JP6111918B2 - Image processing apparatus, image processing system, and program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, an image processing system, and a program.

  As a prior art described in the publication, a save area is provided to save a program used to control the device itself, and the program is updated after saving the program in the save area, and when a specific error occurs after the update, the save area There is an image forming apparatus that restores the program saved in step 1 and automatically restores it. (See Patent Document 1)

  In addition, as a prior art described in other publications, a method of automatically returning to the version of the firmware before the update or a method of optimizing the version is selected in advance before a failure (error) occurs during the firmware update. When an error is detected, there is an image forming apparatus that automatically updates the firmware based on a pre-set handling process. (See Patent Document 2)

JP 2012-234330 A JP 2011-128702 A

  An object of the present invention is to reduce the storage area and the processing time required for updating a program held in an image processing apparatus.

The invention described in claim 1 is information relating to an update means for updating a program held by the own apparatus, a success / failure judging means for judging success / failure of the update by the update means, and a version of the program held by the own apparatus. First information acquisition means for acquiring information, second information acquisition means for acquiring second information which is information relating to a version of a program held by another image processing apparatus connected to the apparatus via a communication line, When it is determined that the update has failed by the success / failure determination unit, based on the first information acquired by the first information acquisition unit and the second information acquired by the second information acquisition unit, Version determination means for determining whether or not the version of the program held by the apparatus before being updated by the update means is the same as the version of the program held by the other image processing apparatus, and the version determination means If it is determined to be more equal, the program acquisition means for acquiring a program in which the other image processing apparatus holds, and a history acquisition means for acquiring a record of contents of processing in the own device, the success determining means Whether the error described in the history acquired by the history acquisition unit after being updated by the update unit is described in the history acquired by the history acquisition unit before being updated by the update unit. The image processing apparatus is characterized in that the success or failure of the update is determined based on the above.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, the program held by the other image processing apparatus acquired by the program acquisition means is used to restore the program held by the own apparatus to the state before being updated by the update means. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising recovery means.
The invention described in claim 3 further includes a transmission unit that transmits a program held by the own apparatus to another image processing apparatus different from the own apparatus, wherein the version determination unit is updated successfully by the success / failure determination unit. If determined, the device after being updated by the updating unit based on the first information acquired by the first information acquiring unit and the second information acquired by the second information acquiring unit It is determined whether the version of the program held by the image processing apparatus is newer than the version of the program held by the other image processing apparatus, and the transmission unit holds the updated version by the version determination unit. If towards the version of the program that is determined to be new, the image processing according to the program by the local apparatus after being updated is kept in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that transmitted to the another image processing apparatus It is a device.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a first image processing apparatus that processes image data to form an image on a recording medium, and a second image processing connected to the first image processing apparatus via a communication line. An update unit that updates a program held by the first apparatus, a success / failure determination unit that determines whether the update by the update unit is successful, and a version of the program held by the own apparatus. First information acquisition means for acquiring first information which is information relating to the second information acquisition means; second information acquisition means for acquiring second information which is information relating to the version of the program held by the second image processing apparatus; When it is determined by the means that the update has failed, the updating means performs the updating based on the first information obtained by the first information obtaining means and the second information obtained by the second information obtaining means. The version determination means for determining whether or not the version of the program held by the apparatus before the update is the same as the version of the program held by the second image processing apparatus is the same by the version determination means. If it is determined, the second image processing apparatus includes: a program acquisition unit that acquires a program held by the second image processing apparatus; and a history acquisition unit that acquires a history of processing contents in the own apparatus . A first transmission unit configured to transmit the second information to the first image processing apparatus; and a second transmission unit configured to transmit a program held by the apparatus to the first image processing apparatus . The success / failure determination unit of the image processing apparatus may include the history acquisition unit before an error described in the history acquired by the history acquisition unit after being updated by the update unit is updated by the update unit. Based on whether it is described in the acquired the history by an image processing system characterized by determining the success or failure of the update.
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a computer having a function of updating a program held by the image processing apparatus, a function of determining success or failure of updating of the program held by the image processing apparatus, and a program held by the image processing apparatus A function of acquiring first information that is information relating to a version of the image, and a function of acquiring second information that is information relating to a version of a program held by another image processing apparatus connected to the image processing apparatus via a communication line And when it is determined that the update of the program held by the image processing device has failed, the image processing device before being updated based on the acquired first information and the acquired second information A function for determining whether the version of the program held by the other image processing apparatus is the same as the version of the program held by the other image processing apparatus, and the image processing apparatus before the update holds If the version of the program that the a plate of programs other image processing apparatus holds are determined to be identical, the function of acquiring the program the other image processing apparatus holds, the processing contents of the image processing apparatus And the function of determining the success / failure before the error described in the history acquired after being updated by the updating function is updated by the updating function. The program is characterized in that the success or failure of the update is determined based on whether or not it is described in the acquired history .

According to the first aspect of the invention, as compared with the case not having this constitution, Ri FIG reduction and shortening of the processing time of the storage area required in the update of the program by the image processing apparatus holds, the program pre-update It is possible to suppress erroneous determination of an error generated from the error as an error at the time of update.
According to the second aspect of the present invention, it is easier to return the program held by the image processing apparatus to the state before the update as compared with the case where the present configuration is not provided.
According to the third aspect of the present invention, it is possible to reduce errors at the time of updating the program as compared with the case where this configuration is not provided.
According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, as compared with the case not having this constitution, Ri FIG reduction and shortening of the processing time of the storage area required in the update of the program by the image processing apparatus holds, the program pre-update It is possible to suppress erroneous determination of an error generated from the error as an error at the time of update.
According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, as compared with the case not having this constitution, Ri FIG reduction and shortening of the processing time of the storage area required in the update of the program by the image processing apparatus holds, the program pre-update A function that suppresses erroneously determining an error occurring from the error as an error at the time of updating can be realized by a computer.

It is a figure which shows an example of schematic structure of the image processing system which concerns on this Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the hardware structural example of the image processing apparatus which concerns on this Embodiment. It is the block diagram which showed the function structural example of the image processing apparatus which concerns on this Embodiment. (A) is a figure for demonstrating an example of the apparatus log before an update. (B) is a figure for demonstrating an example of the apparatus log after an update. It is the flowchart which showed an example of the procedure which the image processing apparatus which concerns on this Embodiment performs the process according to the update of an object program, and the success or failure of update. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of a restart process procedure in the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment. It is the flowchart which showed an example of the procedure of the update failure process in the image processing apparatus which concerns on this Embodiment. It is the flowchart which showed an example of the procedure of the update success process in the image processing apparatus which concerns on this Embodiment. It is a figure for demonstrating an example of the error predetermined for the success or failure determination of the update which concerns on this Embodiment. It is the flowchart which showed an example of the procedure in which the image processing apparatus which concerns on this Embodiment performs the process according to the success or failure of update of an object program by the other example of success / failure determination of update. 12 is a flowchart illustrating another example of the update failure processing procedure in the image processing apparatus according to the present embodiment.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
<System configuration>
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of an image processing system 1 according to the present embodiment. The image processing system 1 according to the present embodiment includes a plurality of image processing apparatuses 10 (three image processing apparatuses in the present embodiment) connected via a network 30 as an example of a communication line. That is, the image processing system 1 according to the present embodiment includes a first image processing device 10A, a second image processing device 10B, and a third image processing device 10C connected to the network 30. The first image processing apparatus 10A, the second image processing apparatus 10B, and the third image processing apparatus 10C have the same function and configuration.

  The image processing apparatus 10 is an apparatus having various functions such as an image reading function for reading an image and an image forming function for processing image data and forming an image on a recording medium by, for example, an electrophotographic method or an ink jet method. is there. The image processing apparatus 10 holds programs for realizing various functions, and the programs are updated from time to time to expand, change, or improve various functions (hereinafter, various types of objects to be updated). A program for realizing the function is referred to as a target program).

The update of the target program may be performed, for example, by downloading from an external device storing the target program applied after the update via a network such as the Internet, or the target program applied after the update is stored. In some cases, a medium such as a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory is attached to the image processing apparatus 10 and acquired from the medium. As will be described in detail later, after updating the target program, the image processing apparatus 10 performs processing according to the success or failure of the update.
The network 30 is a communication unit used for information communication between the first image processing apparatus 10A, the second image processing apparatus 10B, and the third image processing apparatus 10C, and is, for example, a LAN (Local Area Network). .

<Hardware configuration of image processing apparatus>
Next, the hardware configuration of the image processing apparatus 10 will be described. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration example of the image processing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment.
The image processing apparatus 10 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 11 that is a calculation means, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 12 that is a storage means, a volatile RAM (Random Access Memory) 13, and a nonvolatile RAM (Random Access Memory) 14. And a magnetic disk device (HDD: Hard Disk Drive) 15.

  The CPU 11 executes the target program and realizes various functions of the image processing apparatus 10. The target program is stored in the ROM 12, and the CPU 11 reads out the target program from the ROM 12, loads it into the volatile RAM 13 used as a working memory, and executes it, thereby realizing various functions such as an image forming function. . The volatile RAM 13 is configured by a volatile memory that cannot hold stored information unless power is supplied.

  Further, in the nonvolatile RAM 14, for example, information (hereinafter, referred to as setting information) regarding setting of each function unit that realizes various functions such as an image forming function in the image processing apparatus 10 and parts configuring the function unit. Is stored). The nonvolatile RAM 14 is configured by a nonvolatile memory that can retain stored information even when power is not supplied. The magnetic disk device 15 stores various data such as print image data and facsimile image data received from the outside.

Further, the image processing apparatus 10 includes an image reading unit 16, an image forming unit 17, and a communication I / F 18.
The image reading unit 16 reads an image recorded on a recording medium such as paper. Here, the image reading unit 16 is, for example, a scanner, and a CCD method in which reflected light with respect to light irradiated on the document from the light source is reduced by a lens and received by a CCD (Charge Coupled Devices), or an LED light source is sequentially irradiated on the document It is preferable to use a CIS system that receives reflected light with respect to the received light with a CIS (Contact Image Sensor).

The image forming unit 17 forms an image on a recording medium. Here, the image forming unit 17 is, for example, a printer, and forms an image by transferring the toner attached to the photosensitive member to a recording medium to form an image, or ejecting ink onto the recording medium. An ink jet type may be used.
The communication I / F 18 is an interface for performing communication with the outside.

<Functional configuration of image processing apparatus>
Next, the functional configuration of the image processing apparatus 10 will be described. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration example of the image processing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment.

  The image processing apparatus 10 includes an update execution unit 21 that updates the target program, a success / failure determination unit 22 that determines whether or not the target program has been updated, and other devices (the image processing system 1 according to the present embodiment If the apparatus is the first image processing apparatus 10A, the other apparatus will be the second image processing apparatus 10B or the third image processing apparatus 10C) and the version information of the target program held by the other apparatus. And an information transmitting / receiving unit 23 for receiving. In this embodiment, the version of the target program is defined as an example of the version of the program.

  Further, the image processing apparatus 10 receives the comparison program 24 that compares the model and version of the target program with another device, and the target program held by the other device, and the target program held by the own device is transferred to the other device. A program transmission / reception unit 25 for transmission and a storage unit 26 for storing information related to the update of the target program are provided.

  And the update execution part 21, the success / failure determination part 22, the information transmission / reception part 23, the comparison part 24, and the program transmission / reception part 25 are implement | achieved by CPU11 in the hardware constitutions shown in FIG. 2, for example. More specifically, a program that realizes the functions of the image processing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment is stored in, for example, the ROM 12, and the CPU 11 loads the program into the volatile RAM 13 and executes the program. The functions of the update execution unit 21, the success / failure determination unit 22, the information transmission / reception unit 23, the comparison unit 24, and the program transmission / reception unit 25 are realized.

  The storage unit 26 is realized by, for example, the ROM 12, the volatile RAM 13, the nonvolatile RAM 14, and the HDD 15 illustrated in FIG. Further, the information transmission / reception unit 23 receives information from another device via the communication I / F 18 shown in FIG. 2, for example, and the program transmission / reception unit 25 receives the target program from the other device via the communication I / F 18, for example. And the target program of the own device is transmitted to the other device.

  The update execution unit 21 as an example of the update unit updates the target program held by the own device when receiving an update processing instruction for the target program from the outside. Here, the target program applied after the update (hereinafter sometimes referred to as an updated program) is stored in, for example, an external device. Then, the update execution unit 21 acquires the updated program from an external device or the like, and replaces the target program before update (hereinafter also referred to as the pre-update program) with the updated program, thereby updating the target program. I do.

  The update execution unit 21 also updates the setting information with the update of the target program. Setting information applied after the update (hereinafter sometimes referred to as post-update information) is stored in, for example, an external device, as in the post-update program. Then, the update execution unit 21 updates the setting information by acquiring the updated information from an external device or the like and replacing the setting information before the update with the updated information. Note that, after being replaced with the updated program and the updated information, the own apparatus is restarted.

  In addition, the update execution unit 21 sets a flag (hereinafter sometimes referred to as an update flag) indicating that the update is not successful in updating the target program. Then, upon receiving notification from the success / failure determination unit 22 that the update has been successful, the update execution unit 21 deletes the update flag.

In addition, the update execution unit 21 receives a notification from the success / failure determination unit 22 that the number of update processes in which an error has occurred (hereinafter sometimes referred to as error update count) has not reached a predetermined threshold. And update the target program.
Further, when the update execution unit 21 as an example of the recovery unit receives the target program and setting information held by the other device from the program transmission / reception unit 25, the update execution unit 21 uses the received target program and setting information of the other device. To restore the target program and setting information held by the to the state before being updated.

  The success / failure determination unit 22 as an example of the success / failure determination unit and the history acquisition unit determines whether the update execution unit 21 has successfully updated the target program. Here, if the update flag is set when the own apparatus is restarted, the success / failure determination unit 22 determines that the target program has been updated but the success / failure has not yet been determined, Determine success or failure of update.

  In the success / failure determination, the success / failure determination unit 22 compares the device log before update stored in the storage unit 26 with the device log after update, and the error described in the device log after update is the device before update. Judgment is made based on what is described in the log. Specifically, the success / failure determination unit 22 determines whether or not a specific error that does not exist in the updated device log is described in the updated device log. Here, the device log is history information in which processing content executed by the device is described. In the present embodiment, an apparatus log is defined as an example of the history of processing contents. Details of the device log will be described with reference to FIGS.

  The specific error is an error that occurs when the target program is not updated normally. For example, communication between the functional blocks shown in FIG. 2 such as a communication failure between the CPU 11 and the ROM 12 is performed. This refers to a failure error, an error caused by the image forming unit 17 not starting normally, and the like. Further, for example, an error that occurs when the image processing apparatus 10 is used in a normal state, such as a paper out error or a paper jam error, does not correspond to a specific error. The specific error may be stored in advance in the storage unit 26 as an initial setting of the image processing apparatus 10, or may be stored in the storage unit 26 by a user operation.

  If a specific error that does not exist in the pre-update device log is not described in the updated device log, the success / failure determination unit 22 determines that the program has been successfully updated. Then, the success / failure determination unit 22 notifies the update execution unit 21, the information transmission / reception unit 23, and the comparison unit 24 that the update has been successful.

  On the other hand, if a specific error that does not exist in the device log before update is described in the updated device log, the success / failure determination unit 22 adds 1 to the number of error updates, and the error update count after the addition is determined in advance. It is determined whether the threshold value reached has been reached. If the number of error updates has reached a predetermined threshold, the success / failure determination unit 22 determines that the program update has failed. The success / failure determination unit 22 notifies the information transmission / reception unit 23 and the comparison unit 24 that the update has failed. If the number of error updates has not reached a predetermined threshold value, the success / failure determination unit 22 notifies the update execution unit 21 that the threshold value has not been reached.

  When the information transmission / reception unit 23 as an example of the second information acquisition unit receives a notification from the success / failure determination unit 22 regarding the success / failure of the update of the target program, the information transmission / reception unit 23 transmits the model, The version information of the target program held by another device as an example of the second information is received. Here, the information transmitter / receiver 23 requests version information of the model and the target program from all other devices connected via the network 30. The information transmitting / receiving unit 23 receives the model and version information of the target program transmitted from the other device, and transmits the received model and version information to the comparison unit 24.

  When the comparison unit 24 as an example of the first information acquisition unit and the version determination unit receives a notification from the success / failure determination unit 22 that the update has failed, the comparison unit 24 as an example of the own device model and the first information from the storage unit 26. Get version information of the pre-update program. Further, the comparison unit 24 acquires the model information of the other device and the version information of the target program held by the other device based on the transmission processing by the information transmission / reception unit 23. Then, the comparison unit 24 targets the other device connected via the network 30, and the model of the own device and the model of the other device are the same. It is determined whether or not the version of the target program to be held is the same. When the model of the own device is the same as the model of the other device, and the version of the program before update is the same as the version of the program held by the other device (hereinafter, such another device is referred to as a first target device). The comparison unit 24 transmits information on the first target device to the program transmission / reception unit 25.

  Further, when the comparison unit 24 receives a notification from the success / failure determination unit 22 that the update has been successful, the comparison unit 24 acquires the model of the own device and the version information of the updated program as an example of the first information from the storage unit 26. Further, the comparison unit 24 acquires the model information of the other device and the version information of the target program held by the other device based on the transmission processing by the information transmission / reception unit 23. The comparison unit 24 targets the other device connected via the network 30, the model of the own device and the model of the other device are the same, and the version of the updated program of the own device is It is determined whether or not the version of the target program held by another device is newer. If the model of the own device is the same as the model of the other device, and the version of the updated program is newer than the version of the target program held by the other device (hereinafter, such other device is referred to as the second target device). The comparison unit 24 transmits information on the second target device to the program transmission / reception unit 25.

  The program transmission / reception unit 25 as an example of the program acquisition unit receives a notification that the update has failed from the success / failure determination unit 22 and further receives information on the first target device from the comparison unit 24. Requests the same version of the target program as the pre-update program and the setting information of the first target device. And the program transmission / reception part 25 will transmit the received object program and setting information to the update execution part 21, if the object program and setting information which a 1st object apparatus hold | maintains from a 1st object apparatus.

  Further, the program transmission / reception unit 25 as an example of a transmission unit receives a notification that the update has been successful from the success / failure determination unit 22 and further receives information on the second target device from the comparison unit 24, and then updates the second target device. Notify that the program will be sent later. And the program transmission / reception part 25 will acquire the updated program and the setting information of an own apparatus from the memory | storage part 26, if a response is received from a 2nd object apparatus, It transmits to a 2nd object apparatus.

  The storage unit 26 stores information related to the update of the target program such as the target program, the model of the device itself, and version information of the target program. As the target program, the pre-update program is stored before the target program is updated, and the post-update program is stored after the update. As version information, version information of the pre-update program and the post-update program is stored. Further, the storage unit 26 stores a list of specific errors used for success / failure determination by the success / failure determination unit 22 and device logs before and after the update.

As described above, the image processing apparatus 10 determines whether or not the target program has been updated, and performs processing according to the success or failure. For example, the self-device is the first image processing device 10A, the other devices are the second image processing device 10B, and the third image processing device 10C, and the models of the three image processing devices and the versions of the target programs are the same. For example, when it is determined that the update of the target program of the first image processing apparatus 10A, which is the own apparatus, has failed, the first image processing apparatus 10A recovers from the second image processing apparatus 10B. To acquire the target program and restore it to the target program before the update. In such a case, the second image processing apparatus 10B functions as an example of another image processing apparatus. Further, the information transmission / reception unit 23 of the second image processing apparatus 10B functions as an example of a first transmission unit, and the program transmission / reception unit 25 of the second image processing apparatus 10B functions as an example of a second transmission unit.
When it is determined that the target program of the first image processing apparatus 10A that is the own apparatus has been successfully updated, the first image processing apparatus 10A transmits the updated program to the third image processing apparatus 10C. In such a case, the third image processing apparatus 10C functions as an example of another image processing apparatus.

<Device log before and after update>
Next, an apparatus log used for success / failure determination by the success / failure determination unit 22 will be described. FIG. 4A is a diagram for explaining the device log before update. FIG. 4B is a diagram for explaining the updated device log.

  In the apparatus log shown in FIG. 4A, processes such as “00123 PowerUP”, “00234 Print”, and “00535 ModeChange” are described as processes executed in the past by the image processing apparatus 10 before the target program is updated. ing. For example, in “00123 PowerUP”, “00123” represents a number assigned to each process content, and “PowerUP” represents a process in which the apparatus is started after power is supplied.

  In the apparatus log shown in FIG. 4 (b), in addition to what is described in the apparatus log shown in FIG. 4 (a) as processing executed by the image processing apparatus 10 in the past after the update of the target program, “00225 SystemLogicError” indicating an error is described. That is, this error can be said to have occurred during the update of the target program. The success / failure determination unit 22 determines whether the generated error corresponds to the specific error based on the specific error list stored in the storage unit 26, but “00225 SystemLogicError” corresponds to the specific error. To do. Therefore, in this case, the success / failure determination unit 22 adds 1 to the number of error updates, and determines whether or not the number of error updates after the addition has reached a predetermined threshold value.

<Processing procedure according to update and success / failure of update>
Next, a procedure in which the image processing apparatus 10 updates the target program and performs processing according to the success or failure of the update will be described. FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a procedure in which the image processing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment performs the processing according to the update of the target program and the success or failure of the update.

  First, the update execution unit 21 determines whether an update processing instruction for the target program has been received from the outside (step 101). If the update execution unit 21 does not determine that an update processing instruction has been received (No in step 101), the processing flow ends. On the other hand, when the update execution unit 21 determines that an update processing instruction has been received (Yes in step 101), the update execution unit 21 stores the device log before update in the storage unit 26 (step 102). Next, the update execution unit 21 sets (ON) an update flag (step 103). Then, the update execution unit 21 updates the target program (Step 104). Here, the update execution unit 21 performs a process of replacing the pre-update program with the post-update program and replacing the setting information before the update with the post-update information. Thereafter, a restart process of the image processing apparatus 10 is performed (step 105).

  Here, the restart process of the image processing apparatus 10 will be described. FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a restart process procedure in the image processing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment. In this restart process, first, a start process necessary for the operation of the image processing apparatus 10 is performed (step 201). Next, the success / failure determination unit 22 determines whether or not a flag is set (ON) (step 202).

If the success / failure determination unit 22 determines that the flag is set (ON) (Yes in step 202), the target program has been updated but the success / failure has not yet been determined. Then, the process proceeds to step 106 of 5. On the other hand, if the success / failure determination unit 22 determines that the flag is not set (ON) (No in step 202), the success / failure determination of the update is performed because the success or failure of the update of the target program is not confirmed. Instead, it is restarted as usual and the process ends.
As described above, when the image processing apparatus 10 is restarted, it is determined whether or not to perform the update success / failure determination depending on whether or not the flag is set.

  Next, after the restart process is performed in step 105 of FIG. 5, the update execution unit 21 stores the updated device log in the storage unit 26 (step 106). Then, the success / failure determination unit 22 determines whether or not a specific error is described in the updated device log (step 107). Here, the success / failure determination unit 22 compares the device log before the update stored in the storage unit 26 with the device log after the update, and the specified device log after the update does not exist in the device log before the update. Determine whether an error is listed. If the success / failure determination unit 22 determines that a specific error that does not exist in the device log before update is described in the updated device log (Yes in Step 107), the error update count is incremented by 1 (Step 108). ). Then, the success / failure determination unit 22 determines whether or not the number of error updates after the addition has reached a predetermined threshold (step 109).

If the success / failure determination unit 22 determines that the number of error updates has reached a predetermined threshold (Yes in step 109), it determines that the program update has failed. Then, the success / failure determination unit 22 notifies the information transmission / reception unit 23 and the comparison unit 24 that the update has failed, the update failure process is subsequently performed (step 110), and the process flow ends. The update failure process will be described with reference to FIG.
On the other hand, if a negative determination (No) is made in step 109, that is, the success / failure determination unit 22 determines that the error update count has not reached the predetermined threshold value, it indicates that the threshold value has not been reached. The update execution unit 21 is notified. And it transfers to step 104 and an update process is performed again.

  Further, when a negative determination (No) is made in step 107, that is, the success / failure determination unit 22 determines that a specific error that does not exist in the updated device log is not described in the updated device log. If it is determined that the program has been successfully updated. Then, the success / failure determination unit 22 notifies the update execution unit 21, the information transmission / reception unit 23, and the comparison unit 24 that the update has been successful. When the update execution unit 21 receives a notification from the success / failure determination unit 22 that the update has been successful, the update execution unit 21 deletes (OFF) the update flag (step 111), and subsequently performs an update success process (step 112). The flow ends. The update success process will be described with reference to FIG.

<Processing procedure for update failure>
Next, the update failure process will be described. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of the procedure of the update failure process in the image processing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment.
In this update failure process, first, upon receiving notification from the success / failure determination unit 22 that the update has failed, the information transmitting / receiving unit 23 acquires the model information of the other device and the version information of the target program held by the other device ( Step 301). Next, the information transmission / reception unit 23 transmits the acquired model and version information of the other device to the comparison unit 24.

  The comparison unit 24 receives the notification that the update has failed from the success / failure determination unit 22 and acquires the model of the own device and the version information of the pre-update program from the storage unit 26. Further, the comparison unit 24 acquires the model information of the other device and the version information of the target program held by the other device based on the transmission processing by the information transmission / reception unit 23 in step 301. Then, the comparison unit 24 determines whether the model of the own device and the model of the other device are the same, and whether the version of the program before the update of the own device and the version of the target program held by the other device are the same. Is determined (step 302). When the comparison unit 24 determines that there is a first target device that is the same model as the own device and holds a program having the same version as the version of the pre-update program (Yes in step 302), information on the first target device Is transmitted to the program transmission / reception unit 25.

  Next, when the program transmission / reception unit 25 receives a notification that the update has failed from the success / failure determination unit 22 and further receives information on the first target device from the comparison unit 24, the program version is the same as the pre-update program from the first target device. The target program and the setting information of the first target device are acquired (step 303). Then, the program transmission / reception unit 25 transmits the target program and setting information acquired from the first target device to the update execution unit 21. The update execution unit 21 uses the target program and setting information of the first target device to restore the target program and setting information before update (step 304). When the restoration is completed, the update execution unit 21 deletes (OFF) the update flag (step 305), and this processing flow ends. Further, when a negative determination (No) is made in step 302, that is, when the comparison unit 24 determines that there is no device corresponding to the first target device, this processing flow ends.

  As described above, when the update of the target program has failed, the image processing apparatus 10 acquires the same version as that of the pre-update program from the same apparatus as that of the other apparatuses connected via the network 30. Get the target program. Then, the image processing apparatus 10 restores the state before the update using the acquired target program. As described above, the image processing apparatus 10 does not save the pre-update program in another area or the like of the storage unit 26 before the update, and therefore, for example, in the update of the target program as compared with the configuration in which the pre-update program is saved. The required storage area is reduced. Further, the image processing apparatus 10 does not require time for saving the pre-update program, for example, compared to a configuration for saving the pre-update program, and the processing time required for the update is shortened.

  Further, the image processing apparatus 10 determines whether or not a specific error has occurred at the time of updating based on the device logs before and after the update. For this reason, the image processing apparatus 10 prevents an error occurring before the update of the target program from being erroneously determined as an error at the time of update and restoring the target program before the update. Further, the cause of the update not being executed normally can be easily identified from the content of the specific error that has occurred during the update.

<Procedure for successful update processing>
Next, the update success process will be described. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of the procedure of the update success process in the image processing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment.
In this update success process, first, when the information transmission / reception unit 23 receives a notification from the success / failure determination unit 22 that the update has been successful, the information transmission / reception unit 23 acquires the model information of the other device and the version information of the target program held by the other device ( Step 401). Next, the information transmission / reception unit 23 transmits the acquired model and version information of the other device to the comparison unit 24.

  The comparison unit 24 receives a notification that the update has been successful from the success / failure determination unit 22, and acquires the model of the own device and the version information of the pre-update program from the storage unit 26. Further, the comparison unit 24 acquires the model information of the other device and the version information of the target program held by the other device based on the transmission processing by the information transmission / reception unit 23 in step 401. Then, the comparison unit 24 determines whether the model of the own device and the model of the other device are the same, and whether the version of the updated program of the own device is newer than the version of the target program held by the other device. Is determined (step 402). When the comparison unit 24 determines that there is a second target device that is the same model as the own device and holds a target program whose version is older than the updated program (Yes in Step 402), the information on the second target device is displayed. It transmits to the program transmission / reception part 25.

  Next, when the program transmission / reception unit 25 receives a notification that the update is successful from the success / failure determination unit 22 and further receives information on the second target device from the comparison unit 24, the program transmission / reception unit 25 receives the updated program and the own device's Get configuration information. Then, the program transmission / reception unit 25 transmits the updated program and setting information to the second target device (step 403), and this processing flow ends. In the second target device, the target program and setting information are updated using the transmitted target program and setting information. Further, when a negative determination (No) is made in step 402, that is, when the comparison unit 24 determines that there is no device corresponding to the second target device, this processing flow ends.

  As described above, when the update of the target program is successful, the image processing apparatus 10 holds the target program older than the post-update program with the same model among other apparatuses connected via the network 30. The updated program is transmitted to the device. Since the other apparatus performs the update using the target program that has been successfully updated, errors during the update are reduced.

<Another example of procedure for determining success or failure of update>
In the present embodiment, as an example of a procedure for determining the success / failure of the update of the target program, the procedure for the success / failure determination unit 22 to determine based on the device log before and after the update has been described. Next, another example of the procedure for determining success or failure of the update in the present embodiment will be described.

  The success / failure determination unit 22 determines the success / failure of the update depending on whether or not an error that has occurred during the update matches an error that is predetermined as an error that occurs when the update has not been executed normally. If no error has occurred during the update, or if the error that has occurred during the update does not match a predetermined error, the success / failure determination unit 22 determines that the target program has been successfully updated. On the other hand, if the error that occurred during the update matches a predetermined error, the success / failure determination unit 22 adds 1 to the error update count, and the error update count after the addition is the same as in steps 108 to 110 in FIG. If the predetermined threshold value is reached, it is determined that the update of the target program has failed.

  Here, the predetermined error includes, for example, a communication failure between the functional blocks shown in FIG. 2, such as a communication failure between the CPU 11 and the ROM 12, as in the case of the specific error described above, or an image forming unit. An error or the like due to the fact that 17 does not start normally. Further, an error that is not a predetermined error but may occur at the time of updating occurs, for example, when the image processing apparatus 10 is used in a normal state such as a paper out error or a paper jam error. An error etc. are mentioned.

FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining an example of an error that is determined in advance for the success / failure determination of the update according to the present embodiment.
In FIG. 9, four errors from No. 1 to No. 4 are represented as predetermined errors. Each error has an error code represented by the numbers of “subsystem” and “module”. Here, the “subsystem” is a number assigned to each functional unit such as the image reading unit 16 and the image forming unit 17 constituting the image processing apparatus 10, and “module” is for each component of each functional unit. It is an assigned number. Based on these numbers, it is determined in which part of the image processing apparatus 10 an error has occurred due to a failure and the update has not been executed normally.

  For example, the error in the first line is an error of 32 in the subsystem and 326 in the module, and represents an error caused by a failure of a component in which the module indicates 326 among the functional units in which the subsystem indicates 32. The error on the second line is an error of 40 for the subsystem and 310 for the module, and represents an error that occurs due to a failure of a component whose module indicates 310 among the functional units whose subsystem indicates 40. Then, if the error code of the error that occurred during the update matches the error code of the predetermined error shown in FIG. 9, for example, the success / failure determination unit 22 has updated, so that there is some failure in the component indicated by the error code. It is determined that the update has not been executed normally, and a process of adding 1 to the number of error updates is performed.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a procedure in which the image processing apparatus 10 performs the process according to the update of the target program and the success or failure of the update by the success / failure determination of the update according to the present example.
First, a success / failure determination error code, which is an error code of an error that occurs when the update is not executed normally, is stored in the storage unit 26 (step 501). This error code may be stored in advance in the storage unit 26 as an initial setting of the image processing apparatus 10, or may be stored in the storage unit 26 by a user operation.

  Next, the update execution unit 21 determines whether an update processing instruction for the target program has been received from the outside (step 502). If the update execution unit 21 does not determine that an update processing instruction has been received (No in step 502), the processing flow ends. On the other hand, when the update execution unit 21 determines that an update processing instruction has been received (Yes in step 502), the processing in steps 503 to 505 is performed. The processing in steps 503 to 505 is the same as the processing in steps 103 to 105 shown in FIG.

  Next, after the restart process is performed in step 505, the success / failure determination unit 22 determines whether the error code of the error that occurred during the update matches the error code of the predetermined error stored in the storage unit 26. It is determined whether or not (step 506). If the success / failure determination unit 22 determines that the error code of the error that occurred during the update matches the error code of a predetermined error (Yes in step 506), the success / failure determination unit 22 sets the error update count to 1 as in step 108 shown in FIG. Add (step 507). The processing in steps 508 and 509 is the same as the processing in steps 109 and 110 shown in FIG.

  On the other hand, if a negative determination (No) is made in step 506, that is, the success / failure determination unit 22 does not generate an error at the time of updating, or an error error of a predetermined error code that has occurred at the time of updating. If it is determined that the code does not match, it is determined that the target program has been successfully updated. The processing of steps 510 and 511 is the same as the processing of steps 111 and 112 shown in FIG.

  As described above, the image processing apparatus 10 determines whether or not a predetermined error has occurred during the update. For this reason, the image processing apparatus 10 prevents an error occurring before the update of the target program from being erroneously determined as an error at the time of update and restoring the target program before the update. Further, the cause of the update not being executed normally can be easily identified from the content of a predetermined error that has occurred during the update.

<Other examples of update failure processing>
In the present embodiment, as an example of the update failure process, an example has been described in which the update execution unit 21 restores the target program and setting information before updating at once using both the target program and setting information of another device. Next, another example of the update failure process in the present embodiment will be described. In the procedure according to this example, the update execution unit 21 first performs setting information recovery processing. If an error occurs due to the restoration of the setting information, the update execution unit 21 performs a restoration process for the target program in addition to the setting information.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing another example of the update failure processing procedure in the image processing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment.
First, in this update failure process, the processes in steps 601 to 603 are the same as the processes in steps 301 to 303 shown in FIG. In step 603, when the program transmission / reception unit 25 acquires the setting information of the target program and the first target device having the same version as the pre-update program, the update execution unit 21 first updates using the setting information of the first target device. The previous setting information is restored (step 604). Thereafter, a restart process of the image processing apparatus 10 is performed (step 605).

  Next, the activation process of step 201 shown in FIG. 6 is performed. In step 202, the success / failure determination unit 22 determines whether or not a flag is set (ON). Here, since the update (recovery) has been performed but the success or failure has not been determined, the success / failure determination unit 22 determines that the flag is set (Yes in Step 202), and Step 606 in FIG. Migrate to Next, the success / failure determination unit 22 determines the success / failure of the restoration processing to the setting information before update (step 606). The determination here is the same as the procedure for determining based on the apparatus log or the procedure for determining whether or not the error matches a predetermined error, as described above as an example of the procedure for determining the success or failure of the update. It will be done according to the procedure.

  If the success / failure determination unit 22 determines that the recovery has failed due to an error or the like (No in step 606), then the update execution unit 21 uses the setting information and the target program of the first target device. Then, the target program and setting information before update are restored (step 607). The processing in step 607 is the same as the processing in step 304 in FIG. When the restoration is completed, the update execution unit 21 deletes (OFF) the update flag (step 608), and the process flow ends.

  On the other hand, when an affirmative determination (Yes) is made in step 606, that is, when the success / failure determination unit 22 determines that the recovery is successful, the update execution unit 21 deletes (OFF) the update flag, and the processing flow is as follows. finish. Here, the setting information is restored to the state before the update, and the restoration is successful without causing an error. Therefore, in the update process, it can be said that the update failed because there was a failure in the update of the setting information. That is, the target program remains the pre-update program, and if the setting information is returned to the pre-update state, the image processing apparatus 10 is restored to the pre-update state.

  As described above, when the update of the target program fails, the image processing apparatus 10 first restores the setting information, and further restores the setting information and the target program when the restoration fails. As the image processing apparatus 10 performs the gradual restoration in this way, it becomes clear whether there is a failure in updating the setting information or a failure in updating the target program itself in the update process. Then, if the image processing apparatus 10 returns to the pre-update state only for the location where the failure has occurred, it will recover normally.

  Further, in step 604 of FIG. 11, the update execution unit 21 restores the setting information before update at a time, but the present invention is not limited to this. The setting information determines setting values for each functional unit and its components constituting the image processing apparatus 10. Therefore, for example, the update execution unit 21 selects a setting value to be used for restoration from the setting information, and if restoration by the selected setting value fails, further selects the setting value and performs restoration. It is good to do. In this way, by recovering step by step for each functional unit and its components, it becomes clear which part of the update failed because the failure occurred in the update. Then, if the image processing apparatus 10 returns to the pre-update state only for the location where the failure has occurred, it will recover normally.

  Furthermore, in step 607 of FIG. 11, the update execution unit 21 has performed the recovery processing of the setting information and the target program. Since the setting information has been recovered at this point, the recovery processing is performed only for the target program here. It's also good.

  In the present embodiment, the image processing apparatus 10 determines the success or failure of the update by comparing the number of error updates with a predetermined threshold, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the image processing apparatus 10 may determine that the update has failed if a specific error that does not exist in the apparatus log before update is described in the updated apparatus log without setting a threshold value.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the image processing apparatus 10 acquires the model and version information of the target program from all other apparatuses connected via the network 30, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the image processing apparatus 10 may acquire model and target program version information from a plurality of other predetermined apparatuses. Further, for example, the image processing apparatus 10 is an apparatus that acquires information such as a model according to a predetermined order of other apparatuses, and holds the same version of the target program with the same model as the own apparatus each time the information is acquired. It may be determined whether or not.

  Also, in this embodiment, when it is determined that the update has failed with the first device as the first image processing device 10A and the other devices as the second image processing device 10B and the third image processing device 10C, The apparatus has acquired the target program from the second image processing apparatus 10B, and when it is determined that the update has been successful, the apparatus has transmitted the target program to the third image processing apparatus 10C. It is not limited. For example, the other device in which the own device acquires the target program when it is determined that the update has failed and the other device in which the own device transmits the target program when the update is determined to be successful are the same device ( For example, the second image processing apparatus 10B) may be used. When it is determined that the update has been successful, the self apparatus may transmit the target program to a plurality of other apparatuses (both the second image processing apparatus 10B and the third image processing apparatus 10C). Furthermore, although the image processing system 1 according to the present embodiment has been described as a configuration including three image processing devices, any number of image processing devices may be included as long as the configuration includes two or more image processing devices. good.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Image processing system, 10 ... Image processing apparatus, 21 ... Update execution part, 22 ... Success / failure determination part, 23 ... Information transmission / reception part, 24 ... Comparison part, 25 ... Program transmission / reception part, 26 ... Memory | storage part

Claims (5)

Updating means for updating a program held by the device;
Success / failure determination means for determining success or failure of update by the update means;
First information acquisition means for acquiring first information which is information relating to the version of the program held by the device;
Second information acquisition means for acquiring second information that is information relating to a version of a program held by another image processing apparatus connected to the apparatus via a communication line;
When it is determined that the update has failed by the success / failure determination unit, based on the first information acquired by the first information acquisition unit and the second information acquired by the second information acquisition unit, Version determination means for determining whether or not the version of the program held by the apparatus before being updated by the update means is the same as the version of the program held by the other image processing apparatus;
A program acquisition unit that acquires a program held by the other image processing apparatus when the plate determination unit determines that the two are the same ;
A history acquisition means for acquiring a history of processing contents in the own device,
The success / failure determination means includes the history acquired by the history acquisition means before the error described in the history acquired by the history acquisition means after being updated by the update means is updated by the update means. An image processing apparatus that determines whether or not the update has succeeded based on whether the update is described in the above .   Using a program held by the other image processing apparatus acquired by the program acquisition means, further comprising recovery means for restoring the program held by the apparatus to a state before being updated by the update means. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: A transmission means for transmitting a program held by the own apparatus to another image processing apparatus different from the own apparatus;
When the version determination unit determines that the update is successful by the success / failure determination unit, the first information acquired by the first information acquisition unit and the second information acquired by the second information acquisition unit Based on the above, it is determined whether the version of the program held by the apparatus after being updated by the updating means is newer than the version of the program held by the other image processing apparatus,
When the version determination unit determines that the version of the program held by the updated device is newer, the transmission unit determines that the updated image is stored in the other image. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the image processing apparatus transmits the image to a processing apparatus. A first image processing apparatus that processes image data and forms an image on a recording medium;
A second image processing apparatus connected to the first image processing apparatus via a communication line;
The first image processing apparatus includes:
Updating means for updating a program held by the device;
Success / failure determination means for determining success or failure of update by the update means;
First information acquisition means for acquiring first information which is information relating to the version of the program held by the device;
Second information acquisition means for acquiring second information which is information relating to a version of a program held by the second image processing apparatus;
When it is determined that the update has failed by the success / failure determination unit, based on the first information acquired by the first information acquisition unit and the second information acquired by the second information acquisition unit, Version judging means for judging whether or not the version of the program held by the apparatus before being updated by the updating means is the same as the version of the program held by the second image processing apparatus;
A program acquisition unit that acquires a program held by the second image processing apparatus when the plate determination unit determines that the two are the same ;
A history acquisition means for acquiring a history of processing contents in the own device,
The second image processing apparatus comprises:
First transmission means for transmitting the second information to the first image processing apparatus;
Second transmission means for transmitting a program held by the apparatus to the first image processing apparatus ;
The success / failure determination unit of the first image processing apparatus may update the history before the error described in the history acquired by the history acquisition unit after being updated by the update unit is updated by the update unit. An image processing system , wherein success or failure of update is determined based on whether or not it is described in the history acquired by the acquisition means . On the computer,
A function of updating a program held by the image processing apparatus;
A function for determining success or failure of update of a program held by the image processing apparatus;
A function of acquiring first information which is information relating to a version of a program held by the image processing apparatus;
A function of acquiring second information that is information relating to a version of a program held by another image processing apparatus connected to the image processing apparatus via a communication line;
When it is determined that the update of the program held by the image processing device has failed, the image processing device before being updated is held based on the acquired first information and the acquired second information. A function for determining whether the version of the program to be executed is the same as the version of the program held by the other image processing apparatus;
If it is determined that the version of the program held by the image processing apparatus before the update is the same as the version of the program held by the other image processing apparatus, the program held by the other image processing apparatus is and a function of acquiring,
A function of acquiring a history of processing contents in the image processing apparatus;
Whether the error described in the history acquired after being updated by the updating function is described in the history acquired before being updated by the updating function is the function for determining the success / failure A program for determining success or failure of an update based on the program.

Images