JP4323272B2 - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus having a power source capable of storing electricity.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine using an electrophotographic system, a printer, a facsimile machine, or a multifunction machine in which these are combined is used. In such an image forming apparatus, energy saving measures are generally taken to suppress power consumption as much as possible due to problems such as global warming.

  As one of the measures, in order to reduce the power consumption during the operation of the heating device such as the fixing device of the image forming apparatus, a power source that can store electricity is used for auxiliary power such as a heater in addition to the main AC / DC converter. An image forming apparatus has been proposed (see Patent Document 1). As a power source capable of storing electricity, an electric double layer capacitor that has a short charging time and is capable of discharging a large current is used.

  However, since these power sources capable of storing electricity have a lifetime, it is necessary to be able to predict the lifetime in order to perform their functions sufficiently. In particular, the life of the electric double layer capacitor described above is often longer than the life of the image forming apparatus on the side where the capacitor is mounted, and in order to sufficiently perform its function, it is necessary to consider from the viewpoint of recycling, It is desired to reuse in a state where the lifetime is predictable.

  Therefore, in the field of electronic control equipment and the like, in order to confirm whether or not the component can be recycled, input means for inputting the part number of the component on the electronic control equipment side, the part number and the count value of the part operation, Storage means for storing the number of times of recycling, guaranteed values of parts, etc., and display means for displaying the stored contents are provided. By viewing the part information displayed on the display means, the replacement status of components and recycling use Some of them were able to determine whether they were possible (see Patent Document 2).

  Also, information on the replacement and repair of the components of each recycling unit is written by writing information on the usage status of the motor unit, switch unit, and power supply unit into individual nonvolatile memories as recycling units used in conventional image forming apparatuses. Alternatively, it is possible to read out information required for individual unit reproduction when the unit is removed with the unit removed from the image forming apparatus, and the unit alone can determine whether parts need to be replaced or repaired. (See Patent Document 3).

JP 2000-315567 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-240081 JP 2001-51557 A

  However, in such background art, when the mechanical life on the side on which the power storage device is mounted is shorter than that of the power storage device capable of being stored as in Patent Document 1 described above, it is possible to reuse the power source capable of storage. Although it is conceivable, there is a problem that it is difficult to predict the life after replacement because the use state before replacement is unknown.

  Therefore, as shown in Patent Document 2, recycling component parts are provided by inputting information on the usage status and part specifications of the component parts on the electronic control device side, storing the information, and displaying the stored information. It is possible to grasp to some extent the usage state before replacement, but since the parts information was managed on the electronic control device side, when a reused part is removed from the device, the part information is grasped by the component alone I can't do that. For this reason, when the removed component is reused by another device, it is necessary to transfer information stored in the previous device to the next device, which requires a lot of time for input.

  In addition, as shown in Patent Document 3, as a recycling unit used in a conventional image forming apparatus, information on the usage state of a motor unit, a switch unit, and a power supply unit is written in an individual nonvolatile memory, and the components of each recycling unit In some cases, information relating to replacement or repair of data or information necessary for unit reproduction is read for each unit in a state of being removed from the image forming apparatus. However, since the power supply unit here is assumed to input electric power supplied from a commercial power source and convert it into a stabilized DC current, the image forming of the present invention having a power source capable of storing electricity is assumed. The configuration is clearly different from that of the apparatus, and the information to be collected and the data collection means thereof are different in predicting the lifetime of the power source that can be stored. Therefore, even if based on the description in Patent Document 3, there is a problem that the life of a power source that can be stored cannot be predicted easily and accurately.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above, and various types of conventional use states can be obtained even when a power source that can be stored in an image forming apparatus is removed and reused in another image forming apparatus. It is an object of the present invention to provide an image forming apparatus that can obtain the above information from a power that can be stored, and that can easily and accurately predict the life of the power that can be stored after reuse.

In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, the invention according to claim 1 is a power storage that can be removably removed from the image forming apparatus so as to be reusable, and a main body control unit that controls the entire image forming apparatus. an image forming apparatus having the bets, the available storage power source, a built-in non-volatile memory means for storing data relating to usage of the power storage can supply, the main control unit, on the usage of the available storage power data were collected and the a write control means for writing control data collected for the non-volatile memory means, a data reading means for reading data stored in the nonvolatile storage means, from said non-volatile memory means and a data processing means for predicting the storage enabled the life of the power supply based on the read data, the data processing means, pre to the main body control unit It is set, using a lifetime parameter indicating the relationship between the usage data and the available storage power lifetime of said power storage electrical source, characterized by predicting the storage enabled the life of the power supply.

The image forming apparatus according to claim 1 is a nonvolatile memory that can be removed from the image forming apparatus in order to make the rechargeable power source reusable, and that stores data relating to the state of use of the rechargeable power source in the rechargeable power source. sex storage means are provided, the main body control unit for controlling the entire image forming apparatus collects data about the usage of the available storage power, writes the data collected for the nonvolatile memory means by the writing control means, data read The data stored in the non-volatile storage means is read by the means, and the data processing means sets the life parameter indicating the relationship between the data relating to the use state of the chargeable power supply preset in the main body control unit and the chargeable power supply life. Was used to predict the life of a power source that can be stored. Thus, it is possible to provide information related to operating conditions of the available storage power available storage power itself, even when reused by removing the storage enabled power from the image forming apparatus, and usage in the storage enabled power alone Since the data can be obtained, there is an effect that it is possible to easily predict the life of the power source that can be stored .

  Embodiments of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of the power supply system of the image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The power supply system of the image forming apparatus 10, AC power 11, AC switch 12, AC / DC converter 13, a fixing unit 14, one write control means and the data reading means and the data processing means and charging and discharging Denkai number counting means main controller 15 as part of the part and dischargeable time measuring means parts the charging time measuring means, the load unit 16, the available storage power supply 17, the non-volatile storage unit 17a as a nonvolatile memory means, charging and discharging Denkai It comprises a part of the number counting means, a part of the charging time measuring means, and a charge / discharge path changeover switch 18 as a part of the dischargeable time measuring means, the voltage monitoring parts 19, 20 and the load part 21. .

  A characteristic configuration of the image forming apparatus according to the first exemplary embodiment is an image forming apparatus 10 using a chargeable power supply 17, and data relating to the chargeable power supply can be stored and retained in the chargeable power supply 17 even after the power is turned off. The non-volatile storage unit 17a is provided.

  In the power supply system of the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1, an AC power supply is input from an AC power supply 11, is input to an AC / DC converter 13 via an AC switch 12, and is converted into a direct current (DC output). The AC power supply 11 is divided into two systems in which AC power is directly supplied to the fixing unit 14.

  The AC / DC converter 13 described above generates DC power for on-board control from the AC power 11. The generated DC power is supplied to the main body control unit 15 for controlling the image forming apparatus and the load units 16 and 21 in the apparatus. Then, the main body control unit 15 controls the load units 16 and 21 and the fixing unit 14 to perform an image forming process, and prints and outputs the image on a transfer sheet.

  The image forming apparatus according to the first exemplary embodiment has a chargeable power source 17. The chargeable / dischargeable power supply 17 can be charged and discharged by a charge / discharge path changeover switch 18, and the main body control unit 15 performs switching control of the charge / discharge path changeover switch 18 as necessary. Here, when switching control is performed, the voltage monitoring unit 19 monitors the charging DC voltage of the chargeable power supply 17 input from the AC / DC converter 13 to the charge / discharge path changeover switch 18, and from the chargeable power supply 17. The discharge DC voltage discharged to the load unit 21 via the charge / discharge path switching switch 18 is monitored by monitoring the output voltage of the voltage monitoring unit 20 and comparing a predetermined specified voltage value with the monitoring result so as to be switched. Yes. Of course, this switching control method is merely an example, and the control method is not necessarily limited to the above example as long as charging and discharging can be switched.

  Furthermore, a non-volatile storage unit 17a is provided in the power storage 17 that can be stored in the image forming apparatus according to the first exemplary embodiment. In general, the power source 17 that can be stored has a lifetime in which the charge / discharge characteristics are degraded while the power source 17 can be used for a certain period of time. If the lifetime is short, the image forming apparatus side may be damaged due to the life of the accumulable power supply 17 before satisfying the mechanical life of the image forming apparatus, or unnecessary downtime may be derived. It may be possible to impair the performance. Therefore, in the first embodiment, it is necessary to eliminate the downtime as much as possible even when the life of the power storage 17 can be predicted in advance and replaced. For this reason, the non-volatile storage unit 17a stores data related to the usage status of how the power source 17 that can be stored in the past has been used, and reads the data as necessary, thereby storing the power source 17 that can be stored. It is possible to accurately predict the lifetime of the battery according to the usage situation. Even if the image forming apparatus cannot be used first, and the rechargeable power supply 17 is reused, the information regarding the use status is held by the rechargeable power supply 17 itself and is used even after being removed from the image forming apparatus. It can be reused with confidence.

  Further, when an electric double layer capacitor or the like is used as the accumulable power source 17, the life of the image forming apparatus is generally longer. As described above, when the accumulable power source 17 has a longer lifetime than the device lifetime, it is desired to recycle the accumulable power source 17 in consideration of resource saving, environmental protection, and the like. Therefore, in such a case, history data regarding the usage status of how the previous image forming apparatus was used is stored in the non-volatile storage unit 17a of the accumulable power supply 17 and mounted in the next image forming apparatus. In such a case, it is possible to predict how long the battery 17 can be used later by simply reading the data relating to the usage state stored in the nonvolatile storage unit 17a. Further, since the non-volatile storage unit 17a is held by the accumulable power source 17 itself, even when the nonvolatile storage unit 17a is detached from the previous image forming apparatus and remounted on another image forming apparatus, the history data does not depend on the apparatus side. It can be used as it is.

  Any nonvolatile storage unit 17a according to the first embodiment can be used as long as it can retain data even after the power is turned off, such as an EEPROM or NVRAM.

  FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of storing data for predicting the life of the power that can be stored in the nonvolatile storage unit of FIG. The life of a power source that can be stored varies greatly depending on the use environment, use conditions, and the like. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 2, the use environment and use conditions in the image forming apparatus in which the power that can be stored is used are monitored, and data relating to these lifetimes are collected (step S100).

  And the data collected in this way are preserve | saved at the non-volatile memory | storage part 17a in the power supply 17 which can be stored (step S101). As a result, even if the rechargeable power supply 17 is recycled, data related to the life (usage history data, life prediction data, etc.) can be read and used at any time without depending on the image forming apparatus main body. Is possible.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of acquiring data from the nonvolatile storage unit of FIG. The main body control unit 15 of the image forming apparatus 10 in FIG. 1 acquires data stored from the nonvolatile storage unit 17a of the accumulable power source 17 (step S200 in FIG. 3).

  As described above, this acquired data includes usage history data and life prediction data. Using the usage history data related to the usage environment and usage conditions as parameters, the life prediction data in which model cases up to the lifetime are set are compared. By doing this, it is possible to predict the remaining life according to the usage status of the power source 17 that can be stored (step S201).

  As described above, according to the first embodiment, in the image forming apparatus provided with the power that can be stored, at least the use history data of the power that can be stored is stored in the nonvolatile storage unit provided in the power that can be stored. Since it did in this way, the past use log | history can be grasped | ascertained easily only by the power supply which can be stored. Further, in addition to the above-mentioned usage history data, the lifetime prediction parameters are also stored in the non-volatile storage unit, and this can be read and compared by the main body control unit of the image forming apparatus. It is possible to predict the remaining life to some extent accurately.

  This is because it is possible to perform the life prediction only by information held by the power storage capable power supply even before or after recycling, for example, even if the power storage power supply that has been recycled and replaced, It is possible to prevent a situation where the service life is suddenly reached and unnecessary downtime occurs.

  A characteristic configuration of the second embodiment is that a storageable power supply ambient temperature monitoring unit 30 that monitors the ambient temperature of the storageable power supply is provided. FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of the power supply system of the image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 4, the configuration other than the accumulable power supply ambient temperature monitoring unit 30 is the same as that in FIG. 1, and thus the same reference numerals are given and the description of the configuration is omitted. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the relationship between the ambient temperature of the power that can be stored and the life time of the power that can be stored. FIG. 6 shows the ambient temperature data detected by the power storage ambient temperature monitoring unit in FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining an operation for predicting the life of a power source capable of storing electricity based on FIG.

  This accumulable power supply ambient temperature monitoring unit 30 can detect and monitor the ambient temperature of the accumulable power supply 17. For example, a thermocouple is preferably used as an element capable of electrically monitoring the ambient temperature. However, the detection means and the detection method are not limited to this as long as the ambient temperature can be monitored. The reason why the ambient temperature of the power that can be stored is monitored in this way is that the life of the power that can be stored is greatly influenced by the use environment temperature, and the life tends to be shortened as the ambient temperature increases.

  Therefore, in the main body control unit 15 of FIG. 4, the ambient temperature of the accumulable power supply 17 (vertical axis in FIG. 5) and the life of the accumulable power supply 17 (horizontal axis in FIG. 15) as shown in FIG. Is set as a model case. For example, when the useable power source 17 is used at an ambient temperature of X (X is an arbitrary value) ° C., it is set how many hours later the lifetime will come. Then, the main body control unit 15 reads and collects past use ambient temperature data stored in the nonvolatile storage unit 17a of the accumulable power supply 17, and compares it with the above-described life parameter (ambient temperature), thereby It is possible to easily predict the remaining lifetime of the power source capable of storing electricity.

  Next, the operation of the second embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. As shown in FIG. 6, first, the power storage possible power supply ambient temperature monitoring unit 30 arranged around the power storage capable power source 17 monitors the ambient temperature, and when the ambient temperature is detected (step S300), the main body control unit 15 Writes the detection data in the non-volatile storage unit 17a of the accumulable power supply 17 and sequentially stores it (step S301).

  Subsequently, when it is necessary to recycle the accumulable power supply 17 or to perform a life prediction during periodic maintenance, the main body control unit 15 sends the past use surroundings from the non-volatile storage unit 17a of the accumulable power supply 17 The temperature data is read to obtain the data (step S302), and the data is compared with a life parameter indicating the relationship between the ambient temperature and the life as shown in FIG. In step S303, the remaining life of the accumulable power source is predicted based on the comparison result (step S304).

  As described above, according to the second embodiment, the ambient temperature data detected by the chargeable power supply ambient temperature monitoring unit is stored in the non-volatile storage unit of the chargeable power supply, and the ambient temperature and life of the chargeable power supply are stored. Since the remaining life prediction is performed based on the life parameter indicating the relationship with the above, it is possible to perform the life prediction more accurately.

  A characteristic configuration of the third embodiment is that the main body control unit 15 of the image forming apparatus includes a timer 15a as a time measuring unit. FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of the power supply system of the image forming apparatus according to the third embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 7, except for the timer 15 a, the configuration is the same as that in FIG. 1. FIG. 8 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of predicting the life of the power that can be stored based on the usage time of the power that can be stored.

  This timer 15a measures how long it has been used by the main body control unit 15 while using the power source 15 that can be stored, and stores the measured time in the nonvolatile storage unit of the power source that can be stored. . Then, the life is predicted based on the relationship between the usage time of the power that can be stored and the life of the power that can be stored. Thus, the usage time of the power source that can be stored is measured because the life of the power source that can be stored depends on the usage time, and if the usage time is longer, the lifetime tends to be shorter.

  Although not shown in the third embodiment, similar to FIG. 5 in the second embodiment, it can be expressed by a relationship diagram (life parameter) in which the relationship between the storage power use time and the chargeable power source life is inversely proportional. The life parameter is preset in the main body control unit 15 of FIG. Then, the main body control unit 15 reads and collects past usage time data stored in the nonvolatile storage unit 17a of the accumulable power source 17, and compares the data with the above-described life parameter (time) to thereby store the electric power. It becomes possible to easily predict the remaining lifetime of the power supply.

  Next, the operation of the third embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. As shown in FIG. 8, first, the main body control unit 15 measures the usage time with the timer 15a while the accumulable power supply 17 is being used (step S400), and writes the measurement data in the nonvolatile storage unit 17a. Are sequentially stored (step S401).

  Subsequently, when it is necessary to recycle the accumulable power supply 17 or to perform a life prediction at the time of regular maintenance, the main body control unit 15 stores the past usage time from the nonvolatile storage unit 17a of the accumulable power supply 17 The data is read to acquire the data (step S402), and the data is compared with the life parameter (time) preset in the main body control unit 15 (step S403). Based on the comparison result, the chargeable power supply The remaining life is predicted (step S404).

  As described above, according to the third embodiment, the non-volatile storage unit of the accumulable power supply stores the useable data of the accumulable power supply measured by the timer, and the relationship between the usage time and the lifetime of the accumulable power supply is obtained. Since the remaining life prediction is performed based on the life parameter shown, the life prediction can be performed more accurately.

  The characteristic configuration of the fourth embodiment includes a chargeable power supply ambient temperature monitoring unit 30 that monitors the ambient temperature of the chargeable power supply, and includes a timer 15a as a timing unit in the main body control unit 15 of the image forming apparatus. It is in the point to have. FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of the power supply system of the image forming apparatus according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 corresponds to a diagram obtained by combining FIG. 4 of the second embodiment and FIG. 7 of the third embodiment, and thus the description of the configuration is omitted. FIG. 10 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of predicting the life of the power that can be stored in comparison with the life parameter that shows the relationship between the ambient temperature of the power that can be stored in FIG.

  As described in the second embodiment, the life of the power that can be stored depends on the ambient temperature condition of the power that can be stored. Further, how long it has been used (operated) in the environment. It becomes a big parameter. For this reason, in the fourth embodiment, the life prediction is performed in consideration of the ambient temperature condition of the power storage capable power source and the usage time of the power storage power source.

  Next, the operation of the fourth embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. As shown in FIG. 10, first, the chargeable power supply ambient temperature monitoring unit 30 arranged around the chargeable power supply 17 monitors the ambient temperature and detects the ambient temperature (step S500). In parallel with this, while the chargeable power supply 17 is being used, the usage time is measured by the timer 15a (step S501).

  Then, the main body control unit writes the data detected or measured in the nonvolatile storage unit 17a and sequentially stores them (step S502).

  Subsequently, when it is necessary to recycle the accumulable power supply 17 or to perform a life prediction during periodic maintenance, the main body control unit 15 sends the past use surroundings from the non-volatile storage unit 17a of the accumulable power supply 17 The temperature data and the usage time data are read to acquire data (step S503).

  Then, the main body control unit 15 compares the acquired ambient temperature data of the power that can be stored with the life parameter (temperature) indicating the relationship between the life (step S504). Further, the main body control unit 15 compares the acquired life-time parameter (time) indicating the relationship between the past usage time data and the life of the accumulable power source (step S505). The main body control unit 15 predicts the remaining life of the accumulable power source based on both the comparison results (step S506).

  As described above, according to the fourth embodiment, the ambient temperature data of the chargeable power supply and the usage time data of the chargeable power supply stored in the nonvolatile storage unit of the chargeable power supply are read out, and the respective data Since the remaining life is predicted by comparing with the life parameter indicating the relationship between the life of the battery and the power source capable of storing electricity, the life can be predicted with higher accuracy.

  The feature of the fifth embodiment is that the life of the power that can be stored depends on the number of times of charge and discharge of the power that can be stored, and the remaining life of the power that can be stored tends to decrease as the number of times of charge and discharge increases. The remaining life of the power source capable of storing electricity is predicted. FIG. 11 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of predicting the life of a chargeable power supply in comparison with a lifespan parameter indicating the relationship between the number of charge / discharge cycles of the chargeable power supply and the life time. The configuration diagram of the image forming apparatus is substantially the same as that of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1 and can be substituted.

  In the fifth embodiment, in the main body control unit 15 shown in FIG. 1, the relationship between the number of charge / discharge cycles and the lifetime of the accumulable power source 17 is set in advance as a lifetime parameter (number of charge / discharge cycles). Further, regarding the actual number of times of charging / discharging, the main body control unit 15 monitors the number of switching of the charging / discharging path changeover switch 18 in FIG. 1 and counts this.

  Next, the operation of the fifth embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. As shown in FIG. 11, first, the main body control unit 15 detects by actually counting the number of times of switching of the charge / discharge path switching switch 18 (step S600).

  Then, the main body control unit 15 writes the detected actual charge / discharge frequency data of the accumulable power source into the nonvolatile storage unit 17a and sequentially stores the data (step S601).

  Subsequently, when it is necessary to recycle the accumulable power supply 17 or to perform life prediction during periodic maintenance, the main body control unit 15 performs actual charge / discharge from the nonvolatile storage unit 17a of the accumulable power supply 17. The number of times and a preset life parameter (number of times of charging / discharging) are read to acquire data (step S602).

  Then, the main body control unit 15 compares the acquired charge / discharge frequency data of the accumulable power source with a life parameter (charge / discharge frequency) indicating the relationship between the lifetimes (step S603). Then, based on the comparison result, the remaining life of the accumulable power source is predicted (step S604).

  As described above, according to the fifth embodiment, the charge / discharge count data of the chargeable power supply stored in the nonvolatile storage unit of the chargeable power supply is read, and the charge / discharge count data and the life of the chargeable power supply are calculated. Since the lifetime can be predicted by comparing with the lifetime parameter indicating the relationship, it is possible to more easily predict the remaining lifetime of the power source that can be stored.

  The feature of the sixth embodiment is that the longer the operating power source can be stored, the more the internal resistance increases.As a result, the longer the operating time, the longer the required charging time spent in the initial stage. The time required for charging tends to gradually increase. That is, there is a feature in that the remaining life of the power that can be stored is predicted by using the fact that the remaining life of the power that can be stored becomes shorter as the required charging time becomes longer. FIG. 12 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of predicting the life of the power that can be stored compared with the life parameter indicating the relationship between the required charging time and the life of the power that can be stored. The configuration diagram of the image forming apparatus is substantially the same as that of the fourth embodiment shown in FIG. 9 and can be substituted.

  In the sixth embodiment, in the main body control unit 15 shown in FIG. 9, the relationship between the required charging time and the lifetime of the accumulable power supply 17 is set in advance as a lifetime parameter (required charging time). Further, the time required for charging is measured using a timer 15a provided in the main body control unit 15 of FIG.

  Next, the operation of the sixth embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. As shown in FIG. 12, first, the main body control unit 15 uses the timer 15a to measure the required charging time for charging (step S700).

  Then, the main body control unit 15 writes the detected required charging time of the accumulable power source in the nonvolatile storage unit 17a and sequentially stores it (step S701).

  Subsequently, when it is necessary to recycle the accumulable power supply 17 or to perform a life prediction during periodic maintenance, the main body control unit 15 determines the required charging time from the nonvolatile storage unit 17a of the accumulable power supply 17. Then, the preset life parameter (required charging time) is read to obtain data (step S702).

  Then, the main body control unit 15 compares the acquired life parameter (required charge time) indicating the relationship between the required charge time and the life of the accumulable power supply (step S703). Based on the comparison result, the remaining life of the power that can be stored is predicted (step S704).

  As described above, according to the sixth embodiment, the charge required time data of the chargeable power supply stored in the nonvolatile storage unit of the chargeable power supply is read, and the charge required time data and the life of the chargeable power supply are calculated. Since the lifetime can be predicted by comparing with the lifetime parameter indicating the relationship, it is possible to more easily predict the remaining lifetime of the power source that can be stored.

  The feature of the seventh embodiment is that the longer the power that can be stored is used, the more the internal resistance increases. As a result, the dischargeable time of the power that can be stored is longer than the initial dischargeable time. The longer the battery life, the shorter the dischargeable time. That is, there is a feature in that the remaining life prediction of the power storage capable power source is performed by utilizing that it can be determined that the remaining life of the power storage power source is shorter as the dischargeable time is shorter. FIG. 13 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of predicting the life of the power that can be stored in comparison with the life parameter indicating the relationship between the chargeable time and the life time. The configuration diagram of the image forming apparatus is substantially the same as that of the fourth embodiment shown in FIG. 9 and can be substituted.

  In the seventh embodiment, in the main body control unit 15 shown in FIG. 9, the relationship between the dischargeable time and the life of the power storage 17 can be set in advance as a life parameter (dischargeable time). Further, the dischargeable time is measured using a timer 15a provided in the main body control unit 15 of FIG.

  Next, the operation of the seventh embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. As shown in FIG. 13, first, the main body control unit 15 uses the timer 15a to measure the discharge time, that is, the discharge time (dischargeable time) from the start of discharge until the charge / discharge path changeover switch 18 is switched (step S800). ).

  Then, the main body control unit 15 writes the detected discharge time of the accumulable power supply in the nonvolatile storage unit 17a and sequentially stores it (step S801).

  Subsequently, when it is necessary to recycle the accumulable power supply 17 or perform a lifetime prediction during periodic maintenance, the main body control unit 15 discharges the discharge time from the nonvolatile storage unit 17a of the accumulable power supply 17; Data is acquired by reading a preset life parameter (dischargeable time) (step S802).

  Then, the main body control unit 15 compares the acquired life parameter (dischargeable time) indicating the relationship between the discharge time and the life of the accumulable power supply (step S803). Then, based on the comparison result, the remaining life of the accumulable power source is predicted (step S804).

  As described above, according to the seventh embodiment, the dischargeable time (dischargeable time) data of the chargeable power supply stored in the nonvolatile storage unit of the chargeable power supply is read, and the dischargeable time data and the chargeable power supply are read. Since the lifetime can be predicted by comparing with the lifetime parameter (dischargeable time) indicating the relationship with the lifetime of the battery, it is possible to more easily predict the remaining lifetime of the power source that can be stored.

  A characteristic configuration of the eighth embodiment is that an electric double layer capacitor is used as a power source capable of storing electricity. FIG. 14 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of the power supply system of the image forming apparatus according to the eighth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 14 is different from FIG. 1 in that the accumulable power source 17 of FIG. 1 of the first embodiment is an electric double layer capacitor 40, and the nonvolatile storage unit 17a therein is a nonvolatile storage unit 40a. Are the same, and redundant description of the configuration is omitted.

  The electric double layer capacitor used in Example 8 is known as an element having an advantage that a charging time is short and a large current can be discharged, and is superior to other power sources capable of storing electricity because of its characteristics and performance. It can be said that this is an element.

  For this reason, the image forming apparatus according to the eighth embodiment uses the electric double layer capacitor 40 as a power source capable of storing electricity. Therefore, the electric double layer capacitor 40 is longer than the life of the image forming apparatus. More likely to be recycled. However, in the image forming apparatus of the present invention, as described above, the nonvolatile storage unit 40a stores the data on the past use state and life of the electric double layer capacitor, and reads this data as necessary. Therefore, it is possible to predict the service life accurately and accurately. In particular, in the case of the electric double layer capacitor 40, since the possibility of being recycled is high, the effect of the present invention can be further enjoyed.

  As described above, according to the image forming apparatus of the eighth embodiment, since the electric double layer capacitor is used as the accumulable power source, the high performance can be sufficiently exhibited, and the life of the image forming apparatus main body is achieved. Even if it comes, we will recycle the electric double layer capacitor that still has a lifetime. In that case, the remaining life of the electric double layer capacitor varies greatly depending on the previous use situation, but the usage history data and the data on the life stored in the nonvolatile storage unit 40a in the electric double layer capacitor 40 are read. Accordingly, the remaining life can be predicted easily and accurately, and unnecessary downtime can be prevented from occurring.

  As described above, the image forming apparatus according to the present invention is useful for an image forming apparatus having a power source capable of storing electricity, and in particular, a power storage used in an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a facsimile machine, a printer, or a composite machine thereof. Suitable for predicting the lifetime of possible power sources.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a power supply system of an image forming apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of storing data for predicting the life of a power capable of storing electricity in the nonvolatile storage unit of FIG. 1. 3 is a flowchart for explaining an operation of acquiring data from the nonvolatile storage unit in FIG. 1 and predicting the life of a power that can be stored. FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a power supply system of an image forming apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention. It is a diagram which shows the relationship between the ambient temperature of a power supply which can be stored, and the lifetime of a power supply which can be stored. 5 is a flowchart for explaining an operation for predicting the life of a power that can be stored based on ambient temperature data detected by a power storage capable power supply ambient temperature monitoring unit of FIG. FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a power supply system of an image forming apparatus according to a third embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart explaining the operation | movement which performs the lifetime prediction of the electric power which can be stored based on the usage time of the electric power which can be stored by the timer of FIG. FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a power supply system of an image forming apparatus according to Embodiment 4 of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a flowchart for explaining an operation for predicting the life of a chargeable power supply in comparison with a lifespan parameter indicating the relationship between the ambient temperature of the chargeable power supply and the life time of each useable time in FIG. 9. It is a flowchart explaining the operation | movement which performs the lifetime prediction of the electric power which can be stored compared with the lifetime parameter which shows the relationship between the frequency | count of charge / discharge of an electric power which can be stored, and lifetime. It is a flowchart explaining the operation | movement which performs the lifetime prediction of the electric power which can be stored compared with the lifetime parameter which shows the relationship between the charge required time of the electric power which can be stored, and a lifetime. It is a flowchart explaining the operation | movement which performs the lifetime prediction of the electric power which can be stored compared with the lifetime parameter which shows the relationship between the electrical storage possible time and lifetime. FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a power supply system of an image forming apparatus according to an eighth embodiment of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Image forming apparatus 11 AC power supply 12 AC switch 13 AC / DC converter 14 Fixing part 15 Main body control part 15a Timer 16 Load part 17 Chargeable power supply 17a Nonvolatile memory | storage part 18 Charging / discharging path | route switch 19 Voltage monitoring part 20,21 Load Unit 30 power storage ambient temperature monitoring unit 40 electric double layer capacitor 40a nonvolatile storage unit

Claims (1)

An image forming apparatus having a chargeable power source removable from the image forming apparatus so as to be reusable, and a main body control unit for controlling the entire image forming apparatus,
The storable power has a built-in non-volatile memory means for storing data relating to usage of the power storage can supply,
The main body control unit
And write control means for the storage enabled data to collect about the use of the power source, the write control of the data collected for the non-volatile memory means,
Data reading means for reading data stored in the nonvolatile storage means;
Data processing means for predicting the life of the chargeable power source based on data read from the nonvolatile storage means;
And the data processing means uses the life parameter indicating the relationship between the data relating to the usage status of the power storage capable power supply and the power storage power supply lifetime, which is set in advance in the main body control unit. An image forming apparatus for predicting the life of the image forming apparatus.

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