JP2006317526A - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain an image forming apparatus capable of preventing the unauthorized use of a medium in which a communication circuit equipped with a memory function is incorporated in advance when forming an image on the medium. <P>SOLUTION: The image forming apparatus is equipped with an image forming part 10 forming the image on the medium in which the communication circuit equipped with the memory function is incorporated, and a communication means 60 transmitting/receiving an electromagnetic wave in a predetermined band and storing predetermined data in the communication circuit. When detecting that the medium which is not ejected to the outside of the machine exists when an error is caused in the conveyance of the medium and/or the formation of an image, the data stored in the communication circuit of the medium are erased or the stored data are rewritten to other data, and then the data can not be rewritten. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, and more particularly to an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine or a printer that forms an image on a medium incorporating a communication circuit having a memory function such as an IC tag.

  In general, in an image forming apparatus such as a copier or printer, if an error occurs in the transport system during the printing process on paper, the paper on the way other than the paper completely discharged outside the machine is not printed. As discarded.

  In recent years, various image forming apparatuses have been developed that form an image on a medium (for example, an ID card) that includes a communication circuit having a memory function such as an IC tag and write predetermined data on the IC tag. Even in this type of image forming apparatus, when an error occurs in the transport system or the like during the printing process, the medium currently being transported is discarded as it is. However, even if the medium is not ejected to the outside when an error occurs, it can be said that the printing is normal and the data memory is also completed if it is removed from the fixing device.

  In Patent Document 1, in the image forming apparatus for a medium having a built-in communication circuit, when a jam error occurs in the conveyance system, normal printing is performed by storing the issuance history from the memory data of the RFID element on the host side. And a management method for grasping incomplete prints.

By the way, as described above, the paper and the medium are discarded as incomplete printing, or only the issue history is managed, the following problems are caused. That is, if both the image printing and data writing are performed normally, but the media is simply not ejected out of the machine and becomes a target for disposal, the image printing has been completed but the data writing has been completed. In the case of being discarded in the previous state, the former can be used as it is like normal products, and the latter can be used by writing data to the IC tag, leaving the possibility of unauthorized use. It was.
JP 2002-269464 A

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus capable of preventing unauthorized use of a medium when an image is formed on a medium incorporating a communication circuit having a memory function.

  In order to achieve the above object, an image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes a conveying unit that conveys a medium including a communication circuit having a memory function along a predetermined path, and an image that forms an image on the medium. Forming means; communication means for transmitting and receiving electromagnetic waves in a predetermined band to cause the communication circuit to store predetermined data; detecting means for detecting that an error has occurred in at least the conveyance process and the image forming process; and Control means for erasing data stored in the communication circuit of the medium or rewriting the stored data with other data when it is detected that there is a medium that has not been ejected outside the apparatus. It is characterized by that.

  In the image forming apparatus configured as described above, when an error occurs in the conveyance process or the image forming process, the data stored in the communication circuit of the medium is deleted from the medium to be discarded, or Since the stored data is rewritten with other data (meaningless data), it is possible to prevent the discarded medium from being illegally used.

  In the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, the control unit may make it impossible to rewrite data after erasing data stored in the communication circuit of the medium or after rewriting the stored data with other data. preferable. As a result, new data cannot be input to the communication circuit of the discarded medium, and unauthorized use of the discarded medium can be prevented more reliably.

  Further, the communication unit can set a communication range from the fixing unit to the medium discharge detection unit. In this case, if the medium existing between the fixing means and the medium discharge detection means can be discharged when an error occurs, predetermined data is stored in the communication circuit of the medium, and the medium is discharged outside the apparatus. You may make it do. As a result, the ejected medium can be handled as being normally printed and the data stored in memory.

  Alternatively, if the medium existing between the fixing unit and the medium ejection detecting unit cannot be ejected when an error occurs, the medium conveying unit is stopped and a data erasure signal or other data is sent to the communication circuit of the medium. You may send it. Furthermore, it is preferable to transmit the data lock signal after transmitting the data erasure signal or other data to the communication circuit of the medium.

  Further, the communication means may be capable of switching the communication range, for example, the communication range can be switched by changing the opening position of the shield plate or changing the electromagnetic wave intensity.

  Embodiments of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

(Schematic configuration of image forming apparatus, see FIG. 1)
As shown in FIG. 1, an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is configured in the same manner as a copying machine / printer that forms an image on a sheet by a conventionally known electrophotographic method. , A paper feeding unit 20, a conveyance unit 30, a document conveyance unit 40, and a document reading unit 50. In addition, the conveyance part 30 is comprised so that the ID card 100 demonstrated below can be passed.

  The image forming unit 10 is centered on a photosensitive drum 11 that is driven to rotate in a clockwise direction, and a charging charger 12, a laser scanning unit 13, a developing device 14, a transfer charger 15, a toner cleaning device 16, and the like are disposed around the photosensitive drum 11. Has been. The sheet feeding unit 20 feeds predetermined sheets upward one sheet at a time from sheet feeding cassettes 21, 22 and 23 provided in three stages. The transport unit 30 transports the fed paper to the lower part of the photosensitive drum 11, and after the toner image is transferred, transports the paper further to the toner fixing device 31, and ejects the paper from the discharge roller 32 onto the tray 33. To do. Detailed configurations and operations of the image forming unit 10, the conveyance unit 30, the document conveyance unit 40, and the like are well known and will not be described.

  Further, the paper feeding unit 20 and the conveyance unit 30 are provided with means for detecting a paper conveyance error (for example, occurrence of a paper jam), and the image forming unit 10 also has an image formation processing error (for example, the laser scanning unit 13 or An error detecting means for detecting a malfunction of the developing device 14 or the like is provided. Such error detection means is also well known in this type of image forming apparatus.

(Media configuration, see FIG. 4)
By the way, in this image forming apparatus, an ID card 100 (see FIG. 4) used as a credit card or an employee ID card is replaced with a general sheet, and an image is formed on the surface thereof as a recording medium. Predetermined data can be written in the IC tag 110 incorporated in the.

  The ID card 100 has a print area other than the area where the IC tag 110 is built (area surrounded by a dotted line in FIG. 4), and the name and code number of the owner are printed on the print area by the image forming apparatus. Is done. Further, digital data that can be read in a non-contact manner as invisible information is written in the IC tag 110.

  The ID card 100 may be built in other than the IC tag 110, and various types of communication circuits having a digital data memory function can be used.

(Communication means, see FIG. 2)
In order to communicate with the IC tag 110 of the ID card 100, the image forming apparatus is provided with a communication means 60 as shown in FIG. The communication unit 60 includes a communication antenna 62 that transmits and receives electromagnetic waves in a predetermined band between the R / W circuit 61 and the IC tag 110, and is disposed immediately above a region from the fixing device 31 to the discharge sensor 34. ing. A communication range 65 of the communication antenna 62 is an area from the fixing device 31 to the discharge sensor 34 (an area indicated by hatching in FIG. 2).

  In FIG. 2, reference numerals 100 a to 100 d denote ID cards being transported by the transport unit 30. These ID cards 100 a to 100 d have already been formed with a predetermined image and have been fixed with toner by the fixing device 31. It is. While these ID cards 100a to 100d pass through the communication area, the R / W circuit 61 reads information from the IC tag 110, and transmits predetermined data to the IC tag 110 based on the read information for storage. .

(Control unit, see FIG. 3)
The R / W circuit 61 is a component of the control unit 70. As shown in FIG. 3, the control unit 70 is configured around a CPU 71, and includes a ROM 72 that stores a control program, a RAM 73 that temporarily stores control parameters, and a nonvolatile memory 74. The CPU 71 receives a print command, image data, and the like transmitted from the printer server 77 by the printer controller communication interface 75, analyzes the received information, and comprehensively configures each component of the image forming apparatus according to the analyzed received content. Operate and execute print processing, transport processing, etc.

  Further, the CPU 71 receives the IC tag information transmitted from the printer server 77 by the R / W controller communication interface 76, analyzes the received information, operates the R / W circuit 61 according to the analyzed received information, and operates the ID Data writing processing to the IC tag 110 of the card 100 is also executed.

  The printer server 77 is connected to a plurality of computers and the like via a run 78, and image information and the like are transferred.

(Control in the event of an error and issues with normal processing)
Here, a description will be given of a case where an error has occurred in the paper feeding unit 20, the transport unit 30, or the image forming unit 10 when the image forming apparatus is performing printing processing and data writing processing on the ID card 100.

  When these errors occur, the CPU 71 determines the type of error that has occurred and performs the following control. For example, when a pickup error of the ID card 100 to be fed by the paper feeding unit 20 occurs, the printing process is continued for the ID card 100 already fed and in the middle of the printing process to pass through the fixing device 31. Then, data is written to the IC tag 110, discharged outside the apparatus, and then the apparatus is stopped (printing / conveying process is stopped).

  Further, when a jam occurs in the fixing device 31, the device is immediately stopped. In this case, the ID cards (reference numerals 100b to 100d in FIG. 2) remaining in the machine, that is, not passing through the discharge sensor 34 are usually removed by the operator as unfinished products. Then, after the error recovery, the printing process and the conveyance process are resumed.

  When the apparatus stops in the conveyance state shown in FIG. 2, the states of the ID cards 100 a to 100 d are as shown in Table 1. That is, an image is normally formed for each of the ID cards 100a to 100d. The data is normally stored for the IC tags of the ID cards 100a and 100b, the memory is being processed for the IC tag of the ID card 100c, and the memory processing is started for the IC tag of the ID card 100d. There is no state.

  Normally, the ID cards 100b to 100d are removed as incomplete products, but the ID card 100b can be used as it is as a normal product. The ID cards 100c and 100d can also be used as normal products by writing data into the IC tag. Therefore, there is a security problem in disposing these ID cards 100b to 100d in this state.

(Control procedure, see Fig. 5)
Therefore, in this embodiment, when an error occurs in the image forming apparatus, control is executed according to the procedure shown in FIG. 5, and data already written in the IC tag 110 is erased and locked so that it cannot be rewritten. It was decided to.

  When no error has occurred in the image forming apparatus (NO in step S2), normal printing processing is executed in steps S1 and S3. Here, printing on the ID card and writing of data on the IC tag are sequentially processed.

  If the occurrence of an error is confirmed in step S2, it is determined in step S4 whether or not an unprinted ID card remains between the fixing device 31 and the discharge sensor 34. Whether or not the unprinted ID card remains and the number thereof are determined by the number of images formed by the operator at the start of the image forming operation, the number of sheets fed counted by the sheet feeding unit 20, the detection result of the sensor 34, etc. Judgment is made based on the number of passing sheets counted based on this. If the ID card does not remain, printing / conveyance is stopped in step S5, and an error is displayed on a display panel (not shown).

  If the ID card remains (YES in step S4), it is determined in step S6 whether or not the remaining ID card can be discharged according to the type of error. For example, if there is a pickup error in the paper feeding unit 20, the remaining ID card can be ejected. Therefore, in step S7, predetermined data is written to the IC tag of the ID card, and in step S8, the ID card is removed. Discharge. Thereafter, the conveyance is stopped in step S9 and an error is displayed. Since the ID card produced here passes through the fixing device 31 and printing is normally completed, it is handled as a normal product in which printing and data writing are normally completed.

  On the other hand, the remaining ID card may not be ejected depending on the type of error (NO in step S6). In this case, the conveyance is stopped in step S10, and the IC tag of the remaining ID card is detected in step S11. Send data erasure signal. As a result, the data stored in the IC tag is erased. Further, invalid data (insignificant data) may be transmitted to rewrite the IC tag data. Further, a data lock signal is transmitted to the IC tag of the remaining ID card at step S12, and an error display is performed at step S13.

  The ID card on which the processes of steps S10 to S12 have been executed is discarded as an incomplete product. Since this IC card data is erased or invalid data remains, and the data is locked, the discard card is not likely to be used illegally.

(Switching communication range, see Fig. 6)
The communication range by the communication means 60 may be switched to the communication ranges 65A and 65B as shown in FIGS. 6 (A) and 6 (B). Specifically, an opening is formed by the shield plates 63 and 64 on the output side of the communication antenna 62, and the shield plates 63 and 64 are moved in the horizontal direction so that the opening is changed to a wide and narrow range, and the communication ranges 65A and 65B. Switch.

  Normal data writing processing for the IC tag 110 is performed by narrowing the openings of the shield plates 63 and 64 (see communication range 65A, FIG. 6A). This improves the writing accuracy. On the other hand, when an error occurs, data is written to or erased from the IC tag 110 of the remaining ID card by widening the openings of the shield plates 63 and 64 (communication range 65B, see FIG. 6B). Thus, the range of data writing and erasing can be expanded.

  Further, as a mechanism / method for switching between the communication ranges 65A and 65B, in addition to the mechanism / method shown in FIG. 6, the electromagnetic wave output intensity from the communication antenna 62 may be changed.

(Other examples)
Note that the image forming apparatus according to the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be variously modified within the scope of the gist thereof.

  In particular, the image forming apparatus itself may be a dedicated specification for producing an ID card. Of course, the medium can be widely used other than the ID card.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating an embodiment of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a main part of the image forming apparatus. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a control unit of the image forming apparatus. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of ID card. It is a flowchart figure which shows the control procedure by the said control part. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the mechanism which switches a communication range.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Image forming part 30 ... Conveying part 31 ... Fixing device 34 ... Discharge sensor 60 ... Communication means 63, 64 ... Shield plate 65 ... Communication range 70 ... Control part 71 ... CPU
100 ... ID card 110 ... IC tag

Claims (9)

Transport means for transporting a medium containing a communication circuit having a memory function along a predetermined path;
Image forming means for forming an image on the medium;
Communication means for transmitting and receiving electromagnetic waves in a predetermined band and causing the communication circuit to store predetermined data;
Detection means for detecting that an error has occurred in at least the conveying process and the image forming process;
Control means for erasing data stored in the communication circuit of the medium or rewriting the stored data to other data when it is detected that there is a medium that has not been ejected outside the apparatus when the error occurs When,
An image forming apparatus comprising:   2. The control unit according to claim 1, wherein after the data stored in the communication circuit of the medium is erased or the stored data is rewritten with other data, the data cannot be rewritten. Image forming apparatus. Furthermore, a fixing unit and a medium discharge detecting unit are provided,
The communication unit sets a communication range from a fixing unit to a medium discharge detection unit,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is an image forming apparatus.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the communication unit is capable of switching the communication range.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the communication unit can switch a communication range by changing an opening position of a shield plate.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the communication unit can switch a communication range by changing an electromagnetic wave intensity.   If the medium existing between the fixing unit and the medium discharge detecting unit can be discharged when an error occurs, the control unit stores predetermined data in the communication circuit of the medium and removes the medium from the machine. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image forming apparatus is discharged.   If an error occurs and the medium existing between the fixing means and the medium discharge detection means cannot be discharged, the control means stops the medium transport means and sends a data erasure signal or other signal to the communication circuit of the medium. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the data is transmitted. The image forming apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the control unit transmits a data lock signal after transmitting a data erasure signal or other data to a communication circuit of the medium.

Images