JPH0981490A - Information processing system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make a plurality of information processors on a network to share an external device connected to a specific information processor. SOLUTION: In the information processing system wherein a 1st station 2 to which an external image processor 1 is connected directly and a 2nd station 3 which is not connected directly to the external image processor 1 are connected through the network, a server process 4 which manages the external image processor 1 is provided on the 1st station 2. On the 2nd station 3, a client process 5 which requires the external image processor 1 requests the server process 4 to provide a service and the server process 4 which is requested to provide the service communicates with the external processor 1 to processes the service and sends its result to the client process.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an information processing system that shares an external device in a network environment composed of one or a plurality of stations.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there are a method of sharing an external image output device such as a printer, a method of sharing an image display device such as a display, and a method of sharing a file system in a network environment composed of one or a plurality of stations. It has been put to practical use.

For example, a typical example of a method of sharing an external image output device is 1 pr of UNIX command.
Was configured as shown in the schematic block diagram of FIG. In the figure, in process 1, the image data storage means 12 stores the image data in the memory 11 in the external storage device 2. In process 3, the image data inputting means 31 reads the image data from the external storage device 2 and stores it in the memory 32. Then, the process 4 on the station to which the external image output device 5 is connected by the image data transmitting means 33.
To the image data in the memory 32. In process 4, the image data receiving means 41 receives the image data and stores it in the memory 42. Then, the image data transmitting means 43 outputs the image data in the memory 42 to the external image output device 5.

The method of sharing the image display device is as follows.
M. I. T. X-Windows System is a typical example, and the method of sharing a file system is S
unMicrosystems, Inc. NFS (N
A representative example is the “work file system”.

[0005]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional method of sharing an external image output device, the flow of image data is one-way and the image data is temporarily stored in the external storage device. There was such a drawback. (1) Since the flow of image data is one-way, image input from the external image input device and control of the external device cannot be performed. (2) Since it is temporarily stored in the external storage device, it takes a long processing time. (3) When outputting image data that requires a large capacity, such as a large-sized full-color image, the external storage device must have a free capacity corresponding to that capacity.

Further, in the method of sharing the image display device,
Its use is limited to images or graphic displays,
In the method of sharing the file system, the use is limited to the file of the external storage device.

[0007]

The present invention utilizes an external image processing device from all stations on a network in a network environment composed of a station to which an external device is connected and a station to which an external device is not connected. The purpose is to provide such an environment.

In order to solve the above problems, according to the present invention, a first information processing apparatus to which an external device is directly connected,
In an information processing system in which a second information processing device that is not directly connected to the external device is connected via a network, a server process that manages the external device is provided on the first information processing device. On the first or second information processing device, a client process that requires the external device requests a service from the server process, and the server requested the service.
A process communicates with the external device to process the service and sends the result to the client process.

[0009]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a block configuration of a system of this embodiment, in which 1 is an external image input device such as a scanner, a film scanner, a video signal input, an RGB input and the like. , And an external image processing device including an external image output device such as a printer, a video signal output, and an RGB output, 2 is an external image processing device 1 is GPIB, SCSI
Stations 3 connected by means of the like are stations connected to the station 2 via a network. Here, the image data handled by the external image processing apparatus 1 is a color image of 256 RGB colors, an 8-bit pseudo color image, a bitmap, etc., and is not particularly limited.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a conceptual configuration of this embodiment. In FIG. 2, 4 is a server process for managing the external image processing apparatus 1, and 5 is a server process 4.
Is a client process that manages the external image processing apparatus 1 by communicating with the external image processing apparatus 1. 41 is a data transmission / reception means for transmitting / receiving data to / from external image processing, 42 is a memory for storing data received by the data transmission / reception means 41, or data to be transmitted, 43 is data transmission / reception with the client process 5. Data transmitting / receiving means 51 performs data transmission / reception with the server process 4. Data 52 receives / transmits data received by the data transmitting / receiving means 51 or a memory for storing data to be transmitted. Here, it is not necessary to limit the number of the server process 4 to one on the network, and a plurality of server processes 4 may exist on a station to which the external image processing apparatus is connected. Further, the client process 5 is not limited to the station to which the external image processing device is connected, but may be present in the station to which the external image processing device is connected, or a plurality of client processes 5 may be present on the network. . Also, there can be multiple client processes for one server process.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.

Communication between the client process and the server process consists of protocols such as connection protocol, request protocol and response protocol. Here, the communication protocols need not be limited to these three.

The connection protocol is a protocol transmitted / received when a client process establishes a connection with a server process. For example, request 1
Fixed length of 0 bytes (byte order of client station 1 byte, empty 1 byte, protocol major version 2 bytes, protocol minor version 2 bytes, authentication data byte length 2 bytes, extended data byte length 2 10 bytes in total, response 8
Fixed byte length (acceptance / rejection 1 byte, rejection reason byte length 1 byte, latest protocol major version 2 bytes supported by server, latest protocol minor version 2 bytes supported by server, extended data (8 bytes in total including 2 bytes) and a variable length when the connection is rejected.

The request protocol is a protocol for a client process to send a service request to a server process, and has a fixed length of 8 bytes (operation code 1 byte, empty 3 bytes, request data byte length 4 bytes). Of 8 bytes) and a variable length according to the request protocol.

The response protocol is a protocol for the server process to return a response or an error code to the client process, and has a fixed length of 8 bytes (success / success).
Failure 1 byte, free 3 bytes, response data byte length /
It consists of an error code of 4 bytes (8 bytes in total) and a variable length according to the response protocol.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart showing the procedure of communication between the client process and the server process. The left side shows the procedure of the client process and the right side shows the procedure of the server process. The client process first requests a connection from the server process (step S301). The server process that received the request performs connection processing and returns the result (steps S311 to S314). If the connection is successful, the server process proceeds to the service processing as it is, and if it fails, the reason why the connection is rejected is received (step S302-303). The service process starts with sending a request from the client process to the server process as shown in FIG. 2 (step S30).
4). The service request includes an operation code and a request data size of variable length according to the operation code. Upon receiving the service request and the request data, the server process starts the service by transmitting / receiving data to / from the external image processing apparatus (step S3).
11 to S312 and S315), and the result is returned to the client process in the form of service result and response data (step S316).

Data transmission / reception of service requests and service responses is performed between the server process and the external image processing apparatus.

[Other Embodiments] The present invention can be applied to various data such as voice other than images. For example, in the case of voice, an external voice input device such as a microphone and an external voice output device such as a speaker are included. The external voice processing device can be shared in a network environment.

[0019]

As described above, by providing the server process for managing the external device and enabling the data transmission / reception between the client process and the server process, the external image input device and the external image can be transmitted in the network environment. There is an effect that an external device such as an output device, an external audio input device, an external audio output device can be shared by one or more client processes.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of an information processing system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of an information processing system according to an embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a communication procedure between a client process and a server process.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a conventional information processing system.

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. An information processing system in which a first information processing device directly connected to an external device and a second information processing device not directly connected to the external device are connected via a network, On the first information processing device,
A server process that manages the external device is provided, and a client process that requires the external device on the first or second information processing device requests a service from the server process. An information processing system, wherein a server process requested for a service communicates with the external device to process the service, and sends a result to the client process. 2. The information processing system according to claim 1, wherein the external device is an image processing device. 3. The information processing system according to claim 1, wherein the external device is a voice processing device.