Patent ID: 9261948
Filing Date: 2016-02-16
CPC Classification: G06F,Y02D

Claim Text:
1. An image forming apparatus, comprising: a main control unit configured to control an image forming processing unit configured to execute an image forming process; and a sub control unit configured to exchange data with an information processing apparatus via a network, wherein the main control unit includes a power-saving control unit configured to shift the main control unit to a power-saving state, in which power supply to the image forming processing unit is reduced, and wherein the sub control unit comprises: a determination unit configured to determine, if an encryption communication protocol is used for exchanging messages and a message is transmitted from the information processing apparatus, whether the main control unit needs to be shifted to a non-power-saving state from the power-saving state based on a bit pattern of the message, without executing a decryption process on the message; a return unit configured to give, if the determination unit determines that the main control unit needs to be shifted to the non-power-saving state, a return instruction for shifting the main control unit to the non-power-saving state, to cause the main control unit to transmit information in response to the message to the information processing apparatus; and a response unit configured to transmit, if the determination unit determines that the main control unit does not need to be shifted to the non-power-saving state, information in response to the transmitted message to the information processing apparatus, without giving the return instruction for shifting the main control unit to the non-power-saving state, wherein the sub control unit further comprises a storage unit configured to store a number of transmissions of response information from the response unit as a response message number, wherein, when the main control unit is shifted to the non-power-saving state, the return unit notifies the main control unit of the stored response message number, and wherein, when the main control unit is shifted from the power-saving state to the non-power-saving state, the main control unit executes a hash check on the message based on the response message number, of which the main control unit has been notified, and then, if the main control unit succeeds in the hash check, the main control unit transmits information in response to the message to the information processing apparatus.