JP2002084384A - Facsimile machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a facsimile machine that can be kept in power-saving state by appropriately setting modes. SOLUTION: When the facsimile machine is set in copy mode (Yes in S7041) or a received image is printed in FAX mode (No in S7041 and Yes in S7043), the temperature of a fixing roller is controlled to fixing enabling temperature (S7042). In the other cases, a fixing roller heater is off (S7044).

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a facsimile apparatus, and more particularly to a facsimile apparatus capable of saving power according to an operation mode.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a facsimile apparatus, when there is no operator at night, a so-called collective night process is performed in which a certain time zone is designated and memory reception is performed during that time.

[0003] This is because if data is received and output when no operator is present at night, paper jams and running out of paper may occur, and keeping the apparatus in a printable state at all times is a power saving measure. This is because it is not preferable.

[0004]

Recently, a facsimile apparatus using electrophotographic plain paper has appeared, but a large amount of electric power is required to maintain a state in which output is possible immediately during standby. .

An object of the present invention is to provide a facsimile apparatus capable of realizing power saving in accordance with an operation mode.

[0006]

According to the present invention, there is provided a facsimile apparatus for recording an image based on data received through communication using an electrophotographic process, comprising: a facsimile mode capable of outputting a received image with a delay; Mode setting means for setting any one of the copy modes for immediately outputting the image data, and control means for controlling the fixing system so that the control condition of the fixing system when the apparatus is not performing printing is changed according to the set mode. Including.

Preferably, the facsimile apparatus further includes priority mode selection means for selecting which of the facsimile mode and the copy mode has priority.

(Function) In the facsimile apparatus according to the present invention, power is saved by appropriately setting the control conditions of the fixing system when the apparatus is not printing according to the setting state of the facsimile mode and the copy mode. Will be possible.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration of a facsimile apparatus having a digital copying function to which the present invention is applied, FIG. 26 is a perspective view of a digital copying machine viewed from obliquely above, and FIG. It is a schematic diagram.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 26, a facsimile apparatus having a digital copying function includes a scanning system 10, an image signal processing unit 20, a print processing unit 40, an optical system 60, and an image forming system 7.
0, an operation panel 300, a document transport section 500, and a re-feed section 600.

First, the scanning system will be described. Scanning system 10
Scans the original placed on the platen glass 18 by exposure and scanning.
It has the function of taking out the reflected light therefrom as an electric signal by the photoelectric conversion element. Conversion into an electric signal is performed for a specific color and other colors by two photoelectric conversion elements.

The scanning system 10 includes an exposure lamp 11 for irradiating a document, a mirror 12 for changing the optical path of light reflected from the document,
13, a lens 14 for condensing reflected light, a half mirror 15 for guiding light to two photoelectric conversion elements for color discrimination,
Photoelectric conversion element 1 that generates an electric signal according to received light
6,17. The scanner 19 moves in parallel with the platen glass, and performs exposure scanning of the document when moving in the direction of the arrow in the figure.

The image signal processing unit 20 processes the image signals output from the two photoelectric conversion elements 16 and 17 to discriminate between a specific color and a color other than the specific color, and sends it to the printing unit 40 as image data with color information. Output. Hereinafter, a document including two colors, black and red, will be described as an example. However, the same function is exerted by a combination of black and another color or a combination of blue and red.

The print processing section 40 distributes the image data to the two semiconductor lasers in accordance with the sent image data with color information, and delays the image data by the positional deviation of the two lasers to produce a second image. It has the function of sending to a laser.

FIG. 27 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration of the optical system 60 and the image forming system 70. Referring to FIGS. 1 and 27,
The optical system 60 uses a laser beam to drive a photosensitive drum (hereinafter referred to as P).
/ C drum) 71 has a function of forming an electrostatic latent image on the surface. The optical system 60 includes semiconductor lasers 61 and 62, a collimator lens, a synthesizing half mirror 63, a polygon mirror 65, a lens 69, a mirror 67a, a mirror 68 for separating two laser beams, and each beam. P / C
And mirrors 67b and 67c for guiding onto the drum 71.

The semiconductor lasers 61 and 62 are provided in the print processing unit 4.
The laser light modulated by the image data output from 0 is generated independently, and each laser light is
3 are synthesized. The synthesized laser light is reflected by a polygon mirror 65 rotated by a polygon motor 64 on the P / P.
The direction can be changed so as to scan in the line direction on the C drum 71. The deflected synthesized laser light is supplied to the P / C drum 71
The light is condensed by a lens 69 so as to form an image thereon, is turned by a mirror 67a, is further divided into two laser beams by a separation mirror 68, and is separated by a P / C drum by mirrors 67b and 67c in the respective optical paths. 71.

Next, the image forming system 70 will be described. The image forming system 70 has a function of developing the electrostatic latent image formed on the P / C drum 71 and transferring and fixing the electrostatic latent image on paper, and includes a developing transfer system 70A, a transport system 70B, and a fixing system 70C. including.

The development transfer system 70A includes a P / C drum 71
A first charger 72a for uniformly charging the surface of the P / C drum 71, a developing unit 73a for storing the red toner, and a second charging unit for charging the P / C drum 71 again in preparation for the second exposure.
Charger 72b, developing unit 73 for storing black toner
b, a transfer charger 74 for transferring the developed toner image onto paper, a cleaning unit 76 for removing toner remaining on the surface of the P / C drum 71, and the like.

The transport system 70B supplies and transports the print paper, and includes a cassette 80a for storing the paper,
80b, a paper guide 81 for guiding the paper taken out of the cassettes 80a and 80b, a timing roller 82 for adjusting the timing for transporting the paper to the transfer unit, and a belt 83 for transporting the paper to the fixing system 70C. Also, the re-feed unit 60
0 is fed to the horizontal transport rollers 86a and 86a.
b, 86c to the timing roller 82.

The fixing system 70C heats and presses the toner image transferred onto the printing paper between the fixing rollers 84. The paper on which the toner is fixed is discharged from the machine by a discharge roller 85.

Next, the document transport section 500 will be described.
The document feeder 500 automatically sets the paper set on the document feed tray 510 on the platen glass 18,
After reading, it has a function of discharging to the document discharging unit 511. The document transport unit 500 is configured to be able to cope with both a single-sided mode for printing only one side of the document and a double-sided mode for reading both sides of the document.

Next, referring again to FIG.
Will be described. The re-feed unit 600 stores and re-feeds the printed sheet for printing on the back surface or the same surface again. When printing on the back side of a printed sheet, the mode is the duplex mode. When printing on the same side, the mode is the combining mode. In the normal mode and the refeeding operation in the double-sided and composite mode, which are neither the double-sided nor the composite, the sheet is discharged to the discharge tray 610 through the upper side of the switching claw 601.

Next, the operation panel 300 of the facsimile machine will be described with reference to FIG. A copy mode key 316 to be pressed when the facsimile apparatus is used as a copier, a FAX mode key 317 to be pressed to be used as a facsimile, and a numeric keypad for setting the number of copies, a telephone number, etc. 301-31
0, a clear / stop key 311 for instructing release of the set number and interruption of multi-copy, and a start key 312 for instructing a copy start or a transmission start are arranged. On the right side of the operation panel 300, a joy ball 313 for selecting a copy mode menu and the like, a set key 314 for confirming the copy mode menu and the like selected by the joy ball 313, and contents determined by the set key 314. A cancel key 315 for canceling the operation is disposed so as to be pressed close to the joy ball 313 while operating the joy ball 313. Further, in the center of the operation panel 300, a matrix type (640 × 400 dots) liquid crystal display panel 222 for displaying all contents related to the operation is arranged. On the left side, an external light sensor 318 for detecting the brightness on the operation panel surface is arranged.

FIG. 3 is a schematic side view showing the vicinity of the joy ball 313, and FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the joy ball 313.

The joy ball 313 includes a stick portion 313a which can be tilted at a certain angle θ in all directions of 360 °, and a ball portion 313b which is a part of a ball mounted on the upper portion of the stick portion 313a. ing. A part of the ball portion 313b is exposed from the outer surface of the operation panel 300, and the joy ball 3
When the rotation is given to 13, the portion of the operation panel 300 that is covered by the outer surface is exposed. The stick portion 313a is automatically returned to an upright state (θ = 30 °) by a spring (not shown). The rotation angles of the stick portion 313a in the X and Y directions are detected by two variable resistors (see FIG. 4), and are converted into digital data by A / D conversion, and various controls are performed. .

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing the contents displayed on the liquid crystal display panel 222 when the power is turned on and when the operation as a copying machine is designated by the copy mode key 316. In the figure, the menu cursor is initially at home position position 4.
01 is placed. At the left end of each of the menus 402a to 402h, the lighting positions 401a to 401 of the menu cursor are displayed.
1h is provided. When an arbitrary menu is selected by operating the joyball 313, one of the positions 401a to 401h corresponding to the selected menu is inverted to black. FIG. 5 shows the position where the menu cursor is at the home position.

The number of copies set by ten keys 301 to 310 is displayed on copy number display 403 by, for example, numerals 1 to 99. The magnification determined by the function of the “specify magnification” menu 402a is displayed on the copy magnification display 404, and the paper size in the paper feed tray 50 selected by the function of the “specify paper” menu 402b is displayed by the copy paper size. 405 is displayed. Further, the state of the copying apparatus or the processing to be performed on the copying apparatus at that time is displayed on the information display 406 as characters, pictograms, and the like. The copy density selected and set by the function of the "density adjustment" menu 402c is displayed on a copy density level display 407, and is divided into seven levels that can be set manually and automatic settings.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing display contents on the liquid crystal display panel 222 when an operation as a facsimile is designated by the FAX mode key 317.

Lighting positions 412a to 412 of the menu cursor
At 12h, a menu different from that in the copy mode is displayed, but the selection method is the same.

Dial information is displayed in dial information display area 4
13 is displayed. As for the speed dial, when a speed dial menu (412a) is selected and a menu cursor is moved in the dial information display area 413 to select a destination, the number is dialed.

The area to be selected and the selection state of the resolution are shown in an area 41.
4 displays from left to right: standard, fine, superfine, and halftone. The level indicating the transmission image density is displayed in an area 415 in seven levels manually and automatically set. Various messages are displayed in the area 416, and indicate the next operation instruction, the current date and time, and the remaining code memory. The estimated transmission time is displayed when all the originals have been read.

Both the selection of the speed dial menu and the selection of the other party are performed by operating only the joy ball 313 and the set key 314.

When the menu cursor is moved to 411a and the set key 314 is turned on, the dial information area 41
The menu cursor in 3 becomes movable by the joy ball 313. Menu movement is joyball rotation angle θ
In a certain angle range, all menus are moved at a speed according to the angle, but in a certain range, a line, ka line, sa line, na line, ha line, ma line, ya line, wa line, n Will be moved only at the beginning.

The destination is registered in the speed dial menu in the registration mode 412g, and in the internal processing, those sorted in the order of the order are in the dial information area 4.
13 is displayed. Since the menu cursor moves in this manner, the other party can be quickly selected only by the rotation amount of the joyball, and even if the number of registrations increases, the selection does not feel frustrating.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing display contents when the mode setting is selected in the copy mode. In FIG. 2, the joyball 313 is rotated to the front (Y (-)) and then to the right (X (+)), and the menu cursor is moved to 401h.
Is displayed by turning on the set key 314.

Menus 421 to 423 for the double-sided mark, print information, and priority mode are displayed, and "print" and "time designation" are designated, respectively. In the area 424, a message indicating the setting state of the device is displayed.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing display contents when mode setting is selected in the facsimile mode.

Incoming call printing, print information, fax mark,
Menus 431 to 433 for source print, batch at night, and priority mode are displayed, and "print" respectively.
Is specified. Also, the illuminance designation 433e is selected for the night batch processing mode. The priority mode can be set in the same manner as in the copy mode.
Is selected.

Next, a control circuit of the facsimile apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 9 is a block diagram of the control circuit, which is configured around eight CPUs.

The CPU 1 analyzes the signals from the switches and the numeric keypad of the operation panel 300 and the data transmitted by communication, performs processing for displaying and transmitting the input data.

The CPU 2 receives image data from the photoelectric conversion elements 16 and 17 and performs normal image processing such as shading correction, scaling, and dither processing. Furthermore, CP
U2 discriminates the color of the document, converts it into a write signal corresponding to color (red) / black toner development, and outputs data to the print processing unit 40.

The CPU 3 controls the operation of the scanning system 10. The CPU 4 controls the image forming system 70 and the optical system 60. The CPU 4 cooperates with the first and second charging controls of the P / C drum 71 and the print processing unit 40 to write the generated image data, The control of the print-related operations such as the (red) / black two-color toner developing operation and the paper feed control is executed.

The CPU 5 controls the coordinating role of the facsimile apparatus as a whole, adjusts the mutual timing, and determines the operation mode.

The CPU 6 controls a facsimile unit, that is, a communication block, and exchanges image data.fwdarw.code data, transmits and receives a communication protocol, and controls NCU.
The conversion of the division is performed.

The CPUs 7 and 8 shown in FIG.
Serial communication with the CPU 5 in the same way as
Control of document conveyance and re-feeding is performed respectively.

Next, the operation of each CPU will be described with reference to a flowchart. First, referring to FIG.
1 will be described. The CPU 1 controls main routines such as input of switches and keys on the operation panel 300 and display on the display unit.

First, initialization is performed (S401), an internal timer is started (S402), and input control S403 is performed.
In this case, the operation modes of the copy mode and the facsimile mode are largely controlled in accordance with the input signal on the operation panel 300. Next, in display control S404, the data is output to the display unit 222 on the operation panel 300 or the like.
When trouble data of another CPU is received by serial I / O, a display corresponding to the trouble data is also performed in this routine.

Next, other control (S405) is performed, and after the internal timer expires (S406), the program returns to S402.

The CPU 1 performs communication control in an interrupt process (S407). Next, the operation of the CPU 4 will be described with reference to FIG. The CPU 4 controls the development / transfer system 70A, controls the transport 70B system, and controls the fixing system 70C.

First, initial setting is performed, and when the internal timer is started, control of the developing / transferring system 70A is performed (S700 to S702). Next, control contents of the developing / transferring system 70A will be described.

While the P / C drum 71 makes one rotation in the direction of the arrow, each process of charging → first exposure → first development → second charging → second exposure → second development → transfer is performed, and Controls the copying operation. Then a potential V ₀₁ at uniformly charging charger 72a to the surface of the P / C drum 71. Exposure is performed by irradiating a laser beam to form a first latent image. A bias voltage is applied by the first developing device 73a to reversely develop the color toner. Using the second charging charger 72b, the P / C drum 7
The surface potential of No. 1 is uniformly set to V ₀₂ . Further, a second exposure is performed with a laser beam to form a second latent image. A bias voltage is applied by the second developing unit 73b, and the black toner is reversely developed. Finally, the two-color toner images obtained are transferred onto paper by the transfer charger 74.

Next, control of the transport 70B is performed (S
703). Here, a cassette 80 in which paper is stored
Controls such as paper feeding from a and 80b, activation of the timing roller 82 for aligning the leading edge of the toner image with the leading edge of the sheet, and conveyance of the sheet after the transfer to the fixing unit are performed.

Next, control of fixing system 70C is performed (S
704). Here, fixing of the image (two-color toner image) transferred onto the sheet by thermocompression, temperature control of the fixing roller 84, and discharge after fixing are performed.

Next, the control of the print processing section is performed, and after the other processing, the internal timer is terminated (S705 to S705).
(S707), the program returns to S701.

Next, the operation of the facsimile CPU 6 will be described with reference to FIGS. 9, 13 and 14.

First, the transmission operation will be described. After the initial setting, internal timer start, and character imprinting are completed (S3
01 to S303), and it is determined whether or not the transmission mode is set (S303).
304). If it is determined in S304 that the transmission mode is set, the image data from the image reader unit is written into the image memory in accordance with the input of the telephone number and the communication mode from the operation panel 300, and the image data is simultaneously encoded by the encoder. The data is converted and written into the code memory 105 (S30
5). Further, the NCU 104 dials a predetermined destination. Thereafter, a transmission operation is performed according to a predetermined protocol (S306, S307).

Next, the receiving operation will be described. NCU1
04 when an incoming signal is detected (No in S304, S
If Yes at 310, code data is written to the code memory 102 according to a predetermined protocol (S311). Next, the code data is read from the code memory 102, converted into image data by the encoder 103, and written into the image memory 105 (S
312). Further, the LD drive circuit 1 from the image memory 105
The image data is sent to S07 (S313), and the received data is recorded (S314).

Next, the configuration of the image memory 105 will be described. The image memory 105 has dot data for one page, that is, a capacity of A3 size corresponding to 400 DPI, and includes a sign bit indicating a black line or a red line for each line.
The sign bit is set to 0 for a black line and 1 for a color line. When data is read from the memory and transferred to the printer, it is determined by the sign bit whether to record in black or red. Alternatively, when writing the read image data, a sign bit of black or red is written together with the image data. In the copy mode, when the print information and the double-sided mark are not printed, the image data is sent directly to the printer through the image memory 105.

Next, the character imprinting described in S303 will be described. In a mode as described below, the image data is expanded in the image memory 105 with reference to characters or certain format data from the font ROM 101 shown in FIG.

(I) Source print mode: The own station number, date and time, number of pages, etc. are imprinted on the head of the read original image data in the image memory at the time of transmission.

(Ii) Incoming call print mode: after the received image data is expanded in the image memory, the destination number is
The date and time of reception, number of pages, etc. are imprinted.

(Iii) FAX mark mode: A mark indicating FAX is developed as a red line in the image memory as image data to be printed on the back side of a printed image of a received image.

(Iv) Double-sided mark mode: A mark indicating a double-sided copy is added to the original read image in the image memory as a red line so that the back side is not overlooked when printing in the double-sided copy mode.

(V) Print information mode: a designation of output from a copy or a facsimile reception image, and the output date and time are added to the original read image on the image memory 105.

FIG. 14 shows the character imprinting subroutine described above. Information and marks are written in the image memory 105 according to the setting state of the mode setting and the operation state of the facsimile apparatus shown in FIG. 8 (S3031 to S304).
2).

FIG. 15 shows an example of the output result in this case.
(A) for a copy original, (B) for a copy result on which print information and a double-sided mark are printed, and (C) for a received image, the print information, incoming print and fax.
(D) shows an example of a print result in which the mark is printed.

Referring to FIG. 15, in the conventional case, the received image was obstructed unless it was accommodated in about one line as in the case of the source print, but in the facsimile apparatus according to the present invention, the incoming print was printed on the back side. Is printed over a wide area, so that it is easy to see and the amount of information can be increased. Furthermore, FAX
The edge of the paper is printed in red so that the mark can be separated as soon as it overlaps the copy.

Next, referring to FIG. 16, S305 of FIG.
The contents of the transmission data processing subroutine shown in FIG.

First, when the state S is 0 (set to 0 at the time of initial setting) (Yes in S3051), the scanning system 10
Waits for the read data based on the operation of
Transfer data to When the reading of one page is completed, the state S is set to 1 (Yes in S3052, S305
4).

Next, the data is compressed (encoded) and stored in the code memory 102 (S3056-S306).
1). At this time, the amount of black data in the image data is counted (S3060). The count of black data is determined based on the contents of the encoded data. Figure 1 shows an example of the encoding method
FIG. This is CCITT Recommendation T. 4 is an example of the MH system. Here, for example, when black is continuous by two dots (the next is white), it is indicated that it is encoded as "11".

When the compression of the data for one page is completed (S3
055), whether the image is the first or later of the transmission document, whether the amount of black data is smaller than a predetermined value, and is determined to be the back of the document, or whether the image is reversed for the second time. The reversal flag and the second flag are determined according to whether the image data is a result of reading (second flag = 1) (S3062-S3066). Here, when the reversal flag is set to 1, the document is reversed and read by the process (FIG. 18) in the document transport unit.

When both sides of the first document are determined to be "white", and when the same side as the first document is determined to be "white" for the second and subsequent pages, the calling operation is performed. Is not performed, and the operator is warned (No in S3062, S3075,
No in S3076 and S3064, S3068-S307
0).

Next, reception data processing and decompression processing will be described. Returning to FIG. 13, during the reception operation, the reception image data is accumulated in the code memory 102 while counting the number of lines by the reception data processing (S312). The received image data is expanded by an expansion processing subroutine (S313) and printed by a recording processing subroutine (S314).

The contents of the decompression processing subroutine will be described with reference to FIG. When the received image data of one page or more is accumulated (Yes in S3051), a determination regarding the night batch processing is performed (S3052). As a result, printing is permitted (Yes in S3053), and the image forming system 7
When a state such as 0 does not interfere with the printing operation (S3
054), the received image data is stored in the code memory 102.
, And are decompressed and written into the image memory 105 (S3055).

Next, referring to FIG. 1 and FIG.
Will be described.

The CPU 7 controls the document feeder 500 as follows. First, the document is fed, the skew is corrected, and the document is fed to control the conveyance of the document to below the conveyance belt (S101).
To S103). Next, the document under the transport belt is positioned at a predetermined reading position, and the document is transported to transport the document to the reversing roller 507 (S104). Reversing roller 507
A document reversal / discharge operation is performed in which the document that has arrived at is discharged as it is or the document is again transported to the transport roller side (S105). Next, communication for exchanging data for operation with the CPU 5 is performed (S107).

Next, the re-feed control will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 21.
This will be described with reference to FIG. The CPU 8 controls the re-feed unit 600.
Done by A storage / discharge process for storing the printed paper discharged from the image forming system 70 for re-feeding or discharging the paper as it is to the discharge tray 610 is performed (S201 to S203). Next, the positions of the lower and side regulating plates are changed according to the paper size for storage, and the sheets are aligned one by one with the side regulating plates and presser plates so as not to hinder refeeding. The processing is performed (S204). Next, the sheet re-feeding operation after the storage is completed is performed (S205). Then, a communication operation for exchanging data for operation with the CPU 5 is performed (S207).

Next, the reverse / discharge subroutine of the original shown in S105 of FIG. 20 will be described with reference to FIGS.

A discharge sensor 513 for detecting a document immediately before entering the reversing roller 507 is provided, detects the document conveyed by the conveyance belt, and turns on / off the reversing solenoid to turn the reversal / discharge. The position of the paper switching claw 508 is switched to control whether the original is brought under the transport belt 506 again or discharged to the original discharge unit 511.

In the case of a double-sided original in the copy mode (S105
2 and Yes in S1053) or when the inversion flag is 1 in the FAX mode (No in S1052, S10
55 (Yes at 55), the reversing solenoid is turned on (S105).
4) The original is inverted. Otherwise, the document is ejected. When the reversing solenoid is turned on, the trailing end of the document passes through the discharge sensor (No in S1051), and even if the reversing solenoid is turned off, the leading end of the document reaches the conveyance belt, and there is no trouble in conveyance.

Next, the night batch processing mode control will be described. As shown in FIG. 8, regarding the night batch processing, the present apparatus mainly has three states: time designation, illuminance designation,
With release. FIG. 21 shows the content of the night batch judgment subroutine shown in S3052 of FIG.

Referring to FIG. 21, conditions under which printing is permitted (S525) are as follows. (I) When neither the night batch time designation mode nor the illuminance designation mode is used (No in S521 and No in S523).

(Ii) In the nighttime batch time designation mode, when the current time is not within the nighttime process designation time range (S
(Yes in 521 and No in S522).

(Iii) In the nighttime collective illuminance designation mode, when the external light sensor 318 detects brightness equal to or more than a predetermined value (No in S521 and Yes in S524).

(Iv) In the nighttime batch time designation mode, when the current time is within the nighttime process designation time range and the key ON flag is 1 (Yes in S521, Yes in S522)
s, Yes in S528).

In other cases, printing is prohibited (S526). The setting of the key ON flag (← 1) is performed in the input control of S403 in FIG. The contents are shown in FIG. Referring to FIG. 22, copy mode key 31
When an operation of an operation target other than 6 is detected, or when a document is set, the key ON flag is set to 1 (S3608).

Next, control in the application mode (= copy mode, FAX mode) will be described with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 23 is a flowchart showing the contents of the application mode setting routine processed in the input control routine shown in S403 of FIG. When the copy mode key 316 and the FAX mode key 317 are turned on, the corresponding application mode is set (S3701 to S3704).

If neither key is pressed (No in S3701, No in S3703), if the timer AC is not completed (No in S3705), a key other than the above two keys is pressed (Yes in S3706). When the joyball 313 is moved and takes a value other than 25 ° ≦ θ ≦ 35 ° (No in S3707), the timer AC is started (S3708). Left as it is, timer AC
Is completed (Yes in S3705), the process shifts to the application mode corresponding to the priority mode setting in FIGS. 6 and 7 (S3709 to S3711). Note that the timer AC is brought to an end state when the power is turned on.

If the priority mode is neither the copy mode nor the FAX mode (No in S3709 and S3710), the copy mode and the FA are determined based on the current time.
The X mode is determined.

FIG. 24 is a subroutine showing the contents of the fixing system control shown in S704 of FIG. When the received image is printed in the copy mode (Yes in S7041) or in the FAX mode (No in S7041 and Yes in S7043), the temperature of the fixing roller is controlled to a fixing-possible temperature (S7042). The roller heater is turned off (S7044).

FIG. 25 is a flow chart showing the contents of the paper feed start subroutine executed during the control of the paper feed system in S703 of FIG. This routine is executed at the start of the printing operation, and shifts to another process when the paper feed clutch is turned on.

First, the main motor is rotated (S732).
1). As a result, the fixing roller also rotates, but the paper is not fed until the paper feed clutch is turned on. Immediately after the falling, since the rising flag is set to 1 (No in S7322), the timer T is determined. If the timer T has not reached 30 minutes (Yes in S7324), the startup flag is set to 0 (S7325), and the paper feed clutch of the selected paper feed port is turned on (S7323). This means that if the time during which printing is disabled is short, the sheet is fed as usual because the uniformity of the fixing roller is not impaired.

If the timer T exceeds 30 minutes (S
7324), it is first determined whether or not the timer F has expired (S7326). If the timer F has not expired (No in S7326), it is determined whether or not the timer F is counting (S7328). When the timer F is counting (Yes in S7328), the program returns. If the timer F is not counting (S732
8; No), the timer F starts counting (S732).
9).

When the timer F expires (Yes in S7326), the timer F is cleared (S7327), the start-up flag is returned to 0 (S7325), and the paper feed clutch of the selected paper feed port is turned on (S7323). . That is, if the time during which printing is disabled exceeds a certain time, the sheet feeding operation is delayed by the timer F.

As described above, after the warm-up is completed, at the start of the first printing, by delaying the feeding timing relative to the rotation of the fixing roller, the temperature of the fixing roller can be made uniform, and as a result, a stable image can be obtained. Can be provided.

The embodiments disclosed this time are to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is defined by the terms of the claims, rather than the description above, and is intended to include any modifications within the scope and meaning equivalent to the terms of the claims.

[0098]

In the facsimile apparatus according to the present invention, the apparatus performs printing in accordance with one of the facsimile mode in which a delayed output of a received image is possible and a copy mode in which an image is immediately output. Since the control conditions of the fixing system when not being performed are set appropriately,
Power saving according to the operation mode can be realized.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an outline of a digital copying machine to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of an operation panel of the copying machine.

FIG. 3 is a schematic side view near a joyball.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a joy ball.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing display contents of a liquid crystal display panel.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing display contents of a liquid crystal display panel when an operation as a facsimile is designated.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing display contents of a liquid crystal display panel in a copy mode.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing display contents of the liquid crystal display panel when mode setting is selected in the facsimile mode.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram of a control circuit.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram of a control circuit.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a main routine.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing an operation performed by a CPU 4;

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the facsimile CPU.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing the contents of a character imprinting subroutine.

FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating an example of a character imprint result.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing the contents of transmission data processing.

FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating an example of an encoding method.

FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing the contents of document reversal / discharge processing.

FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing the contents of a decompression process.

FIG. 20 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of a CPU 7 that performs document conveyance control.

FIG. 21 is a flowchart showing the contents of a night batch determination process.

FIG. 22 is a flowchart showing the contents of a key ON flag setting process.

FIG. 23 is a flowchart showing the contents of an application mode setting process.

FIG. 24 is a flowchart showing control contents of a fixing system.

FIG. 25 is a flowchart showing the contents of a paper feed start process.

FIG. 26 is a perspective view of the digital copying machine as viewed obliquely from above.

FIG. 27 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration of an optical system and an image forming system.

[Explanation of symbols]

Reference Signs List 10 scanning system, 20 image signal processing unit, 40 print processing unit, 60 optical system, 70 imaging system, 102 code memory, 103 code key, 105 image memory, CPU6
FAX CPU.

Continuation of the front page (72) Munehiro Nakatani 2-3-13 Azuchicho, Chuo-ku, Osaka City Inside the Osaka International Building Minolta Camera Co., Ltd. (72) Akio Nakajima 2-313 Azuchicho, Chuo-ku, Osaka City No. Osaka International Building Minolta Camera Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Yoshikazu Ikenoue 2-13-13 Azuchicho, Chuo-ku, Osaka City Osaka International Building Minolta Camera Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Shigenobu Fukushima Azuchi, Chuo-ku, Osaka City Minorta Camera Co., Ltd., Osaka International Building, Minamita 2-chome (13) Inventor Keiji Nakatani Osaka International Building Minolta Camera Co., Ltd., 2-3-13, Azuchicho, Chuo-ku, Osaka City (72) Inventor Kurahashi Yoshiyuki Yoshimoto 2-3-13 Azuchicho, Chuo-ku, Osaka-shi International Building Minolta Camera Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Masanori Yamamoto 2-3-1-13 Azuchicho, Chuo-ku, Osaka City International Building Minolta Camera Co., Ltd. F term (reference) 2H027 DA34 ED25 EE 07 EF16 FA30 FB06 FC02 ZA07 5C062 AA02 AA05 AB20 AB22 AB49 AB51 AF00 BA00

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A facsimile apparatus for recording an image based on data received by communication using an electrophotographic process, wherein the facsimile mode enables delayed output of the received image, and a copy mode for immediately outputting the image. A facsimile apparatus comprising: a mode setting unit configured to set any one of the modes; and a control unit configured to control a fixing system control condition when the apparatus is not performing printing according to the set mode. 2. The facsimile apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a priority mode selection unit that selects which of the facsimile mode and the copy mode is prioritized.