JPH0522491A - Picture communication equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To easily confirm occurrence of a transmission fault and a page of fault occurrence without utilizing a transmission finish stamp function when a sender is not resident in the vicinity of the equipment on the occurrence of a transmission fault. CONSTITUTION:A system control section 6 stores error information including a communication time and fault occurrence pages to a storage means of a memory area 20 at the end of a fault of transmission. When an error display button of a panel section 3 is depressed, an error display control section 7 selects tentatively a display panel pattern to an error display pattern to display the content of the error information in the memory area 20.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image communication apparatus such as a facsimile apparatus for reading image information of a document and transmitting it through a line, and more particularly to means for confirming a transmission operation in the image communication apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional facsimile apparatus, a general means for informing the occurrence of an abnormality in a transmission operation is to sound an alarm when an abnormality occurs and display an error condition on a panel so that an operator can cancel or confirm the transmission. When an operation is performed or a certain period of time elapses, the alarm sound is stopped and the panel display is returned to the normal screen. Further, as a means for confirming the transmission, there is a facsimile apparatus having a function of printing a stamp that has been transmitted on a normally transmitted document.

[0003]

However, such a configuration has the following problems.

The function of error indication and audible alarm is essentially useless without a person near the device during its operation. The sender (the person who placed the document) even after this function has stopped for a certain period of time after the occurrence of a transmission error
If the original remains on the platen when the document is returned to the device, the sender can infer that an error has occurred, but if the original is read and ejected to the stacker, or if the original is removed from the device by another person. If it is taken out, the sender will determine that it was successfully sent. However, if an error occurs during the call or modem training stage, the original remains on the platen, but if an error occurs during the transmission of the original, the original is ejected, so the original is ejected to the stack. However, it does not always mean that the email was successfully sent.

Further, even if a transmission abnormality occurs when the sender is away from the device and another person recognizes the abnormality occurrence by the alarm sound and the error display, it is not transmitted to the sender, If the original is taken out of the device, the sender cannot know that the abnormality has occurred. Even if the sender is informed of the occurrence of the abnormality, in the case of the line communication, if the document is taken out of the apparatus, it cannot be known in which page the abnormality has occurred.

It is to be noted that it is common for a plurality of users of the device to stop the error display and the alarm sound (the device returns to the normal standby state) after a lapse of a certain time from the occurrence of the abnormality. This is because if the error display and the generation of the alarm sound are continued until the confirmation operation is performed, it is inconvenient for other users to use the device.

On the other hand, according to the printing function of the transmitted stamp, the abnormality occurs in the transmission even when there is no sender or other person near the apparatus at the time of the abnormality occurrence, or even when the original is taken out from the apparatus. The sender can confirm whether or not the abnormality has occurred, and further, which page the abnormality has occurred by checking whether or not the transmitted stamp is printed on the document. However, if an error occurs on a page in the middle of the series, it is easy to misunderstand that the last page has been normally sent because the sent stamp is printed up to the previous page. Furthermore, this function cannot be used in the case of a document in which printing of the transmitted stamp is not permitted.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and in a facsimile apparatus or a similar image communication apparatus, the stamped-to-be-transmitted function is used even when the sender is not near the apparatus when a transmission error occurs. The purpose is to enable the sender to easily confirm the occurrence of an abnormality in transmission or the page in which an abnormality has occurred, without using.

[0009]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the first invention is an image communication apparatus for reading and transmitting image information of an original, and when the transmission operation is abnormally terminated, the time and the abnormality of the transmission operation are given. Means for storing in the storage means error information containing at least the page of the document in which the error occurred, operation means for instructing error display, and device status or operation information is displayed in response to operation of this operation means. To temporarily switch the screen of the display panel for displaying to the screen for error display, and to display the content of the error information stored in the storage means on the display panel. is there.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in an image communication apparatus for reading and transmitting image information of a document, the time of the transmission operation and the document in which the abnormality has occurred at the abnormal end of the transmission operation, or at the normal end and the abnormal end. Is provided, and a printer for printing the print data generated by this means is provided.

[0011]

According to the structure of the first invention, the sender can display the content of the error information stored in the storage means on the display panel by operating the operation means at an arbitrary time. It is possible to determine whether or not it is the error information of the transmission of one's own document from the time of the transmitted transmission operation (for example, the communication start time). When the error information of the transmission of the original document is displayed, it can be confirmed that the transmission operation is abnormally terminated, and the page number of the original document can be confirmed from the displayed content.

According to the configuration of the second invention, when the transmission operation is abnormally ended, or when the transmission operation is ended abnormally or normally, the printer prints the data including the time of the transmission operation and the page in which the abnormality has occurred. Therefore, the sender checks the printer output after the transmission operation is completed, determines the print data corresponding to the transmission of his original document from the time of the transmission operation, and determines the abnormal end of the transmission operation of his original document and the page in which the abnormality occurred from the contents. I can confirm.

[0013]

1 is a schematic diagram of a facsimile apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. The facsimile apparatus of the present embodiment (hereinafter referred to as the present apparatus) includes a communication processing unit 1 for performing transmission / reception of image information via a communication line, and a storage unit for storing transmitted / received image information and other data. 2, a panel unit 3 for inputting instructions by the device user and displaying information to the device user, a document reading unit 4 for reading image information such as a transmission document, an image recording unit 5 for recording image information for a received document, It has a system control unit 6 for controlling the entire apparatus. Such a configuration is similar to that of the conventional device. However,
The system control unit 6 is added with a function related to error display or error printing described later.

The apparatus further includes an error display control section 7 for controlling error display, an error print control section 8 for controlling error printing, and a printer 9 for error printing. The printer 9 may be a small one that uses, for example, roll paper with a width of about 2 to 3 cm as recording paper.

A display panel 10 as shown in FIG. 2 is provided in the panel section. In addition to the display surface 11, the display panel 10 is provided with an error lamp 12, an error display button 13, and an error display cancel button 14. The display surface 11 is usually a screen (normal screen) showing the status or operation information of the apparatus, but as will be described later, pressing the error display button 13 causes the error display screen 15 shown in FIG. Can be switched to. Error display screen 1
5 is divided into a communication time display area 16, an error content display area 17, and an error occurrence page display area 18. Although not shown, the panel portion 3 is provided with operation buttons related to setting of an error printing function (described later) in addition to various operation operation buttons similar to those of the conventional apparatus.

The transmission / reception operation of the present apparatus configured as described above is basically the same as that of the conventional apparatus. Therefore, it is related to the occurrence of an abnormality at the time of transmission, which is directly related to the gist of the present invention, and error display or error printing. Only the operation will be described below.

First, the case where the error display function is set valid will be described. At the end of the transmission operation, as shown in FIG. 4, the system control unit 6 writes error information to the specific memory area 20 of the storage unit 2 (ST2) when an abnormal end (ST1, YES), and an error lamp. 1
2 is turned on (ST3), and the device state is returned to the normal standby state.

As shown in FIG. 5, the specific memory area 20 is composed of N record areas 21, and one piece of error information can be stored in each record area 21, up to a maximum of N pieces of error information. The system control unit 6 searches the top record area 21 of the specific memory area 20 for an empty record area 21, and writes error information to the first found empty record area 21.

The error information consists of contents corresponding to the display areas 16, 17, and 18 of the error display screen 15, that is, communication time, error contents, and error occurrence page. It should be noted that in this embodiment, the time at which the transmission start operation is performed (transmission setup time) is used as the communication time.
As the communication time, it is possible to use the time when the transmission operation actually started and the time when the transmission operation ended. In this case, the transmission setup time is preferable because the deviation from the time of the transmission start operation is considerably large and fluctuates significantly. That is, since the communication time is used as a guideline for the sender to discriminate the error information or print data regarding his / her transmission as described later, it is desirable that the communication time is unique to the sender as much as possible. is there.

Now, when the error lamp 12 is lit, it means that an abnormality has occurred in one of the transmission operations and it has not been confirmed by the sender. When the display button 12 is pressed while the error lamp 12 is lit,
The error display control unit 7 performs an error display process as shown in FIG.

First, the display on the display panel 10 is switched to the error display screen 15 (ST11). Next, the record area 21 which is not empty is searched from the beginning of the specific memory area 20, the stored content is read out, transferred to the display panel 10 and displayed (ST12), and the error display button 13 or the error display release button 14 is pressed. Wait for a fixed time (ST13, ST14).

If none of the buttons is pressed within the fixed time (ST14, YES), the display on the display panel 10 is returned to the normal screen (ST14), and the process is terminated.

When the display button 13 is pressed again within a fixed time (ST13, "display"), the next non-empty record area 21 is searched and the content is displayed on the display panel (ST12). After checking up to the last record area 21, the record area 2 returns to the head side and is not empty.
Search for 1.

By comparing the contents of the communication time display area 16 of the error display screen 15 with the transmission setup time of the sender, the sender can determine whether or not it is the error information of his / her transmission. If the error information related to the user's transmission is displayed, it can be confirmed that an error has occurred in the user's transmission, and the contents of the other display areas 17 and 18 indicate the cause or type of the error and the original document. You can check whether something is wrong with the page.

The sender who confirms the occurrence of the abnormality in this manner presses the error display cancel button 14 because it is not necessary to save the error information thereafter. By pressing this button (ST13, “release”), the error display control unit 7 causes the record area 21 in which the error information currently displayed is stored.
Clears the memory contents of and restores it to the empty state (ST1
6). When there is no record area 21 that is not empty (ST17, NO), the error lamp 12 is extinguished (ST18), the display of the display panel 10 is returned to the normal screen (ST15), and the process is terminated.

As described above, the error information in the specific memory area 20 is saved and can be displayed at any time unless the error display cancel button 14 is pressed during the display. Therefore, even if the sender is away from the apparatus during the transmission, or even if the original is taken out from the apparatus by another person, the transmission of his / her original is abnormal on the display panel 10, its cause, and the abnormality. You can easily check the generated page.

The error lamp 12 has an advantage that it is possible to easily recognize that the error information of the transmission abnormality that has not been confirmed by the sender remains.
It is also possible to omit 2.

Next, the operation when the error printing function is set valid by the operation of the panel section 10 will be described.
The error printing function can be selected from a first mode in which error printing is performed only when transmission operation ends abnormally, and a second mode in which error printing is performed both when transmission operation ends abnormally and normally. . The error display function is disabled regardless of which mode is selected.

First, the case of the first mode. As shown in FIG. 7, when the transmission operation ends abnormally (ST21, YES), the system control unit 6 activates the error print control unit 8 and outputs the error information having the same contents as the error display. Transfer (ST22) and return to the normal standby state.

As shown in FIG. 8, the activated error print control unit 8 edits the error print data in the same format as the error display screen 15 shown in FIG. 3 from the error information (ST31), and edits it. Transferred to the printer 9 and instructing red printing (ST32), the error print data is printed in red.

Next, it is the case of the second mode in which the transmission operation may be abnormally ended or may be ended normally. , System control unit 6
As shown in FIG. 9, when the transmission operation ends, if the processing ends abnormally (ST41, YES), the error print control unit 8
Is activated and error information is transferred (ST42)
However, if it is a normal end (ST41, NO), the error print control unit 8 is activated and dummy error information is transferred (ST43). The dummy error information has contents other than the communication time as predetermined fixed information.

As shown in FIG. 10, the error print control unit 8 edits the error print data from the error information or the dummy error information (ST51), and the error information is dummy.
If it is not the error information (ST52, NO), the error print data is printed in red by the printer 9 (ST5).
3) In the case of dummy error information (ST52, YE
S), the error print data is printed in black on the printer 9 (ST54). By switching the print color in this way, it is easy to distinguish between abnormal end and normal end, but it is also possible to use the same print color.

From the content of such error printing, the sender can easily check the transmission abnormality of the original, the content of the abnormality, and the page in which the abnormality has occurred, similarly to the error display.

[0034]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the first aspect of the invention, the sender does not have to be in the vicinity of the device during transmission and does not use the printing function of the transmitted stamp. , By operating the operating means at any time and displaying the content of the error information stored in the storage means on the display panel, it is possible to easily check the occurrence of an abnormality in the original transmission and the page in which the abnormality occurred. it can.

According to the second aspect of the invention, when the transmission operation ends abnormally or when it ends abnormally or normally,
Since the printer prints the data including the time of the sending operation and the page where the error occurred, the sender does not need to use the stamp printing function of the sent data even after being away from the device during the sending operation By checking the printer output, it is possible to easily confirm the occurrence of an abnormality in the original transmission and the page in which the abnormality has occurred.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a facsimile apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view of a display panel.

[Figure 3] Illustration of the error display screen

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a transmission end operation of the system control unit when the error display function is enabled.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of a specific memory area that stores error information.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation of the error display control unit.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an operation at the time of ending transmission of the system control unit when the mode of the error printing function only at abnormal end of transmission is enabled.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the operation of the error print control unit when the mode of the error print function only when transmission ends abnormally is enabled.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a transmission end operation of the system control unit in a case where a mode that does not matter whether the error printing function is abnormally ended or normally ended is enabled.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the operation of the error print control unit when the mode in which error transmission of the error print function is completed regardless of whether the transmission ends abnormally or normally is enabled.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Communication processing unit 2 memory 3 panel section 4 Document reading section 6 System control unit 7 Error display controller 8 Error print controller 9 Error printing printer 10 Display panel 12 Error lamp 13 Error display button 14 Error display cancel button 15 Error display screen 20 Memory area for error information

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A means for storing error information having a content including at least the time of the transmission operation and the page of the document in which the abnormality occurred at the time of abnormal termination of the transmission operation, and an operation means for instructing an error display. In response to the operation of the operation means, the screen of the display panel for displaying the state of the device or the operation information is temporarily switched to the screen for displaying the error, and the content of the error information stored in the storage means. And an image communication device for reading and transmitting image information of a document. 2. A means for generating print data having contents including at least the time of the transmission operation and the page of the document in which the abnormality occurred when the transmission operation abnormally ends, or when the transmission operation ends normally and abnormally, and the means. An image communication device for reading and transmitting image information of a document, comprising a printer for printing the generated print data.