means 1a. A loading method candidate that is optimal for the processing time per page is selected and set as the loading output destination.

Further, the data analysis means 1a analyzes the print data based on the presence or absence of an output destination designation command, and if the output destination designation command exists in the print data, the loading means candidate of the output destination designation command is loaded and output. Set as a priority.

Further, the output destination specifying means 4a allows the face-up loading means FU or the face-down loading means FD to manually specify the loading output destination of recorded media, thereby expanding the range of selectivity of loading means candidates.

Furthermore, the data analysis means 1a performs analysis based on whether or not the output destination is designated by the output destination designation means 4a, and loads the desired operator-designated loading means candidate (face-up loading means Fυ or face-down loading means FD). Set the output destination.

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional configuration diagram illustrating the configuration of the printing mechanism 4 shown in FIG. 1. Reference numeral 11 denotes a paper feeding mechanism that stacks and feeds sheets of recording media. Reference numeral 12 denotes a conveyance path, which conveys the paper fed from the paper feed mechanism 11. A photosensitive drum 13 forms a toner image to be transferred onto paper by an image forming mechanism (not shown) using known electrophotographic technology.

A transfer charger 14 transfers the toner image on the photosensitive drum 13 onto paper. A fixing device 15 fixes the toner image transferred onto the paper using heat and pressure. Reference numeral 16 denotes a face-up stacking unit constituting the face-up stacking unit FU, which stacks sheets face-up on which a series of printing processes have been completed after the image fixing process has been completed.

Reference numeral 17 denotes a face-down stacking section constituting the face-down stacking means FD, which stacks sheets face-down on which a series of printing processes have been completed at the end of the image fixing process.

Reference numeral 18 denotes a branching mechanism that, according to instructions from the CPUI, directs the paper on which printing has been completed to the face-up stacking section 16.
and the face-down loading section 17.

In addition, when the CPUI analyzes the input data from the host 2 and stores the print data in the page buffer 3, it converts the information necessary to determine the paper output destination loading means into the following analysis values ■ to ■. According to the analysis, each register (page number register 5, type register 6, output destination register 8) and timer 7 are set.

■If the host 2 informs you of the number of pages or amount of data for the job, set the number of pages expected based on the number of pages or amount of data in the page number register 5; otherwise, "Unknown" Set a value that means (for example, '-1').

(2) Information on the type of print data, such as codes indicating "r character data", "vector image data", "image data", etc., is stored in the type register 6, respectively.

(2) The time required to process one page is measured by starting and stopping the timer 7 at the start and end of processing one page.

■Control command in print data or output destination designation means 4a
If there is a designation of the paper discharge destination loading means, the designation is stored in the discharge destination register 8. If there is no designation, a value meaning "no designation" is set in the discharge destination register 8.

Hereinafter, the process for determining the paper output destination stacking means according to the present invention will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a procedure for determining the paper output destination loading means in the recording apparatus according to the present invention. Note that (1) to (8) indicate each step.

The selection means 1b of the CPU 1 checks the contents of the output destination register 8 (set based on the analysis by the data analysis means 1a), and selects the control command in the print data or the output destination specifying means 4.
1) Determine whether there is a specification of the paper output destination loading means in step a.1) If so, determine whether the specification is for the face-down stacking section 17.(2) Here, the face-down stacking section 17 is designated. 17, CPUUI
issues a command to the printing mechanism 4, and the face-down loading section 17
is selected, that is, the branching mechanism 18 is branched to the face-down loading section 17 side (3), and the process ends.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step (2) that the face-up loading unit FU is specified, the CPU 1 issues a command to the printing mechanism 4 to select the face-up loading unit 16, that is, the branching mechanism 18 is moved to the face-up loading unit 16 side. Branch to (
4).

Further, if the determination in step (1) is "no designation", the content of the page number register 5 is checked to determine whether the number of pages of one job is known (5).

If this is known, determine whether the number of pages in one job is greater than a predetermined value. 6) If the number of pages in one job is greater than a predetermined value, the pages are loaded correctly on the face-down loading section. 17 (3), and if the value is less than a predetermined value, select the face-up loading section 16 where the recorded contents can be viewed at a glance (4).

This predetermined number of pages is determined based on the ease with which pages can be rearranged manually by the operator, and is generally a value of about several pages.

For example, if it is one page, it is obvious that face-up is fine,
For 0 pages, face down is preferable.

The predetermined number of pages also varies depending on the paper size, and will be smaller for larger paper sizes.

The number of pages in one job is "unknown" as determined in step (5)
If so, check the contents of the type register 6 to determine whether the input data is only "character data"7).
If the input data is only "character data", the processing time for one page is generally short and the number of pages for one job is large.
Select 7 (3).

On the other hand, if it is determined in step (7) that the input data includes other than "character data", check the timer 7 and determine whether the processing time for one page is smaller than a predetermined value (8) 1 If the processing time for a page is less than a predetermined value, select the face-down stacking section 17, where pages can be loaded correctly. 3) If the processing time for one page is greater than a predetermined value, the operator should Since pages can be rearranged by , the face-up stacking section 16 where the recorded contents can be viewed at a glance is selected (4).

This predetermined processing time for one page is a value determined based on the ease of access from the operator to the face-up stacking section 16 and the time required for the operator to manually rearrange the pages.

(Effects of the Invention) As explained above, the present invention includes a data analysis means for analyzing input print data, a face-down loading means for stacking recorded media with the recording side facing down, and a recorded medium. a face-up loading means for loading the media with the recording side facing up; and a selection means for automatically selecting and setting the output destination of the recorded medium to the face-up loading means or the face-down loading means based on the analysis result of the print data by the data analysis means. Since this is provided, the optimum output destination of the recorded medium can be automatically selected while self-judging during normal print data analysis processing sent from the host.

In addition, the selection means is one that is analyzed by the data analysis means.
The output destination of the recorded media is automatically selected and set to face-up loading means or face-down loading means based on the amount of data or number of pages in the job, so it can be configured to automatically select and set the output destination of the recorded media to the face-up loading means or face-down loading means, so that it can correspond to the amount of data or number of pages in the job. The most suitable output destination for recorded media can be automatically selected while self-judging.

Furthermore, the selection means selects an output destination of the recorded medium based on the type of print data analyzed by the data analysis means.
Since the configuration is configured to automatically select and set the face-up loading means or the face-down loading means, it is possible to automatically select the output destination of the recorded medium that is most suitable for the type of print data while self-judging.

Further, the selection means is configured to automatically select and set the output destination of the recorded medium to the face-up loading means or the face-down loading means based on the processing time per unit page analyzed by the data analysis means. It is possible to automatically select the output destination of recorded media that is optimal for the processing time per unit page while self-judging.

Furthermore, since the data analysis means is configured to perform analysis based on the presence or absence of an output destination designation command in the print data, the output destination of the recorded medium can be determined with priority based on the output destination designation command in the print data. The process of determining the output destination of the recorded medium based on the output destination designation command in the regular print data can be executed with priority.

In addition, we have provided an output destination specification means for manually specifying the loading output destination of recorded media to face-up loading means or face-down loading means, so that any loading means corresponding to the operator's designation of the loading output destination of recorded media can be used. Recorded media can be output.

Furthermore, the data analysis means is configured to prioritize the analysis based on whether or not the output destination is specified by the output destination specifying means, so that recorded media can be output preferentially from the output destination of the recorded medium specified by the operator. .

Therefore, without changing the program of the host that sends print data to the recording device, it is possible to determine the optimal output destination of the recorded medium from the existing print data sent to the recording device, and also to set the desired output destination as necessary. It is also possible to forcibly load the recorded medium on the output destination.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Figure i7%1 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of a recording device showing an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 is a schematic cross-sectional configuration diagram illustrating the configuration of the printing mechanism shown in Figure 1, and Figure 3 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of the printing mechanism shown in Figure 1. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure for determining a paper discharge destination loading means in the recording apparatus according to the invention. In the figure, 1 is a CPU, 1a is a data analysis means, 1b is a selection means, 2 is a host, 3 is a page buffer, 4 is a printing mechanism, 4a is an output destination designation means, 5 is a page number register, 6 is a type register, 7 is a timer, 8 is a discharge destination register, 9
is the main body of the device, and 1° is the operation panel. Figure 2

Claims (7)

[Claims] (1) In a recording device that forms an image on a recording medium based on print data input from the outside, a data analysis means for analyzing input print data and a recorded medium are stacked with the recording side facing down. face-down loading means;
a face-up loading means for loading the recorded medium with the recording side facing up; and an output destination of the recorded medium is set to the face-up loading means or the face-down loading means based on an analysis result of print data by the data analysis means. 1. A recording device comprising: selection means for automatically selecting and setting. (2) The selection means is analyzed by the data analysis means1
2. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the output destination of the recorded medium is automatically selected and set to face-up loading means or face-down loading means based on the amount of data or the number of pages in the job. (3) A claim characterized in that the selection means automatically selects and sets the output destination of the recorded medium to face-up loading means or face-down loading means based on the type of print data analyzed by the data analysis means. (1) Recording device as described. (4) The selection means automatically selects and sets the output destination of the recorded medium to the face-up loading means or the face-down loading means based on the processing time per unit page analyzed by the data analysis means. Claims (
1) Recording device as described. (5) The data analysis means performs analysis based on the presence or absence of an output destination designation command in the print data.
1) Recording device as described. (6) The recording apparatus according to claim (1), further comprising an output destination specifying means for manually specifying a destination for loading and outputting recorded media on the face-up loading means or the face-down loading means. (7) The recording apparatus according to claim (6), wherein the data analysis means performs the analysis based on whether or not the output destination is designated by the output destination designation means.