JP-7856557-B2 - control device

Inventors

• 稲垣 泰広

Assignees

• 東芝テック株式会社

Dates

Publication Date

20260511

Application Date

20221220

Claims (4)

1. A volatile first memory device, A non-volatile second storage device including a storage area where the stored data cannot be rewritten, A control unit that rewrites the first storage device and performs control processing based on the data stored in the first storage device and the data stored in the second storage device, A storage unit that stores a memory image of the first storage device at the time when the startup process based on the data stored in the storage area is completed, without relying on the data stored in the first storage device, A startup unit that, upon startup of the control unit, expands the memory image stored in the storage unit onto the first storage device, and then causes the control unit to start processing from the point in time when the startup process was completed, A deletion unit that, if deletion is prohibited, keeps the memory image deployed to the first storage device by the startup unit in the storage unit, and deletes it from the storage unit if deletion is not prohibited. A control device equipped with the following.
2. The second memory device is rewritable, including the memory area. A suppression unit that prevents the rewriting of data stored in the aforementioned memory area. The control device according to claim 1, further comprising:
3. The suppression unit suppresses rewriting when the deletion of the memory image is prohibited. The control device according to claim 2 .
4. The control process performed by the control unit is a process that does not rewrite the data stored in the memory area. The control device according to claim 1.

Description

Embodiments of the present invention relate to a control device. Hibernation techniques are known for reducing power consumption in computer-controlled equipment. However, assuming the device will return to its operating state before transitioning to power-saving mode, a memory image is created each time it transitions to power-saving mode in order to record that operating state. Therefore, in situations where the memory image could not be created properly, such as when the power supply to the equipment was cut off due to a power outage, hibernation could not be performed. For these reasons, it was desirable to be able to perform hibernation without having to create a memory image each time the system transitioned to a power-saving state. Japanese Patent Publication No. 2014-232366 A block diagram showing the schematic configuration of a label printer according to one embodiment and the main circuit configuration of the control device.Boot loader flowchart.Flowchart of the rewriting process.Flowchart of the preparation process. An example of an embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, a label printer will be used as an example of the equipment. Figure 1 is a block diagram showing the schematic configuration of the label printer 100 and the main circuit configuration of the control device 1 according to this embodiment. The label printer 100 includes a control unit 1, a print engine 2, an operation panel 3, a communication unit 4, and a power supply unit 5. The label printer 100 may also include other devices such as an RFID (radio frequency identification) unit. The control device 1 controls various devices provided in the label printer 100, such as the print engine 2, the operation panel 3, and the communication unit 4. The print engine 2 prints an arbitrary image onto the label paper. The print engine 2 can utilize various well-known image forming devices, such as thermal, thermal transfer, or inkjet methods, either individually or in combination. The control panel 3 includes an input unit, a display unit, and a sound unit. The input unit receives instructions from the operator. Various well-known input devices, such as a touch panel, key switches, USB (universal serial bus) media, a mouse, a network controller, GPIO (general purpose input/output), and SPI (serial peripheral interface), can be used individually or in combination as the input unit. The display unit performs display operations to notify the operator of various information. Various well-known display devices, such as a liquid crystal display and an LED (light-emitting diode) lamp, can be used individually or in combination as the display unit. The sound unit outputs sounds for various guidance and alarms. Various well-known sound devices, such as a speech synthesis device and a buzzer, can be used individually or in combination as the sound unit. The communication unit 4 performs communication processing for communication via the communication network 200. The communication network 200 is, for example, a LAN (local area network). In this case, the communication unit 4 can be any well-known communication device for LANs. However, the communication network 200 may be any other network such as the Internet, VPN (virtual private network), LAN, public communication network, or mobile communication network. The communication unit 4 uses a device that is adapted to the communication network 200 being used. The power supply unit 5 receives power supplied from the commercial power source and generates operating power for the various electrical devices provided in the label printer 100. These print engines 2, operation panel 3, and communication unit 4 are examples of devices controlled by the control device 1. Note that these print engines 2, operation panel 3, and communication unit 4 may also include other devices controlled by the control device 1. For example, if the label printer 100 includes an RFID unit, this RFID unit will be controlled by the control device 1. The control device 1 includes a processor 11, main memory 12, auxiliary storage unit 13, boot loader memory 14, device interface 15, and transmission line 16. The processor 11, main memory 12, auxiliary storage unit 13, boot loader memory 14, and device interface 15 are able to communicate with each other via the transmission line 16. The communication between the processor 11, main memory 12, and auxiliary storage unit 13 via the transmission line 16 constitutes a computer for controlling the control device 1. The processor 11 corresponds to the central part of the computer described above. The processor 11 performs information processing to realize various functions as the control device 1, according to information processing programs such as the operating system, firmware, and application programs. The processor 11 also performs information processing based on the boot loader stored in the boot loader memory 14. The processor 11 is, for