JPH0554172A - Mail processor - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To update a dictionary used for recognizing characters and addresses by automatically collecting information required for preparing the dictionary used for recognizing the characters and the addresses in the case of reading the addresses, transmitting the collected information to a dictionary preparing means at high speed and further receiving the newly prepared dictionary transmitted from the dictionary preparing means. CONSTITUTION:An information collection part 8 is provided to collect the image information of non-divided mail obtained from a photoelectric conversion part 1 when the dividing rate of a mail division part 7 is lowered less than a prescribed value. The image information collected by this information collection part 8 is transmitted to a computer 11 for dictionary preparation installed at a distant place by a control part 9 and a communication part 10. Based on the image information transmitted from the computer 11 for dictionary preparation, the newly prepared dictionary is received by the communication part 10 and the control part 9, and a dictionary 3 for character recognition and a dictionary 5 for address recognition are respectively updated.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention reads mail address information or a zip code written on the surface of a mail by using, for example, an optical character reading method and sorts the mail based on the read result. Regarding the device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a mail processing apparatus of this type, when reading address / address information of a mail, a character recognizing unit performs character recognition on a character area cut out for each character. . At this time, for example, in FIG.
In the case of a non-deformed character as shown in (a), correct character recognition is performed.
When the characters are significantly deformed as shown in (b), correct character recognition cannot be performed. In such a case, a character recognition dictionary is recreated by a dictionary creation computer, and the dictionaries are replaced so that a correct recognition result can be obtained.

Further, when the address recognition unit recognizes the address information of [Oyata, Adachi-ku], for example, when only the character string [adachikuoiyata] is registered in the address recognition dictionary in katakana, it is called [adachikuoiyada]. When the written address information is entered, the address information cannot be recognized correctly. Even in such a case, a correct recognition result can be obtained by recreating the address recognition dictionary using a dictionary creation computer and replacing the dictionaries.

In this case, the information for creating the dictionary is
Use the one collected by the operator at the post office where the machine is installed. In addition, since a computer that creates a dictionary requires a large amount of computing power, it is necessary to use a dedicated dictionary creating computer in another area. The dictionary created in this way was stored in a storage medium such as a floppy disk or a magneto-optical disk, and taken to a post office where the machine was installed to replace the dictionary.

In the mail processing apparatus for reading the address information of the mail to classify the mail, the collection of image information of the mail is performed by creating a dictionary for character recognition and a dictionary for address recognition in reading the address information of the mail. It is essential for improving the performance of the dictionary.

[0006] Conventional information gathering is performed by the information gathering section.
It was done by collecting information by the operation of the operator for unreadable mail. The information collected is
The information was handed over by the operator re-storing it in a storage medium such as a floppy disk or a magneto-optical disk and taking it to a place where a computer for creating a dictionary was located. However, this method has a drawback in that it takes time and labor due to conversion and transportation of information from information collection to dictionary creation.

[0007] On the other hand, there is a mail processing device that reads the postal code of a mail and classifies the mail. Similar to such a mail processing device, in the development of a mail processing device that reads the address information of the mail and classifies the mail, the mail to the post office to deliver, that is, all the postal codes with the same postal code. The collection of image information about an object is indispensable for creating a character recognition dictionary and an address recognition dictionary for reading an address.

[0008] In the conventional information collection, the information collecting section collects information about postal items classified into prespecified postal codes. The collected information was handed over by an operator to re-store it in a storage medium such as a floppy disk or a magneto-optical disk and bring it to a place where a computer for creating a dictionary was located.
However, this method has a drawback that it takes time and labor due to conversion and transportation of information from information collection to dictionary creation, similarly to the above.

Further, in this type of mail processing device,
When a failure occurs, the maintenance staff will contact the post office where the machine is installed,
By operating the failure diagnosis section of the machine from the console connected to the machine, the failure part was identified and repaired.

However, in this method, there is a problem that it takes time for a maintenance worker to arrive after receiving a message after a failure occurs, and the failure part is actually determined.
When replacement parts are needed, it may take more time to arrange the parts, which causes a decrease in the operating rate of the machine.

[0011]

As described above, the conventional information collecting method has a drawback that it takes time and labor for converting and transporting information from information collection to dictionary creation.

Therefore, the present invention reduces the work of the person who operates the device and improves the processing speed, and automatically collects the information necessary to create the character recognition dictionary and the address recognition dictionary for address reading. In order to update the character recognition dictionary and the address recognition dictionary by further transmitting the collected information to the dictionary creating means at high speed and further receiving the newly created dictionary sent from the dictionary creating means. It is an object of the present invention to provide a postal matter processing device that can be used.

Further, the present invention reduces the work of the person who operates the apparatus and improves the processing speed, and automatically collects the information necessary for creating the character recognition dictionary and the address recognition dictionary in address reading. It is an object of the present invention to provide a mail processing device capable of transmitting collected information to a dictionary creating means at high speed.

Further, as described above, in the conventional failure diagnosis method, there is a problem that it takes time from when a failure occurs to when a contact is received and a maintenance worker arrives.
When a defective part is actually determined and a replacement part is required, it may take more time to arrange the parts, which causes a problem of lowering the operation rate of the machine.

Therefore, according to the present invention, the faulty part of the apparatus is determined before it reaches the installation site, and when going out, replacement parts are prepared to quickly recover the faulty part, and the machine stop time is shortened as much as possible. By doing so, it is an object of the present invention to provide a mail processing device capable of sufficiently exhibiting address reading performance.

[0016]

A mail processing apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention is a photoelectric conversion means for photoelectrically converting a photoelectric conversion of a mail to obtain image information, and the photoelectric conversion means. It is prepared in advance for the address / address area detecting means for detecting the address / address area on the mail by processing the obtained image information and the address / address area detected by the address / address area detecting means. A character recognizing means for recognizing characters using the character recognizing dictionary, an address recognizing means for recognizing address / address information using a prepared address recognizing dictionary based on the recognition result of the character recognizing means, and this address. A sorting means for sorting the mail based on the recognition result of the recognizing means, and the sorting hand obtained from the photoelectric conversion means when the sorting rate in the sorting means falls below a predetermined value. Information collection means for collecting image information of postal items that have not been classified by, and dictionary creation for creating a character recognition dictionary and an address recognition dictionary installed at a remote site from the image information collected by this information collection means And a communication means for transmitting to the means, and a character recognition dictionary and an address recognition dictionary transmitted from the dictionary generation means, which are created based on the transmitted image information, and receive the character recognition means. And a dictionary updating means for updating the address recognizing dictionary in the address recognizing means.

The postal matter processing apparatus according to the second aspect of the present invention processes photoelectrically converting means for obtaining image information by performing photoelectric conversion by optically scanning the postal matter, and image information obtained by this photoelectric converting means. By doing so, a zip code area detecting means for detecting the zip code area on the mail, a character recognizing means for recognizing the zip code area detected by the zip code area detecting means, and a character recognizing means for recognizing the character. A zip code recognizing means for recognizing a zip code using the recognition result of the means,
When the postal code recognized by the postal code recognizing means is a pre-specified postal code, the corresponding means is obtained from the photoelectric conversion means. Creation of a dictionary for creating information collection means for collecting image information of mails and a dictionary used for character recognition and address recognition in address reading of mails installed at a remote site using the image information collected by the information collection means Communication means for transmitting to the means.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a postal matter processing device which processes photoelectrically converting means for obtaining image information by photoelectrically scanning the postal matter and optically processing the image information obtained by the photoelectric converting means. By doing so, the address / address area detecting means for detecting the address / address area on the mail, the character recognizing means for recognizing the address / address area detected by the address / address area detecting means, and the character recognition Address recognition means for recognizing address information using the recognition result of means,
A sorting means for sorting the mail based on the recognition result of the address recognizing means, and a failure diagnosing means for detecting a failure in the photoelectric converting means, the address / address area detecting means, the character recognizing means, the address recognizing means, and the sorting means, When the failure diagnosing means detects a failure, the failure diagnosing means is connected to the operating means installed at a remote site using the communication means, and the operation of the operating means enables the diagnosis of the failed portion at the time of failure. And a control means for

[0019]

According to the first aspect of the invention, the work steps of the person who operates the apparatus are reduced, and the information necessary for creating the character recognition dictionary and the address recognition dictionary for address reading is automatically collected. Since the collected information can be transmitted to the dictionary creating means at high speed, the time required for updating the dictionary can be shortened, and a new dictionary can be created using the sent information, and the communication means can be used. The dictionary can be updated by using the information, so that it is possible to collect the information for updating the dictionary necessary for sufficiently exhibiting the performance of address reading, and further, to update the dictionary most efficiently.

According to the second aspect of the invention, the work steps of the person who operates the apparatus are reduced, and the information necessary for creating the character recognition dictionary and the address recognition dictionary for address reading is automatically collected. Since the collected information can be sent to the dictionary creating means at high speed, the time required to update the dictionary can be shortened, and the information needed to update the dictionary to fully demonstrate the address reading performance. Collection can be performed most efficiently.

According to the third invention, when a failure is detected,
Since it is possible to automatically connect to the operating means at a remote place using a communication line, etc., and to determine the detailed failure part from a remote place
It is possible to shorten the time required from the failure of the device until the repair is completed, it is possible to suppress the decrease of the operating rate of the device as much as possible, and it is possible to sufficiently exhibit the address reading performance.

[0022]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows the construction of a mail processing apparatus according to the first embodiment. This device is, for example, a CCD
-Shaped color sensor, photoelectrically converting the surface of the conveyed mail P by optical scanning to output digitalized image information, photoelectric conversion unit 1, photoelectric conversion unit 1
An address / address area detection unit 2 for detecting an address / address area on the postal matter P by processing image information output from
Prepared in advance based on the recognition results of the character recognition unit 4 and the character recognition unit 4 that perform character recognition on the address / address region detected by the address / address region detection unit 2 using the prepared character recognition dictionary 3. An address recognition unit 6 that recognizes the address information by using the address recognition dictionary 5, and a mail item classification unit 7 that classifies the mail P based on the recognition result of the address recognition unit 6 and introduces it into a predetermined pocket. The information collecting unit 8 for collecting image information, the control of the information collecting unit 8, the dictionary 3,
5, a control unit 9 for controlling the calculation of the sorting rate in the mail sorting unit 7, a communication with a dictionary creating computer 11 described later, and a communication unit 10 such as a modem for communicating with the dictionary creating computer 11 described later. Composed by.

The dictionary creation computer 11 installed in a maintenance center at a remote place is for creating a character recognition dictionary and an address recognition dictionary, to which a communication unit 12 such as a modem is connected. There is. The communication unit 12 is a communication unit 1 of the present postal processing apparatus via a communication line 13 such as a telephone line.
0 is online.

Next, the operation of the first embodiment will be described with reference to the flow chart shown in FIG. Now, assuming that the postal matter P is conveyed, the photoelectric conversion unit 1 performs photoelectric conversion by optically scanning the surface of the postal matter P, digitizes the photoelectric conversion signal, and detects the address area as image information. Send to Part 2. The address / address area detection unit 2 detects the address / address area on the postal matter P by processing the input image information, and the character recognition unit 4
Send to.

The character recognition unit 4 performs character recognition on the address / address area detected by the address / address area detection unit 2 by using a character recognition dictionary 3 prepared in advance, and recognizes the recognition result. Send to Part 6. The address recognition unit 6 recognizes the address information by using the prepared address recognition dictionary 5 based on the input character recognition result and sends the recognition result to the mail sorting unit 7. Mail sorting section 7
Divides the postal matter P based on the input address recognition result and introduces it into a predetermined pocket.

By the way, when sorting the mail P in the mail sorting unit 7, for example, when a character having a significant deformation is input in the character recognition unit 4, or when the address recognition unit 6 does not prepare an address notation prepared. If there is, a correct recognition result cannot be obtained, and the classification rate decreases.

Therefore, the control unit 9 constantly monitors the sorting state of the postal matter P in the postal matter sorting unit 7 and calculates the sorting rate. Then, when the calculated division ratio falls below a predetermined value (for example, the average division ratio), the control unit 9 sets the information collection mode and sends an information collection start command to the information collection unit 8 to cause the photoelectric conversion unit. The image information of the postal matter P that has not been sorted by the postal matter sorting unit 7 and is output from 1 is collected. After that, the information collected by the information collecting unit 8 is automatically transmitted by the control unit 9 to the dictionary creating computer 11 via the communication units 10 and 12.

The dictionary creation computer 11 determines whether to update the character recognition dictionary or the address recognition dictionary based on the transmitted image information. Is created and the communication unit 12, 1
It is transmitted to the control unit 9 of the present postal processing device via 0. The control unit 9 receives the dictionary sent from the dictionary creation computer 11 and updates the character recognition dictionary 3 and the address recognition dictionary 5.

As described above, according to the first embodiment, it is possible to reduce the work steps of the person who operates the apparatus and automatically collect the information necessary for creating the character recognition dictionary and the address recognition dictionary in the address reading. Since the collected information can be sent to the dictionary creation computer at high speed, the time required to update the dictionary can be shortened, and the dictionary creation computer can use the sent information to create a dictionary. Create a dictionary and update the dictionary using a communication line. Collect the information for updating the dictionary necessary to fully demonstrate the address reading performance, and perform the dictionary update most efficiently. You can

Although the CCD type color sensor is used for the photoelectric conversion unit in the first embodiment, for example, an image pickup tube or the like may be used. Further, although the input image information is targeted for the information collection, the input image information, the character recognition result, and the address recognition result may be simultaneously collected. Also,
Although a modem is used for the communication unit and a telephone line is used for the communication line, a wireless device may be used instead of them.

FIG. 3 shows the construction of a mail processing apparatus according to the second embodiment. This device is, for example, a CCD
The image output from the photoelectric conversion unit 21 and the photoelectric conversion unit 21 which is composed of a color sensor and photoelectrically converts the surface of the conveyed postal matter P by optical scanning to output digitalized image information. A zip code area detecting section 22 for detecting a zip code area on the postal matter P by processing the information, and a character recognizing section 23 for recognizing the zip code area detected by the zip code area detecting section 22. A zip code recognizing unit 24 that recognizes a zip code using the recognition result of the character recognizing unit 23, and a mail item classifying unit 25 that classifies the postal matter P based on the recognition result of the zip code recognizing unit 24 and introduces it into a predetermined pocket. When the postal code recognized by the postal code recognizing unit 24 is a pre-specified postal code, an information collecting unit 26 that collects image information and a dictionary creating computer 28 described later.
A communication unit 27 such as a modem for communicating with

A dictionary creation computer 28 installed in a maintenance center at a remote place is for creating a character recognition dictionary and an address recognition dictionary, to which a communication unit 29 such as a modem is connected. There is. The communication unit 29 is a communication unit 2 of the present postal processing apparatus via a communication line 30 such as a telephone line.
You are online with 7.

Next, the operation of the second embodiment having such a configuration will be described. Now, assuming that the postal matter P has been conveyed, the photoelectric conversion unit 21 performs photoelectric conversion by optically scanning the surface of the postal matter P, digitizes the photoelectric conversion signal, and detects the postal code area as image information. Send to section 22. The postal code area detection unit 22 detects the postal code area on the postal matter P by processing the input image information and sends it to the character recognition unit 23.

The character recognition unit 23 is a postal code area detection unit 2
Character recognition is performed on the postal code area detected in 2, and the recognition result is sent to the postal code recognition unit 24. The postal code recognizing unit 24 recognizes the postal code based on the input character recognition result and sends the recognition result to the mail item classifying unit 25.
The postal matter sorting section 25 sorts the postal matter P based on the input recognition result of the postal code and introduces it into a predetermined pocket.

Further, when the recognized postal code is a pre-specified postal code, the postal code recognizing unit 24 sends an information collection start command to the information collecting unit 26 to output the corresponding information from the photoelectric conversion unit 21. The image information of the mail P is collected. After that, the information collected by the information collecting unit 26 is automatically transmitted by the communication unit 27 to the dictionary creating computer 28 via the communication line 30 and the communication unit 29, and provided as information for updating the dictionary. It

As described above, according to the second embodiment, it is possible to reduce the work steps of the person who operates the device and automatically collect the information necessary for creating the character recognition dictionary and the address recognition dictionary in the address reading. The dictionary can be sent to the dictionary creation computer at high speed, and the time required to update the dictionary can be shortened. Information can be collected most efficiently for updating.

In the second embodiment, the CCD color sensor is used as the photoelectric conversion unit, but an image pickup tube or the like may be used. Further, although the input image information is targeted for the information collection, the input image information, the character recognition result, and the postal code recognition result may be collected at the same time.
Further, although a modem is used for the communication unit and a telephone line is used for the communication line, a wireless device may be used instead of them.

FIG. 4 shows the construction of a mail processing apparatus according to the third embodiment. This device is, for example, a CCD
The image output from the photoelectric conversion unit 31, which outputs a digitalized image information by photoelectrically converting the surface of the conveyed postal matter P by optically scanning the surface of the conveyed postal matter P An address address area detection unit 32 that detects an address address area on the mail P by processing the information, a character recognition unit 33 that performs character recognition on the address address area detected by the address address area detection unit 32, An address recognition unit 34 that recognizes the address information using the recognition result of the character recognition unit 33, and a mail item classification unit 3 that classifies the postal matter P based on the recognition result of the address recognition unit 34 and introduces it into a predetermined pocket.
5. Fault diagnosis unit 3 for detecting faults in each of these units
6. A communication unit 37 such as a modem that communicates with a postal processing device console 38, which will be described later.

A mail processing device console 38 installed at a remote maintenance center or the like is for operating this mail processing device from a remote place, and a communication section 39 such as a modem is connected to this. ing. The communication unit 39 is online connected to the communication unit 37 of the present postal processing apparatus via a communication line 40 such as a telephone line.

Next, the operation of the third embodiment having such a configuration will be described. Now, assuming that the postal matter P is conveyed, the photoelectric conversion unit 31 performs photoelectric conversion by optically scanning the surface of the postal matter P, digitizes the photoelectric conversion signal, and detects the address / address area as image information. Send to section 32. The address / address area detection unit 32 detects the address / address area on the postal matter P by processing the input image information and sends it to the character recognition unit 33.

The character recognizing unit 33 includes an address / address area detecting unit 3
Character recognition is performed on the address / address area detected in 2 and the recognition result is sent to the address recognition unit 34. The address recognition unit 34 recognizes the address information by the input character recognition result, and sends the recognition result to the mail item classification unit 35. The postal matter sorting unit 35 sorts the postal matter P based on the input address recognition result and introduces it into a predetermined pocket.

On the other hand, the failure diagnosing section 36 constantly monitors the operating state of each section, and carries out self-diagnosis when the apparatus is in standby (when operating). At this time,
When a failure is detected, the failure diagnosis unit 36 determines the communication unit 37.
Is automatically sent to the maintenance center by using the computer, and the mail processing device console 38 installed in the maintenance center is connected to the failure diagnosis unit 36 of the mail processing device via the communication line 40. The operation from the mail processing device console 38 can be directly performed to the failure diagnosis unit 36. Then, on the console 38 of the mail processing device,
The failure diagnosis unit 36 is used to determine the detailed failure part of the apparatus, prepare replacement parts if necessary, and proceed to repair the apparatus.

As described above, according to the third embodiment, when a failure is detected, it is automatically connected to the operation console of the mail processing apparatus at a remote place using a communication line, and a detailed failure portion can be obtained from the remote place. Since it can be determined that the time required from the failure of the device to the completion of repair can be shortened and the decrease in the operating rate of the device can be suppressed as much as possible, the address reading performance should be fully demonstrated. You can

In the third embodiment described above, the failure diagnosis section carries out self-diagnosis to detect the occurrence of a failure. However, the operation of the apparatus, for example, the reset switch is frequently pressed, and the apparatus is not in the operating state. It may be possible to detect the occurrence of a failure.

Further, although the CCD type color sensor is used for the photoelectric conversion portion, for example, an image pickup tube may be used. Further, although a modem is used for the communication unit and a telephone line is used for the communication line, a wireless device may be used instead of them.

[0047]

As described above in detail, according to the present invention, it is possible to reduce the work of the person who operates the apparatus and to improve the processing speed.
Automatically collects the information necessary to create a dictionary for character recognition and a dictionary for address recognition in address reading,
The collected information is sent to the dictionary creation means at high speed, and
It is possible to provide a mail processing device capable of receiving a newly created dictionary transmitted from the dictionary creating means and updating the character recognition dictionary and the address recognition dictionary.

Further, according to the present invention, it is possible to reduce the work of the person who operates the apparatus and to improve the processing speed, and to collect the information necessary for creating the character recognition dictionary and the address recognition dictionary for address reading. It is possible to provide a mail processing apparatus that can automatically perform collected information at high speed to the dictionary creating means.

Furthermore, according to the present invention, the faulty part of the apparatus is determined before it reaches the installation site, and when going out, replacement parts are prepared to quickly recover the faulty part.
By shortening the machine stop time as much as possible, it is possible to provide a mail processing device that can sufficiently exhibit the address reading performance.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a mail processing device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an information collecting process in the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a mail processing device according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a mail processing device according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of recognized characters in the mail processing device.

[Explanation of symbols]

P: Mail, 1, 21, 31 ... Photoelectric conversion unit, 2, 3
2 ... Address / address area detection unit, 22 ... Postal code area detection unit, 3 ... Character recognition dictionary, 4, 23, 33 ... Character recognition unit, 5 ... Address recognition dictionary, 6, 34 ... Address recognition unit, 24 ... Postal code recognition unit, 7, 25, 35 ... Mail sorting unit, 8, 26 ... Information collection unit, 9 ... Control unit, 1
0, 12, 27, 29, 37, 39 ... Communication unit, 11,
28 ... computer for dictionary creation, 13, 30, 40 ... communication line, 36 ... failure diagnosis unit, 38 ... console for mail processing device.

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A photoelectric conversion means for photoelectrically converting a postal matter by optically scanning it to obtain image information, and an address on the postal matter by processing the image information obtained by the photoelectrical conversion means. An address area detecting unit for detecting an address area, and a character recognizing unit for recognizing the address area detected by the address area detecting unit by using a character recognition dictionary prepared in advance, Address recognition means for recognizing the address information by using the address recognition dictionary prepared in advance based on the recognition result of the character recognition means, and classification means for classifying the postal matter based on the recognition result of the address recognition means. When the sorting rate of the sorting means drops below a predetermined value, the image information of the mail that is not sorted by the sorting means obtained from the photoelectric conversion means is collected. Information collecting means, communication means for transmitting the image information collected by the information collecting means to a dictionary creating means for creating a character recognition dictionary and an address recognition dictionary installed at a remote site, and the dictionary creation A character recognition dictionary and an address recognition dictionary transmitted from the means, which are created based on the transmitted image information, are received, and the character recognition dictionary in the character recognition means and the address recognition in the address recognition means are received. A postal matter processing device, comprising: dictionary updating means for updating each dictionary for use. 2. A photoelectric conversion means for photoelectrically converting a mail to optically scan the mail to obtain image information and a mail on the mail by processing the image information obtained by the photoelectric conversion means. A zip code area detecting means for detecting a number area, a character recognizing means for recognizing characters in the zip code area detected by the zip code area detecting means, and a zip code using a recognition result of the character recognizing means. A zip code recognizing unit for recognizing, a categorizing unit for categorizing the postal matter based on the recognition result of the zip code recognizing unit, and a zip code recognized by the zip code recognizing unit being a predesignated zip code, Information collecting means for collecting the image information of the corresponding mail piece obtained from the photoelectric conversion means, and the mail piece installed at a remote site from the image information collected by this information collecting means. A mail processing apparatus comprising: a communication unit that transmits to a dictionary creating unit that creates a dictionary used for character recognition and address recognition in address reading. 3. A postal address on the postal matter by photoelectrically converting the postal matter by optical scanning to obtain image information, and processing the image information obtained by the photoelectrical conversion means. Address address area detecting means for detecting the address area, character recognizing means for recognizing the address area detected by the address area detecting means, and address information of the address using the recognition result of the character recognizing means. An address recognizing means for recognizing the mail, a categorizing means for categorizing the mail based on the recognition result of the address recognizing means, and a failure in the photoelectric converting means, the address / address area detecting means, the character recognizing means, the address recognizing means, the allocating means. And a failure diagnosing means for detecting a failure, and when the failure diagnosing means detects a failure, the failure diagnosing means is connected to an operating means installed at a remote site using a communication means, And a control means capable of diagnosing a defective portion at the time of a failure by an operation from the operating means.