JP2006030472A - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To establish new technology for shortening communication time with a plurality of non-contact ICs and simultaneously communicating with respective non-contact ICs attached to nearby interchangeable parts through respective corresponding communication antennas in an image forming apparatus on which a plurality of non-contact ICs are mounted and to establish technology for arranging the non-contact ICs of respective interchangeable parts while keeping distances to reduce interference of radio waves when a plurality of interchangeable parts are installed in limited space in the image forming apparatus. <P>SOLUTION: Non-contact ICs 74-80, 90-96 are attached to the upper parts of body side surfaces of toner cartridges 10-16 and process cartridges 66-72 which are interchangeable parts installed in the image forming apparatus so as to be alternately arranged on the depth side and the front side. Consequently the non-contact ICs 74-80, 90-96 can be simultaneously communicated with a reader/writer through respective communication antennas formed on the image forming apparatus correspondingly to the non-contact ICs 74-80, 90-96. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for using a plurality of replacement parts with non-contact ICs for information management attached in an image forming apparatus.

  In an image forming apparatus such as a copier or a printer, a replacement part that bears a part of an image forming process of a toner cartridge or a process cartridge (photosensitive drum or the like) is generally used. This replacement part is replaced with a new replacement part when the life determined according to the amount of use, usage time, and the like is reached, so that the image forming apparatus can perform high-quality image forming processing over a long period of time. Become.

  A non-contact IC for information management is often attached to the replacement part. A non-contact IC is a small device in which an IC, which is also called an IC tag, an RFID tag, a non-contact memory, a transponder or the like, and an IC are combined. Radio waves are transmitted and received between the antenna and the communication antenna of the reader / writer, thereby realizing communication with the reader / writer. In communication, various types of information such as identification information of replacement parts, manufacturing time information, model number information, and life information are read and written and used in the factory shipment stage, the distribution stage, the mounting stage on the image forming apparatus, and the like.

  In the mounting stage of the image forming apparatus, communication is usually performed with a reader / writer provided in the main body of the image forming apparatus. For this reason, the communication antenna connected to the reader / writer is installed at the position where the non-contact IC of the mounted replacement part is arranged.

  In a tandem type color image forming apparatus or the like, a plurality of single color image forming processing mechanisms such as CMYK are provided, and a color image is formed using all of them. For this reason, replacement parts such as a toner cartridge and a process cartridge are provided separately for each color. Therefore, the reader / writer provided in the main body of the image forming apparatus communicates with the non-contact IC attached to each replacement part.

  Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-228561 describes a technique regarding an image forming apparatus in which a plurality of replacement parts are provided with non-contact ICs and a plurality of antennas of a main body are switched by a switching unit. Here, one communication is performed for each non-contact IC.

JP 2002-49283 A

  The following two points can be cited as problems when communicating between the reader / writer of the main unit and a plurality of non-contact ICs. One is a problem that a plurality of non-contact ICs and a plurality of communication antennas of the main body reader / writer are brought close to non-pairs due to downsizing of an image forming apparatus including replacement parts. When communication is performed for a plurality of pairs at the same time, radio wave interference occurs, making communication difficult.

  Another problem is an increase in communication time. As the replacement parts or the performance of the main body of the image forming apparatus itself increases, the speed of image formation and the start-up time of the apparatus increase. It is required to complete. For this reason, in order to prevent interference, it takes too much time to communicate one by one for each pair as in Patent Document 1 described above. For example, when a toner cartridge and a process cartridge are mounted on a four-color image forming apparatus of CMYK, it is necessary to communicate with at least eight non-contact ICs.

  An object of the present invention is to shorten a communication time with a non-contact IC in an image forming apparatus on which a plurality of non-contact ICs are mounted.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a new image forming apparatus for mounting a plurality of replacement parts with non-contact ICs attached thereto, to simultaneously communicate with each non-contact IC of a nearby replacement part through a corresponding communication antenna. Is to establish new technology.

  Still another object of the present invention is to provide a non-contact IC for each replacement part at a distance so as to reduce radio wave interference when a plurality of replacement parts are mounted in a limited space in the image forming apparatus. It is to establish the technology to arrange.

  The image forming apparatus of the present invention performs a single color image forming process for a plurality of colors, and is provided for a main body part for forming a color image and each single color image forming process, and a non-contact IC for information management is attached. A plurality of replacement parts of the same shape, a plurality of mounting parts installed in the main body, each of which is mounted with a plurality of replacement parts, and a position corresponding to the position of the non-contact IC when each replacement part is mounted. A plurality of communication antennas that are installed and communicate with the corresponding non-contact IC, and the installation position of the mounting portion or the mounting position of the non-contact IC is closely attached to the mounting portion, and the non-contact IC is replaced. The distance between adjacent non-contact ICs is set to be increased as compared with the case where the parts are attached to the same part.

  This image forming apparatus is an apparatus for forming a color image on paper (including a resin sheet or the like). As an image forming method, an electrophotographic method is typically used, but another format such as an ink jet method may be adopted. In general, image formation is performed by cooperation of a main body configured using a single casing and a replacement part mounted on the main body.

  Replacement parts are prepared for the number of colors necessary for color processing, and are mounted on mounting portions provided at predetermined positions of the main body. At least one non-contact IC is attached to each replacement part. The non-contact IC is a small device that is used by inputting / outputting information of attached replacement parts. When the replacement part is mounted on the mounting portion, communication is performed with a corresponding communication antenna provided on the main body portion.

  The position of the nearby mounting part, or the mounting position of the non-contact IC to the replacement part mounted on the nearby mounting part closes the nearby mounting part and attaches the non-contact IC to the same part of the replacement part. The distance between the non-contact ICs is adjusted to be larger than that in the case where the contact is made. As a result, when non-contact ICs of replacement parts mounted on nearby mounting parts are simultaneously communicated using corresponding communication antennas, mutual interference of radio waves is reduced and the communication state is kept good. Is possible. The neighborhood is used as a word indicating a relatively close range, and typically represents a range of objects arranged next to each other. The specific distance can vary depending on the size of the replacement part, the arrangement interval, and the like.

  Preferably, the image forming apparatus according to the present invention further includes a simultaneous communication unit that performs simultaneous communication using a plurality of corresponding communication antennas with respect to the non-contact IC attached to all the replacement parts attached to the attachment unit. Since the mutual interference of radio waves is reduced by setting the distance between non-contact ICs of nearby replacement parts, even when all non-contact IC and communication antenna pairs are performed at the same time, a good communication state is ensured. be able to.

  The image forming apparatus of the present invention performs a single color image forming process for a plurality of colors, and is provided for a main body for forming a color image and a single color image forming process, and a non-contact IC for information management is attached. A plurality of replacement parts of the same shape, a plurality of mounting parts installed in the main body, each of which is mounted with a plurality of replacement parts, and a main body corresponding to the position of the non-contact IC when each replacement part is mounted A plurality of communication antennas that communicate with corresponding non-contact ICs, and the non-contact ICs of each replacement part mounted on a nearby mounting part are at different relative positions on the replacement part. It may be attached at a position where the distance between the non-contact ICs becomes larger than when attached at the same relative position.

  In general, the position of the mounting portion is determined at a place where the image forming process can be efficiently performed. Therefore, it may be difficult to move the position of the mounting portion in order to adjust the distance between the non-contact ICs. On the other hand, the attachment position of the non-contact IC in the replacement part can be adjusted relatively easily. Therefore, by attaching the non-contact IC of each replacement part mounted on the nearby mounting part to the relative position different from each other in the respective replacement part, the non-contact IC is more than the case of mounting at the same relative position as usual. The distance between them was increased. The distance required to avoid radio wave interference varies depending on the radio wave intensity and the antenna directivity, and it is particularly desirable to set the distance appropriately based on theoretical or experimental grounds.

  The non-contact IC may be attached to a nearby replacement part at a different location on the same surface or on a different surface. In these cases, it is also effective to change the installation angle of the antenna surface of the non-contact IC to reduce the interference from the radio waves accompanying the communication of the nearby non-contact IC.

  Desirably, in the image forming apparatus of the present invention, each replacement part has a long shape extending in the main scanning direction of the image forming process, and each mounting portion is installed such that the long replacement parts are mounted in parallel to each other. . As specific examples, in the case of an electrophotographic system, a toner cartridge storing toner, a process cartridge storing a photosensitive drum, and the like can be cited. These replacement parts usually have a long shape extending in the main scanning direction in image formation (in the direction of linear image processing when performing planar image formation by repeating linear processing). And the mounting part is installed so that the long-shaped replacement part of each color may be arrange | positioned mutually parallel.

  Desirably, in the image forming apparatus of the present invention, each mounting portion is installed such that each replacement part is mounted in the same plane. That is, the replacement parts are arranged in parallel in the same plane. In such an arrangement, the interval between replacement parts on both sides tends to be narrowed, and the importance of adjusting the mounting position of the non-contact IC increases.

  Desirably, in the image forming apparatus of the present invention, each non-contact IC is installed in the same wall surface of each replacement part. Advantages in the case of mounting on the same wall surface include that the mounting position of the non-contact IC can be easily grasped and that the corresponding communication antenna can be easily installed and managed.

  Desirably, in the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the non-contact IC tags in the respective replacement parts are sequentially attached while being shifted in the same direction. Desirably, in the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the non-contact IC tag in each replacement part may be alternately attached to be shifted toward different ends.

  Desirably, in the image forming apparatus of the present invention, each non-contact IC in the replacement part mounted in the vicinity is arranged on a different wall surface in the replacement part. Advantages of placing on different wall surfaces include antenna directivity that is less susceptible to radio waves from directions orthogonal to the antenna surface, etc., or adjacent non-contact ICs hidden behind metal such as replacement parts This makes it possible to suppress interference by making it difficult for radio waves to reach.

  Desirably, in the image forming apparatus of the present invention, a plurality of second replacement parts having the same shape and provided with a non-contact IC for information management, each provided for each single color image forming process, and installed in the main body A plurality of second mounting parts to which a plurality of second replacement parts are respectively mounted; a second mounting part installed in the vicinity of the mounting part; and a non-contact IC at the time of mounting each second replacement part A plurality of second communication antennas installed in the main body corresponding to the position and communicating with the corresponding non-contact IC, and each of the replacement parts to be mounted on the nearby mounting part and the second mounting part, The non-contact IC of the two replacement parts is attached at a position where the distance between the non-contact ICs is larger than the case where they are attached to the replacement part or the second replacement part at different relative positions. . Thus, it is effective not only to avoid interference between non-contact ICs of one type of replacement part, but also to avoid interference between non-contact ICs of two or more types of replacement parts. That is, it goes without saying that the above-described means can be applied to the attachment of non-contact ICs of two types of replacement parts.

  Desirably, the image forming apparatus of the present invention includes a changing mechanism for changing the attachment position of the non-contact IC to the replacement part. Examples of the change mechanism include a rotation mechanism that enables position change by rotation, a slide mechanism that enables position change by sliding, and an attachment / detachment mechanism that enables position change by attachment / detachment.

  The image forming apparatus of the present invention performs a single color image forming process for a plurality of colors, and is provided for a main body for forming a color image and each single color image forming process, and extends in the main scanning direction of the image forming process. A plurality of replacement parts having a rectangular column shape of the same shape, to which a non-contact IC for information management is attached, and a plurality of mounting parts to which the plurality of replacement parts are respectively mounted, and the square column-shaped replacement parts are mutually connected. Corresponding non-contact ICs installed in the main unit corresponding to the position of the non-contact IC at the time of mounting each replacement part, the mounting unit installed close to the main unit to be mounted in the same plane in parallel A plurality of communication antennas that communicate with each other, and the mounting portion may be installed so that adjacent replacement parts are mounted close to each other in the diagonal direction. The same type of replacement parts are often arranged closely in parallel, which is not preferable from the viewpoint of good communication of non-contact ICs. Therefore, when the replacement part has a quadrangular prism shape, the distance between the two is widened by arranging the corners on the diagonal line not to be close to each other but to be close to each other.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described. Here, an electrophotographic image forming apparatus that forms a color image based on CMYK four-color image forming processing will be described as an example.

  FIG. 1 shows a state where four toner cartridges 10, 12, 14, and 16 as replacement parts are mounted on the mounting portion of the image forming apparatus. The mounting portion and the image forming apparatus itself can be easily realized by using a conventional technique, and thus are omitted in the drawing. The toner cartridges 10, 12, 14, and 16 are arranged in parallel in the same plane with the long axial direction extending in the main scanning direction of image formation aligned. Actually, each of the toner cartridges 10 to 16 has a slightly complicated long shape. However, in FIG. 1, it is illustrated as a cylindrical shape for simplicity. Non-contact ICs 26, 28, 30, and 32 are attached to the circular surfaces 18, 20, 22, and 24 on the front side of the toner cartridges 10 to 16, respectively.

  The non-contact ICs 26 to 32 are devices in which a planar antenna and an IC (integrated circuit) chip are generally connected, and exchange information with a reader / writer through radio waves. Various types of frequency bands and driving methods (active type with built-in power supply or passive type that is supplied with driving power through radio waves) have been developed and used. It does not need to be limited and is widely available. However, for the convenience of attachment to the toner cartridges 10 to 16, a passive type that is relatively easy to downsize is convenient. Further, since the communication distance may be relatively small, it is not necessary to be a high-frequency type such as a microwave, and it is also effective to use a type that uses a frequency band of about several hundred kHz to several tens of MHz.

  The attachment positions of the non-contact ICs 26 to 32 are attached to the circular surfaces 18 to 24 that are alternately slid in the vertical direction. That is, the non-contact IC 26 is attached to the upper portion of the circular surface 18, the non-contact IC 28 is attached to the lower portion of the circular surface 20, the non-contact IC 30 is attached to the upper portion of the circular surface 22, and the non-contact IC 32 is attached to the lower portion of the circular surface 24. As a result, the distance between adjacent non-contact ICs is less than that when the toner cartridges 10 to 16 are attached to the same location (for example, the upper portions of the circular surfaces 18 to 24).

  A pair of communication antennas is attached to the proximity of each non-contact IC 26 to 32 in the main body of the image forming apparatus. Each communication antenna is connected to a reader / writer provided in the main body, and communicates with the corresponding non-contact ICs 26 to 32 through radio waves according to the control of the reader / writer. When performing communication, radio waves generally reach the surroundings. Therefore, there is a possibility that radio waves used for communication between the non-contact IC and the paired communication antenna may interfere with radio waves used for communication between a nearby non-contact IC and the paired communication antenna. However, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, good communication can be performed at the same time because the distance between adjacent non-contact ICs is set large enough to prevent interference.

  The non-contact ICs 26 to 32 do not need to be fixed at the positions illustrated here from the beginning of the attachment, but may be fixed at the positions illustrated at the stage of mounting on the mounting portion. For example, this configuration can be realized by providing a rotation mechanism on the circular surface 20 of the non-contact IC 28 in the toner cartridge 2. That is, in the shipping stage or the like, the circular surface 20 is rotated to dispose the non-contact IC 28 on the upper part of the circular surface 20, and in the attachment stage, the circular surface 20 is rotated based on the mechanism provided manually or in the mounting portion. A mode in which the contact IC 28 is disposed below the circular surface 20 can be employed. When accessing a non-contact IC in a shipping stage or a distribution stage, communication through a reader / writer may be easier if a non-contact IC is attached at the same position for similar products. Other examples of the mechanism that changes the position of the non-contact IC include a slide mechanism that slides the non-contact IC, and an attachment / detachment mechanism that is detachably attached and manually repositioned.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a modification of the present embodiment. Here, as in FIG. 1, four toner cartridges 10 to 16 are arranged in parallel, and non-contact ICs 42, 44, 46, and 48 are attached to the upper surfaces of the body side surfaces 34, 36, 38, and 40, respectively. ing. The attachment positions are sequentially slid from the back side to the front side in the drawing, so that the distance between adjacent non-contact ICs can be increased to a distance at which interference can be prevented.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing another modification of the present embodiment. Here, as in FIG. 2, non-contact ICs 50, 52, 54, and 56 are attached to the body side surfaces 34 to 40 of the four toner cartridges 10 to 16 arranged in parallel. The attachment position is set so as to be large between adjacent non-contact ICs, and will be described as follows based on the xyz axis in the figure.

  First, in the toner cartridge 10, the non-contact IC 50 is attached to the lateral side surface of the body side surface 34 on the negative y-axis side and the negative x-axis side. In the adjacent toner cartridge 12, the non-contact IC 52 is attached to the lateral side surface of the body side surface 36 on the y-axis negative direction side and the x-axis positive direction side. Further, in the toner cartridge 14, a non-contact IC 54 is attached at the same position as the toner cartridge 10, that is, on the lateral side surface on the y-axis negative direction side and the x-axis negative direction side of the body side surface 38. The toner cartridge 16 is slightly deformed from the toner cartridge 12, and a non-contact IC 56 is attached to the lateral side surface of the body side surface 40 on the y-axis positive direction side and on the x-axis positive direction side. Thereby, a sufficient distance is maintained between the non-contact ICs. In particular, a larger distance can be secured between the non-contact ICs 54 and 56 than the others.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing still another modification. Here, as in FIGS. 1 to 3, toner cartridges 10 to 16 are arranged in parallel. In adjacent toner cartridges, non-contact ICs are attached to different surfaces. That is, in the toner cartridge 10, the non-contact IC 58 is attached to the lower portion of the circular surface 18 on the front side, and in the toner cartridge 12, the non-contact IC 60 is attached to the front side of the upper surface of the body side surface 36. In the toner cartridge 14, similarly to the toner cartridge 10, a non-contact IC 62 is attached to the lower part of the circular surface 22 on the near side. In the toner cartridge 16, as in the toner cartridge 12, the non-contact IC 62 is not located on the front side on the upper surface of the body side surface 40. A contact IC 64 is attached. As a result, a distance sufficient to avoid interference is secured between adjacent toner cartridges, and interference due to antenna directivity is reduced by the orthogonality of the antenna surfaces.

  FIG. 5 shows an example in which, in addition to the toner cartridges 10 to 16, four process cartridges 66, 68, 70, and 72 as other replacement parts are arranged in parallel at the lower part thereof. For convenience of explanation, the process cartridges 66 to 72 are drawn in a cylindrical shape having substantially the same shape as that of the toner cartridges 10 to 16, but actually have different sizes and shapes from the toner cartridges 10 to 16. Further, in FIG. 5, for convenience of explanation, the toner cartridges 10 to 16 and the process cartridges 66 to 72 are depicted as being spaced apart in the vertical direction by a relatively large distance. Are close to each other, and the toner stored in the toner cartridges 10 to 16 is supplied to the process cartridges 66 to 72 and used for image forming processing.

  As for the toner cartridges 10 to 16, non-contact ICs 74, 76, 78, and 80 are alternately attached to the front side and the back side of the upper surfaces of the body side surfaces 34, 36, 38, and 40. For the process cartridges 66 to 72, non-contact ICs 90, 92, 94, and 96 are alternately attached to the back side and the near side of the upper surfaces of the body side surfaces 82, 84, 86, and 88. In the arrangement on the back side and the near side, consideration is given to the side different from the toner cartridges 10 to 16 located on the upper side. For example, regarding the process cartridge 68, the non-contact IC 92 is attached to the front side of the upper portion of the body side surface 84. In the adjacent process cartridges 66, 70 and toner cartridge 12, non-contact ICs 90, 94, 76 are attached to the back side of the upper portions of these body side surfaces 82, 86, 36.

  In this way, even when a plurality of types of replacement parts are used, the adjacent non-contact ICs can be simultaneously opened by providing a distance that does not cause interference between non-contact ICs of nearby replacement parts. Communication can be performed. It goes without saying that the arrangement of the non-contact ICs can be variously modified as illustrated in FIGS.

  Finally, another modification of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example in which the rectangular columnar toner cartridges 100, 102, 104, and 106 are arranged in parallel in the same plane with the axial directions of the rectangular columns extending in the main scanning direction of image formation aligned. Here, non-contact ICs 116, 118, 120, and 122 are attached to the center positions of the front square surfaces 108, 110, 112, and 114 corresponding to the bottom surfaces of the rectangular columns of the toner cartridges 100 to 106, respectively. For this reason, when the toner cartridges 100 to 106 are arranged in parallel with the side surfaces of the quadrangular columns in close contact, there is a possibility that radio wave interference may occur between adjacent non-contact ICs. Therefore, here, the quadrangular prisms are sequentially displaced so that the toner cartridges 100 to 106 are adjacent to each other only at the corners of one diagonal line. As a result, a distance sufficient to avoid interference is provided between adjacent non-contact ICs, and simultaneous communication is possible. This aspect can also be implemented in combination with the aspects shown in FIGS. Note that the distance necessary to avoid interference depends on the intensity of radio waves, the directivity of the antenna, and the like, and thus needs to be determined theoretically or experimentally.

It is a figure which shows the example which attached non-contact IC to the position shifted alternately in the same wall surface. It is a figure which shows the example which attached non-contact IC in the position shifted in one direction sequentially within the same wall surface. It is a figure which shows another example of the attachment aspect of non-contact IC. It is a figure which shows the example which attached the non-contact IC of the vicinity in another wall surface. It is a figure which shows the example which attached non-contact IC to the replacement | exchange part with which multilayer mounting was carried out. It is a figure which shows the example which increases the distance between non-contact ICs of square columnar replacement parts.

Explanation of symbols

  10 to 16, 100 to 106 Toner cartridge, 18 to 24 circular surface, 26 to 32, 42 to 48, 50 to 64, 74 to 80, 90 to 96, 116 to 122 non-contact IC, 34 to 40 fuselage side surface, 66 ~ 72 Process cartridge.

Claims (12)

A single-color image forming process is performed for a plurality of colors to form a color image;
A plurality of replacement parts of the same shape, each provided with a non-contact IC for information management, each provided for each monochrome image forming process,
A plurality of mounting parts installed in the main body, each of which is mounted with a plurality of replacement parts;
A plurality of communication antennas installed in the main body corresponding to the position of the non-contact IC at the time of mounting each replacement part, and communicating with the corresponding non-contact IC,
With
The installation position of the mounting part or the mounting position of the non-contact IC increases the distance between the non-contact ICs in the vicinity compared to the case where the mounting part is closely attached and the non-contact IC is mounted on the same part of the replacement part. An image forming apparatus, wherein the image forming apparatus is set so as to be arranged. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1.
An image forming apparatus comprising: a simultaneous communication unit configured to simultaneously communicate with a non-contact IC attached to all replacement parts attached to the attachment unit using a plurality of corresponding communication antennas. A single-color image forming process is performed for a plurality of colors to form a color image;
A plurality of replacement parts of the same shape, each provided with a non-contact IC for information management, each provided for each monochrome image forming process,
A plurality of mounting parts installed in the main body, each of which is mounted with a plurality of replacement parts;
A plurality of communication antennas installed in the main body corresponding to the position of the non-contact IC at the time of mounting each replacement part, and communicating with the corresponding non-contact IC,
With
The non-contact IC of each replacement part mounted on a nearby mounting part has a greater distance between the non-contact ICs than when the replacement parts are mounted at the same relative positions at different relative positions on the replacement part. An image forming apparatus attached to a position. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3.
Each replacement part has a long shape extending in the main scanning direction of the image forming process,
An image forming apparatus, wherein each mounting portion is installed such that the long replacement parts are mounted in parallel to each other. The image forming apparatus according to claim 4.
An image forming apparatus, wherein each mounting portion is installed such that each replacement part is mounted in the same plane. The image forming apparatus according to claim 5.
Each non-contact IC is installed in the same wall surface in each replacement part, The image forming apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. The image forming apparatus according to claim 6.
An image forming apparatus, wherein non-contact IC tags in respective replacement parts are sequentially shifted in the same direction. The image forming apparatus according to claim 6.
An image forming apparatus, wherein non-contact IC tags in each replacement part are alternately attached to different end portions. The image forming apparatus according to claim 4.
An image forming apparatus, wherein each non-contact IC in a replacement part mounted in the vicinity is disposed on a different wall surface of the replacement part. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3.
A plurality of second replacement parts having the same shape and provided with a non-contact IC for information management, each provided for each monochrome image forming process;
A plurality of second mounting parts installed in the main body part to which a plurality of second replacement parts are respectively mounted; a second mounting part installed in the vicinity of the mounting part;
A plurality of second communication antennas installed in the main body corresponding to the position of the non-contact IC when each second replacement part is mounted, and communicating with the corresponding non-contact IC;
With
The replacement parts and the non-contact ICs of the second replacement parts mounted on the nearby mounting part and the second mounting part are attached to the replacement part or the second replacement part at different relative positions and at the same relative position. An image forming apparatus, wherein the image forming apparatus is attached to a position where the distance between the non-contact ICs is larger than that of the case. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3.
An image forming apparatus comprising: a changing mechanism for changing a mounting position of a non-contact IC to a replacement part. A single-color image forming process is performed for a plurality of colors to form a color image;
A plurality of replacement parts provided for each single color image forming process, having a rectangular column shape of the same shape extending in the main scanning direction of the image forming process, and attached with a non-contact IC for information management,
A plurality of mounting parts to which each of the plurality of replacement parts is mounted, and a mounting part that is installed in the main body so as to be mounted in the same plane in parallel with each other in the shape of a quadrangular prism;
A plurality of communication antennas installed in the main body corresponding to the position of the non-contact IC at the time of mounting each replacement part, and communicating with the corresponding non-contact IC,
With
The image forming apparatus, wherein the mounting portion is installed such that adjacent replacement parts are mounted close to each other in the diagonal direction.

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