JPH064236A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Purpose] To provide a printer that can calculate the amount of paper used for each user without manual labor. The user identification means 14 extracts a user identification code from the input data and retrieves the user identification code stored in the user identification code storage means 12. If registered, the user identification code is transmitted to the paper usage amount accumulating means 15. Paper usage accumulating means 15
When the printer control circuit 19 informs that the paper has been discharged, the count value is incremented by one. The paper usage amount accumulating unit 15 also adds the count value to the paper usage amount stored in the user-specific paper usage amount storage unit 16. The user-specific paper usage amount display means 17 reads out and displays the paper usage amount stored in the user-specific paper usage amount storage means 16.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to printers used by multiple users.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When a plurality of users share a single printer, there is a demand for grasping the amount of paper used for each user and charging a fee. In particular, in a printer connected to a plurality of host computers via a network, a plurality of users who are distant from each other print at any time in any order,
It is difficult to manually calculate the amount of paper used for each user.

Some printers of the prior art have a function of totalizing the amount of paper used, but they only accumulate the total number of sheets of paper printed by the printer, and The total number of sheets was only used as a guide for the life of the consumable parts that make up the printer.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide a printer capable of accumulating the amount of paper used for each user without manual labor. To do.

[0005]

The printer of the present invention comprises means for registering a user, means for storing the identification code of the user registered by the user registration means, and means for identifying the user. A means for accumulating the paper usage amount for each user identified by the user identification means, a means for storing the paper usage amount for each user accumulated by the paper usage amount accumulating means, and the user-specific paper usage It is characterized in that it has a means for displaying the amount of paper usage for each user stored by the amount storage means.

[0006]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the structure of a printer according to the present invention. In the figure, reference numeral 21 is an operation panel composed of switches and display bodies, 22 is an electrically rewritable semiconductor memory element (EEPROM), 23 is a central processing unit (CPU), 2
Reference numeral 4 is a read-only semiconductor element (ROM) for storing program codes and data, and 25 is a readable / writable semiconductor element (RA) for storing print images and other work data.
M) and 19 are printing device control circuits for driving the printing device 27, and 13 is an interface circuit for transmitting and receiving data to and from a host device (not shown), which are connected via an internal bus 26.

The CPU 23 sequentially reads and executes the program codes stored in the ROM 24. When print data is input from the interface circuit 13,
The CPU 23 reads the work data stored in the ROM 24 or the RAM 25, generates a print image based on the work data, and stores the print image in the RAM 25. When the print image generation is completed, the CPU 23 reads the print image stored in the RAM 25 and outputs it to the printing device control circuit 19. The printing device control circuit 19 receives the print image output from the CPU 23, controls the operation of the printing device 27 based on the print image, and performs the printing operation. Further, when a command is issued to display the paper usage amount for each user by operating the switch of the operation panel 21, the CPU 23 reads out the paper usage amount for each user stored in the EEPROM 22 and displays it on the display body of the operation panel 21. indicate. The operation of the apparatus thus configured will be described below.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram for explaining the function of the printer of the present invention in detail. 13 is an interface circuit for inputting data transmitted from the host computer, and 14 is used from the data input by the interface circuit 13. Person identifying means, 11 means for registering the user, 12 means for storing the identification code of the user registered by the user registering means 11, 15 means for accumulating the paper usage amount for each user, 16 Is a paper usage amount accumulating means 15
Means for storing the paper usage amount for each user accumulated by
Reference numeral 17 is a means for displaying the usage amount by user stored in the usage amount storage means 16 by user, 18 is a means for generating a print image based on the data input by the interface circuit 13, and 19 is a control device for the printing apparatus. It is a control circuit for controlling.

The user identification means 14 extracts the user identification code from the data input by the interface circuit 13, retrieves the user identification code stored in the user identification code storage means 12, and retrieves the user identification code. Check if is registered. If registered, the user identification code is transmitted to the paper usage amount accumulating means 15. If it has not been registered, the user identification code is transmitted to the paper usage amount accumulating means 15 and the user identification code is transmitted to the user registration means 11 so that the user registration means 11 performs registration. On the other hand, the print image generation means 18 generates a print image based on the data input by the interface circuit 13 and sends it to the printing device control circuit 19 to perform the printing operation. The printing device control circuit 19 monitors the printing device and, when detecting that the paper has been discharged, informs the paper usage amount accumulating means 15 of the fact. The paper usage amount accumulating unit 15 increments the count value by 1 when notified by the printing device control circuit 19 that the paper has been ejected. The paper usage amount accumulating means 15
The count value is added to the paper usage amount stored in the user-specific paper usage amount storage means 16. The user-specific paper usage amount display means 17 reads out and displays the paper usage amount stored in the user-specific paper usage amount storage means 16. When the user registration means 11 is instructed to register a user, it stores the user identification code to be registered in the user identification code storage means 12 and also displays the usage amount on the user-specified sheet corresponding to the user identification code. It is stored as 0 in the user-specific sheet usage amount storage means 16.

In the printer of the present invention, the following exchanges are performed between the host computer and the printer when starting to receive print data. First, the host computer inquires of the printer whether print data can be transmitted. At the same time, the user identification code is transmitted. The printer receives the user's identification code sent from the host computer, permits data transmission if it can receive the data in response to the inquiry, and is in use by another user. If the data cannot be received due to the above reasons, the data transmission is not permitted to the host computer. The printer identifies the user by the identification code of the user received at this time. When the host computer receives the data transmission permission, the host computer subsequently starts transmission of print data.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart showing an operation procedure for accumulating the paper usage amount for each user in the embodiment of the present invention. The CPU 23 first inputs the data transmitted from the host computer in the exchange as described above, and extracts the identification code of the current user (step a).
Next, the user identification code stored in the EEPROM 22 is searched (steps b and c), and if the identification code of the current user extracted in step a is registered, R is entered.
The count value stored in the AM 25 is set to 0 (step d), a print image is generated based on the print data transmitted from the host computer (step e), and the generated print image is output to the printer control circuit 19. (Step f). After that, when the printing device control circuit 19 informs the CPU 23 that the paper has been ejected (step g),
The count value stored in the RAM 25 is incremented by 1 (step h). Steps e to h are repeated until the transmission of the print data from the host computer is completed, and when the transmission is completed (step i), the count value stored in the RAM 25 is stored in the EEPROM 22 and the current paper usage amount of the user. To (step j). In step c, if the identification code of the current user extracted in step a is not registered, EEPROM2
It is checked whether the storage capacity of 2 is free (step k), and if there is free space, the identification code of the current user is stored and registered in the EEPROM 22 (step l), and the paper usage amount of the current user is set to 0. Is stored in the EEPROM 22 (step m), and then step d and subsequent steps are performed. If there is no free storage capacity in the EEPROM 22 in step k, the operation ends. A program code programmed to perform the above operation is stored in the ROM 24.

As an application example of the present invention, instead of displaying the amount of paper used for each user on the display of the operation panel 21, the amount of paper used may be printed on paper. In this case, when a command to display the amount of paper used for each user is given by operating the switch of the operation panel 21, the CPU 23 causes the EEPROM 22 to display.
The amount of paper used for each user stored in is read, a print image is generated based on the value, and the generated image is output to the printer control circuit 19 to perform printing.

As another application example, steps k to m in FIG. 3 are made independent, and another operation such as using a switch of the operation panel 21 is required to register the identification code of the user. It can also be configured to. By doing so, it is possible to restrict users other than the registered users from using the printer.

Further, in order to avoid the limitation of the storage capacity of the EEPROM 22, the user identification code storage means and the user-specific sheet usage amount storage means may be detachable.

This embodiment is merely an example,
EEPRO for user identification code and usage amount according to user
Obviously, it may be stored in a storage means other than M, such as a magnetic disk.

[0016]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Means for registering a user, means for storing the identification code of the user registered by the user registration means, means for identifying the user, and paper use for each user identified by the user identification means A means for accumulating the amount, a means for storing the paper usage amount for each user accumulated by the paper usage amount integrating means, and a user-specific paper usage amount stored by the user-specific paper usage amount storage means are displayed. Since the means is provided, it is possible to obtain the effect that the amount of paper used for each user can be added without manual labor, and the effect is particularly remarkable in a printer connected to a plurality of host computers via a network.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a printer of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating functions of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of an embodiment of the present invention.

[Description of Codes] 11 User Registration Means 12 User Identification Code Storage Means 13 Interface Circuit 14 User Identification Means 15 Paper Usage Amount Accumulation Means 16 User-Specific Paper Usage Amount Storage Means 17 User-Specific Paper Usage Amount Display Means 18 Printed Image Generating means 19 Printing device control circuit 21 Operation panel 22 EEPROM 23 CPU 24 ROM 25 RAM 26 Internal bus 27 Printing device

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A unit for registering a user, a unit for storing an identification code of the user registered by the user registration unit, a unit for identifying the user, and a unit for identifying the user. A means for accumulating the paper usage amount for each user, a means for storing the paper usage amount for each user accumulated by the paper usage amount accumulating means, and a user-specific sheet stored by the user-specific paper usage amount storage means A printer having means for displaying a usage amount. 2. The printer according to claim 1, wherein the user identification code storage means and the user-specific paper usage amount storage means are removable.