JP3229189B2 - Image forming system - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image forming system provided with a plurality of image forming apparatuses such as a digital copying machine, and these image forming apparatuses are connected to each other via a communication device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, a digital copying machine as an image forming apparatus that is currently commercialized reads an original image by an image reading section when copying an original image, and designates the read original image. The image processing is performed by the image processing unit, and the image information is printed out by the recording unit. Therefore, in such a digital copying machine, an image is obtained on a sheet using only the image processing function of the digital copying machine.

On the other hand, in recent years, networking of a plurality of image recording apparatuses and the like has been proposed. For example, Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 53-116834 discloses a configuration in which a plurality of image reading devices and a plurality of image recording devices are connected via one control unit.

In this configuration, a document image read by any image reading device is printed out by any image recording device. With such a configuration, the standby time of the image recording apparatus can be reduced by exchanging a document in the image reading apparatus.

[0005] Also, Japanese Patent Publication No. 7-36592 discloses that
In an image forming system in which a plurality of copiers each including an image reading unit and an image recording unit are provided, and each of these copiers is connected to one control device, recording is performed in accordance with a set original copy mode. It is disclosed that an image signal to be supplied is distributed to a plurality of copying machines, and the copying operations are performed in parallel by these copying machines.

[0006]

However, the conventional image forming system has the following problems. That is, for example, while various image processing functions in a digital copying machine depend on software, the development of the software in recent years is remarkable, and in a digital copying machine, the image processing function is highly functional in a short time. Copiers with new functions and new functions have been commercialized. For this reason, for example, when a digital copying machine having a desired image processing function is purchased, even if the digital copying machine has the best image processing function at the time of purchase, the digital copying machine has a relatively short period of time. It will be of low function.

[0007] In this case, if the purchased digital copier cannot provide the copier with more functions than the functions provided by the copier, and if a higher function or a new function is required, , A replacement copy machine is required. This imposes a heavy financial burden on the user, and has always been a problem for manufacturers since they provide products that meet the needs of the times.

Therefore, in order to cope with the above problem, for example, reading is performed by any one of the copying machines, image processing is performed by the other copying machine, and image processing information of the copying machine that has performed the image processing is read. Is returned to the copying machine or the like that has read the image, and if it can be printed out by the copying machine or the like that has read the image, it is ideal because it is not necessary to replace the copying machine. However, there is a problem that the image processing result cannot be returned to the copying machine or the like which has read the image and printed out again.

In addition, when there is a large amount of image information to be processed, if distributed processing can be performed in other copying machines, the processing can be performed in a short time, which is efficient. Have a point.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, and has as its object to provide a case where an image forming function desired by an operator is not provided in an image forming apparatus which the operator intends to use. Even if the read image information read by one image forming apparatus is transferred to another image forming apparatus,
Image processing can be performed by the other image forming apparatus, and the image information obtained by the image processing can be returned to the original image forming apparatus and the like, and each image forming apparatus can be efficiently operated to obtain a desired visible image in a short time. Is to provide an image forming system capable of obtaining the following.

[0011]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming system, comprising: a plurality of image forming apparatuses such as a digital copying machine; A communication device for mutually transmitting and receiving image information, wherein at least one first image forming device in the plurality of image forming devices forms a visible image based on the image information, for example, a laser printer unit. An image recording unit, an input unit such as an operation panel for inputting a command for processing such as image processing in the image forming apparatus, and function information indicating a type of processing that can be performed by each image forming apparatus. And a plurality of image forming apparatuses capable of performing the predetermined process are selected based on a command instructing a predetermined process for image information from the input unit and the function information. While each of the plurality of pages of image information is transferred via the communication device to the selected plurality of image forming devices to perform distributed processing, the processed plurality of image information returned from the other image forming devices is For example, a transmission-side control unit that rearranges the image data in the original order and supplies the image data to the image recording unit, and a plurality of second image forming apparatuses different from the first image forming apparatus perform a predetermined process on the image information. A processing unit to perform;
A processing-side control unit that supplies the image information input via the communication device to the processing unit, and returns the image information processed by the processing unit to the first image forming apparatus via the communication device. It is characterized by having.

According to the above configuration, in the first image forming apparatus, the image information is obtained, for example, by reading a document image by a scanner provided in the image forming apparatus.

The image information is composed of, for example, a plurality of pages,
In some cases, the first image forming apparatus does not have a desired image processing function, for example.

At this time, when a command for requesting a predetermined image processing for the image information is input from the input unit by an operation on the input unit by the operator, the transmission-side control unit can perform the predetermined image processing. An image forming apparatus is selected based on the function information. Further, the transmission-side control unit transfers the image information to the selected plurality of image forming apparatuses via the communication device based on an input operation performed by the operator on the input unit.

In each of the second image forming apparatuses that have received the processing request, the processing section performs predetermined image processing on the image information. The processed image information is returned to the requesting first image forming apparatus via the communication device by the processing-side control unit of each second image forming apparatus. In the first image forming apparatus to which the processed image information is returned, the processed image information of a plurality of pages is rearranged in the original page order, and the image information is converted into a visible image by the image recording unit.

As described above, in the present image forming system,
For example, even if the image processing function desired by the operator is not present in the first image forming apparatus that the operator intends to use,
Image processing of a plurality of pieces of image information can be performed by distributed processing in a second image forming apparatus connected by a communication device. Therefore, it is not necessary for each image forming apparatus constituting the image forming system to individually have a predetermined image processing function. Thus, the economic burden on the user of the first image forming apparatus can be reduced.

Further, since a plurality of image information are distributedly processed by a plurality of second image forming apparatuses, processing of a plurality of document image information can be efficiently performed in a short time.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming system according to the first aspect, wherein the second image forming apparatus is configured to perform processing of designated image information. After the completion, when there is a return request from the first image forming apparatus, a return adjusting means for returning the processed image information is provided.

According to the above arrangement, the second image forming apparatus does not return the processed image information immediately after the processing of the designated image information is completed. When there is a return request from, the processed image information is returned.

That is, there is a case where the capacity of the requesting first image forming apparatus is small, and, for example, even if the processed image information is returned from the second image forming apparatus, the memory for storing it is small.

In such a case, the first image forming apparatus may send a return request to each of the second image forming apparatuses when necessary, for example, when the image can be immediately sent to the image recording unit and output.

Therefore, even if the requesting first image forming apparatus does not have a sufficient memory for storing a plurality of pieces of processed image information, predetermined processing can be distributed using the present image forming system.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming system according to the first aspect, wherein the second image forming apparatus completes processing of the designated image information. At the time when the image information has been processed by another image forming apparatus, and a determination unit for determining whether the processing of the image information preceding the image information has been completed. When it is determined by the determining means that the processing has been completed, the image data is transferred to the first image forming apparatus and output. When it is determined by the determining means that the processing of the image information of the preceding page is not completed, the first image is formed.
It is characterized in that there is provided a return adjusting means for waiting without returning to the image forming apparatus.

According to the above configuration, the second image forming apparatus does not return the processed image information immediately after the processing of the designated image information is completed, and the second image forming apparatus determines whether or not the second image forming apparatus has determined that the image information has been processed. It is determined whether the processing of the image information that is being processed and that is preceding the image information has been completed. Then, the return adjusting means returns the image data of the preceding page to the first image forming apparatus when the determining means determines that the processing of the preceding image information is completed, and the processing of the image information of the preceding page is completed. If it is determined by the determining means that the image information is not returned to the first image forming apparatus, the process waits without returning to the first image forming apparatus, and when there is a return request from the first image forming apparatus, the processed image information is returned.

That is, there is a case where the capacity of the requesting first image forming apparatus is small, and for example, even if the processed image information is returned from each image forming apparatus, the memory for storing it is small.

Even in such a case, the first image forming apparatus outputs the plurality of processed image information to the second image in the output order when necessary, for example, when the image can be immediately sent to the image recording unit and output. What is necessary is just to send a return request to the forming apparatus.

This eliminates the need for the first image forming apparatus to perform complicated output management control on the returned plurality of processed image information, so that even if a trouble occurs, the first image forming apparatus can return to the normal state. The procedure for restoring is simplified.

Therefore, even if the requesting first image forming apparatus does not have a sufficient memory for storing a plurality of processed image information, predetermined processing is distributed and processed using the present image forming system. The image forming apparatus can easily output a plurality of processed image information in page order.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the image forming system according to the first aspect, the transmitting-side control unit in the first image forming apparatus includes a plurality of image information units. When selecting a second image forming apparatus capable of performing the above-described predetermined processing in order to perform distributed processing, a second image forming apparatus having a margin for storing processed image information at a request destination is selected. I have.

According to the above configuration, when the first image forming apparatus selects the second image forming apparatus capable of performing the predetermined processing in order to perform the distributed processing of the plurality of pieces of image information, the transmitting side control unit transmits the request. A second image forming apparatus that has room for storing the processed image information is selected.

That is, as described above, when a plurality of pieces of image information are distributed, if the memory capacity of the first image forming apparatus is small, the processed image information is temporarily stored in the second image forming apparatus. May need to be kept in a safe place.

In such a case, if the memory capacity for storing the second image forming apparatus is small, the processed image information cannot be stored, and the image of the remaining page requested is not stored. Processing may not be possible.

However, according to the present invention, a second image forming apparatus which has enough room for storing processed image information is selected from a plurality of second image forming apparatuses in advance.

Therefore, in the second image forming apparatus,
It is possible to prevent the image processing time from becoming longer,
When viewed as the entire image forming system, the operation efficiency does not decrease.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the image forming system according to the first aspect of the present invention, the transmitting-side control unit in the first image forming apparatus includes a plurality of image information. When a second image forming apparatus capable of performing the predetermined processing is selected in order to perform distributed processing on the second image forming apparatus, the second image forming apparatus having a high processing capability in the predetermined processing, such as a new processing software version or It is characterized by selecting one with a high processing speed.

According to the above configuration, the determination as to which of the plurality of second image forming apparatuses in the image forming system is to be selected is made, for example, by processing a new version of processing software or a processing software having a high processing speed. The second image forming apparatus having higher ability is given priority.

Therefore, in the second image forming apparatus,
It is possible to prevent the image processing time from becoming longer,
When viewed as the entire image forming system, the operation efficiency can be improved.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming system, comprising: a plurality of image forming apparatuses; and a communication for connecting the plurality of image forming apparatuses and mutually transmitting and receiving image information. At least one first image forming apparatus in the plurality of image forming apparatuses is configured to perform predetermined processing such as image processing on image information, and form a visible image based on the image information. An image recording unit, an input unit for inputting a command for processing in the image forming apparatus, and function information indicating a type of processing that can be performed by each image forming apparatus including the first image forming apparatus. A plurality of image forming apparatuses, including the first image forming apparatus, capable of performing the predetermined processing are selected based on a command instructing predetermined processing for image information from the input unit and the function information, and a plurality of images are formed. Emotion To the processing unit of the selected first image forming apparatus and the processing unit of the second image forming apparatus via the communication device, respectively, while performing the distributed processing. A transmission-side control unit for rearranging the processed image information processed and the processed image information returned from the second image forming apparatus and supplying the rearranged image information to an image recording unit; A processing unit that performs predetermined processing on the image information, supplies the image information input through the communication device to the processing unit, and processes the image information processed by the processing unit through the communication device. And a processing-side control unit for returning to one image forming apparatus.

According to the above configuration, for example, in the case of performing distributed processing of image information composed of a plurality of pages, the first image forming apparatus which is its own apparatus also has a predetermined processing function such as an image processing function.

At this time, when an instruction to request a predetermined image processing for the image information is input from the input unit by an operation on the input unit by the operator, the transmission-side control unit can perform the predetermined image processing. A plurality of image forming apparatuses including the first image forming apparatus are selected based on the function information. Further, based on an input operation by the operator to the input unit, the transmission-side control unit transmits the selected image to the processing unit of the first image forming apparatus and the second image forming apparatus via the communication device. Transfer information.

In the second image forming apparatus that has received the processing request, the processing section performs predetermined image processing on the image information. The processed image information is returned by the processing-side control unit of the second image forming apparatus to the requesting first image forming apparatus via the communication device.

In the first image forming apparatus, the returned processed image information and the processed image information processed by the processing unit of the own apparatus are rearranged, and the image information of a plurality of pages is recorded. A visible image is obtained at the section.

As described above, in the present image forming system,
For example, when the first image forming apparatus that the operator intends to use also has an image processing function desired by the operator, if there is a plurality of pieces of image information, the own apparatus and another second image forming apparatus And can be performed by distributed processing.

Accordingly, a plurality of pieces of image information are distributed and processed by utilizing a processing unit mounted on the own apparatus, so that processing of a plurality of original image information can be performed more efficiently in a shorter time.

[0045]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

[Embodiment 1] An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. In the present image forming system, a plurality of digital copying machines as image forming apparatuses are connected via a communication device. FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing the overall configuration of a digital copying machine 30 as an example of the digital copying machine. In FIG. 1, the digital copying machine 30 includes a scanner unit 31, a laser printer unit 32 as an image recording unit, and a post-processing device 34 including a sorter.

The scanner section 31 includes a document table 35 made of transparent glass, and a double-sided automatic document feeder (hereinafter referred to as “R”) for automatically feeding and conveying the document onto the document table 35.
ADF (Recirculating Automatic Document Feeder) "
), 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 document image read by the scanner unit 40 is sent as image information, that is, image data, to an image processing unit described later, where predetermined image processing is performed.

The RADF 36 is a device that automatically feeds a plurality of documents set at once on a predetermined document tray onto the document mounting table 35 of the scanner unit 40 one by one. The RADF 36 has a transport path for a one-sided original, a transport path for a two-sided original, a transport path switching mechanism, and the like so that the scanner unit 40 reads one or both sides of the original according to an operator's selection. ing.

The scanner unit 40 includes a first scanning unit 40a, a second scanning unit 40b, and an optical lens body 43.
And a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) 44. The first scanning unit 40a includes a lamp reflector assembly 41 that irradiates a surface of a document on the document table 35 with light to scan the document, and a second reflection mirror 42a.

The second scanning unit 40b includes a second reflection mirror 42b and a third reflection mirror 42c. The first
The third reflection mirrors 42a to 42c are for guiding the reflected light from the document to the CCD 44. The optical lens body 43 forms a reflected light image from the document on the CCD 44. The CCD 44 is an element that converts a reflected light image from a document into an electric image signal.

The scanner section 31 operates in cooperation with the RADF 36 and the scanner unit 40 to move the document table 3
The scanner unit 40 is moved along the lower surface of the document table 35 to read a document image and convert the image data into image data while sequentially placing the documents on the document 5.

The image data obtained from the scanner unit 31 is sent to an image processing unit to be described later, subjected to various image processing, and temporarily stored in a memory 73 of the image processing unit to be described later. Thereafter, the image data is provided to the laser printer unit 32 in response to the output instruction, and is recorded as an image on a sheet.

The laser printer unit 32 has a laser writing unit 46 and an electrophotographic processing unit 47 for forming an image at the upper part, and a paper storage / transport unit 55 at the lower part. The laser writing unit 46 includes a semiconductor laser that emits laser light corresponding to image data from the memory 73, a polygon mirror that deflects the laser light at an equal angular velocity, and a laser light that is It has an f-θ lens and the like for correcting so that it is deflected at a constant speed on the body drum 48.

The electrophotographic process unit 47 includes a photosensitive drum 48, a charging unit, a developing unit, a transfer unit, a peeling unit, a cleaning unit, a fixing unit 49, and the like disposed around the photosensitive drum 48 in accordance with a known mode. It consists of. A transport path 50 is provided downstream of the fixing device 49 in the transport direction of a sheet on which an image is to be formed. The transport path 50 branches into a transport path 57 leading to the post-processing device 34 and a transport path 58 leading to the sheet storage / transport section 55.

The paper storage / conveyance unit 55 includes the first cassette 5
1, a second cassette 52, a double-sided copying unit 53, and a multi-bypass tray 54 are provided. The first cassette 51 and the second cassette 52 accommodate a bundle of sheets,
When the operator selects a cassette containing sheets of a desired size, the sheets are sent out one by one from the sheet bundle in the cassette, and are sequentially conveyed to the electrophotographic process unit 47. The double-sided copying unit 53 is for supplying the paper on which the image has been formed in the electrophotographic processing unit 47 to the electrophotographic processing unit 47 again without being turned upside down or without being turned upside down.

In the laser printer section 32, the image data read from the above-mentioned memory 73 is emitted as a laser beam from the laser writing unit 46, and the electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 48 of the electrophotographic process section 47. Is formed as This electrostatic latent image is visualized to become a toner image. This toner image is electrostatically transferred onto the paper conveyed from the paper storage / conveyance unit 55, and then fixed on the paper by the fixing unit 49. You.

The paper on which the image has been formed in this way is
The sheet is sent from the fixing device 49 to the post-processing device 34 via the conveyance path 50,
Is supplied again to the electrophotographic processing unit 47 via the.

Next, the image processing section provided in the digital copying machine 30 will be described. The image processing unit performs image processing on image data of a document obtained from the scanner unit 31. As shown in FIG. 3, the image processing unit includes an image data input unit 70, an image data processing unit 71, an image data output unit 72, a memory 73, and a print control unit (hereinafter, referred to as a transmission control unit and a processing control unit). ,
(Referred to as “PCU”) 74.

The PCU 74 controls the operation of the digital copier 30 as a whole, and has a CPU (Central Processor).
ssing Unit). The memory 73 stores image data, and is a RAM (Random Access
Memory) and a hard disk.

The image data input unit 70 is a CCD unit 70
a, histogram processing unit 70b and error diffusion processing unit 70
c. This image data input unit 70 is a CCD
The image data of the original read from the document 44 is binarized and processed by the error diffusion method while obtaining a histogram as a binary digital amount.
3 is stored once.

In the CCD unit 70a, after an analog signal corresponding to each pixel density of image data is A / D converted,
MTF correction, black-and-white correction or gamma correction is performed and output to the histogram processing unit 70b as a digital signal of 256 gradations (8 bits).

In the histogram processing section 70b, density information (histogram data) is obtained by adding the digital signal output from the CCD section 70a for each pixel density of 256 gradations. This histogram data is sent to the error diffusion processing unit 70c as pixel data, and is sent to the PCU 74 as needed.

The error diffusion processing unit 70c uses the error diffusion method, which is a kind of pseudo intermediate processing, that is, the method in which the binarization error is reflected in the binarization determination of the adjacent pixel.
The digital signal of 8 bits / pixel output from the CD unit 70a is converted into 1 bit (binarized), and a redistribution calculation for faithfully reproducing the local area density in the document is performed.

The image data processing section 71 includes a multi-value processing section 7
1a / 71b, synthesis processing section 71c, density conversion processing section 71
d, a scaling unit 71e, an image processing unit 71f, an error diffusion processing unit 71g, and a compression processing unit 71h. The image data processing unit 71 is a processing unit that converts input image data into image data desired by an operator. Therefore, the final output image data is stored in the memory 73.
Until the image data is stored in the image data processing section 71, the processing is performed. However, the above-described processing units included in the image data processing unit 71 function as needed, and may not function.

In the multi-value processing sections 71a and 71b, the image data binarized by the error diffusion processing section 70c is converted again into 256 gradations. The synthesis processing unit 71c selectively performs a logical operation for each pixel, that is, an operation of a logical sum, a logical product, or an exclusive logical sum. The data to be subjected to this calculation is the pixel data stored in the memory 73 and the bit data from the pattern generator (PG).

The density conversion processing section 71d arbitrarily sets the relationship between the input density and the output density for the data of 256 tones based on a predetermined tone conversion table. The scaling unit 71e performs an interpolation process based on the input known data in accordance with the designated scaling ratio,
Pixel data (density value) for the target pixel after scaling is obtained. After that, the magnification in the sub-scanning direction is changed based on the pixel data, and then the magnification in the main scanning direction is changed.

The image processing section 71f performs various image processing on the input pixel data. In addition, information collection for a data string, such as feature extraction, is performed. The error diffusion processing unit 71g performs the same processing as the error diffusion processing unit 70c of the image data input unit 70. The compression processing unit 71h compresses the binary data by encoding called run length. As for the compression of the image data, the compression functions in the final processing loop when the final output image data is completed.

The image data output section 72 includes a restoration section 72a,
It includes a multi-value processing section 72b, an error diffusion processing section 72c, and a laser output section 72d. The image data output unit 72
The image data stored in the memory 73 is restored in a compressed state and converted again to the original 256 gradations, and then error diffusion of quaternary data that is a smoother halftone representation than the binary data is performed. The data is transferred to 72d.

In the decompression section 72a, the compression processing section 71h
The compressed image data is restored. The multi-value processing section 72b performs the same processing as the multi-value processing sections 71a and 71b of the image data processing section 71. The error diffusion processing unit 72c performs the same processing as the error diffusion processing unit 70c of the image data input unit 70.

The laser output section 72d converts digital pixel data into a laser on / off signal based on a control signal from a sequence controller (not shown). The semiconductor laser in the laser writing unit 46 is turned on / off based on the on / off signal, and an electrostatic latent image is written on the photosensitive drum 48.

The data handled by the image data input unit 70 and the image data output unit 72 is basically stored in the memory 73 in the form of binary data in order to reduce the capacity of the memory 73. It is also possible to perform processing in the form of quaternary data in consideration of the deterioration of image data.

The operation of the digital copying machine 30 is based on the PCU7.
4 and the configuration of the control system by the PCU 74 is as shown in FIG.

In the figure, a PC-related load 75, a RADF-related load 76, an operation board unit 77, a sorter control unit 78, a scanner-related load 79, a printer-related load 80, and the image data processing unit 71 are connected to a PCU 74. ing.

The PCU 74 manages each of the above-described units by sequence control, and outputs a control signal to each unit during the control. The desk-related load 75 is a load of a motor, a clutch, and the like in a sorter of the post-processing device 34 other than the digital copier main body. The RADF-related load 76 is the RADF 36
, The load of the motor, clutch, switch, etc. The scanner-related load 79 is a load such as a motor and a solenoid in the scanner unit 40. The printer-related load 80 is a load such as a motor, a solenoid, and a high-voltage power supply in the electrophotographic process unit 47.

The sorter control unit 78 includes a CP
U to control the operation of the sorter based on a control signal from the PCU 74.

The operation board unit 77 is an input unit for inputting various settings such as a copy mode and instructions to the digital copier 30 by an operator, and includes a CPU. The operation board unit 77 transfers a control signal corresponding to, for example, a copy mode set by the operator to the PCU 74. The PCU 74 operates the digital copying machine 30 according to the mode based on the control signal. Meanwhile, PC
U74 sends the digital copier 30 to the operation board unit 77.
Is transferred. The operation board unit 77 operates the digital copier 30 based on the control signal.
Is displayed on the display unit in order to show the operator what operation state is currently in operation.

The memory 73 connected to the image data processing section 71 comprises a main memory 73a composed of, for example, a semiconductor memory and a hard disk 73b. The image data communication unit 81 is connected to the main memory 73a. This image data communication unit 8
Reference numeral 1 is provided to enable information communication such as image data and image control signals with another digital information device. The image data communication unit 81 is, for example, as shown in FIG.
In the digital copying machine 93 shown in FIG.
3a and a communication line 96.

The operation board unit 77 has an operation panel 90 as an input section shown in FIG. The liquid crystal display device 1 which is a touch panel type display unit is disposed in the center of the operation panel 90. On a part of the screen of the liquid crystal display device 1, a screen switching instruction area 1a is provided. The screen switching instruction area 1a is
This is for inputting an instruction to switch the display screen to a screen for selecting an image editing function. When the operator directly presses the area 1a with a finger, various editing functions are listed on the screen of the liquid crystal display device 1 so that a desired function can be selected, as described later. At this time, when the operator presses a desired editing function area among the displayed display areas of the various editing functions with a finger, the editing function is set.

On the operation panel 90, a brightness adjustment dial 2 for adjusting the brightness of the screen of the liquid crystal display device 1 is provided at the left end position in FIG. Between the dial 2 and the liquid crystal display device 1, an automatic magnification setting key 3, a zoom key 4, fixed magnification keys 5.6 and an equal magnification key 7 are provided. The automatic magnification setting key 3 is used to set a mode for automatically selecting a copy magnification.
The zoom key 4 is used to set the copy magnification in increments of 1%. The fixed magnification keys 5 and 6 are for selecting a fixed magnification, and the same magnification key 7 is for returning the copy magnification to a standard magnification (same magnification).

At the right position of the liquid crystal display device 1 in the figure, the number setting key 13, clear key 14, start key 15, all cancel key 16, interrupt key 17, operation guide key 18, message forward key 19, memory Transmission mode key 20, copy / fax mode switching key 2
1. One-touch dial keys 22 are provided.

The copy number setting key 13 is used to set the number of copies, and the clear key 14 is operated to clear the number of copies or to stop continuous copying halfway. The start key 15 is for instructing the start of copying, and the all release key 16 is for releasing all of the currently set modes and returning to the standard state. The interrupt key 17 is operated when the user wants to copy another document during continuous copying. The operation guide key 18 is operated when the operation of the digital copier 30 is not known.
The operation method of the digital copying machine 30 is displayed on the liquid crystal display device 1. The message forward key 19 is for switching the display of the message displayed by the operation of the operation guide key 18 while sequentially forwarding the message.

The memory transmission mode key 20, the copy / fax mode switching key 21 and the one-touch dial key 22 are setting keys for the facsimile mode.
The memory transmission mode key 20 is used to specify that a document to be transmitted is temporarily stored in a memory and then transmitted.
The fax mode switching key 21 is a digital copier 30
Mode for switching between copy and fax. The one-touch dial key 22 is for making a one-touch operation to make a call to a destination whose telephone number is stored in the digital copying machine 30 in advance.

The configuration of the operation panel 90 relating to the types and arrangement of the various keys is merely an example, and differs depending on various functions mounted on the digital copying machine 30.

In the liquid crystal display device 1, for example, FIG.
FIG. 7A shows a basic screen shown in FIG. 7A, a first function setting screen shown in FIG. 7B, a second function setting screen shown in FIG.
, A post-processing setting screen shown in FIG. 8B, an initial setting screen shown in FIG. 8A, a fingerprint registration screen shown in FIG. 8B, and a department management setting shown in FIG. The screen, the limiter setting screen shown in FIG. 9A, the simulation screen shown in FIG. 9B, and each screen described later can be displayed.

On the basic screen, a function setting area, an image quality setting area, a post-processing setting area, an initial setting area, a setting function confirmation operation area, and a cassette setting area are provided. These areas serve as setting keys 101a to 101d. Further, on the basic screen, a set cassette display, a density display, a copy number display, and a magnification display are performed. When the setting function confirmation operation area is operated, the function set in the image forming system is displayed on the liquid crystal display device 1.

On the first function setting screen, there are provided areas for setting respective editing functions of mirror image, italic, inversion, shadowing, trimming and masking. These areas are the setting keys 102a to 102f. Further, each operation area for transition to the basic screen and transition to the next page screen is set. When the next page key is pressed, a second function setting screen is displayed.

On the second function setting screen, there are an area for setting editing functions for synthesis and independent scaling, an area for setting a sharpness function for enhancing an image, and an area for setting a translation function. Provided. These areas serve as setting keys 103a to 103d. further,
Each operation area for transition to the basic screen and transition to the previous page screen is set.

On the image quality setting screen, the density, HI-F
I (high-quality copy mode), background removal mode,
Auto scaling mode, text mode, text / photo mixed mode,
Each setting area for setting a photograph mode and a magnification is provided. Further, the display of the density and the magnification is performed.

On the post-processing setting screen, there are provided an input area for determining whether the original is single-sided or double-sided, an input area for determining whether the original is single-sided or double-sided, and a setting area for the bookbinding function. Further, a setting area for the post-processing function of the staple sorter, the sorter and the finish, and a setting area for the electronic RDH are provided.

On the initial setting screen, fingerprint registration, department management, simulation, maintenance management, new function registration,
A setting area for each mode for selecting an output device and an operation area for transition to a basic screen are set.

On the fingerprint registration screen, an input area for a department code and a name is provided, and the input department code and name are displayed.

On the department management screen, a setting input area for a department code, the number of persons, etc. is provided, and the inputted department code, the number of people, etc. are displayed.

The transition of each screen is performed in the order shown in FIG. That is, in the liquid crystal display device 1, first, a basic screen is displayed. When any one of the function setting area, the image quality setting area, the post-processing setting area, and the initial setting area is pressed on this display screen, the display is performed. The screen changes to a screen corresponding to the area.

For example, when the function setting area is pressed, the screen is switched to the first function setting screen. When the operation area for transition to the next page screen is pressed on this screen, the screen is changed to the second screen. The screen transits to a function setting screen (NEXT function setting screen). On the other hand, when the operation area for transition to the basic screen is pressed, the screen returns to the basic screen. Further, for example, in the first function setting screen, when the italic function setting area and the inversion function setting area are pressed, the screen is inverted as shown in FIG. 12A. After that, the screen transits to the screen of FIG. Next, on the screen of FIG.
When the user presses the button 12a, the screen changes to an italic setting screen shown in FIG. In the italic setting screen, an angle input key 106a as a setting area for an oblique angle and a setting completion key 106b as a setting completion input area are provided. Further, the display of the italic angle is performed.

When a predetermined function setting area is pressed in the first and second function setting screens, the screen of the liquid crystal display device 1 is correspondingly set like the above-mentioned italic setting screen in response to the pressing operation. Screen.

Table 1 shows examples of image editing functions of the image forming system which can be set by operating the function setting area and processing operations thereof. The image editing function set in the image forming system is not limited to these functions. As other things, for example, a function of copying handwritten characters and images can be considered.

[0096]

[Table 1]

On the other hand, the present image forming system is constituted by digital information equipment provided in an office, for example, as shown in FIG. The image forming system shown in the figure includes a digital copying machine 91 as an image forming apparatus.
To 93, a scanner 94 and a printer 95.

The digital copying machine 91 as the first image forming apparatus is a low-cost, low-function, memoryless version.
Has basic editing functions. The term "memoryless" as used herein means that although a page memory capable of storing a large amount of image data is not provided, a line memory required for performing a normal operation on image data in a digital copying machine is provided at a minimum. To indicate that The basic editing function is a function that can be executed without a page memory, such as black and white inversion. In the digital copying machine 91, the scanner function of the scanner unit 40 shown in FIG. 2 is monochrome and has a resolution of 400 DPI. The copy speed is 20 CPM (20 sheets / min), which is of a low speed class. Further, in the digital copying machine 91, the printer function of the laser printer unit 32 is monochrome and has a resolution of 400 DPI, and the interface (I / F)
91a.

The digital copying machine 92 as the second image forming apparatus has a scanner function of monochrome and a resolution of 400 DP.
I, the printer function is monochrome, the resolution is 400 DPI, and the copy speed is a middle class of 40 CPM. It also has various editing functions, a memory of 64 Mbytes (resolution of 400 DPI, 8 bits / pixel, equivalent to 4 pages of A4 size) as a page memory, and an interface 92a. The memory corresponds to the main memory 73a shown in FIG.

The digital copying machine 93 as the second image forming apparatus has a scanner function of monochrome and a resolution of 400 DP.
I. The printer function is monochrome, the resolution is 400 DPI, and the copy speed is 60 CPM. In addition, a large capacity of 500 Mbytes (resolution: 40 Mbytes) as various editing functions, character recognition functions, bit data coding functions, and page memory.
It has a memory of 0 DPI, 8 bits / pixel, a compression ratio of 1/4, and a capacity of 100 pages of A4 size), and is of an advanced class. Therefore, it is also possible to change the page order of the image data and store document data in various formats. The memory corresponds to the one including the main memory 73a and the hard disk 73b shown in FIG. Further, the digital copying machine 93 includes an interface 93a.

The scanner 94 is capable of reading a color image and has a resolution of 600 DPI.
The printer 95 is capable of printing a color image,
The recording density is 600 DPI. These scanners 9
4 and the printer 95 have respective interfaces 94.
a.95a.

The digital copying machine 91 and the digital copying machines 92 and 93, the scanner 94 and the printer 95 are connected to respective interfaces 91a to 95a and a communication line 96.
, So that data can be transmitted and received mutually. Therefore, a communication device is configured by the interfaces 91a to 95a, the communication line 96, and the PCU 74.

The types of data handled by this communication device are, for example, bit data (gradation data per pixel, for example, 8 bits; 256 gradations) such as image data, and command codes. The communication device can transmit a high gradation image such as a natural image with high definition. In addition, the communication device reduces the amount of text data such as characters to a small data amount by encoding,
High-speed transmission is also possible. In particular, image data having a gradation such as a natural image may be transferred after being processed by a dither method or an error diffusion method, which is one of the area gradation methods generally used for compressing the data amount. . The processing by the error diffusion method is performed in advance in each device. The format of the transmission data is set according to a format that can be processed by each of the digital copying machines 91 to 93 or the printer 95. Therefore, for example, in a digital copying machine that has received image data to be output on paper, the image data is input to the laser printer unit 32 and converted into a data string required for writing by the image processing unit. Is output.

Each of the interfaces 91a to 95a
Is defined by a protocol and a communication speed specified in each of them, and an appropriate standard is selected according to the content of data to be transmitted, for example, a data amount, a positional relationship between respective devices, for example, a distance, and the like. Furthermore, in the present image forming system, not only is the device connected one-to-one, but also the daisy chain (Daisy Ch.
There is also a state where a plurality of devices are connected to a common communication line 96 as in ain). Therefore, an address is set in each device so that each of the interfaces 91a to 95a can determine the transmission destination of the image data. The standard of the interfaces 91a to 95a is, for example, Ethernet, which is a network capable of transferring image data at high speed. Further, interfaces 91a to 95a
Is SCSI (Small Computer System Interface), R
It is also compatible with general-purpose standards such as S-232C.

Each of the digital copying machines 91 to 93 has a FAX function capable of transmitting and receiving data via a telephone line, and a printer mode for printing out document data from a personal computer, a word processor or the like.

In general, the functions of digital copiers provided in each office are greatly influenced by price problems and the capacity of image memory, and the purpose of use in each office and the demands for the functions are also considered. There are various types depending on the degree. Therefore, the digital copiers provided in the office include the digital copiers 91 to 9 described above.
A variety of product lineups are conceivable without being limited to three.

Here, in the embodiment of the present invention, an example of the image editing function provided in the digital copying machines 91 to 93 is shown in Table 2 below.

[0108]

[Table 2]

The function information is stored in each digital copying machine 91.
９３93 are stored in the memories 73, respectively, and can be referred to at any time by each PCU 74.

In this image forming system, as shown in FIG. 11, a digital copying machine 93 having the most image processing functions and having a large capacity memory 73 is used as a main digital copying machine. The other digital copiers 91 and 92 are connected to a scanner 94 and a printer 95. Further, another digital copying machine 91/92 can use the image processing function of the digital copying machine 93 and the memory 73, for example. When the image processing function is used, the digital copier 91.9 is used.
2, the image data is transmitted to the digital copying machine 93, the image data is subjected to predetermined image processing by the digital copying machine 93, and the processed image data is returned to the original digital copying machine, for example. Is output as an image on paper. When the memory 73 is used, the image data is transmitted to the digital copying machine 93 by one of the digital copying machines 91 and 92, and the image data is stored in the memory 73 of the digital copying machine 93. It will be returned to the original digital copier.

In the above configuration, the operation of the image forming system will be described in detail with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
Here, a digital copying machine 9 as a first image forming apparatus
1 describes that the image processing for a document image selects a “sharpness” function for enhancing the image for each of a plurality of document images and performs distributed processing on digital copying machines 92 and 93 as second image forming apparatuses. I do. In addition,
The functions of the digital copying machine 93 are also displayed on the function setting screen of the liquid crystal display device 1 in the digital copying machines 91 and 92.

First, when the function setting key 101a is pressed on the basic screen of the liquid crystal display device 1 shown in FIG. 6A, the screen of the liquid crystal display device 1 is changed to the first screen shown in FIG.
Move to Function setting screen. When the next page key is pressed in this state, the screen of the liquid crystal display device 1 transits to the second function setting screen shown in FIG. When the sharpness key 103c is pressed to select the "sharpness" function on this screen (S1), the sharpness function setting area is inverted as shown in FIG. It can be seen that the function has been selected.

Next, the PCU 74 determines whether or not the “sharpness” function is provided in the digital copying machine 91 performing the operation (S2). In this case, as shown in Table 2, the digital copying machine 91 does not have the “sharpness” function. Therefore, the determination result in S2 is NO
Becomes Therefore, in the liquid crystal display device 1, "sharpness"
In addition to displaying that the function is not available in the machine, the user is also prompted to select whether to process the external device in the system other than the machine (S
3). The display screen for this selection is as shown in FIG.

As described above, since the digital copying machine 91 does not have the “sharpness” function, it is inevitable to request the copying machine in the system to perform the “sharpness” function. In the embodiment, the intention of the operator is confirmed by displaying the display screen for the purpose of confirmation. Therefore, when the operator does not perform the processing by the digital copiers 92 and 93 in the system, the operator presses the cancel key 122b to perform the operation.
The PCU 74 determines that (S4), and can cancel the setting mode (S5).

When the system selection key 122a is pressed on the above display screen, the PCU 74 determines that the key is pressed (S4), and the digital copying machine having the "sharpness" function among the digital copying machines in the system. When the devices 92 and 93 are selected, the screen of the liquid crystal display device 1 transits to the sharpness function setting screen shown in FIG.

Next, a sharpness level of "sharpness" is input by the sharpness input key 116a displayed on the display screen. When the setting is completed, the setting completion key 11
6B, the PCU 74 of the digital copying machine 91 assigns function control information to each image and performs a scrambling process described later.
93 (S6).

The above image data is transmitted from the main memory 73a shown in FIG. 4 via the image data communication unit 81 and a modem (not shown). At this time, as the content to be transmitted, in addition to the image data, the requested processing content, that is, the function control information indicating the “sharpness” process here is also transmitted. The transmission image data is input to each digital copying machine 92/93 via the interface 91a, the communication line 96, and the interfaces 92a / 93a as shown in FIG.

Here, the image data to be processed is
For example, it is data of a document image read by the scanner unit 31. The digital copying machine 91 does not include a page memory, but includes only a line memory. Therefore, the read image data for each line is sequentially transferred for each line.

Further, when a general-purpose network is used for the above transfer, image data may leak to the outside. For this reason, when the image data is an image of a very important document and includes confidential matters, it is necessary to take sufficient care not to leak the contents.

However, in the case of a general-purpose network, an unspecified number of people can arbitrarily access the network.
There is a possibility that someone who snoops on data running on the network, such as a crime such as cker), may appear. Therefore, it is preferable to perform data conversion such as scramble (Scramble) processing on the data to be sent to the network so that the contents cannot be recognized even if the eavesdropping is performed. This scrambling process is also performed in the present embodiment.

The digital copying machines 92 and 93 receiving the image data cancel the scrambling process and
Check the image data and the requested function control information. Then, the received data is processed in accordance with the content of the request, that is, the "sharpness" processing (S7).

Next, when the processing is completed and the transferable image data is ready, the scramble processing is performed again.
The image data is returned to the digital copying machine 91, which is the source of the image data, via the reverse route (S8).

In the digital copying machine 91, the scramble processing of the received data is canceled (S9). The image-processed image data, from which the scramble processing has been canceled, is temporarily stored in the image memory for each page, and after being subjected to the above-described series of other processing, the laser printer unit 32 determines that the image data can be printed. Then, the image data is sequentially output to the laser as serial image data, whereby the image data is output as an image on paper (S10). The recording operation in this case is as described for the digital copying machine 30 described above.

On the other hand, if the result of S2 is YES, that is, if the digital copying machine being operated has the "sharpness" function, as shown in FIG. Is displayed, and a selection is made as to whether the processing is performed by utilizing the digital copier 93 in a system other than the main unit (S
11).

In this case, for example, it is assumed that the present apparatus is a digital copying machine 92 and the image data processing section 71 of the digital copying machine 93 performs "sharpness" processing.

At this time, the PCU 74 determines whether or not the processing is to be performed by the system (S12). If the processing is to be performed by the system, that is, the digital copying machine 93 in this case, the process proceeds to S6 to digitally copy the original image. The image data processed by the digital copying machine 93 is transferred to the laser printer unit 32, while the image data processed by the digital copying machine 93 is output by the laser printer unit 32. On the other hand, when the image data is processed only by this machine, the "sharpness" processing is performed by itself (S13) And output it.

As described above, in the present image forming system,
When an image editing function not provided in the digital copying machine 91 is selected, the image editing can be performed by requesting the digital copying machines 92 and 93 to be distributed. Therefore, the digital copying machine 91 is not necessarily a digital copying machine 92/93.
It is not necessary to provide the same high image editing function as that described above.

In the example shown in FIG. 1, in S8, the image data processed by the digital copiers 92 and 93 is returned to the digital copier 91 of the sender, and the digital copier 91 converts the image data. Alternatively, the return destination of the processed image data may be selected according to various conditions, and the image may be output by the selected digital copying machine or printer.

Although the above description has been directed to the digital copying machines 91 to 93, a combination of the scanner 94 and the printer 95 can also have a function as a digital copying machine. It can be the same object as a digital copying machine. In this case, for example, the resolution 60 obtained by reading with the scanner 94 is
The color image data of 0 DPI is transferred to the digital copying machine 93 to perform image processing, and the processed image data is returned to the printer 95 of 600 DPI for printing. Thereby, the same operation as the above-described digital copying machine can be performed.

As described above, in the image forming system of the present embodiment, in the digital copying machine 91, the image information is
The original image is obtained by reading the original image by the scanner unit 31 provided in the digital copying machine 91.

This image information consists of a plurality of pages, for example.
In addition, the digital copying machine 91 may not have a desired image processing function such as a “sharpness” function.

At this time, when an instruction to request a predetermined “sharpness” process for image information is input from the operation panel 90 by an operation on the operation panel 90 by the operator, the PCU 74 starts the predetermined image processing. Is selected based on the function information. Further, the PCU 74 selects a plurality of selected digital copiers 9 based on an input operation on the operation panel 90 by the operator.
The image information is transferred to the second and the second 93 via the interfaces 91a, 92a and 93a and the communication line 96.

Each digital copier 92 that has received a processing request
In step 93, the image data processing section 71 performs predetermined image processing on the image information. The processed image information is sent to the interface 9 by the PCU 74 of each digital copying machine 92/93.
It is returned to the requesting digital copying machine 91 via 1a, 92a, 93a and the communication line 96. In the digital copying machine 91 to which the processed image information is returned, the processed image information of a plurality of pages is rearranged in the original page order, and the image information is converted into a visible image by the laser printer unit 32.

As a result, in this image forming system, for example, the “sharpness” image processing function desired by the operator
Even if the operator does not have the digital copier 91, the image processing of the image information of a plurality of pages is performed by the digital copiers 92 and 93 connected by the interfaces 91a, 92a and 93a and the communication line 96. And can be performed by distributed processing.

Therefore, it is not necessary for the digital copying machine 91 constituting the image forming system to individually have a predetermined image processing function. Thus, the economic burden on the user of the digital copying machine 91 can be reduced.

Further, since a plurality of pieces of image information are distributedly processed by a plurality of digital copying machines 92 and 93, it is possible to provide a copying system that can efficiently process a plurality of original image information in a short time. it can.

Further, in the image forming system of the present embodiment, after the predetermined “sharpness” processing is completed in the plurality of digital copying machines 92 and 93, the digital copying machines 92 and 93 are connected to the image forming system via the interfaces 91a, 92a and 93a and the communication line 96. After being sequentially returned to the requesting digital copying machine 91 and temporarily stored in the memory 73, after the recording is ready,
The laser printer 32 sequentially outputs the data.

Therefore, it is possible to output a processed image efficiently without stopping the output of the laser printer unit 32 until all the original images are collected.

[Second Embodiment] The following will describe another embodiment of the present invention with reference to FIG. For the sake of convenience, members having the same functions as those shown in the drawings of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted.

In the image forming system according to the present embodiment, when the own machine also has the “sharpness” function and there is a document of a plurality of pages, a plurality of pieces of image information are transferred between the own machine and the digital copying machine. Perform "sharpness" processing in combination. Specifically, this machine is a digital copier 9
It is sufficient to assume the case of 2.

This will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. Note that the flowchart shown in FIG. 15 has many portions common to the first embodiment, and therefore, different portions will be mainly described.

First, in step S1, when the "sharpness" function is selected on the second function selection screen, the P
The CU 74 includes an image forming system having a “sharpness” function and each digital copying machine 91/9.
The image processing capability of 2.93 is determined (S21). Next, the digital copier 92, which is the machine, is called “Sharpness”.
After determining whether or not the camera has the function (S2), in this case, since the apparatus has the “sharpness” function, Y
ES, and allows the user to select whether the “sharpness” function is to be performed only with the camera or in combination with the system (S2
2).

If it is determined by the selection that the processing is to be performed in combination with the system (S23), the request destination of the image processing of each document information is determined including this machine (S24).

After that, the flow shifts to S6, where function control information is added to each image, scramble processing is performed, and the image data is transferred to the digital copying machine 93 (S6).

The digital copier 93 which has received the above image data processes the received data in accordance with the content of the request, that is, the “sharpness” processing (S 7). When the processing is completed and the transmittable image data is completed, The image data is returned to the digital copying machine 92 that is the image data sending source (S8).

Here, in the present embodiment, when the image data processed by the digital copying machine 93 is returned to the digital copying machine 92, the image information subjected to the image processing is immediately replaced when the image processing is completed. Instead of transferring the image to the digital copier 92, the digital copier 92 is set to output the image, that is, to return the image after the predetermined image processing is requested. Has become.

That is, in the first embodiment, the memory of the digital copying machine 91 as the first image forming apparatus has room, and after the image processing, the digital copying machine 91 is returned from the digital copying machines 92 and 93 as the second image forming apparatus. All of the processed image data to be processed can be stored in the memory of the digital copying machine 91.

However, it is also conceivable that the digital copier which requested the image processing does not have sufficient memory for storing the image information returned from each copier after the image processing. As described above, as another example where the memory is insufficient, for example, when the digital copier 93 attempts to return the processed image data from the digital copier 93 to the digital copier 92, the digital copier 92 performs another process. Free space may be getting smaller.

In the present embodiment, as a countermeasure against such a case, when the laser printer section 32 of the digital copying machine 92 outputs an image, the digital copying machine 93
Is not immediately returned to the digital copying machine 92 when the image processing is completed, but when the digital copying machine 92 is in the stage of outputting the image, that is, the return adjustment PCU74 as a means
Thus, after it is determined whether the return of the image data has been requested (S25), the image data is returned after waiting until there is an image return request (S8).

Thereafter, the digital copying machine 92 temporarily stores the returned image-processed image data in the image memory for each page, and also processes the processed image data obtained by the "sharpness" process of the digital copying machine 92. After the rearrangement together with the data, the image data is output as an image on a sheet for each page (S10).

As a result, in the image forming system according to the present embodiment, processing can be performed only by the main unit in response to a request from the operator, and other devices, that is, the digital copier 93
Can also be processed, depending on the page of the manuscript,
As described above, this apparatus and another apparatus, that is, the digital copying machine 93 can be used separately for processing.

As described above, in the image forming system according to the present embodiment, for example, when the image information composed of a plurality of pages is subjected to the distributed processing, the digital copying machine 92, which is its own machine, performs the predetermined “sharpness” image processing function. Is provided.

At this time, when an instruction to request a predetermined “sharpness” image processing for image information is input from the operation panel 90 by an operation on the operation panel 90 by the operator, the PCU 74 sets the predetermined “sharpness”. A plurality of digital copiers that can perform image processing are selected based on the function information, including the own machine. Further, based on an input operation on the operation panel 90 by the operator, the PCU 74 communicates with the selected image data processing unit 71 of the digital copying machine 92 and the digital copying machine 93 via the interfaces 92 a and 93 a and the communication line 96. Image information is transferred to the image data processing unit 71, respectively.

In the digital copying machine 93 having received the processing request, the image data processing section 71 performs predetermined "sharpness" image processing on the image information. This processed image information is
The PCU 74 of the digital copying machine 93 returns the data to the requesting digital copying machine 92 via the interfaces 92a and 93a and the communication line 96.

The digital copier 92 rearranges the returned processed image information and the processed image information processed by the image data processing section 71 of its own device, and converts the image information of a plurality of pages. The laser printer unit 32 makes a visible image.

As described above, in the present image forming system,
For example, if the digital copier 92 that the operator intends to use also has a “sharpness” image processing function desired by the operator, if there is a plurality of pieces of image information,
The processing can be performed in a distributed manner between the own machine and another digital copying machine 93.

Therefore, a plurality of pieces of image information are distributed and processed by utilizing a processing unit mounted on the own apparatus, so that a plurality of original image information can be efficiently processed in a shorter time.

When the digital copier 93 in the image forming system of the present embodiment has received a return request from the digital copier 92 after completing the processing of the specified image information, the processing is performed. P that returns the image information
A CU 74 is provided.

Therefore, the digital copier 93 does not return the processed image information immediately after the completion of the processing of the instructed image information, and the PCU 74 receives the return request from the digital copier 92. , And returns the processed image information.

That is, for example, there is a case where the capacity of the digital copier 92 of the request source is small, and even if the processed image information is returned from the digital copier 93, the memory for storing it is small.

Even in such a case, the digital copying machine 92 may send a return request to each digital copying machine 93, for example, when the digital copying machine 92 can immediately send the data to the laser printer section 32 for output.

Therefore, the requesting digital copying machine 92
Even if there is not enough memory to store a plurality of pieces of processed image information, predetermined "sharpness" processing can be distributed using the present image forming system.

In the present embodiment, the digital copying machine 92 does not control which page is requested to which second image forming apparatus for the image information of a plurality of pages. For example, image processing of a page to be output first is performed by the digital copying machine 92 which is its own device, and a document image of another page is requested to a second image forming apparatus such as the digital copying machine 93. It is possible.

As a result, the original image output from the laser printer unit 32 of the own device is first processed by the image data processing unit 71 of the own device, and while the original image is being output, the original image of the subsequent pages is output. The image data processing unit 71 of the second image forming apparatus such as the digital copying machine 93 described above processes the entire image forming system from original reading to output in a short time.

[Third Embodiment] The following will describe another embodiment of the present invention with reference to FIG. For convenience of explanation, members having the same functions as those shown in the drawings of the first and second embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

In the second embodiment, when returning the processed image data from the digital copying machine 93 to the digital copying machine 92, the digital copying machine 93 simply waits until there is an image return request and then returns it. I was

However, when waiting for an image return request, it is possible not only to wait, but also to inquire whether the digital copying machine 93 can return the digital copying machine 92. It is.

That is, in the image forming system of the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 16, the image processing of the digital copying machine 93 is performed in place of S25 in the portion between S7 and S8 shown in FIG. Is completed (S7), the digital copier 92 that has requested image processing
The digital copying machine 92 checks the output page (S31). Then, the PCU 74 of the digital copying machine 93 as a judging means
Determines whether the page of the image data processed by the digital copying machine 93 can be output immediately, that is,
It is determined whether or not it is the return time (S32), and if it is the return time, it is immediately returned to the digital copying machine 92 (S32).
8).

However, if it is not the return time in S32, the PCU 74 of the digital copying machine 93 as the return adjusting means waits for an image return request from the digital copying machine 92 (S33) and returns (S8).

In the above example, the digital copier 92
The image forming apparatus of the image forming system requested by the user is only the digital copying machine 93, but the present invention is not limited to this, and other digital copying machines in the image forming system can be selected.

In this case, the digital copying machine 9
The PCU 74 of No. 3 indicates that, when the other digital copying machine is performing “sharpness” processing on the preceding page, the image data of the processed preceding page in the other digital copying machine is returned to the digital copying machine 92. , It is possible to return the image data that has been processed by the digital copying machine 93 and has been subjected to “sharpness” processing.

As described above, in the image forming system of the present embodiment, the digital copying machine 93 does not return the processed image information immediately after the completion of the processing of the specified image information, but uses the PCU 74 to perform digital copying. It is determined whether or not the processing of image information that is processed by the image forming apparatus 92 or another second image forming apparatus and that precedes the image information is completed. When it is determined that the processing of the preceding image information has been completed, the PCU 74 returns the digital image data to the digital copying machine 92 and outputs the digital image data. The PCU 74 determines that the processing of the image information of the preceding page has not been completed. In this case, the digital copier 92 stands by without being returned, and when there is a return request from the digital copier 92, the processed image information is returned.

That is, the capability of the digital copier 92 of the request source is small. For example, even if processed image information is returned from each image forming apparatus, the memory for storing the image information may be small.

Even in such a case, the digital copier 92 outputs a plurality of processed image information to each digital copier in the output order when necessary, for example, when the digital copier 92 can immediately send the image information to the laser printer unit 32 for output. A return request may be sent to the image forming apparatus 93 or another image forming apparatus.

Also, the digital copier 92
Thus, there is no need to perform complicated output management control on the returned plurality of processed image information, and the procedure for returning to a normal state even if a trouble occurs is simplified.

Therefore, the requesting digital copying machine 92
Even if there is not enough memory to store a plurality of processed image information, predetermined processing is distributed using the present image forming system, and the plurality of processed image information is Output can be easily made in order.

[Fourth Embodiment] The following will describe another embodiment of the present invention with reference to FIG. For convenience of explanation, members having the same functions as those shown in the drawings of the first to third embodiments will be described.
The same reference numerals are given and the description is omitted.

The image forming system according to the present embodiment is a digital copier 93 in the system according to the second embodiment.
Is used in place of the step of S24 shown in FIG. 15, a digital copier for requesting image processing of each original is replaced with the digital copier 9 as shown in FIG.
In order to determine a digital copier capable of performing predetermined image processing efficiently and processing a desired image form in a short time, the remaining memory capacity, a new version of image processing software, and The determination is made in consideration of the high processing speed of the ICU (S40).

After the optimum request destination is determined in this way, the PCU 74 of the digital copying machine 92 gives function control information for each image, returns after performing a scrambling process described later (S6).

The digital copying machine 92 outputs the returned processed image data by the laser printer unit 32 (S10).

Thus, a digital copier capable of performing image processing efficiently and processing the image in a desired image form in a short time is determined, and the digital copier outputting the image requests the digital copier to perform the processing in the required order. It can be configured. Therefore, the system efficiently processes a plurality of document images, and outputs a copy of the document on which predetermined image processing has been performed in a short time.

That is, the conditions of the digital copying machine selected by the digital copying machine 92 include, for example, those that are waiting, those that have a free space in the memory 73, those that have a new version of the image processing function, It has a high-speed processing capability.

The image processing function will be described. The development for realizing a new or high-level image processing function is progressing every day, and the level and processing speed of the image processing function are correspondingly increased. . Thus, each time a new digital copier is released, the digital copier is equipped with the latest version of the image processing function at that time. Similarly, the capacity of memories for storing image data has been increasing in size and cost, and each time a new digital copying machine is released, the capacity of the memories has increased. Therefore, if the user purchases a new digital copying machine and connects it as one of the components of the image forming system, the order of functions among the digital copying machines in the system changes, and the same image processing function,
A digital copier having the same capacity of memory may be provided. Therefore, among digital copiers having the same image processing function, if the most recent version or the one with the largest capacity of memory is selected as the copier to which image processing is requested, high-speed and high-speed image data can be obtained. Processing with image quality becomes possible.

In addition, if the apparatus is in a standby state, has a high-speed processing capability, or has a sufficient capacity of the image memory, image processing can be performed in a short time. Can respond immediately.

Next, in this embodiment, after outputting the image for which the image processing has been completed in S10, it is determined whether or not all the originals have been completed (S41), and the process ends.

That is, the image forming system according to the present embodiment, after the distributed processing of the image processing for the document image of the predetermined number of pages is completed, that is, after the digital copying machine 92 outputs the processed image data. Image information that has not yet been requested to be distributed to each second image forming apparatus can be newly and continuously distributed processed.

Therefore, each of the newly requested second
On the image forming apparatus side as well, the return of the previously requested image processing has already been completed, so there is room in the memory, and the remaining document image information and processing information are received, and based on the processing information, Image processing.

That is, here, the digital copier 92
However, only the memory for temporarily storing the image data is provided, but the memory for storing the processed image data is not provided, or the capacity of the memory is small. After the return is completed, further original image information and function control information are received and predetermined image processing is executed.

Therefore, if the digital copying machine 93 has a sufficiently large memory 73, the digital copying machine 93 does not necessarily return the processed image data,
The image information after the image processing is completed is temporarily stored in the memory 73, and the next image information and the function control information are received, and the predetermined image processing can be executed.

Then, as described above, the digital copier 92 as the request source selects the second image forming apparatus for which the image processing is requested as a selection condition having a sufficient memory space and requests the image processing. Therefore, the image information can be distributed without being concentrated on a specific second image forming apparatus, whereby the entire image forming system operates efficiently.

As described above, according to the image forming system of the present embodiment, in the digital copying machine 92, the second image forming apparatus such as the digital copying machine 93 capable of performing a predetermined process in order to perform the distributed processing of a plurality of pieces of image information. When selecting PCU
Reference numeral 74 selects a second image forming apparatus that can afford to store the processed image information at the request destination.

That is, when a plurality of pieces of image information are distributed and the memory capacity of the digital copying machine 92 is small, the processed image information must be temporarily stored in the digital copying machine 93. There are things you have to do.

In such a case, the digital copier 9
If the memory capacity for storing the third page is small, the processed image information cannot be stored, and image processing of the remaining pages requested may not be possible.

However, in the present embodiment,
Among the plurality of second image forming apparatuses, a second image forming apparatus that has room for storing processed image information is selected.

Therefore, in the second image forming apparatus,
It is possible to prevent the image processing time from becoming longer,
When viewed as the entire image forming system, the operation efficiency does not decrease.

Further, the image forming system according to the present embodiment, when selecting a second image forming apparatus capable of performing predetermined "sharpness" processing in order to perform a distributed processing of a plurality of pieces of image information, uses the second image forming apparatus. A high processing capability of the above-mentioned predetermined processing, for example, a new processing software version or a high processing speed is selected.

That is, the determination of which of the plurality of second image forming apparatuses to select in the image forming system is made, for example, by selecting a second processing apparatus having a higher processing capability such as a new version of processing software or a processing software having a higher processing speed. The image forming apparatus has priority.

Therefore, in the second image forming apparatus,
It is possible to prevent the image processing time from becoming longer,
When viewed as the entire image forming system, the operation efficiency can be improved.

In the image forming system according to the present embodiment, the PCU 74 of the digital copier 92 of the requestor distributes a plurality of new pieces of image information after completing the return from each second image forming apparatus. Therefore, the image data is transferred to each second image forming apparatus.

Therefore, when the requested memory of the second image forming apparatus is small, the digital copier 92 of the requestor returns the previous plurality of pieces of image information to the request for the distributed processing by the previous processing. Otherwise, the image data is transferred to another second image forming apparatus without being transferred to the second image forming apparatus, so that the image data can be efficiently distributed and the processing capability of the entire image forming system is improved.

Further, in the image forming system according to the present embodiment, the second image forming apparatus returns the image information on which the predetermined processing has been completed, and then receives the transfer of the next image information from the first image forming apparatus.

Therefore, if the requested memory of the second image forming apparatus is small, if the request is further accepted, the processing will be stagnated, which will adversely affect the rapid processing of the entire image forming system. In the embodiment, such an event can be prevented and an efficient image forming system can be provided.

[Embodiment 5] Another embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. For convenience of explanation, members having the same functions as those shown in the drawings of the first to fourth embodiments are given the same reference numerals, and descriptions thereof will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 18, the present image forming system includes, for example, six digital copying machines 201 to 206, and these digital copying machines 201 to 206 have interfaces 201a to 206a for communicating with each other. are doing. The digital copying machine 201 having the largest capacity memory 73 and the digital copying machine 202 having the largest number of image processing functions are main digital copying machines as main image forming apparatuses in the present image forming system.

The digital copying machine 201 as the second main image forming apparatus and the digital copying machine 202 as the first main image forming apparatus have interfaces 201a and 202a for both.
The digital copiers 203 to 206 are similarly connected to each other by the
1a and 203a to 206a and a communication line 96 are communicably connected to the digital copying machine 201, respectively. The digital copying machines 202 to 206 can communicate with other digital copying machines other than the digital copying machine 201 via the digital copying machine 201.

In this image forming system, the digital copier 201 and the digital copier 202 constitute the main digital copier, and the main digital copier can perform the operations described in the first embodiment. It has become. For example, the function of the digital copying machine 202 corresponds to the digital copying machine 93 shown in FIG. 11, and the function of the digital copying machine 201 has fewer image processing functions and a larger memory capacity than the digital copying machine 93. The functions of the digital copying machines 203 and 204 correspond to the digital copying machine 92, and the functions of the digital copying machines 205 and 206 correspond to the digital copying machine 91.

In digital copiers 201 and 202 constituting the main digital copier, digital copier 201
However, they are mainly in charge of management of image data requiring a large-capacity memory 73, and the digital copying machine 202 is in charge of image processing. That is,
For example, when image processing is requested from the digital copying machine 203, image data transmitted from the digital copying machine 202 is stored in the memory 73 of the digital copying machine 201, and is sequentially sent to the digital copying machine 202 for image processing. .

The processed image data is stored again in the memory 73 of the digital copying machine 201, and then returned from the digital copying machine 201 to the digital copying machine 203. Such control is performed by, for example, the PCU 74 of the digital copying machine 201.
It is performed in.

By configuring the main digital copier by sharing the roles of the plurality of digital copiers, a comparison can be made with the case where the main digital copier requiring high functions is formed by one digital copier. As a result, the cost can be reduced and the efficiency of the image forming system can be improved.

[0210] The image forming system according to the present embodiment may be configured as follows.

That is, as shown in FIG.
Digital copiers 211 to 215, and these digital copiers 211 to 215 have interfaces 211a to 215a for communicating with each other. These digital copiers 211 to 215 are connected to a loop network. As configured, each interface 211a-
215a and the communication line 96. Each of the digital copying machines 211 to 215 has a configuration corresponding to, for example, the digital copying machine 30.

In the present image forming system, if each of the digital copying machines 211 to 215 does not have a desired image processing function, it requests another digital copying machine to perform image processing on image data. I have. For this purpose, each of the digital copying machines 211 to 215 holds information such as an image processing function and a memory capacity of another digital copying machine. In the above-described image processing request operation, each digital copying machine automatically selects a digital copying machine to which the request is made, or a digital copying machine that can be processed is displayed on each liquid crystal display device 1, and the operator selects the digital copying machine. You can do it.

In this image forming system, each operation similar to that of the image forming system shown in the first embodiment of the present invention can be performed. In this case, the digital copier requested to perform image processing by the digital copier of the image processing requester is not the main digital copier but another digital copier having the image processing function.

The configuration of this image forming system that does not specify the main digital copying machine is similar to that of each digital copying machine.
This is effective when 11 to 215 have different image processing functions.

[0215]

As described above, the image forming system according to the first aspect of the present invention provides a plurality of image forming apparatuses and a communication apparatus for connecting the plurality of image forming apparatuses and mutually transmitting and receiving image information. Wherein at least one first image forming apparatus in the plurality of image forming apparatuses inputs an image recording unit that forms a visible image based on image information and a command for processing in the image forming apparatus. For the input unit, while holding the function information indicating the type of processing that can be performed by each of the image forming apparatus, based on the command and the function information instructing a predetermined process for the image information from the input unit,
A plurality of image forming apparatuses capable of performing the predetermined processing are selected, and a plurality of image information is transferred to the selected plurality of image forming apparatuses via the communication device in order to perform a distributed processing, while the other image forming apparatuses are formed. A transmission-side control unit for rearranging a plurality of processed image information returned from the device and supplying the processed image information to the image recording unit, and a plurality of second image forming devices different from the first image forming device are provided. A processing unit for performing predetermined processing on the image information, and supplying the image information input via the communication device to the processing unit, and transmitting the image information processed by the processing unit to the first processing unit via the communication device. And a processing-side control unit for returning to the image forming apparatus.

Therefore, even if the image processing function desired by the operator does not exist in the first image forming apparatus to be used by the operator, image processing of a plurality of pieces of image information can be performed.
The second image forming apparatus connected by the communication apparatus can perform the processing in a distributed manner.

Therefore, it is not necessary for each image forming apparatus constituting the image forming system to individually have a predetermined image processing function. Thus, the economic burden on the user of the first image forming apparatus can be reduced, and a plurality of image information are distributed to a plurality of second image forming apparatuses. There is an effect that processing can be performed efficiently in a short time.

According to the image forming system of the second aspect of the present invention, as described above, in the image forming system of the first aspect, after the processing of the designated image information is completed, And a return adjusting means for returning the processed image information when a return request is made from the first image forming apparatus.

Therefore, in addition to the effect of the first aspect of the present invention, even if the requesting first image forming apparatus does not have a sufficient memory for storing a plurality of pieces of processed image information, the present image forming system can be used. As a result, the predetermined processing can be distributed.

According to the image forming system of the third aspect of the present invention, as described above, in the image forming system of the first aspect, when the second image forming apparatus completes the processing of the designated image information, A determination unit for determining whether or not the image information processed by another image forming apparatus and the image information preceding the image information has been processed; and the processing of the preceding image information has been completed. Is returned to the first image forming apparatus when it is determined by the determining means, and is returned to the first image forming apparatus when the determining means determines that the processing of the image information of the preceding page is not completed. Return adjusting means for waiting without being provided.

Therefore, even if the capability of the first image forming apparatus of the request source is small and the processed image information is returned from each image forming apparatus or the memory for storing the same is small, the first image forming apparatus is not required. The apparatus may send a return request to each second image forming apparatus in order of output of a plurality of processed image information when necessary, for example, when the apparatus can immediately send and output the image information to the image recording unit.

Further, this eliminates the need for the first image forming apparatus to perform complicated output management control on the returned plurality of processed image information, and restores the normal state even if a trouble occurs. The procedure for restoring is simplified.

Therefore, in addition to the effect of the first aspect, even if the requesting first image forming apparatus does not have a sufficient memory for storing a plurality of processed image information, the present image forming system can be used. As a result, the predetermined processing is distributed and the first image forming apparatus can easily output a plurality of processed image information in page order.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, as described above, in the image forming system according to the first aspect, the transmission-side control unit in the first image forming apparatus performs distributed processing of a plurality of pieces of image information. Therefore, when selecting a second image forming apparatus capable of performing the above-described predetermined processing, the second image forming apparatus having a margin for storing processed image information at the request destination is selected.

For this reason, a second image forming apparatus which has enough room for storing processed image information is selected from a plurality of second image forming apparatuses in advance.

Therefore, in addition to the effect of the first aspect of the present invention, it is possible to prevent the image processing time from being lengthened in the second image forming apparatus. This is effective in preventing the decrease in the value.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, as described above, in the image forming system according to the first aspect, the transmitting-side control unit in the first image forming apparatus performs a distributed processing on a plurality of pieces of image information. Therefore, when selecting the second image forming apparatus capable of performing the predetermined processing, a second image forming apparatus having a high processing capability in the predetermined processing in the second image forming apparatus is selected.

Therefore, in determining which one of the plurality of second image forming apparatuses is to be selected in the image forming system, the second image forming apparatus having a higher processing capability is prioritized.

Therefore, in addition to the effect of the first aspect of the present invention, it is possible to prevent the image processing time from being lengthened in the second image forming apparatus, and to improve the operation efficiency when viewed as a whole image forming system. The effect that the improvement of can be aimed at is produced.

The image forming system according to the sixth aspect of the present invention comprises a plurality of image forming apparatuses and a communication apparatus which connects the plurality of image forming apparatuses and mutually transmits and receives image information. At least one first image forming apparatus among the plurality of image forming apparatuses includes a processing unit configured to perform predetermined processing on the image information, an image recording unit configured to form a visible image based on the image information, An input unit for inputting a command for processing in the apparatus, and function information indicating a type of processing that can be performed by each image forming apparatus including the first image forming apparatus are held, and image information from the input unit is stored. Based on a command instructing a predetermined process and the function information, a plurality of image forming apparatuses including the first image forming apparatus that can perform the predetermined processing are selected, and the selection is performed to distribute a plurality of image information. did While the image data is transferred to the processing unit of the first image forming apparatus and the second image forming apparatus via the communication device, the processed image information processed by the processing unit of the first image forming apparatus and the second A transmitting-side control unit that rearranges the processed image information returned from the image forming apparatus and supplies the rearranged image information to the image recording unit, wherein the second image forming apparatus performs a predetermined process on the image information A processing-side control unit that supplies image information input via the communication device to the processing unit, and returns the image information processed by the processing unit to the first image forming apparatus via the communication device. Respectively.

Therefore, if the image processing function desired by the operator is also present in the first image forming apparatus to be used by the operator, if there is a plurality of pieces of image information, the own apparatus and another This can be performed by performing distributed processing with the second image forming apparatus.

Therefore, since a plurality of image information is distributed and processed by utilizing the processing unit mounted on the own apparatus, there is an effect that processing on a plurality of document image information can be performed more efficiently in a shorter time. .

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of an image forming system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of a digital copying machine provided in the image forming system.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an image processing unit provided in the digital copying machine.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control system provided in the digital copying machine.

FIG. 5 is a front view of an operation panel provided in the digital copying machine.

FIGS. 6A and 6B are front views showing the display contents of the operation panel, wherein FIG. 6A shows a basic screen of the liquid crystal display device of the operation panel, FIG. 6B shows a first function setting screen of the operation panel, and FIG. () Shows the second function setting screen.

FIGS. 7A and 7B are front views showing display contents of the operation panel. FIG. 7A shows an image quality setting screen on the liquid crystal display device of the operation panel, and FIG. 7B shows a post-processing setting screen. .

8A and 8B are front views showing display contents of the operation panel, FIG. 8A shows an initial setting screen of the liquid crystal display device of the operation panel, FIG. 8B shows a fingerprint registration screen of the operation panel, and FIG. ) Shows a department management setting screen.

9A and 9B are front views showing display contents of the operation panel, wherein FIG. 9A shows a limiter setting screen in a liquid crystal display device of the operation panel, and FIG. 9B shows the simulation screen.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing a process of transitioning each screen in the liquid crystal display device of the operation panel.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of the image forming system.

12A and 12B are front views showing display contents of the operation panel, wherein FIG. 12A shows a selection state of an image editing function on the first function setting screen shown in FIG. 6B, and FIG. Indicating the display state of the liquid crystal display device corresponding to the italic function operation,
(C) shows the same italic setting screen.

13A and 13B are front views showing display contents of the operation panel, wherein FIG. 13A shows a selection state of an image editing function on the second function setting screen shown in FIG. 6C, and FIG. FIG. 4C shows a display state of the liquid crystal display device corresponding to the operation of S3 shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 5C shows the same sharpness setting screen.

FIG. 14 is a view showing the operation panel shown in FIG.
FIG. 7 is a front view showing a display state of the liquid crystal display device corresponding to the operation of FIG.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart illustrating an example of another operation added to the operation of the image forming system illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 16 is a flowchart illustrating an example of another operation added to the operation of the image forming system illustrated in FIG. 15;

FIG. 17 is a flowchart illustrating an example of still another operation in the image forming system.

FIG. 18 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of an image forming system according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 19 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of an image forming system according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

32 laser printer unit (image recording unit) 71 image data processing unit (processing unit) 74 PCU (transmission side control unit, processing side control unit, judgment unit, transfer adjustment unit) 90 operation panel (input unit) 91 digital copying machine ( Image forming apparatus 92 Digital copying machine (image forming apparatus) 93 Digital copying machine (image forming apparatus) 95 Printer (image forming apparatus) 91a-95a Interface (communication device)

────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-7-297967 (JP, A) JP-A-7-327108 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) H04N 1/00

Claims (6)

(57) [Claims] An image forming apparatus comprising: a plurality of image forming apparatuses; and a communication apparatus for connecting the plurality of image forming apparatuses and mutually transmitting and receiving image information.
The image forming apparatus includes: an image recording unit that forms a visible image based on image information; an input unit for inputting a command for processing in the image forming apparatus; and types of processing that can be performed by each of the image forming apparatuses. And the function information indicating the predetermined processing on the image information from the input unit and a plurality of image forming apparatuses capable of performing the predetermined processing are selected based on the function information and the plurality of image forming apparatuses. While the image information is transferred to the selected plurality of image forming apparatuses via the communication device in order to perform the distributed processing, the processed plurality of image information returned from the other image forming apparatuses is rearranged. A plurality of second image forming apparatuses different from the first image forming apparatus, the processing section performing a predetermined process on image information; and Entered via And a processing-side control unit that supplies the processed image information to the processing unit, and returns the image information processed by the processing unit to the first image forming apparatus via the communication device. Image forming system. 2. After the processing of the designated image information is completed, when there is a return request from the first image forming apparatus, the processed image information is returned to the second image forming apparatus. 2. The image forming system according to claim 1, further comprising a return adjusting unit. 3. The image information which is processed by another image forming apparatus at the time when the processing of the designated image information is completed, and the second image forming apparatus A determination unit for determining whether or not the processing of the preceding image information has been completed. When the determination unit determines that the processing of the preceding image information has been completed, the processing returns to the first image forming apparatus and causes the first image forming apparatus to output the information. 2. The image forming system according to claim 1, further comprising: a return adjusting unit that waits without returning to the first image forming apparatus when the determining unit determines that the processing of the image information is not completed. . 4. A transmission-side control unit in the first image forming apparatus performs processing at a request destination when selecting a second image forming apparatus capable of performing the predetermined processing in order to perform distributed processing of a plurality of pieces of image information. 2. The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein a second image forming apparatus that has room for storing already-used image information is selected. 5. A transmission-side control unit in the first image forming apparatus, when selecting a second image forming apparatus capable of performing the predetermined processing in order to perform distributed processing of a plurality of pieces of image information,
2. The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein the one having a high processing capability in the predetermined processing in the image forming apparatus is selected. 6. An image forming apparatus comprising: a plurality of image forming apparatuses; and a communication apparatus for connecting the plurality of image forming apparatuses and mutually transmitting and receiving image information.
The image forming apparatus includes: a processing unit configured to perform predetermined processing on the image information; an image recording unit configured to form a visible image based on the image information; and an input unit configured to input a command regarding processing in the image forming apparatus. And holding function information indicating a type of processing that can be performed by each image forming apparatus including the first image forming apparatus, and based on a command for instructing a predetermined process for image information from the input unit and the function information. A plurality of image forming apparatuses including the first image forming apparatus capable of performing the predetermined processing are selected via the communication unit and the processing unit of the selected first image forming apparatus to distribute a plurality of pieces of image information; To the second image forming apparatus, and processed image information processed by the processing unit of the first image forming apparatus and processed image information returned from the second image forming apparatus. And rearrange the image A transmitting control unit that supplies the recording information to the recording unit. The second image forming apparatus performs a predetermined process on the image information, and transmits the image information input via the communication device to the processing unit. And a processing-side control unit for supplying the image information processed by the processing unit to the first image forming apparatus via a communication device.