JP2004284826A - Image formation device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To recover quickly from a condition where printing is interrupted. <P>SOLUTION: This device checks whether a bin #N of a mail box 9 currently being selected is overflowing or not (step S71), discharges paper to the bin #N normally from a delivery port being selected if the mail box 9 is not overflowing (step S72) or sets a disabled status for the mail box (print disabled status) and informs so to a controller (step S73). If the bin #N of the box 9 is back to the non-overflowing status, the device follows the step S71 and then the step S72 to switch the delivery port to the bin #N of the box 9 having originally being selected. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus including a personal management paper discharge unit, that is, a mailbox as an additional device of the image forming system, in an image forming system including various networks, workstations, and personal computer systems using a plurality of host computers. .

  An image forming system constructed so as to connect a paper output device for personal management, a so-called mailbox, to the image forming device and to transmit and receive various information separately from the individual and the common paper output device. It has become to. As this example, for example, the techniques described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 2-186429 and 4-48323 are known.

  The former known technique is used in a network-type printing system having a plurality of output trays shared by a plurality of hosts in order to maintain the confidentiality of a printed document in a network-type printing system used by a plurality of hosts. Some of the discharge trays are key-locked and unlocked by an ID code transmitted from the host.

  Further, in the latter known technique, in order to prevent print data printed and output by a printing apparatus from being viewed by anyone other than a specific user, it is determined whether or not the print data is of a predetermined specific person. Means for judging, a sheet discharging means for selectively discharging the printed sheet according to the judgment result of the judging means into a sheet of a specific person and a sheet not of the specific person, and print data of the specific person printed. A configuration is provided in which a sheet is stored, a password is input, and a stacker that can remove the sheet only when the password is determined to belong to a specific person.

  In any case, in these conventional examples, consideration has been given to secure confidentiality.

  By the way, even if the confidentiality is intended to be sufficiently ensured in this way, the mailbox in this type of image forming system is frequently used as a paper discharge place for personal management of a network printer. If any inconvenience occurs in the processing for one user, there is a problem that printing by another user cannot be started.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a situation of the related art, and a first object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus capable of avoiding occurrence of a situation where printing is interrupted as much as possible. is there. Another object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus capable of quickly returning to a state where printing is interrupted.

  In order to achieve the above object, the first means is that, in an image forming apparatus having an image forming means provided with a paper discharge means for personal management, at least one bin of the paper discharge means for personal management overflows and A means is provided for temporarily storing information in either the controller or the host when the paper cannot be discharged, and for notifying that at least one of the personal management paper discharging means and the user's host has information that has not been output. It is characterized by having. In this case, it is preferable to further provide a means for automatically printing out the stored information and discharging the paper to the removed bin when a bin from which the paper has been removed occurs in the bin of the paper discharging means for personal management. .

  The second means is an image forming apparatus having an image forming means provided with a paper discharging means for personal management, wherein the common paper discharging means and at least one bin of the paper discharging means for personal management overflow and are no longer provided. Means for discharging paper to the common paper discharging means when paper cannot be discharged.

  The third means is that, in an image forming apparatus provided with an image forming means provided with a paper discharge means for personal management, a common paper discharge means and a bin during discharge of the paper discharge means for personal management overflow. When the paper cannot be discharged any more, the information is temporarily stored in either the controller or the host, and the information that has not yet been output is transmitted to at least one of the personal management paper discharge device and the user's host. Means and a mode in which the shared paper discharging means discharges the paper or the notification means notifies the bin when the bin being discharged by the personal managing paper discharging means overflows and cannot be further discharged. And means for setting in advance.

  The fourth means is a means for detecting a discharge capacity that can be output to the personal management discharge means in the image forming apparatus provided with the image forming means provided with the personal management discharge means, and the detection means Means for instructing either the controller or the host to remove the paper remaining in the bin to be discharged when the number of sheets to be discharged is larger than the discharge capacity detected by the printer. It is characterized by having.

  In the first means, when one bin of the personal management paper discharge means overflows and cannot be further discharged, information to be output is temporarily stored in either the controller or the host. Then, it is notified to one or both of the personal-management discharge means side and the user's host side that there is information not to be output yet. As a result, it is also possible for the user or the mail receiving side to output the information that has not been output by canceling the overflow. Therefore, when an empty bin appears after paper is removed from the bin of the paper discharge means for personal management, the stored information is automatically printed out, and the printed paper is printed on the empty bin. Eject the paper. Thereby, it can function as a mail.

  In the second means, when at least one bin of the paper discharging means for personal management overflows and cannot be discharged to the bin, the paper is discharged to the common paper discharging means. Thus, the output operation of the image forming apparatus does not stop, and other users can continue to use the image forming apparatus.

  In the third means, when a bin being discharged by the personal management discharge means overflows and cannot be discharged any more, a notification is made by the common discharge means or by the notification means. Any one of the modes to be performed is set in advance. When the bin being discharged by the personal management discharge unit overflows according to the set mode and the paper cannot be discharged any more, the image forming unit Is output to a common paper output means, or information is temporarily stored in either the controller or the host, and is still output to at least one of the personal management paper output device side and the user's host side. Informed that there is no information. In this way, when an overflow occurs, the paper is output from the image forming unit without being interrupted when the paper is discharged to the common paper discharging unit, and a minimum interruption is required when the controller side or the host side is notified thereof. be able to.

  In the fourth means, when the discharge amount to be output to the personal management discharge means is larger than the discharge amount that can be output to the bin of the target personal management discharge means, the controller or the Since any one of the hosts is incapable of discharging paper, the host is instructed to remove the paper remaining in the bin to be discharged. Therefore, by removing the paper in accordance with this instruction, interruption of printing can be avoided.

  When at least one of the bins of the personal management discharge means overflows and cannot be discharged any more, information is temporarily stored in either the controller or the host, and the personal management discharge means side or the user's host side. According to the invention as set forth in claim 1, wherein means for notifying that at least one of the information has not been output is provided, the overflow process can be promptly performed by an instruction from the controller side or the host side. Even if the printing is interrupted due to the overflow, the printing can be quickly restored.

  3. The apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising means for automatically printing out the stored information and discharging the paper to the removed bin when a bin from which the paper has been removed is generated in the bin of the paper discharging means for personal management. According to the invention, when the paper is removed, the stored information is output immediately, so that the interruption time can be minimized.

  4. The apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising: a common paper discharging means; and means for discharging the paper to the common paper discharging means when at least one bin of the personal managing paper discharging means overflows and cannot be further discharged. According to the present invention, even in the case where an overflow has to be interrupted, the paper is discharged to the common paper discharging means, so that the paper can be discharged without being interrupted, and the printing naturally continues without being interrupted. be able to.

  When the bins being discharged by the common paper discharging means and the paper discharging means for personal management overflow and cannot be further discharged, information is temporarily stored in either the controller or the host, and the information is temporarily stored in the controller or the host. Means for notifying that there is information that has not been output to at least one of the paper output device side and the user's host side, and the bin being discharged by the personal management paper discharge means overflowed, and it was not possible to discharge any more. The present invention according to claim 4, further comprising means for setting in advance either a mode for discharging to the common paper discharging means or a mode for notifying by the notifying means. If the mode is set to paper output, the paper is discharged to the common paper discharge means without interruption when overflow occurs, so that the interruption of printing is avoided and the If you set the de, interrupted upon overflow, it is possible to minimize the disruption in waiting for treatment of operators.

  Means for detecting a discharge amount that can be output to the personal management discharge means; and a discharge amount to be discharged larger than the discharge amount detected by the detection means. The invention according to claim 5, further comprising: means for instructing the user to remove the paper remaining in the bin for discharging the paper. Therefore, interruption of printing due to overflow can be avoided.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an image forming system according to an embodiment of the present invention in which a paper output device (mail box) for personal management is added to the image forming device, and FIG. 2 shows a mechanical configuration of the image forming device in the image forming system. FIG. 3 is a system block diagram showing a connection relationship of the image forming apparatus.

(Schematic configuration)
First, the mechanical configuration of the image forming apparatus will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 1, an image forming apparatus includes a laser printer main body (LP main body) 1 as an image forming means, an upper paper feed cassette 2 and a lower paper feed cassette 3, and a large-volume paper discharge unit having two upper and lower paper discharge units. (LCOT) 8 and a rear discharge tray 5 for discharging stiff paper such as an envelope. Further, the lower part is provided with a double-sided unit 6 for performing screen printing, and a large-capacity sheet feeding unit (LCIT) 7 is mounted. FIG. 2 shows a state in which a mail box (hereinafter, also referred to as “MB”) 9 having ten bins (# 1 to # 10) is mounted in addition to the mass discharge unit 8 of FIG. In a system in which a laser printer is incorporated, various system configurations can be obtained by selecting optional double-sided unit 6, large-volume paper feeding unit 7, large-volume paper-discharging unit 8, and mailbox 9. An operation display panel 11 to be described later is provided on the upper part of the laser printer main body 7. Similarly, on the upper part of the laser printer main body 7, a font cartridge having a built-in RAM or ROM storing font data of different character types is provided. 12 and 13 are provided.

[Laser printer (image forming means)]
Inside the laser printer body 1, two upper and lower paper feed rollers 19, 20, two pairs of paper feed rollers 21, 22, one pair of registration rollers 23, a conveyance belt 24, a delivery roller 25, a rear discharge roller 26, A paper transport path is formed by the upper transport roller 27, the lower transport roller 28, a number of guide plates, and the like, and forms a transport system.

  An OPC photosensitive drum 29 is rotatably provided above the conveyance path between the registration roller 23 and the conveyance belt 24, and a transfer charger 30 is provided below the OPC photosensitive drum 29, and between the conveyance belt 24 and the delivery roller 25. A fixing device 31 is provided, respectively, and a pair of paper path changing claws 32 and 33 are provided between the delivery roller 25 and the rear discharge roller 26 downstream of the fixing device 31. Around the photosensitive drum 29, a charging charger (main charger) 34, a developing unit 35, a cleaning unit 36, and a charge removing LED 37 are provided. The developing unit 35 is mounted on the drawer 18 together with the developing motor 38, the toner cartridge 39, and the cleaning unit 36, and an image forming system is configured by these components.

  Various components of the writing system are arranged above the imaging system. The writing system includes a polygon mirror (rotating polygon mirror) 44 that reflects and scans laser light from a semiconductor laser (not shown), an fθ lens 45, a first mirror 47, a second mirror 46, and a dust-proof glass 48. And the like, and a laser writing unit 40 having the same. The laser writing unit 40 itself is publicly known and will not be described here.

  A printed circuit board (hereinafter, referred to as “PCB”) rack 53 containing a print engine board 51 and two controller boards 52 is installed above the write system, and a PCB for cooling the PCB is further provided. A pack fan 54 and a main fan 55 for cooling the inside of the laser printer main body 1 are provided. A main motor 57 for rotationally driving the photosensitive drum 29 and each roller, a power supply unit 58 and a high-voltage power supply unit 59 for applying a high voltage to each charger are disposed below the paper transport path. ing.

  The upper paper feed cassette 2 and the lower paper feed cassette 3 are detachable from the laser printer main body 1, respectively. The rear discharge tray 5 is stored as shown when not in use, and the shaft 5a is used as a fulcrum when in use. It can be rotated in the direction of the arrow to extend rearward. A registration sensor 60 is provided in front of the registration rollers 23 in the sheet conveyance direction, and a fixing exit sensor 61 is provided at the exit of the fixing device 31 for the sheet.

  In the table 10, a reversing conveyance path 65, a standby conveyance path 66, a sheet path changing claw 67, three sets of conveyance rollers 68, 69, 70 with clutches, a double-side entrance sensor 71, a double-side exit sensor 72, and a double-side drive A duplex unit (DPX) 6 composed of a motor 73 and the like is built in, and a feed roller 74 for feeding paper from a large-volume feed unit (LCIT) 7, a feed roller 75, and a feed shared with the duplex unit 6. A paper roller 76, an LCIT drive motor 77, and the like are also incorporated. Although not shown, a mechanism for raising and lowering the stored sheets, a driving motor for driving the mechanism, and the like are built in the large-volume sheet feeding unit 7.

  The large-volume paper discharge unit (LCOT) 8 includes a conveying roller 80, a paper path changing claw 81, an upper paper discharge roller 82, a lower paper discharge roller 83, an upper paper discharge tray 84, and a lower paper discharge tray 85, which are not shown. Are provided with a mechanism for moving the two-stage paper discharge trays 84 and 85 in the width direction to shift the paper discharge position, a driving motor (job separation motor), various sensors and switches, and the like. .

  The control system of the laser printer system will be described in detail later. However, image data and the like from a host such as a computer, a workstation, and a word processor (not shown) are input to the print engine PCB 51 via the controller PCB 52 for processing and supply. After selecting the paper path and the paper discharge path, a printing operation is started by a print start request signal. When the print sequence is started, one of the paper feed rollers 19, 20, and 74 is driven at a predetermined timing to select one of the upper paper feed cassette 2, the lower paper feed cassette 3, and the LCIT 7 from the selected one. Paper feeding is started, and the paper is fed by one of the paper feeding rollers 21, 22, and 75, and temporarily stopped in a state where the paper is abutted against the registration roller 23. When the print sequence is started, one of the paper feed rollers 19, 20, and 74 is driven at a predetermined timing to start paper feed from a selected one of the paper feed trays 2, 3, and 7, and the registration rollers Suspended temporarily in a state where it abuts on 23.

  On the other hand, the photosensitive drum 29 rotates in the direction indicated by the arrow in FIG. 1, and modulates the surface charged by the charging unit charger 34, the surface charged by the laser writing unit 40, and the laser writing unit 40 in accordance with image data. The irradiated laser beam is irradiated while being irradiated with the main scanning in the drum axis direction to form a latent image. The latent image is developed with toner by the developing unit 35, and is transferred to the sheet fed by the registration roller 23 at a predetermined timing by operating the transfer charger 30.

  The transferred sheet is peeled off from the photosensitive drum 29, is conveyed to the fixing device 31 by the conveying belt 24, is heated and fixed by the fixing device 31, and is then sent to the sheet discharging unit by the sending roller 25. At this time, the path of the sheet is selected according to the rotation position of the sheet path changing claws 32, 33, 81, and the upper discharge tray 84, the lower discharge tray 85, or the rear discharge tray 5 of the mass discharge unit 8 is selected. Discharge to one of them. Normally, one of the trays of the mass discharge unit 8 is selected, and the printed paper is discharged face down. However, in a special case such as when using a strong paper such as an envelope or a postcard. Then, the rear discharge tray 5 is selected. However, when the rear discharge tray 5 is rotated in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 1 and the discharge by the rear discharge roller 26 is not possible, the rear discharge tray 5 cannot be selected.

  When double-sided printing is selected, the sheet printed on one side is sent to the double-sided unit 6 in the table 10 by the lower transport roller 28. Then, after being fed into the reversing conveyance path 65, the conveyance direction is reversed, and the sheet is conveyed to the standby conveyance path 66 and stands by, and is fed to the main body 1 by the sheet feeding roller 76 at a predetermined timing. Similarly, printing is performed on the other side, and thereafter, the sheet is discharged to any one of the discharge trays.

[Control system configuration]
The connection relationship of the control system of this embodiment is as shown in the system block diagram of FIG. In the figure, a power supply unit 58 in the laser printer main body 1, a print engine PCB 51, a controller PCB 52, heaters and fans 54 and 55 of the fixing device 31, a double-sided unit 6 and a large-volume paper feed unit 7 in the table 10 are shown. The DPX & LCIT PCB 91 for control and the MB PCB 93 for controlling the mailbox (MB) unit 92 when the mailbox 9 is mounted are directly connected by power lines 94A, 94B, 94C, 94D and 94E, respectively. Connected.

  Further, the connection between the print engine PCB 51 and the print engine (PE) unit (including each mechanism shown in FIG. 1) 90 and the controller PCB 52 are made by connection lines 95A and 95B including a power supply line and a signal line, respectively. When the standard paper discharging unit 4 is mounted, the connection is made between the standard paper discharging unit 4 and when the large-volume paper discharging unit (LCOT) 8 is mounted, the connecting lines 95C and 95D including the power supply line and the signal line, respectively. .

The print engine PCB 51 and the DPX & LCIT PCB 91, MB PCB 93, and operation display panel PCB 94 are connected by two transmission / reception optical fiber cables 96A, 96B, 96C, respectively, and optical communication is performed between them. The transmission and reception of signals are performed by: Then, the controller PCB 52 is connected to a host system such as a computer or a word processor by a connection cable 97, and data such as image data is input from the connection cable 97.
Power is also supplied to the operation display panel PCB94 from the power supply unit 58, the print engine PCB51, or the controller PCB52 via a power supply line (not shown). Each of the print engine PCB 51, the controller PCB 52, the LCOT 8, the DPX & LCIT PCB 91, the MB PCB 93, and the operation display panel PCB 94 has a micro computer which controls the control of each unit.

[Connection status of load, sensor, etc. to each PCB]
Next, the connection between the print engine PCB and each of the other PCBs and the connection state of each PCB and its various loads, sensors, and the like in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

First, the power supply unit 58 rectifies and steps down the voltage supplied from the commercial AC power supply 174 to output the voltages V _CC , V _LG1 , V _LG2 and V _DRV , and outputs these output voltages to the print engine PCB 51 respectively. , The controller PCB 52, the DPX & LCIT PCB 91 and the MB PCB 93. The output voltage of V _DRV is supplied to the print engine PCB 51 via an interlock switch (not shown). Further, a voltage switching circuit is provided in the power supply unit 58, and supplies a voltage of V _DRY during printing and a voltage of V _LG1 lower than V _DRY during standby to the main fan 55 and the PCB pack fan 54 through this circuit. The fan speed is changed during printing and during standby.

  The print engine PCB 51 is connected to the DPX & LCIT PCB 91, MB PCB 93, and operation display panel PCB 94 by the optical fiber cables 96A, 96B, 96C, respectively, as described above. As shown in FIG. 4, this connection is performed by each serial interface port SIF of the communication control interface circuit (CCI) 150 in the print engine PCB 51, the CPU 152 in the PCB 91, the CPU 157 in the PCB 93, and the illustration in the operation display panel PCB 94. The connection is made by connecting an optical communication line via an optical fiber cable to each serial interface port SIF of the CPU that does not.

In the print engine PCB 51, a drum counter (non-volatile memory NVRAM or E ² PROM) controlled by the CPU 142 and a power control circuit for controlling the emission power of the semiconductor laser 41 are provided. A drive circuit of the semiconductor laser 41 having the monitoring photodiode PD is connected to the video control circuit 149 directly and via the power control circuit 200. The video control circuit 149 controls the laser diode LD by the modulation signal VIDEO according to the image data while controlling the light emission luminance of the laser diode LD by the semiconductor laser drive circuit to be constant by the power control circuit using the feedback signal from the photodiode PD. The light is turned on and off, and the writing of print data to the photosensitive drum 29 by the laser writing unit 40 shown in FIG. 1 is controlled. A synchronization detection signal DETP obtained by shaping the waveform of a detection signal of a photodetector that receives the reflected light from the polygon mirror 44 before writing is also input to the video control circuit 149 to regulate the write start magnetism.

  Further, the print engine PCB 51 detects each component in the large-volume paper discharge unit (LCOT) 8, that is, a job separation motor 210 for moving each paper discharge tray to the left and right, and detects the left and right positions of each paper discharge tray. A sensor, a plunger for driving the sheet path changing claw 81 to select the upper and lower discharge trays, a lower exit switch, an upper exit switch, and overflow sensors for the upper, lower, and lower discharge trays are connected.

  The DPX & LCIT PCB 91 includes a clutch 219 for double-sided conveyance, a double-sided drive motor 73, a double-sided entrance sensor 71, a double-sided exit sensor 72, a plunger 67 </ b> P for driving the paper path changing claw 67, and a feed clutch 220 for LCIT below. Drive motor 77, paper size sensor 221, vertical motor 222 for paper stack, cover open switch 223, upper limit switch 224, lower limit switch 225, paper end sensor 226, tray lowering switch 227, and double-sided cover open switch 228 are connected.

  The mailbox PCB 93 includes a transport motor 230, a bin paper absence sensor 231, a bin overflow sensor 232, a mailbox entry sensor 233, a plunger for selecting each bin, and a job separation motor for moving each bin left and right. 240, a left end switch 241 and a right end switch 242 for detecting the left / right position of each bin are connected.

The controller PCB 52 is connected to the CPU 142 and the video control circuit 149 in the print engine PCB 51 by a number of signal lines, respectively, and is also connected to the font cartridges 12 and 13 and the emulation card 14. Further, a voltage of V _CC is supplied to the operation display panel PCB94.

[Mail box (MB) PCB]
FIG. 5 is a system block diagram showing details of the MB / PCB 93. The MB / PCB 93 includes a CPU 157, an address latch circuit 161, a ROM 162 as a program memory, a RAM 163 as a data memory, an extended I / O 164, a driver / receiver 165, and a communication control interface circuit 166.

  The mail box 9 according to this embodiment has 1 to 9 bins, and the 10th bin is a general (common) discharge unit. The nine bins # 1 to # 9 are provided with bin plungers 235 # 1 to # 9 including a lock plunger and a branch claw plunger, overflow sensors 232 # 1 to # 9, and bin paper absence sensors 231 # 1 to # 9, respectively. Have been. In addition, the MB / PCB 93 is provided with a door switch 234 and a card reader 235 for detecting the opening of a door provided for removing paper jam in addition to the transport motor 230 and the feed-in sensor 233 described above. Further, an operation display unit 200a including a display unit 200a for displaying a jam, overflow of each bin and other information, and an operation unit 200b for releasing a bin lock, inputting an ID code, and performing other input operations is also connected. I have. Note that the bin paper absence sensor 231 and the bin overflow sensor 232 in FIG. 4 are a common paper absence sensor of the 10th bin (# 10 bin) in addition to the first to ninth bins (# 1 to # 9 bin). It includes a bin overflow sensor.

  The interface circuit 166 of the MB / PCB 93 may be connected to the controller PCB 52 and the host computer. However, considering the system configuration, it is better to interface with the print engine and configure the mailbox as a part of the laser printer. Since the print engine can cover everything from the input to the output of the paper to be printed, it is generally preferable.

[Overall control of printer]
FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the overall control procedure of the printer. In the figure, first, after the power is turned on, initialization of each state, that is, system initialization is performed (step S1), a subroutine of an engine status check module is executed, and the print engine itself such as a print engine maintenance request or an error is generated. Is checked (step S2), and the subroutine of the engine-controller interface module is executed to check the interface control between the print engine and the controller (step S3).

  Further, in step S4, a subroutine of the engine-option interface module is executed, interface control of a device optionally connected to the print engine is executed, and in step S5, sequence control such as paper passing timing and high voltage on / off is performed. Execute the subroutine of the module to be executed. When the processing in step S5 ends, the process returns to step S2, and the processing in step S2 and thereafter is repeated.

  On the other hand, it has a module for interrupt processing for performing each processing independently of the main sequence shown in FIG. 6, and enters this routine every predetermined time set by the print engine CPU 142 to perform necessary processing. It has become. That is, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 7, in the interrupt processing routine, first, in step S21, the presence or absence of an interrupt check is determined. The interrupt processing is executed (step S22), and the process returns.

[Check the number of mailboxes]
In this embodiment, the mail box 9 has nine bins # 1 to # 9. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure for checking the number of sheets discharged to the N-th bin, that is, the N bin. Show. In this process, first, it is checked in step S31 whether the discharge to the Nth mailbox has been completed, and if completed, the process returns. If not completed, the process returns to step S32. The counter of the (Nth bin) is incremented, and a value (CNT @ EJ MAX-CNT @ EJ N) obtained by subtracting the value of the counter from the maximum dischargeable number of sheets in that bin (CNT @ EJ N) is used as the remaining paper ejection. The number is stored as a possible number (CNT @ EJ OFFSET), the content is displayed, and / or transmitted to a controller (controller PCB 52, hereinafter the same).

  In this case, the remaining sheet capacity can be changed by allowing the maximum number of dischargeable sheets, in other words, the capacity to be arbitrarily set to (CNT 設定 EJN).

[Mailbox reset check]
When the paper is discharged to the mail box 9, the paper discharge capacity changes because the paper thickness changes depending on the paper type. Therefore, if a paper cassette of another paper type is inserted and the discharge capacity is changed while paper is present in the bin of the selected mailbox 9, an incorrect value is obtained. It is determined whether or not there is. The processing at this time, that is, the processing procedure of the reset check of the mailbox 9 is shown in the flowchart of FIG. In this process, first, in step S41, it is determined whether there is a sheet in the Nth bin of the mail box 9. If there is no sheet, the process returns as it is. If there is a sheet, the Nth bin of the mailbox 9 is checked in step S42. And resets the number-of-sheets-counter (CNT @ EJN) of paper ejected to the printer.

[Mailbox dischargeable capacity setting processing]
When paper is discharged to the mailbox in the same manner as the reset check of the mailbox, the paper discharge capacity changes because the paper thickness changes depending on the paper type. Therefore, it is necessary to set the dischargeable capacity according to the paper type. FIG. 10 shows a processing procedure corresponding to this. FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure for setting a dischargeable capacity of a mailbox.

  In this process, first, it is checked whether or not a paper cassette capable of detecting a paper type is mounted (step S51). If it is not mounted, the process returns. If it is mounted, the mailbox selected in step S52 is returned. Check if bin 9 is out of paper. If it is determined that there is no paper in this check, the paper size (paper type) in the paper cassette selected in step S53 is checked, and the maximum dischargeable capacity of the paper type stored in the newly mounted paper cassette is determined. Set.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S52 that there is paper in the selected mailbox 9, the paper size of the paper cassette replaced in step S54 and the paper size (paper type) of the previous paper cassette are compared. Proceeding to step S53, the maximum dischargeable capacity of the bin #N of the selected mailbox 9 is set, and if not the same, the paper stored in the bin #N selected by the mailbox 9 in step S55. The process returns with a warning to remove the paper, and does not set a new paper discharge capacity until the paper is removed.

[Mailbox check processing]
The state of paper discharge to the mail box 9 differs depending on whether the bin of the mail box 9 is full and the paper cannot be discharged, that is, whether the mail box 9 overflows. FIG. 11 and FIG. 12 are flowcharts showing the processing procedure at that time.

  That is, in the processing procedure in the flowchart of FIG. 11, first, it is checked whether or not the bin #N of the currently selected mailbox 9 has overflowed (step S61). The paper is discharged to the mouth as usual and discharged to the bin #N of the selected mailbox 9 (step S62). If it overflows, the paper discharge port is switched to the free box # 10 and the free box is switched to the free box # 10. The sheet is discharged (step S63). If the bin #N of the selected mailbox 9 is no longer in the overflow state, the discharge port is switched to the bin #N of the original mailbox 9 by following the procedure from step S61 to step S62.

  On the other hand, in the processing procedure in the flowchart of FIG. 12, first, it is checked whether or not the bin #N of the currently selected mailbox 9 overflows (step S71). The paper is discharged from the mouth to the bin #N of the normally selected mailbox 9 (step S72). If it overflows, the mailbox is set to the unusable state (printing disabled state). Tell (step S73). If the bin #N of the selected mailbox 9 is no longer in the overflow state, the discharge port is switched to the bin #N of the original mailbox 9 by following the procedure from step S71 to step S72.

[Print start request check processing]
The print start request check is processing when a print request command is input from a port by a command from a controller by a serial communication or a hardware signal as shown in the flowcharts of FIGS. 13 and 14, and is shown in the flowchart of FIG. In the processing procedure, when a print request signal is received in step S81, the process of the mailbox check 1, that is, the process of the flowchart shown in FIG. 11 is executed in step S82.

  In the processing shown in the flowchart of FIG. 14, when the print request signal is received in step S91, the processing of the mailbox check 2, that is, the processing of the flowchart shown in FIG. 12, is executed in step S92.

[Mode selection processing]
In the processing of the mailbox check 1 and 2 shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the mode of discharging the paper to the free box # 10 when the bin #N of the selected mailbox 9 overflows, and selecting any bin. There are two modes, that is, a mode in which warning information is transmitted to the controller in a state that paper is not allowed to be discharged, and in order to select either of these two modes and to perform control according to the user's request, the free box # 10 is set. Whether or not to select automatically is defined in this process. That is, it is set so that the print request check 1 or 2 can be selected according to the status via the serial communication from the controller, the value of the input port by the dip switch, and the like, and as shown in the flowchart of FIG. It is determined whether or not the free box automatic selection mode has been selected. If the automatic selection mode has not been selected, the print request check 1 subroutine is executed in step S102. If the automatic selection mode has been selected, printing is performed in step S103. The request check 2 subroutine is executed.

  Thus, if any bin of the mailbox 9 overflows while the free box automatic selection mode is selected, the paper is discharged to the free box # 10 in step S63, and the free box automatic selection mode is selected. If any of the bins of the mail box 9 overflows when not, the use of the mail box 9 is disabled in step S73 and a message to that effect is sent to the controller. Mode control can be performed by such control. The selection of the free box automatic selection mode is performed by giving an instruction with a selection key (not shown) of the operation unit.

[Mailbox discharge availability processing]
When the mail box 9 is connected to the laser printer main body 1, the mail box 9 is frequently used as a paper discharge place for personal management of the network printer, and is not used by another user due to some trouble in the processing of one user. If printing cannot be started, use by other users will be hindered. In order to avoid this as much as possible, a process as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 16 is executed.

  In this process, first, in step S111, it is confirmed whether or not there is a job start request from a command such as serial communication from the controller. Here, one job refers to data on the total number of sheets sent by the user from the host. In this case, it is assumed that the printer has a communication protocol for giving the total number of one job as information to the print engine before starting printing. Therefore, if the job start request is confirmed in step S111, the number of prints of one job is compared with the maximum dischargeable capacity of the bin #N of the mailbox 9 selected as the discharge port in step S112. . If the number of prints in one job is larger than the maximum discharge capacity, the print engine transmits to the controller or the host by serial communication that printing is not possible (step S113). If it is smaller than the paper discharge capacity, the print engine transmits to the controller or the host that printing is possible by serial communication (step S114).

  As a result, if printing is not possible, the controller side or the host side can notify that fact and inform the information of the busy discharge location or the emergency change discharge location using a display device or the like. It can be processed to promptly cancel the state. As a result, it is possible to minimize the situation in which another user becomes unusable. Each of the above controls is executed in accordance with a control program set in the CPUs 142, 152, and 157 provided in each unit.

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating an internal structure of an image forming unit in the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating a configuration of the entire image forming apparatus in which a personal management sheet discharging unit is added to the image forming unit of FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is a system block diagram illustrating a connection relationship of a control system of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a connection state between a print engine PCB and another PCB according to the embodiment. FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a connection state of each unit to a mailbox PCB according to the embodiment. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an overall control procedure of the printer according to the embodiment. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an interrupt control procedure in the embodiment. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a processing procedure of a routine for checking the number of bins selected in a mailbox in the embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the processing procedure of the reset check routine of the selected bin of the mailbox in an Example. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a processing procedure of a routine for setting a dischargeable capacity to a selected bin of a mailbox in the embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the process procedure of the mailbox check 1 which is a process at the time of the overflow of the selected bin of a mailbox in an Example. It is a flowchart which shows the process procedure of the mailbox check 2 which is a process at the time of the overflow of the selected bin of a mailbox in an Example. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a processing procedure at the time of a print request (print request 1) in the embodiment. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a processing procedure at the time of a print request (print request 2) in the embodiment. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a processing procedure for setting a mode for automatically selecting a free box in the embodiment. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a processing procedure of a dischargeable capacity setting routine for a bin selected in a mailbox in the embodiment.

Explanation of reference numerals

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Laser printer main body 2 Upper paper feed cassette 3 Lower paper feed cassette 7 Large-volume paper feed unit 9 Mail box 10 Table 11 Operation display panel 51 Print engine PCB
52 Controller PCB
58 Power supply unit 90 Print engine (PE) unit 91 DPX & LCIT / PCB
92 Mailbox (MB) Unit 93 Mailbox (MB) PCB
94 Operation display panel PCB
142, 152, 157 CPU
221 Paper size sensor 230 Transport motor 231 Bin paper out sensor 232 Bin overflow sensor 233 Mailbox entrance sensor (feed-in sensor)
240 Job separation motor 241 Left end switch 242 Right end switch #N Selected bin in mailbox

Claims (5)

In an image forming apparatus having an image forming unit provided with a paper discharge unit for personal management,
When at least one of the bins of the personal management discharge means overflows and cannot be discharged any more, information is temporarily stored in either the controller or the host, and the personal management discharge means side or the user's host side. An image forming apparatus provided with means for notifying that at least one of the information has not yet been output.   When a bin from which paper has been removed occurs in the bin of the paper discharge unit for personal management, the apparatus further comprises means for automatically printing out the stored information and discharging the paper to the removed bin. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1. In an image forming apparatus having an image forming unit provided with a paper discharge unit for personal management,
Common paper ejection means,
Means for causing the common paper discharging means to discharge paper when at least one bin of the personal management paper discharging means overflows and cannot be further discharged;
An image forming apparatus comprising: In an image forming apparatus having an image forming unit provided with a paper discharge unit for personal management,
Common paper ejection means,
When the bin in the paper discharge unit for personal management overflows and cannot be discharged any more, the information is temporarily stored in either the controller or the host, and is output to the personal paper discharge device side or the user. Means for notifying at least one of the hosts that there is information that has not yet been output;
When the bin being discharged by the personal management discharge unit overflows and cannot be discharged anymore, a mode for discharging to the common discharge unit or a unit for notifying that there is information that has not been output yet Means for presetting one of the modes to be notified by
An image forming apparatus comprising: In an image forming apparatus having an image forming unit provided with a paper discharge unit for personal management,
Means for detecting a discharge amount that can be output to the paper discharge means for personal management;
If the discharge amount to be discharged is larger than the discharge amount detected by the detecting means, the controller or the host is instructed to remove the paper remaining in the discharge bin. Means,
An image forming apparatus comprising:

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