Image recording system and program

Abstract

A bypass transporting path apparatus is disposed on a color image recording apparatus and a transporting path connecting apparatus is disposed between a front portion of a monochrome image recording apparatus and a rear portion of the color image recording apparatus. This system includes an operational state monitoring portion that monitors the operational states of the color image recording apparatus and the monochrome image recording apparatus, and a power supply controlling portion that performs control based on the operational states of the color image recording apparatus and the monochrome image recording apparatus to shift any one image recording apparatus to a power saving state and to make the other image recording apparatus wait in a recordable state.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a view of the appearance of the configuration of an image recording system according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an explanatory schematic view of exchanging of image data in the image recording system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an example of the configuration of the image recording system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of a color image forming portion in the image recording system of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of the main part that executes image recording control in the image recording system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is an explanatory flowchart of an example of a power supply con-trolling process in the image recording system described in FIGS. 1 to 5;

FIG. 7 is an explanatory flowchart of another example of a power supply controlling process in the image recording system described in FIGS. 1 to 5;

FIG. 8 is an explanatory schematic view of an example of energy-saving-mode entry and recovery processes for each engine in the image recording system described referring to FIGS. 1 to 7;

FIG. 9 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an example of the configuration of an image recording system according to another embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 10 is a block diagram of an example of the main portion that executes image recording control in the image recording system of FIG. 9.

Claims

1. An image recording system formed by arranging first and second image recording apparatuses that can independently record images, the system comprising an operational state monitoring portion that monitors the operational states of the first image recording apparatus and the second image recording apparatus and a power supply controlling portion that performs control based on the operational states of the first image recording apparatus and the second image recording apparatus to shift any one image recording apparatus to a power saving state and to make the other image recording apparatus wait in a recordable state.

2. The image recording system as defined in claim 1, wherein with regard to the first image recording apparatus and the second image recording apparatus, the first image recording apparatus is a color image recording apparatus including a monochrome image recording function and the second image recording apparatus is a monochrome image recording apparatus.

3. The image recording system as defined in claim 1, wherein if a predetermined time has elapsed while both image recording apparatuses are waiting in a recordable state, the power supply controlling portion shifts the second image recording apparatus to the power saving state and makes the first image recording apparatus wait in the recordable state.

4. The image recording system as defined in claim 1, wherein when consumables necessary for recording an image of either the first image recording apparatus or the second image recording apparatus run out, the power supply controlling portion shifts the image recording apparatus running out of the consumables to the power saving state and makes the other image recording apparatus wait in the recordable state.

5. The image recording system as defined in claim 4, wherein the second image recording apparatus can be set to be used preferentially and wherein all the consumables are used first in the second image recording apparatus.

6. The image recording system as defined in claim 4, wherein the remaining amount of the consumables necessary for recording an image of each image recording apparatus can be counted and wherein all the consumables are used first on the side where the counted amount of the remaining consumables is less than a predetermined amount.

7. The image recording system as defined in claim 1, wherein the image recording apparatus allowed to perform a recording process is selected depending on a type of a print job accepted by the image recording system and wherein if the selected image recording apparatus is in the power saving state, the power supply controlling portion returns the image recording apparatus to the recordable state.

8. The image recording system as defined in claim 1, wherein a controlling portion of the first image recording apparatus acts as the power supply controlling portion, or the power supply controlling portion and the operational state monitoring portion, to control a controlling portion of the second image recording apparatus.

9. The image recording system as defined in claim 1, wherein the controlling portions of the both image recording apparatuses include a monitoring portion that monitors the other image recording apparatus through the controlling portion of the other image recording apparatus, and the power supply controlling portion, or the power supply controlling portion and the operational state monitoring portion.

10. The image recording system as defined in claim 1, comprising a common controlling portion incorporated into a housing located between the first image recording apparatus and the second image recording apparatus, the common controlling portion acting as the power supply controlling portion, or the power supply controlling portion and the operational state monitoring portion, to control both the controlling portion of the first image recording apparatus and the controlling portion of the second image recording apparatus.

11. A program for incorporation into the controlling portion of the first image recording apparatus in the image recording system as defined in claim 8, the program allowing a computer to function as the power supply controlling portion, or the power supply controlling portion and the operational state monitoring portion.

12. A program for incorporation into the controlling portions of the both image recording apparatuses in the image recording system as defined in claim 9, the program allowing a computer to function as the power supply controlling portion, or the power supply controlling portion and the operational state monitoring portion.

13. A program for incorporation into the common controlling portion in the image recording system as defined in claim 10, the program allowing a computer to function as the power supply controlling portion, or the power supply controlling portion and the operational state monitoring portion.