Image processing apparatus and image processing system

Abstract
An image processing apparatus and an image processing system are capable of efficiently carrying out processing using a smaller memory. When a control program is downloaded via a network from an external apparatus such as a PC and stored in a volatile memory, a job analyzing unit analyzes the content of an issued job and determines which modules of the control program are necessary and which modules are unnecessary based on the state of an MFP detected by an energy saving mode control unit and/or an inoperative state detecting unit. Unnecessary modules are deleted from the volatile memory.
Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS


FIG. 1 is a diagram showing one example of the overall construction of an image processing system;



FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing one example of the construction of an MFP 100;



FIG. 3 is a diagram showing one example of the content of a control program module management table;



FIG. 4 is a diagram useful in explaining one example of when control program modules are downloaded into a volatile memory 140 from a PC 31A as one example of an external apparatus;



FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing one example of the procedure when the power of the MFP 100 is turned on;



FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of the procedure of the content checking process;



FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining one example of the procedure when a job is issued to the MFP 100;



FIG. 8 is a flowchart for explaining one example of the procedure when carrying out a module deleting process;



FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing one example of the procedure of a sheet-feeding control module deleting process;



FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing one example of the procedure of an option sheet-feeding control module deleting process;



FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing one example of the procedure of a delivery control module deleting process;



FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing one example of the procedure of the two-sided conveying control module deleting process;



FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing one example of the procedure of a USB appliance-related control module deleting process;



FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing one example of the procedure of a communication control module deleting process;



FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing one example of the procedure of an image stabilizing control module deleting process;



FIG. 16 is a flowchart useful in explaining one example of the procedure of a module rearranging process; and



FIG. 17 is a diagram useful in explaining the fragmentation of modules and a module rearranging process.


Claims
  • 1. An image processing apparatus comprising: a control program acquiring unit that acquires a control program for controlling the image processing apparatus in module units from outside the image processing apparatus;a volatile memory device that stores at least one of the modules acquired by the control program acquiring unit;a module deletion determining unit that determines which modules out of the at least one modules stored in the volatile memory device are deletable; anda deletion controller that deletes the modules determined to be deletable by the module deletion determining unit from the volatile memory device.
  • 2. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a part of the volatile memory device that does not store the control program is used as a region that stores image data which is a target or a result of processing.
  • 3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a first processor that executes processing that acquires modules from the outside; anda second processor that executes the modules stored in the volatile memory device.
  • 4. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the first processor, the second processor, and the volatile memory device are arranged on the same semiconductor chip.
  • 5. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a job analyzing unit that analyzes a job issued to the image processing apparatus; anda necessary module determining unit that determines which modules are necessary for executing the job based on analysis by the job analyzing unit.
  • 6. The image processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the module deletion determining unit determines, based on the analysis by the job analyzing unit, that modules that are unnecessary for executing the job are deletable.
  • 7. The image processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the control program acquiring unit acquires the modules determined by the necessary module determining unit to be necessary for executing the job.
  • 8. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the module deletion determining unit includes a detector that detects a state of the image processing apparatus, andbased on the detected state of the image processing apparatus, the module deletion determining unit detects whether a module corresponding to the state is deletable.
  • 9. The image processing apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising: an image forming unit that forms an image on a recording sheet; anda sheet feeding unit that supplies the recording sheet to the image forming unit,wherein the detector detects an empty state of the sheet feeding unit and the module deletion determining unit is operable when the empty state has been detected, to determine that a module that realizes the sheet feeding unit that is empty is deletable.
  • 10. The image processing apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising: an image forming unit that forms an image on a recording sheet; anda sheet feeding unit including at least one storage case that stores a recording sheet and is detachable, the sheet feeding unit supplying the recording sheet stored in one of the at least one storage case to the image forming unit,wherein the detector detects whether the at least one storage case is attached and the module deletion determining unit is operable when a state where the at least one storage case is not attached has been detected, to determine that a module that realizes the sheet feeding unit corresponding to the unattached at least one storage case is deletable.
  • 11. The image processing apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising: an image forming unit that forms an image on a recording sheet; anda delivery controller that includes a delivery unit that delivers the recording sheet on which the image has been formed by the image forming unit and is detachably attached to the image processing apparatus, and is operable when the delivery unit is attached to control a delivery process to the delivery unit,wherein the detector detects whether the delivery unit is attached and the module deletion determining unit is operable when a state where the delivery unit is not attached has been detected, to determine that a module that realizes the delivery controller is deletable.
  • 12. The image processing apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising: an image forming unit that forms an image on a recording sheet; anda two-sided controller including a two-sided printing unit that conveys the recording sheet on which the image has been formed by the image forming unit back to the image forming unit and is detachably attached to the image processing apparatus, the two-sided controller being operable when the two-sided printing unit is attached to carry out two-sided printing by controlling the two-sided printing unit and the image forming unit,wherein the detector detects whether the two-sided printing unit is attached and the module deletion determining unit is operable when a state where the two-sided printing unit is not attached has been detected, to determine that a module that realizes the two-sided printing unit is deletable.
  • 13. The image processing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the detector detects, for each connection port for external appliances provided on the image processing apparatus, whether an external appliance is connected via the connection port,and the module deletion determining unit determines, by detecting whether appliances are connected via the connection terminals, that modules aside from modules that are necessary for connecting to external appliances are deletable.
  • 14. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the deletion controller is operable when a total size of one or more regions of the volatile memory device in which the control program is stored is not more than a predetermined size, to not delete the modules determined to be deletable.
  • 15. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a module rearrangement controller that rearranges the control program in the volatile memory device so that a region of the volatile memory device in which the control program is not stored is continuous.
  • 16. The image processing apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the module rearrangement controller includes a rearrangement execution determining unit that determines whether to carry out rearranging.
  • 17. The image processing apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the rearrangement execution determining unit is operable when no job has been issued to determine to carry out rearranging.
  • 18. The image processing apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the rearrangement execution determining unit is operable when the image processing apparatus is in energy-saving mode or is about to enter the energy-saving mode, to determine to carry out rearranging.
  • 19. The image processing apparatus according to claim 16, further comprising an image forming unit that forms an image on a recording sheet,wherein the rearrangement execution determining unit is operable when the image forming unit is in an image formation inoperative state, to determine to carry out rearranging.
  • 20. The image processing apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the module rearrangement controller is operable when a total size of one or more regions in the volatile memory device in which the control program is stored is not more than a predetermined size, to determine to not carry out rearranging.
  • 21. An image processing system comprising: an image processing apparatus; anda control program providing apparatus that includes a storage device and is connected to the image processing apparatus,the image processing apparatus including:a control program acquiring unit that acquires a control program for controlling the image processing apparatus in module units from the control program providing apparatus;a volatile memory device that stores at least one of the modules acquired by the control program acquiring unit;a module deletion determining unit that determines which modules out of the at least one modules stored in the volatile memory device are deletable; anda deletion controller that deletes the modules determined to be deletable by the module deletion determining unit from the volatile memory device.
  • 22. The image processing system according to claim 21, wherein the image processing apparatus further includes:a job analyzing unit that analyzes a job issued to the image processing apparatus; anda necessary module determining unit that determines which modules are necessary for executing the job based on analysis by the job analyzing unit.
  • 23. The image processing system according to claim 22, wherein the module deletion determining unit determines, based on the analysis by the job analyzing unit, that modules that are unnecessary for executing the job are deletable.
  • 24. The image processing system according to claim 22, wherein the control program acquiring unit acquires the modules determined by the necessary module determining unit to be necessary for executing the job from the control program providing apparatus.
Priority Claims (1)
Number Date Country Kind
2006-000003 Jan 2006 JP national