Image processing apparatus, server, controlling method for image processing apparatus, non-transitory recording medium realizing controlling method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2021306477-A1
Application number	US-202117202448-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Mar 16, 2021
Priority date	Mar 31, 2020
Publication date	Sep 30, 2021
Grant date	—

Abstract

An MFP is configured to perform an upper limit setting process of setting an upper limit value of scan data amount storable in a RAM, a scanning process of controlling a scanning device to generate scan data of one document medium and store the scan data in the RAM, a determining process of determining, after performing the scanning process, whether an amount of the scan data accumulated in the storage exceeds the upper limit value, when determining that the amount of the scan data exceeds the upper limit value, a transmitting process of inhibiting the scanning process and transmitting the scan data accumulated in the RAM to a server through a communication device, and a releasing process of deleting the scan data accumulated in the RAM and releasing inhibition of the scanning process after performing the transmitting process.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . An image processing apparatus, comprising:
a communication device configured to communicate with a server through a network; a scanning device configured to generate scan data of an image of a document medium; a storage; and a controller, wherein the controller is configured to perform: an upper limit setting process of setting an upper limit value of scan data amount storable in the storage; a scanning process of controlling the scanning device to generate the scan data of one document medium and store the scan data in the storage; a determining process of determining, after performing the scanning process, whether an amount of the scan data accumulated in the storage exceeds the upper limit value; when the controller determines that the amount of the scan data exceeds the upper limit value, a transmitting process of inhibiting the scanning process and transmitting the scan data accumulated in the storage to the server through the communication device; and a releasing process of deleting the scan data accumulated in the storage and releasing inhibition of the scanning process after performing the transmitting process.

2 . The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the controller is configured to store the upper limit value received from the server via the communication device in the storage in the upper limit setting process.

3 . The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein, in the upper limit setting process, the controller is further configured to perform: a selection notifying process of notifying which of a plurality of the upper limit values is to be selected; a receiving process of receiving information indicating which of the plurality of upper limit values is to be selected after the selection notifying process is performed; and a setting process of setting the upper limit value based on the information received in the receiving process after the receiving process is performed.

4 . The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the controller is configured to transmit, in the transmitting process, continuity pre-notice information indicating further scan data is to be transmitted in addition to the scan data after transmitting the scan data to the server.

5 . The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the controller is configured to transmit, in the transmitting process, continuity result information indicating whether the scan data is a continuation of previously transmitted scan data to the server in addition to the scan data.

6 . The image processing apparatus according to claim 5 ,
wherein the controller is configured to: when the scanning process is started before a particular time has elapsed after a previous transmitting process, transmit information indicating that the scan data is a continuation of the previously transmitted scan data to the server as the continuity result information; and when the scanning process is started after the particular time has elapsed after a previous transmitting process, transmit information indicating that the scan data is not a continuation of the previously transmitted scan data to the server as the continuity result information.

7 . The image processing apparatus according to claim 5 ,
wherein the controller is configured to: when a continuous operation by a user is detected after the previous transmitting process is performed and before the scanning process is started, transmit information indicating that the scan data is a continuation of the previously transmitted scan data to the server as the continuity result information; and when the continuous operation by the user is not detected after the previous transmitting process is performed and before the scanning process is started, transmit information indicating that the scan data is not a continuation of the previously transmitted scan data to the server as the continuity result information.

8 . The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the scanning device is of a flatbed type.

9 . A server, comprising:
a server communicating device configured to communicate with an image processing apparatus via a network; a server storage; and a server controller, wherein the image processing apparatus is provided with a scanning device configured to generate scan data of a document medium and an apparatus storage, wherein the server storage stores an upper limit value of the scan data storable in the apparatus storage, and wherein the server controller is configured to perform: a transmitting process of transmitting the upper limit value stored in the server storage to the image processing apparatus via the server communication device; and a receiving process of receiving the scan data accumulated in the apparatus storage from the image processing apparatus via the server communication device after the transmitting process is performed.

10 . The server according to claim 9 ,
wherein the server storage stores a plurality of the upper limit values which are different for respective image processing apparatuses, wherein the server controller is configured to transmit, in the transmitting process, the upper limit value corresponding to the image processing apparatus from among the plurality of upper limit values stored in the server storage to the image processing apparatus via the server communication device.

11 . The server according to claim 9 ,
wherein the server controller is configured to perform: when receiving, in the receiving process, continuity pre-notice information indicating transmission of further scan data after the scan data is transmitted in addition to the scan data from the image processing apparatus via the server communication device, a storing process of storing the scan data in the server storage as a partial file; and after the storing process, when receiving, in the receiving process, the further scan data and the continuity pre-notice information indicating no further scan data is transmitted from the image processing apparatus via the server communication device after the further scan data is transmitted, a combining process of combining the further scan data with the partial file.

12 . A method of controlling an image processing apparatus having a communication device configured to communicate with a server through a network, a scanning device configured to generate scan data of an image of a document medium, and a storage,
wherein the method comprising: an upper limit setting process of setting an upper limit value of scan data amount storable in the storage; a scanning process of controlling the scanning device to generate the scan data of one document medium and store the scan data in the storage; a determining process of determining, after performing the scanning process, whether an amount of the scan data accumulated in the storage exceeds the upper limit value; when determines that the amount of the scan data exceeds the upper limit value in the determining process, a transmitting process of inhibiting the scanning process and transmitting the scan data accumulated in the storage to the server through the communication device; and a releasing process of deleting the scan data accumulated in the storage and releasing inhibition of the scanning process after performing the transmitting process.

13 . A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium for an image processing apparatus having a communication device configured to communicate with a server through a network, a scanning device configured to generate scan data of an image of

Assignees

• Brother Ind Ltd

Inventors

• Okuno Tetsuya

Classifications

• H04N1/00095

  Systems or arrangements for the transmission of the picture signal · CPC title

• H04N1/00793 Primary

  using paper feeding mechanism, e.g. operate drive rollers at different speeds · CPC title

• H04N1/12

  using the sheet-feed movement {or the medium-advance or the drum-rotation movement} as the slow scanning component, {e.g. arrangements for the main-scanning}({sheet-feed movement by translatory movement of a flat picture-bearing surface H04N1/1008; main-scanning using oscillating or rotating mirrors H04N1/113; } using multi-element arrays H04N1/19) · CPC title

• H04N1/04

  Scanning arrangements {, i.e. arrangements for the displacement of active reading or reproducing elements relative to the original or reproducing medium, or vice versa}(H04N1/387 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H04N1/0097

  Storage of instructions or parameters, e.g. customised instructions or different parameters for different user IDs · CPC title