JP2008183795A - Image processor, and program and method for reporting state of image processor - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image processor, and a program and method for reporting a state of the image processor, which reports the state of the processor without using display of a display panel or the like. <P>SOLUTION: An image forming apparatus is provided with: a detection means (error detection sensor S) for detecting a state of the image processor; a delivery means (sheet feeding mechanism 400) for delivering a recording medium; and a control means (control system C) for controlling the delivery means so that the recording medium is retained in a stopping position corresponding to the state detected by the detection means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image processing device, a status notification program for an image processing device, and a status notification method.

  In recent years, printing apparatuses, which are a type of image forming apparatus, have increased the number of devices that improve visibility and operability by using a large-screen liquid crystal display or the like for an operation panel (display panel) that is a user interface. .

  In addition to the increase in power consumption of the large-screen display itself, these display panels are also accompanied by the power consumption of the backlight used for improving the visibility, and the total power consumption tends to be considerably large.

  By the way, in recent years, in consideration of environmental problems, importance is placed on power saving of electrical equipment, and the need for power saving is increasing for image forming apparatuses (printing apparatuses and the like). In particular, a battery-driven mobile printing apparatus has been developed, and further improvement in power saving performance is desired.

  Under such circumstances, an image forming apparatus such as a printing apparatus or a copying machine generally has a function of entering a power saving state when print information (print job) does not come for a certain period of time during normal operation. It is becoming.

  However, when an error state such as out of paper or toner occurs in a printing apparatus or the like, there are many cases where power is continuously supplied without entering a power saving state even after a certain time has elapsed after the occurrence of the error.

Therefore, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-2222032 discloses an error that is displayed on the display panel when a situation in which power supply is unnecessary is generated and cannot be recovered unless the power is turned off. If it is determined, a technique has been proposed in which power is turned off at locations other than the error display on the display panel.
JP 2002-2222032 A

  An object of the present invention is to provide an image processing apparatus, a state notification program for an image processing apparatus, and a state notification method capable of notifying the state of the apparatus without displaying on a display panel or the like.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, an image forming apparatus according to a first aspect of the invention corresponds to a detection unit that detects a state of the image forming apparatus, a discharge unit that discharges a recording medium, and a state detected by the detection unit. And a control means for controlling the discharging means so as to hold the recording medium at the stopped position.

  The image forming apparatus according to a second aspect of the invention is characterized in that the stop position is provided on the downstream side in the discharge direction of the discharge means.

  An image forming apparatus according to a third aspect of the invention is characterized in that an index indicating the state is provided in correspondence with the position of the leading end of the recording medium stopped at the stop position.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the image forming apparatus further includes a storage unit that stores a state detected by the detection unit.

  The image forming apparatus according to a fifth aspect of the present invention further includes display means for displaying information relating to the state detected by the detection means, wherein the control means is configured to stop the recording medium from being stopped at the stop position. Is controlled not to display by the display means.

  The image forming apparatus according to a sixth aspect of the present invention further includes detection means for detecting that the recording medium has been removed from the holding state at the stop position, and the control means uses the detection means to detect the recording medium. When the removal of the image is detected, the information on the state is read from the storage unit, and the display of the information on the state by the display unit is resumed.

  The image forming apparatus according to a seventh aspect of the invention is characterized in that the detection means is constituted by a detection means for detecting the presence or absence of the recording medium.

  An image forming apparatus according to an eighth aspect of the invention is characterized in that the detection means is constituted by a detection means for detecting a state change when the recording medium is pulled out from the discharge means.

  In addition, the image forming apparatus according to the invention of claim 9 further includes a fixing unit that heats and fixes a visual agent to the recording medium, and the stop position is the fixing unit at any part of the recording medium. It is characterized in that it is selected at a position that does not stand still.

  The image forming apparatus according to claim 10 is characterized in that the control unit controls the recording medium to stop at a position where any part of the recording medium does not rest on the fixing unit. .

  According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a status notification program for an image processing apparatus that corresponds to a detection process for detecting a status of an image forming apparatus, a discharge process for discharging a recording medium, and a status detected by the detection process. And a stop process for holding the recording medium in a stopped state at any one or two or more stop positions.

  According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a status notification program for an image processing apparatus, further comprising a storage process for storing a state detected in the detection process.

  According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a state notification program for an image processing apparatus, wherein a display process for displaying information on a state detected in the detection process, and after the recording medium is stopped at the stop position, It further has a display stop process for controlling so as not to perform display by the display process.

  According to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, the status notification program of the image processing apparatus further includes a detection process for detecting that the recording medium has been removed from the holding state at the stop position, and in the detection process, It further includes a display resuming step of reading information relating to the state stored in the storing step and resuming display of the information relating to the state when removal is detected.

  According to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a state notification method for an image processing apparatus, which corresponds to a detection process for detecting a state of the image forming apparatus, a discharge process for discharging a recording medium, and a state detected by the detection process. And a stop process for holding the recording medium in a stopped state at one or two or more stop positions.

  According to a sixteenth aspect of the present invention, the state notification method for an image processing apparatus further includes a storage step of storing the state detected in the detection step.

  According to a seventeenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a state notification method for an image processing apparatus, wherein a display step for displaying information on a state detected in the detection step, and the display after the recording medium is stopped at the stop position. It further has a display stop process for controlling so as not to perform display according to the process.

  In addition, the state notification method of the image processing apparatus according to the invention of claim 18 further includes a detection process for detecting that the recording medium has been removed from the holding state at the stop position, and in the detection process, It further includes a display resuming step of reading information relating to the state stored in the storing step and resuming display of the information relating to the state when removal is detected.

  According to the present invention, the following effects can be obtained.

  That is, according to the first aspect of the present invention, compared to the case where the present configuration is not provided, it is possible to notify the state of the apparatus without depending on the display of the display panel, the lighting of the LED, or the like. There is an effect.

  Further, according to the invention described in claim 2, it is possible to reliably notify the state as compared with the case where the present configuration is not provided.

  In addition, according to the third aspect of the present invention, it is possible to notify the type of the state as compared with the case where the present configuration is not provided.

  Further, according to the invention described in claim 4, it is possible to hold the contents of the state as compared with the case where the present configuration is not provided.

  Further, according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to notify the type of state as compared with the case where the present configuration is not provided.

  Further, according to the invention described in claim 6, it is possible to more reliably notify the contents of the state as compared with the case where the present configuration is not provided.

  According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, it is possible to reliably detect the removal of the recording medium as compared with the case where the present configuration is not provided.

  Further, according to the invention described in claim 8, it is possible to reliably detect the removal of the recording medium as compared with the case where the present configuration is not provided.

  According to the ninth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to avoid a situation in which the recording medium is unnecessarily heated by the fixing unit as compared with the case where the present configuration is not provided.

  According to the tenth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to avoid a situation in which the recording medium is unnecessarily heated by the fixing unit as compared with the case where the present configuration is not provided.

  In addition, according to the invention described in claim 11, compared with the case where the present configuration is not provided, an excellent effect that the state can be notified without depending on the display of the display panel, the lighting of the LED, or the like. There is.

  According to the twelfth aspect of the present invention, the contents of the state can be held as compared with the case where the present configuration is not provided.

  Further, according to the invention described in claim 13, it is possible to notify the state type as compared with the case where the present configuration is not provided.

  Further, according to the invention described in claim 14, it is possible to more reliably notify the contents of the state as compared with the case where the present configuration is not provided.

  Further, according to the invention described in claim 15, compared with the case where the present configuration is not provided, an excellent effect that the state can be notified without depending on the display of the display panel, the lighting of the LED, or the like. There is.

  Further, according to the invention described in claim 16, it is possible to hold the contents of the state as compared with the case where the present configuration is not provided.

  Further, according to the invention described in claim 17, it is possible to notify the type of the state as compared with the case where the present configuration is not provided.

  Further, according to the invention described in claim 18, the contents of the state can be notified more reliably as compared with the case where the present configuration is not provided.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment as an example of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Here, in the accompanying drawings, the same reference numerals are given to the same members, and duplicate descriptions are omitted. In addition, since description here is the best form by which this invention is implemented, this invention is not limited to the said form.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an appearance of a printing apparatus as an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a main part of the printing apparatus according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a printing apparatus according to an embodiment, and a flowchart showing a processing procedure of error notification processing executed by a control system of the printing apparatus according to the present embodiment.

  First, an outline of a configuration of a printing apparatus 101 exemplified as one type of image forming apparatus will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2.

  Although not particularly limited, as the printing apparatus 101, for example, a laser printer, a full color printer, an ink jet printer, or the like is assumed.

  In the casing 101a of the printing apparatus 101, a display panel (operation panel: display means) 102 and operation buttons 102a for displaying error contents and the like are provided at the upper part on the front side.

  Further, on the upper surface side of the casing 101a, there are provided discharge ports 104 for printing paper (printed) P1 and P2 as recording media, and the paper discharge is completed above the discharge ports 104. A paper discharge sensor (detection means) 103 composed of a photo sensor or the like for detecting whether or not is provided is provided.

  Further, in front of the discharge port 104, a paper receiving unit 105 for the discharged print papers P1 and P2 is provided.

  Here, FIG. 1A shows a state in which the printing paper P1 that has been normally printed is completely discharged without any error in the printing apparatus 101. FIG.

  On the other hand, FIG. 1B shows a state in which an error other than a paper feed failure occurs in the printing apparatus 101, and the printing paper P2 is stopped in the middle of discharging from the discharge port 104 so as to notify the occurrence of the error. Show. Thereby, it is possible to notify the user of the error occurrence state regardless of the display on the display panel 102. Therefore, after the printing paper P2 is stopped at a predetermined position indicating the error occurrence state, the error occurrence state can be notified with power saving by turning off the display panel 102.

Here, errors other than paper feeding defects are, for example, when toner or ink runs out,
When the paper runs out during printing, the printing device that can only load one type of paper size can not continue printing when the last page is used up and the paper runs out, or for other reasons Cases. Further, errors other than paper feed defects include all error states in which a print operation cannot be performed even if a print job is sent unless the cause of the error is recovered.

  For example, in the case of an electrophotographic printing apparatus that uses a laser, if there is any malfunction in the operation of the polygon mirror that changes the laser direction, An error may occur in the processing of (such as an error that causes garbled characters).

  Note that “error related to paper feeding failure” is excluded from the error that can be notified because, for example, when an error due to paper jam occurs, the printing paper itself stops in the middle of the conveyance path. After all, this is because it is impossible to notify the occurrence of an error due to the discharge state of the printing paper.

  Although not shown, in the state shown in FIG. 1B, the whole including the rear end portion of the printing paper P2 is separated from the toner fixing device (fixing means) provided in the housing 101. Retained. As a result, it is possible to avoid a situation in which the printing paper P2 is unnecessarily heated by the fixing unit.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 2, on the surface of the paper receiving portion 105, an index indicating the type or content of the error (in this embodiment, a linear index (marking) along the front edge of the printing paper) E1 to E4. Is provided. The indicators E1 to E4 are not particularly limited, but are provided by printing on the sheet receiving unit 105 or forming a linear groove.

  Each of the indices E1 to E4 corresponds to, for example, an error occurrence cause such as E1: out of toner, E2: out of paper during printing, E3: other minor errors, E4: other severe errors, and the like. The

  When stopping at any of the indices E1 to E4, as described above, the whole including the rear end portion of the printing paper P2 is held in a state of being separated from the toner fixing device. . Thereby, it is possible to reliably avoid the situation where the printing paper P2 is unnecessarily heated by the fixing unit.

  The control for stopping the printing paper P2 at any of the indices E1 to E4 is, for example, controlling the number of revolutions of a motor or the like provided in the printing paper discharge means (paper feeding mechanism section 400 described later), or the paper receiving section. This can be realized by arranging a photo sensor or the like on 105 and detecting the movement state of the printing paper P2 with the sensor.

  Further, after the front end portion of the printing paper P2 stops at any position of the indicators E1 to E4, it is possible to shift to a so-called power saving mode in which the power of each part of the printing apparatus 101 including the display panel 102 is cut off. As a result, the display panel 102 (including the backlight) is turned on to display an error as in the conventional case, and the print paper P2 is stationary indicating the position of any of the indices E1 to E4 without continuing to consume power. It is possible to notify the error type and content (simple content) simply by placing it in the state.

  Then, the user who has been notified that an error has occurred in the printing apparatus 101 due to the stationary position of the printing paper P2 knows the type and content of the error based on the indices E1 to E4 indicated by the front edge of the printing paper P2. Can do. Therefore, for example, when the index is E1 indicating “out of toner state”, the user can make the printing apparatus 101 print again normally by replenishing the toner. Further, for example, when the index is E4 indicating “severe error occurrence state”, it is possible to take appropriate measures such as notifying the maintenance contractor.

  Although not particularly limited, a state in which the printing paper P2 is pulled out from a stationary state (a state in which it is removed) is detected, and based on the detection result, the type and content of the error stored at the time of occurrence of the error are stored. The data can be read from a device (for example, a storage unit of a microcomputer constituting the control system), and the display panel 102 can be turned on again to display the type and content of the error. In this case, the display contents can be the same as those indicated by the indicators E1 to E4, but a more detailed explanation of the error state, a countermeasure method, and the like may be displayed.

  The method for detecting the state in which the printing paper P2 is pulled out is not particularly limited. For example, the paper discharge sensor 103 may detect the removal state by detecting the passage of the trailing edge of the printing paper P2, or the printing paper P2. The removal state may be detected by detecting a current generated by an electromotive force when the motor of the discharging means is rotated when the motor is pulled out.

  Next, the configuration of the control system of the printing apparatus 101 will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG.

  In FIG. 3, the control system C of the printing apparatus 101 indicated by a part surrounded by a dotted line is composed of, for example, a microcomputer and the like, and includes a power control unit 301 that controls power supply to the display panel 102 and the like, and an error detection sensor. (Detection means) Error occurrence cause determination section (detection means) 302 for determining the cause of error occurrence based on information from S, error occurrence cause storage section (storage means) 303 for storing the cause of error occurrence, and display panel 102, a display panel control unit 304 that controls display content, on / off, and the like in 102, and a paper feed control unit 305 that controls driving of the paper feed mechanism unit 400 as a discharge unit.

  The error detection sensor S is not particularly limited, and includes, for example, a toner sensor that detects toner out, a photo sensor that detects paper out, and the like. The detection of the occurrence of an error is not limited to detection by a physical sensor, and for example, a code conversion error or the like may be detected by analyzing data or the like by software.

  Next, with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 4, the process procedure of the error alerting | reporting process performed by the control system C (calculation means) of the said structure is demonstrated.

  When this process is started, it is first determined in step S401 whether an error has occurred. Specifically, it is determined whether an error has occurred in any part of the printing apparatus 101 based on error detection information from the error detection sensor S or predetermined software. If the determination result is “No”, the same processing is repeated to wait, and if the determination result is “Yes”, the process proceeds to step S402.

  In step S402, the cause of error occurrence is determined by the error cause determination unit 302. Specifically, based on the error detection information, for example, the cause of the occurrence of an error such as out of toner or out of paper is determined, and the process proceeds to step S403.

  In step S403, the cause of error occurrence is stored in the error cause storage unit 303, and the process proceeds to step S404.

  In step S404, the printing paper P2 is stopped at a position corresponding to the cause of the error (a position corresponding to any of the indices E1 to E4) under the control of the paper feed control unit 305. As a result, it is possible to notify the type and content of the error that has occurred due to the stop position of the printing paper P2 (indexes E1 to E4 (see FIG. 2) indicated at the leading end of the printing paper P2).

  Next, the process proceeds to step S405, and the display panel 102 is turned off under the control of the display panel control unit 304. Thereby, it is possible to shift to the power saving state while maintaining the error notification due to the stop position of the printing paper P2 in step S404, and thus contribute to energy saving.

  Next, the process proceeds to step S406, where it is determined whether or not the stationary printing paper P2 has been pulled out. Specifically, as described above, the detection result of the passage of the trailing edge of the print paper P2 by the paper discharge sensor 103 and the motor of the paper feed mechanism 400 (discharge means) are rotated when the print paper P2 is pulled out. It is determined based on the detection result of the current generated by the electromotive force at the time.

  If the determination result is “No”, the process waits as it is. If the determination result is “Yes”, the process proceeds to step S407.

  In step S407, the error cause stored in the error cause storage unit 303 in step S403 is read, the display panel 102 is turned on, the error cause is displayed, and the process ends. Thereby, the user can know more detailed cause of error occurrence (type and content) and coping method by displaying an error message or the like on the display panel 102.

  As described above, according to the printing apparatus 101 according to the present embodiment, the printing operation can be performed even if a print job is sent in the power saving state in which the display panel 102 is turned off unless the cause of the error occurrence other than the paper jam error is recovered. It is possible to notify the user that an error has occurred that cannot be performed by the stop position of the printing paper P2.

  Further, the type and content of the error that has occurred can be indicated by the indices E1 to E4 indicated by the front edge of the printing paper P2.

  In addition, by a simple operation of pulling out the printing paper P2 in a stationary state, the error display on the display panel 102 can be restored and the cause of the error can be confirmed in more detail, thereby improving the convenience for the user. it can.

  Although the invention made by the present inventor has been specifically described based on the embodiments, the embodiments disclosed herein are illustrative in all respects and are not limited to the disclosed technology. Should not be considered. That is, the technical scope of the present invention should not be construed restrictively based on the description in the above embodiment, but should be construed according to the description of the scope of claims. All modifications that fall within the scope of the claims and the equivalent technology are included.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the “error occurrence state” is described as an example of the state of the printing apparatus to be notified. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the state where the printing apparatus has shifted to power saving is notified. You may do it.

  In the image forming apparatus and status notification method according to the present invention, when a program (status notification program) is used, it is provided via a network or stored in a recording medium such as a CD-ROM. Is possible.

  The image processing apparatus, the status notification program for the image processing apparatus, and the status notification method according to the present invention can be applied to laser printers, full-color printers, inkjet printers, fax machines, and the like.

1 is a perspective view showing an appearance of a printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a perspective view which shows the principal part of the printing apparatus which concerns on this Embodiment. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a printing apparatus according to an embodiment. 6 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of error notification processing executed in the control system of the printing apparatus according to the present embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

101 Printing device (image forming device)
101a casing 102 display panel (display means)
102a Operation button 103 Paper discharge sensor (detection means)
104 Ejection port 105 Paper receiving unit 301 Power control unit 302 Error occurrence cause determination unit (detection means)
303 Error occurrence cause storage section (storage means)
304 Display Panel Control Unit 305 Control Unit 400 Paper Feed Mechanism Unit (Ejecting Unit)
E1-E4 Indicators P1, P2 Printing paper (recording medium)
S Error detection sensor (detection means)

Claims (18)

Detecting means for detecting the state of the image forming apparatus;
Discharging means for discharging the recording medium;
Control means for controlling the discharge means to hold the recording medium at a stop position corresponding to the state detected by the detection means;
An image forming apparatus comprising:   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the stop position is provided on the downstream side in the discharge direction of the discharge unit.   3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an index indicating the state is provided in correspondence with the position of the leading end portion of the recording medium stopped at the stop position.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a storage unit that stores a state detected by the detection unit. Further comprising display means for displaying information relating to the state detected by the detection means;
The image according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the control unit controls the display unit not to display after the recording medium is stopped at the stop position. Forming equipment. Detection means for detecting that the recording medium has been removed from the holding state at the stop position;
The control unit reads information on a state from the storage unit when the detection unit detects removal of the recording medium, and resumes displaying the information on the state by the display unit. Item 6. The image forming apparatus according to Item 5.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the detection unit includes a detection unit configured to detect presence or absence of the recording medium.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the detection unit includes a detection unit that detects a change in state when the recording medium is pulled out from the discharge unit. A fixing means for heating and fixing the visual agent to the recording medium;
9. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the stop position is selected at a position where any part of the recording medium does not rest on the fixing unit. The control means includes
The image forming apparatus according to claim 9, wherein any part of the recording medium is controlled to stop the recording medium at a position where the recording medium does not rest on the fixing unit. A detection process for detecting the state of the image forming apparatus;
A discharging process for discharging the recording medium;
A stopping process of holding the recording medium in a stopped state at a stop position corresponding to the state detected by the detecting process;
A state notification program for an image processing apparatus, characterized by causing the calculation means to execute.   The state notification program for an image processing apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising a storage process for storing a state detected in the detection process. A display process for displaying information on the state detected in the detection process;
After the recording medium is stopped at the stop position, a display stop process for controlling so as not to display according to the display process;
The image processing apparatus status notification program according to claim 12, further comprising: A detection step of detecting that the recording medium has been removed from the holding state at the stop position;
A display resuming step of reading information on the state stored in the storage step and resuming display of the information on the state when removal of the recording medium is detected in the detection step;
The image processing apparatus status notification program according to claim 13, further comprising: A detection process for detecting the state of the image forming apparatus;
A discharge process for discharging the recording medium;
A stopping process of holding the recording medium in a stopped state at a stop position corresponding to the state detected by the detecting process;
A state notification method for an image processing apparatus, comprising:   16. The state notification method for an image processing apparatus according to claim 15, further comprising a storage step of storing the state detected in the detection step. A display process for displaying information on the state detected in the detection process;
After the recording medium is stopped at the stop position, a display stop process for controlling so as not to display according to the display process;
The method according to claim 16, further comprising: A detection step of detecting that the recording medium has been removed from the holding state at the stop position;
A display resuming step of reading information on the state stored in the storage step and resuming display of the information on the state when removal of the recording medium is detected in the detection step;
The image processing device status notification method according to claim 17, further comprising:

Images