JP2006011231A - Image forming apparatus and image forming method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming apparatus capable of significantly contributing to the investigation of the cause of the occurrence of errors. <P>SOLUTION: The image forming apparatus is equipped with a mode-setting part 11 to set an image forming processing mode, an error detection part 12 to detect whether the error has occured in the midst of image forming processing, based on the processing mode set by the mode setting part 11, and a control part 13 to store error history information including the image forming processing mode applied, when the error occurs and the content of the error in a storage medium 14, when the error detecting part 12 detects the occurrence of the error. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, and a facsimile machine, and an image forming method.

  In an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, paper is supplied from a tray mounted in the apparatus and conveyed, and after an image is recorded on the paper being conveyed, the image-recorded paper is discharged outside the apparatus. Yes. When such an image forming process is performed, an error such as a jam (paper jam) may occur on the paper being conveyed. When a jam error actually occurs, the jammed paper that caused the jam error can be removed by the user himself. Therefore, after recovering from the jam error, no trace of the error remains in the apparatus. Therefore, a service person who is in charge of maintenance, inspection, etc. of the apparatus cannot know in what situation the error has occurred unless it receives an explanation from the user about the error occurrence status.

  In relation to the occurrence of an error, conventionally, when an error occurs during image forming processing, as shown in FIG. 7, the number of occurrences (accumulated) of errors counted for each error content is left as history information. It has been known. In Patent Document 1 below, when an error such as a jam occurs in the image forming apparatus, history information such as an image control voltage value is reported to the management apparatus and stored together with the date and number of occurrences of the error. It is described. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-228561 describes that each time an error occurs in the image forming apparatus, history information is stored that includes the total number of printed sheets and the total operation time up to the point of occurrence of the abnormality. .

JP 2000-253199 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-142969

  However, in the past, since it is impossible to accurately grasp how the image forming apparatus is used at the customer site, history information as described in the above cited references 1 and 2 is left. However, it was very difficult to find out the cause of the error from this history information.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is that it provides an image forming apparatus that can greatly contribute to the investigation of the cause of error occurrence.

  An image forming apparatus according to the present invention is applied when an error occurs when an error is detected by the error detecting unit that detects whether or not an error has occurred during image forming processing. And storage means for storing error history information including the image forming processing mode and the content of the error in a storage medium.

  In the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, when the error detection unit detects the occurrence of an error during the image forming process, error history information including the image forming processing mode applied at the time of the error and the content of the error Is stored in the storage medium by the storage means. Thereby, it is possible to examine the causal relationship between the occurrence of an error and the processing mode from the error history information stored in the storage medium.

  According to the present invention, by storing error history information in association with a processing mode when an error occurs, the causal relationship between the occurrence of an error and the processing mode can be examined using this error history information. Therefore, it can greatly contribute to investigation of the cause of error occurrence.

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

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of an image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The illustrated image forming apparatus 10 includes a mode setting unit 11, an error detection unit 12, a control unit 13, a storage medium 14, and an output unit 15.

  The mode setting unit 10 sets an image forming processing mode in accordance with a user input operation using an operation panel, for example, when the image forming apparatus 10 performs an image forming process. Processing modes to be set include a paper feed setting mode, an image quality setting mode, a color setting mode, a duplex setting mode, a discharge setting mode, and the like.

  The paper feed setting mode is a mode for setting a tray for storing paper that is actually fed in performing the image forming process, a paper size, a paper quality, and the like. The image forming apparatus 10 has a plurality of trays, and these trays are distinguished by numbers. The paper size is distinguished for each standard size. The paper quality is classified into plain paper (thin paper), thick paper, translucent paper (tracing paper, etc.), and transparent paper (OHP sheet, etc.).

  The image quality setting mode is a mode for setting the resolution of the image to be formed (transferred) on the paper, the number of gradations (binary / multivalued), the screen processing method, and the like. The resolution of the image is distinguished by the number of dots per unit length in the main scanning direction and the sub-scanning direction. The number of gradations of the image is distinguished by the number of bits (1 bit / 8 bit) of the image signal. Screen processing methods are distinguished by numbers. The color setting mode is a mode for setting whether an image to be formed (transferred) on a sheet is a color image or a monochrome image.

  The duplex setting mode is a mode for setting whether to form an image on one side of a sheet or to form an image on both sides of a sheet. The discharge setting mode is a mode for setting the discharge destination (center tray, side tray, finisher, etc.) of the paper subjected to the image forming process, the presence / absence of post-processing (staple processing, etc.), and the like.

  The error detection unit 12 detects whether or not an error has occurred during the image forming process. When the error is actually detected, the error detection unit 12 notifies the control unit 13 of the detection result (including the error content). Is. Here, as an example of the error content to be detected, a jam (paper jam) error that occurs during the conveyance of the paper is illustrated, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the toner and the carrier are mixed in the housing of the developing device. Other errors such as an error that causes the toner amount to become abnormal may be detected.

  The control unit 13 controls the overall processing operation (printing operation and the like) of the entire image forming apparatus 1. Specific processing contents executed by the control unit 13 will be described in detail later.

  The storage medium 14 is incorporated in the apparatus main body in order to store and hold various data, and is constituted by a magnetic disk such as a hard disk or an optical disk, for example. This storage medium 14 is used when storing error history information described later.

  The output unit 15 outputs various types of information for which an output instruction has been given from the control unit 13 using a display function, a print function, or a data transmission function.

  Next, the processing procedure of the image forming apparatus 10 according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. First, when an image forming process is actually performed, an image forming process mode is set by the mode setting unit 11 prior to this (step S11).

  Here, as a specific example of mode setting, regarding the paper feed setting mode, the tray number is set to “1”, the paper size is set to “A4L”, and the paper quality is set to “thick paper”. It is assumed that the resolution is set to “1200 dpi × 1200 dpi”, the number of gradations is “1 bit (binary)”, and the screen processing method number is set to “0”. In addition, the color setting mode is set to “color” mode in which the image to be formed (transferred) on the paper is a color image, and the duplex setting mode is set to “single side” mode in which an image is formed on one side of the paper. The discharge setting mode is set to the “center tray” mode in which the paper discharge destination is the center tray. By the way, “A4L” size paper means A4 standard size (297mm × 210mm) paper that is transported with its long side facing in the transport direction. When rotated 90 degrees in this direction, “A4S” size paper A sheet, that is, a sheet conveyed with its short side facing in the conveying direction.

  Next, the control unit 13 starts image forming processing according to the processing mode set in step S11 (step S12). Next, the control unit 13 confirms whether or not the error detection unit 12 has detected the occurrence of an error (step S13). If the error detection unit 12 has not detected the occurrence of an error, the process proceeds to step S16. When the error detection unit 12 detects the occurrence of an error, the content of the error notified from the error detection unit 12 is captured (step S14).

  Subsequently, the control unit 13 stores, in the storage medium 14, error history information including the processing mode applied at the time of error occurrence (the processing mode set in step S11) and the content of the error captured in the previous step S14. (Step S15). For example, when the processing mode is set as in the above specific example, error history information as shown in FIG. 3A including the date of occurrence of the error is stored in the storage medium 14. In the illustrated error history information, the date when an error actually occurred (error occurrence date), the content of the error, and the processing mode applied when the error occurred are stored in association with each other. Next, the control unit 13 confirms whether or not the image forming process has been completed (step S16). If the image forming process has not been completed, the process returns to step S13. If the image forming process has been completed, the series of processes is terminated at that point.

  By repeatedly performing the above processing, new error history information is sequentially added and stored in the storage medium 14 each time an error occurs. For this reason, for example, when the number of occurrences of errors in the image forming apparatus 10 reaches three, three error history information is stored in the storage medium 14 as shown in FIG.

  When referring to error history information stored in the storage medium 14, a request code for requesting output of error history information is input from an operation panel or the like. Then, in response to the input request code, the control unit 13 reads the error history information in the storage medium 14 and gives an output instruction for the error history information to the output unit 15. Accordingly, the error history information is output as visible information to a monitor or a sheet by the display function, printing function, or data transmission function provided in the output unit 15.

  As described above, in the image processing apparatus 10 according to the first embodiment, when the error detection unit 12 detects the occurrence of an error, the image forming processing mode applied at the time of the error and the content of the error are displayed. The error history information is stored in the storage medium 14. For this reason, at the time of maintenance and inspection of the apparatus, the service person refers to the error history information stored in the storage medium 14, and what kind of error occurs in what processing mode is applied. It is possible to accurately grasp whether it is easy to do. As a result, the cause-and-effect relationship between the occurrence of an error and the processing mode can be examined for the image forming apparatus 10, which can greatly contribute to the investigation of the cause of the error.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of an image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The illustrated image forming apparatus 20 includes a mode setting unit 21, a counter group 22, an error detection unit 23, a control unit 24, a storage medium 25, and an output unit 25.

  The mode setting unit 21 has the same function as the mode setting unit 11 of the first embodiment, and the error detection unit 23 has the same function as the error detection unit 12 of the first embodiment. The control unit 24 has the same function as that of the control unit 13 of the first embodiment, the storage medium 25 has the same function as the storage medium 14 of the first embodiment, and the output unit 26 has the above function. It has the same function as the output unit 15 of one embodiment. However, the content of the error history information stored in the storage medium 25 by the control unit 24 is different from that in the first embodiment.

  The counter group 22 is composed of a plurality of integration counters that count the number of processed sheets subjected to image forming processing for each processing mode. Each integration counter is individually assigned a processing mode. When the image forming process is actually performed according to the processing mode set by the mode setting unit 21, the value of the integration counter corresponding to the processing mode is incremented by 1 every time one sheet is processed. The

  The processing mode is classified by at least one of the items of paper size, color setting, and paper quality. For example, if the processing mode is classified by the paper size (standard size), the counter group 22 is provided with a plurality of stacking counters corresponding to the respective paper sizes. In other words, assuming that there are four types of paper sizes A4L, A3, B4, and A4S handled by the image forming apparatus 20, four integration counters are provided so as to have a 1: 1 correspondence relationship therewith. Further, assuming that the processing modes are classified by color settings and there are three types of color settings, black and white, two-color, and full-color (four-color), there is a 1: 1 correspondence with this. Are provided with three integration counters. Assuming that the processing mode is classified according to the paper quality of the paper, and the paper quality handled by the image forming apparatus 20 is three types of plain paper, thick paper, and translucent paper, this corresponds to a 1: 1 correspondence relationship. Thus, three integration counters are provided.

  Further, when the processing mode is divided by combining a plurality of these items, the counter group 22 is provided with a plurality of integration counters corresponding to the multiplication of the number of integration counters required in each processing mode. For example, when the processing mode is classified by combining the paper size and the color setting, four integration counters for each paper size and three integration counters for each color setting are required, so a total of 12 integration counters are required. Is provided. Further, when the processing mode is classified by combining the paper size, color setting, and paper quality, three integration counters are required for each paper quality, so a total of 36 integration counters are provided.

  Incidentally, in the present embodiment, as a specific example, the processing mode is classified by combining the paper size and the color setting. In addition, there are four types of paper sizes A4L, A3, B4, and A4S, and color settings are two types of black and white and full color. In this case, the counter group 22 is provided with a total of eight integration counters.

  Next, the processing procedure of the image forming apparatus 20 according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. First, when an image forming process is actually performed, an image forming processing mode is set by the mode setting unit 21 prior to this (step S21). Here, as a specific example of the mode setting, it is assumed that the paper size is set to A4L and the color setting is set to full color. Next, the control unit 24 starts image forming processing in accordance with the processing mode set in step S21 (step S22).

  Next, the control unit 24 confirms whether or not an error has been detected by the error detection unit 23 (step S23). If the error detection unit 23 has not detected the occurrence of an error, the process proceeds to step S27. When the error detection unit 23 detects the occurrence of an error, the error notification notified from the error detection unit 23 is fetched (step S24). Next, the control unit 24 individually reads the count values of all the integration counters provided in the counter group 22 (Step S25). In this case, the count value of each cumulative counter indicates the total number of processed sheets that have undergone image forming processing in the processing mode assigned to each.

  Subsequently, the control unit 24 stores, in the storage medium 25, error history information including the content of the error fetched in the previous step S24 and the count value of each cumulative counter read in the previous step S25 (step S26). FIG. 6A shows a storage example of error history information. In the illustrated error history information, the content of an error that actually occurred and the count value of each counter read when the error occurred are stored in association with each other.

  Next, the control unit 24 confirms whether or not the image forming process for one sheet has been completed (step S27), and confirms the completion of the process for one sheet, and then enters the processing mode set at that time. The count value of the corresponding integration counter is incremented by 1 (step S28). As a result, the value of the integration counter corresponding to the processing mode set in the previous step S21 is sequentially added according to the number of processed sheets of paper on which image forming processing has actually been performed. In this embodiment, since it is assumed that the paper size is set to A4L and the color setting is set to full color, the value of the integration counter corresponding to this processing mode is set every time one sheet is processed by the image forming process. Incremented by 1. Therefore, when the total number of processed sheets from the start to the end of the image forming process is 5, the value of the integration counter corresponding to the processing mode applied in this image forming process is increased by five.

  Thereafter, the control unit 24 checks whether or not the image forming process for all the sheets has been completed (step S29). If the image forming process for all the sheets has not been completed, the process returns to step S23. If the image forming process for all the sheets has been completed, the series of processes is completed at that time. Incidentally, the total number of sheets means an amount corresponding to the number of processed sheets (number of copies, number of prints, etc.) set by the user on the operation panel or the like.

  By repeatedly performing the above processing, new error history information is sequentially added and stored in the storage medium 25 every time an error occurs. Therefore, for example, when the number of occurrences of errors in the image forming apparatus 20 reaches three, three error history information is stored in the storage medium 25 as shown in FIG.

  When referring to error history information stored in the storage medium 24, a request code for requesting output of error history information is input from an operation panel or the like. Then, in response to the input request code, the control unit 24 reads the error history information in the storage medium 25 and gives an output instruction for the error history information to the output unit 26. Accordingly, the error history information is output as visible information to a monitor or a sheet by the display function, printing function, or data transmission function provided in the output unit 26.

  As described above, in the image forming apparatus 20 according to the second embodiment, when the occurrence of an error is detected by the error detection unit 23, the count values of a plurality of counters provided in the counter group 22 are read and this reading is performed. In addition, error history information including the count value of each counter and the content of the error is stored in the storage medium 25. For this reason, during maintenance and inspection of the apparatus, the service person refers to the error history information stored in the storage medium 25, and under what circumstances the image forming apparatus 20 is used until the error occurs. In addition, it is possible to accurately grasp what kind of error is likely to occur when the image forming apparatus 20 is used in any situation. As a result, it becomes possible to examine the causal relationship between the occurrence of an error and the processing mode for the image forming apparatus 20, and can greatly contribute to the investigation of the cause of the error.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of an image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention. 3 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of the image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the error history information stored by the image forming apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structural example of the image forming apparatus which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a processing procedure of an image forming apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the error log information stored by the image forming apparatus which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure explaining an example of a prior art.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10,20 ... Image forming apparatus, 11, 21 ... Mode setting part, 12, 23 ... Error detection part, 13, 24 ... Control part, 14, 25 ... Storage medium, 15, 26 ... Output part, 22 ... Counter group

Claims (5)

Error detection means for detecting whether an error has occurred during the image forming process;
Storage means for storing, in a storage medium, error history information including an image formation processing mode applied at the time of error occurrence and the content of the error when the error detection means detects the occurrence of an error. An image forming apparatus. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processing mode includes at least one of a paper feed setting mode, an image quality setting mode, a color setting mode, a duplex setting mode, and a discharge setting mode. . Error detection means for detecting whether an error has occurred during the image forming process;
A plurality of counters for counting the number of processed image forming processes for each processing mode;
When the occurrence of an error is detected by the error detection means, the count value of the plurality of counters is read, and error history information including the read count value of each counter and the content of the error is stored in a storage medium And an image forming apparatus. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the processing mode is classified by at least one of items of paper size, color setting, and paper quality. An error detection step for detecting whether an error has occurred during the image forming process;
A storage step of storing, in a storage medium, error history information including an image formation processing mode applied at the time of error occurrence and the content of the error when an error occurrence is detected in the error detection step. An image forming method.

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