PRINTING APPARATUS AND IMAGE PROCESSING APPARATUS

• US 20140029041A1
• Filed: 07/25/2013
• Published: 01/30/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/27/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: OKI Electric Industry Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Oki Data Corporation (OKI Electric Industry Company Limited)
• Inventors: OKUBO, Tsuyoshi
• Granted Patent: US 9,106,870 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 358/1.14
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 15/005 only locally
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 15/4055 Managing power consumption, e.g. standby mode computer driven power saving management for a printer G06F3/1221; power saving in a data processing device in general G06F1/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00408 Display of information to the user, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/0048 Indicating an illegal or impossible operation or selection to the user
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00856 Preventive measures
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/4426 involving separate means, e.g. a server, a magnetic card
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/4433 to an apparatus, part of an apparatus or an apparatus function

Abstract

An image processing apparatus includes an input unit configured to receive an user'"'"'s input, a display configured to display a status of the image processing apparatus, and a controller configured to limit an operation of the input unit. The controller is configured, if the image processing apparatus is not in progress of any image processing when a certain condition is satisfied, to display information of the limitation of the operation of the input unit at the display. The controller is configured, if the image processing apparatus is in process of an image processing when the certain condition is satisfied, to display a status of the image process at the display, and then to display the information of the limitation at the display after the image process is completed.

Claims

1. A printing apparatus configured to perform input restriction or cancel the input restriction according to a notification received from an authentication device, the printing apparatus comprising:

a job manager configured to manage a job to be executed and provide notice of a start of a process necessary to execute the job;

an input-unit controller configured to control which screen to display on a display part of a display input unit and to control an input status of an input button of the display input unit;

an operational status manager configured to retain a current execution status of a process and a current input status of the input button; and

a panel restriction controller configured to receive, from an authentication device, an input restriction notification to restrict input of the input button of the display input unit and an input restriction cancel notification to cancel the input restriction, wherein

a display level is preset for each screen to be displayed on the display part, and an operational status control mode of the printing apparatus is set to be active or inactive,

upon receipt of the input restriction cancel notification from the authentication device, the panel restriction controller notifies the input-unit controller of cancellation of the input restriction to display an initial screen on the display part,

upon receipt of the input restriction notification from the authentication device,

if an operational status of the printing apparatus retained by the operational status manager is a busy status, the panel restriction controller sends a notification of the input restriction to the input-unit controller after postponing the sending until the operational status changes to an idle status, and

if the operational status of the printing apparatus retained by the operational status manager is the idle status, the panel restriction controller immediately sends the notification of the input restriction to the input-unit controller upon a receipt of the input restriction notification,

upon receipt of the notification of the input restriction, if the operational status control mode is set to be active, the input-unit controller displays a panel restriction screen on the display part, and

upon receipt of the notification of the input restriction, if the operational status control mode is set to be inactive, the input-unit controller compares the display level of a current screen currently being displayed with the display level of a next screen to be displayed next and displays the screen with the higher display level on the display part.

2. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a storage unit configured to store therein a job type being a type of a job to be executed, wherein

when notified by the job manager of a start of a job to be executed, the input-unit controller stores the job type of the job in the storage unit, and

upon receipt of the notification of the input restriction from the panel restriction controller, if the operational status control mode is set to be active, and if the job currently in execution coincides with the job type stored in the storage unit, the input-unit controller displays, on the display part, a warning screen indicating that the panel restriction screen is displayed when the job is ended.

3. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the display level of each screen is set such that the display level of a screen indicating that a process is in execution is higher than the display level of the panel restriction screen, and such that the display level of a screen indicating that a process is in standby is lower than the display level of the panel restriction screen.

4. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the operational status manager includes a function of transmitting an operational state of the printing apparatus to the authentication device,

if the operational status control mode is set to be active, the operational status manager transmits an operational state notification indicating the operational state of the printing apparatus to the authentication device according to the retained execution status and input status,

if the operational status control mode is set to be inactive, the operational status manager always transmits an out-of-service notification, indicating that the printing apparatus is out of service, to the authentication device, and

if receiving an in-service notification indicating that the printing apparatus is in service from the operational status manager, the authentication device transmits the input restriction notification to the panel restriction controller after postponing the transmission until the authentication device receives the out-of-service notification.

5. The printing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein

upon receipt of a press notification indicating that the input button is pressed down from the input-unit controller, the operational status manager transmits the in-service notification to the authentication device.

6. An image processing apparatus, comprising:

an input unit configured to receive an user'"'"'s input;

a display configured to display a status of the image processing apparatus; and

a controller configured to restrict an operation of the input unit, wherein

the controller is configured, if the image processing apparatus is not in progress of any image processing when a certain condition is satisfied, to display information of the restriction of the operation of the input unit at the display, and

the controller is configured, if the image processing apparatus is in process of an image processing when the certain condition is satisfied, to display a status of the image process at the display, and then to display the information of the restriction at the display after the image process is completed.

7. The image processing apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising

an image scanning unit configured to scan an image, wherein

the controller is configured, if the image processing apparatus is in process of scanning as the image processing when the certain condition is satisfied, to display the number of scanned pages as a status of the scanning at the display, and then to clear the number of scanned pages and display information of the restriction at the display after the scanning is completed.

8. The image processing apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising

a printing unit configured to print an image on a medium, wherein

the controller is configured, if the image processing apparatus is in process of printing as the image processing when the certain condition is satisfied, to display the number of printed pages as a status of the printing at the display, and then to clear the number of printed pages and display information of the restriction at the display after the scanning is completed.

9. The image processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein

the image processing comprises one of a print process to print an image on a medium, and a scan process to scan an image to create image data.