Control device, image forming apparatus, and control method for processing interruption information

• US 9,578,196 B2
• Filed: 07/28/2015
• Issued: 02/21/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/27/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujifilm Business Innovation Corp. (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fuji Xerox Company Limited (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Mitobe, Yasuaki
• Primary Examiner(s): REINIER, BARBARA DIANE
• Application Number:
  US14/810,607
• Publication Number:
  US 20160286066A1
• Time in Patent Office: 574 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00236 using an image reading or reproducing device, e.g. a facsimile reader or printer, as a local input to or local output from a computer image input to or image output from a computer via a network H04N1/00209
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/0083 Arrangements for transferring signals between different components of the apparatus, e.g. arrangements of signal lines or cables for control or supervision between image input and output device H04N1/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00915 Assigning priority to, or interrupting, a particular operation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/21 Intermediate information storage H04N1/387, H04N1/41 take precedence ; for control between transmitter and receiver or between image input and image output device H04N1/32358; indexing, editing G11B27/00

Abstract

A control device includes a second sub-controller to which second devices are connected, a first sub-controller to which first devices are connected, a master controller that controls the first and second sub-controllers, and so on. The second sub-controller includes a second interruption information memory that stores second interruption information output from the second devices, and a second interruption controller that transmits an interruption signal upon storing of the second interruption information in the second interruption information memory, and reads and transmits the second interruption information. The first sub-controller includes a first interruption information memory that stores first interruption information output from the first devices, and the second interruption information transmitted from the second sub-controller, and a first interruption controller that transmits the interruption signal received from the second sub-controller, and reads and transmits the first interruption information and the second interruption information stored in the first interruption information memory.

Claims

1. A control device comprising:

a second sub-controller to which one or more second devices are connected, the second sub-controller including;

a second interruption information memory configured to store second interruption information output from the one or more second devices; and

a second interruption controller configured to transmit an interruption signal in response to storing of the second interruption information in the second interruption information memory,

wherein the second interruption controller is configured to read and transmit the second interruption information stored in the second interruption information memory;

a first sub-controller to which one or more first devices are connected, the first sub-controller including;

a first interruption information memory configured to store first interruption information output from the one or more first devices, and the second interruption information transmitted from the second sub-controller; and

a first interruption controller configured to transmit the interruption signal received from the second sub-controller,

wherein the first interruption controller is configured to read and transmit the first interruption information and the second interruption information stored in the first interruption information memory;

a master controller configured to control the first sub-controller and the second sub-controller;

a full-duplex serial bus that connects the master controller to the first sub-controller;

a full-duplex serial or parallel bus that connects the first sub-controller to the second sub-controller; and

a unidirectional transmission line configured to transmit the interruption signal from the second sub-controller to the first sub-controller.

2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the second sub-controller is configured to transmit the second interruption information to the first sub-controller via the full-duplex serial or parallel bus.

3. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the first sub-controller is configured to transmit the interruption signal received from the second sub-controller to the master controller via the full-duplex serial bus.

4. The control device according to claim 2, wherein the first sub-controller is configured to transmit the interruption signal received from the second sub-controller to the master controller via the full-duplex serial bus.

5. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the master controller is configured to read the first interruption information or the second interruption information stored in the first interruption information memory in response to reception of the interruption signal from the first sub-controller.

6. The control device according to claim 2, wherein the master controller is configured to read the first interruption information or the second interruption information stored in the first interruption information memory in response to reception of the interruption signal from the first sub-controller.

7. The control device according to claim 3, wherein the master controller is configured to read the first interruption information or the second interruption information stored in the first interruption information memory in response to reception of the interruption signal from the first sub-controller.

8. The control device according to claim 4, wherein the master controller is configured to read the first interruption information or the second interruption information stored in the first interruption information memory in response to reception of the interruption signal from the first sub-controller.

9. An image forming apparatus comprising:

an image forming unit configured to form an image on a recording medium by using image information; and

a control device configured to control the image forming unit,

wherein the control device according to claim 1 is used as the control device configured to control the image forming unit.

10. An image forming apparatus comprising:

an image reading unit configured to read an image of a document;

an image forming unit configured to form an image on a recording medium by using image information obtained by the image reading unit; and

a control device configured to control the image reading unit and the image forming unit,

wherein the control device according to claim 1 is used as the control device configured to control the image reading unit and the image forming unit.

11. The image forming apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the image forming unit is connected to the control device.

13. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the first interruption controller is configured to transmit the interruption signal, the first interruption information and the second interruption information to the master controller.

12. A control method comprising:

storing, in a second interruption information memory included in a second sub-controller, second interruption information output from one or more second devices that are connected to the second sub-controller;

transmitting, from a second interruption controller included in the second sub-controller, an interruption signal in response to storing of the second interruption information in the second interruption information memory;

reading and transmitting the second interruption information stored in the second interruption information memory from the second interruption controller;

storing, in a first interruption information memory included in a first sub-controller, first interruption information output from one or more first devices that are connected to the first sub-controller, and the second interruption information transmitted from the second sub-controller; and

transmitting, from a first interruption controller included in the first sub-controller, the interruption signal received from the second sub-controller; and

reading and transmitting the first interruption information and the second interruption information stored in the first interruption information memory from the first interruption controller,

wherein the first sub-controller and the second sub-controller are controlled by a master controller,

wherein the master controller and the first sub-controller are connected to each other by a full-duplex serial bus,

wherein the first sub-controller and the second sub-controller are connected to each other by a full-duplex serial or parallel bus, and

wherein the interruption signal is transmitted from the second sub-controller to the first sub-controller by using a unidirectional transmission line.

14. The control method according to claim 12, wherein the transmitting, from the first interruption controller, the interruption signal, comprises transmitting, from the first interruption controller, the interruption signal, to the master controller, and

wherein the transmitting the first interruption information and the second interruption information, from the first interruption controller, comprises transmitting the first interruption information and the second interruption information from the first interruption controller, to the master controller.