JP2010197632A - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain an image forming apparatus by which start-up of selective functions adapted to the use form of a user is achieved in the start-up of power supply of an apparatus body or in restoration from a power saving mode. <P>SOLUTION: The image forming apparatus is constituted so that a power saving control part 77 performs a power saving operation by intercepting power supply from a power supply part 71 to a predetermined functional part or reducing supply voltage according to setting information about a power supply pattern stored in a setting information storage part 73 in the start-up of power supply of the apparatus body or in the restoration from the power saving mode, with a simple operation only for preliminarily storing the power supply pattern corresponding to the use form of the user in the setting information storage part 73. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus having a power saving control function, and in particular, when a power source of an apparatus main body is started or when returning from a power saving mode, a selective function suitable for a user's usage mode can be activated. The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there has been provided an image forming apparatus called a so-called MFP (Multi Function Peripheral) having various functions such as copying, facsimile, scanner, and printer. In such MFPs, it is strongly demanded from society that power saving should be taken into consideration in response to the recent increase in global environmental protection.

  As one approach to responding to such a request, the applicant of the present application starts heating the fixing unit in order to set the temperature of the fixing unit to the target temperature when the apparatus main body is turned on or returned from the power saving mode. The fixing control unit stops heating of the fixing unit when an operation input for selecting a predetermined function that does not require heating of the fixing unit is received during heating of the fixing unit, while heating of the fixing unit is stopped. Has proposed a power-saving control technique in which heating of the fixing unit is resumed when an operation input for selecting a predetermined function that requires heating of the fixing unit is received after the operation is stopped (patent) Reference 1).

  According to the power saving control technique described in Patent Document 1, it is possible to quickly start an image forming operation while considering power saving.

  By the way, in recent MFPs, various usage modes have appeared, for example, as a server as a central management base of data. Under such circumstances, some users are using the data transmission function or the storage function mainly, and the printing function is rarely used.

  However, conventionally, when the power source of the apparatus main body is started or when returning from the power saving mode, a configuration in which the print engine is started uniformly has been adopted. The system was started up, and a situation that did not meet the demand for power saving was invited.

JP 2004-153495 A

  The problem to be solved is that, in the prior art, when the power source of the apparatus main body is started or when returning from the power saving mode, the print engine is started uniformly regardless of the usage mode of the user, There is a risk of incurring a situation that does not meet the demand for power saving.

  The present invention focuses on the above-described problems of the prior art, and provides an image forming apparatus capable of realizing activation of a selective function suitable for a user's usage mode when the apparatus main body is powered on or returned from the power saving mode. In order to obtain a power supply unit that supplies power to various functional units related to image formation and to perform power-saving operation by cutting off power supply from the power supply unit to a predetermined functional unit or reducing a supply voltage. A setting information storage unit for storing the power supply pattern of the power supply unit, and the power supply unit according to the setting information related to the power supply pattern stored in the setting information storage unit when the apparatus main body is powered on or returned from the power saving mode. And a power saving control unit that performs a power saving operation by cutting off power supply to a predetermined functional unit or reducing a supply voltage.

  In the prior art, when the power supply of the main body of the apparatus is started or when returning from the power saving mode, the print engine is started uniformly regardless of the usage mode of the user, and the situation where the request for power saving is not met. In the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, the power saving control unit is stored in the setting information storage unit when the apparatus main body is powered on or returned from the power saving mode. According to the setting information relating to the power supply pattern, the power supply from the power supply unit to the predetermined function unit is cut off or the power saving operation is performed with the supply voltage reduced.

  Thereby, the setting information can be obtained when the apparatus main body is powered on or returned from the power saving mode by a simple operation of storing the power supply pattern according to the user's usage mode in advance in the setting information storage unit. Conform to the user's usage mode as a result of performing power saving operation by cutting off the power supply from the power supply unit to the predetermined function unit or reducing the supply voltage according to the setting information related to the power supply pattern stored in the storage unit Thus, it is possible to obtain an image forming apparatus capable of realizing the selective function activation.

1 is a functional block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an external view of an operation panel unit in the image forming apparatus. FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the image forming apparatus.

  The purpose of obtaining an image forming apparatus capable of activating a selective function suitable for the user's usage mode is stored in the setting information storage unit when the apparatus body is powered on or returned from the power saving mode. According to the setting information related to the power supply pattern, the power saving control unit that cuts off the power supply from the power supply unit to the predetermined function unit or performs the power saving operation with the reduced supply voltage is realized.

  Hereinafter, an image forming apparatus according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[Schematic configuration around the image forming apparatus]
FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an external view of an operation panel unit in the image forming apparatus.

  This device can use various functions including, for example, a copy job, a fax transmission job, a print job, or a network transmission (email transmission or data transmission) job, and includes a microcomputer and a dedicated hardware circuit. It is controlled by the main control unit 11. As an input / output device connected to the main control unit 11 and responsible for various functions, this apparatus includes a scanner unit 21, an image processing unit 31, an engine unit 41, an operation panel unit 51, a facsimile communication unit 61, and an HDD (hard disk drive) 63. And a network I / F (interface) unit 65.

  The main control unit 11 includes a scanner controller 13 that performs operation control for realizing a scanner function, a facsimile controller 15 that performs operation control for realizing a facsimile function, and a printer controller that performs operation control for realizing a printer function. 17 and a copy controller 19 for controlling the operation for realizing the copy function are incorporated, and the overall operation of the apparatus is controlled.

  The scanner unit 21 includes an image irradiation lamp 23 and a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) sensor 25 constituting a scanner (not shown). The scanner unit 21 irradiates the document with the image irradiation lamp 23, receives the reflected light with the CCD sensor 25, reads an image from the document, and outputs image data corresponding to the read image to the image processing unit 31. .

  The image processing unit 31 includes a correction unit 33, an image processing unit 35, and an image memory 37. The image processing unit 31 processes the image data read by the scanner unit 21 with the correction unit 33 and the image processing unit 35 as necessary, and stores the processed image data in the image memory 37, the engine unit 41, Output to the facsimile communication unit 61 or the like. The correction unit 33 performs predetermined correction processing such as level correction and gamma correction on the image data read by the scanner unit 21. The image processing unit 35 performs various types of processing such as image data compression or expansion processing and enlargement or reduction processing.

  The engine unit 41 includes a sheet conveying unit 43 including a sheet feeding cassette and a sheet feeding roller (not shown), an image forming unit 45 including a photosensitive drum, an exposure device, a developing device, and the like, a transfer roller (not illustrated), and the like. And a fixing unit 49 including a fixing roller (not shown). The engine unit 41 stores image data read by the scanner unit 21, image data transmitted from a client PC (personal computer) or the like by a LAN (Local Area Network) via the network I / F unit 65, and a facsimile communication unit 61. The image is printed on a sheet using image data such as fax data received from an external facsimile machine. Specifically, the paper transport unit 43 transports the paper to the image forming unit 45, the image forming unit 45 forms a toner image corresponding to the image data, the transfer unit 47 transfers the toner image to the paper, The fixing unit 49 fixes the toner image on a sheet to form an image.

  The operation panel unit 51 includes a touch panel unit 53 and a function key unit 55, as shown in FIGS. The operation panel unit 51 is used for a user to perform operations related to a scanner function, a facsimile function, a printer function, a copy function, and the like, and gives an operation command and the like by the user to the main control unit 11.

  The touch panel unit 53 includes a touch panel unit that combines a touch panel and a color LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), and displays various operation screens, for example, information regarding the document size, copy size, number of copies, and the like when executing the copy function. In addition, operation buttons for inputting various operation commands are displayed by the user touching the corresponding part.

  The function key unit 55 includes a plurality of function keys that are operated when items related to various functions relating to image formation are selected or set. Specifically, for example, when the start key 57 that is operated when performing an instruction operation related to the execution of the copy function, or when the power mode of the apparatus itself is shifted to a power saving mode with a higher power saving effect, etc. The power saving key 59 is operated.

  The facsimile communication unit 61 includes an encoding / decoding unit (not shown), a modem unit (not shown), and an NCU (Network Control Unit) (not shown). The facsimile communication unit 61 transmits image data of a document read by the scanner unit 21 to a facsimile apparatus or the like via a telephone line, or receives image data transmitted from the facsimile apparatus or the like.

  The HDD (hard disk drive) 63 stores image data read by the scanner unit 21 and various data such as an output format set in the image data. The image data stored in the HDD is not only used inside the image forming apparatus, the program, and the recording medium, but also can be confirmed from a client PC or the like via the network I / F unit 65 if necessary. It is transferred to a predetermined folder such as a PC or FTP server.

  The network I / F unit 65 uses a network interface (10 / 100Base-TX) or the like to control transmission / reception of various data to / from a user terminal 67 such as a client PC connected via a LAN.

  Now, in order to obtain an image forming apparatus capable of realizing the selective function activation suitable for the user's usage mode at the time of starting the power source of the apparatus main body or returning from the power saving mode, the main control unit 11 A power supply unit 71 that supplies power to various functional units (the scanner unit 21, the engine unit 41, the operation panel unit 51, the facsimile communication unit 61, and the like) related to the formation, and power supply from the power supply unit 71 to a predetermined functional unit A setting information storage unit 73 for storing a power supply pattern for performing a power saving operation by cutting off or reducing a supply voltage, a job generation detection unit 75 for detecting a job generation related to various functions including copying or printing, and an apparatus When the power source of the main body is started up or returned from the power saving mode, the power source from the power source unit 71 to the predetermined functional unit according to the setting information related to the power supply pattern stored in the setting information storage unit 73 And it is configured to include a power saving control unit 77 to perform power saving operation by subtracting the blocked feed or supply voltage.

[Operation of Image Forming Apparatus According to Embodiment of Present Invention]
Next, the operation of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the image forming apparatus.

  In the example shown in FIG. 3, the setting information read when the apparatus main body is powered on or returned from the power saving mode is used to interrupt the supply of power to the engine unit 41 and the power to the operation panel unit 51. Is stored.

  As shown in FIG. 3, when a main power supply (not shown) of the apparatus main body is turned on, in the prior art, it starts in a ready mode (normal standby mode). For example, the scanner unit 21, engine unit 41, operation panel unit In contrast, in the present invention, the main control unit 11 reads the setting information in the setting information storage unit 73 (step S11) and reads the setting information. To the power saving control unit 77.

  In response to this, the power saving control unit 77 sets the engine unit according to the setting information indicating that the power supply to the engine unit 41 is cut off and that the power supply to the operation panel unit 51 is performed (see the preconditions). Power supply operation to shut off the supply of power to 41 and supply power to the operation panel 51 is executed (step S12).

  Even during such power saving operation, the user can perform a data transmission function and a storage function through a panel operation via the operation panel unit 51. Therefore, for example, a user who uses the apparatus mainly in the data transmission function or the storage function and uses the printing function not so much may use the apparatus comfortably without causing any trouble. Although it is possible, it can greatly contribute to power saving (power supply to the engine unit 41 with relatively large power consumption is cut off).

  Now, during the power saving operation in step S12, the job occurrence detection unit 75 detects the occurrence of job events related to various functions including copying or printing by monitoring the panel operation via the operation panel unit 51, etc. Whether or not a job event has occurred and its type are monitored (steps S13 to S14).

  When some job event occurs during the monitoring in step S13 ("Yes" in step S13), and it is determined that the job is either a copy or a print job ("Yes" in step S14) The power saving control unit 77 starts supplying power to the engine unit 41 (step S15).

  Specifically, in step S15, when the user operates a copy key (not shown) to display a copy screen on the touch panel unit 53 and presses the start key 57 to instruct to start a copy job, It is assumed that a copy job has occurred. Also, it is considered that a print job has occurred when the print job arrives at the apparatus main body. As described above, when it is detected that the engine unit 41 needs to be started, the supply of power to the engine unit 41 is immediately started, and the user is prevented from waiting for a long time. As a result, while making a great contribution to power saving, it is possible to contribute to improving the convenience of the user.

[Effect of Example]
In the prior art, when the power supply of the main body of the apparatus is started or when returning from the power saving mode, the print engine is started uniformly regardless of the usage mode of the user, and the situation where the request for power saving is not met. In the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, the power saving control unit 77 sets the setting information storage unit when the apparatus main body is powered on or returned from the power saving mode. In accordance with the setting information relating to the power supply pattern stored in 73, the power supply operation from the power supply unit 71 to the predetermined function unit is cut off or the supply voltage is reduced.

  As a result, the power supply pattern according to the user's usage mode can be set at the time of power activation of the apparatus main body or return from the power saving mode by a simple operation that is simply stored in the setting information storage unit 73 in advance. According to the setting information relating to the power supply pattern stored in the information storage unit 73, as a result of the power saving operation performed by cutting off the power supply from the power supply unit 71 to the predetermined function unit or reducing the supply voltage, It is possible to obtain an image forming apparatus capable of realizing activation of a selective function suitable for an aspect.

  In addition, when it is detected that the engine unit 41 needs to be started, the supply of power to the engine unit 41 is quickly started, and the user is prevented from waiting for a long time. In addition, while making a great contribution to power saving, it is possible to contribute to the improvement of user convenience.

[Others]
The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be appropriately changed within the scope of the invention or the technical idea that can be read from the claims and the entire specification, and an image accompanying such a change. The forming apparatus is also included in the scope of the technical scope of the present invention.

  That is, for example, in the embodiment of the present invention, the setting information is described with an example of storing the fact that the power supply to the engine unit 41 is cut off and the power supply to the operation panel unit 51 are stored. However, the present invention is not limited to this example. For example, a configuration in which only the fact that the supply of power to the engine unit 41 is cut off may be stored as the setting information, or the engine unit 41 may be employed. A configuration may be adopted in which the fact that the supply of power to the device is interrupted and the fact that the supply of power to other arbitrary functional units is performed or not performed are stored as setting information.

  Finally, in the embodiment of the present invention, the example in which the setting information in the setting information storage unit 73 is read immediately after the main power source of the apparatus main body is activated has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this example, and It goes without saying that the present invention can be applied as it is as described above even when the configuration information in the setting information storage unit 73 is read when returning from the power mode.

11 Main Control Unit 71 Power Supply Unit 73 Setting Information Storage Unit 75 Job Generation Detection Unit 77 Power Saving Control Unit

Claims (3)

A power supply unit for supplying power to various functional units related to image formation;
A setting information storage unit for storing a power supply pattern for performing a power saving operation in which power supply from the power supply unit to a predetermined functional unit is interrupted or a supply voltage is reduced;
When the power supply of the apparatus main body is started or when returning from the power saving mode, the power supply from the power supply unit to the predetermined function unit is cut off according to the setting information related to the power supply pattern stored in the setting information storage unit, or A power saving control unit for performing power saving operation with reduced supply voltage;
An image forming apparatus comprising: A power supply unit for supplying power to various functional units related to image formation;
A setting information storage unit for storing a power supply pattern for performing a power saving operation for cutting off the power supply from the power supply unit to the print engine;
Power saving that cuts off the power supply from the power supply unit to the print engine according to the setting information related to the power supply pattern stored in the setting information storage unit when the apparatus main body is powered on or returned from the power saving mode A power-saving control unit for operation,
An image forming apparatus comprising: The image forming apparatus according to claim 2,
The power saving control unit starts power supply from the power supply unit to the print engine when it detects a job related to copying or printing during the power saving operation.
An image forming apparatus.