Patent ID: 8171212

Claim:
A data processing apparatus that receives input of data and performs on the input data a series of processing by a combination processing section, the combination processing section being formed by connecting a plurality of processing sections for sharing processing in the order of the processing, the plurality of processing sections having a different combination depending on a kind of data to be input, the data processing apparatus comprising: a processing memory section that stores a plurality of processing sections for building the combination processing section; a processing execution section that performs on the input data a series of processing by the combination processing section, the series of processing being in accordance with the input data; a construction data memory section that stores construction data formed by identification data and connection data for building a same combination processing section as a latest combination processing section that is used by the processing execution section for executing a series of processing of most recently input data, the identification data identifying a plurality of processing sections forming the latest combination processing section, the connection data representing order of processing by the plurality of processing sections; and a processing construction section that reads, in response to a predetermined event that occurs at a timing before a timing when data to be processed is input, a plurality of processing sections forming a same combination processing section as the latest combination processing section, from the construction data memory section based on the construction data stored in the construction data memory section, and that connects the plurality of processing sections in the same order of the processing as in the latest combination processing section, thereby building the same combination processing section as the latest combination processing section, at the same time, in response to input of data to be processed, the processing construction section rebuilding a new combination processing section for executing a series of processing on the data to be processed, when a kind of the data to be processed is different from the kind of the latest data, wherein the processing execution section performs on the data to be processed the series of processing by the combination processing section that is built by the processing construction section.