JP2001175278A - Control device having display means - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [PROBLEMS] To provide a control device having a display means capable of changing a language displayed on a display means to a predetermined language mode by recognizing an operator's voice. SOLUTION: Display means 104 capable of displaying in a predetermined language.
Function means 49, which operate based on different control information related to a specific area other than the language displayed on the display means 104,
207, 205 and voice recognition means 110, 112, 11
3, a language determining unit 113 that determines a language corresponding to the voice recognized by the voice recognizing units 110, 112, 113 based on the recognition results of the voice recognizing units 110, 112, 113, and a language determining unit 113. Control means 101 for displaying information to be displayed on the display means 104 in the displayed language, and controlling the function means 49, 207, 205 based on different control information relating to a specific area other than the language displayed on the display means 104. , 102.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a control device having a display means, and more specifically, a language displayed on a display means can be changed to a predetermined language mode by recognizing an operator's voice. And a control device having display means.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An area where an image forming apparatus is installed (hereinafter referred to as an area)
Depending on the power supply specifications, scaling specifications, copy number counting method, language, etc., it is necessary to make settings on the hardware or software in accordance with the respective destinations. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.
In JP-A-2-23065, a destination is specified by switching a selection switch such as a dip switch externally attached to a control unit, and a copy mode such as an auto clear mode or a power saving mode is re-set at the time of shipment to the destination. The setting is not required to simplify the work.

[0003] Also, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-50209 discloses that
A power supply identification code is provided on a power supply device incorporated in the image forming apparatus, and an operation mode identification for specifying one of operation modes such as a fixed magnification and a count method is provided on an operation panel incorporated in the image formation apparatus in the same manner as the power supply apparatus. A technique is disclosed in which a code is provided so that a control unit of the image forming apparatus main body controls an AC load based on a power supply identification code and controls a fixed magnification and a count method based on an operation mode identification code.

[0004] In this manner, the destination information can be specified by the combination of the power supply identification code of the power supply device and the operation mode identification code of the operation panel. Therefore, the type of the operation panel is limited to the type corresponding to the destination. The number of operation panels and power supply units can be reduced compared to the case of preparing, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.Or, compared with the case where a dedicated dip switch and ROM are separately added to determine the destination, Cost can be reduced.

Further, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1-170955 discloses that
Of a plurality of paper size systems including an inch system and a millimeter system, a table of a main paper size system mainly used by a user and a table of a paper size system other than the main paper size system are stored in storage means, In response to the operation of the key for selecting each paper size system, multiple paper size systems are used by using the operated paper size system table to control paper selection and magnification selection. It is disclosed that the usability is improved even in an environment where the operation is performed.

[0006]

However, various problems arise depending on the environment in which the image forming apparatus is used and the sales strategy of the image forming apparatus.

As a first problem, JP-A-1-1709
As described in the problem of Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 55-55, in an environment where people of many nationalities work in the same office and papers of different sizes are mixed and used, that is, different specific papers are used. In an environment where many people who understand a language use the same image forming apparatus by arbitrarily using paper of different sizes, a display mode of a language displayed on an operation panel (hereinafter, referred to as a language display mode). It is necessary that the sheet size series and the counting method of the used sheet number counter can be set independently of each other.

Although the language display mode of the operation panel that is easy for the user to use is still a language that the user can understand, even if the user changes the language display mode in accordance with the language that he or she understands, This is because it is necessary that sheets of different sizes can be arbitrarily selected. In addition, if the counting method of the sheet counter is changed according to the different size system, it becomes complicated in terms of management, so it is necessary to use a specific counting method even if the paper size system is different. Because there is. In addition, the fixed magnification series must be switched according to the paper size series.

As a second problem, when the image forming apparatus is moved from one area or country to another area or country,
Even if the power source specifications are the same at the source and destination, there is a problem that the languages are different. For example, the power supply specification in Europe is unified to 230V / 50Hz,
In such a case, even if the image forming apparatus is moved to another country having a different language, if the language display mode of the operation panel is the language of the movement source, it becomes very difficult to use.

Further, the third problem is as follows. In order to reduce the management cost included in the product price and sell it to users at a lower price by reducing the inventory held by dealers etc. as much as possible and making product management more efficient, one unit The purpose of the present invention is to make it possible to correspond to as many destinations as possible without limiting the destination of the image forming apparatus to one. More preferably, the destination is not limited to the destination when selling or installing. It is desirable to be able to make settings corresponding to the above, but there is a problem how to deal with this.

In this case, the destination where the image forming apparatus is installed is unknown at the time of manufacturing at the factory.
It is necessary to perform a performance check corresponding to a conceivable destination at the time of adjustment of the image forming apparatus at the time of manufacture and performance check such as image quality. In this case, there are the following problems.

When making adjustments while looking at the operation panel, the rate of erroneous adjustments is reduced when the language of the operation panel is the language of the coordinator, but if the object of adjustment cannot be changed according to the destination, And the performance check must be able to be performed for all destinations. Examples of adjustments and performance checks to be performed corresponding to such destinations include the following.

In order to convey the paper in synchronization with the image formed on the photoreceptor, an alignment roller is used. Is bent so that the leading end of the sheet abuts against the nip of the alignment roller. At this time, the amount of bending of the sheet needs to be changed according to the type of sheet (actually, the stiffness of the sheet). At this time, adjustments and checks for each type of paper are performed not only at the same magnification but also at the time of variable magnification.
Different size papers and fixed magnification systems corresponding to those size systems are used. If the coordinator uses Japanese as his native language, the screen of the operation panel is displayed in Japanese, but the paper size system and the fixed magnification system are made corresponding to all destinations.

To solve the above-mentioned problems, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No.
In the technique described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2-236065, it is necessary to operate a dip switch for selecting a destination externally attached to the control unit. Therefore, when setting a destination, the exterior must be opened and closed or attached and detached. However, it takes a long time to set the destination, and is very difficult to use in an environment where the language mode of the operation panel and the paper size system are frequently switched as described in the first problem. Becomes

Further, in the technology described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Sho 62-23065, there is no description in the publication of how to set the language mode of the operation panel. Since the individual setting values of a plurality of copy modes are selected so that only a specific combination determined in advance is selected, the language mode of the operation panel and the paper size system are set based on this configuration. If the setting is applied, the language mode of the operation panel and the paper size system cannot be switched independently of each other, and the functions originally provided in the image forming apparatus cannot be efficiently used. There is no solution on the point. For the same reason, there is no solution for the third problem.

In the technique described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-50209, both the power supply device and the operation panel are fixedly provided with a power supply identification code and an operation mode identification code corresponding to a specific destination. JP-A-62-2
Similarly to the technique described in Japanese Patent No. 236065, when a large number of people who understand different languages use the same image forming apparatus arbitrarily using papers of different sizes, a fixed magnification and a counting method are used. Since only one operation mode can be used, it is inconvenient when sheets of different sizes are used together. Also, there is no solution for the second problem. For the same reason, there is no solution for the third problem.

In Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1-170955, the paper size system is simply divided into a mainly used paper size system and another paper size system, which are separately called and used. It does not solve the problem.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a display means capable of specifying the language of the user of the apparatus at the present time and displaying the contents to be displayed in the specified display language of the operation panel. To provide a control device having the same.

[0019]

In a control device having display means according to the present invention, a display means capable of displaying information related to the operation of the apparatus in a predetermined language, and a language other than the language displayed by the display means A function unit that operates based on different control information related to a specific area; a voice recognition unit; and a language corresponding to the voice recognized by the voice recognition unit based on a recognition result of the voice recognition unit. Language determination means, and information to be displayed on the display means in the language determined by the language determination means, and different control information relating to a specific area other than the language in which the function means is displayed on the display means. And control means for performing control based on the

According to the above configuration, by performing voice recognition,
It is possible to specify the language of the user of the apparatus at the present time and display the content to be displayed by setting the display language of the operation panel to the specified display language.

For example, in an environment where people of many nationalities work in the same office and different sizes of paper are mixed and used, a power supply device compatible with both 100V and 200V power supply specifications Is installed, when the image forming apparatus is moved to an area where the specifications of commercial power supply are different, in the case of performance check at the time of production at a factory, etc.
In a control device having a display means such as an image forming apparatus,
The information displayed on the display means can be displayed in different languages according to the situation where the apparatus is placed, so that the convenience is high.

Preferably, in the above invention, the determination means determines a language corresponding to a specific voice recognized by the voice recognition means.

According to this configuration, the amount of reference data required for the determining means to determine which language the voice recognized by the voice recognizing means uses is small, so that the maximum storage capacity of the storage means is reduced. And use the storage capacity for other purposes.

Preferably, in the above invention, the specific voice is a voice related to a greeting or a voice related to a function of a control device.

With this configuration, it is possible to increase the probability of specifying a language used by a person who uses the control device from various sounds around the control device, thereby improving simplicity of operation.

Preferably, in the above invention, the voice recognition means further recognizes a voice strength, and the determination means determines a language based on the voice strength recognized by the voice recognition means. It is characterized by the following.

With this configuration, the language of the person using the control device is determined based on the strong voice, so that the probability of specifying the language used by the person using the control device can be increased, and the operation can be simplified. The performance is improved.

Preferably, in the above invention, the voice recognition means further measures a distance between the source of the voice and the device, and the determination means determines a distance of the closest distance measured by the voice recognition means. The language is determined correspondingly.

According to this configuration, the language of the person who uses the control device is determined based on the sound closest to the control device. Therefore, the language of the actual user is more likely to be higher than in other cases. Can be determined, and the simplicity of the operation is further improved.

Preferably, in the above invention, when the language cannot be specified, a specific language is displayed on the display means so as to be selectable from a preset language list.

With this configuration, the operability of the apparatus is improved even when the language cannot be specified. In the above invention, preferably, when the language cannot be specified, the language is displayed in a main language from a preset language list, and the display in another language can be selected with a key. This configuration facilitates selection even when the language cannot be specified.

[0032]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, a control device having display means according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
This will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 1 shows a cross section of a main part of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. This image forming apparatus is a digital copying machine 30, and this digital copying machine 3
The main body is roughly composed of a scanner unit 31 and a laser recording unit 32.

The scanner unit 31 includes a document table 35 made of transparent glass, and a double-sided automatic document feeder (RAD) for automatically feeding and conveying the document onto the document table 35.
F) 36, and a document image reading unit for scanning and reading an image of a document placed on the document table 35, that is, a scanner unit 40.

The original image read by the scanner unit 31 is sent as image data to an image data input unit, which will be described later, and the image data is subjected to predetermined image processing.

In the RADF 36, a plurality of documents are set at once on a document tray (not shown) provided, and the set documents are automatically fed one by one onto a document table of the scanner unit. It is a device to send. Also RA
The DF 36 allows the scanner unit to read one or both sides of the document according to the operator's selection.
It comprises a transport path for one-sided originals, a transport path for double-sided originals, a transport path switching unit, a group of sensors for grasping and managing the state of the originals passing through each unit, a control unit, and the like. Since many applications and commercializations have been made on the RADF 36, further description is omitted.

A scanner unit 40 constituting a scanner section 31 for reading an image of a document on the document table 35 includes a lamp reflector assembly 41 for exposing the surface of the document and a photoelectric conversion element (not shown) for reflecting a reflected light image from the document. CC
A first scanning unit 40 equipped with a first reflection mirror 42a for reflecting light reflected from a document to be guided to D)
a, a second scanning unit 40b including second and third reflection mirrors 42b and 42c for guiding the reflected light image from the first reflection mirror unit 40a to a photoelectric conversion element (CCD), An optical lens 43 for forming a reflected light image on an element (CCD) that converts the reflected light image into an electric image signal via each of the above-mentioned reflection mirrors, and converts the reflected light image from the document into an electric image signal The above-described CCD element 44
Consists of

The scanner section 31 moves the scanner unit 40 along the lower surface of the document table 35 while sequentially placing the document to be read on the document table 35 by the related operation of the RADF 36 and the scanner unit 40. To read the original image.

In particular, the first scanning unit 40a travels from left to right along the document table at a constant speed V, and the second scanning unit 40b has the same speed V at a speed of V / 2. The scanning is controlled in parallel to the direction. This allows
The image of the document placed on the document placing table 35 is sequentially formed on the CCD element 44 line by line to read the image.

The image data obtained by reading the original image by the scanner unit 40 is sent to an image processing unit, which will be described later, and after being subjected to various processes, temporarily stored in the memory of the image processing unit and output instructions are output. , The image in the memory is read and transferred to the laser printer unit 32 to form an image on a recording sheet.

The laser printer section 32 includes a sheet conveying system as a recording material for forming an image, a laser writing unit 46, and an electrophotographic processing section 48 for forming an image.

The laser writing unit 46 is a semiconductor laser light source that emits a laser beam in accordance with image data read from the memory after reading by the above-described scanner unit 40 or image data transferred from an external device. It has a polygon mirror that deflects the laser beam at a constant angular speed, an f-θ lens that corrects the laser beam provided at a constant angular speed so that it is scanned at a constant speed on a photosensitive drum constituting the electrophotographic process unit 48, and the like. are doing.

The electrophotographic process unit 48 includes a charger, a developing device, a transfer device, a peeler, and the like around a known photosensitive drum.
A cleaning device and a static eliminator are provided.

On the other hand, the sheet transport system includes a transport section for transporting the sheet P to a transfer position where an electrophotographic process section for performing image formation, in particular, a transfer unit is disposed, and the sheet P to the transport section 33. Cassette feeding device 5 for feeding
1, 52, 53 or a manual feeder 54 for appropriately feeding a sheet of a required size; a fixing unit 49 for fixing an image formed on the sheet P after transfer, particularly a toner image; And a re-supply path 55 for re-supplying the sheet P in order to form an image again on the back surface of the sheet P.

On the downstream side of the fixing device 49, a post-processing device that receives a sheet P on which an image is recorded and performs a predetermined process on the sheet P is arranged. In the laser writing unit 46 and the electrophotographic processing unit 47, the image data read from the image memory is formed as an electrostatic latent image on the surface of the photosensitive drum 48 by scanning the laser beam by the laser writing unit 46. The toner image visualized by the toner is electrostatically transferred and fixed onto the surface of the sheet conveyed from any of the sheet feeding units of the multi-stage sheet feeding unit.

The sheet on which the image has been formed in this way is fed from the fixing device 49 via the paper discharge roller 57 to the post-processing device 34.
It is conveyed inside.

FIGS. 2 to 4 show the digital copier 30 of FIG.
FIG. 1 is an overall block configuration diagram of various unit units, an image processing unit, and the like, which constitute a sub-central processing unit (CPU) 401 mounted at each unit by a main central processing unit (CPU) 401 located substantially at the center. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a state in which operation management is performed while cooperating with the CPU.

As can be seen from this block diagram, the operation panel board 100 for managing and controlling the operation panel located on the right side of FIG. 2 and the units constituting the digital copier 30 located on the left side of FIG. A machine control board 200 for controlling, a CCD board 300 for electrically reading a document image located on the left side of FIG. 4 and using it as electronic data, and a document image digitized by the CCD board 300 located on the left side of FIG. A main image processing board 400 for performing predetermined image processing on the image data, a sub image processing board 500 for further performing predetermined image processing on the image information processed by the main image processing board 400, and FIG. Other extension boards connected via an interface to the sub-image processing board 500 located on the right side of the Group 600 (printer board, FAX
Board, function expansion board).

The contents managed and controlled for each board will be described below. <Operation Panel Board> The operation panel board 100 is basically controlled by a sub central processing unit (CPU) 101 serving as a control means, and has an LCD as a display means arranged on the operation panel 103.
It manages a display screen of the display unit 104, operation input from an operation key group 105 for inputting an instruction regarding various modes, and the like.

A memory 102 is provided for storing various control information on the operation panel such as data input from the operation key group 105 and information to be displayed on the LCD screen. Also, the number of sheets counter 120 may be double-counted for double the size (A3 size) of a certain size (for example, A4 size) or doubled for a single size (for example, A4 size) due to a difference in business policy. Or the same fee.

In this configuration, the sub central processing unit (CPU) 101 includes a main central processing unit (C).
PU) 401 to perform control data communication, and instruct the digital copier 30 to operate. Further, a control signal indicating the operation state of the digital copier 30 is transmitted from the main central processing unit 401 to the sub central processing unit (CPU) 10.
By transferring the information to “1”, an operation state is displayed to the operator through the LCD screen 104 of the operation panel 103 as to what state the apparatus is currently in.

The operation panel board 100 includes a microphone 110, an A / D converter 111, and a voice recognition unit 112 as voice recognition means, and a language determination unit 113 as language determination means.

<Machine Control Board> The entire machine control board 200 is controlled by a sub central processing unit 201 serving as control means.
An automatic document feeder 203 such as RADF, a scanner unit 204 for reading a document image, a process unit 205 for reproducing image information as an image, and a paper feed for sequentially transporting a sheet on which an image is recorded from a storage unit to the process unit A transport unit 206, a duplex unit 207 that reverses and transports the sheet on which the image is recorded so that an image is formed on both sides of the sheet, and performs post-processing such as stapling on the sheet on which the image is recorded It manages functional units such as the finisher 208.

Here, the processing unit 205 changes the output of the transfer unit disposed around the photosensitive drum (not shown) according to the thickness of the sheet. In addition, the sheet feeding / conveying unit 206 includes:
For example, control of abutment of the sheet against the alignment roller in the sheet feeding section, detection of jamming of the sheet in the sheet feeding path (the sheet is appropriately determined by the time calculated from the speed at which the sheet is conveyed in the conveying direction and the sheet length) To determine if it has been transported to
And so on. The duplex unit 207 controls the position where the paper regulating plate in the duplex unit aligns the paper according to the size series (mm or inch) of the paper used. The fixing device 49 includes a fixing lamp 49 and a temperature sensor 4.
9b, the toner image fixability differs depending on the destination when the paper thickness is different, but the destination (even in the same millimeter system, the paper thickness mainly used in Germany is mainly used in Japan The paper thickness is different if the paper thickness is different from the thickness of the paper to be printed) or the paper size system (the inch system is thicker than the millimeter system (some papers are as thick as the inch system even in the millimeter system)). Therefore, corresponding to these, the fixing device 4
9, the temperature of the fixing roller pair (not shown)
9B, the temperature of the fixing roller pair is controlled by turning on / off the switch of the AC power supply circuit 210.

<CCD Board> The CCD board 300 is
A CCD 301 for electrically reading a document image, and a circuit (CCD gate array) 3 for driving the CCD 301
02, an analog circuit 303 for adjusting the gain of analog data output from the CCD 301, a CCD 30
A / D converter 304 for converting the analog output of the first device into a digital signal and outputting it as electronic data, and the like.
Control management is performed by the main central processing unit 401.

<Main Image Processing Board> The main image processing board 400 is controlled by the main central processing unit 401, and based on the electronic data of the original image sent from the CCD board 300, the gradation of the image is controlled. Shading correction, density correction,
A multi-valued image processing unit 402 that performs processing in the state of multi-valued image data such as area separation, filter processing, MTF correction, resolution conversion, electronic zoom (magnification processing), and gamma correction; It is composed of a memory 403 for storing various control information such as management of processing procedures, a laser control 404 for controlling the transfer of data to the laser writing unit 46 for reproducing an image with the processed image information, and the like. You.

<Sub Image Processing Board> The sub image processing board 500 is connected to the main image processing board 400 via a connector, and is controlled by the main central processing unit 401 on the main image processing board 400. 501, a memory for storing and managing binary image information subjected to image processing or control information for processing, a gate array 502 for controlling the memory, and storing and managing a plurality of document image information, And a gate array 503 for controlling the hard disk, and an SCS as an external interface, for reading out the desired number of original images repeatedly to generate a plurality of copies
It comprises a gate array 504 for controlling I and SCSI.

The above-described binary image processing unit 501 includes a processing unit for converting multi-valued image information into a binary image, a processing unit for rotating the image, and a binary scaling unit for performing a scaling process on the binary image. (Zoom) processing unit and the like, and further provided with a fax interface so that fax images can be transmitted and received via communication means.

<Extension Board> The extension board 600 has a printer board 601 for enabling data sent from a personal computer or the like to be output from the printer section of the digital copying machine in a printer mode, and an editing function of the digital copying machine. A function expansion board 602 for expanding and effectively utilizing the features of the digital copying machine, transmitting a document image read from a scanner unit of the digital copying machine to a destination, and transmitting image information sent from the destination. There is a facsimile board 603 that enables output from a printer unit of a digital copying machine.

The processing of image data in copy, facsimile, and printer modes and the flow of image data as an image processing apparatus of a digital copying machine will be described in further detail below.

<Copy Mode> R of Digital Copier 30
Documents set at predetermined positions of the ADF 36 are sequentially supplied one by one onto a document table 35 of the scanner unit 40, and images of the documents are scanned by the scanner unit 4 described above.
The data is sequentially read by the configuration of 0, and transferred to the main image processing board 400 as 8-bit electronic data.

The 8-bit electronic data transferred to the main image processing board 400 is subjected to predetermined processing on the multi-value image processing section 402 as 8-bit electronic image data.
Then, processing such as gamma correction is performed on the 8-bit electronic image data and sent to the laser writing unit 46 via the laser control unit 404.

The original image read by the scanner unit 31 of the digital copying machine 30 is
2 is output as a toned copy image.

<Electronic RHD Function in Copy Mode>
Documents set at a predetermined position of the RADF 36 of the digital copier 30 are sequentially supplied one by one onto a document mounting table 35 of the scanner unit 40, and images of the documents are sequentially supplied by the configuration of the scanner unit 40 described above. It is read and transferred to the main image processing board 400 as 8-bit electronic data.

The 8-bit electronic data transferred to the main image processing board 400 is subjected to predetermined processing on the multi-value image processing section 402 as 8-bit electronic image data.
The 8-bit electronic image data is then sent from the connector 405 on the main image processing board 400 to the sub-image processing board 500 via the connector 505 on the sub-image processing board 500, and the binary image processing unit In the multi-value binary conversion unit 501, along with processing such as error diffusion,
Bit electronic image data is converted into 2-bit electronic image data.

The reason that 8-bit electronic image data is converted into 2-bit electronic image data including processing such as error diffusion is that there is a problem in image quality if only multi-valued binary conversion is performed. Therefore, care is taken to reduce the deterioration of image quality.

The reason why the 8-bit electronic image data is converted to the 2-bit electronic image data is that the storage capacity of the image is taken into consideration.

The 2-bit electronic image data converted in this way is transferred to a gate array 503 for controlling a hard disk or the like for each document and temporarily stored and managed.

When all the originals set on the RADF 36 of the digital copying machine 30 have been read, the 2-bit electronic image data temporarily stored in the hard disk 503 is temporarily copied by the number of copies specified by the gate array control. , And the read 2-bit electronic image data is re-connected to the connector connecting portions 405 and 50 again.
5, and is sent to the main image processing board 400 to perform processing such as gamma correction.
To the laser writing unit 46 via.

It has been described that the image group is repeatedly read out by the desired number of copies after all the original group images are read. However, the image output of the first copy is performed when a predetermined number of images are prepared. It is also possible to configure to output sequentially.

The original image read by the scanner unit 31 of the digital copying machine 30 is
2 is output as a toned copy image.

<Printer Mode> An image sent from a network-connected external device such as a personal computer is developed on the printer board 601 as a page-by-page image on the board 601 and then temporarily transmitted from the SCSI 504 as an interface. The data is transferred to the sub-image processing board 500 and stored in a memory such as the hard disk 503.

The image developed as a page image on the printer board 601 is
Although the page image is sent to the side, the page image is not subjected to the binary image processing and is only temporarily stored in the hard disk 503.

Also, when the stored page image is read from the hard disk 503, the binary image processing is not performed on the page image. The image information temporarily stored in the hard disk 503 is sent to the main image processing board 400 while being read from the hard disk 503 so as to be in a predetermined page order, and is subjected to gamma correction. The writing of the image is controlled so as to reproduce.

<Fax Mode> The fax mode includes a process for transmitting a document to a destination and a process for receiving a document from the destination.

First, the transmission of the original to the other party will be described. The transmitted original set at a predetermined position of the RADF 36 of the digital copying machine 30 is sequentially supplied one by one onto the original mounting table 35 of the scanner unit 40. The image of the transmission original is sequentially read by the configuration of the scanner unit 40 described above, and is transferred to the main image processing board 400 as 8-bit electronic data.

The 8-bit electronic data transferred to the main image processing board 400 is subjected to predetermined processing on the multi-value image processing section 402 as 8-bit electronic image data.
The 8-bit electronic image data is then sent from the connector 405 on the main image processing board 400 to the sub-image processing board 500 via the connector 505 on the sub-image processing board 500, and the binary image processing unit In the multi-value binary conversion unit 501, along with processing such as error diffusion,
Bit electronic image data is converted into 2-bit electronic image data.

The reason that 8-bit electronic image data is converted into 2-bit electronic image data including processing such as error diffusion is that there is a problem in image quality if only multi-level binary conversion is performed. Therefore, care is taken to reduce the deterioration of image quality.

The transmission document converted into a binary image in this manner is compressed in a predetermined format and stored in the memory 502.

When the transmission procedure with the destination is performed and transmission is enabled, the transmission original image compressed in a predetermined format read from the memory 502 is transferred to the fax board 603 side. Fax board 6
After performing necessary processing such as changing the compression format on the communication device 03, the data is sequentially transmitted to the other party via the communication line.

Next, processing of a document image transmitted from a destination will be described. When the original is transmitted from the other party via the communication line, the original image transmitted from the other party is received while performing the communication procedure on the fax board 603, and the received image is compressed in a predetermined format. The image is sent from the fax interface provided in the binary image processing unit 501 of the sub-image processing board 500 to the binary image processing unit 501, and reproduces the original image transmitted as a page image by the compression / decompression processing unit. I do.

The original image reproduced as a page-by-page image is transferred to the main image processing board 400 to perform gamma correction, and the laser control 404 controls the writing of the image so that the LSU 46 reproduces the image. You.

[0083]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An example in which the present invention is applied to an image forming apparatus which is a kind of a control device having a display means such as an operation panel will be described below.

The image forming apparatus to which the present invention is applied is configured so that various settings relating to the destination can be made by recognizing the voice. First, the speech recognition method and the settings relating to the destination will be described. I do.

First, as a method of recognizing voice, if voice recognition is performed corresponding to every word, the number of recognition reference patterns for voice recognition becomes enormous. Are prepared, and speech recognition is performed only for specific words corresponding to these recognition reference patterns.

FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 are lists of words to be recognized based on the language of each country. Recognition of greetings used in each country and voice related to the function of the device, switching of the display language of the operation panel, and unique functions adapted to the destination of each country at initial power-on,
The operation is automatically set.

It is also possible for the (key) operator to select a plurality of words to be recognized which are initially registered in the apparatus and to limit them (see FIG. 16).
(Key) The operator also has a function of independently registering a specific word.

In order to prevent erroneous recognition of distance, strength, noise around the device, etc. from voice, when voice recognition is performed,
Requires key input from the operation panel.

Next, a description will be given of the method of voice recognition and the setting related to the destination. FIG. 7 is a list of items having different display, function, and operation settings at destinations in each country. There are items that are automatically set by voice recognition when the device is installed after factory shipment, and items that are automatically set by voice recognition when the device is normally used. For the former, all items are automatically set by voice, and for the latter, only the display language of the operation panel, which is the operation interface between the apparatus and the operator, is automatically switched.

As can be seen from FIG. 7, even once the setting is confirmed, it can be changed by an operation by a (key) operator or by a special operation (serviceman simulation). The settings for each item are shown below.

Paper Handling Settings Paper feed control method when paper runs out, paper tray switching control method, automatic tray selection control method from size detection, paper feed control method for different paper types, manual paper feed control method, Settings such as a paper feed tray control method specific to output data, and how to handle data to be output from which paper feed tray are made.

Energy saving mode setting There are several modes according to the regulations and the like in each country, and the control method for them is set.

Setting of various timers The time setting for the mode in the previous item, the return time to each mode in the MFP, and the like are set.

Copy / Printer Counter Setting A count-up control method for each paper size is set.

Operation panel display language setting This is an operation interface part directly with the operator, and serves as a means for transmitting various messages to the operator. The following languages are set.

<1> Japanese, <2> English, <3> German, <4> French, <5> Italian, <6> Spanish, <7> Dutch, <8> Swedish, paper Size display setting Since the paper size detection for A4 size, letter size, etc. does not linearly detect all the papers in the world, it is controlled to be the paper display setting that is standard used in the country. I have. In some regions, there are special paper sizes, and the size can be individually set.

Magnification specification A fixed magnification value at the time of enlargement / reduction copy between fixed sizes is set in conjunction with the above setting. Also,
(Key) A fixed magnification value can be newly registered and customized by the operator.

Paper Type Setting There is a paper type notation example as shown in FIG. 8, which is set for each destination.

Power Supply Specifications When a power supply unit corresponding to the power supply voltage of each country (destination) is provided, the power supply unit is provided with a 100 V system or a 200 V system, and the frequency is free. In some cases, a voltage and frequency-free power supply unit that is shared worldwide is equipped.

Next, specific operation control will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 9 shows a flow of setting a destination by voice recognition at the time of initial power-on after shipment from a factory for a serviceman at the time of installation of the apparatus.

When the initial power is turned on, initial settings (such as setting the home position of each sensor) are performed, and a screen for waiting for voice input is displayed. At this time, since the destination is not determined, even if the message is sent in a specific language, it is considered that the message is not transmitted correctly. Therefore, as shown in FIG. To

When a voice is input, it is determined whether or not the input voice can be determined as the destination. If possible, the destination is determined. If not, the voice input waiting screen is displayed again. . However, if the destination cannot be determined even after performing three voice inputs, or if there is no voice input for a certain period of time, a screen for manually selecting the destination (see FIG. 11) is displayed, and the destination is set. Can be set.

Next, in the destination determined (selected), Yes
Or No, a message is displayed on the screen (see FIG. 12) for confirming whether the language is determined (selected). here,
Confirmation and selection can be made either by key input from the operation panel or by voice input (not limited to the language of the home country) shown in FIGS. The device is set up using the language display, operation, and function of the operation panel that matches the determined destination.

FIG. 13 shows a flow for switching the language display of the operation panel by voice recognition in a device which has been set up after the initial power is turned on and has already been set up for a general ordinary operator.

In order to prevent erroneous recognition of the sound around the microphone to be input by voice, the operator waits for voice input after key input by the operator from the operation panel before voice input. If there is a voice recognition key input from the operation panel and a voice is input, it is determined whether the input voice can be determined as the destination. If possible, the destination is determined. Again, the screen for voice input is displayed. However, if the destination cannot be determined even after performing three voice inputs, or if there is no voice input for a certain period of time, a screen for manually selecting the destination (see FIG. 11) is displayed, and the destination is set. Can be set.

Next, at the destination determined (selected), Yes
Or No, a message is displayed on the screen (see FIG. 12) for confirming whether the language is determined (selected). here,
Confirmation and selection can be made either by key input from the operation panel or by voice input (not limited to the language of the home country) shown in FIGS.

Only the language display on the operation panel that is suitable for the determined destination is switched. FIG.
(Key) Shows a flow when the operator newly registers a specific word. (Key) When a voice registration for voice recognition is selected from a screen that can be operated only by an operator (a password must be input), a screen for selecting a destination display language to be switched to with a voice to be registered (see FIG. 17). ) Is displayed. When selected, a message for starting voice registration is displayed, and voice input is waited. When a voice is input and registered by the operator, a message is displayed asking whether to continue registration, and registration can be repeated. However, if there is no voice input for a fixed time during voice input, a registration end message is displayed.

FIG. 15 shows a simple block diaphragm. The voice data input from the voice input unit is transmitted to the voice recognition unit and compared with the data of the voice registration unit storing the voice data to be compared, and the result is transmitted to the control unit. The control unit reflects the destination language display on the operation panel from the results. At the time of initial power-on after shipment from the factory, the control unit refers to the data of the operation / function registration unit to perform individual setup such as the operation and function of the device at each destination.

As described above, in the present embodiment, since the display language mode can be changed separately from the other destination settings by detecting the voice, the power supply specification, the number of sheets, etc., corresponding to the installation location of the apparatus are set. The display language of the operation panel can be easily changed while the setting is fixedly set according to the installation location, and the operation performance of the digital copying machine can be improved. In the above-described embodiment, a case of a digital copying machine is described as an application example of the present invention. However, the present invention is not limited to a digital copying machine, and equivalent functions such as a normal copying machine and a facsimile machine are provided. It is possible to apply to the device which has.

Therefore, the above-described embodiment is illustrative in all aspects and is not restrictive. The technical scope of the present invention is defined by the terms of the claims, rather than the description above, and includes all modifications within the scope and meaning equivalent to the terms of the claims.

[0111]

According to the control device having the display means according to the present invention, the language of the user of the device at the present time is specified by voice recognition, and the display language of the operation panel is set to the specified display language. To display the contents to be displayed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a main part of an image forming apparatus of a digital copying machine according to an embodiment based on the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a first block diagram illustrating various units and an image processing unit included in the digital copying machine shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a second block configuration diagram of various units and an image processing unit included in the digital copying machine of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a third block diagram illustrating various units and an image processing unit included in the digital copying machine of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a first diagram showing a voice recognition voice phrase.

FIG. 6 is a second diagram showing a voice recognition voice phrase.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing different operations and functions depending on the destination.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a notation example of a paper type.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart when power is turned on immediately after shipment.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of an operation panel.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a destination manual selection screen.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a determination (selection) destination confirmation screen.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart in an idle state after power is turned on.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing voice registration for voice recognition.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram in which audio data input from an audio input unit is transmitted to a control unit.

FIG. 16 is a diagram showing a recognition voice phrase selection screen.

FIG. 17 is a diagram showing a destination language display switching selection screen.

[Explanation of symbols]

Reference Signs List 30 digital copier, 31 scanner unit, 32 laser recording unit, 33 transport unit, 34 post-processing device, 35 document table, 36 double-sided automatic document feeder (RAD
F), 40 scanner unit, 40a first scanning unit, 40b second scanning unit, 41 lamp reflector assembly, 42a first reflection mirror, 42
b, 42c second and third reflection mirrors, 43 optical lenses,
44 CCD element, 46 laser writing unit, 4
7 Electrophotographic process unit, 48 Photoconductor drum, 49
Fixing device, 49a Fixing lamp, 49b Temperature sensor, 5
1, 52, 53 Cassette paper feeder, 54 Manual feeder, 55 Resupply path, 57 Discharge roller, 100
Operation panel board, 101 central processing unit (CPU), 102 memory, 103 operation panel,
104 LCD display unit, 105 operation key group, 110
Microphone, 111 A / D conversion unit, 112 voice recognition unit,
113 language judgment unit, 120 number counter, 200
Machine control board, 201 central processing unit, 203 automatic document feeder, 204 scanner unit, 205 process unit, 206 paper feed unit, 20
7 Double-sided unit, 208 Finisher, 300 C
CD board, 301 CCD, 302 circuit (CCD gate array), 303 analog circuit, 304 A / D
Converter, 400 main image processing board, 401 central processing unit (CPU), 402 multi-value image processing unit, 4
03 memory, 404 laser control, 405,
505 connector, 500 sub-image processing board, 50
1 Binary image processing unit, 502, 503, 504 gate array, 600 expansion board group, 601 printer board, 602 function expansion board, 603 facsimile board.

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) G10L 3/00 551Z

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. Display means capable of displaying information related to the operation of the apparatus in a predetermined language, and functional means operating based on different control information related to a specific area other than the language displayed on the display means. Speech recognition means, language determination means for determining a language corresponding to the voice recognized by the voice recognition means based on the recognition result of the voice recognition means, and the display in the language determined by the language determination means A control means for displaying information to be displayed on the means, and controlling the function means based on different control information related to a specific area other than the language displayed on the display means,
A control device having display means. 2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the determination unit determines a language corresponding to a specific voice recognized by the voice recognition unit. 3. The control device according to claim 2, wherein the specific voice is a voice related to a greeting or a voice related to a function of the control device. 4. The voice recognition unit further recognizes a voice strength, and the determination unit determines a language based on the voice strength recognized by the voice recognition unit. A control device comprising the display unit according to claim 1. 5. The voice recognition unit further measures a distance between a source of the voice and the apparatus, and the determination unit determines a language corresponding to a voice of a closest distance measured by the voice recognition unit. A control device having a display unit according to claim 1, wherein 6. The display unit according to claim 1, wherein when the word cannot be specified, a specific language is displayed on the display unit so as to be selectable from a preset language list. Control device. 7. The method according to claim 1, wherein when a language cannot be specified, a main language is displayed from a preset language list, and display in another language can be selected by a key. A control device having the display means described in the above.