JP2006005963A - Information processing apparatus and information processing method - Google Patents

Abstract

When an external device is connected to a device, a panel that is no longer used due to expansion is used, and more information can be given to the user by displaying information different from the main panel. Provide an extended system that provides easy-to-use operability.
In a device having a first operation panel whose function can be expanded by connecting an external device, the second device has a second operation panel for operating the expanded device as a whole. In addition to the status display and operation of the entire device using the panel, status display and operation can also be performed from the first operation panel.
[Selection] Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing device and an information processing method, and more particularly, to an information processing device and an information processing method for expanding a user interface for a device when the function of the device is expanded.

  In recent years, with the advancement of various functions, multifunction, miniaturization, and networking (construction of LAN), digital copiers have become multifunctional (copy function, fax function, printer function, network scanner function, file server) Etc.) and printer copy function expansion options, etc., printers / copiers that can be dynamically changed according to the option configuration, or that can be operated from a personal computer or the like via a network have been commercialized. Further, as a technique for enabling an extended device to be operated with an operation panel of the device when a device for expansion is attached to the device, for example, Patent Document 1, Patent Document 2, and Patent Document 3 and so on.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-35423 JP-A-9-52408 JP-A-10-244734

  However, in the case of the above configuration, in particular, when the printer is expanded from the copier, the printer panel is not used, the large screen panel for the expanded copy function is normally used, and the printer panel is used. It was impossible or could only be used when using as a printer.

  Recently, an expandable multifunction device that provides various user services such as printers, copiers, facsimiles, etc. has appeared, and the user operability becomes complicated when a plurality of display panels are provided on the multifunction device. There's a problem.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, the present invention is used by displaying information different from the main panel on a panel that is no longer used due to expansion when an external device is connected to the apparatus. It is an object of the present invention to provide an information processing apparatus and an information processing method capable of giving more information to a person and realizing easy-to-use operability.

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, the invention according to claim 1 is an information processing apparatus having a first operation panel and a second operation panel, wherein the first operation panel includes: Control of the hardware of the information processing apparatus is performed on the first software unit that performs control, the second software unit that controls the second operation panel, and the first software unit and the second software unit. And a third software section that provides an interface function for performing the operation.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the information processing apparatus according to the first aspect, the first software unit or the second software unit is created using the interface function, and the hardware of the information processing device is provided. It is software that controls the wear.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the information processing apparatus according to the first aspect, the interface is defined by a function that operates on an operating system.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an information processing method performed by an information processing apparatus having a first operation panel and a second operation panel, wherein the first software panel controls the first operation panel. The second step of controlling the second operation panel by the second software unit, the first software unit and the second software unit with respect to the information processing device. And a third step of providing an interface function for controlling hardware.

  The invention according to claim 5 is the information processing method according to claim 4, wherein the first software unit or the second software unit is created using the interface function, and the hardware of the information processing apparatus is used. It is software that controls the wear.

  The invention according to claim 6 is the information processing method according to claim 4, wherein the interface is defined by a function operating on an operating system.

  According to the present invention, information is provided to the first software unit that controls the first operation panel, the second software unit that controls the second operation panel, and the first software unit and the second software unit. And a third software unit that provides an interface function for controlling the hardware of the processing device. When an external device is connected to the device, the main panel and By displaying different information, more information can be given to the user and operability that is easy to use can be realized.

  In addition, according to the present invention, it is possible to reduce the burden on the user concerning the operation input and display content confirmation of the multifunctional image forming apparatus.

  Exemplary embodiments of a function expansion type system according to the present invention will be explained below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a copier-expandable printer system (abbreviated as MFP system) to which a function expansion type system according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied.

  In the first embodiment, a printer controller 10 (which means the whole excluding the MFP extension unit 20 in the figure) constituting the printer system before extension is used as a main body, and an MFP extension unit is provided to extend the copy function. 20 is attached by a system bus 30.

  The printer controller 10 includes a printer ROM 12 that stores a program for printer control, a RAM 13 of a storage device that is temporarily used when the program is executed, an engine controller 14 that controls a printer engine that forms an image on recording paper, and a printer. A printer panel 15 that displays various settings and operations, operation states, and error messages, and a CPU 11 that executes a program for printer control.

  The MFP expansion unit 20 includes an MFP ROM 22 that stores a program for executing a copying function and a printer function, an additional RAM 21 of a storage device that is temporarily used when the program is executed, a scanner controller 23 that performs control for reading an original as an image, It comprises an MFP panel 24 that displays various settings and operations of the copier functions and printer functions, operation status, and error messages.

  With the above configuration, the printer controller 10 remains as a controller of the entire MFP system even after the copier is expanded, and operates by enabling the expanded function only by invalidation / rewriting / replacement of the program stored on the Printer ROM 12.

  That is, the CPU 11 executes the program of the MFP ROM 22 and invalidates / rewrites / replaces the program on the Printer ROM 12 as necessary to execute the function as the MFP system.

  After this expansion, the user uses the MFP panel 24 of the MFP expansion unit 20 to execute the copying function, and the printer panel 15 provided in the printer controller 10 is not used or is removed (by removing the expansion function). ) Used for operation only when used as a printer itself.

  However, in the present invention, the printer panel 15 is actively used as a sub panel.

  FIG. 2 shows a software configuration after expansion as an MFP system, which is stored in the MFP ROM 22.

  The hardware resources possessed by the first embodiment are managed as resources of the operating system (OS) 100, and include a panel (MFP panel 24, printer panel 15), engine (engine controller 14), scanner (scanner). The controller 23) and the like are accessed from processes on the OS 100 via driver software 300 (printer / panel driver, MFP panel driver, engine driver, scanner driver).

  The MFP screen control process 200 controls the display / operation of the MFP panel 24 and, as a result, manages operations of the MFP system such as printer operation / copy operation. At that time, an actual operation is performed using the scanner control process 202 and the engine control process 203.

  The scanner control process 202 controls the operation of the scanner device via the scanner controller 23.

  The engine control process 203 controls the printer engine via the engine controller 14 to control printing and devices related to printing (paper feeding device, finisher, etc.).

  The printer screen control process 201 is composed of a plurality of threads as shown in FIG.

  Key input from the panel to the printer screen control process 201 and inter-process communication events are processed by the event dispatcher.

  The event dispatcher usually sends an event to a selected thread, and each thread that receives the event performs an operation. For example, the thread includes a printer operation thread, a system state thread, a tray setting thread, a job list thread, an operation state thread, and a switching thread.

  Each of these threads uses the printer panel 15 as an operation input and display screen in order to perform the following operations.

(1) The printer operation thread provides a screen interface for performing operations for printer operations (see the screen example in FIG. 4A). This printer operation interface is the same as that before the expansion, but communicates with the MFP screen control process 200 that holds the state of the entire system in order to perform exclusive control with other functions as the MFP system. It is executed while watching the state.

(2) The system status thread provides a function for displaying the status of the MFP system (see the screen example in FIG. 4B). This system state indicates the state of the entire MFP system. For example, the status of copying, FAX, or printer is displayed. This state is obtained by communicating with the MFP screen control process 200.

(3) The tray status display thread displays the tray status (see the screen example in FIG. 4C). This tray state displays tray information that the system has. This information is obtained by communicating with an engine control process 203 that manages engine information.

(4) The job list thread provides a function to display / operate system jobs (see the screen example in FIG. 4D). This job list is obtained by communicating with the MFP screen control process 200 that manages information of the entire MFP system.

(5) The status display thread displays a detailed status during the operation of the system (see the screen example in FIG. 4E). This operation state is generated from information obtained by communicating with the MFP screen control process 200, the scanner control process 202, and the engine control process 203.

(6) The switching thread determines which of the above-mentioned threads is displayed with priority on the interface for designating the operation of the printer screen control process 201 (see the screen example in FIG. 4F). This switching is activated by the dispatcher by an action such as menu key input on the printer panel 15, for example. It is set which of the threads as shown above is to be displayed preferentially from the displayed selection candidates.

  As described above, the following effects are achieved by configuring the embodiment as described above. First, by displaying information different from the main panel on a panel that is no longer used due to expansion, more information can be given to the user, and operability that is easy to use can be realized. In addition, since information different from the main panel is provided to the sub-panel after expansion, the user can obtain information from the sub-panel and can receive abundant information necessary for operation.

  In addition, since the functions before expansion such as the operation of the printer are provided to the sub panel, the user can operate the sub panel without a sense of incongruity. Furthermore, since the operation status of the system is displayed on the sub-panel, the user can quickly know the status of the system.

  In addition, since the tray setting is displayed on the sub panel, the user can quickly know the tray state. Furthermore, since the job list is displayed on the sub-panel, the user can quickly know the job being executed by the system.

  In addition, since the operating status is displayed on the sub-panel, the user can quickly know the operating status of the system. Furthermore, since the information set in the sub panel is switched, the user can select the contents to be displayed on the sub panel.

(Embodiment 2)
In the first embodiment, the case where an MFP whose function can be expanded is used as a printer is shown in the first embodiment. You can also. Therefore, in the second embodiment, a case where the present invention is applied to a multifunction machine will be shown.

  FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a software configuration of the multifunction peripheral according to the second embodiment. The multi-function device 500 includes a printer application 511, a copy application 512, a fax application 513, a scanner application 514, a net file application 515, and a process inspection application 516 on a platform 520 including various common system services 522 to 528 and a general-purpose OS 521. It is configured to do.

  As shown in the figure, the MFP 500 includes a plotter 501, a hard disk drive 502, a network interface (I / F) unit 503, an operation panel 504, an operation panel 505, and the like, and a software group 510 includes a platform 520. And an application 530.

  The platform 520 interprets a processing request from the application 530 and generates a hardware resource acquisition request as shown below, manages one or a plurality of hardware resources, and issues an acquisition request from the control service. It has a system resource manager (SRM (System Resource Manager) 523) for arbitrating, and a general-purpose OS 521.

  This control service is formed by a plurality of service modules. Specifically, an SCS (System Control Service) 522, an ECS (Engine Control Service) 524, an MCS (Memory Control Service) 525, and an OCS (Operation Panel Control). Service) 526, FCS (FAX Control Service) 527, and NCS (Network Control Service) 528. The platform 520 has an application program interface that can receive a processing request from the application by a predefined function.

  The general-purpose OS 521 is a general-purpose operating system such as UNIX (registered trademark), and executes the software of the platform 520 and the application 530 in parallel as processes. By using open source UNIX (registered trademark), the safety of the program can be secured, the network can be supported, and the source code can be easily obtained. Furthermore, OS and TCP / IP royalties are unnecessary, and outsourcing is easy. This general-purpose OS includes device drivers for the hardware 501 to 505.

  The SRM 523, together with the SCS 522, controls the system and manages resources, and includes an engine such as a scanner unit and a plotter 501, memory, HDD 502, host I / O (centro I / F unit, network I / F unit 503, IEEE 1394I). / F, RS232CI / F, etc.), arbitration is performed according to a request from an upper layer using the hardware resources of the operation panels 504 and 505, and execution control is performed.

  Specifically, the SRM 523 determines whether the requested hardware resource is available (whether it is not used by another request), and if it is available, the requested hardware resource is Tell the upper layer that it is available. Also, hardware resource usage scheduling may be performed in response to a request from an upper layer, and the requested contents (for example, paper conveyance and image forming operation, memory allocation, file generation, etc. by the plotter 501) may be directly executed. .

  The SCS 522 includes (1) application management, (2) operation panel control, (3) system screen display (job list screen, counter display screen, etc.), (4) LED display, (5) resource management, and (6) interrupt application. Take control. Specifically, in (1) application management, processing for registering an application and notifying other applications of the information is performed. For the registered application, the engine state is notified according to the system setting or the request setting from the application. For registered applications, an inquiry about whether or not to change the state of the system, such as an inquiry about power mode transition and an interrupt mode, is made.

  In (2) operation panel control, exclusive control of the operation panel usage right of the application is performed. Then, the key information from the operation panel driver (OCS) is exclusively notified to the application having the right to use the operation panel. This key information performs mask control for temporarily stopping notification according to system state transition such as during application switching.

  In (3) system screen display, a warning screen corresponding to the engine state is displayed in accordance with the request content from the application having the operation panel use right. Some of them turn on / off warning display according to the state of the application such as a user restriction screen. In a state other than the engine state, display control of a job list screen for displaying job reservation / execution status, a counter screen for displaying total counters, and a screen indicating that CSS is being reported is performed. With respect to these system screen displays, drawing is performed as a system screen that covers the application screen without requesting the application to release the operation unit usage right.

  In (4) LED display, display control of system LEDs such as warning LEDs and application keys is performed. The application-specific LED is directly controlled by the application using a display driver.

  In (5) resource management, a service for exclusive control of engine resources (scanners, staples, etc.) that must be exclusive when an application (ECS) executes a job is provided. (6) In interrupt application control, Control and service to make certain applications have priority operation.

  In particular, since the multi-function device 500 has two operation panels 504 and 505, control is performed so that different information is displayed. For example, the operation panel 505 can be assigned to the frequently used copy application 511 and the operation panel 504 can be assigned to other applications. Further, the operation panel 505 can be operated to input and display each application including the copy application 512 and display the operation state display of the entire apparatus on the operation panel 504. Furthermore, priority display instruction content indicating which operation panel is to be preferentially displayed can be received from the operation panel 504, and the display content can be controlled in accordance with the priority display instruction content.

  The ECS 524 controls an engine such as a scanner unit or a plotter 501 and performs image reading and printing operation, status notification, jam recovery, and the like.

  Specifically, a series of copy / scan / print operations are realized by sequentially issuing print requests to the SRM 523 in accordance with the job mode specification received from the application 530. In the job to be handled by the ECS 524, it is assumed that a scanner (SCANNER) is designated as the image input device or a plotter (PLOTTER) is designated as the image output device.

  For example, “SCANNER → PLOTTER” is specified for a copy operation, “SCANNER → MEMORY” is specified for file storage, and “SCANNER → FAX_IN” is specified for facsimile transmission. In addition, “MEMORY → PLOTTER” is designated for stored file printing or printing from the printer application 511, and “FAX_OUT → PLOTTER” is designated for facsimile reception.

  Although the definition of the job varies depending on the application, here, the processing operation for one set of image groups handled by the user is defined as one job. For example, in the case of a copy ADF (Automatic Document Feeder) mode, an operation for reading one set of documents placed on the document table is one job, and in the pressure plate mode, a reading operation until the final document is determined is one job. . In the case of the copy application 312, the operation of copying a bundle of documents is one job, and in the case of the fax application 313, the transmission operation of one document or the reception operation of one document is one job. In this case, the printing operation for one document is one job.

  The MCS 525 performs memory control. Specifically, the MCS 525 acquires and releases an image memory, uses the HDD 502, compresses and decompresses image data, and the like.

  Here, as functions necessary for managing information necessary as image data files stored in the HDD 502, (1) file access (generation / deletion / open / close) function (including exclusive processing), (2 ) File attribute management (physical page) such as file name / ID management (file / user) / password management / accumulation time management / number of pages / data format (compression method, etc.) / Access restrictions / creation application / print condition management (3) Management of image data as a file), (3) Join / insert / disconnect function in file units and page units, (4) File sort function (accumulation time order / user ID order, etc.), (5) All files Notification of information (for display / search), (6) Recovery function (file / page discard of damaged file), (7) File Dynamic delete function, and the like.

  The functions for holding and accessing image data to a memory such as a RAM include (1) a function for acquiring file and page / band attribute information from the application 530, and (2) an image data area from the application 530. There are secure, release, read, and write functions.

  The OCS 526 is a module that controls the operation panels 504 and 505 serving as information transmission means between the operator and the main body control, a process for notifying the main body control of an operator's key operation event, and a library function for each application to construct a GUI. For example, a process for managing the constructed GUI information for each application, and a process for reflecting the display on the operation panel.

  The OCS 526 includes (1) a library providing function for GUI construction, (2) an operation unit hardware resource management function, (3) a VRAM drawing / LCD display function (hardware display, display application switching, display language switching, Window dark color display, message / icon blink display, message connection display), (4) hard key input detection function, (5) touch panel key input detection function, (6) LED output function, (7) buzzer output function, etc. .

  FCS 527 performs facsimile transmission / reception using the PSTN / ISDN network from each application layer of the system controller, registration / quotation of various facsimile data managed by BKM (backup SRAM), facsimile reading, facsimile reception printing, and fusion transmission / reception. API is provided.

  Specifically, the FCS 527 includes (1) a transmission function for transmitting a document requested to be transmitted from the application layer to a facsimile receiver using the PSTN / ISDN network, and (2) a facsimile reception received from the PSTN / ISDN network. Receiving function for transferring and printing screens and various reports to each application layer, (3) Phonebook quoting / registration function for quoting and registering facsimile management items such as phonebook and group information stored in the fax board (4) Fax log notification function for notifying the application that needs the transmission / reception result history information stored in the BKM installed on the fax board, (5) When there is a change in the status of the fax board Has an event notification function that notifies registered applications of events that have changed

  The NCS 528 is a module group for providing a service that can be commonly used for applications that require network I / O. The NCS 528 distributes data received by each protocol from the network side to each application, and distributes data from the application. Mediates when sending to the network side. Specifically, it has server daemons such as ftpd, httpd, lpd, snmpd, telnetd, and smtpd, and client functions of the same protocol.

  The application 530 includes a printer application 511 that is a printer application having a page description language (PDL), PCL, and postscript (PS), a copy application 512 that is a copy application, and a fax application 513 that is a facsimile application. A scanner application 514 that is a scanner application, a net file application 315 that is a net file application, and a process inspection application 516 that is a process inspection application. Since each of the applications 511 to 516 can execute an operation using each process on the platform 520, a screen display control program for performing screen control, key operation control, job generation, and the like is the main component. It should be noted that a new application can be installed via the network via the network connected by the NCS 528. Each application can be added or deleted for each application.

  Next, display control when the operation panel 504 shown in FIG. 5 is used as a printer panel and the operation panel 505 is used as a copy panel will be described. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram for explaining display control when the operation panel 504 shown in FIG. 5 is used as a printer panel and the operation panel 505 is used as a copy panel.

  As shown in the figure, in this case, the printer 600 in the general-purpose OS 521 includes a printer panel driver 610 (a driver for the operation panel 504), a copy panel driver 630 (a driver for the operation panel 505), a plotter driver 620, A scanner driver 640 needs to be provided. Further, the application 530 requires a printer application 511 and a copy application 512. Further, the ECS 524 requires a plotter control process 524a and a scanner control process 524b.

  When the operation panel 504 is used as a printer panel, the printer application 511 transmits / receives data to / from the printer panel driver 610 via the SCS 522. When the operation panel 505 is used as a copy panel, the copy application 512 exchanges data with the copy panel driver 630 via the SCS 522. As described above, the SCS 522 performs exclusive control of the operation panel use right of the application, and notifies the key information from the operation panel driver to the application having the use right of the operation panel.

  In addition, since the plotter 501 needs to be operated when processing by the printer application 511 is performed, the printer application 511 transmits / receives data to / from the plotter driver 620 via the plotter control process 524a of the ECS 524. On the other hand, when the processing by the copy application 512 is performed, it is necessary to further operate the scanner. Therefore, the copy application 512 exchanges data with the scanner driver 640 via the scanner control process 524b in the ECS 524.

  As described above, in the second embodiment, when a multi-function peripheral having two display panels 504 and 505 and equipped with a plurality of applications 511 to 516 is used, different display panels are assigned to different applications. Therefore, user operability can be improved.

  In the second embodiment, the case where the two display panels 504 and 505, the respective applications 511 to 516, and the respective drivers exist in the multi-function device 500 from the beginning is shown, but an application such as a copy application 512 is added later. In this case, the present invention can be applied. In this case, an application and a control process are added as necessary. In addition, when the display panel 505 is added later, it is necessary to newly add a device driver.

  In the second embodiment, the case where two display panels are provided is shown for convenience of explanation, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the case where three or more display panels are provided or one display is provided. It can also be applied when the panel is divided into a plurality of parts.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a printer system capable of expanding a copying machine to which a function expansion type system according to a first embodiment is applied. It is a figure which shows the software structure after function expansion. It is a figure which shows the software structure of the printer screen control process which concerns on this Embodiment 1. FIG. It is a figure which shows the example of a screen in the subpanel based on this Embodiment 1. FIG. FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating a software configuration of a multifunction machine according to a second embodiment. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram for explaining display control when the operation panel 504 shown in FIG. 5 is used as a printer panel and the operation panel 505 is used as a copy panel.

Explanation of symbols

10 Printer controller 11 CPU
12 PrinterROM
13 RAM
14 Engine controller 15 Printer panel (sub panel)
20 MFP expansion unit 21 Additional RAM
22 MFPROM
23 Scanner Controller 24 MFP Panel (Main Panel)
30 System bus 100 Operating system (OS)
200 MFP Screen Control Process 201 Printer Screen Control Process 202 Scanner Control Process 203 Engine Control Process 300 Driver (Printer Panel, MFP Panel, Engine, Scanner)
500 MFP 501 Plotter 502 HDD
503 Network I / F unit 504, 505 Operation panel 510 Software group 511 Printer application 512 Copy application 513 Fax application 514 Scanner application 515 Net file application 516 Process inspection application 520 Platform 521 General-purpose OS (including device driver)
522 SCS
523 SRM
524 ECS
525 MCS
526 OCS
527 FCS
528 NCS
530 application

Claims (6)

An information processing apparatus having a first operation panel and a second operation panel,
A first software unit for controlling the first operation panel;
A second software unit for controlling the second operation panel;
A third software unit that provides an interface function for controlling hardware of the information processing apparatus to the first software unit and the second software unit;
An information processing apparatus comprising:   2. The information processing according to claim 1, wherein the first software unit or the second software unit is software that is created using the interface function and controls hardware of the information processing apparatus. apparatus.   The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the interface is defined by a function that operates on an operating system. There is an information processing method performed by an information processing apparatus having a first operation panel and a second operation panel,
A first step of controlling the first operation panel by a first software unit;
A second step of controlling the second operation panel by a second software unit;
A third step of providing an interface function for controlling the hardware of the information processing apparatus to the first software unit and the second software unit;
An information processing method comprising:   5. The information processing according to claim 4, wherein the first software unit or the second software unit is software that is created using the interface function and controls hardware of the information processing apparatus. Method.   The information processing method according to claim 4, wherein the interface is defined by a function that operates on an operating system.

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