JP5569059B2 - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to the field of image forming apparatuses.

  Conventionally, when a system shutdown occurs due to a power failure during operation in an image forming apparatus, and then the system is restored by turning on the power, the job that was running before the system stopped continues to operate The technology to make it known is known. In addition, among them, a technology for returning the system when a plurality of outputs are performed in one job is already known. In addition, the job operation is continued when the main power is turned on for the power interruption during transmission, and the job is not resumed when the main power is turned on for the power interruption during printing. A system for judging is known.

  As a specific example regarding these, Patent Document 1 discloses that a job is generated from a plurality of applications for the purpose of completing a job that has been executed halfway, even if the power is turned off during the execution or interruption of the job. Application information holding means for holding application information that can identify identified applications, recovery presence / absence selection means for selectively inputting whether or not to recover a job when it is interrupted, and recovery designated and input to the recovery presence / absence selection means The recovery presence / absence information holding means for holding presence / absence information and the recovery presence / absence information held in the recovery presence / absence information holding means for the interrupted job when the power was turned off were recovered. The job from the application information of the application information holding means Identify the generated application, jobs system characterized by having a recovery instruction means for instructing a recovery of the job by the application is disclosed.

  However, in a conventional image forming apparatus that continues a job after system stop / return and completes the job, information that does not continue to operate the job that was operating before the system stopped (hereinafter referred to as recovery). When the recovery information is present, the job is executed again, and when there is no recovery information, it is merely determined that the return processing is not performed.

  On the other hand, in recent image forming apparatuses, a plurality of output operations such as printing + accumulation and transmission + accumulation can be executed in parallel by a single document reading operation. In addition, image editing and post-processing functions have also been enhanced, and various printing conditions and transmission conditions can be set at this time. For example, after the printing + accumulation process is performed once, when the accumulated document is reprinted, the printing operation can be performed together with the accumulated document so as to reduce the trouble of manually inputting the previous printing operation again. The output condition (re-output condition) storage function is also well known.

  The re-output condition is an accumulation in which output conditions are accumulated when a user inputs (sets) an output condition such as a printing condition when a plurality of output operations are executed in parallel by a single document reading operation. This is setting information stored in association with a document. Next time, when the stored document is used (for example, when the document is printed), the document that reflects the stored output condition can be output. Accordingly, the stored document stored with the re-output condition added includes not only the image information for each page (pixel data such as color information) but also the output condition at the time of printing (color mode, tray information, etc.). Composed.

  Here, when a plurality of processes are executed in parallel, the output operation and the accumulated output result may have a certain relationship. For example, a job in which a multi-output configuration (print + accumulation) of print output and accumulated output, and a print output result (print output condition) are linked to the accumulated output result (accumulated document) as a re-output condition and saved If the power is turned off during execution, after the system is restored, a re-output condition is added to a page with an accumulated document consisting of multiple pages, and a re-output condition is not added to a page with an accumulated document. There has been a problem that accumulated documents to which incomplete re-output conditions are added are accumulated. At this time, if these stored documents are to be printed again under the same output conditions, a document reflecting the output conditions intended by the user cannot be output depending on the page. In addition, it can be said that such an accumulated document cannot be said to be an output result that satisfies the request expected by the user.

  On the other hand, the invention described in Patent Document 1 can complete a job after the power is turned on even if the power is turned off while the job is running. However, when a job is restored such that a plurality of output results can be obtained by executing the operation once, if the operation is not continued after the system is restored, documents that still cannot satisfy the user request are accumulated.

  In the present invention, in view of the above-described problems, when an accumulated document is stored with an incomplete re-output condition due to an unintended power interruption, use of an accumulated document that cannot be output using the re-output condition is prevented. An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus that prevents a document unintended by a user from being output.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, an image forming apparatus according to the present invention is an image forming apparatus that performs document data output processing according to output processing conditions, and stores the document data together with the output processing conditions. Document input means for inputting data, document output means for outputting document data by storage output to a storage device, print output, or transmission to another device; a job realized by the document input means; and Job composition means for executing a multi-configuration job combining jobs realized by the document output means, recovery information holding means for holding recovery information for each output of the job, acquisition of the recovery information, and recovery of the recovery job Job restructuring means for configuring, and determination means for determining whether or not recovery is necessary when a specific condition is satisfied for each output of the job A recovery processing start determining means for starting a recovery process when a recovery job is reconfigured by the job reconfiguring means and the recovery means determines that the recovery is necessary. In an input / output configuration in which the first output result has an operational relationship that affects the accumulated stored document that is the second output result, and the first output is determined to be unnecessary for recovery, the job is being executed. When the system is started after a power interruption, it is determined whether the stored document is sufficient as an output result. If it is determined that the output is not sufficient, the stored document is deleted or missing in the stored document. It is characterized by complementing the information.

  In order to solve the above problem, the image forming apparatus retains progress information as recovery information for an output determined to be unnecessary for recovery, and an output that acts on document storage at the time of recovery. Acquire progress information before declining, and delete the accumulated document if the output operation is not completed.

  In order to solve the above problem, the image forming apparatus includes a setting unit that sets a re-output condition for adding a reading unit, a part of the output unit, or all operation setting items to the stored document. The job progress information is stored as recovery information for output means that do not require recovery, and the progress information of the job before the power-off of the output means that acts on document storage during recovery and the output means that does not require recovery is acquired. If the output operation is not completed, the re-output condition added to the stored document is deleted.

  In order to solve the above problem, the image forming apparatus includes a setting unit that sets a re-output condition for adding a reading unit, a part of the output unit, or all operation setting items to the stored document. When the progress information of the job is retained as recovery information for the output means that does not require recovery, the re-output conditions added to the stored document are read, and the output conditions are not added to all pages , Causing the user to reset the missing output condition.

  In order to solve the above problem, in the image forming apparatus, any one of deletion of the stored document, deletion of the output condition, or resetting of the output condition can be set in advance.

  In order to solve the above problem, in the image forming apparatus, the user can set one of deletion of the stored document, deletion of the output condition, and resetting of the output condition.

  In order to solve the above problem, in the image forming apparatus, any one of deletion of the stored document, deletion of the output condition, or resetting of the output condition is set according to a user authority based on user authentication at the time of recovery. Is possible.

  In addition, what applied the arbitrary combination of the component of this invention, expression, or a component to a method, an apparatus, a system, a computer program, a recording medium, etc. is effective as an aspect of this invention.

  According to the present invention, when an accumulated document is stored together with an incomplete re-output condition due to an unintended power interruption, use of the accumulated document that cannot be subjected to output processing to which the re-output condition is applied is prevented, and is not intended by the user. An image forming apparatus that prevents a document from being output can be provided.

1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of an image forming apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 illustrates main components of an image forming apparatus 1 according to an embodiment. It is a figure which shows notionally the connection structure of the pipe and filter for performing a certain document operation. FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram (part 1) for explaining job start preparation. FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram (part 2) for explaining job execution processing; An example of the data structure of recovery data is shown. FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram illustrating creation and update of re-output conditions during job execution processing. The data structure example of re-output conditions is shown. It is a sequence diagram explaining the recovery process after power-off. It is a sequence diagram which shows the starting process after the power failure which concerns on a present Example. It is a flowchart explaining a determination process. It is a flowchart explaining a determination process. An example of job progress information data is shown. It is a sequence diagram which shows the starting process after the power failure which concerns on a present Example. It is a sequence diagram which shows the starting process after the power failure which concerns on a present Example. It is a flowchart explaining a determination process. An example of a selection screen is shown.

  DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described in each embodiment with reference to the drawings. In describing the present invention, an example in which the present invention is applied to an image forming apparatus (MFP) will be described below. The image forming apparatus is an image forming apparatus in which a plurality of functions such as a printer, a copy, and a scanner are accommodated in one casing. In addition to these basic functions, various functions are provided in the user environment with various functions as the digital image technology is advanced and the technology related to MFP is advanced.

<System configuration>
(hardware)
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of an image forming apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment includes an operation panel 11, a storage medium I / F 12, a controller 13, a data communication I / F 14, a scanner 15, a plotter 16, and an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) 17. Are connected to each other.

  The operation panel 11 includes an input device 11a and a display device 11b. The input device 11a includes hard keys and the like, and is used to input each operation signal to the image forming apparatus 1. Further, the display device 11b is configured by a display or the like, and displays, for example, various types of information regarding the image forming operation. More specifically, the operation panel 11 includes, for example, a display that displays various types of information related to the image forming operation, and hard keys such as physical buttons and dials for the user to give operation instructions. Since the display according to the present embodiment is a touch panel type display using a touch sensor, it is possible to give an operation instruction related to an image forming operation by a touch operation on the display.

  The data communication I / F 14 includes an interface device 14a, and is an interface that connects the image forming apparatus 1 to a data transmission path such as a network or a fax machine. The HDD 17 stores various data such as received document data and read image data handled by the image forming apparatus 1. Further, the HDD 17 manages these various data by a predetermined file system or DB (Data Base).

  Various data stored in the HDD 17 includes data input from the recording medium 12b. The recording medium 12b is set in the drive device 12a included in the storage medium I / F 12, and various data are stored in the HDD 17 from the recording medium 12b via the drive device 12a.

  The controller 13 includes a ROM (Read Only Memory) 13a, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 13b, and a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 13c. The ROM 13a is executed when the image forming apparatus 1 is activated. Program and various data are stored. The RAM 13b temporarily stores various programs and data read from the ROM 13a and the HDD 17. Further, the CPU 13c executes a program temporarily stored in the RAM 13b. For example, when the print data is received via the data communication I / F 14, the controller 13 reads a program (PDL parser) that can read PDL (Page Description Language) read from the ROM 13a onto the RAM 13b by the CPU 13c. Execute and interpret the print data to generate a bitmap image.

  The scanner 15 includes an image reading device 15a, and optically reads a document placed on a reading surface and generates image data. The plotter 16 has a printing device 16a and prints a bitmap image on a recording sheet by, for example, an electrophotographic process method.

  As described above, the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment realizes a plurality of functions such as a copy, a printer, a facsimile, and a scanner by the above hardware configuration.

(function)
FIG. 2 describes the main components of the image forming apparatus 1 according to the embodiment. Each component (CMP) is largely composed of a CMP interface setting UI section and a job control logic section.

  The reading filter 22 reads a document by controlling a scanner device (for example, the image reading device 15a) of the image forming apparatus 1, or reads image data stored in a data permanent area, and can be handled in the apparatus. Provides an image input function for generating image data. The UI corresponding to the logic (filter) is the reading UI 21, but the reading UI 21 and the reading filter 22 are collectively referred to as a reading unit 20 hereinafter.

  The processing (editing) filter 32 controls the image processing unit (IPU) in the image forming apparatus, thereby editing the read image data, printing the image data to be printed, and storing and processing the image data to be stored. Various image processing (image editing) processing functions are provided. The UI corresponding to the logic (filter) is the processing UI 31, but the processing UI 31 and the processing filter 32 are collectively referred to as a processing unit 30 hereinafter.

  The print filter 42 controls the plotter device (for example, the printing device 16a) of the image forming apparatus 1 to transfer the image data processed in the device to a medium such as paper, thereby outputting the image to the outside. Provide functionality. If the power supply is interrupted during the print output, the power output is recovered to the state before the power supply cut off as much as possible and the print output is continued. Although the UI corresponding to the logic (filter) is the print UI 41, the print UI 41 and the print filter 42 are collectively referred to as a printing unit 40 hereinafter.

  The transmission filter 52 provides an image output function for transmitting image data processed in the image forming apparatus 1 to the outside of the apparatus. Also, if a power interruption occurs during transmission to the outside of the apparatus, the transmission is continued as much as possible when the power is turned on to recover to the state before the power interruption. The UI corresponding to the logic (filter) is the transmission UI 51, but the transmission UI 51 and the transmission filter 52 are collectively referred to as a transmission unit 50 hereinafter.

  The accumulation filter 62 accumulates the read image data in the HDD 17. The stored image data can be reprinted, transmitted, and edited. The UI corresponding to the logic (filter) is the accumulation UI 61, but the accumulation UI 61 and the accumulation filter 62 are collectively referred to as an accumulation unit 60 hereinafter.

  The multi-document activity 72 is an activity that makes it possible to execute a document operation by combining each filter available in the image forming apparatus 1. For example, the multi-document activity 72 performs a document operation (processing) by connecting a combination of filters in the order of the reading filter 22, the processing filter 32, and the printing filter 41 as a filter configuration when outputting a copy of a paper document. In addition, the system has a determination unit as to whether or not to perform recovery processing from power interruption when the system is started. The UI corresponding to the logic (activity) is a multi-document activity UI 71. The multi-document activity UI 71 and the multi-document activity 72 are collectively referred to as a multi-document activity unit 70 hereinafter.

  The document information repository service 73 is a component service that provides a function (CRUD) for managing image information of documents stored in a storage device (for example, the HDD 17) in the image forming apparatus 1 and bibliographic information such as re-output conditions. .

  The re-output condition information repository service 74 manages a re-output condition (information) that is information for realizing output with the same setting as the previously output condition, based on the condition stored in the storage device in the image forming apparatus 1. A component service that provides functionality (CRUD).

  The recovery information repository service 75 provides a function (CRUD) for managing recovery information that is information for realizing recovery processing when the system is restored according to conditions stored in the storage device in the image forming apparatus 1. It is a component service.

  The data management 80 is a component service that controls storage devices (for example, the HDD 17 and the ROM 13a) in the image forming apparatus 1 and manages information to be stored.

<Operation>
(Pipe & Filter)
In the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, processing is realized using a mechanism called a pipe and filter. FIG. 3 is a diagram conceptually illustrating a connection configuration of a pipe and a filter for performing a certain document operation. This will be briefly described below.

  For example, as a document operation (copying), a single input unit is used in which image data is read from a paper manuscript with a scanner, some processing (image processing) is performed on the image data, and printing is performed on a transfer sheet with a plotter. The output document operation can be realized by the configuration shown in FIG. In this case, the filter (F) a1 (input) corresponds to the reading filter 22, a2 (processing) corresponds to the processing filter 31, and a3 (output) corresponds to the printing filter 41. The pipe (p) corresponds to the function of the multi-document activity unit 70 and is connected by combining each filter.

  Further, in the case of multiple outputs, it can be realized with the configuration of FIG. In this case, the filter (F) b1 (input) corresponds to the reading filter 22, b2 (processing) corresponds to the two processing filters 31, and b3 (output) corresponds to the two printing filters 41. Similarly, the pipe (p) corresponds to the function of the multi-document activity unit 70, and is connected by combining each filter.

(Job execution)
Next, job execution by the pipe and filter mechanism will be described. When the multi-document activity unit 70 connects (pipes) a combination of filters, a predetermined document operation job is executed. In the image forming apparatus 1 described below, first, an image is read by a scanner or the like, the read image is processed for storage, the image is stored, and the read image is processed for printing, and then the image is processed. Assuming the case of printing, description will be made with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram (part 1) for explaining job start preparation. The condition described below indicates a parameter group necessary for the job to operate. The parameter is a setting value given from the outside during job operation, and specifically, a color mode, scaling, duplex setting, and the like.

  In the operation condition setting process (S420), when the user sets a function (condition) from the operation unit device 11, the UI sets its own logic in the function unit having the function. For example, when the storage setting (storage destination: HDD) is set for the storage function by a user operation, the storage UI 61 sets the storage filter 62 that is its own logic in the storage unit 60. Similarly, when the print setting (color mode: full color) is set for the print function, the print UI 41 sets the print filter 42 that is its own logic in the print unit 40. When the user receives an execution request from the operation unit device 11 to the multi-document activity unit 70, the process proceeds to the next step.

  Next, in the job generation process (S430), when an execution request is made to the multi-document activity unit 70 by a user operation, the multi-document activity unit 70 determines a job to be generated according to the conditions at the time of execution, and sets each filter. Create the necessary jobs for them.

  Next, in the filter connection process (S440), the multi-document activity unit 70 associates the request source (entrance) and request destination (exit) of the image data, that is, associates the jobs (filter connection) according to the generated job configuration. I do.

  FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram (part 2) for explaining job execution processing. Subsequent to S404, execution processing is performed (S450).

  In S451 of the execution process, the multi-document activity unit 70 makes an execution request to each filter logic as a pipe role. Specifically, an execution request is made to the reading unit 20, the storage unit 60, and the printing unit 40 here. As described above, each functional unit here includes a UI and a filter logic. The filter that has received the execution instruction makes an image acquisition request to the associated request filter through the pipe. Here, the storage unit 60 makes an image acquisition request to the storage processing unit 30, and the printing unit 40 makes an image acquisition request to the storage processing unit 30. When an image acquisition request is made from the storage processing unit 30 and the storage processing unit 30 to the reading unit 20, the reading unit 20 as an input unit executes, for example, a reading process of an image (image data) from a document by a scanner.

In S452 of the execution process, the multi-document activity unit 70 creates recovery data (ID = 01 ) necessary for recovery at the timing when reading (input) of the image is completed, and also creates recovery data for each filter. To create a recovery. Then, the reading unit 20, the printing unit 40, and the storage unit 60 generate recovery data (ID = 01, 10, 11, 12 respectively) required for recovery in response to a storage instruction. Here, the recovery data is a parameter group necessary for continuous operation of the job that was being performed before the power was turned off when the power was restored even when the job was interrupted due to a sudden power cut.

  FIG. 6 shows an example of the data structure of recovery data. 6A and 6B show examples of the data structure of recovery data related to power-off recovery. The recovery data is a set of parameters used for restoring data at the time of recovery when the power is turned off.

  FIG. 6A shows an example of recovery data created at the start of execution. FIG. 6B shows an example of recovery data that is updated and created at the end of execution. The recovery data includes the identifier (ID) of the document that is the target of processing necessary to uniquely identify the target document, the path of the image that indicates the storage destination in the permanent area of the image, and in this embodiment the output data Because the configuration is a multi-output configuration of printing and storage, operation setting parameters (such as double-sided and stored documents) that are necessary to continue the job during recovery related to printing and storage Necessary document ID) and progress information necessary to determine whether recovery is necessary. Further, as shown in FIG. 5 (S453) and FIG. 6B, the recovery data is updated, but only the value of “progress information” is updated as the job progresses for each recovery ID.

  Since the image acquisition request is made to the reading unit 20 from the storage processing unit 30 and the storage processing unit 30, the reading unit 20 stores the read image (image data) as an image request source filter in S453. Pass to part 30. The accumulation processing unit 30 performs image processing so that an image (image data) becomes, for example, an image for accumulation. The specific image processing content follows the condition setting processing (S420). When the image processing is completed, the accumulation processing unit 30 notifies the multi-document activity unit 70 of the progress state, and then passes the image processed image to the accumulation unit 60 that is the next image request source filter. The accumulating unit 60 performs accumulating processing of an image that has been subjected to image processing for accumulation. Then, its own recovery data (ID = 12) is updated, and a progress status notification is sent to the multi-document activity unit 70.

  Note that updating here means rewriting all or part of a data group that has already been created to a specified value. That is, the value of “progress information” registered in the recovery data is updated. For example, in this case, since it is accumulated in units of pages as in the case of printing, “1 page”, “2 pages”,...

  Next, the reading unit 20 passes the read image (image data) to the print processing unit 30 that is an image request source filter. The print processing unit 30 performs image processing so that an image (image data) becomes a print image. The specific image processing content follows the condition setting processing. After the processing is completed, the print processing unit 30 notifies the multi-document activity unit 70 of the progress state, and passes this image data to the printing unit 40 which is the next image request source filter. The printing unit 40 performs a printing process on the image data. Then, the printing unit 40 updates its own recovery data (ID = 11). Referring to FIG. 6, when the recovery data (ID = 11) was created, the “progress information” was “page 0” (FIG. 6A), but after the recovery data was updated, “completion” (FIG. 6). 6 (b)).

  FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram illustrating the creation and update of re-output conditions during job execution processing. In the present embodiment, the print output filter and the accumulation output filter simultaneously operate as output filters. That is, when the printing unit 40 and the storage unit 60 perform processing in parallel, when creating a re-output condition, one output result acts on the other output result between execution results between output filters. The output result of the print output filter acts on the output result of the accumulation output filter. When a plurality of output means including the accumulation output filter are simultaneously executed, the output condition of the printing operation is added and stored as a re-output condition for each document and page in the accumulation document registered by the accumulation output filter. Note that the flow from the start to the end of job execution is the same as that shown in FIG. Regarding the re-output condition creation / update process described in FIG. 7, numbers are assigned to the process names on the sequence diagram (S1 to S2.1).

  First, the multi-document activity unit 70 makes an execution request to the reading unit 20, the storage unit 60, and the printing unit 40, and then creates a re-output condition in S1 and S1.1. In S1 and S1.1, a re-output condition associated with the document is created. Here, the settings applied to the document, such as the sort settings that are printing conditions, are stored. Finally, if the multi-document activity unit 70 receives a progress status notification indicating that each output unit such as the storage unit 60 and the printing unit 40 has output an image, in S2 and S2.1. Update. In S.2 and S2.1., A re-output condition associated with the page is created. In the drawing, the processing portion enclosed as “repeat for page” is repeated for the number of pages.

  FIG. 8 shows an example of the data structure of the re-output condition. FIG. 8A shows the data structure of the re-output condition for the document. FIG. 8B shows the data structure of the re-output condition for the page. The re-output condition for the document includes a document ID indicating the document, a user name representing the user who created the document, and setting values such as a sort applied to the document.

  FIG. 8A shows re-output condition data after the start of execution. FIG. 8B shows re-output condition data after 2 pages are output. The re-output condition data after the start of execution includes document information data and a re-output condition for the document. The document information data consists of the document ID necessary to uniquely identify the document, the re-output condition for the document, and the re-output condition ID for the page. The re-output condition for the document is an ID that uniquely identifies the data, the document Is configured with setting values such as sort settings. The re-output condition data after the output of two pages is composed of the output condition data for the page in addition to the data after the start of execution. The re-output condition data for the page is not generated in FIG. 8A because the first page is generated after printing out, but is generated in FIG. 8B. The re-output condition for a page includes an ID for uniquely identifying data, a page number, a print setting applied to each page, for example, a setting value such as a mode setting.

  The re-output condition for the document is recorded at the timing when the execution of the document is confirmed (“α” in FIG. 7). On the other hand, as the re-output condition for the page, the re-output condition stored in the page such as the page number and the color mode is recorded at the completion timing of the execution of each page (“β” in FIG. 7).

  At the storage timing of the re-output condition as described above, the recovery of the re-output condition of a certain page is completed, and the power is cut off in the image forming apparatus 1 before the recovery of the re-output condition of the next page is performed. If this occurs (timing “A” in FIG. 7), a re-output condition is added to a certain page, and a page to which no re-output condition is added is accumulated in a certain page. The stored document that has been stored cannot be said to be an output result that satisfies the user's request.

  For example, in a device in which the default value of the color mode is set to “black and white”, the operation is changed to the setting for outputting all pages in full color, and the setting at that time (color mode = full color) is saved as a re-output condition. Assume that the power supply is cut off at the timing “A” in FIG. A re-output condition is added to a certain page, and a page to which a re-output condition is not added is accumulated on a certain page. After that, when a stored document is printed out, the re-output condition is added. There is a possibility that pages that are included will be output in full color, and pages that are not added will be output with the default settings of the device (in this example, black and white). Since the user expected all pages to be output in full color, it cannot be said that the user's request is satisfied as a result.

  FIG. 9 is a sequence for explaining the recovery process after the power is turned off.

  In step S <b> 901, first, after the power is turned on, the multi-document activity unit 70 confirms the presence or absence of recovery data with respect to the recovery information repository service 75. The necessity of recovery processing is determined based on the presence or absence of recovery data. If there is recovery data, it is determined that recovery processing is necessary, and if there is no recovery data, it is determined that recovery processing is unnecessary.

  If there is recovery data, filter condition generation, job generation, and filter connection processing are sequentially performed according to the recovery data. Here, according to the recovery data, the storage processing, storage, printing processing, print unit condition generation processing (S902), job generation (S903), and filter connection processing (S904) executed before the power is turned off are performed. To do.

  In step S905, the multi-document activity unit 70 passes the recovery ID to each output filter (storage unit 60, printing unit 40) that stores the recovery data. The storage unit 60 and the printing unit 40 acquire (read) recovery data based on the passed recovery ID. The storage unit 60 and the printing unit 40 that have acquired the recovery data send a read completion notification to the multi-document activity unit 70 after the recovery data acquisition is completed.

  In step S <b> 906, the multi-document activity 70 issues an execution request to the reading unit 20, the storage unit 60, and the printing unit 40. The subsequent execution process is the same as the flow of the execution process described in FIG. The storage unit 60 and the printing unit 40 delete the recovery data held by the storage unit 60 and the printing unit 40 when the storage processing and the printing processing are finished. Here, the storage unit 60 deletes the recovery data with the recovery ID = 12. The printing unit 40 deletes the recovery data with the recovery ID = 11.

  FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram illustrating a startup process after the power is turned off according to the present embodiment. The image forming apparatus 1 according to the present invention executes a job that stores a multi-output configuration and a re-output condition, the power is cut off at the timing of execution (timing “A” in FIG. 7), and insufficient When there is an accumulated document to which the output condition is added, this accumulated document is deleted. In other words, it is possible to read the recovery data after startup, determine whether the re-output condition added to the stored document is sufficient ("determination process" in the figure), and delete the stored document if it is not sufficient The output result that does not satisfy the user's request can be deleted.

  FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating the determination process. The determination as to whether or not the re-output condition added to the stored document is sufficient is performed according to the following flow. As a premise, a job having a multi-output configuration is started with the print output means and the document accumulation output means as outputs. At this time, the output result of the print output means acts on the output result of the document storage output means.

  In step Sa111, the multi-document activity unit 70 determines whether the job stores the re-output condition.

  When it is determined in Sa112 that the job is to store the re-output condition, the multi-document activity unit 70 stores the re-output condition data of the accumulated document accumulated at this time.

  In Sa113, a job with a multi-output configuration is executed. In Sa114, the system is powered off during the execution process. Thereafter, the system is turned on and a startup process is performed.

  In Sb111, after the activation is completed, the multi-document activity unit 70 reads the stored document ID of the saved re-output condition, and reads the stored document stored from the ID.

  In Sb112, the multi-document activity unit 70 determines whether or not a re-output condition is assigned to all pages from the stored document read out.

  In Sb113, when the re-output condition is not given to all pages (determination No), the multi-document activity unit 70 deletes the stored document.

  It is determined whether or not the re-output condition is given to all pages. If the result is Yes, the process proceeds to “END”. This end indicates the end of the determination process, and in the case of Yes, the sequence process after the determination process is continued.

  By configuring in this way, in a multi-output configuration that performs print output and accumulated output, the result of the print output (print output condition) is stored in association with the result of accumulated output (accumulated document) as a re-output condition, In the input / output configuration in which the first output is determined not to require recovery, it is determined whether the stored document stored at the time of system startup is sufficient as the output result after the power interruption during job execution. Since the document is deleted when it is insufficient, it is possible to prevent the accumulation of the document to which the re-output condition is insufficiently added. In other words, document accumulation unintended by the user and re-output due to unintended conditions can be prevented.

  In the first embodiment described above, when there is an accumulated document to which insufficient re-output conditions are added, this accumulated document is deleted. On the other hand, in the second embodiment, a job that stores a multi-output configuration and re-output conditions is executed, the power is turned off at the time of execution (timing "A" in FIG. 7), and the output that acts on the stored document When the means is not completed, the stored document is deleted. That is, referring to FIG. 10 again, the recovery data after activation is read out, and it is determined whether or not the output means acting on the stored document is completed. If the output means is not completed, the stored document is deleted.

  FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating the determination process. The determination as to whether or not the output means acting on the stored document is completed is performed according to the following flow. As a premise, a job having a multi-output configuration is started with the print output means and the document accumulation output means as outputs. At this time, the output result of the print output means acts on the output result of the document storage output means.

  In step Sa121, the multi-document activity unit 70 determines whether the print output unit that acts on document accumulation is an output unit that does not require recovery.

  When it is determined in Sa122 that the recovery is not necessary, the multi-document activity unit 70 stores the progress information of the job. Information on the progress of the job is recorded in the status of being executed or finished. FIG. 13 shows a data example of job progress information. The determination is made by confirming this progress information.

  In Sa123, a job with a multi-output configuration is executed. In Sa124, the system is powered off during this execution process. Thereafter, the system is turned on and a startup process is performed.

  In Sb121, after the activation is completed, the multi-document activity unit 70 reads the recovered progress information.

  In Sb122, based on the read progress information, the multi-document activity unit 70 determines whether or not the job of the output unit that acts on document accumulation has been completed. When the progress information is “executing”, it is determined that the job is not completed, and when it is “finished”, it is determined that the job is completed.

  In Sb123, when the progress information is “executing” and the job is not completed (determination No), it is further determined whether or not the output operation affects the document accumulation operation, and then in Sb124, the multi-document activity is determined. The unit 70 deletes the stored document. Here, “end” refers to the end of the determination process, and in the case of Yes, the sequence process after the determination process is continued.

  By configuring in this way, the user's request is made in order to consider the progress of the output operation that is executed in parallel with the storage and acts on the stored document as the determination condition as to whether the stored document is a document that satisfies the user request. It is possible to prevent the accumulated documents that cannot be satisfied from remaining.

  In the third embodiment, when the power is turned off at the timing when the accumulation output filter process is finished and the print output filter process is not finished, there is a document in which the re-output condition is insufficiently added. In such a case, only the re-output condition added to the document is deleted without deleting the stored document.

  FIG. 14 is a sequence diagram illustrating the startup process after the power is turned off according to the present embodiment. After startup, the recovery data is read out, and it is determined whether the re-output condition given to the stored document is sufficient. If it is not sufficient, only the re-output condition added to the document is deleted.

  The determination as to whether or not the re-output condition assigned to the stored document is sufficient is almost the same as the flow shown in FIG. 12, and therefore, the presentation of the drawing is omitted again. However, in this embodiment, when the determination is No in b122, the multi-document activity unit 70 considers that the re-output condition added to the stored document is insufficient, and for this stored document, Delete the added re-output condition.

  By configuring in this way, it is possible to prevent the output from satisfying the user request when the stored document is re-outputted by not leaving the stored document having the missing output condition in the apparatus. In this case, since the document is handled in the same way as a document saved by the storage application, it is necessary to specify a job condition at the next job execution, and the page condition cannot be reset.

  FIG. 15 is a sequence diagram illustrating the start-up process after the power is turned off according to the present embodiment. After startup, the recovery data is read out, and it is determined whether the re-output condition given to the stored document is sufficient. If it is not sufficient, the user is prompted to set the condition.

  FIG. 16 is a flowchart illustrating the determination process. The determination as to whether or not the re-output condition assigned to the stored document is sufficient is performed according to the following flow. Before the power is turned off, a job with a multi-output configuration using the print output means and the document accumulation output means as an output is started. At this time, the output result of the print output means acts on the output result of the document storage output means. Then, the system is powered off during the execution process.

  In S161, the multi-document activity unit 70 reads out the stored document and the re-output condition to which the stored document is added.

  In S162, the multi-document activity unit 70 determines whether or not a re-output condition is added to all pages of the stored document based on the read stored document and the re-output condition.

  In S163, when the re-output condition is not added to all pages of the stored document (determination No), the multi-document activity UI 71 causes the user to set the condition of the page to which the re-output condition is not added, and S164. The multi-document activity unit 70 stores the set information as re-output condition data.

  By configuring in this way, the missing output condition is reset by the user, so that it is possible to prevent the output condition from being lost and causing an unintended output.

  As described in the above embodiments, when the power is turned off during job execution and the power is turned on again, the stored document is deleted, only the re-output condition is deleted, or the output condition is reset. That behavior can be considered. In this embodiment, the user sets this behavior in advance, and this setting is held on the system side.

  Specifically, before the job is executed, the user sets the behavior when the re-output condition is insufficiently added. That is, the behavior setting value when the re-output condition is not sufficiently added is set to one of deletion of the stored document, deletion of the re-output condition, and reset of the output condition.

  The image forming apparatus 1 holds the behavior setting value, and operates according to the behavior setting value when the re-output condition is insufficient. As described above, it is determined whether or not a re-output condition has been added to all pages of the accumulated document from the start of the job. If the determination is No, the multi-document activity unit 70 sets the behavior setting value. read out. When the stored document is to be deleted according to the set value, the multi-document activity unit 70 deletes the target stored document. Further, when deleting the re-output condition of the stored document, the multi-document activity unit 70 deletes only the re-output condition and stores the stored document in the apparatus. When the output condition is reset, the output condition is reset for the page where the output condition is missing.

  By configuring in this way, the user can set the behavior at the time of recovery in advance, so that the trouble of setting the behavior at the time of recovery can be reduced.

  As a further modification 1, it is determined whether or not a re-output condition is added to all pages of the accumulated document from the start of the job. If the determination is No, the multi-document activity UI 71 re-outputs. It is also possible to present the user with a choice of behavior when the condition addition is insufficient. The presented options are to delete the stored document / delete the re-output condition / reset the output condition as described above.

  FIG. 17 shows an example of the selection screen. As shown in the figure, the user can determine one option by pressing a radio button on the selection screen. In other words, with this configuration, the user can arbitrarily set the behavior when the re-output condition is insufficiently added, so that appropriate recovery processing can be executed each time according to the user's situation.

  As a further modification 2, the behavior when the re-output condition is not sufficiently added can be set according to the result of the user authentication. That is, it is determined whether or not a re-output condition has been added to all pages of the accumulated document from the start of the job. If the determination is No, the multi-document activity UI 71 presents a user authentication screen. When the user inputs his / her user ID and password, user authentication is performed by collating with authentication information held on the image forming apparatus 1 side. At this time, in the authentication information, for example, for each user ID, a behavior setting value is associated (delete stored document / delete re-output condition / re-set output condition). As described above, since the above-described behavior can be determined (set) according to user authentication in advance, it is possible to reduce time and effort set by the user each time.

<Summary>
As described above, in the multi-output configuration in which the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment performs print output and accumulated output, the result of the print output (print output condition) is the re-output condition as the result of accumulated output (accumulated document). In an input / output configuration that is linked and saved, and the first output is determined not to require recovery, the system stops after a power interruption during job execution, and the stored documents accumulated at system startup are output As a result, it is judged whether it is enough, and when it is insufficient, the document is deleted or the process of complementing the missing information is performed, so the document with insufficient re-output condition is accumulated. Can be prevented. In other words, when the system returns, when a re-output condition is added to a certain page and an accumulated document without a re-output condition is accumulated on a certain page, the re-output condition is applied and this stored document is applied. Is printed out in a state where the re-output condition is not reflected on some pages. Therefore, the image forming apparatus 1 determines whether or not the re-output condition of the stored document accumulated at the time of starting the system is sufficient. When the condition is insufficient, the image forming apparatus 1 performs processing for deleting the document or supplementing the missing information. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the user from providing an unintended stored document and thus a printed document.

  As described above, according to the present invention, when an accumulated document is stored with an incomplete re-output condition due to an unintended power interruption, it is possible to prevent the use of an accumulated document that cannot be output using the re-output condition. An image forming apparatus that prevents an unintended document from being output can be provided.

  The present invention is not limited to such specific embodiments, and various modifications and changes can be made within the scope of the gist of the present invention described in the claims.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Image forming apparatus 11 Operation panel (operation part device)
11a Input device 11b Display device 12 Storage media I / F
12a Drive device 12b Recording medium 13 Controller 13a ROM
13b RAM
13c CPU
14 Data communication I / F
14a Interface device 15 Scanner 15a Image reading device 16 Plotter 16a Printing device 17 HDD
20 Reading unit 21 Reading UI
22 Reading filter 30 Processing unit 31 Processing UI
32 Processing filter 40 Printing section 41 Printing UI
42 Print Filter 50 Transmission Unit 51 Transmission UI
52 Transmission Filter 60 Accumulation Unit 61 Accumulation UI
62 Accumulation filter 71 Multi-document activity UI
72 Multi-document activity 73 Document information repository service 74 Re-output condition information repository service 75 Recovery information repository service 80 Data management

JP 2007-58528 A

Claims (7)

Perform output processing of the document data in accordance with the output condition for each page, an image forming apparatus that performs storage processing of storing documents comprising said output condition assigned to each page of the document data and the document data,
Document output means for outputting document data including print output and storage output to a storage device ;
Job configuration means for executing a multi-configuration job combining the print output job and the accumulated output job;
Recovery information holding means for holding recovery information for each output of the job;
Job reconstruction means for obtaining the recovery information and reconstructing a recovery job;
Determination means for determining whether or not recovery is necessary based on the recovery information ;
A recovery job start determining means for starting a recovery process when a recovery job is reconfigured by the job reconfiguring means, and when it is determined that recovery is required by the determining means ;
Between the output of the print output and the storage output, the print output by the output result of the print output has a working relationship that acts on the accumulated stored document is output result of the accumulation output, and said determining means In the I / O configuration that is determined to be unnecessary for recovery , if it is determined that no output conditions have been assigned to all pages of the document data of the accumulated document after the power is cut off during job execution, when the system is started , A deletion means for deleting stored documents;
An image forming apparatus comprising: Progress information is retained as recovery information for the output that is determined not to require recovery, and during recovery, the output that affects document storage and the progress information prior to power-off of the output that does not require recovery is acquired, and the output operation is completed. If not, delete the stored document.
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1. It has a setting means for setting as a re-output condition for adding a reading means, a part of the output means, or all operation setting items to the stored document,
The job progress information is stored as recovery information for output means that do not require recovery, and the progress information of the job before the power-off of the output means that acts on document storage during recovery and the output means that does not require recovery is acquired. If the output operation is not completed, delete the re-output condition added to the stored document.
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1. Against stored document, the reading means comprises a setting means part, or be configured with a re-output conditions for adding all the operation setting item of the output means,
When the progress information of the job is retained as recovery information for the output means that does not require recovery, the re-output conditions added to the stored document are read, and if the output conditions are not added to all pages, Have the user reset the missing output condition,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1. Either deletion of the stored document, deletion of the output condition, or resetting of the output condition can be set in advance.
The image forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the image forming apparatus is an image forming apparatus. The user can set one of deletion of the accumulated document, deletion of the output condition, or resetting of the output condition at the time of recovery,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 5. Any one of deletion of the accumulated document, deletion of the output condition, or resetting of the output condition can be set according to user authority based on user authentication at the time of recovery,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 5.

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