JP2006259393A - Simulation system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an excellent simulation system which is capable of predicting or evaluating behaviors of a system comprising a plurality of processes by simulation and makes respective processes into simulation modules and integrates simulation results from respective modules to be able to preferably perform behavioral analysis of the entire system. <P>SOLUTION: Respective processes on an actual machine are made simulation modules, and processes being bottle necks of an entire calculation time are substituted with experiments on the actual machine. An input control part and an output control part are interposed between the simulation modules and the actual machine. The input control part converts simulation results of respective simulation modules to a data format which is easily used for control of the actual machine, and the output control part converts a format of output information from the actual machine to an input format of simulation modules. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention provides a simulation apparatus that formulates or models the behavior of any physical, ecological, or social system, and simulates or predicts the behavior of the system governed by almost the same law on a computer. In particular, the present invention relates to a simulation apparatus that simulates and predicts or evaluates the behavior of a system constituted by a plurality of processes.

  More specifically, the present invention divides a system subject to behavior analysis into several processes, divides the system into simulation modules for each process, and integrates the simulation results from each module to perform behavior analysis of the entire system. In particular, the present invention relates to a simulation apparatus that eliminates the influence of a simulation module that becomes a bottleneck and obtains an integrated simulation result in a shorter calculation time.

  2. Description of the Related Art Simulations are widely used to formulate or model the behavior of any physical, ecological, or social system, and to simulate on a computer the behavior of a system that is governed by almost the same laws. By using simulation technology, the system behavior in various aspects can be predicted before actual experience, and the system can be controlled based on the obtained parameters to predict and prevent system errors. An error can be avoided by performing control.

  For example, in the field of handling particles such as powder and granules, it is necessary to grasp the behavior of particles. However, if such behavior of particles is to be grasped by trial and error experiments, it takes time and cost. There was a problem. Therefore, the behavior of particles such as powders and granules is formulated or modeled, and the behavior of the system governed by almost the same law is simulated on a computer, so that the behavior of the particles is predicted before actual experience. be able to. In addition, by changing the input conditions and parameters and repeatedly performing the same simulation calculation, it is possible to evaluate the performance of various particle compositions and apparatus design / control systems.

  As a typical example of an apparatus for handling powder, an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine or a printer using an electrophotographic technique can be cited. In this case, a toner consisting of two components, a toner as an image forming agent and a carrier made of a magnetic material for conveying the toner, is handled as an object of the powder behavior analysis, and a powder behavior analysis simulation is applied. Thus, it is possible to predict and evaluate the formed image without performing an image forming experiment.

  The main methods of powder behavior analysis are the individual element method (see Non-Patent Document 1, for example) that analyzes the behavior of each powder, and the replacement of multiple powders with fluid models that have equivalent physical properties. Analysis method.

  According to the former discrete element method, various forces acting on all particles (for example, acting force by contact such as elastic force and viscous force, external force such as van der Worth force, mirror image force, and liquid bridge force) are used. Since the equation of motion is set up and the behavior of each particle is analyzed, a more realistic evaluation can be performed. On the other hand, there is a problem that the amount of calculation increases when the number of particles handled becomes enormous. If the calculation cost is not appropriate, the latter analysis method using the fluid model is adopted as appropriate.

  The electrophotographic process includes a plurality of processes such as charging of an electrophotographic photosensitive member and exposure of a scanned original image, toner superimposition or development on an electrostatic latent image on the surface of the photosensitive member, toner transfer to a transfer member, and fixing of the transferred toner. Consists of. If the simulation of such a system is performed with a single simulator, the apparatus becomes huge and unrealistic. Therefore, for example, a simulation may be modularized for each process such as exposure / charging, development, transfer, and fixing, and the simulation result from each simulation module may be integrated to evaluate the entire image forming apparatus.

  By making a simulation module, it is possible to reduce the processing load by introducing distributed processing and to parallelize the processing for each simulation module. For example, the processing for each simulation module can be distributed by a grid computer.

  For example, it includes a plurality of simulation module systems composed of simulation calculation means for simulating the behavior of the simulation target, initial data characterizing the simulation target, and a database holding the status data of the simulation module system. There has been proposed a module-coupled simulation method that includes one or more coupling systems for performing data exchange and performs simulation (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  On the other hand, when a simulation module is created for each process, there is a cooperative relationship between modules, such as using the calculation results of one simulation module in another simulation module, so the operation of each simulation module is somewhat It is thought that it is preferable that the synchronization is achieved within the range of

  Here, when it is desired to obtain a more accurate simulation result in the development process, a detailed behavior analysis is performed using the individual element method. However, in development simulation, fine particles such as toner are handled with a very large number of particles. As a result, the simulation time for the development process is much longer than the simulation time for other processes such as exposure, charging, transfer, and fixing, and this is a bottleneck in calculation time when considered as an integrated simulation system as a whole. Emerges.

  In general, calculation load and analysis accuracy are inversely proportional. When the calculation load is so high that real-time simulation cannot be performed, it is possible to reduce the calculation load at the expense of analysis accuracy. However, in that case, it does not make sense to perform simulation calculation of the development process itself.

  For example, a distributed simulation device has been proposed that realizes real-time simulation without reducing analysis accuracy by reducing the load associated with the exchange of scheduling information by performing message communication on a network-type shared memory. (For example, refer to Patent Document 2), it does not directly solve the problem of calculation time of a simulation module that is rate limiting.

JP-A-5-249882 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-16554 Japan Society for Powder Technology "Introduction to Powder Simulation-Creating Powder Technology with Computers" (Sangyo Tosho Co., Ltd., March 30, 1998), Chapter 3 "Particle Element Method Simulation"

  The objective of this invention is providing the outstanding simulation apparatus which can simulate or predict or evaluate the behavior of the system comprised by a some process.

  A further object of the present invention is to divide a system to be subjected to behavior analysis into several processes, make a simulation module for each process, and integrate the simulation results from each module to suitably analyze the behavior of the entire system. An object of the present invention is to provide an excellent simulation apparatus that can perform such a process.

  A further object of the present invention is to modularize a simulation of an electrophotographic image forming apparatus for each process such as charging / exposure, development, transfer, and fixing, and integrate the simulation results from each module as a whole electrophotographic process. An object of the present invention is to provide an excellent simulation apparatus capable of suitably predicting and evaluating image quality.

  A further object of the present invention is to provide an excellent simulation apparatus that can eliminate the influence of a simulation module that becomes a bottleneck and obtain an integrated simulation result in a shorter calculation time.

  The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-described problems, and is a simulation apparatus that simulates processing including a plurality of processes performed on an actual machine, and at least a part of the plurality of processes is a simulation module. Simulation calculation unit, real process replacement unit that replaces at least some of the simulations with processing operations on the real machine, and the simulation results in the simulation module are converted to data format for real machine control And an input control unit that controls data input processing to the actual machine, and an output information reading unit that converts the output information in the actual machine process replacement unit into an input form in the simulation module and reads the information. Simulation device A.

  It is widely used to formulate or model the behavior of the system, analyze the behavior of the system governed by almost the same law by simulation, and predict or evaluate the performance and quality obtained from the system.

  In addition, when the system to be analyzed is composed of multiple processes, it is possible to predict or evaluate the performance and quality of the entire system by creating simulation modules for each process and integrating the simulation results from each simulation module. it can. By making a simulation and a module, the processing can be distributed and parallelized.

  However, if the calculation time is extremely large only for a specific simulation module, it becomes a bottleneck in the calculation time of the simulation of the entire system.

  Therefore, in the present invention, in order to perform a simulation of a process consisting of a plurality of processes performed on an actual machine, when the process is modularized for each process, a process that becomes a bottleneck of the calculation time of the simulation system, It was decided to replace it with an experiment on a real machine.

  In such a case, the input conditions must be set to the actual machine according to the simulation results from other simulation modules, and the measurement results obtained from the actual machine operation must be output as input conditions for other simulation modules. I must.

  Here, if the operator performs the work of instructing the actual machine as the input condition as the input condition or the work of converting the output result of the real machine into the input condition of the simulation machine each time, the operation of the operator The calculation time of the entire simulation apparatus greatly depends on the technology.

  On the other hand, in the simulation apparatus according to the present invention, between the simulation module that performs simulation of each process constituting the processing on the actual machine, and the processing unit of the actual machine that is replaced with a part of the simulation module. The input control unit and the output information reading unit are interposed. The input control unit converts the simulation result in each simulation module into a data format that can be easily used for controlling the actual machine, and controls the data input process for the actual machine. The output information reading unit converts the output information including measurement results in actual machine operation into a data format that can be easily used as an input form in a simulation module of another process.

  For example, in a simulation apparatus that handles a two-component developer consisting of toner and carrier and simulates an electrophotographic process including exposure / charging, development, transfer, and fixing, each process of exposure / charging, development, transfer, and fixing is performed. When the simulation is modularized, the development simulation handles minute particles such as toner with a very large number of particles, and the simulation time of the development process becomes a bottleneck of the calculation time of the entire integrated simulation system.

  Therefore, according to the present invention, only the developing unit is replaced with an actual machine. The input control unit controls the input conditions for the input device of the developing unit according to the simulation result in the other simulation module. The input control unit here refers to input information from other simulation modules such as powder amount and type, developing bias voltage, frequency, amplitude, waveform, developing roller motor rotation speed, temperature and humidity in the developing process, etc. To environment parameters

  Further, from the developing unit, as positional information, powder position information, powder charge amount, environmental parameters such as temperature and humidity, and the like are obtained. The output information reading unit converts the output information into a data format that can be easily used as an input form in a simulation module of another process, such as image information. The output information from the output information reading unit is also developed in the input control unit as feedback to the developing unit.

  According to the present invention, a system to be subjected to behavior analysis is divided into several processes, each process is made into a simulation module, and simulation results from each module are integrated to suitably perform behavior analysis of the entire system. It is possible to provide an excellent simulation apparatus capable of

  In addition, according to the present invention, a simulation of an electrophotographic image forming apparatus is modularized for each process such as charging / exposure, development, transfer, and fixing, and the simulation result from each module is integrated to form an entire electrophotographic process. It is possible to provide an excellent simulation apparatus capable of suitably predicting and evaluating the image quality.

  Further, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide an excellent simulation apparatus that can eliminate the influence of a simulation module that becomes a bottleneck and obtain an integrated simulation result in a shorter calculation time.

  Other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from more detailed description based on embodiments of the present invention described later and the accompanying drawings.

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

  The present invention relates to a simulation apparatus that simulates and predicts or evaluates the behavior of a system constituted by a plurality of processes. Hereinafter, in an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine or a printer using electrophotographic technology, a simulation apparatus that analyzes a powder behavior using a two-component developer composed of toner and a carrier as analysis target particles will be dealt with.

  The electrophotographic process includes a plurality of processes such as charging of an electrophotographic photosensitive member and exposure of a scanned original image, toner superimposition or development on an electrostatic latent image on the surface of the photosensitive member, toner transfer to a transfer member, and fixing of the transferred toner. Consists of. In the present invention, a simulation is modularized for each process such as exposure / charging, development, transfer, etc., and the simulation results from the simulation modules are integrated to evaluate the entire image forming apparatus.

  First, the electrophotographic process will be described. FIG. 5 schematically shows a functional configuration of the electrophotographic process.

  After charging the surface of the photoconductor to a uniform surface potential with a charger, the surface of the photoconductor is exposed by scanning a laser beam in accordance with image data obtained by scanning a document, and a desired latent image potential is obtained. Forming an electrostatic latent image. Subsequently, while adjusting the toner concentration level in the stirrer, the developing unit superimposes the toner on the electrostatic latent image to form a toner image, and the transfer unit transfers the toner onto the transfer body (printing paper) conveyed from the outside. Transfer the image. Then, the toner image is fixed on the transfer body by the heat melting and pressure bonding action by the fixing device, and then discharged out of the image forming apparatus. Residual toner is removed from the surface of the photoreceptor after the transfer by a cleaner. Although the residual potential remains on the photosensitive surface after cleaning, it is used for the next electrophotographic process after the initial potential is applied.

  FIG. 6 illustrates the apparatus configuration with a focus on the development process.

  Around the photoreceptor 13, an intermediate transfer belt 14, a brush roller 34, a charging roller 36 and a developing unit 12 are provided in order along the rotation direction b. The intermediate transfer belt 14, the brush roller 34, and the charging roller 36 are all in contact with the photosensitive surface of the photoreceptor 13. Further, between the charging roller 36 and the developing unit 12, an LED array head 40 that performs line exposure on the photosensitive surface is disposed.

  The developing unit includes a developing roller 38 disposed so as to face the photosensitive member 13, screw feeders 39 </ b> A and 39 </ b> B that are positioned below the developing roller 38 and supply a two-component developer to the developing roller 38, A developing roller 38 and a housing 37 for accommodating the screw feeders 39A and 39B are provided. The two-component developer contains toner and magnetic carrier particles as main components. An opening 37 </ b> A is provided in a portion of the housing 37 that faces the photoreceptor 13.

  The developing roller 38 is disposed so that a gap, that is, a developing gap is formed between the developing roller 38 and the photosensitive surface of the photosensitive member 13. The developing roller 38 includes a cylindrical magnet roll 38B and a sleeve 38A that covers the magnet roll 38B. The magnet roll 38B has a cylindrical shape and is fixed to the main body of the image forming apparatus. The sleeve 38A has the same counterclockwise direction as the rotation direction b of the photoconductor 13 around the axis of the magnet roll 38B, that is, the sleeve 38A. It rotates in the opposite direction relative to the photoconductor 13 at the portion facing the photoconductor 13. Thereby, the transfer efficiency of the toner from the developing roller 38 to the photosensitive member 13 is enhanced.

  The magnet roll 38B is a mag roller in which magnetic material powder such as ferrite or rare earth magnet alloy is formed into a columnar shape or a cylindrical shape, and is magnetized so that the N pole and the S pole are arranged in a predetermined pattern. It is formed by sintering while. As the magnetized pattern, a portion facing the photosensitive member 13 is the developing pole S1, and a pick-off pole N1 is located next to the developing pole S1 along the rotation direction of the sleeve 38A, and a pickup pole N2 and a trimming pole are adjacent to the pick-up pole N1. Examples include a pattern in which magnetic poles are arranged in the order of S2 and the transport pole N3. The development pole S1 and the trimming pole S2 are all S poles, and the pickoff pole N1, the pickup pole N2, and the transport pole N3 are all N poles.

The portion corresponding to the developing nip in the developing pole S1 is magnetized so that the change in the normal direction magnetic flux density Br becomes ± 5 [mT]. Here, assuming that the boundary between the transport pole N3 and the trimming pole S2 is 0 degree and the clockwise direction is a positive angle, the development nip is located at a part of 240 to 270 degrees and includes the development nip part. Thus, the development pole S1 is formed. The change in the normal magnetic flux density Br is ± 5 [mT] at the angle of 240 to 270 degrees in the magnet roll 38B. This indicates that the change in the normal magnetic flux density Br at the developing nip portion of the magnet roll 38B is magnetized so as to be ± 5 [mT]. The magnet roll 38B is further magnetized so that the minimum value of the normal magnetic restraining force F _r is located in the developing nip.

  A trimming blade 41 that aligns the height of the magnetic brush in cooperation with the trimming pole S <b> 2 extends toward the developing roller 38 at a portion facing the trimming pole S <b> 2. A negative developing bias voltage is applied to the developing roller 38.

  In the developing mode, the photosensitive member 13 rotates counterclockwise at a constant speed, so that the photosensitive surface is negatively charged by the charging roller 36. Next, the charged surface of the photosensitive surface is exposed by the LED array head 40, whereby the potential of the exposed portion of the charged surface is lowered to form an electrostatic latent image. In the developing unit 12, the toner charged to a negative voltage is electrically attached to the electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive surface, that is, the potential lowering portion of the charging surface by the developing roller 38 as in the photosensitive member 13. Development is performed to form a toner image. The toner adhering to the photosensitive surface is electrically drawn toward the intermediate transfer belt 14 by the transfer roller 32 to which a positive transfer voltage having a polarity opposite to that of the toner is applied. As a result, the toner image on the photosensitive surface 13A is transferred from the photosensitive member 13 to the intermediate transfer belt.

  When the sleeve 38A rotates, the developer supplied into the housing 37 by the screw feeders 39A and 39B is adsorbed on the surface of the sleeve 38A by the pickup pole N2. Here, on the surface of the sleeve 38A, there are a magnetic field from the transport pole N3 toward the development pole S1, a magnetic field from the pick-off pole N1 toward the development pole S1, a magnetic field in the direction from the pickup pole N2 toward the trimming pole S2, and from the transport pole N3. A magnetic field directed to the trimming pole S2 is formed, and the developer has a structure in which toner adheres to the surface of the magnetic carrier particles. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 7, the developer adsorbed on the surface of the sleeve 38A is arranged in the direction of the lines of magnetic force on the surface of the sleeve 38A and rises to form a magnetic brush.

  As shown by the arrow in FIG. 7, the magnetic brush formed on the surface of the sleeve 38A in the vicinity of the pickup pole N2 is trimming pole S2, transport pole N3, development pole S1, and pick-off as the sleeve 38A rotates. It is conveyed from the right side to the left side of the page toward the pole N1. Then, the height of the magnetic brush is adjusted when passing through the trimming pole S2, and the toner on the magnetic brush is transferred to the photosensitive member 13 in the vicinity of the developing pole S1, so that the surface of the sleeve 38A is almost only a magnetic carrier. The magnetic brush remains. As the sleeve 38A rotates, the magnetic brush that has almost only the magnetic carrier drops off from the surface of the sleeve 38A at the pick-off pole N1 and returns to the inside of the housing 37.

  In the developing mode, the sleeve 38A rotates in this manner, so that fresh developer is always replenished at the pickup pole N2 and conveyed to the developing pole S1, and the toner is transferred to the photosensitive member 13 at the developing pole S1 to be photosensitive. The latent image on the surface 13A is developed.

  The image forming apparatus can be evaluated by repeating the image forming process on the actual machine to evaluate the design specifications and condition parameters of each functional component such as a charger, exposure device, stirrer, developing device, fixing device, and transfer device. it can. In this case, it is necessary to experiment again every time the specification is changed, which is problematic in terms of time and cost. On the other hand, the behavior of the developer is simulated by powder behavior analysis based on the physical model of each process such as charging / exposure, development, transfer, and fixing, so that it can be formed without actually performing an image formation experiment. The image quality can be predicted, and the configuration and process of the image forming apparatus can be evaluated based on the predicted image quality.

  In this embodiment, the simulation is modularized for each of these processes, and the simulation result from each simulation module is integrated to evaluate the entire image forming apparatus.

  FIG. 4 schematically shows a functional configuration of the integrated simulation apparatus. In the example shown in the figure, it is composed of four simulation modules # 1 to # 4. Each of the simulation modules # 1 to # 4 corresponds to, for example, a simulation module for each process such as exposure / charging, development, transfer, and fixing in an electrophotographic process.

  However, if the calculation time is extremely large only for a specific simulation module, it becomes a bottleneck in the calculation time of the simulation of the entire system. For example, in a simulation apparatus for an electrophotographic process, when it is desired to obtain a more accurate simulation result in the development process, the calculation time becomes extremely large because minute particles such as toner are handled with an extremely large number of particles. It becomes a bottleneck of the calculation time of the whole integrated simulation apparatus.

  Therefore, in order to simulate the process consisting of multiple processes performed on the actual machine, when the process is modularized for each process, the process that becomes the bottleneck of the simulation system calculation time is It is possible to replace it with an experiment.

  FIG. 3 schematically shows an apparatus configuration in which a simulation of a process that becomes a bottleneck in calculation time is replaced with an actual machine in a simulation apparatus that simulates processing including a plurality of processes performed on the actual machine. In the example shown in the figure, when a processing process consisting of # 1 to # 4 is executed on an actual machine to be simulated, # 1 to # 3 are made into a simulation module, while a simulation calculation becomes a bottleneck. Processing process # 4 is not made into a simulation module, but is replaced with processing # 4 on an actual machine. For example, a developing process in an electrophotographic process corresponds to this.

  However, when the apparatus configuration shown in FIG. 3 is adopted, the input condition is set in the actual machine according to the simulation result by another simulation module, and the measurement result obtained by the actual machine operation is set in the other simulation module. Or output as an input condition for.

  In the example shown in FIG. 3, an operator is interposed between the simulation module and the actual machine. In such a case, when the operator performs the work of instructing the actual machine as the input condition of the result of the simulation apparatus or the work of converting the output result of the real machine into the input condition of the simulation apparatus each time, the operator The calculation time of the entire simulation apparatus greatly depends on the operation technique.

  FIG. 1 schematically shows still another configuration example of an apparatus in which a process that becomes a bottleneck in calculation time is replaced with a real machine in a simulation apparatus that simulates processing including a plurality of processes performed on the real machine. Yes.

  The simulation apparatus shown in the figure performs a simulation module on # 1 to # 3 when executing a processing process consisting of # 1 to # 4 on a real machine to be simulated, while a simulation calculation causes a bottleneck. The processing process # 4 is replaced with the processing # 4 on the actual machine without being made into a simulation module.

  As shown in the figure, there is an input control unit and an output between the simulation module that performs simulation of each process that constitutes the processing on the actual machine and the processing unit of the actual machine that is replaced with some simulation modules. An information reading unit is interposed. The input control unit converts the simulation result in each simulation module into a data format that can be easily used for controlling the actual machine, and controls the data input process for the actual machine. The output information reading unit converts the output information including measurement results in actual machine operation into a data format that can be easily used as an input form in a simulation module of another process.

  FIG. 2 schematically shows an apparatus configuration example in which a process that becomes a bottleneck in calculation time is replaced with a real machine in a simulation apparatus that performs simulation for an image forming apparatus that performs an electrophotographic process.

  As described above, the electrophotographic process includes processes such as exposure / charging, development, transfer, and fixing. The simulation apparatus shown in the figure is a simulation module for exposure / charging, transfer, and fixing. On the other hand, in the development simulation, fine particles such as toner are handled with a very large number of particles, and the simulation time of the development process becomes a bottleneck of the calculation time of the entire integrated simulation system. It is replaced with a development process on an actual image forming apparatus.

  The input information conversion device and the input device as the input control unit control the input conditions for the input device of the developing unit according to the simulation results in the exposure / charging, transfer, and fixing simulation modules. Specifically, based on input information from other simulation modules, the powder amount / type control device displays the powder amount and type, the power supply control device displays the development bias voltage, frequency, amplitude, waveform, and motor. The rotation control unit controls the motor rotation speed of the developing roller, and the temperature / humidity control device controls environmental parameters such as temperature and humidity in the developing process.

  In addition, the developing unit includes a formed image imaging device that captures a toner image developed on the photoconductor, a charge amount measuring device that measures the charge amount of the developer, and a temperature that measures environmental parameters such as temperature and humidity in the development process. A measuring device such as a humidity measuring device is provided. These measuring devices output powder position information, powder charge amount, temperature / humidity as output devices of the developing unit, respectively. The image information conversion device as the output information reading unit converts the output information into a data format that can be easily used as an input form in a simulation module of another process, such as image information. The output information from the output information reading unit is also developed in the input control unit as feedback to the developing unit.

  The present invention has been described in detail above with reference to specific embodiments. However, it is obvious that those skilled in the art can make modifications and substitutions of the embodiment without departing from the gist of the present invention.

  In this specification, the case where the simulation method according to the present invention is applied to behavior analysis in an electrophotographic process type image forming apparatus has been described as an example. However, the gist of the present invention is not limited to this. The present invention is similarly applied to another type of integrated simulation apparatus that evaluates the entire system by integrating a plurality of simulation modules when a part of the simulation becomes a bottleneck in calculation time. be able to.

  In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, when simulating the processing performed on the actual machine, the simulation for one of the plurality of processes is replaced with the actual machine, and all other processes are simulated. Although modularized, the process of replacing with an actual machine is not necessarily limited to one. In the present invention, it should be fully understood that it is meaningful to perform integrated simulation by mixing simulation modules and actual machine operations.

  In short, the present invention has been disclosed in the form of exemplification, and the description of the present specification should not be interpreted in a limited manner. In order to determine the gist of the present invention, the claims should be taken into consideration.

FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating a configuration example of an apparatus in which a simulation of a process that becomes a bottleneck of calculation time is replaced with an actual apparatus in a simulation apparatus that simulates processing including a plurality of processes performed on an actual apparatus. It is. FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically showing an apparatus configuration example in which a simulation for a developing process that becomes a bottleneck in calculation time is replaced with a real machine in a simulation apparatus that simulates an image forming apparatus that performs an electrophotographic process. FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically illustrating a configuration example of an apparatus in which a simulation of a process that becomes a bottleneck of calculation time is replaced with an actual apparatus in a simulation apparatus that simulates processing including a plurality of processes performed on the actual apparatus. It is. FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically illustrating a functional configuration of an integrated simulation apparatus that performs a simulation module on a plurality of processes performed on an actual machine and integrates the simulation results to evaluate the entire system. FIG. 5 is a diagram schematically showing a functional configuration of the electrophotographic process. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an apparatus configuration example around the development process. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a state in which the magnetic brush is formed by being arranged in the direction of the lines of magnetic force on the surface of the sleeve 38A.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 12 ... Developing unit 13 ... Photoconductor 14 ... Intermediate transfer belt 32 ... Transfer roller 34 ... Brush roller 36 ... Charging roller 37 ... Housing 38 ... Developing roller 39 ... Screw feeder 40 ... LED array head 41 ... Trimming blade

Claims (6)

A simulation device for simulating processing consisting of a plurality of processes performed on an actual machine,
A simulation calculation unit for simulating and modularizing at least a part of the plurality of processes,
An actual process replacement unit that replaces at least a part of the plurality of processes with a processing operation on an actual machine;
An input control unit that converts a simulation result in the simulation module into a data format for actual machine control and controls a data input process for the actual machine;
An output information reading unit that reads and converts the output information in the actual process replacement unit into the input form in the simulation module;
A simulation apparatus comprising: The actual machine process replacement unit replaces one or more processes that become a bottleneck in calculation time with processing operations on the actual machine when each process performed on the actual machine is made into a simulation module.
The simulation apparatus according to claim 1. A simulation apparatus for simulating an electrophotographic process including exposure / charging, development, transfer, and fixing,
The simulation calculation unit simulates and modularizes at least one process of exposure / charging, transfer, and fixing,
The simulation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the actual machine process replacement unit replaces a simulation of a process that has not been made into a simulation module by the simulation calculation unit with a processing operation on the actual machine. The simulation calculation unit simulates and processes exposure / charging, transfer, and fixing processes,
The simulation apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the actual machine process replacement unit replaces a development process simulation with a processing operation on an actual machine. The input control unit receives input information from other simulation modules, such as powder quantity and type, development bias voltage, frequency, amplitude, waveform, development roller motor rotation speed, environment such as temperature and humidity in the development process, etc. Convert to parameters,
The simulation apparatus according to claim 4. The output information reading unit inputs the environmental parameters such as powder position information, powder charge amount, temperature and humidity obtained by measuring the development process performed on the actual machine in the simulation module of other processes. Convert to form,
The simulation apparatus according to claim 4.

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