JPH06225067A - Remote maintenance method for facsimile equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To perform proper maintenance by easily collecting communication state information of a client facsimile equipment from this equipment in accordance with facsimile procedures. CONSTITUTION:Plural client facsimile equipments and a maintenance service center side device are connected by a public line network, and each client facsimile equipment stores a multiple communication portion of communication state information including information indicating the sequence operation states of respective parts in the equipment itself and the communication state like a communication line condition while taking correspondence between each communication and communication information, and a remote maintenance indication signal is transmitted in accordance with procedures of the maintenance service center side device on the calling side after a specific facsimile equipment is called from the maintenance service center side device through the public line network, and the facsimile equipment on the called side receives this indication signal to transmit the information stored in a non-volatile memory 14 to the maintenance service center side device through the public line network while taking the correspondence between communication information of each communication and communication state information.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a remote maintenance method for a facsimile machine.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, when a facsimile machine has broken down, maintenance and inspection thereof, and a phenomenon such as communication failure have occurred, maintenance service personnel actually go to the installation site of the facsimile machine. It is the actual situation. Maintenance service personnel go to the installation site to check the status of the equipment and analyze the abnormal areas, and conduct various tests there to check the operation of the fax machine, lamp status, signal observation, etc. to see if there are any abnormalities. The abnormal place and the cause of the abnormality are being investigated. However,
Even if the abnormal place or the cause of the abnormality is investigated, it is not always restored immediately. This is because if an abnormal place or an abnormal cause is known in advance or if it can be predicted, recovery measures can be taken promptly, but if it cannot be predicted at all or if an unexpected situation occurs, This is because it is necessary to return to the maintenance service base, prepare spare electronic parts, etc., and then go to the installation site again.

As described above, conventionally, much time is required for restoration, but even in the case of regular maintenance inspection, much time is required for the inspection. There is. This is because the recent facsimile machines are being controlled by microcomputers as the multifunctional functions of the facsimile machines are advanced and the operations are automated. That is, the functions are integrated and exist in the software program, and therefore, the maintenance service personnel must understand not only the hardware of the microcomputer but also the software program. Even a skilled maintenance service worker needs a lot of time.

Further, conventionally, there has been proposed a method of storing only failure information when a failure occurs in the facsimile apparatus and displaying the content thereof, for example, a piece of paper or the like, to inform the operator.

However, in the case of storing and displaying the failure information only at the time of the failure, it is determined from the displayed contents whether the communication abnormality display is the communication abnormality based on the universal failure or the normal operation in the normal use. However, it is not possible to grasp whether or not there is a so-called temporary communication abnormality that causes a communication abnormality operation only under a certain specific condition, and sufficient and appropriate maintenance cannot be performed.

[0006] In view of these points, the applicant of the present invention, as described in Japanese Patent Application No. 57-18128, has a partner N for each communication.
It proposes a method of recording communication information such as o, start date and time, required time, and number of sheets, operation status of each part of the apparatus itself, and communication code indicating communication status of facsimile communication on a recording paper in one line per communication. According to this method, it is possible to know from the recorded display contents whether there is an abnormality in the device itself, and if there is an abnormality, the location of the abnormality and the cause of the abnormality can be known. As a matter of course, whether or not the progress has been made can be immediately known, and since the communication abnormality is displayed in association with the communication information, the maintenance service personnel can accurately and promptly know the cause of the communication abnormality.
Further, since the temporary communication abnormality as described above can be grasped, the maintenance service staff can give appropriate advice to the facsimile user, and further, the communication information can be used as a communication management report. is there.

[0007]

However, there is a problem in that the maintenance and service center side cannot directly know the recorded display contents including the above-mentioned conventional techniques. That is, the recording display is performed only on the recording paper of the own device. Therefore, in order for the maintenance service personnel to know the recorded display contents, they actually go to the installation site, or the customer teaches the contents by telephone, etc., or if possible, the recorded output is maintained as a transmission manuscript. It is necessary to have the service center send the data by facsimile, but in any case, it will bother the maintenance service personnel and the customer.

Further, conventionally, there has been proposed a method of separately judging whether a circuit operation is normal or abnormal by a failure diagnosis loop test and transmitting the loop test result to a partner station by a transmission control procedure previously determined for the loop test. Has been done.

However, in the case of transmitting only the information as to whether the circuit operation is normal or abnormal only when the loop test command signal is issued in this way, it is possible to specify the condition under the specific conditions of the facsimile machine as in the prior art. Abnormalities such as operation abnormalities due to changes in ambient temperature, humidity, power supply, etc., communication abnormalities due to line quality changes due to time and weather conditions, transmission loss of specific communication lines, communication abnormalities due to differences in transmission control procedures, etc. Therefore, it is impossible to perform appropriate maintenance according to these abnormalities.

Further, the circuit for the loop test and the loop test result transmission system are required, and the circuit becomes complicated. Further, since circuits and control systems for these loop tests are provided, not only the failure rate becomes higher correspondingly, but maintenance information cannot be obtained for failures in this loop test system.

An object of the present invention is to rectify these problems by calling a desired customer facsimile machine from a maintenance service center side device via a public line network, and then performing remote maintenance by a procedure of the maintenance service center side device. By transmitting the instruction signal, the communication status information for a plurality of communications stored and stored in the storage unit of the customer facsimile machine that has received the remote maintenance instruction signal can be easily transmitted through the public line network according to the facsimile procedure. Another object of the present invention is to provide a remote maintenance method for a facsimile apparatus that can collect the information and perform appropriate maintenance.

[0012]

To this end, according to the present invention, a plurality of customer facsimile machines each having a storage unit and a maintenance service center side apparatus operating according to a facsimile procedure are connected to a public line network. In each customer facsimile machine,
Each communication status information including information indicating the communication status such as sequence operation status and communication line status of each unit in the own device is stored and stored for a plurality of communication in correspondence with each communication information for each communication. After calling the specific facsimile device from the service center side device through the public line network, a remote maintenance instruction signal is transmitted according to the procedure of the calling maintenance service center side device, and the remote maintenance instruction signal is received. The facsimile device on the called side stores the stored information for the plurality of communications stored in the storage unit to the device on the maintenance service center side on the calling side via the public line network, and communication information of each communication and communication status information. It is designed to be transmitted in response to.

[0013]

The result information of the facsimile communication between the facsimile devices, that is, the communication status information including the communication abnormality information and the normal communication status information is stored for each communication corresponding to each communication information, and the stored information is stored. Is taken out through the public network.

Further, a remote maintenance instruction from the maintenance service sensor, which is the calling side, to the called side customer facsimile machine, and the above-mentioned maintenance of the calling side from the called side customer facsimile machine which has received the remote maintenance instruction. Send the communication status information for multiple communications to the service center C
This is performed when information is transmitted by the CITT facsimile procedure.

Further, communication information and communication status information are stored in association with each other for a plurality of communications, and the communication is transmitted in correspondence therewith. As a result, a fixed operation abnormality of the facsimile machine, that is, recovery failure regardless of conditions, occurs. Of course possible failures,
Temporary operation abnormality, that is, what can be regarded as communication abnormality only under certain specific conditions, for example, accidental operation abnormality due to changes in ambient temperature, power supply voltage, transmission loss of specific communication line,
It is possible to understand communication abnormalities due to differences in transmission control procedures, and maintenance personnel can perform accurate and appropriate maintenance with simple operation procedures without any trouble for customers. There is no need to use a transmission control circuit, etc. according to the control procedure, communication information required for maintenance can be collected by a simple method, and further prediction of such things as a decrease in the light intensity of the original reading light source (which will cause a failure in the near future) It is possible to grasp the physical abnormality. In addition, it is possible to obtain extremely detailed maintenance information that is semi-abnormal (quasi-normal), that is, communication is normal, but information is deteriorated due to transmission errors, transmission speed is reduced (it becomes a problem in terms of service to users). Therefore, maintenance can be performed accurately and appropriately.

[0016]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. First, an outline of a microcomputer-controlled facsimile apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

That is, in a microcomputer-controlled facsimile machine, all its control functions are concentrated in the control section 1 including a microprocessor. In the control unit 1, the reading unit 2, the recording unit 3, the image processing unit 4, the modulation / demodulation unit 5, and the network (line) control unit 6 are sequenced in a predetermined manner to start the transmission operation and the reception operation based on the operation information from the operation unit 7. Facsimile communication is performed while controlling and monitoring their operating states.

The microcomputer-controlled facsimile machine is constructed as described above, and FIG. 2 shows the configuration of the control unit 1 together with a part of the periphery thereof. According to this, the microprocessor 11 has the read-on memory (RO
M) is designed to control the whole by executing a control program stored in the random access memory (RAM) 13 as a work memory.
In addition, the control content of each unit and its control state are stored. The above-mentioned units are controlled via the I / O port 16, and various data are exchanged with the control unit 1. By the way, the control unit 1 according to the present invention is provided with the non-volatile memory 14 and the flower character generation circuit 15. Among these, the non-volatile memory 14 is used for a case where an abnormality occurs in the apparatus during facsimile communication or a sequence operation. When stopped in the middle, what sequence the sequence operation at that time proceeded to, what control was performed for each part, what was the state at that time, etc. It is designed to store information. The reason why the nonvolatile memory is used is that information relating to the past several times of facsimile communication, that is, stored information of a plurality of communications is surely stored and held even when the power is not turned on.

Here, the operation check for each part in the own device, the communication state, and the check of the state of the partner device will be briefly described as follows.

For example, when sending a facsimile,
The facsimile machine is activated by an operator, and a predetermined relay is operated under the control of the microprocessor 11. The operation check of this relay is performed based on the relay contact state. The relay contact state is taken in by the microprocessor 11 and it is determined whether or not the relay is operating, and the determination result is stored in the non-volatile memory 14. After that, the signal is returned to the signal from the partner device, but at the time of returning the signal, the state and response of the modulator / demodulator 5 are also checked. Further, the reading unit 2 is activated at the time of sending the facsimile image information. If the document is read while monitoring the so-called busy signal from the reading unit 2, is the reading performed normally? You can know whether or not. This situation is the same when receiving a facsimile.

Next, the check of the communication state will be described. It is sufficient to store the order and order of the facsimile procedure and the procedure for the check. Facsimile communication is performed according to the procedure according to the so-called CCITT recommendation, but if the line condition is not good, for example, a proper sequence operation is performed according to the CCITT recommendation. The same applies when an error occurs in the facsimile received image. That is, since the facsimile apparatus itself knows in what order the facsimile procedure has been performed and to which procedure the facsimile procedure has been carried out, it is sufficient to grasp the communication state by storing the order of the facsimile procedure.

Next, the flower character generating circuit 15 will be described. The flower character generating circuit here is for converting coded information into a character pattern such as alphabetic characters, numbers and kana characters. is there. When the coded grasping information stored in the non-volatile memory is recorded as characters on the recording paper, a flower character generation circuit for converting the coded information into facsimile image information is required. The grasping information is obtained from the flower character generating circuit 15 as record information corresponding to one line. Without converting the grasping information into a character pattern, the original form (bit or AS
It is also possible to transmit to the partner device by CII).

In the facsimile apparatus according to this embodiment, the line-corresponding record information from the flower character generating circuit 15 can be transferred to the recording section 3 in the apparatus itself by the changeover switch 17, which is described above. It is possible to perform the same recording as in the case. However, normally, the line-corresponding record information is to be appropriately band-compressed and then transmitted as facsimile image information by a high-speed modem signal to the maintenance service center side facsimile apparatus as the partner apparatus via the modulation / demodulation unit 5. Is.

When there is a request from the facsimile machine on the maintenance service center side, from the various grasping information stored in the non-volatile memory 14, only the maintenance information required for maintenance is recorded as all or a part thereof. Collected,
This is transmitted by the maintenance service center side facsimile procedure through the flower character generation circuit 15, the image processing section 4, and the modulation / demodulation section 5. FIG. 3 shows a connection mode between the customer side facsimile apparatus and the maintenance service center side facsimile apparatus. It is a thing. The facsimile machines 22 and 23 on the customer side and the maintenance service center side are connectable via the public line network 21, but a normal facsimile machine 23 is sufficient. However, the switch 24 for collecting the maintenance information is provided so that the maintenance information collecting mode is set at the time of collecting the maintenance information.

When the maintenance service side needs maintenance information about the facsimile machine 22, the facsimile machine 22 is called up through the public line network by a dial operation by a maintenance service person or automatic dialing. ing. When the facsimile device 22 automatically responds to this, as shown in FIG. 4, the CED signal (C
CITT-compliant signals, as well as various signals described below), followed by NFS. (CSI). The DIS signal is sent to the facsimile device 23. On the other hand, in the facsimile device 23, the switch 24 is closed at the time when the CED signal is completed, whereby the facsimile device 2
3 starts the operation for collecting the maintenance information, and after confirming that the NFS signal includes the function information according to the present invention, sends the RMC signal for collecting the maintenance information to the facsimile device 22. It has become. The facsimile device 22 which has received this transmits the NSS signal and the TCF signal for checking the line error rate to the facsimile device 23 in the same procedure as in the facsimile transmission.
If the line is good, the CFR signal indicating that the facsimile apparatus 23 can receive the signal is returned to the facsimile apparatus 22. Thus, in the facsimile device 22, under the control of the microprocessor 11, the maintenance information collected from the grasping information on the non-volatile memory 14 is read to the image processing section 4 via the flower character generating circuit 15. The maintenance information is coded and compressed by the image processing unit 4, and then becomes an MSG signal which is a facsimile transmission signal via the modulation / demodulation unit 5 and is transmitted to the facsimile device 23 as facsimile image data. As a result, the minimum required maintenance information is received and recorded on the side of the facsimile device 23, and the maintenance service personnel can check the facsimile communication state by the facsimile device 22 over the past several times and the device state from the display of the record. It is known directly and easily by the maintenance service center. Of course, the maintenance information can be transmitted as a low-speed modem signal in the form of coded information (character, bit correspondence, ASCII code) without passing through the flower character generation circuit 15. When the transmission of the maintenance information is completed, the facsimile device 22 sends out an EOP signal indicating that the procedure has been completed, and in response to this, the facsimile device 23 sends to the facsimile device 22 an MCF signal indicating that confirmation. The facsimile machine 22 sends a DCN signal which is a line disconnection command. In addition, when the maintenance information is transmitted as facsimile image information (high-speed modem signal) in consideration of an error due to line noise, etc., the maintenance service is added with an error detection code. It may be transmitted to the side. When the maintenance information is transmitted as a low-speed modem signal, the error detection code is added to the low-speed modem signal itself, so that it is not necessary to add the error detection code to it.

Further, in the case of transmitting the communication status information and the plurality of communication components as in the present invention, the above-mentioned temporary communication abnormality or the like which is difficult for the user of the facsimile device to judge is grasped. Therefore, accurate and appropriate maintenance can be performed.

It is sufficient that the maintenance information is transmitted to the maintenance service side by either facsimile image information (high-speed modem signal) or low-speed modem signal, but this example does not depend on the type of modem signal. In terms of expression, the maintenance information is transmitted as facsimile transmission information.

[0028]

As described above, according to the present invention, a desired facsimile machine can be called and a remote maintenance instruction can be issued from the maintenance service center side, and a plurality of communications can be performed from the storage section of the facsimile machine which has received the remote maintenance instruction. It is possible to take out the communication state information for the minutes and send it to the maintenance service center side. This makes it possible for the maintenance service side to easily know the state of the customer-side facsimile device without bothering the customer and for the maintenance service personnel to visit the customer side. The measure is taken, and the communication abnormal state can be accurately grasped from the communication state information for the plurality of communications, and an appropriate and sufficient maintenance suitable for it can be performed.

That is, the result information of the facsimile communication between the facsimile devices, that is, the communication status information including the communication abnormality information and the normal communication status information, is stored for each communication for each communication, and the communication information is stored. By extracting the stored information via the public line network, it is possible to consider not only the fixed malfunction of the facsimile machine, that is, the unrecoverable failure regardless of the condition, but also the temporary malfunction, that is, the communication malfunction only under a specific condition. Things such as accidental operation abnormalities due to changes in ambient temperature and power supply voltage, transmission loss of specific communication lines, communication abnormalities due to differences in transmission control procedures, etc. can be grasped, and the customer is not bothered at all. Without this, maintenance staff can perform maintenance accurately and appropriately with a simple operation procedure.

Further, according to the present invention, the remote maintenance instruction from the maintenance service sensor side, which is the calling side, to the called side customer facsimile machine, and the called side customer facsimile machine which has received the remote maintenance instruction Since the transmission of communication status information for a plurality of communications to the maintenance service center on the calling side is performed at the time of information transmission by the CCITT facsimile procedure, there is no need to use a transmission control circuit or the like by a special transmission control procedure, and maintenance is performed. You can collect the necessary communication information in a simple way.

Further, the communication information and the communication status information are stored in correspondence with each other for a plurality of communications, and the light quantity of the light source for reading the original is reduced by transmitting the correspondence, which causes a failure in the near future. It is possible to understand probable intellectual abnormalities such as In addition, it is possible to obtain extremely detailed maintenance information that is semi-abnormal (quasi-normal), that is, communication is normal, but information is deteriorated due to transmission errors, transmission speed is reduced (it becomes a problem in terms of service to users). As a result, remarkable effects such as accurate and appropriate maintenance can be obtained.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a microcomputer-controlled facsimile apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of a control unit in the configuration of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a connection mode between a customer side facsimile apparatus and a maintenance service center side facsimile apparatus.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a facsimile procedure when transmitting and receiving grasping information.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Control part, 4 ... Image processing part, 11 ... Microprocessor, 14 ... Nonvolatile memory, 15 ... Flower character generation circuit.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A plurality of customer facsimile machines each having a storage section and a maintenance service center side apparatus operating in accordance with a facsimile procedure are connected to a public line network, and each customer facsimile machine has the storage section. In addition, each communication status information including information indicating communication status such as sequence operation status and communication line status of each unit in the own device is stored and accumulated for a plurality of communication in correspondence with each communication information for each communication. After calling the specific facsimile machine from the maintenance service center side device through the public line network, a remote maintenance instruction signal is transmitted according to the procedure of the calling side maintenance service center side device, and the remote maintenance instruction signal is transmitted. The called facsimile machine receives the stored information for the plurality of communications stored in the storage unit from the public. Corresponding communication information of each communication and each communication status information are transmitted to the caller side maintenance service center side device via the line network, and the customer facsimile device transmits a plurality of data in response to the remote maintenance instruction signal. It is characterized in that the stored information for communication is transmitted to the maintenance service center side device, and after the maintenance service center side device transmits a signal indicating that reception of the stored information is completed, the line of the public line network is cut off. Remote maintenance method for facsimile machines.