JP2000075952A - Computer provided with touch screen - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain a panel computer which easily reduces the trouble to improve circumferential environments according to the individual circumferential environments and at a user's request although a malfunction due to an inferior circumferential environment can be prevented. SOLUTION: While this panel computer 1 is in operation, a monitoring block 13 always monitors the state of the panel computer as to, for example, the internal temperature and a watchdog timer 12a always monitors an abnormal operation of a CPU 11a. A range wherein an abnormality is judged is set by a setting part 23 corresponding to the current circumferential environment. If an abnormality occurs, a RAS control block 15 controls a control block 14, etc., to informs the user of the abnormality. Consequently, a fatal system down can be evaded without greatly shortening the operation time of the panel computer.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to, for example, FA (F
The present invention relates to a computer with a touch screen (panel computer) that can operate normally even in a bad environment such as the field of actory automation.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, computers have been widely used in various fields such as motor control, for example, in addition to mere calculation processing. And so on, where the surrounding environment is poor. Here, in the vicinity of the control target, the space that can be installed is generally limited, and in many cases, the input unit, the display unit, and the calculation unit cannot be arranged separately. Further, since the space in which the apparatus can be installed is limited, the ambient environment temperature tends to be high, and there is a possibility that the temperature approaches an inappropriate temperature for the computer. Further, since there are many vibrations and dust, it is not preferable to expose a mechanically operated portion to the outside.

[0003] Therefore, a panel computer having a touch panel as an input device is often installed in a place where the surrounding environment is poor. Similarly, a mobile computer, such as a mobile terminal, is also used in a poor surrounding environment, and thus a touch panel is sometimes used as an input device.

[0004] These panel computers use an input device such as a keyboard and a mouse that does not expose mechanical contacts, so that they do not easily malfunction even in an environment where there are many dusts and vibrations. Further, by integrally forming the calculation unit, the display unit, and the input unit, the installation place can be reduced,
A panel computer resistant to high-frequency noise can be realized. As a result, compared to other forms of computer,
It can continue to operate normally even in poor surroundings.

Here, the panel computer has a wider range of surrounding environments in which it can operate reliably than other types of computers, but may malfunction in an environment worse than the range. There is. Therefore, the manufacturer of the panel computer recommends that a range in which operation can be reliably performed is set in advance and the user uses the range within the range. This recommended range is not limited to the ambient temperature itself,
For example, various items such as the temperature in the apparatus, the number of rotations of the air cooling fan, and the power supply voltage are set, and if all the items are kept within the recommended range, the normal operation of the panel computer is guaranteed.

[0006] Even if all the items are kept within the recommended range, if a hardware failure occurs, the panel computer cannot operate normally. Therefore, the panel computer starts the self-diagnosis program at the time of starting the system, and detects whether or not the hardware has failed.

[0007]

However, in some cases, the panel computer is operated in an environment outside the recommended range, and is still worse than that used in the OA field. There is a problem that the possibility of malfunction due to the surrounding environment is high.

Specifically, the manufacturer of the panel computer sets a recommended range for a certain item such as ambient temperature, for example, so that if another item is within the recommended range, the panel computer operates normally. , Set with sufficient margin. In addition, since the interrelationship between the items strictly varies depending on the surrounding environment, the panel computer manufacturer has assumed that a particular model case is required to prevent malfunction in any case. Set each recommended range with a margin. As a result, in each ambient environment, the range in which the panel computer can operate reliably and the recommended range are slightly different, and even if some items are out of the recommended range, the panel computer can reliably operate normally. Often works.

For example, when there is a large space around the installation location, the panel computer can reliably operate even if the number of rotations of the cooling fan falls below the recommended range if the temperature of the CPU is kept within the recommended range. Can operate normally. Note that which item may deviate from the recommended range and the width that can be protruded greatly differ depending on the surrounding environment of the panel computer.

[0010] Here, when the surrounding environment of the installation location is already near the center of the recommended range, such as a computer used in the OA field, the difference between the two ranges does not cause much problem. . However, when used near the end of the recommended range, such as a panel computer, if the surrounding environment is improved and all items are kept within the recommended range, it takes more time than necessary. Conversely, if the operation is performed only during the time when all the items are kept within the recommended range, the operation time is greatly reduced.

Therefore, the user of the panel computer tends to operate the panel computer in an environment outside the recommended range for some items, while being aware of some danger. The frequency of malfunctions that can be tolerated by the user differs for each user, and a user who can tolerate a higher frequency uses an environment outside the recommended range for more items. As a result, the panel computer is still likely to malfunction due to poor surroundings.

However, in the conventional panel computer, the hardware is checked only once at the time of startup. Therefore, it is possible to check during operation for the possibility of malfunction such as a voltage drop caused by use in a poor environment. Can not. As a result, the malfunction cannot be prevented in advance, and a fatal stop (system down) occurs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and has as its object to reduce the trouble of improving the surrounding environment in accordance with the individual surrounding environment and the demand of the user, and to reduce the trouble in the poor surrounding environment. An object of the present invention is to provide a computer with a touch screen capable of preventing a malfunction caused by the touch screen.

[0014]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a computer with a touch screen, wherein the state of the computer with a touch screen is previously set while the computer with a touch screen is operating. It is characterized by comprising an abnormality detecting means for detecting whether or not the abnormal range is determined, and a range setting means for setting the abnormal range.

[0015] According to the above configuration, the abnormality detecting means monitors the internal temperature, the power supply voltage, or the input / output state of the touch screen computer while the touch screen computer is operating. , The presence or absence of an abnormality is detected. Thus, the computer with a touch screen can detect an abnormality by a self-diagnosis before a fatal system down occurs. As a result, even with a computer with a touch screen used in a poor surrounding environment, a system down due to the surrounding environment can be avoided.

Here, when an abnormal range is set so that the frequency of system down is lower than a predetermined value, an appropriate abnormal range differs for each surrounding environment. Therefore, when setting the abnormal range uniformly, it is necessary to set it with a sufficient margin. However, computers with touch screens are often used in poor surroundings compared to offices and the like. As a result, if it is set with a sufficient margin, in fact, although it can surely operate normally,
It is determined to be abnormal and the operating time is shortened. on the other hand,
Improve the surrounding environment so that the state of the computer with a touch screen does not fall within the above-mentioned uniform abnormal range,
It takes time to move the installation location and maintain the surrounding environment.

However, in the configuration according to the first aspect of the present invention, the range setting means can set the abnormal range, so that the abnormal range can be changed according to the current surrounding environment. As a result,
You can extend the working time of a computer with a touch screen without significantly changing the current environment.

By the way, the state of the computer with a touch screen includes, for example, the power supply voltage and the temperature of the CPU.
An abnormality may be a state that directly leads to system down, or a state that indirectly causes a system down, such as the internal temperature of the computer with a touch screen, the number of rotations of the cooling fan, etc. Good.

The computer with a touch screen according to a second aspect of the present invention is the computer with a touch screen according to the first aspect of the present invention, wherein the abnormality detecting means sets the internal temperature of the computer with a touch screen as the state of the computer with a touch screen. , And at least one of the rotation speeds of the cooling fan is detected.

In the above configuration, the abnormality detecting means monitors the internal temperature of the computer with a touch screen or the number of rotations of the cooling fan as a monitoring item, and the range setting means sets the abnormal range of the internal temperature or the number of rotations. Set. Here, when an abnormality occurs in these monitoring items, the temperature of the computer with a touch screen rises, and as a result, the temperature of the CPU rises, resulting in a system down. However, unlike the CPU temperature that directly causes the system to go down, these monitoring items are:
Since the system goes down indirectly, the appropriate abnormal range greatly differs depending on the surrounding environment. However, according to the above configuration, even when the appropriate abnormal range varies depending on the surrounding environment, the abnormal range can be adjusted by the range setting unit. As a result, the operating time of the computer with a touch screen can be extended without changing the current surrounding environment so much as compared with the case where the abnormal range cannot be adjusted with these monitoring items.

Further, in the computer with a touch screen according to the third aspect of the present invention, in the configuration of the first or second aspect of the invention, the state of the computer with a touch screen at the time when the abnormality detecting means determines that there is an abnormality is stored. It is characterized by having storage means. Note that if the state at the time of determining an abnormality is stored, the state before and after that may be stored.

According to the above arrangement, when the abnormality detecting means determines that there is an abnormality, the storage means stores the state of the computer with the touch screen at the time. Therefore, even if the cause of the abnormality has been resolved after a lapse of time since the occurrence of the abnormality, the state at the time of occurrence of the abnormality can be grasped by referring to the state stored in the storage means, and the cause of the abnormality can be determined. Can be identified. As a result, the abnormal range can be adjusted more appropriately according to the periodic environment, and the operating time of the computer with a touch screen can be extended.

[0023]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the present invention.
This will be described below with reference to FIG.
That is, the panel computer according to the present embodiment is a computer with a touch screen that is preferably used when it is required to operate even in a poor surrounding environment, and is, for example, equipment in the FA (Factory Automation) field. It is used for management of machines and operation panels of machine tools.

For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the panel computer 1 includes, for example, a display panel 2 such as a liquid crystal display, a touch panel 3 arranged on a display screen of the display panel 2, and a CPU described later.
The main module 4 including the main module 11a and the like are formed integrally, and can be installed without any trouble even in a case where the installable space is limited. In addition, since the unit is formed integrally and the part that operates mechanically is not exposed, when the ambient temperature is high, or when there is a lot of vibration, high frequency noise, dust, etc., the computer is installed in the OA field. It can operate normally even when the surrounding environment is inferior to the place.

However, even the panel computer 1 cannot operate normally if the surrounding environment is further deteriorated. Therefore, the panel computer 1 according to the present embodiment is provided with a system monitoring function for continuously performing a self-diagnosis even while the panel computer 1 is operating. An abnormality can be detected before the panel computer 1 shuts down by monitoring the item that has been set.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, the panel computer 1 includes a CPU 11a, a memory 11b,
A CPU block 11 including a chipset (not shown) and performing various arithmetic processing; a counter block 12 having a watchdog timer 12a for detecting an abnormal operation of the CPU block 11; and a monitoring block 13 for detecting the above-described items. , A control block 14 for notifying an abnormality by various methods, and a RAS (Reliablity Availablity Serviceabi) for controlling an operation at the time of an abnormality.
RAS control block 15 having a control unit 15a. It should be noted that the watchdog timer 12a and the monitoring block 13 correspond to the abnormality detecting means described in the claims, and the memory 11b
Corresponds to the storage means.

The watchdog timer 12a measures the time elapsed since the reset signal was input from the CPU 11a by, for example, a counter, and when the reset signal is not input even after a predetermined time-out period has elapsed, The abnormality is notified to the RAS control block 15. Since the CPU 11a is programmed to input a reset signal to the watchdog timer 12a at a time interval shorter than the above-mentioned timeout time, as long as the CPU 11a operates normally, the watchdog timer 12a operates abnormally. Do not notify.

In the present embodiment, the monitoring block 13 monitors items related to temperature, such as the CPU temperature, the internal average temperature in the panel computer 1, or a change in the temperature, for example. Monitoring items related to the fan, such as the rotation speed of a fan (not shown) that cools the computer 1,
And monitoring items related to the power supply voltage of each part of the panel computer 1 such as the power supply voltage supplied to the panel computer 1a.
The monitoring block 13 includes a temperature sensor unit 13a, a fan sensor unit 13b, and a power monitoring sensor unit 13c for detecting each of them. In the present embodiment, the detection amounts of these sensor units 13a to 13c are CP
Sent to U11a, for example, from temperature to temperature change, etc.
The detected amount is converted into a monitoring item. Also, the CPU 11a
Determines in advance whether or not there is an abnormality in each monitoring item, and predicts in advance that the panel computer 1 will be down. Further, when it is determined that an abnormality has occurred, the occurrence of an abnormality is notified to the RAS control block 15.

Further, the monitoring block 13 includes a universal input section 13d for monitoring a universal input.
And a remote reset input unit 13e for monitoring a remote reset input.
An abnormality is detected based on a universal input from a device connected to the panel computer 1 or a remote reset input instructing a reset from outside by a user,
The RAS control block 15 can be notified.

On the other hand, when an abnormality is detected, an alarm output unit 14a, a buzzer control unit 14b, and an alarm lamp control unit 14c are provided in the control block 14 of the panel computer 1 to notify the user of the abnormality. I have. Further, a pop-up message display unit 11c is provided as a functional block realized by the CPU 11a executing a predetermined program.
Thereby, the panel computer 1 notifies the user of the abnormality of the panel computer 1 by various notification methods such as an alarm lamp such as an alarm, a buzzer, and a patrol light, or a pop-up message displayed on the display panel 2 shown in FIG. it can.

Further, as the above functional blocks, the CPU 1
The OS computer 1a is provided with an OS shutdown unit 11d for instructing an OS shutdown.
According to the instruction from the RAS control block 15, when an abnormality occurs, the panel computer 1 is temporarily stopped to prevent the expansion of the abnormality, or the OS is restarted to avoid a software defect. it can. As a result, the panel computer 1 can be operated without system down.
It can continue to operate normally.

Further, in order to display the state of the panel computer 1 in more detail according to the operation of the touch panel 3, the panel computer 1 according to the present embodiment
A user status display unit 21 that displays on the display panel 2 whether or not an abnormality has occurred in each monitoring item, and an administrator status display that displays each monitoring item on the display panel 2 at the time of the current or immediately preceding abnormality. A part 22 is provided. RAS control block 1 for abnormal time
A setting unit (range setting means) 23 for setting the operation of No. 5 in advance for each monitoring item is provided. Each of these parts 2
1 to 23 are also functional blocks realized by the CPU 11a executing a predetermined program. Each of the above units 11c, 11d, and 2 realized as functional blocks
1 to 23 can also be realized by hardware. However, if realized as a functional block, the panel computer 1 can be realized only by distributing the recording medium on which the program is recorded, so that the distribution is facilitated.

In the above configuration, the panel computer 1
The operation will be described below with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. That is, step 1
In (hereinafter, abbreviated as S1), when the panel computer 1 is delivered, an administrator who is familiar with the panel computer 1, such as a manufacturer or a service person, goes to the installation location of the panel computer 1 and 1 is set.

When the panel computer 1 becomes operable, in S2, the administrator starts the panel computer 1 in a special procedure and instructs BIOS setup. Thereby, the setting unit 23 of the panel computer 1
For example, as shown in FIG. 4, a BIOS setup screen is displayed, and the administrator inputs valid / invalid of each monitoring item and a range in which each monitoring item is determined to be normal. In this embodiment, the BIOS setup is operated by a keyboard (not shown) that is not connected during normal use, and cannot be operated during normal use.

In this display example, the monitoring of CPU temperature is set to be effective as a monitoring item relating to temperature.
When the PU temperature exceeds 70 [° C.], it is set so that it is determined to be abnormal. The monitoring of the system temperature, which is the temperature inside the panel computer 1, is disabled. In the present embodiment, the temperature determined to be abnormal can be adjusted for each item, and can be increased or decreased by, for example, 5 ° C.

On the other hand, as the monitoring items related to the fan, as shown in "FAN1" to "FAN3", an allowable error of the rotation speed can be set for each of them. In this display example, it is effective to monitor the rotation speed of the fan (FAN1) that cools the entire system, and if the error exceeds ± 50 [%], it is set to determine that an error has occurred. Also,
The permissible error in the rotation speed of the fan (FAN2) for cooling the CPU is also set to ± 50%. In this embodiment,
As an example, the permissible error in the number of rotations is 10% to 70%.
In the range up to [%], it can be set every 10 [%].

Further, as the monitoring items relating to the voltage,
In the figure, as indicated by IN0 to IN6, voltages supplied to the CPU core are 3.3 [V], 5.0 [V], 12 [V],
For -5.0 [V] and -12 [V], respective tolerances can be set. In this embodiment, when monitoring is effective, from ± 2 [%] to ± 14 [%] Can be increased or decreased by 2%.

The above-described monitoring items and the settable numerical value ranges are merely examples, and desired monitoring items and numerical value ranges can be adopted. However, in order to divert the BIOS setup software between the panel computers 1 having different monitorable items such as the number of cooling fans, the monitor items that can be set in the BIOS setup must be one of the panel computers 1. It is better to include everything that can be set. For example, in the above-described display example shown in FIG. 4, although the fan (FAN3) is not connected to the panel computer 1, the validity / invalidity of the fan can be set. As described above, when the settable monitoring item includes an item that cannot be actually monitored, the item is invalidated at the time of BIOS setup.

When the above BIOS setup is completed,
When the OS of the panel computer 1 is started, the panel computer 1 becomes operable from the touch panel 3. For example, a normal operation by the user such as setting of presence / absence of notification and control operation of the equipment is performed on the touch panel 3. Will be

That is, in S3, the user operates the setting unit 23 as necessary. The setting unit 23
Displays, for example, screens as shown in FIGS. 5 to 10 according to a user's instruction, and for each of the enabled monitoring items, whether or not to notify when an abnormality occurs, and which notification method to use. Then, the user is caused to set whether or not to shut down the OS when an abnormality occurs. Thereby, various settings (referred to as monitoring parameters) are set for each monitoring item.

For example, the display example shown in FIG. 5 shows a monitor parameter setting screen relating to temperature. When enabling the monitoring item relating to the temperature, the user selects “Enable”. This makes it possible to change the contents of the error action parameter (ErrorAction Parameter) indicating the operation at the time of occurrence of the abnormality. In the case of the display example, for the temperature, a check box (Alarm Output) indicating the presence or absence of an alarm output as an error action parameter;
Check box indicating whether or not ED is displayed (LEDOutput
), A check box (Buzz
er), a check box (Popup Message) indicating whether a pop-up message is displayed, and a check box (OS Shutdow) indicating whether OS shutdown is appropriate.
n) is displayed, and the user can set valid / invalid by checking each check box. FIG.
As shown in (1), a timeout period can be set on the monitoring parameter setting screen relating to the watchdog timer 12a.

Here, among the above-mentioned monitoring items, the monitoring items in which an abnormality is likely to cause the system to go down differ depending on the surrounding environment of the panel computer 1, such as the environment in which the panel computer 1 is installed and used. Also,
The permissible frequency of system down varies depending on the user. Therefore, the administrator or the user sets the monitoring parameters of each monitoring item based on the surrounding environment and the frequency of system down before the panel computer 1 starts the normal operation, for example, monitoring of the equipment. Note that these monitoring parameters can be changed by the user as needed.

For example, in the case where the surrounding area of the installation location of the panel computer 1 is large, the temperature abnormality is likely to cause the system to go down, and when the cooling fan is difficult to cause the system to go down, for example, as shown in FIG. As described above, the monitoring parameter related to the temperature is set to check “Enable” and notify the abnormality. Further, an alarm output is selected as an error action parameter. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 7, the user does not check “Enable” in the monitoring parameters related to the fan, and sets so as not to notify the abnormality.

The error action parameter is set in consideration of the importance of the abnormality notification. For example, when a voltage abnormality is most likely to cause a system down, and then a temperature abnormality is likely to cause a system down, the method of reporting the voltage abnormality is easier for the user to recognize than the temperature abnormality. Set to the method. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 8, as an error action parameter,
In addition to the above-described alarm output, notification using an LED output, a buzzer output, a pop-up menu, and OS shutdown are selected. Here, the ease of recognition of each notification method changes according to the surrounding environment of the panel computer 1 such as the noise around the panel computer 1. Also,
Depending on the installation location of the panel computer 1, sound may not be output in some cases, and depending on the user, it may be easier to recognize by notifying by light than by sound. Therefore, the user or the administrator selects the notification method on the assumption that the user can easily recognize it from the surrounding environment.

As another monitoring item, for example, as shown in FIG. 6, the timeout time of the watchdog timer 12a is set to 5 [seconds], and the alarm and the LED are set.
Is set to notify. 9 and FIG.
As shown at 0, monitoring of the universal input is enabled and monitoring of the remote reset input is disabled.

When the monitoring parameters are set in S3, the panel computer 1 starts a normal operation such as, for example, monitoring equipment. While the panel computer 1 is operating normally (NO in S4), if an abnormality is detected by the watchdog timer 12a and the monitoring block 13 (S5), the RAS control block 15 returns to S3. Based on the set monitoring parameters, it is determined whether or not to notify the user of the notified abnormality (S6).

Here, in the above-described example, in S3, it is set so that the temperature abnormality is reported by all the reporting methods. Therefore, in S5, the temperature sensor unit 13a
If the detected value is abnormal from the CPU 11a, the determination in S6 is YES, and the RAS control block 15 determines in S7 that the alarm output unit 14a, the buzzer control unit 14b, and the alarm lamp control unit 14c The system controls the pop-up message display unit 11c and the OS shutdown unit 11d to notify the user using an alarm, a buzzer, an alarm lamp, and a pop-up menu, and to shut down the OS.

In this case, the user can know that an abnormality has occurred in the temperature by the notification, and can also know the type of the abnormality from the notification method and the occurrence frequency of the abnormality from the notification frequency. Therefore, for example, if the frequency of temperature-related abnormalities is high, for example, measures such as lowering the temperature of the installation location or moving to a lower temperature location, or if the frequency of abnormalities is low, It is possible to select a response according to the frequency and type of abnormality, such as notification.

In S8, the user status display section 21 shown in FIG. 1 is operated by operating the touch panel 3 if necessary. Thereby, the user status display unit 21 displays whether or not an abnormality has occurred in each monitoring item, as shown in FIG. 11, for example. In this display example, “Status” is, for example, +
It indicates that there is an abnormality in the supply of 3.3 [V], and that there is no abnormality in the supply of +5 [V]. In FIG. 3, for convenience of explanation, S8 is arranged after S7.
During normal operation, the user status display section 21 can be operated at any time.

On the other hand, in the above-mentioned example, the abnormality of the fan is set so as not to be notified in S3. Therefore, even if the CPU 11a notifies the CPU 11a that the detected value of the fan sensor unit 13b is abnormal in S5, the RAS control block 15 does nothing particularly (determines NO in S6). , Panel computer 1
Repeats the above-described processing from S4.

Regardless of whether or not an abnormality is notified, or whether or not the user displays the state of the panel computer 1, the processing in S4 to S8 is performed while the panel computer 1 is operating normally. Repeated.

Here, if the BIOS setup in S2 and the setting of each monitoring parameter in S3 are properly set in accordance with the surrounding environment of the panel computer 1 and the allowable system down frequency of the user, The panel computer 1 can continue to operate normally without the system going down more than the frequency.

However, in many cases, the surrounding environment of the panel computer 1 and the frequency of the system down which the user can tolerate change with the passage of time. In particular, the frequency is, for example, before the system down. The risk greatly depends on the risk of shortening the operation time of the panel computer 1 when an abnormal process such as an OS shutdown is performed, and the risk of the system shutdown of the panel computer 1 undesirably. Further, with the change of the surrounding environment, the necessity of the abnormality notification and the importance of notifying the abnormality may change. Further, in accordance with the operation of the panel computer 1, for example, when initially set, even if it is assumed that an abnormal temperature inside the panel computer 1 greatly affects the system down, C
In some cases, such as when the temperature abnormality of the PU 11a has a greater effect, the importance of the abnormality assumed at the time of the initial setting may be different from the importance felt by the user during operation of the panel computer 1. In addition, for example, when the user is actually notified, the alarm output may be more easily recognized than the buzzer output.

In these cases, the user performs the process of S3 by operating the touch panel 3 or the like, for example.
Reset the monitoring parameters for each monitoring item. Thereby, the panel computer 1 can always notify the abnormality of the monitoring item required by the user by the notification method according to the importance felt by the user. As a result, the panel computer 1 can always operate normally without system down more than the above frequency.

Incidentally, if the panel computer 1 undesirably repeatedly shuts down the system even if the user adjusts the monitoring parameters, the user consults with the administrator, and the administrator grasps the situation of the panel computer 1. Then, countermeasures are taken so that the abnormality does not frequently occur (S9). Specifically, the administrator status display unit 22 operates when operated by an administrator, such as a company that installs the panel computer 1, and displays a more detailed display than the user status display unit 21. That is, for example, as shown in FIG. 12, the numerical value itself of each monitoring item is displayed. Note that FIG.
Then, for convenience of explanation, S9 is arranged after S4,
The administrator can grasp the status of the panel computer 1 at an arbitrary time, for example, in response to a request from the user, or at predetermined intervals.

In this display example, for example, +3.3 [V]
Supply is not limited to the occurrence of abnormalities shown in the "Status" column, but also +3.51 as shown in the "Value" column.
It is displayed that [V] is supplied. In addition,
In this display example, the "Limit Up Value" field and "Limi
As shown in the column of "t Down Value", the upper limit value and the lower limit value of the monitoring item are also displayed. Similarly, +5 [V]
Is supplied, the voltage actually supplied is 5.
27 [V], the upper limit of 5.30 [V] to the lower limit of 4.7
It is within the range up to 0 [V], indicating that it is normal.

Further, in the present embodiment, the data indicating each monitoring item is also stored in a non-volatile portion such as a hard disk or a flash ROM in the memory 11b. Each monitoring item can be displayed with reference to the data. Here, the data stored in the non-volatile portion is sequentially updated while the panel computer 1 is operating normally, but when the panel computer 1 is restarted after the panel computer 1 abnormally ends, the data is updated. The data stored in the non-volatile portion indicates each monitoring item at the time of occurrence of the abnormality. Further, the data stored in the non-volatile portion cannot be referenced and changed by the user, and the administrator can only reference and cannot change the data. Thereby, the status display unit 22 for the administrator can display the status even after the occurrence of the abnormality.
Each monitoring item at the time when an abnormality occurs in the panel computer 1 can be displayed, and the administrator can specify the cause of the abnormality. In the above description, the case of displaying the time of occurrence of an abnormality has been described as an example. However, if the storage capacity of the nonvolatile portion is increased, each monitoring item before and after the time of occurrence of the abnormality can be displayed.

Here, in general, when the administrator operates the panel computer 1, the cause of the abnormality is often eliminated. For example, if the system goes down due to overheating of the CPU 11a, the administrator
The temperature of the CPU 11a is reduced until the CPU is restarted. As a result, the administrator may not be able to identify the cause of the abnormality only by referring to the detected amount at the time of operation. In this case, the administrator cannot instruct the user to take an appropriate action, and not only may the system be frequently down, but also the panel computer 1 itself may be caused by the poor surrounding environment. If there is a software or hardware defect, the user may be misunderstood.

On the other hand, in the panel computer 1 according to the present embodiment, the data indicating each monitoring item at the time of occurrence of the abnormality is stored in the memory 11b, and the status display unit 22 for the administrator indicates that the abnormality has occurred. Even later, each monitoring item at the time of occurrence of the abnormality can be referred to. As a result, the administrator can accurately identify the cause of the abnormality.

In step S9, when the administrator grasps the status of the panel computer 1, the processes in and after step S2 are repeated. If necessary, the administrator adds, for example, monitoring items in the BIOS setup. And correct measures such as changing the range determined to be abnormal. In addition, users can be told that the surrounding environment is the cause,
The user can be instructed to take appropriate measures such as changing the installation location or adding a cooling device without causing the above-mentioned misunderstanding. As a result, the occurrence of system down can be reliably prevented.

The panel computer 1 according to the present embodiment is provided with a user status display unit 21 that can be operated by a user, in addition to the administrator status display unit 22 that can be operated only by the administrator. , Administrator status display section 2
2 may be operable by the user. However, the detection value of the monitoring block 13 often differs for each panel computer 1. However, when the user can refer to each detection value, the user may misunderstand that the variation is a cause of the abnormality although the variation of each detection value is within a normal range. Therefore, if both the display units 21 and 22 are provided as in the present embodiment, the detailed situation of the panel computer 1 such as the detected value itself can be hidden from the user, and the user's misunderstanding can be prevented.

Similarly, in this embodiment, the range in which each monitoring item is determined to be abnormal is also operated only by the administrator through the BIOS setup, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the user may be able to set the range. However, a slight change in the range may significantly affect the frequency of OS shutdown and the frequency of system down. Therefore, it is preferable that the range be operated only by an administrator who is familiar with the panel computer 1 itself and, for example, devices connected to the panel computer 1 such as control objects.

Further, in the present embodiment, the case where the monitoring block 13 monitors the temperature, the number of rotations of the cooling fan, the power supply voltage and the like has been described as an example, but the present invention is not limited to this. The monitoring item may be an item that directly causes the system down, such as the temperature of the CPU 11a or the power supply voltage, or an item that indirectly causes the system down, such as the internal average temperature of the panel computer 1 or the number of rotations of the fan. There may be. However, for the indirect items, the appropriate range when judging as abnormal is greatly different depending on the surrounding environment. Therefore, if the range is set uniformly, the operation time of the panel computer 1 may be significantly reduced. is there. Therefore, by setting a range or setting whether or not there is an abnormality process or notification in these monitoring items, the operating time of the panel computer 1 can be extended without changing the current surrounding environment much. Further, even if the number of monitoring items is increased, the operation time is not shortened, so that monitoring items that are a sign of a system down can be more reliably detected, and the system down can be avoided more reliably.

In the present embodiment, as an example of the notification method, an alarm output, a buzzer output, turning on of an alarm lamp,
Alternatively, display of a pop-up message has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, any notification method such as light, sound, and vibration may be used. Further, the sound and tone of light, the blinking period, the intermittent period, and the like may be combined. As long as the user can identify each of the notification methods, the same effects as in the present embodiment can be obtained regardless of which notification method is adopted.

In this embodiment, the temperature sensor 13
Although the case where the CPU 11a determines the detection value of the power monitoring sensor unit 13c is described as an example, the present invention is not limited to this. Of course, if the range of the abnormality can be changed, the same effect can be obtained even if each of the temperature sensor units 13a to 13c directly determines the abnormality. However, CPU
11a, without increasing the circuit scale, for example,
It can be determined by a more complicated method such as averaging.

Further, in the above description, the case where the panel computer 1 is used in the FA field has been mainly described.
It is not limited to this. For example, the panel computer 1 can be widely applied to a field where normal operation is required even in a bad surrounding environment such as a portable information terminal.

[0067]

According to the computer with a touch screen according to the first aspect of the present invention, as described above, while the computer with a touch screen is operating, whether the state of the computer with a touch screen is within a predetermined abnormal range. It is configured to include abnormality detection means for detecting whether or not the abnormality is detected, and range setting means for setting the abnormality range.

According to the above configuration, since the abnormality detecting means detects the presence or absence of an abnormality while the computer with a touch screen is operating, the computer with a touch screen is used in a poor surrounding environment. Also, it is possible to prevent the system from being down due to the surrounding environment. Further, since the range setting means can set the abnormal range, the abnormal range can be changed according to the current surrounding environment. As a result, there is an effect that the operation time of the computer with a touch screen can be extended without changing the current surrounding environment much.

As described above, in the computer with a touch screen according to the second aspect of the present invention, in the configuration of the first aspect of the present invention, the abnormality detecting means sets the state of the computer with a touch screen as the state of the computer with a touch screen. The configuration is such that at least one of the internal temperature and the number of rotations of the cooling fan is detected.

According to the above configuration, even when the appropriate abnormal range varies depending on the surrounding environment, such as the internal temperature and the number of revolutions, the abnormal range can be adjusted by the range setting means. As a result, there is an effect that the operating time of the computer with a touch screen can be extended without changing the current surrounding environment so much as compared with the case where the abnormal range cannot be changed with these monitoring items.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, as described above, in the configuration of the first or second aspect of the present invention, the state of the computer with a touch screen at the time when the abnormality detecting means determines that there is an abnormality. Is provided.

According to the above configuration, the state of the computer with a touch screen at the time when the abnormality detecting means determines that an abnormality has occurred is accumulated. The state at the time can be grasped, and the cause of the abnormality can be specified. As a result, there is an effect that the abnormal range can be more appropriately adjusted according to the periodic environment, and the operating time of the computer with a touch screen can be extended.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 illustrates one embodiment of the present invention, and is a block diagram illustrating a main configuration of a panel computer.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an overall image of the panel computer.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation and operation of the panel computer.

FIG. 4 is a view showing a display example of the panel computer and showing a BIOS setup screen operated by an administrator.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a display example of the panel computer, and showing a setting screen of monitoring parameters relating to temperature.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a display example of the panel computer, and showing a setting screen of monitoring parameters relating to a watchdog timer.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a display example of the panel computer, and is a diagram illustrating a setting screen of monitoring parameters related to a cooling fan.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing a display example of the panel computer and showing a setting screen of monitoring parameters relating to a power supply voltage.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a display example of the panel computer, and is an explanatory diagram showing a monitor parameter setting screen regarding universal input.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing a display example of the panel computer, and showing a setting screen of a monitoring parameter relating to an external remote reset input.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing a display example of the panel computer and showing a system monitor screen referred to by a user.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a display example of the panel computer and showing a system monitor screen referred to by an administrator.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Panel computer (computer with a touch screen) 11b Memory (accumulation means) 12a Watchdog timer (error detection means) 13 Monitoring block (error detection means) 23 Setting part (range setting means)

Claims (3)

[Claims] An abnormality detecting means for detecting whether a state of a computer with a touch screen is in a predetermined abnormal range while the computer with a touch screen is operating, and a range setting for setting the abnormal range Computer with a touch screen. 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the abnormality detecting means detects at least one of an internal temperature of the computer with a touch screen and a rotation speed of a cooling fan as the state of the computer with a touch screen. 2. The computer with a touch screen according to 1. 3. The computer with a touch screen according to claim 1, further comprising storage means for storing the state of the computer with a touch screen at the time when the abnormality detection means determines that there is an abnormality.