JPH07183978A - Facsimile equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To properly perform an automatic switch setting of a normal mode and a power saving mode according to the reception frequency for every time zone. CONSTITUTION:A printer 22 of an electronic picture recording system operates at the time of a normal mode and stops at the time of a power saving mode. A memory 18 stores received data. A summing up means 13 sums up the reception frequency for a sampling period according to time zones. A mode switch means 11 sets the time zone where summed up reception frequency is high to a normal mode and sets the time zone where the reception frequency is low to a power saving mode for an execution period.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a facsimile apparatus having an electrophotographic recording type printer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an electrophotographic recording type printer is
It has a developing section and a fixing section for an electrophotographic process.
In the developing section, a charger gives an electric charge to the surface of the photosensitive drum,
The surface of the photosensitive drum is irradiated with a laser beam or the like to form an electrostatic latent image, toner is adsorbed on the electrostatic latent image of the photosensitive drum, and the transfer device transfers the toner on the surface of the photosensitive drum to recording paper. Further, in the fixing unit, the recording paper is passed between fixing rollers which have been heated to a predetermined temperature to fix the toner, and the toner is heat-melted and fixed on the recording paper.

In such an electrophotographic recording type printer, the fixing roller is heated by a heater to a temperature at which fixing is possible, but at the start of energization, the heater is heated by the heater so that the fixing roller can be fixed. Since it takes time to raise the temperature to the temperature, it is necessary to control the energization of the heater in advance and always maintain the temperature at which the fixing roller can be fixed in order to immediately enable print output.

Therefore, in a facsimile apparatus using an electrophotographic recording type printer, the printer function is always operated and the heater of the fixing roller is energized.
When receiving a call, the received data can be printed out immediately. However, since the heater of the fixing roller is energized even during the time of low facsimile reception such as at night, power consumption is large.

Therefore, in order to reduce power consumption, in addition to the normal mode for operating the printer function as well as the transmission / reception function of the facsimile apparatus, a power saving mode for mainly shutting off only the printer function by shutting down the power supply of the printer unit is provided. Set to set the normal mode during the daytime when the number of received faxes is relatively large so that the received data can be printed out immediately when receiving a call, and the power saving mode is used during the nighttime when the number of received faxes is small to reduce power consumption. .

[0006] The mode is set by the user's own operation such that the normal mode is set in the daytime and the power saving mode is set in the nighttime.

[0007]

In the conventional facsimile apparatus, since the mode setting is performed by the user's own operation, it is generally set to the normal mode during the daytime and the power saving mode during the nighttime.

However, even during the daytime, there are times when the frequency of reception is low, such as lunchtime, and there is a time difference even at night. There are times when the reception frequency is high, such as when sending at night, but it is not possible to appropriately cope with the reception frequency for each such time.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a facsimile apparatus capable of appropriately and automatically setting the normal mode and the power saving mode in accordance with the reception frequency for each time zone. And

[0010]

According to the present invention, a printer of an electrophotographic recording system which operates in a normal mode and shuts off a printer power source in a power saving mode, and a reception frequency in a predetermined sample period are totaled by time zone. And a mode switching means for setting a time zone of high reception frequency aggregated by the summation means in a predetermined execution period to a normal mode and a time zone of low reception frequency to a power saving mode. .

[0011]

According to the present invention, the reception frequency is aggregated by time zone during the sample period, and the time zone of high reception frequency aggregated during the execution period is set to the normal mode to operate the printer and the time zone of low reception frequency is Set to the power saving mode, stop the printer, and set the mode automatically and properly.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The configuration of an embodiment of the facsimile apparatus of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a facsimile apparatus. Reference numeral 11 denotes a CPU for controlling the entire facsimile apparatus. The CPU 11 has a bus in which a ROM 12 in which a control program and the like are written and various system data can be written and read. A RAM 13 having a function of aggregating means for aggregating the reception frequency in a predetermined sample period for each time zone is also connected.

Further, the bus of the CPU 11 has a fax modem 15 connected to a telephone line through a transformer 14,
Bell detection circuit 16 for detecting a bell signal when an incoming call is received through a telephone line, a timer 17 for engraving the date and time, a memory 18 for accumulating image data such as reception data and transmission data, and encoding read data to obtain transmission data. A decoding / decoding circuit for decoding the received data together with the received image data
19 connected.

Further, a sub processor 20 is connected to a bus of the CPU 11, and a scanner 21 for reading a transmission original and the like, and an electrophotographic recording type printer 22 adopting a laser recording method or an LED recording method are connected to the sub processor 20. It is connected.

Although not shown, the structure of the printer 22 includes a developing section and a fixing section for an electrophotographic process. In the developing section, the surface of the photosensitive drum is charged by a charger, the surface of the photosensitive drum is irradiated with a laser beam or the like to form an electrostatic latent image, and toner is adsorbed on the electrostatic latent image of the photosensitive drum. The transfer device transfers the toner on the surface of the photosensitive drum onto the recording paper.
Further, in the fixing unit, the fixing roller is heated by a heater to a temperature at which fixing is possible, the recording paper is passed between the fixing rollers, and the toner is thermally melted and fixed on the recording paper.

The operation mode of the facsimile machine is as follows.
It has a normal mode in which all the functions of the facsimile apparatus including the functions of the printer 22 are operated, and a power saving mode in which only the functions of the printer 22 are stopped mainly by automatically shutting off the printer power. The automatic power-off of the printer unit may be applied to both the developing unit and the fixing unit or only to the fixing unit.

Then, the CPU 11 has a function of performing a predetermined sample period for confirming the reception frequency for each time zone, and executes a mode automatic switching for each time zone corresponding to the reception frequency for each time zone during this sample period. And a function of a mode switching unit that sets a time zone of high reception frequency tabulated in the RAM 13 in a predetermined execution period to a normal mode and a time zone of low reception frequency to a power saving mode. ing.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

When using the automatic mode switching function,
First, the sample period for confirming the reception frequency is set to, for example, one week, and the execution period for executing the automatic mode switching is set to, for example, one week in accordance with the reception frequency of this sample period (step 1 The steps of
Abbreviated numbers are shown in the figure))).

During the sampling period (step 2), the normal mode is automatically set (step 3), the functions of the entire facsimile apparatus including the functions of the printer 22 are operated, and the printer 22 is immediately ready for print output. To be kept.

When there is an incoming call during the sample period (step 5), for example, when a call is made from the calling side in response to the handset attached to the facsimile machine, the call is made (steps 6 and 7). , If a facsimile communication is performed from the calling side, a facsimile reception operation is performed.

In the facsimile receiving operation during the sample period, the date and time zone are written in the RAM 13 (step 8), and the received data is immediately printed out by the printer 22 in operation (steps 9 and 10).

As described above, during the sampling period, the date and the time zone are written in the RAM 13 every time a facsimile is received, and the reception frequency is totaled for each time zone.

FIG. 3 shows the result of counting the reception frequency during the sample period. The square frame display indicates that the number of receptions is 10 or more in the hourly time frame, and the blank display indicates reception. Indicates less than 10 cases. Therefore, taking the first day as an example, the number of receptions is 10 during the time zone from 8:00 to 10:00 and the time zone from 13:00 to 16:00.
It indicates that there were more than one case, and that the number of received cases was less than 10 in the other time zones. In this way, the reception frequency for each time period of one week from the first day to the seventh day is totaled.

From the result of the aggregation in the sample period of one week, the reception frequency is the time zone in which the number of receptions is 10 or more in the same time zone from the first day to the seventh day Is high, and the time is set to the normal mode, and 3
During the time period less than a day, the reception frequency is low and the power saving mode is set. That is, for example, the time zone from 6:00 to 7:00 is the fourth day, the fifth day, the seventh day, and the day when the number of received messages was 10 or more for three days or more. Since the time zone at 8:00 is only the fifth day, the power saving mode is set. Therefore, the time zone from 6 o'clock to 7 o'clock, the time zone from 9 o'clock to 12 o'clock, the time zone from 14 o'clock to 16 o'clock, and the time zone from 19 o'clock to 20 o'clock is the time zone to be the normal mode, and the other time zones. The band is a time period in which the power saving mode is set.

When the sample period (1st to 7th days) ends and the execution period (8th to 14th days) ends, it is judged whether the current time zone is a time zone with high reception frequency (step 1
1) If the reception frequency is high, the mode is automatically switched to the normal mode, the functions of the entire facsimile machine including the function of the printer 22 are operated, and if the reception frequency is low, the power saving mode is set. Automatically switched (step 12),
Mainly, only the function of the printer 22 is stopped.

As described above, since the mode is automatically switched and set according to the reception frequency for each time period obtained in the sample period, the power saving mode is set in the daytime when the reception frequency is low, such as lunchtime. It is possible to use the normal mode during times when there is a high frequency of reception, such as when sending from a foreign country that has a time difference even at night, or when sending data accumulated during the daytime at night using the late-night tariff system for telephone charges. Can be set to, and the mode can be automatically switched appropriately, and the effect of reducing power consumption can be obtained by fully utilizing the function of the power saving mode.

When there is a facsimile reception during the normal mode time, the printer 22 in the operating state can immediately print out the received data. If a facsimile is received during the power saving mode time, the received data is stored in the memory 18 (step 13), and when the power saving mode is changed to the normal mode time, the memory 18 is stored. Since it is confirmed whether or not the received data is stored in the memory (step 4), all the received data stored in the memory 18 at this time are collectively printed out.

Further, during this execution period (from the 8th day to the 14th day), similarly to the above-described sample period (from the 1st day to the 7th day), the reception frequency is totaled every time the facsimile is received. Therefore, this execution period (8th to 14th days) is the next execution period (15th to 22nd days)
This is a sample period (8th to 14th days) for confirming the reception frequency for each time zone. Therefore, in the next execution period, the automatic mode switching is executed based on the data of the reception frequency in the immediately preceding sample period.

The sample period and the execution period can be set arbitrarily, and the criterion for judging whether the reception frequency is high or low can also be set arbitrarily.

As a method of totalizing the reception frequency by time zone, the number of receptions on the day with the largest value in the same time zone during the sample period is totaled as the reception frequency in that time zone,
If the value of the reception frequency is higher than the value set arbitrarily, set the normal mode as the reception frequency is high,
If it is small, the power saving mode may be set assuming that the reception frequency is low.

[0033]

According to the present invention, the reception frequency is aggregated by time zone during the sample period, and the time zone of high reception frequency aggregated during the execution period is set to the normal mode to operate the printer and reduce the reception frequency. The power saving mode can be set in a low time zone to stop the printer, and the mode can be automatically switched appropriately according to the reception frequency for each time zone.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a facsimile apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of the above-described embodiment.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of mode setting corresponding to the reception frequency according to the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 11 CPU as mode switching means 13 RAM as counting means 22 Printer

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A printer of an electrophotographic recording system which operates in a normal mode and shuts off a power supply of a printer section in a power saving mode, an aggregating means for aggregating the reception frequency of a predetermined sample period by time zone, and a predetermined execution period. 2. A facsimile apparatus, comprising: a mode switching unit that sets a time zone of high reception frequency aggregated by the aggregation unit to a normal mode and a time zone of low reception frequency to a power saving mode.