JP3471973B2 - Information output device - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an information output device for outputting various kinds of information relating to a device such as a facsimile device to a display screen or recording paper.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a facsimile apparatus, when transmitting / receiving image data (image data), the image data is encoded to compress the data to be transmitted / received. As a method of encoding such image data, an encoding method using a code of indefinite bit length called MH code (Modified Huffman code) is well known (prior art 1).

Further, conventionally, some facsimile machines have
Various messages such as operation instruction messages and error messages are displayed on the liquid crystal display (hereinafter, also referred to as LCD), operation mode setting status by the user, facsimile transmission / reception history, transmission / reception memory usage status, operation explanation, etc. There are some that can output various types of reports on recording paper. In this type of facsimile machine, characters or symbols (so-called characters) included in the output information are stored in a ROM or the like. When storing the characters or symbols, a known fixed bit length character code is used. (For example, ASCII code or the like) is used for storage (prior art 2).

[0004]

By the way, in the facsimile apparatus having the information output function as described in the above-mentioned prior art 2, it is appropriate to store the character code such as characters and symbols included in the output information. Requires memory.
Therefore, in order to increase the amount of information that can be output or output more detailed information, there is no choice but to increase the capacity of the memory, and there is a problem that the manufacturing cost increases with the addition of the memory. .

On the other hand, although the capacity of the memory could be limited in consideration of the manufacturing cost, the amount of information that can be stored is limited, and in some cases sufficient information cannot be provided to the user. . These problems are not limited to facsimile machines, but are common to devices such as word processors and printers that can output character information on a screen or recording paper.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an information output device capable of storing information more efficiently than before.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention has at least either display means or printing means as described in claim 1, and the display means or In an information output device having a function of outputting predetermined information in a predetermined format to a printing unit, the characters or symbols obtained by actually counting the characters or symbols in the information, etc. Based on the frequency of use in the information, the characters or symbols in the information are pre-assigned to the MH code having a shorter bit length in the order of higher frequency of use in the information, and the information is obtained by the MH code. Correspondence to store information storage means to store, MH code assigned to characters or symbols in information stored in the information storage means, and fixed bit length character code indicating the characters or symbols The correlation storage means, the conversion means for converting the information stored in the information storage means from the MH code to the character code based on the correspondence stored in the correspondence storage, and the conversion means. Output control means for controlling the display means or the printing means based on the character code to output the information ,
The information storage means stores two or more pieces of information having different output units.
In doing so, each information item of each of the above two or more information items
Frequently used characters or symbols in the information in each information
The MH code is sequentially pre-assigned to bits having a short bit length,
Each information is stored by a code, and the correspondence storage means stores
For each of the above two or more pieces of information, the MH code and the preceding
The conversion means stores a correspondence relationship with a character code,
Of the two or more correspondence relationships stored in the correspondence relationship storage means.
If you select the corresponding relationship from the
Based on the correspondence, the MH code to the character
It is characterized by converting into a code .

In the present invention, the above-mentioned information is composed of a character string such as a word or a sentence that is a sequence of characters, a ruled line formed by a sequence of symbols, etc. Is provided to. Further, the characters or symbols referred to here are, specifically, alphabets, numbers, hiragana, katakana, kanji, symbols, symbols, etc., and each of the characters or symbols is a specific code and a specific font in advance. Associated with ROM
Etc. are stored in.

According to the information output device of the present invention, the information storage means stores the information represented by the MH code.
As described in Related Art 1, the MH code is generally used when encoding image data of a bit image handled by a facsimile machine, and white or black pixels in the image data are continuous by the MH code. It represents the length (run length) of the part. In the present invention, based on the frequency of use in the information such as characters or symbols obtained by actually counting the characters or symbols in the information, in order from the character with the highest frequency of use in the information, the bit length By assigning to the short MH code, a character or a symbol is represented by the MH code.

When a character or symbol is represented by the MH code in this way, for example, in general, a character represented by an 8-bit character code may be represented by an MH code of 7 bits or less. Moreover, the amount of data to be stored can be reduced. When there are many types of characters in the information, for example, a character generally represented by an 8-bit character code is
A case can be considered in which it can be represented only by an MH code of 9 bits or more, but since the MH code having a shorter bit length is assigned in order from the character used most frequently in information, the amount of data to be stored is reduced as a whole. You can expect to be able to do it. Further, it is necessary to store the data indicating the above-mentioned correspondence in the correspondence storage means, which is also a factor of increasing the data amount compared with the conventional one, but if the data amount in the information storage means is significantly reduced, It can be expected that the amount of data to be stored in the information storage unit and the correspondence storage unit as a whole can be reduced.

However, when the number of characters in the information is large and the frequency of use of all the characters is low, M having a long bit length is used.
It is possible that the rate at which the H code is assigned becomes relatively high, and as a result, the amount of data to be stored cannot be reduced as a whole. Therefore, whether to apply the present invention may be examined according to the specific content of the information to be stored.

The specific correspondence between MH codes and characters in the information stored in the information storage means is as follows.
It is separately stored in the correspondence storage unit. In this storage, the MH code and the characters may be stored as a table, but since the MH code has a one-to-one correspondence with the run length value, the run length value and the character may be tabulated.

Now, the information stored in the information storage means is
It is converted by a conversion means into a general fixed bit length character code while referring to the correspondence stored in the correspondence storage means. Here, if the correspondence relationship stored in the correspondence relationship storage means is a table of run length values and characters as described above, the conversion means uses a method similar to the decoding procedure well known in the facsimile apparatus. , Convert the read information to run length value,
Then, referring to the correspondence, the character code is converted into a general fixed bit length character code.

After that, based on this character code, the output control means controls the display means or the printing means to output the information. That is, the output control means can obtain and display a font such as a character or a symbol to be output based on a general character code, and display or print the font, as in the conventional case. Therefore, the hardware such as the font memory for storing the character font may have the same configuration as the conventional one.

As described above, according to the information output device of the present invention, the amount of data to be stored can be reduced depending on the content of the information. Can also reduce the storage capacity, and if the same storage capacity is used, more information can be output.

[0016]

[0017] In here, the information of different output units, specifically, for example, the operation indication message, error message, the setting state of the operation mode by the user, a facsimile transmission and reception history, usage state of transmission and reception memory, By a series of internal processing that realizes each function, such as explanation about operation,
This means the unit information that is output collectively.

According to the information output device of the first aspect , the MH code is assigned to each of the pieces of information having different output units in correspondence with each other to maximize the storage efficiency, and the information is stored. The required storage capacity is further reduced. However, since it is necessary to store two or more correspondence relationships in the correspondence relationship storage means, it is necessary to increase the storage capacity. Therefore, in two or more pieces of information to be stored, for example, the frequency of use of characters or symbols differs greatly,
When the storage capacity required for the information storage means can be reduced more than the storage capacity of the correspondence storage means increases, it is effective to employ this configuration.

Next, the information output device according to claim 2 further by dividing the storage area of the information storage unit for each region that contains characters or symbols or the like of a predetermined number worth setting a plurality of groups, An index storage unit that stores the head position of the area occupied by each group as an index, wherein the conversion unit is a character or a symbol in the information stored in the information storage unit based on the index stored in the index storage unit It is characterized in that the conversion is carried out by discriminating the head position of such as.

According to the information output device according to claim 2, in the index storage unit, the head position of the storage area that contains characters or symbols such as a predetermined number worth, because it is stored as an index, the head position The reading of data from can be started immediately. More specifically, for example, when it is desired to display a character string stored from the 100th character in the information stored in the information storage means, if the character code has a fixed bit length, (bit length x The read start position of the storage area can be specified by a simple calculation of the number of characters.
If the bit length is indefinite like a code, the read start position cannot be specified by calculation. In contrast,
If the reading start position of the 100th character is stored as an index, the head position can be easily specified and the data can be read.

If all the read start positions are stored as an index, the read start position can be specified most quickly, but the amount of data stored as the index increases correspondingly. If this causes a problem, the group may be set so as to include some reading start positions. Specifically, for example, when it is desired to display a character string stored from the 110th character as information, if the reading start position of the 100th character is stored as an index, 10
If the reading start position of the 0th character can be specified and 10 characters are actually skipped from that position, the next read data will be the 110th character. Even in this case, as compared with the case where there is no index at all, the amount of data that needs to be skipped is remarkably small, and a considerably quick process is performed.

Next, an information output device according to a third aspect of the present invention comprises both the display means and the printing means, and the index storage means stores a storage area of information to be output to the display means in the printing means. It is characterized in that the groups are set by dividing the storage area of the information to be output more finely, and the head position of the area occupied by each group is stored as an index.

According to the information output device of the third aspect , since a relatively large number of indexes are set for the information to be output to the display means, although the storage capacity is increased, a quicker display is performed and an operation is performed. For example, when a message for is output, the response is improved and the operability is improved. On the other hand, the index for the information to be output to the printing means is
Since it is relatively small, the processing will be somewhat slower, but there is practically no problem in view of the operating speed of the printing means, and there is a great advantage in that the storage capacity is reduced. The information output device described above is, for example, as described in claim 4 ,
It is configured as an information output device having a facsimile function capable of transmitting and receiving image data compressed by using the MH encoding method.

[0024]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. As shown in FIG. 1, the facsimile apparatus according to the present embodiment has an operation unit including an operation panel 11 for the user to specify various functions and perform various operations, and a liquid crystal display 13 (for displaying various messages). The display unit including the LCD 13), the scanner unit that takes in the originals placed on the original table 15 one by one, scans the originals to read an image, and the recording paper housed in the recording paper cassette 17. A recording unit that takes in one sheet at a time, transfers toner to recording paper to record an image, a transmission / reception unit that transmits / receives a facsimile signal to / from another facsimile device via a telephone line, and a control that controls these units. It is composed of parts and.

The control system of this facsimile apparatus is
As shown in FIG. 2, a CPU 21 that controls the operation of each unit of the device.
A ROM 22 in which a control program executed by the CPU 21 and various data are stored; a RAM 23 for temporarily storing various data during operation execution; an operation panel 11 as the operation unit; and the display unit. LCD as
13, a well-known image scanner 25 as the scanner unit, and a well-known laser printer 2 as the recording unit.
7, a network control unit 29 (NCU 29) as the transmitting / receiving unit, and a modem 31, which are connected to each other via a bus 33.

In the facsimile apparatus configured as described above, the operation of each section is controlled by the CPU 21. The basic operation is the same as that of the conventional facsimile machine. However, in brief, when transmitting a document, the image data of the document image read by the image scanner 25 is encoded and modulated by the modem 31. , From the NCU 29 to another facsimile machine via the telephone line. When receiving a document, the NCU 29 receives a signal transmitted from another facsimile device via a telephone line, demodulates it with a modem 31, and further decodes it to obtain a laser beam based on the image data. The printer 27 records an image on recording paper. Furthermore, when copying the original,
Based on the image data of the original image read by the image scanner 25, the laser printer 27 records the image on the recording paper.

Next, the characteristic parts of the facsimile apparatus will be described in more detail. The ROM 22 has L
The message displayed on the CD 13 and the laser printer 27
Various reports output by (for example, user's operation mode settings, facsimile transmission / reception history, transmission / reception memory usage status, operation explanations, etc.)
Texts (hereinafter, simply referred to as texts) such as headwords and explanations included in are stored by the MH code.

Here, the MH code will be described.
The H code is generally used when encoding image data of a bit image handled by a facsimile machine, and a code having an indefinite bit length in which a specific bit pattern is defined and image data (bit image). Table 1 shows the length (run length) of the portion where white or black pixels inside are continuous.
The relationship is as shown in. Therefore,
If the bit image is represented by the MH code based on this correspondence table, for example, a portion (10 bits) in which white pixels for 10 dots are continuous is represented by the MH code “00111” (5 bits), and the image is displayed. The data is compressed more than when represented by a bit image. On the contrary, the MH code “0011
If "1" is obtained, it can be known based on this correspondence table that it is a white pixel and that the run length number is 10, and based on this, the bit image data can be developed.

[0029]

[Table 1]

In the present facsimile apparatus, in the above table, the MH code originally corresponding to the black run length is used, and the MH code having the shortest bit length is assigned in order from the character having the highest frequency of use in the text. . The correspondence between a specific character and the MH code is optimized after actually counting the appearance frequency of the character in the stored text.
For example, if the text is composed only of alphabets and the appearance frequency is high in the usual alphabetical order (A, B, C ...), the correspondence relationship is as shown in Table 2.

[0031]

[Table 2]

If the text is expressed in MH code based on this correspondence table, for example, "ABC" (2 in the above character code)
The character string "4 bits" is the MH code "111001".
The data is compressed as compared with the case where the same character string is represented by the character code in the table. Conversely, M
If the H code "1110010" is obtained, it is possible to know that the run length number is 2.3.1 based on this correspondence table, and further refer to the correspondence between the run length number and the character code. , "ABC".

In this facsimile apparatus, when handling character data in a normal internal process, for example, a process for acquiring a display or print font, etc., Table 2
The 8-bit character code (so-called ASCII code) described in the above is used. In other words, in the present facsimile device, text is stored in the MH code in order to reduce the storage capacity. However, the MH code read from the memory is first converted into a character code having a fixed bit length, and the subsequent internal processing is performed. Is done.

Next, the distribution of storage areas in the ROM 22 will be described with reference to FIG. In the ROM 22, as text-related storage areas, a display text storage area 41, a display text index area 42, a display character number storage area 43, a display character number index area 44, a display text conversion table 45, and a print text. Storage area 46,
A print text index area 47, a print character number storage area 48, a print character number index area 49, and a print text conversion table 50 are secured.

Of these, in the display text storage area 41, texts T11, T12, T13, ... Which are the entities of various messages displayed on the LCD 13 are stored in MH code. Then, in the display text storage area 41, groups divided for every several messages are set, and in the display text index area 42, the start position of each group is the address value A11 of the display text storage area 41. , A21, A31, ... By using the address value stored in the display text index area 42, each group can be quickly accessed in the processing described later.

In the display character number storage area 43, the text T1 stored in the display text storage area 41 is stored.
Number of characters N included in each of 1, T12, T13, ...
11, N12, N13, ... Are stored with a data length of 1 byte, respectively. Then, the display character number index area 4
4, groups are set corresponding to the above groups, and the start position of each group is the number of display character number storage area 4
3 address values B11, B21, B31 ,.

Further, the display text conversion table 45 has a correspondence relationship between the run length corresponding to the MH code stored in the display text storage area 41 and the character code corresponding to the character to which the MH code is assigned. However, the run length is stored as a parameter. Explaining with a specific example, when the correspondence relationship shown in Table 2 is assigned to the character and the MH code, the display text conversion table 45 becomes a table as shown in Table 3.

[0038]

[Table 3]

In the table of Table 3, if the run length number is 1, the character code 45 (hexadecimal notation) corresponds and the character "C" is assigned.
Further, in the table of Table 3, the run length number 0 corresponds to the character code FF, which means that there is no character assigned to the MH code. If unnecessary run-length numbers are included in the table as described above, the storage area will be used for meaningless MH codes, but the run-length numbers match the offset value from the beginning of the table. The run length number itself does not have to be actually stored, and the entire table is compact. Further, the character code can be read out by using the run length number as an offset value instead of searching the run length number, so that the conversion to the character code can be performed more quickly.

Although simplified in FIG. 3, the print text storage area 46, the print text index area 47, the print character number storage area 48, the print character number index area 49, and the print text conversion table 5 are shown.
0 is also configured in the same manner as the display area.

However, the text stored in the print text storage area 46 and the display text storage area 4 are
In the text stored in No. 1, since the characters in each text are assigned to the MH code having the shortest bit length in the order of frequency of use in each text, the MH code
The correspondence between the code and the character differs between the two. Therefore, the print text conversion table 50 also
Although it is similar in form to the display text conversion table 45, the specific contents of the data are usually
It is different from the display text conversion table 45.

A print text storage area 46 is also provided.
Is not divided as finely as the display text storage area 41, and the amount of data included in one group is larger in the group set in the print text storage area 46. When the amount of data included in one group is large, it takes time to obtain the text included in the latter half of the group in the later-described processing. However, in the case of recording by the laser printer 27, it takes time compared with the display in the first place. In addition, because it is not required to be as quick as the display,
There is no particular problem that it takes some time, and rather, there is an advantage that the storage capacity required for the print text index area 47 can be reduced. On the contrary, in the case of displaying on the LCD 13, prompt display is required in consideration of operability and the like, and it is better to divide the display text storage area 41 finely to reduce the amount of data included in one group. is there.

Next, the process of outputting a message to the LCD 13 will be described with reference to FIG. It should be noted that a description will be given with reference to the reference numerals in FIG. This process is performed by the LCD 1 in various processes of the facsimile machine.
3 is a subroutine that is executed when a message is output, the message to be output is the address value of the area corresponding to the message to be output in the display character number storage area 43 (for example, when the text T23 is output in FIG. 3). , The head address value B23 of the area where the text T23 is stored is designated. The address value specified here is known in advance by the caller of the subroutine.

In this processing, first, the group including the designated message is specified (S10). Specifically, when outputting the text T23 in FIG. 3, since the address value B23 is designated, the size relationship between the address value B23 and the data in the display character number index area 44 is compared in order. As a result, since the address value B23 is larger than the address value B21 in the display character number index area 44 and smaller than the address value B31, it is determined that the message is included in the same second group as the address value B21. .

Next, the offset P within the group of the designated message (that is, what number character from the head of the group the start character of the message to be output corresponds to)
Is calculated (S20). Specifically, the text T in FIG.
When 23 is output, the data in the display character number storage area 43 is referred to and the text T21 at the beginning of the second group
The total sum from the number of characters N21 of N to the number of characters N22 of the text T22 immediately before the text T23 to be output is calculated.
Also, the number of characters Q of the designated message is obtained (S3
0). This is when the text T23 is output in FIG.
Text T23 stored in the display character number storage area 43
The number N23 of characters is directly read.

Next, the data is sequentially read from the head of the group including the designated message, and unnecessary characters are skipped (S40). Specifically, the first read data is the start address value A2 of the group.
It is the MH code of the text T21 stored in the area 1. Therefore, this MH code is converted into a run length.
The conversion from MH code to run length is performed, for example, by
This is performed by the well-known conversion process described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 61-176252, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-41809, and the like. Briefly described, the MH code is read bit by bit from the first bit in order, and the bit is turned on. By tracing a predetermined address in the conversion table according to / OFF, the run length value can be obtained based on the value stored in the finally arrived address. And, this run length value,
Skip the offset P times calculated earlier. As a result, the texts T21 and T22 are skipped.

Next, the data is successively read out in sequence,
The designated message is read (S50). Specifically, the data read after the processing of S40 is the text T23 stored in the area of the address value A23, that is, the MH code of the required message. So this MH
The code is converted to run length, and this run length value is
The number of characters Q obtained earlier is read. As a result, the text T23 is read with the run length value.

Next, the run length value sequence representing the specified message is converted into a character code sequence (S6).
0). Specifically, the character length is replaced with the character code by reading the character code from the display text conversion table 45 by using the run length value as a parameter for the number of characters Q previously obtained. As a result, the message text represented by a general fixed bit length character code is completed on the memory.

After that, the message text represented by the fixed bit length character code is displayed on the LCD 13 (S7).
0), this processing is ended. The process of S70 is completely the same as the conventional one. The laser printer 2
The process of outputting characters to 7 is performed by the print text storage area 46, the print text index area 47, the print character number storage area 48, and the print character number index area 4.
9. Using the print text conversion table 50, S
The same process as 10 to S60 is performed, and thereafter, the process of recording the character represented by the character code of the fixed bit length on the laser printer 27 is performed.

In the above description, it was explained that when the amount of data included in one group is large, it takes time to obtain the text included in the latter half of the group. The reason is that the process of S40 is performed. This is because the time required for is increased. Therefore, in order to display the message more quickly, it is effective to reduce the amount of data included in one group and reduce the time required for skipping.

As described above, according to the present facsimile apparatus, since the data necessary for displaying a message and the like are stored in the MH code, the amount of data to be stored is reduced. For example, when the same message is displayed. If so, the storage capacity can be made smaller than in the past. If the same storage capacity is used, more messages and more detailed messages can be output.

Further, since the correspondence relationship between the MH code and the character is set differently for the LCD display and the printer output, respectively, a more optimum compression efficiency can be obtained,
Highly effective in reducing the amount of data. Furthermore, since groups are set in the text storage area and the beginning position of each group is stored in the text index area, the read start position can be specified relatively quickly even for text of indefinite length, and the text can be output quickly. Done. In particular, with regard to the text for LCD display, the groups are subdivided more finely, so that the display response is improved and the operability is improved.

Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to this, and various embodiments can be adopted without departing from the scope of the present invention. For example, in the embodiment, the correspondence between the MH code and the character is set differently for the LCD display and the printer output. However, the transmission / reception history report of the facsimile, the usage status report of the transmission / reception memory, etc. For different things,
The correspondence between the MH code and the character may be changed and set. However, if you subdivide too much and set the correspondence, it will increase the memory required for the conversion table etc.
This may be determined in consideration of the compression efficiency.

Further, although the facsimile device is shown in the embodiment, the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention can be applied to a device capable of displaying or recording information by characters. Specifically, a device having a recording device such as a word processor and a printer, a device having a display function such as a television and a video, and a device having a function of providing character information to a user are applicable to the present invention. obtain.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an appearance of a facsimile apparatus as an example.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a control system of the facsimile apparatus of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration of a memory according to an embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of a message display process.

[Explanation of symbols]

11 ... Operation panel, 13 ... Liquid crystal display,
21 ... CPU, 22 ... ROM, 23 ... RA
M, 25 ... Image scanner, 27 ... Laser printer, 29 ... Network control unit, 31 ... Modem, 33 ... Bus, 41 ... Display text storage area, 42 ... Display text index area, 43 ... Display character number storage area, 44 ... Display character number index area, 45 ... Display text conversion table, 46 ... Print text storage area, 47
... print text index area, 48 ... print character number storage area, 49 ... print character number index area, 50 ... print text conversion table.

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] 1. An information output device having at least one of a display unit and a printing unit and having a function of outputting predetermined information in a predetermined format to the display unit or the printing unit, Based on the frequency of use in the information of the characters or symbols obtained by actually counting the characters or symbols in the information, the frequency of use of the characters or symbols in the information in the information An MH code assigned to a character or a symbol in the information stored in the information storage means, the information storage means pre-assigning the MH code having a shorter bit length in the order of increasing A correspondence relation storage means for storing a correspondence relation with a fixed bit length character code indicating the character or the symbol, and a correspondence relation storage means for storing the correspondence relation stored in the information storage means based on the correspondence relation stored in the correspondence relation storage means. The converted information from the MH code to the character code, and output control means for controlling the display means or the printing means based on the character code converted by the conversion means to output the information. And the information storage means stores two or more pieces of information having different output units.
When storing, for each information of the above two or more information,
Characters or symbols in each information are
The MH code having a shorter bit length is assigned in advance in ascending order,
Each piece of information is stored in the MH code, and the correspondence storage means stores each of the two or more pieces of information.
About the correspondence between the MH code and the character code
2 is stored in the correspondence relationship storage means.
Correspondence according to the information to be converted from the above correspondence
Select the relationship and based on the corresponding relationship, the MH code
The information output device is characterized in that the number is converted into the character code . 2. The information output device according to claim 1, further comprising a predetermined number of characters in the storage area of the information storage means.
Or, it is divided into multiple areas by each area that contains symbols, etc.
And set the start position of the area occupied by each group as an index.
The conversion means stores the index stored in the index storage means.
Based on the characters stored in the information stored in the information storage means,
Is an information output device , wherein the conversion is performed by determining the start position of a symbol or the like . 3. The information output device according to claim 2, further comprising both the display means and the printing means, wherein the index storage means stores information to be output to the display means.
A storage area for storing information to be output to the printing means
Set up the above groups and divide each group
An information output device characterized in that the head position of the area occupied by the group is stored as an index . 4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3.
An information output device transmits and receives image data compressed using the MH encoding method
An information output device characterized by having a possible facsimile function .