JP2000293477A - Wireless communication device, communication control method thereof, and storage medium - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) Abstract: Provided is a wireless communication device capable of preventing deterioration of a connection work environment due to a cable for communicatively connecting a plurality of devices including a main device. SOLUTION: If there is data in the status setting circuit 6 at the time when the output of the AND circuit 11 becomes Low, the level of the port FULL of the status setting circuit 6 is held at High, so that the output of the AND circuit 13 is High. , And the data of the status setting circuit 6 is transferred to the parallel / serial converter 5. When the output of the AND circuit 10 is Lo
If there is data in the serial / parallel conversion circuit 4 at the time when it becomes w, the port F of the serial / parallel conversion circuit 4
Since the level of ULL is held at High, the output of the AND circuit 12 becomes High, and the data of the serial / parallel converter 4 is transferred to the parallel / serial converter 5.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a wireless communication apparatus mounted on each apparatus so that a plurality of apparatuses including a main apparatus can be connected in series with the main apparatus being the most upstream side, and a communication method and storage thereof. Regarding the medium.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In general, a main unit is configured so that a plurality of optional units can be connected to add or extend functions. For example, in an image forming apparatus, an optional apparatus is connected via a cable, the image forming apparatus sends a command to the optional apparatus via a cable, and receives a status from the optional apparatus via a cable. Data transmission between the image forming apparatus and the optional apparatus is performed via a cable.

[0003]

However, in the above-described conventional image forming apparatus, when a plurality of optional devices are connected, the number of cables connecting each optional device increases, and the cables may be complicated. There is. As a result, it takes time to handle the cable. Further, when an optional device is replaced or added, a cable is detached and attached, and when replacing or adding a cable in a complicated state, handling of the cable becomes more troublesome. That is, there is a possibility that the connection work environment when the optional device is replaced or added is deteriorated.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a wireless communication apparatus capable of preventing deterioration of a connection work environment due to a cable for communicatively connecting a plurality of apparatuses including a main apparatus, and a communication control method therefor. And a storage medium.

[0005]

According to the first aspect of the present invention,
A plurality of devices including a main device, a wireless communication device mounted on each device so that the main device can be connected in series with the main device as the most upstream side, a status generating means for generating its own status, and a downstream side Downstream receiving means for receiving data transmitted from the device via a wireless medium, receiving data presence / absence determining means for determining presence / absence of data received by the downstream receiving means, and determining presence / absence of occurrence of the status Status presence / absence determination means, and transmission data selection means for selecting data to be transmitted to an upstream apparatus based on a determination result of the reception data presence / absence determination means and the status presence / absence determination means at a predetermined selection timing, Timing signal generating means for generating a timing signal for determining the predetermined selection timing; and The selected data over a wireless medium, characterized in that it comprises an upstream transmission means for transmitting to said upstream Ri.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the wireless communication apparatus according to the first aspect, the wireless medium is an infrared ray.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the wireless communication device according to the first aspect, the timing signal generating means generates the timing signal at a frequency twice or more as high as a communication frequency in the downstream device. It is characterized by.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the wireless communication apparatus according to the first aspect, data transmitted and received between the upstream device and the downstream device is start-stop data.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the wireless communication device according to the first aspect, data transmitted and received between the upstream device and the downstream device is data conforming to a control area network standard. Features.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the wireless communication apparatus according to the first aspect, upstream receiving means for receiving data transmitted from the upstream apparatus via a wireless medium, and the upstream receiving means And a downstream transmitting means for transmitting the data received in the step (b) to the downstream apparatus.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a communication control method for a wireless communication device mounted on each device such that a plurality of devices including a main device can be connected in series with the main device being the most upstream side. Determining whether or not a status has occurred, determining whether or not data transmitted from a downstream device via a wireless medium has been received, and determining whether or not the status has occurred. And selecting data to be transmitted to the upstream device at a predetermined selection timing based on the determination result regarding the presence or absence of reception of data from the downstream side, and the selected data via a wireless medium. Transmitting to the upstream side.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the communication control method of the wireless communication apparatus according to the seventh aspect, the wireless medium is infrared.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the communication control method for a wireless communication device according to the seventh aspect, the selection timing is determined by a signal generated at a frequency twice or more as high as a communication frequency of the downstream device. It is characterized by being determined.

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the communication control method of the wireless communication device according to the seventh aspect, the data transmitted and received between the upstream device and the downstream device is start-stop data. And

According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, in the communication control method for a wireless communication device according to the seventh aspect, the data transmitted and received between the upstream device and the downstream device are data conforming to a control area network standard. It is characterized by being.

According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, in the communication control method for a wireless communication device according to the seventh aspect, a step of receiving data transmitted from the upstream device via a wireless medium, Transmitting the data received by the means to the downstream device.

According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a communication processing program used in a wireless communication device mounted on each device so that a plurality of devices including a main device can be connected in series with the main device being the most upstream side. Wherein the communication processing program includes a module for determining whether or not the status of the communication processing program is generated, and a module for determining whether or not data transmitted from a downstream device via a wireless medium is received. And a module for selecting data to be transmitted to the upstream device at a predetermined selection timing based on the determination result on the presence / absence of the own status and the determination result on the presence / absence of data reception from the downstream side. And a module for controlling the transmission of the selected data to the upstream side.

According to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, in the storage medium of the thirteenth aspect, the wireless communication apparatus uses infrared rays as a wireless medium.

According to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention, in the storage medium according to the thirteenth aspect, the predetermined selection timing is determined by a signal generated at a frequency twice or more as high as a communication frequency in the downstream device. It is characterized by the following.

According to a sixteenth aspect of the present invention, in the storage medium according to the thirteenth aspect, the data transmitted and received between the upstream device and the downstream device is start-stop data.

According to a seventeenth aspect of the present invention, in the storage medium of the thirteenth aspect, the data transmitted and received between the upstream device and the downstream device is data conforming to a control area network standard. And

The invention according to claim 18 is the storage medium according to claim 13, wherein the program controls the module so as to receive data transmitted from the upstream device via a wireless medium; A module for controlling transmission of data received from an upstream device to the downstream device.

[0023]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(First Embodiment) FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a main configuration of a wireless communication apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

The wireless communication device is mounted on, for example, each optional device for adding a function to the image forming device or extending the function, and the optional device is mounted on the wireless communication device mounted on each of the optional devices. , The image forming apparatuses are connected in series with the most upstream side, and are communicably connected. In the present embodiment, infrared is used as a wireless communication medium of the wireless communication device. Data exchanged between optional devices including the image forming device is start-stop data.

As shown in FIG. 1, the wireless communication device mounted on the optional device includes a light receiving circuit (not shown) for receiving infrared rays transmitted from the image forming device or the optional device on the upstream side. A light transmitting circuit (not shown) for transmitting data received by the light receiving circuit to the downstream optional device, and a light transmitting circuit for transmitting infrared light to the image forming device or the upstream optional device. A light receiving circuit 2 for receiving infrared light transmitted from a downstream optional device;
A serial / parallel real converter 4 capable of outputting a determination signal of the presence / absence of data reception and a status setting circuit 6 capable of setting a status and outputting a determination signal indicating the presence / absence of the setting.

The light receiving circuit 2 receives infrared rays, converts the received infrared rays into reception data, and outputs the data. The received data of the optical receiving circuit 2 is input to a serial / parallel converter 4, which converts the input data into parallel data and outputs the parallel data from output ports O1 to O7. Here, the serial / parallel converter 4 has a port FULL. When the received data is written, the port FULL is held at Low, and a determination signal indicating the presence of the received data is obtained from this level. In a state where the received data is not written, the port FULL is held at High, and a determination signal indicating that there is no received data is obtained by this level.

The determination signal of the port FULL is input to one of the input terminals of the AND circuit 12, and the AND circuit 12 determines the determination signal input to the one input terminal and the first timing input to the other input terminal. Performs a logical AND operation with the signal. The first timing signal is a signal obtained by dividing the frequency of a clock signal generated by a clock generator (CLK) 7 as described later. AND
The output of the circuit 12 is input to a port OE of the serial / parallel conversion circuit 4 and an OR circuit 14 described later as a data output permission signal of the serial / parallel conversion circuit 4.

The clock generator 7 generates a clock signal of a predetermined frequency, and this clock signal is input to the frequency divider 8 and each of the AND circuits 10 and 11. Divider 8 is 1/2
The output of the frequency divider is input to the AND circuit 10 via the inverter 9 and is input directly to the AND circuit 11. The AND circuit 10 performs an AND operation on the clock signal from the clock generator 7 and the output of the frequency divider 8 input via the inverter 9, and outputs the output to the AND circuit 12 as the first timing signal. Is entered. The AND circuit 11 performs an AND operation on the clock signal from the clock generator 7 and the output of the frequency divider 8, and the output is input to an AND circuit 13 described later.

The status set by the CPU 3 is written to the status setting circuit 6 via the buses (D0 to D7).
It is controlled by the WR signal from U3. The CPU 3 takes in the level held in the port FULL of the status circuit 6 to the port I0, and sets the status when setting the status.
Based on the level taken in I0, it is confirmed that no data remains in status circuit 6 and a WR signal is output.
The level held in the port FULL of the status setting circuit 6 is input to the I0 of the CPU 3 and input to the AND circuit 13 as described above. AND circuit 13
Performs an AND operation between the level of the port FULL of the status setting circuit 6 and the output of the AND circuit 11, and outputs the result as a port OE and an OR circuit of the status setting circuit 6 as a data output enable signal of the status setting circuit 6. 1
4 is input. The CPU 3 sets the status and controls the entire apparatus.

As described above, the OR circuit 14 performs the AND operation.
The output of the circuit 12 and the output of the AND circuit 13 are input, and the respective OR operations are performed. The output of the OR circuit 14 is used as a write enable signal as a parallel / serial conversion circuit 14.
Is input to The parallel / serial conversion circuit 14
The data of the serial / parallel conversion circuit 4 or the data of the status setting circuit 6 is fetched by the write permission signal of the R circuit 14 and converted into serial data. This serial data is input to the optical transmission circuit 1 in synchronization with the rise of the write signal, and the optical transmission circuit 1 modulates and outputs infrared rays based on the input serial data.

Next, signals related to communication control of the wireless communication apparatus will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a waveform diagram of each signal related to communication control of the wireless communication device of FIG.

The clock generator outputs a clock signal of a predetermined frequency (A in FIG. 2). Here, A in FIG. 2 indicates a signal at point A in FIG. 1, and other signals (B to B)
H) also shows signals at respective points in FIG. 1 (points B to H in FIG. 1). By dividing the frequency of the clock signal by に よ り using the frequency divider 8, the frequency of the clock signal becomes 1
A divided signal (B in FIG. 2) having a frequency of / 2 is obtained. Then, the clock signal (A) by the AND circuit 10
The signal (C) is obtained by the AND operation of the frequency-divided signal (B) and the frequency-divided signal (B) input via the inverter 9. Also, AND
The signal (D) is obtained by the AND operation of the clock signal (A) and the divided signal (B) by the circuit 11. The signal (C) and the signal (D) are signals whose phases are shifted by one cycle.

If there is data in the status setting circuit 6 at the time when the signal (C) becomes Low, the level (E) of the port FULL of the status setting circuit 6 is held at High. The output permission signal (F) becomes High, and the data of the status setting circuit 6 is transferred to the parallel / serial converter 5. Here, the output of the OR circuit 14 is input to the parallel / serial conversion circuit 5 as a write enable signal, and the data of the status setting circuit 6 is written to the parallel / serial converter 5. When the signal (E) is Low, CP
The status can be set to the status setting circuit 6 by U3.

At the time when the signal (D) becomes low, if there is data in the serial / parallel conversion circuit 4, the level (G) of the port FULL of the serial / parallel conversion circuit 4 is held at high. The output of the circuit 12, that is, the output permission signal (H) becomes High, and the data of the serial / parallel conversion circuit 4 is transferred to the parallel / serial converter 5. Here, the output of the OR circuit 14 is input to the parallel / serial conversion circuit 5 as a write enable signal, and the data of the serial / parallel conversion circuit 4 is written to the parallel / serial converter 5. When the signal (G) is Low, the light receiving circuit 2
Is in a writable state for the data received by.

Next, the writing operation of the reply status by the CPU 3 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a procedure of a write operation of a reply status in the wireless communication apparatus of FIG.

As shown in FIG. 3, the CPU 3 first monitors the state of the input port I0 in step S1, and when the input port I0 becomes low, the status setting circuit 6
Is determined to be in a data writable state, and step S2
Proceed to. In step S2, it is determined whether or not there is a status to be returned.
The process returns to step S1. On the other hand, when there is a status to be returned, the process proceeds to step S3, data is set to the output ports D0 to D7, a WR signal is generated,
The status is written into the status setting circuit 6. Then, the process returns to step S1, and waits for the data of the status setting circuit 6 to be transmitted.

As described above, by mounting the wireless communication device on each optional device, each optional device can be connected to the image forming device in series without using a cable, and a plurality of optional devices can be connected to the image forming device. It is possible to prevent the connection working environment from being deteriorated due to the cable for communicatively connecting the optional devices. The status can be returned from each of the optional devices completely asynchronously, and unnecessary status replies can be reduced.

(Second Embodiment) Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the second embodiment of the wireless communication device of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a procedure of communication processing in the wireless communication device of FIG.

This embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that the main functions are realized by a CPU.

Specifically, as shown in FIG.
1, a ROM 22, a RAM 23, a core (Cor)
e) 24, timer 25, parallel / serial conversion function (P / S) 26, serial / parallel conversion function (S / S
P) 27 and a bus 28 connecting them are provided, and the CPU 21 executes communication processing shown in FIG. 5 described later according to a program stored in the ROM 22 and controls the entire apparatus. Here, the serial / parallel conversion function 27 of the CPU 21 receives the data received by the optical receiving circuit 2, converts the data into parallel data, and outputs the parallel data. The parallel / serial conversion function 26 of the CPU 21 outputs serial data to be transmitted to the upstream image forming apparatus or the optional device to the optical transmitting circuit 1, and the optical transmitting circuit 1 transmits the serial data to the upstream image forming apparatus or the optional device. To output infrared light.

Next, the procedure of the communication process by the CPU 3 will be described with reference to FIG.

During the communication process, as shown in FIG. 5, first, in step S11, the timer 25 waits for the time-up (elapse of a predetermined time). At this point, normal control of the optional device is executed.

Then, the process proceeds to a step S12, where the switching flag is inverted. When the current switching flag is set to 1, the switching flag is set to 0, and when the switching flag is set to 0, the switching flag is set to 1. In a succeeding step S13, it is determined whether or not the switching flag is 1.

When the switching flag is 1, the flow advances to step S14 to determine whether there is a status to be returned. If there is no status to be returned, the flow returns to step S11. On the other hand, if there is data to be returned, the process proceeds to step S15, where a reply status is set in the transmission data, the transmission data is converted into serial data by the parallel / serial conversion function 26, and output to the optical transmission circuit 1. . Then, the process returns to the step S11.

If it is determined in step S13 that the switching flag is not 1, that is, if it is 0, the flow advances to step S16 to determine whether there is a status received from the downstream optional device, and there is no received status. In some cases, the process returns to step S1. On the other hand, if there is a received status, the process proceeds to step S1.
In step 7, the reception status is set in the transmission data. The transmission data is converted into serial data by the parallel / serial conversion function 26 and output to the optical transmission circuit 1. Then, the process returns to the step S11.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the communication process is executed by the CPU 21.
There is no need to provide various circuits such as a serial / parallel conversion circuit and a logic circuit, so that the configuration can be simplified and the cost can be reduced as compared with the first embodiment.

[0048]

As described above, according to the wireless communication apparatus of the present invention, the status generating means for generating its own status and the downstream for receiving data transmitted from the downstream apparatus via the wireless medium are provided. Side receiving means, received data presence / absence determining means for determining the presence / absence of data received by the downstream side receiving means, status presence / absence determining means for determining the presence / absence of a status, reception data presence / absence determining means and status presence / absence determining means Transmission data selection means for selecting data to be transmitted to the upstream device at a predetermined selection timing based on each determination result, timing signal generation means for generating a timing signal for determining a predetermined selection timing, Upstream transmission means for transmitting the data selected by the transmission data selection means to the upstream side via a wireless medium. Since that, it is possible to prevent deterioration of the connection work environment due to the cable for communicably connecting between a plurality of devices including a main device in advance.

According to the communication control method of the wireless communication apparatus of the present invention, the step of determining whether or not the status of the wireless communication apparatus has occurred, and the step of determining whether or not the data transmitted from the downstream apparatus via the wireless medium has been determined. And selecting at a predetermined selection timing data to be transmitted to the upstream device based on the determination result on the presence or absence of its own status and the determination result on the presence or absence of data reception from the downstream side. And transmitting the selected data to the upstream side via a wireless medium, so that the deterioration of the connection work environment due to the cable for communicably connecting the plurality of devices including the main device can be prevented beforehand. Can be prevented.

According to the storage medium of the present invention, the communication processing program determines the presence / absence of the occurrence of its own status and the presence / absence of reception of data transmitted from the downstream device via the wireless medium. A module that selects data to be transmitted to an upstream device based on a determination result regarding the presence / absence of the occurrence of its own status and a determination result regarding the presence / absence of reception of data from the downstream at a predetermined selection timing. And a module for controlling the transmission of the selected data to the upstream side, thereby preventing the deterioration of the connection work environment due to the cable for communicatively connecting the plurality of devices including the main device. can do.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a main configuration of a wireless communication device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a waveform diagram of signals related to communication control of the wireless communication device of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of a write operation of a reply status in the wireless communication device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a second embodiment of the wireless communication device according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a procedure of a communication process in the wireless communication device of FIG. 4;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Optical transmission circuit 2 Optical reception circuit 3, 21 CPU 4 Serial / parallel converter 5 Parallel / serial converter 6 Status setting circuit 7 Clock generator 8 Divider 10, 11, 12, 13 AND circuit 14 OR circuit 22 ROM 24 core 25 timer 26 serial / parallel conversion function 27 parallel / serial conversion function

──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) H04L 12/28 H04L 13/00 313 29/02 29/14 F term (Reference) 5B014 GC01 5K002 AA05 AA06 DA05 FA03 GA01 5K033 AA04 CA17 CB01 CB15 DA01 DA11 DA20 DB16 5K034 AA12 DD02 EE01 EE03 FF01 FF02 HH04 HH06 KK21 NN04 PP03 5K035 AA04 CC01 CC03 EE01 FF02

Claims (18)

[Claims] 1. A wireless communication device mounted on each device so that a plurality of devices including a main device can be connected in series with the main device being the most upstream side, and a status generation device generating its own status. Means, downstream receiving means for receiving data transmitted from a downstream device via a wireless medium, received data presence / absence determining means for determining presence / absence of data received by the downstream receiving means, Transmission for selecting at predetermined selection timing data to be transmitted to the upstream device based on the determination results of the status presence / absence determination means for determining the presence / absence of occurrence, the received data presence / absence determination means and the status presence / absence determination means Data selection means; timing signal generation means for generating a timing signal for determining the predetermined selection timing; A wireless communication device comprising: an upstream transmission unit that transmits data selected by the data selection unit to the upstream via a wireless medium. 2. The wireless communication device according to claim 1, wherein the wireless medium is an infrared ray. 3. The wireless communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said timing signal generating means generates said timing signal at a frequency twice or more as high as a communication frequency in said downstream apparatus. 4. The wireless communication device according to claim 1, wherein data transmitted and received between the upstream device and the downstream device is start-stop data. 5. The wireless communication device according to claim 1, wherein data transmitted and received between the upstream device and the downstream device is data conforming to a control area network standard. 6. An upstream receiving means for receiving data transmitted from the upstream apparatus via a wireless medium, and a downstream transmission for transmitting data received by the upstream receiving means to the downstream apparatus. 2. The wireless communication device according to claim 1, further comprising means. 7. A communication control method of a wireless communication device mounted on each device so that a plurality of devices including a main device can be connected in series with the main device being the most upstream side, wherein Determining the presence or absence of occurrence, the step of determining the presence or absence of reception of data transmitted from the downstream device via the wireless medium, and the determination result on the presence or absence of the status of its own and the A step of selecting data to be transmitted to an upstream device at a predetermined selection timing based on a result of determination as to whether or not data has been received, and a step of transmitting the selected data to the upstream side via a wireless medium And a communication control method for a wireless communication device. 8. The communication control method for a wireless communication device according to claim 7, wherein said wireless medium is an infrared ray. 9. The communication control method for a wireless communication device according to claim 7, wherein the selection timing is determined by a signal generated at a frequency twice or more as high as a communication frequency in the downstream device. . 10. The communication control method for a wireless communication device according to claim 7, wherein the data transmitted and received between the upstream device and the downstream device is start-stop data. 11. The communication control method for a wireless communication device according to claim 7, wherein the data transmitted and received between the upstream device and the downstream device is data conforming to a control area network standard. 12. A method comprising: receiving data transmitted from the upstream device via a wireless medium; and transmitting data received by the upstream receiving means to the downstream device. The communication control method for a wireless communication device according to claim 7, wherein: 13. A storage medium storing a communication processing program used for a wireless communication device mounted on each device so that a plurality of devices including a main device can be connected in series with the main device being the most upstream side. The communication processing program includes a module for determining whether or not a status of the communication device is generated; a module for determining whether or not data transmitted from a downstream device via a wireless medium is received; A module for selecting, at a predetermined selection timing, data to be transmitted to an upstream device based on a determination result regarding the presence or absence of occurrence and a determination result regarding the presence or absence of reception of data from the downstream side, and the selected data. And a module for controlling transmission to the upstream side. 14. The storage medium according to claim 13, wherein said wireless communication device uses infrared rays as a wireless medium. 15. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined selection timing is determined by a signal generated at a frequency twice or more as high as a communication frequency in the downstream device.
3. The storage medium according to 3. 16. The storage medium according to claim 13, wherein data transmitted and received between the upstream device and the downstream device is start-stop data. 17. The storage medium according to claim 13, wherein data transmitted and received between the upstream device and the downstream device is data conforming to a control area network standard. 18. The program, comprising: a module configured to receive data transmitted from the upstream device via a wireless medium, and a module configured to transmit data received from the upstream device to the downstream device. 14. The storage medium according to claim 13, further comprising a module for controlling transmission.