Patent ID: 8646859
Filing Date: 2014-02-11
Classification: B41J

Abstract:
1. A printer system, comprising a printer and a plurality of connectable devices, the printer comprising: a printer-side connector configured to connect any of the connectable devices; a printer-side communication interface configured to communicate with the connectable devices; a printer-side identifier storage memory configured to store an identifier for each of the connectable devices and stage position information associated with the identifier, the stage position information being indicative of a position of one of the connectable devices with the corresponding identifier, in the plurality of connectable devices serially connected; and a printer-side controller, the connectable devices being serially connected to the printer in multiple stages, each of the connectable devices having a common function and comprising: a device-side first connector configured to connect another one of the connectable devices; a device-side second connector configured to connect one of the printer-side connector and the device-side first connector of another connectable device; the device-side identifier storage memory configured to store the identifier; a device-side communication interface configured to communicate with the printer or another connectable device; and a device-side controller, the printer-side controller being configured so as to perform, as an identifier associating process, a process such that the printer-side communication interface is controlled so as to repeat a printer-side connection confirmation data transmission process while a printer-side reception process is performed, the printer-side connection confirmation data transmission process being a process of transmitting, to the connectable devices via the printer-side connector, connection confirmation data for confirming a connection status with each of the connectable devices, the printer-side reception process being a process of receiving, via the printer-side connector, response data transmitted from the connectable devices in response to the printer-side connection confirmation data transmission process, the device-side controller being configured so as to perform, as the identifier associating process, a process such that the device-side communication interface is controlled so as to perform, after a device-side transmission process, a forwarding process of forwarding, to another connectable device via the device-side first connector, the connection confirmation data received through the device-side connection confirmation data reception process of receiving the connection confirmation data from the printer via the device-side second connector, the device-side transmission process being a process of transmitting the response data to the printer in response to the connection confirmation data; the printer-side controller and the device-side controller further being configured so as to perform, as the identifier associating process, a process such that when the printer-side controller confirms connection with any one of the connectable devices through the printer-side reception process, the printer-side controller stores in the printer-side identifier storage memory the identifier and the position of that connectable devices for which connection has been confirmed, or the device-side controller of the connectable device for which connection has been confirmed stores in its device-side identifier storage memory the identifier corresponding to the position of that connectable device, which is stored in the printer-side identifier storage memory of the printer.