Information processing apparatus, image forming apparatus, program-initiation error processing method, and recording medium

• US 7,302,578 B2
• Filed: 03/16/2004
• Issued: 11/27/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/19/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Inventors: Kobayashi, Ayako
• Primary Examiner(s): Peeso; Thomas R.
• Application Number:
  US10/800,646
• Publication Number:
  US 20050005204A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,351 Days
• Field of Search: 713/182, 713/176, 713/161, 713/193, 713/180, 380/229, 380/230, 380/232, 380/234
• US Class Current: 713/182
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0733 in a data processing system embedded in an image processing device, e.g. printer, facsimile, scanner
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0769 Readable error formats, e.g. cross-platform generic formats, human understandable formats

Abstract

An information processing apparatus has a detection unit to detect a recording medium and initiates a program read from the recording medium detected by the detection unit. In the information processing apparatus, an operation check unit performs an operation check of the recording medium detected by the detection unit. An authentication check unit performs an authentication check of the recording medium detected by the detection unit. An error notification unit notifies an operator of an error of the recording medium if at least one of a result of the operation check and a result of the authentication check is an error.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus which has a detection unit to detect a recording medium and initiates a program read from the recording medium detected by the detection unit, the information processing apparatus comprising:

an operation check unit performing an operation check of the recording medium detected by the detection unit;

an authentication check unit performing an authentication check of the recording medium detected by the detection unit; and

an error notification unit notifying an operator of an error of the recording medium if at least one of a result of the operation check and a result of the authentication check is an error.

2. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the operation check unit is provided to inhibit the recording medium from being set in an accessible state if the result of the operation check is an error.

3. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the authentication check unit is provided to inhibit reading of the program from the recording medium if the result of the authentication check is an error.

4. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the authentication check unit is provided to read a file used for the authentication check, from the recording medium which is set in an accessible state for initiating the program, and to perform the authentication check of the recording medium using the file.

5. An information processing apparatus according to claim 4 wherein the authentication check unit performs the authentication check based on both an electronic signature, created from identification information and a configuration file of the recording medium, and an electronic signature, created from the program and model information of the apparatus.

6. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the error notification unit is provided to display descriptions of the error on a display unit of the apparatus if at least one of the result of the operation check and the result of the authentication check is an error.

7. An information processing apparatus according to claim 6 wherein the error notification unit is provided to finish the displaying of the descriptions of the error in the display unit when the detection unit becomes impossible to detect the recording medium with which at least one of the result of the operation check and the result of the authentication check is an error.

8. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the error notification unit is provided to display descriptions of the error on a display unit of a different information processing apparatus, which is connected to the information processing apparatus through a network, if at least one of the result of the operation check and the result of the authentication check is an error.

9. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the error notification unit is provided to notify the operator of occurrence of the error by transmitting an e-mail, containing descriptions of the error, to the operator, if at least one of the result of the operation check and the result of the authentication check is the error.

10. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the error notification unit is provided to cause a printing unit of the apparatus to print descriptions of the error if at least one of the result of the operation check and the result of the authentication check is the error.

11. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the error notification unit is provided to notify an operator that a function of the program cannot be used, the program being not read from the recording medium with which at least one of the result of the operation check and the result of the authentication check is an error.

12. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the operation check unit is provided to set the recording medium in an accessible state if the result of the operation check is normal, and the authentication check unit is provided to initiate the program read from the recording medium if the result of the authentication check is normal.

13. An information processing apparatus according to claim 12 wherein the program initiated by the authentication check unit performs at least one of an operation check and an authentication check of hardware or software used by the program, and the error notification unit is provided to notify the operator of an error of the hardware or software if at least one of results of the operation check and the authentication check of the hardware or software is an error.

14. An information processing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the detection unit is provided to detect occurrence of insertion of the recoding medium to and removal of the recording medium from a recording medium slot of the apparatus.

15. An image forming apparatus which has a detection unit to detect a recording medium and initiates an image-formation-related program read from the recording medium detected by the detection unit, the image forming apparatus comprising:

an operation check unit performing an operation check of the recording medium detected by the detection unit;

an authentication check unit performing an authentication check of the recording medium detected by the detection unit; and

an error notification unit notifying an operator of an error of the recording medium if at least one of a result of the operation check and a result of the authentication check is an error,

wherein the image forming apparatus reads the program from the recording medium and initiates the read program if both the result of the operation check and the result of the authentication check are normal.

16. An image forming apparatus according to claim 15 wherein the error notification unit is provided to display descriptions of the error on an operation panel of the apparatus if at least one of the result of the operation check and the result of the authentication check is an error.

17. An image forming apparatus according to claim 16 wherein the error notification unit is provided to finish the displaying of the descriptions of the error in the operation panel when the detection unit becomes impossible to detect the recording medium with which at least one of the result of the operation check and the result of the authentication check is an error.

18. An image forming apparatus according to claim 15 wherein the error notification unit is provided to notify the operator of occurrence of the error by transmitting an e-mail, containing descriptions of the error, to the operator, if at least one of the result of the operation check and the result of the authentication check is the error.

19. An image forming apparatus according to claim 15 wherein the error notification unit is provided to cause a printing unit of the apparatus to print descriptions of the error if at least one of the result of the operation check and the result of the authentication check is an error.

20. An image forming apparatus according to claim 15 wherein the error notification unit is provided to control function buttons to notify the operator of usability of each of multiple functions of the apparatus in a visually distinguishable manner such that lighting of buttons of currently usable functions of the apparatus and lighting of buttons of currently unusable functions of the apparatus are distinguishable from each other.

21. An image forming apparatus according to claim 15 wherein the image forming apparatus further comprises hardware resources used in image formation, programs performing image-formation-related processing, and a platform provided between the hardware resources and the programs to manage the hardware resources which are shared by two or more of the programs.

22. An error processing method for use in an information processing apparatus which has a detection unit to detect a recording medium and initiates an image-formation-related program read from the recording medium detected by the detection unit, the error processing method comprising:

performing an operation check of the recording medium detected by the detection unit;

performing an authentication check of the recording medium detected by the detection unit; and

notifying an operator of an error of the recording medium if at least one of a result of the operation check and a result of the authentication check is an error.

23. A computer-readable recording medium storing a program embodied therein for causing a computer to perform:

detecting a recording medium;

performing an operation check of the detected recording medium;

performing an authentication check of the detected recording medium; and

notifying an operator of an error of the detected recording medium if at least one of a result of the operation check and a result of the authentication check is an error.