JPH0553100B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Technical Field] The present invention relates to a facsimile device, and more particularly to a facsimile device having an image memory for storing encoded image data and a recording section for recording decoded image data.

[Prior art] Early facsimile devices had a slow data transmission speed and were single-function devices, so the transmitting side read the image, the encoded and transmitted image signal was immediately decoded and reproduced on the receiving side, and recorded as is in real time. was. In this type of device, the receiving device must be kept operational at all times, which is inconvenient in that, for example, it is not possible to freely inspect printers and the like. In other words, even if this type of device receives a data transmission request from the sending side, if the receiving printer is undergoing maintenance work and an operational interlock is activated due to detection of the open state of the device cover, the sending side will also not be able to continue sending images. There was an inconvenience that it was not possible to send data.

Advances in data compression technology in recent years have made it possible to transmit substantially large amounts of image information in a short period of time. Some receiving devices are equipped with a considerable buffer image memory in order to solve the problem that their own reproduction/recording means cannot keep up with such a substantially large amount of image input information. However, even with recent advances in facsimile equipment, significant progress has been made in terms of improving image quality, such as increasing pixel density and expressing halftones, but still, as mentioned above, the receiving equipment is currently under inspection. If it is not available, the sending device will also be unable to read and transmit images.
No improvement has been seen in the inconvenience of use or maintenance.

Specific examples of such usage and maintenance problems are as follows. FIG. 2 is a timing chart illustrating the reception printing procedure of a conventional facsimile machine having an image memory. In the figure, when a [transmission request] is issued from the image sending side, the receiving side requests the [receiving function] in a communication control procedure. The contents to be specified in [Send request] are as follows.
These are the encoding method, document size, transmission speed, etc. that the transmitting side has, and the contents mentioned in [receiving function] include the encoding method, recording paper size, presence or absence of recording paper, etc. that the receiving side has. However, if the receiving device is in some kind of inoperable state at the time of receiving the [transmission request], the receiving inoperable state is indicated as the [receiving function]. The state in which reception cannot be performed is, for example, a case where the receiving device is inspecting the printer and is interlocked by opening the protective cover. Alternatively, the printer may be placed in offline mode for test printing. In this case, the sending device cannot send image data until the receiving device becomes operational, so the sending device is either forced to wait for the receiving device to send data, or the sending device interrupts communication, which is an inconvenience. It was hot.

Further, even if data transfer was performed reliably, there was no guarantee that the data would be reliably reproduced and recorded later. For this reason, there was an inconvenience that the image data that had been painstakingly stored was not recorded for some reason and was lost.

[Purpose] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned drawbacks of the prior art, and its purpose is to eliminate the possibility that a facsimile machine on the receiving side is artificially rendered inoperable to a certain extent. , regardless of this, receives and stores image reading data from the sending device,
Moreover, it is an object of the present invention to provide a facsimile device that guarantees that stored image data is reliably automatically reproduced and recorded.

Specifically, even if the printer cover of the receiving facsimile device is opened for maintenance and inspection and the printer operation interlock is activated by detecting the open state of the cover, the image from the sending device is To receive and store data, preferably disconnect the transmitting device immediately after receiving the image data, and automatically reproduce and record the stored image data when the operation interlock is released by detecting the cover closed state. Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a facsimile device that allows printer maintenance and inspection to be carried out at any time with peace of mind.

[Embodiment] Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1A is a block diagram showing the configuration of the main receiving and printing path in a facsimile apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. still,
Although not shown, the apparatus of this embodiment may be a so-called facsimile transmission/reception apparatus that further includes a document image reading section and a transmission control section for the read image data.

In the figure, 1 is a data communication line, 2 is a control board equipped with a control unit, 3 is an electrostatic recording heat fixing printer unit, 4 is a micro switch that detects the open/closed state of the protective cover 31 of the printer unit 3, 5
6 is a power controller that controls power supply and power supply timing to each part of the apparatus, and 6 is an operation panel that includes a power on/off switch for the main body of the apparatus and means for notifying various states.

Inside the control board 2, there is shown a functional block configuration for executing various functions. 21 is a receiving circuit that receives communication control messages and encoded image data from the transmitting side device; 22 is a transmitting circuit that transmits a response message to the transmitting side; 23 is an image memory that stores the received encoded image data; A decoder 25 that decodes encoded image data read out from the image memory 23 is a control unit that centrally controls the entire device. The control unit 25 has a built-in program.
It is mainly composed of a 1-chip CPU, including ROM, RAM necessary for control, PIO for control data input/output, etc. Further, the decoder 24 is a device that decodes and reproduces encoded image data compressed and transmitted using, for example, a run-length method, and simultaneously performs a decoding test.

The printer section 3 is an electrostatic recording type that forms an electrostatic latent image on a charging drum using the reproduced image signal from the decoder 24, develops it by applying toner to it, transfers it to plain paper, and then thermally fixes it. It is a thermal fixing printer. Of course, various other types of printers may be used. In general, a printer section is made up of a precise mechanism and may also use high pressure, so it is isolated from the outside by a protective cover 31 as in this embodiment. In order to ensure this safety, a micro switch 4 that interlocks with the protective cover 31 is provided.
The open/closed state of the protective cover 31 is detected by the ON/OFF operation of the switch 4, and based on this detection signal, a certain operation interlock state such as stopping power supply to the printer section 3 occurs. Of course, there are cases where the housing cover plays the role of such a protective cover.

Power controller 5 supplies power to printer section 3 via line 51 and to the remaining sections via line 52. In this case, the control board 2 is constantly supplied with power even when it is not printing because a [transmission request] may arrive from the sending side at any time. On the other hand, while the printer section 3 is not printing, power is not supplied to the printer section 3 except for necessary portions in order to save power.

The operation panel 6 is equipped with a power on/off switch PSW of the main body of the apparatus and means for notifying various states.
The notification means is, for example, an LED and a speaker that notify the operator visually or audibly when a certain condition described below occurs. The power on/off switch PSW is an operation switch for turning on and off the power to the entire device.

FIG. 1B is a circuit diagram of a configuration for controlling power on and off of the entire device, and is included in the power controller 5. In the figure, when PSW is turned ON, line 6 is
The level of 1 becomes HIGH, turning on the solid state relay SSR through the NOR gate,
Connect AC input AC-I to AC output AC-O. Also, when the PSW is turned OFF, the level of line 61 becomes LOW due to the contact between the contact and GND.
The SSR is turned off through the NOR gate, and the AC
-I and AC-O are cut off. However, even in this case,
The control unit 25 switches to line 2 due to a certain condition that will be described later.
While outputting HIGH level through 52,
The NOR gate output is kept at low level and AC−
There is no interruption between I and AC-O.

The operation of the above configuration will be explained below.
FIG. 3 is a timing chart illustrating the reception print procedure of the apparatus of this embodiment. When a [transmission request] is issued from the image sending side, the receiving side of this embodiment immediately requests the [receiving function] without checking for a certain artificially created inoperable state. When the transmitting side receives the [receiving function], it sends out a [receiving command], and subsequently transmits [encoded image data]. When the control unit 25 receives the [reception command], it activates writing in the image memory 23 via the line 253, and starts writing the subsequently received encoded image data. The writing is performed by the control unit 25 using DMA.
is carried out independently. After transmitting the [encoded image data], the transmitting side then transmits [end of transmission]. The control unit 25, which has received the message [END OF TRANSMISSION], checks whether the protective cover 31 is open at this point. If it is open, a [reception confirmation] is returned to the transmitting side to notify that the encoded image data has been successfully received, without operating the decoder 24 and printer unit 3.

This point differs from the conventional example shown in FIG. That is, conventionally, a [receipt confirmation] is sent back after playback and recording.
This is because the decoder performs a decoding check on the image data during reproduction and recording on the receiving side, and returns a [reception confirmation] as a final confirmation including the presence or absence of errors. On the other hand, in the case of the apparatus of this embodiment as well, if the protective cover 31 is closed at the time when the [transmission completion] message is received, a [reception confirmation] is returned to the reproduction recording paper in the same manner as in FIG. The difference in control depending on the open/closed state of the protective cover 31 described above will be clarified by the explanation of the flowchart described later.

Now, according to FIG. 3, the transmitting side that has received the [receipt confirmation] is released after transmitting [communication termination]. You are also free to make new communications with other facsimile devices. On the other hand, even after receiving [Communication End], the receiving device waits until the protective cover 31 is closed. Eventually, the protective cover 31 is closed and the printer section 3 becomes ready for recording.
The control section 25 energizes the decoder 24 via line 254 and starts the printer section 3 via line 255. The decoder 24 reads encoded image data from the image memory 23, outputs an image signal to the printer section 3 while decoding and reproducing it, and outputs an image signal to the printer section 3.
records the image signal on paper.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating the above-described received printing process performed by the control section 25.
In step S1, the process waits for a [transmission request] from the other party. When receiving [Send request], step S
Proceed to step 2 and send the [reception function] to the sending side. In step S3, a [reception command] from the sending side is waited for.
When the [reception command] is received, the process advances to step S4, and writing to the image memory 23 is activated. In step S5, the process waits for [end of transmission] from the transmitting side, for example, waits for the end of receiving encoded image data for one page. When receiving [Transmission End], the process advances to step S6, and writing to the image memory 23 is disabled. In step S7, it is determined whether the protective cover 31 is open or not. This determination is made by examining the signal from the microswitch 4. When the determination is NO, the protective cover is closed and printing can be performed immediately. The flow advances to step S8 to energize the decoder 24, and to start driving the printer section 3 in step S9. The encoded image data read out from the image memory 23 in this state is decoded by the decoder 24 and reproduced into an image signal. The image signal is sent to the printer section 3, and one page worth of images is recorded on paper. During this interval, the decoder 24 also checks for decoding errors. The control section 25 executes step S10 and waits for the above-described series of recording operations to be completed. At the end of recording, it is also determined whether a decoding error has occurred. Normally, if the data is decoded without error and reproduced and recorded, the process ends normally, and the flow proceeds to step S11, where a [receipt confirmation] is sent. In step S12, the process waits for [end of communication] from the sending side. Upon receiving [Communication End], the process returns to step S1 and waits for the next [Transmission Request].

If the protective cover 31 is open (YES) in step S7, printing is disabled and the flow advances to step S13.
Such a situation occurs, for example, when the printer section 3 is being inspected. However, the other device is not made to wait at all. In step S13, a [reception confirmation] is immediately transmitted. Although it is not known at this point whether a decoding error will occur later, such processing is originally permissible due to the redundancy of the image signal. Further, even if a decoding error is detected later and an abnormality is recognized in the recorded image, a retransmission request can be made using other appropriate communication means (telephone, etc.). In step S14, it waits for [end of communication] from the sending side. After the sending device sends [Communication End], it is released. When the receiving side receives [Communication End], it proceeds to step S15 and restricts power off. That is, the control section 25 thereby causes the line 252 to
Since the HIGH level is output to the power controller 5, even if the operator turns the PSW to the OFF side, the
It is ignored internally and the power does not turn off. Step S16
Now, activate the notification means. When the received image data cannot be recorded because the protective cover is open, it is necessary to notify the operator of this in some way. Specifically, it makes a speaker sound or an LED lights up. but,
The operator only needs to be aware of this, and there is no need to immediately complete maintenance and inspection of the printer. In step S17, the process waits until the protective cover 31 is closed. When the maintenance and inspection of the printer is completed and the protective cover 31 is closed, the process advances to step S18 and the decoder 24 is energized. Step S
In step S19, the printer section 3 is started to be driven, and in step S20, the end of recording is waited for. When the recording ends, the process advances to step S21 and the notification means is deactivated. This is because the image memory 23 no longer holds important data to be recorded. In step S22, the power off restriction is canceled. The operator has already installed the PSW.
If set to OFF, the device will automatically power down. If not, the process returns to step S1 and waits for a [transmission request] from the other party's device.

[Effect] As described above, according to the present invention, encoded image data is received regardless of whether or not the recording means is capable of recording at the start of reception, thereby eliminating unnecessary line supplements and line disconnections due to the recording means' inability to record. Encoded image data can be received without causing any problems.

In addition, after normally receiving one page of encoded image data, if the recording means is capable of recording, the image data is recorded; if recording is not possible, the received encoded image data is held in the image memory, and the normally received response signal is output. Since the data is transmitted, even if the recording means is unable to record after one page of encoded image data is normally received, it is possible to notify the other party's transmitter that the data has been normally received.

Furthermore, since recording of image data is started when the recording means becomes capable of recording, it is possible to automatically output a record of encoded image data held in the image memory.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1A is a block diagram showing the configuration of the main receiving and printing circuits of a facsimile apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1B is a block diagram showing the configuration of the main receiving and printing circuit in a facsimile apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a timing chart explaining the reception print procedure of a conventional facsimile device having an image memory, FIG. 3 is a timing chart explaining the reception print procedure of the device of this embodiment, and FIG. 4 is a control diagram. 2 is a flowchart illustrating reception print processing performed in the department. Here, 1...data communication line, 2...control board, 3...printer section, 4...micro switch, 5
...Power controller, 6...Operation panel, 21...
Receiving circuit, 22... Transmitting circuit, 23... Image memory,
24...Decoder, 25...Control unit.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. Communication means that performs data communication according to a predetermined communication control procedure; An image memory that stores received encoded image data; and a decoder that decodes the encoded image data read from the image memory. recording means for recording the image data decoded by the decoding means on recording paper; detection means for detecting whether or not the recording means is capable of recording; and encoded image data regardless of the output of the detection means. and after successfully receiving one page of encoded image data, based on the detection result of the detection means, if the recording means is recordable, the image data is recorded; if the recording means is not recordable, the image data is recorded; , retaining the received encoded image data in the image memory, transmitting a response signal indicating normal reception, and detecting that the recording means is enabled to record by the detection means;
1. A facsimile device comprising: control means for starting recording of image data.