JP2022128775A - Display input device, image processing apparatus, and timing setting method - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a display input device configured to dissolve an abnormal state which occurs due to noise early, an image processing apparatus, and a timing setting method.SOLUTION: An image forming apparatus 1 includes: a signal output unit 55 which outputs an electric signal in accordance with capacitance in a display surface; an operation determination unit 56 which determines whether the display surface has been operated or not, on the basis of a difference between a reference value and a signal value based on the electric signal output from the signal output unit 55; an update processing unit 57 which updates the reference value on the basis of the signal value for which the operation determination unit 56 determines that the display surface has not been operated; and a setting processing unit 45 which sets a first timing as initialization timing for the reference value when the apparatus is electrically grounded, or sets a second timing whose frequency is higher than that of the first timing, as the initialization timing, when the apparatus is not electrically grounded.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

The present invention relates to a display/input device, an image processing device, and a timing setting method.

2. Description of the Related Art An image processing apparatus such as a multifunction peripheral is sometimes provided with a display input device having a touch panel function. For example, in the display input device, an electric signal corresponding to the capacitance of the operated surface is output, and based on the difference between the signal value based on the electric signal and a predetermined reference value, the operated surface It is determined whether or not there is an operation to . Further, there is known a display input device that updates the reference value based on the signal value determined that the operation surface is not operated (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2007-208682 A

By the way, in the display input device that updates the reference value, if electrical noise flows into the device at the timing of updating the reference value, the updated reference value may be affected by the noise. can be of value. As a result, an abnormal state may occur in the display input device in which it is always determined that there is an operation on the operated surface regardless of whether or not the operated surface is operated.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a display/input device, an image processing device, and a timing setting method capable of quickly resolving an abnormal state caused by noise.

A display input device according to one aspect of the present invention includes a signal output section, an operation determination section, an update processing section, an initialization processing section, and a setting processing section. The signal output section outputs an electrical signal corresponding to the capacitance of the operated surface. The operation determination unit determines whether or not the operation surface has been operated, based on a difference between a signal value based on the electrical signal output from the signal output unit and a predetermined reference value. The update processing unit updates the reference value based on the signal value determined by the operation determining unit that there is no operation on the operated surface. The initialization processing unit initializes the reference value at a predetermined initialization timing. The setting processing unit sets a predetermined first timing as the initialization timing when the self device is electrically grounded, and sets the first timing when the self device is not electrically grounded. A second timing having a higher frequency of arrival is set as the initialization timing.

An image processing apparatus according to another aspect of the present invention includes the display input device, and one or both of an image reading section and an image forming section. The image reading section reads image data of a document. The image forming section forms an image based on image data.

A timing setting method according to another aspect of the present invention includes: a signal output unit that outputs an electric signal corresponding to the capacitance of an operated surface; a signal value based on the electric signal output from the signal output unit; and an operation determination unit that determines whether or not an operation has been performed on the operation surface based on a difference from a predetermined reference value, and the following update step, initialization step, and setting step. In the updating step, the reference value is updated based on the signal value determined by the operation determining unit that there is no operation on the operated surface. In the initialization step, the reference value is initialized at a predetermined setting timing. In the setting step, when the device is electrically grounded, a predetermined first timing is set as the initialization timing, and when the device is not electrically grounded, the first timing is set. A second timing with a high arrival frequency is set as the initialization timing.

According to the present invention, it is possible to quickly eliminate an abnormal state caused by noise.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the system configuration of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the invention. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the configuration of the operation display section of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the invention. FIG. 4 is a flow chart showing an example of timing setting processing executed by the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that the following embodiment is an example that embodies the present invention, and does not limit the technical scope of the present invention.

[Configuration of Image Forming Apparatus 1]
First, the configuration of an image forming apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3. FIG. Here, FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing the configuration of the image forming apparatus 1. As shown in FIG. 3 is a plan view showing the configuration of the operation display section 18. As shown in FIG.

The image forming apparatus 1 is a multifunction device having a plurality of functions such as a scanning function for reading image data from a document, a printing function for forming an image based on the image data, a facsimile function, and a copying function. The image forming apparatus 1 is an example of the image processing apparatus of the present invention. Note that the image processing apparatus of the present invention may be a scanner, printer, facsimile machine, or copier.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the image forming apparatus 1 includes an ADF (Auto Document Feeder) 11, an image reading section 12, an image forming section 13, a paper feeding section 14, a storage section 15, a human detection section 16, a power supply A unit 17 , an operation display unit 18 , and a control unit 19 are provided.

The ADF 11 conveys a document to be read by the scanning function. For example, the ADF 11 includes a document setting section, a plurality of transport rollers, a document presser, and a paper ejection section.

The image reading unit 12 realizes the scanning function. For example, the image reading unit 12 includes a platen, a light source, multiple mirrors, an optical lens, and a CCD (Charge Coupled Device).

The image forming section 13 realizes the printing function. For example, the image forming unit 13 forms an image on a sheet supplied from the paper feeding unit 14 by electrophotography. For example, the image forming section 13 includes a photosensitive drum, a charging roller, an optical scanning device, a developing device, a transfer roller, a cleaning device, a fixing device, and a paper output tray.

The paper feeding unit 14 supplies sheets to the image forming unit 13 . For example, the paper feed unit 14 includes a paper feed cassette, a manual feed tray, a sheet transport path, and a plurality of transport rollers.

The storage unit 15 is a nonvolatile storage device. For example, the storage unit 15 is a non-volatile memory such as flash memory or EEPROM (registered trademark). Note that the storage unit 15 may be an SSD (Solid State Drive) or an HDD (Hard Disk Drive).

Human detection unit 16 detects a person existing within a predetermined detection range including image forming apparatus 1 . For example, the human detection unit 16 includes a human sensor including a pyroelectric infrared sensor. For example, the human detection unit 16 is provided in the upper part of the housing of the image forming apparatus 1 so that the light receiving unit of the pyroelectric infrared sensor faces the front space of the image forming apparatus 1 . The human detection unit 16 can detect an infrared ray emitting subject, that is, a person, existing in front of the image forming apparatus 1 within a range of distance corresponding to the infrared ray reception sensitivity of the pyroelectric infrared sensor.

Note that the image forming apparatus 1 does not have to include the human detection unit 16 .

The power supply unit 17 supplies power supplied from an external commercial power supply 2 (see FIG. 2) through the power supply line 3 to each unit of the image forming apparatus 1 . For example, the power supply unit 17 includes an AC-DC converter that converts AC voltage supplied from the commercial power supply 2 into DC voltage. The power supply unit 17 also includes a current detection unit 21 as shown in FIG. The current detection unit 21 detects current flowing through the ground wire 4 (see FIG. 2) that electrically connects the frame of the image forming apparatus 1 and the ground.

The operation display unit 18 is a user interface of the image forming apparatus 1 . As shown in FIG. 2 , the operation display section 18 includes a display section 31 , an operation section 32 and a touch panel 33 .

The display unit 31 displays various information according to control instructions from the control unit 19 . For example, the display section 31 is a liquid crystal display. As shown in FIG. 3, the display unit 31 has a display surface 51 on which a screen is displayed.

The operation unit 32 inputs various types of information to the control unit 19 according to user's operations. As shown in FIG. 3, the operation unit 32 has a plurality of hard keys such as a power key 52, a start key 53, and a numeric keypad .

The touch panel 33 implements a touch panel function of detecting a touch operation on the display surface 51 . The display surface 51 is an example of the operated surface of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 2 , the touch panel 33 includes a signal output section 55 , an operation determination section 56 , an update processing section 57 and a reference value initialization section 58 .

The signal output section 55 outputs an electrical signal corresponding to the capacitance on the display surface 51 .

Specifically, in the operation display unit 18 , a plurality of electrodes are provided on the back side of the display surface 51 . The signal output unit 55 outputs an electric signal corresponding to the capacitance of the area of the display surface 51 facing the electrode for each electrode.

For example, the signal output unit 55 charges a capacitor included in the energization path passing through the electrodes. Then, the signal output unit 55 detects the charge amount accumulated in the capacitor and outputs an electric signal indicating the detected charge amount.

For example, the signal output unit 55 outputs an electric signal corresponding to the capacitance on the display surface 51 at a predetermined output cycle.

The operation determination unit 56 outputs an electric signal to the display surface 51 based on the difference between a signal value based on an electrical signal (hereinafter referred to as an “output signal”) output from the signal output unit 55 and a predetermined reference value. determines whether or not there is an operation of

Specifically, in the touch panel 33, the reference value corresponding to each electrode is set in advance. Then, based on the difference between the signal value based on the output signal corresponding to one of the electrodes and the reference value corresponding to the electrode, the operation determination unit 56 selects a region on the display surface 51 facing the electrode. determines whether or not there is an operation of

For example, when the difference between the signal value based on the output signal corresponding to one of the electrodes and the reference value corresponding to the electrode exceeds a predetermined threshold, the operation determination unit 56 It is determined that there is an operation to the area facing the electrode. On the other hand, if the difference between the signal value based on the output signal corresponding to one of the electrodes and the reference value corresponding to the electrode is equal to or less than the threshold, the operation determination unit 56 determines whether the electrode on the display surface 51 It is determined that there is no operation to the area facing to.

For example, the operation determination unit 56 determines whether or not there is an operation on the display surface 51 at the output period.

The update processing unit 57 updates the reference value based on the signal value of the output signal determined by the operation determination unit 56 that there is no operation on the display surface 51 .

Specifically, the update processing unit 57 updates the reference value corresponding to each of the electrodes.

For example, when the operation determination unit 56 determines that there is no operation on the area facing any of the electrodes on the display surface 51, the update processing unit 57 updates the signal value of the output signal used for the determination. is set as the reference value corresponding to the electrode. On the other hand, when the operation determination unit 56 determines that there is an operation on the region facing any of the electrodes on the display surface 51, the update processing unit 57 updates the signal value of the output signal used for the determination. is not used to update the reference value.

A reference value initialization unit 58 initializes the reference value.

Specifically, the reference value initialization unit 58 initializes the reference value corresponding to each of the electrodes according to the initialization instruction from the control unit 19 .

For example, the reference value initialization unit 58 resets the reference value corresponding to one of the electrodes based on the output signal corresponding to one of the electrodes output from the signal output unit 55 at the input timing of the initialization instruction. initialize. For example, the reference value initialization unit 58 converts the signal value of the output signal corresponding to one of the electrodes output from the signal output unit 55 at the input timing of the initialization instruction to the reference value corresponding to the electrode. set as

The reference value initialization unit 58 may initialize the reference value corresponding to each of the electrodes based on a predetermined initial value.

The control unit 19 controls the image forming apparatus 1 as a whole. As shown in FIG. 2, the control unit 19 includes a CPU 41, a ROM 42, and a RAM 43. The CPU 41 is a processor that executes various kinds of arithmetic processing. The ROM 42 is a non-volatile storage device in which information such as control programs for causing the CPU 41 to execute various processes is stored in advance. The RAM 43 is a volatile storage device used as a temporary storage memory (work area) for various processes executed by the CPU 41 . In the control unit 19, various control programs pre-stored in the ROM 42 are executed by the CPU 41. FIG. As a result, the image forming apparatus 1 is controlled by the controller 19 in an integrated manner.

Note that the control unit 19 may be configured by an electronic circuit such as an integrated circuit (ASIC). Further, the control unit 19 may be a control unit provided separately from the main control unit that controls the image forming apparatus 1 in an integrated manner.

Incidentally, in the image forming apparatus 1, if electrical noise flows into the apparatus at the timing of updating the reference value, the updated reference value may become an abnormal value affected by the noise. . As a result, an abnormal state may occur in which it is always determined that there is an operation on the display surface 51 regardless of whether or not the display surface 51 is operated in the image forming apparatus 1 . Specifically, the abnormal state occurs when the reference value drops significantly due to the influence of the noise. Since it is always determined that there is an operation on the display surface 51 when the abnormal state occurs, the reference value cannot be updated.

On the other hand, in the image forming apparatus 1, as described below, it is possible to quickly eliminate the abnormal state caused by the noise.

Specifically, the ROM 42 of the image forming apparatus 1 stores in advance a timing setting program for causing the CPU 41 of the control section 19 to execute timing setting processing (see the flowchart of FIG. 4), which will be described later. The timing setting program is recorded on a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD, DVD, and flash memory, and may be read from the recording medium and installed in the storage unit 15 .

The control unit 19 includes an initialization processing unit 44 and a setting processing unit 45, as shown in FIG. Specifically, the control unit 19 uses the CPU 41 to execute the timing setting program stored in the ROM 42 . Thereby, the control unit 19 functions as an initialization processing unit 44 and a setting processing unit 45 . The operation display unit 18 and the control unit 19 are examples of the display input device of the present invention.

The initialization processing unit 44 initializes the reference value at a predetermined initialization timing.

Specifically, the initialization processing unit 44 transmits the initialization instruction to the reference value initialization unit 58 when the initialization timing comes.

The setting processing unit 45 sets a predetermined first timing as the initialization timing when the own device is electrically grounded. Further, the setting processing unit 45 sets the second timing, which has a higher frequency of arrival than the first timing, as the initialization timing when the own device is not electrically grounded.

For example, the first timing includes the timing when the power of the image forming apparatus 1 is turned on.

Also, the second timing includes the first timing. Further, the second timing is the timing at which the user performs a predetermined initialization operation, and the operation mode of the image forming apparatus 1 shifts from a power saving mode in which power consumption is lower than in the normal mode to the normal mode. and the timing at which the print job is completed in the image forming apparatus 1 . Also, the second timing includes the timing at which it is determined that there is a person moving to the device based on the detection result of the human detection unit 16 .

For example, the setting processing unit 45 determines whether or not its own device is electrically grounded when a predetermined setting timing arrives. For example, the set timing is fixed in advance or set according to the user's operation on the operation display unit 18 .

For example, the setting processing unit 45 determines that the device is electrically grounded when the current detection unit 21 detects the current flowing through the ground wire 4 . Further, the setting processing unit 45 determines that the device itself is not electrically grounded when the current detecting unit 21 does not detect the current flowing through the ground wire 4 .

The setting processing unit 45 determines whether or not its own device is electrically grounded based on the grounding information stored in advance in the storage unit 15 and indicating whether or not its own device is electrically grounded. You may The content of the ground information may be set according to the user's operation on the operation display section 18 .

[Timing setting process]
The timing setting method of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG. Here, steps S11, S12, .

<Step S11>
First, in step S11, the control unit 19 determines whether or not the set timing has arrived.

Here, when the control unit 19 determines that the setting timing has arrived (Yes side of S11), the process proceeds to step S12. If the set timing has not arrived (No in S11), the control unit 19 shifts the process to step S15.

<Step S12>
In step S12, the control unit 19 determines whether or not its own device is electrically grounded.

Here, when the controller 19 determines that its own device is electrically grounded (Yes side of S12), the process proceeds to step S13. Also, if the own device is not electrically grounded (No side of S12), the control unit 19 shifts the process to step S14.

<Step S13>
In step S13, the control unit 19 sets the first timing as the initialization timing.

<Step S14>
In step S14, the control unit 19 sets the second timing as the initialization timing. Here, the processing from step S11 to step S14 is an example of the setting steps of the present invention, and is executed by the setting processing section 45 of the control section 19. FIG.

<Step S15>
In step S15, the control unit 19 determines whether or not the initialization timing has arrived.

For example, when the first timing is set as the initialization timing, the control unit 19 determines that the initialization timing has arrived when the power of the image forming apparatus 1 is turned on.

Further, in the case where the second timing is set as the initialization timing, the control unit 19 changes the operation mode to When the power saving mode is shifted to the normal mode, when the print job is completed, or when it is determined that there is a person moving to the apparatus itself, it is determined that the initialization timing has arrived.

Here, when the control unit 19 determines that the initialization timing has arrived (Yes in S15), the process proceeds to step S16. If the initialization timing has not arrived (No side of S15), the control unit 19 shifts the process to step S11.

<Step S16>
In step S16, the control unit 19 initializes the reference value. Here, the processes of steps S15 and S16 are an example of the initialization steps of the present invention, and are executed by the initialization processing section 44 of the control section 19 .

Note that the operation determination unit 56 of the touch panel 33 determines whether or not there is an operation on the display surface 51 at the output period during execution of the timing setting process. Further, the update processing unit 57 updates the reference value based on the signal value of the output signal each time the operation determination unit 56 determines that there is no operation on the display surface 51 during execution of the timing setting process. Update. The update processing of the reference value by the update processing unit 57 during execution of the timing setting processing is an example of the update step of the present invention.

Thus, in the image forming apparatus 1, the first timing is set as the initialization timing when the image forming apparatus 1 is electrically grounded. Further, when the device itself is not electrically grounded, that is, when it is susceptible to the noise, the second timing, which has a higher frequency of arrival than the first timing, is set as the initialization timing.

As a result, regardless of whether the device itself is electrically grounded or not, the abnormal state caused by the noise can be detected early compared to the configuration in which the reference value is always initialized at the first timing. It is possible to cancel. Further, the initialization of the reference value is frequently performed compared to the configuration in which the reference value is always initialized at the second timing regardless of whether the device itself is electrically grounded. It is possible to avoid the inconvenience caused by The inconvenience is that the opportunity for the user to use the touch panel function is limited, and the reference value is set based on the output signal output from the signal output unit 55 while the user's finger is in contact with the display surface 51. more likely, etc.

1 image forming apparatus 11 ADF
12 Image reading unit 13 Image forming unit 14 Paper feeding unit 15 Storage unit 16 Human detection unit 17 Power supply unit 18 Operation display unit 19 Control unit 21 Current detection unit 31 Display unit 32 Operation unit 33 Touch panel 44 Initialization processing unit 45 Setting processing unit 55 signal output unit 56 operation determination unit 57 update processing unit 58 reference value initialization unit

Claims (5)

a signal output unit that outputs an electrical signal corresponding to the capacitance of the operated surface;
an operation determination unit that determines whether or not the operation surface is operated based on a difference between a signal value based on the electrical signal output from the signal output unit and a predetermined reference value;
an update processing unit that updates the reference value based on the signal value determined by the operation determination unit that there is no operation on the operated surface;
an initialization processing unit that initializes the reference value at a predetermined initialization timing;
When the device is electrically grounded, a predetermined first timing is set as the initialization timing, and when the device is not electrically grounded, the arrival frequency is higher than the first timing. a setting processing unit that sets a second timing as the initialization timing;
A display input device. The initialization processing unit initializes the reference value based on the signal value output from the signal output unit at the initialization timing.
The display input device according to claim 1. Equipped with a human detection unit that detects a person existing within a predetermined detection range including its own device,
The second timing includes the timing when it is determined that there is a person moving to the device based on the detection result by the human detection unit,
The display input device according to claim 1 or 2. a display input device according to any one of claims 1 to 3;
one or both of an image reading unit that reads image data of a document and an image forming unit that forms an image based on the image data;
An image processing device comprising: a signal output unit that outputs an electric signal corresponding to the capacitance of the surface to be operated; A timing setting method executed by a display input device comprising:
an update step of updating the reference value based on the signal value determined by the operation determining unit that there is no operation on the operated surface;
an initialization step of initializing the reference value at a predetermined setting timing;
When the device is electrically grounded, a predetermined first timing is set as the initialization timing, and when the device is not electrically grounded, the arrival frequency is higher than the first timing. a setting step of setting a second timing as the initialization timing;
Timing setting method including.

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