JPS61150027A - Timer circuit diagnostic system of serial printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To attain ease of troubleshooting of a serial printer by providing a fault check means of a timer circuit. CONSTITUTION:Timer circuits 1, 2 are connected to a monitor program part by transfer lines 8, 9 and to interruption processing routine programs 3, 4, by using timeup interruption signals 10, 11 respectively. A monitor program section 5 is connected to a timeup counter 6 and an interruption order detection program 7. A T1INT corresponds to an interruption processing routine program 3 and a T2INT corresponds to an interruption program 4, they acts like a function of the interruption sequence detection program 7 respectively to detect an error. The flow starting from START ending at an EXIT has functions of a monitor program 5 and a timeup counter 6 to detect an error.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a timer circuit diagnostic method for diagnosing a timer circuit in a control circuit of a microprogram-controlled serial printer device using the microprogram control.

[Conventional technology]

Conventionally, most microprogram-controlled serial printer devices use a plurality of timer circuits. The timer circuit is essential and the heart of controlling the serial printer, but no failure check is performed on the timer circuit.

[Problem that the invention seeks to solve]

The above-mentioned serial printer has the disadvantage that a failure in the tights circuit causes a fatal malfunction in the operation of the serial printer because the timer circuit is not checked for failure. Another disadvantage is that the cause of a failure in a serial printer cannot be easily discovered.

[Means for solving problems]

The serial printer timer circuit diagnosis method of the present invention is as follows:
a plurality of timer circuits; a plurality of interrupt processing routine program sections that respond to each of the timer circuits;
The microprogram control circuit includes a monitor program section that monitors the operation of the interrupt processing routine program section, and a time-up counter consisting of a random access memory.

〔Example〕

Next, the present invention will be explained with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention, in which a timer circuit 1 and a timer circuit 2 are connected to a monitor program section through timer data transfer lines 8 and 9, and to an interrupt circuit through time-up interrupt signals 10 and 11, respectively. It is coupled to processing routine programs 3 and 4. The monitor program section 5 is coupled with a time-up counter 6 and an interrupt order detection program 7.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a procedure for diagnosing the operation of timer circuits 1 and 2, and TI INT is an interrupt processing routine program 3. 'I'2INT corresponds to the interrupt processing routine program 4, and each performs the interrupt order detection 70 function to detect errors. The flow starting from 5TART and ending at EXIT has a monitor program 5 and a time-up counter 60 function to detect errors.

FIG. 3 is a time chart for supplementary explanation of the flowchart, and TI and T2 are timer circuits 1 and 1, respectively. It shows the operation on/off of the timer circuit 2.

The procedure for diagnosing the timer circuit 1 and the timer circuit 2 will be explained with reference to FIG. The same timer value is set in each timer circuit 1 and timer circuit 2, and the timers are started. Timer circuit 1 and timer circuit 2 count down the timer value at the same timing and issue a time-up interrupt signal 10.1 when the count up.
Generates 1. There are two ways to set the timer value.
There are cases where the timer circuit 2 is set after the timer circuit 1 is set, and vice versa, where the timer circuit 1 is set after the timer circuit 2 is set. In the former case, CASE
A, and the latter is CASEB.

CASEA and CASEB are programmed to occur alternately. - For CASEA as an example, the order in which time-up interrupt signals 10 and 11 are generated is that if timer circuits 1 and 2 are operating normally, time-up interrupt signal 10 is generated first, then time-up interrupt signal 11 is generated. Should occur, T1 engineering NT or T2
The interrupt signal generation order is checked by the INT program.

For CASEB, the reverse interrupt signal generation order is checked. Further, whether or not one of the timer functions is stopped is determined by the monitor program 5 and the time-up counter 6 as to whether or not both time-up interrupt signals 10 and 11 are generated within a certain period of time.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, the present invention is capable of diagnosing the timer circuit of a microprogram-controlled device using two or more timer circuits, determining the presence or absence of a time-up interrupt signal or detecting the presence or absence of a time-up interrupt signal under the microprogram control. This can be achieved by configuring a program section that detects the order in which the input signals are generated. Checking by the presence or absence of an interrupt signal is effective in detecting whether any of the timer circuits is not operating properly, and checking by the order in which time-up interrupt signals are generated can detect whether the timer circuit is operating on/off. This has the effect of detecting when there is a discrepancy in the operating time.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an operation flowchart of FIG. 1. 1...°... Timer circuit 1.2... Timer circuit 2.3... Interrupt processing routine program 1.4... Interrupt processing routine program 2. 5
...Monitor program section, 6...Time up counter, 7...Interrupt order detection program, 8...Timer data to timer circuit 1, 9 ...Timer data to timer circuit 2, 10...Time-up interrupt signal from timer circuit, 11...Time-up interrupt signal from timer circuit 2, 12... ...Error detection signal by the interrupt order detection program, 13...Error detection signal by the time-up counter. FIG. 3 is a supplementary time chart to FIG. 2. Figure 1

Claims (1)

[Claims] A microprogram control type serial printer device includes: a plurality of timer circuits for controlling the operation of the serial printer; a plurality of interrupt processing routine program sections that respond to the outputs of the plurality of timer circuits; and an interrupt processing routine. It has a microprogram control circuit consisting of a monitor program section that monitors the operation of the routine program section and a time-up counter, and diagnoses the operation of each of the plurality of timer circuits using the time-up counter and a plurality of interrupt processing routines. A timer circuit diagnostic method for serial printers that is characterized by: