JP2010173180A - Image forming device, program, and storage medium - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enhance precision for determining a refill, in an image forming device for determining the refill of an ink cartridge or the like. <P>SOLUTION: This image forming device includes a storage means of making one part of identification information of a consumable serve as an identification information comparison portion, and of storing the identification information comparison portions of the consumables attached hereto and consumed state information expressing a consumed state; a genuine product determining means for determining whether the second consumable newly attached is a genuine product or not, by the presence of one consistent with the identification information comparison portion of the second consumable in the identification information comparison portions stored in the storage means; and a refill product determining means for determining the second consumable as the refill product, when the consumed state of the second consumable stored in the second consumable is greater than the consumed state of the consumable having the identification information comparison portion consistent with that of the second consumable stored in the storage means, in the case where the second consumable is determined as the genuine product by the genuine product determining means, and the information stored in the storage means is continuously stored even under the state where an electric power source is turned off. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, a program, and a storage medium that perform refill determination.

  After the ink in the ink cartridge is emptied, an ink cartridge that has been refilled (refilled) by an ink refiller or a user may be used. By using such a refill product, there is a possibility that a desired image quality may not be obtained and a problem such as clogging of a head nozzle may occur. For this reason, it is important to detect the use of the refill product and to suggest to the user the possibility of occurrence of a problem due to the use of the refill product.

  Ink cartridges of image forming apparatuses include, for example, a nonvolatile memory such as an EEPROM, in which information such as the serial number of the ink cartridge, the date of manufacture, and the remaining amount of ink is stored. Yes.

  Therefore, the following method is already known as a method of discriminating from the refilled ink cartridge. First, the serial number of the ink cartridge used up to now and the ink remaining amount are stored in the nonvolatile memory mounted on the image forming apparatus, and then the ink cartridge already stored in the nonvolatile memory of the image forming apparatus When the amount of remaining ink stored in the non-volatile memory of the ink cartridge is greater than the amount of remaining ink stored in the image forming apparatus, the ink cartridge is determined to be refilled. .

  There is also a known method for determining refill based on the information in the ink cartridge management server and the information in the non-volatile memory of the ink cartridge, instead of the information in the non-volatile memory mounted on the image forming apparatus. .

  In Patent Document 1, for the purpose of determining whether or not an ink cartridge mounted on a printer is a refill product, the identification number of this ink cartridge and the remaining amount of ink are uploaded to a server. A system is disclosed in which it is determined that the ink cartridge is a refill product when the remaining amount of ink has been previously registered in the server.

  Further, in Patent Document 2, an empty flag is set in the non-volatile memory when the toner in the toner container becomes empty for the purpose of warning the user that non-standard toner is being used. If the identification code read from the memory is different from the predetermined identification code, the product is identified as a pirated product. If the identification code matches and the toner is present, the refilled product is set. The structure discriminate | determined from (refill goods) is disclosed.

  However, according to the conventional refill determination method, only information on a limited number of ink cartridges can be stored due to the limitation of the non-volatile memory capacity of the image forming apparatus. Since communication is not possible, there is a case where refill discrimination cannot be performed normally, and there is a problem that the refill discrimination is not always accurate.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is that an image forming apparatus that performs refill determination of an ink cartridge or the like further increases the accuracy of refill determination.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the image forming apparatus according to the present invention uses a part of the identification information of the consumable as an identification information comparison part, and the consumable condition indicating the identification information comparison part and the consumable condition of the consumables mounted so far. In the identification information comparison portion stored by the storage means, the storage means for storing information and whether the newly installed second consumable is a genuine product or not. Genuine product discriminating means for discriminating whether there is a match with the comparison portion, and when the second consumable product is discriminated as a genuine product by the genuine product discriminating device, it is stored in the second consumable product. The second consumable item is refilled when the consumable state of the second consumable item is greater than the consumable item stored in the storage means and whose consumable item matches the identification information comparison part. Goods Has a refill product determining means for determining, for the information stored by said storage means, characterized in that continue to be stored even when power is off.

  Further, the image forming apparatus according to the present invention uses a part of the consumable item identification information as an identification information comparison part, and the consumable condition information indicating whether or not the consumable part identification information comparison part has been consumed. A comparison of the identification information of the second consumable item in the identification information comparison portion stored by the storage unit is made to determine whether the newly installed second consumable item is a genuine item. A genuine product discriminating unit that discriminates whether there is a part that matches the part; and the second consumable item that is determined to be a genuine product by the genuine product discriminating unit; When the consumption condition information of the consumable item whose identification information comparison part matches the second consumable item has been consumed, and the consumption condition of the second consumable item stored in the second consumable item is not consumed, Second consumable Has a refill product determination means determines that refilled product, the information stored by said storage means, characterized in that continues to be stored even when power is off.

  Further, the program according to the present invention uses a part of the identification information of the consumable as an identification information comparison part, and the image forming apparatus is connected to the identification information comparison part of the consumable that has been mounted on the image forming apparatus so far. A comparison of the identification information stored by the storage means for storing whether or not the second consumable newly attached to the image forming apparatus is a genuine product and storage means for storing the consumable condition information indicating the consumable condition of the consumable A genuine product discriminating means for discriminating whether there is a part that matches the identification information comparison part of the second consumable product, and the second consumable product is discriminated as a genuine product by the genuine product discriminating device. If the second consumable item stored in the second consumable item is stored in the storage means, the second consumable item and the consumable item whose identification information comparison part matches are consumed. Larger than condition Occasionally, the second consumable to function as a refill product determination means determines that the refill product information stored by said storage means to execute the continue to be stored even when power is off to the computer.

  In the storage medium according to the present invention, a part of the identification information of the consumables is used as an identification information comparison part. The identification information stored by the storage means for storing whether or not the second consumable newly attached to the image forming apparatus is a genuine product and storage means for storing the consumption status information indicating the consumption status of the consumable. Genuine product discriminating means for discriminating whether there is a part that matches the identification information comparison part of the second consumable item in the comparison part, and that the second consumable product is genuine product by the genuine product discriminating unit If it is determined, the consumable condition of the second consumable item stored in the second consumable item is stored in the storage means, and the consumable item whose identification information comparison part matches the second consumable item is stored. Greater than wear In this case, the second consumable item functions as a refill item determination unit that determines that the second consumable item is a refill item, and causes the computer to execute that the information stored in the storage unit is continuously stored even when the power is turned off. These programs are recorded and can be read by a computer.

  According to the present invention, in an image forming apparatus that performs refill determination of an ink cartridge or the like, the accuracy of refill determination can be improved more than ever.

1 is a block diagram of a general image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a connection form between an image forming apparatus and a host according to an embodiment of the present invention, and illustrates a case of USB connection. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a connection form between an image forming apparatus and a host according to an embodiment of the present invention, and illustrates a case of network connection. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a data format stored in a nonvolatile memory of an image forming apparatus and an ink cartridge according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart figure regarding an example of the refill discriminating method which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart figure regarding an example of the refill discriminating method which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart figure regarding an example of the refill discriminating method which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart figure regarding an example of the refill discriminating method which concerns on embodiment of this invention.

  Next, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention. The control unit 1 controls the entire apparatus and has a CPU 2 that also serves as a means for controlling a sheet transport operation and a recording head moving operation, a ROM 3 that stores programs executed by the CPU 2 and other fixed data, A RAM 4 for temporarily storing image data and the like, a rewritable NVRAM (nonvolatile memory) 5 for holding data even while the apparatus is powered off, and various signal processing and rearrangement for image data. ASIC 6 for processing image processing and other input / output signals for controlling the entire apparatus.

  In addition, the control unit 1 generates an I / F 7 for transmitting and receiving data and signals to and from the host side, and a drive waveform for driving the print head, and selectively drives the pressure generation means of the print head. A print control unit 8 that outputs image data and various data associated therewith to the head driver, a main scanning motor driving unit 10 for driving the main scanning motor 9, and a sub scanning motor driving unit for driving the sub scanning motor 11. 12, an AC bias supply unit 13 for supplying an AC bias to the charging roller, a detection pulse from a linear encoder and a wheel encoder, and an I / O 14 for inputting detection signals from various other sensors. . The control unit 1 is connected to an operation panel 15 for inputting and displaying information necessary for the apparatus.

  Furthermore, an ID chip (nonvolatile memory) is mounted on an ink cartridge (not shown) to be mounted on the image forming apparatus, and information such as the serial number of the ink cartridge and the remaining amount of ink currently stored is stored. When the information is recorded and attached to the image forming apparatus, it is possible to read and write the information as necessary.

  Here, the control unit 1 transmits print data generated by a host printer driver 16 such as an information processing device such as a personal computer, an image reading device such as an image scanner, an imaging device such as a digital camera, etc. via a cable or a network. Received by I / F7.

  Then, the CPU 2 of the control unit 1 reads and analyzes the print data in the reception buffer included in the I / F 7, performs necessary image processing, data rearrangement processing, and the like in the ASIC, and transfers them to the head control unit. Then, image data and drive waveforms are output from the print control unit 8 to the head driver 17 at a required timing. The dot pattern data for image output may be generated by storing font data in the ROM 3, for example, or the image data is developed into bitmap data by the host-side printer driver 16 and transferred to this apparatus. You may make it do. Here, the printer driver 16 is used.

  The drive waveform generation unit of the print control unit 8 includes a D / A converter and an amplifier that perform D / A conversion on drive pulse pattern data stored in the ROM 3 and read out by the CPU 2, and includes one drive pulse or a plurality of drive pulses. A drive waveform composed of drive pulses is output to the head driver 17. The head driver 17 selects a drive pulse that constitutes a drive waveform supplied from the drive waveform generation unit of the print control unit 8 based on image data (dot pattern data) corresponding to one line of the print head that is input serially. In other words, the recording head is driven by applying to the pressure generating means of the recording head. For example, the head driver 17 shifts the level of a shift register that receives a clock signal and serial data that is image data, a latch circuit that latches a register value of the shift register using a latch signal, and an output value of the latch circuit. A level conversion circuit (level shifter) and an analog switch array (switch means) whose on / off is controlled by this level shifter, etc., and the required drive pulse included in the drive waveform by controlling the on / off of the analog switch array Is selectively applied to the pressure generating means of the recording head.

  As an example of the system configuration of this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, an inkjet printer (image forming apparatus) that prints print data on a sheet and a user uses this system to send print data to the image forming apparatus. In some cases, a user terminal (host) used as a terminal when directly transmitting or browsing setting information of an image forming apparatus is directly connected via a USB line.

  As another example of the system configuration of the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, a communication control device having a print server function or the like is provided, and print data received via this communication control device is printed on a sheet. An inkjet printer (image forming apparatus) that prints, and a user terminal (information) that is used as a terminal when a user uses this system to transmit print data to the image forming apparatus or browse setting information of the image forming apparatus In some cases, the processing device is connected to a network (data communication network) such as a LAN or a WAN (Wide Area Network) constructed by a wired and / or wireless line.

  FIG. 4A shows a part of information stored in an ID chip provided in the ink cartridge. The ID chip stores the serial number of the ink cartridge itself, the ink remaining amount, and the like. The serial number is an identification number of the ink cartridge, which is set when the ink cartridge is manufactured and is stored in the ID chip. Since the serial number is composed of contents such as the type and serial number of the ink cartridge, it has a size of several bytes or more such as 8 bytes. Each time the ink cartridge is installed in the image forming apparatus and ink is consumed for printing or head maintenance, the remaining amount of ink in the ID chip is updated. In terms of percentage, the remaining amount of ink is 100% new and 0% when empty, requiring a size of 1 byte. The ID chip stores other information such as a usable time limit and a use start date, but the description is omitted because it is not directly related to the present invention.

  On the other hand, FIG. 4B shows a part of the information stored in the NVRAM provided in the image forming apparatus. As part of the NVRAM information, there are a serial number and an ink empty flag. When the ink cartridge is installed in the image forming apparatus, the serial number of the ID chip and the ink remaining amount are read, and the serial number and the ink empty flag in the NVRAM are updated based on the values. If the corresponding NVRAM area is empty, it is stored there, and if not empty, it is overwritten. The serial number in the NVRAM is a serial number of the ink cartridge mounted on the image forming apparatus. The NVRAM serial number has a size of 2 bytes because only the lower 2 bytes of the serial number 8 bytes in the ID chip are stored in the NVRAM. Thereby, since the size of the information stored in the nonvolatile memory of the image forming apparatus is small, the memory capacity necessary for storing the serial number may be small, and the cost can be suppressed.

  In addition, an ink empty flag indicating the result of determining whether the ink is empty from the remaining amount of ink in the ID chip is stored. Since 1 bit is sufficient for one ink cartridge, 4 bytes are collectively allocated to 4 ink cartridges (4 bits are unused). Since only the exhausted flag is stored in the non-volatile memory of the image forming apparatus, it is possible to determine a genuine product and reduce the memory capacity required for storage.

  In the example of FIG. 4B, the serial number of 16 ink cartridges and the corresponding ink empty flag are stored, and the four ink cartridges (cyan, magenta) to be mounted at once by the image forming apparatus here are stored. , Yellow, black), information about four sets of ink cartridges can be stored. What is stored at this time may not be all colors, and may be smaller than the number of colors in one set, such as one color or two colors. As a result, not all of the plurality of consumables but also a smaller number of consumables identification information and consumables information are stored in the non-volatile memory of the image forming apparatus. The capacity can be reduced.

  Further, which color information is stored may be fixed or may not be fixed. If it is fixed, the address of the NVRAM that stores each color is determined in advance. If it is not fixed, an area of 2 bits or more is required to determine which color a certain serial number is. However, this is not the case when it is determined uniquely by calculation. As a result, which one set is stored in the non-volatile memory of the image forming apparatus is periodically different, so genuine products can be discriminated even if only specific consumables are used. It becomes.

  Further, the color to be stored may be black and other colors. As a result, the consumable item identification information and the consumable condition information stored in the nonvolatile memory of the image forming apparatus are always stored only in black, so that the accuracy of genuine product discrimination can be maintained even in an environment where monochrome printing is mainly used. It becomes possible.

  The NVRAM stores other information such as various setting values, and the capacity of the NVRAM is limited. Therefore, information regarding a large amount of ink cartridges cannot always be stored. By reducing a part of the information in the ID chip, information regarding a larger number of ink cartridges can be stored. The accuracy of genuine product discrimination can be improved without connecting to a network and referring to external information.

  In this embodiment, only the lower byte of the serial number is stored in the NVRAM or the ink empty flag is stored instead of the remaining ink amount, but either one may be used. In this case, the serial number is stored in the same size as the ID chip, or the ink remaining amount is stored as it is. It is also possible to apply a known data compression method for storing the serial number and the remaining ink amount.

  FIG. 5 shows a flowchart of the refill product discriminating method according to the present invention. First, an ink cartridge is mounted on the image forming apparatus while the image forming apparatus is powered on (S101). This may be that the image forming apparatus is powered on with the ink cartridge mounted. When it is recognized that the ink cartridge is installed in the image forming apparatus, the CPU of the image forming apparatus reads the serial number and the remaining ink amount from the ID chip (S102, S103). Next, it is searched whether there is a serial number read from the ID chip from a plurality of serial numbers in the NVRAM (S104). At this time, since the serial number in the NVRAM corresponds to the lower byte of the serial number in the ID chip, it is searched whether there is a matching lower byte. As a result of the search (S105), if there is a match (S105, Yes), the ink empty flag corresponding to the corresponding serial number is read from NVRAM (S106) and set to ON (ink indicates empty). Is determined (S107). If ON and the remaining amount of ink read in S103 is greater than 0 (ink remains) (S107, Yes), the ink has already been used and the ink has been emptied. It is determined that the product is a refill product (S109). If it is determined that the product is a refill product, some processing such as displaying a warning message to the user is performed. As a result of the search in S105, if there is no corresponding serial number (S105, No), a value corresponding to the lower byte of the serial number in the ID chip is written in NVRAM (S110), and the ID chip remaining amount is 0. If there is (S111), the corresponding ink empty flag is set to ON (S112).

  If the used ink cartridge is simply refilled with ink, the remaining amount of ink in the ID chip remains empty, but the information in the ID chip is rewritten by a third party other than an ink refiller or a genuine manufacturer. If new information is copied as it is, it cannot be distinguished from new information only from the information in the ID chip. If the history is stored by the serial number and ink empty flag of the ink cartridge used in the image forming device, if the same serial number ink cartridge is installed again and the remaining ink level is increased, the refill or non-genuine It can be judged as a product. At that time, by reducing the amount of ink cartridge information stored in the NVRAM and relatively increasing the number of ink cartridges, the accuracy of discriminating whether the product is a refill product or a non-genuine product is increased accordingly. Since the serial number stored in NVRAM is only the lower byte of the ID chip, individual ink cartridges cannot be completely identified. However, if the size is larger than a certain size (for example, 2 bytes), it will be duplicated during normal use. There is almost no misclassification. Therefore, by reducing the size to be stored, the effect of storing more ink cartridge information is increased, and the discrimination accuracy is increased. If the ink remaining amount similar to the ID chip is stored instead of the ink empty flag stored in the NVRAM, the ink remaining amount in the NVRAM is compared with the ink remaining amount in the ID chip, and there are many of the ID chips. The ink cartridge can be judged as a refilled product or a non-genuine product at the time of normal use, but the ink cartridge is rarely replaced with ink remaining during normal use. There are overwhelmingly more. Therefore, there are few demerits even if the ink empty flag is stored instead of the ink remaining amount, and the effect obtained by reducing the storage size is greater. Of course, either the serial number lower byte stored in the NVRAM or the ink empty flag may be stored as information equivalent to the ID chip.

  In an image forming apparatus in which a plurality of color ink cartridges are mounted, the target to be stored in the NVRAM may not be all color ink cartridges, but may be fewer colors. For example, one color or two colors. By doing so, the total number of information relating to the ink cartridge that can be stored in the NVRAM does not change, but more sets can be stored than when all the colors are counted as one set. Many users who use refill products do not use a combination of refill products of only limited colors and other colors as genuine products, but use refill products of all colors. Therefore, even if only fewer colors than all the colors are stored in the NVRAM, there is no possibility that the refill product discrimination cannot be made at all because the refill product discrimination timing is changed.

  There is a method of fixing the color stored in the NVRAM for the entire model of the image forming apparatus, or a method of fixing it for each serial number or manufacturing month. In these methods, since which color is stored can be uniquely determined, it is not necessary to prepare information for indicating the stored color separately. There is also a method of deciding at the time of manufacturing the image forming apparatus. In this case, information for indicating the stored color is required separately. In any case, if the color to be stored in a certain image forming apparatus is fixed, it is possible to suppress the update of NVRAM information and the processing for refill product discrimination. However, there is a demerit that when the user knows in which color the refill product is discriminated, if the genuine product is used only for that color, the refill product cannot be discriminated.

  Another example is to change the color stored in the image forming apparatus. Specifically, after replacing the black ink cartridge, the contents of the ID chip of the cyan ink cartridge are stored in order, or the next color stored in the image forming apparatus is randomly determined and stored. Or In this case, even if the stored color is known to the user, the stored color changes thereafter, so that the refill product cannot be discriminated.

  As another example, black and other colors may be stored. As a result, it is possible to determine the refill product even if the printing environment is biased to monochrome printing or color printing. At this time, which color ink cartridge information is stored among other colors may be fixed as described above or may be changed each time.

  FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of an embodiment in which information about ink cartridges is stored in the NVRAM and RAM of the image forming apparatus. The basic processing flow is similar to the case where information is stored only in NVRAM, but is mainly different in that processing for reading information from RAM and processing for storing information in RAM are added. When the image forming apparatus is powered on, first, information on the ink cartridge in the NVRAM is copied to the RAM (S201). When the ink cartridge is mounted on the image forming apparatus (S202), the serial number and the remaining ink amount are read from the ID chip (S203, S204). Next, the corresponding serial number is retrieved from NVRAM (S205). This process is the same as S104. As a result, if there is no matching serial number, the serial number and the ink empty flag are written (S207 to S209). This is also the same as S110 to S112. Subsequently, in S210 to S218, refill product discrimination is performed based on the information of the ink cartridge stored in the RAM. These are the same as S104 to S112 except that the information reference destination of the image forming apparatus is changed from NVRAM to RAM.

  The RAM has a larger capacity than the NVRAM, and can store information about many ink cartridges accordingly. However, since the RAM is a volatile memory, information is deleted when the image forming apparatus is turned off. Therefore, information is stored in the NVRAM in consideration that the power of the image forming apparatus is turned off. Immediately after the power is turned on, it is not different from the example of the NVRAM described with reference to FIG. 5, but when the power is kept on, more information can be stored than when only the NVRAM is stored. Minute, refill product or non-genuine product discrimination accuracy is high.

  Of the information stored in the RAM, information with a new attachment date and time may be stored in the NVRAM.

  In FIG. 7, the nonvolatile memory of the host computer connected to the image forming apparatus instead of the RAM in the embodiment described with reference to FIG. 6 stores information relating to the ink cartridge, and the other processes are the same as in FIG. It is. By storing the information about the ink cartridge in the host computer, it is not necessary to connect to the network, and the information is retained even when the image forming apparatus is turned off, and more information can be stored. Further, if the combination of the host computer and the image forming apparatus is changed, the information stored in the host computer cannot be referred to, but since the information is also stored in the NVRAM itself, refill product discrimination can be performed. .

  Here, the storage in the nonvolatile memory of the host computer may be performed after the storage area of the nonvolatile memory of the image forming apparatus is full. As a result, the consumable item identification information and the consumable condition information that cannot be stored in the non-volatile memory of the image forming apparatus are stored in the non-volatile memory of the host computer, so that information on more consumable items can be stored. Therefore, as long as the combination of the image forming apparatus and the host computer does not change, the accuracy of genuine product discrimination can be improved.

  In FIG. 8, information regarding the ink cartridge is stored in the nonvolatile memory of the server connected to the image forming apparatus instead of the RAM in the embodiment described with reference to FIG. 6, and the other processes are the same as those in FIG. . In FIG. 8, a case is considered in which the server is provided by a genuine manufacturer, and the serial number of the ink cartridge shipped so far and the ink remaining amount are stored as a set. If it is connected to the network, it is possible to determine the refill product with high accuracy, and it is possible to determine the refill product based on the information in the NVRAM even if it is not connected to the network.

  6 to 8, as the storage destination of the information regarding the ink cartridge, the RAM in the image forming apparatus, the non-volatile memory of the host, and the non-volatile memory of the server are cited in addition to the NVRAM. This can be used not only as a single unit, but also in combination such as NVRAM, RAM, and host.

  In this description, an ink cartridge in an ink jet printer has been described as an example, but other toner cartridges in a laser printer can be similarly applied.

  By storing the identification information and the consumption condition information of the ink cartridge mounted on the printer in the nonvolatile memory of the printer with a size smaller than the identification information and the consumption condition information stored in the nonvolatile memory of the ink cartridge. Since information about more ink cartridges can be stored, the probability of refill discrimination without connecting to a network is increased to inquire the server for ink cartridge identification information and consumable condition information. It can be raised even more than.

  The program executed by the image forming apparatus according to the present embodiment implements specific means using actual hardware. That is, when the computer (CPU) reads out and executes a program from a predetermined recording medium, processing such as refill determination as described above is performed.

  The program executed by the image forming apparatus in the present embodiment may be configured to be stored on a computer connected to a network such as the Internet and provided by being downloaded via the network. Further, the program may be provided or distributed via a network such as the Internet.

  The above program is a file in an installable or executable format, and is a floppy (registered trademark) disk, hard disk, optical disk, magneto-optical disk, CD-ROM, CD-R, DVD, nonvolatile memory. It may be configured to be stored in a computer-readable storage medium such as a card. Further, the program may be provided by being incorporated in advance in a ROM or the like.

  In this case, the program code itself read from the storage medium or loaded and executed through the communication circuit realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments. And the storage medium which memorize | stored the program code comprises this invention.

  The present invention has been described above by the preferred embodiments of the present invention. While the invention has been described with reference to specific embodiments thereof, various modifications and changes can be made to these embodiments without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the claims. is there.

  In the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, a plurality of consumables are simultaneously mounted, and the storage unit stores an identification information comparison portion and consumable condition information of a specific consumable among the mounted consumables. It is characterized by.

  The image forming apparatus according to the present invention is characterized in that the storage means periodically changes which consumable identification information comparison portion and consumable condition information of consumables mounted are stored. .

  Further, in the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, the consumable is an ink cartridge, and the storage means always stores the identification information comparison portion of the black ink cartridge and the consumable condition information, and is stored by the storage means. The specific consumable is an ink cartridge of a color other than black.

  In the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, the consumable item is a toner cartridge, and the storage unit always stores the identification information comparison portion and the consumable condition information of the black toner cartridge, and is stored by the storage unit. The specific consumable is a toner cartridge of a color other than black.

  In addition, the image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes a second storage unit that stores the identification information comparison part of the consumables that have been mounted so far, and consumable condition information that indicates the consumable condition of the consumables. Whether or not the second consumables attached to the product is genuine is matched with the identification information comparison part of the second consumables in the identification information comparison part stored by the second storage means. A second genuine product discriminating means for discriminating whether there is a thing, and when the second consumable product is judged to be a genuine product by the second genuine product discriminating means, it is stored in the second consumable product. The second consumable is stored when the consumable state of the second consumable is larger than the consumable consumable stored in the second storage means and whose consensus information comparison part matches the second consumable. 2nd refill that is judged to be a refill product It characterized by having a I le-product evaluation unit.

  In addition, the image forming apparatus according to the present invention is connected to the information processing apparatus, and is connected to the identification information comparison part of the consumables that have been mounted so far and the consumable condition information that indicates the consumable condition of the consumables. A third storage means for storing in the information processing apparatus, and whether or not the newly installed second consumable is a genuine product in the identification information comparison portion stored by the third storage means. A third genuine product discriminating means for discriminating whether there is a part matching the identification information comparison portion of the second consumable product, and the second consumable product is a genuine product by the third genuine product discriminating means. The second consumable item stored in the third storage means coincides with the identification information comparison part in the second consumable item stored in the second consumable item. Greater than consumable consumption To come, the second consumable is characterized by having a third refill product determination means determines that the refill product.

1 Control unit 2 CPU
4 RAM
5 NVRAM
7 Host I / F

JP 2005-28469 A JP 2007-199479 A

Claims (10)

A part of the consumables identification information is used as the identification information comparison part.
Storage means for storing the identification information comparison part of the consumables mounted so far and the consumable condition information indicating the consumable condition;
Among the identification information comparison portions stored by the storage means, there is a match with the identification information comparison portion of the second consumable item as to whether or not the newly installed second consumable item is a genuine product. Genuine product discriminating means for discriminating according to whether or not
When the second consumable is determined to be a genuine product by the genuine product discriminating means, the consumption level of the second consumable stored in the second consumable is stored by the storage means. Refill item determination means for determining that the second consumable item is a refill item when the second consumable item and the identification information comparison portion are larger than the consumable item consumption level,
The image forming apparatus characterized in that the information stored by the storage means is continuously stored even when the power is turned off. A part of the consumables identification information is used as the identification information comparison part.
A storage means for storing the identification information comparison part of the consumables mounted so far and the consumable condition information indicating whether the consumable has been consumed;
Among the identification information comparison portions stored by the storage means, there is a match with the identification information comparison portion of the second consumable item as to whether or not the newly installed second consumable item is a genuine product. Genuine product discriminating means for discriminating according to whether or not
When the second consumable is determined to be a genuine product by the genuine product discriminating means, the consumable status information of the consumable stored in the storage means and whose identification information comparison part matches with the second consumable Refill item determining means for determining that the second consumable item is a refill item when the second consumable item stored in the second consumable item is not consumed. Have
The image forming apparatus characterized in that the information stored by the storage means is continuously stored even when the power is turned off. Multiple consumables are installed at the same time,
3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the storage unit stores an identification information comparison portion and consumable condition information of a specific consumable among the mounted consumables.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the storage unit periodically changes a consumable identification information comparison portion and a consumable condition information among consumables mounted. The consumable is an ink cartridge;
The storage means always stores the identification information comparison part and the consumption condition information of the black ink cartridge,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the specific consumable item stored by the storage unit is an ink cartridge of a color other than black. The consumable is a toner cartridge;
The storage means always stores the identification information comparison part and the consumption condition information of the black toner cartridge,
5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the specific consumable item stored in the storage unit is a toner cartridge of a color other than black. 6. A second storage means for storing the identification information comparison part of the consumables mounted so far and the consumable condition information indicating the consumable condition of the expendable supplies;
Whether the newly installed second consumable is a genuine product matches the identification information comparison part of the second consumable in the identification information comparison stored in the second storage means. Second genuine product discriminating means for discriminating based on whether there is something to do,
When the second consumable item is determined to be a genuine product by the second genuine product discriminating unit, the consumable condition of the second consumable item stored in the second consumable item is the second storage unit. The second refill item determination means for determining that the second consumable item is a refill item when the second consumable item and the identification information comparison portion stored in the table are larger than the consumable item consumption level. 7. The image forming apparatus according to any one of 1 to 6, wherein: Connected to an information processing device,
A third storage means for storing the identification information comparison part of the consumables mounted so far and the consumable condition information indicating the consumable condition of the consumables in the connected information processing apparatus;
Whether or not the newly installed second consumable is a genuine product matches the identification information comparison portion of the second consumable in the identification information comparison portion stored by the third storage means. A third genuine product discriminating means for discriminating based on whether there is a thing,
When the second consumable item is determined to be a genuine product by the third genuine product discriminating means, the consumable condition of the second consumable item stored in the second consumable item is the third storage means. The second consumable item has a third refill item determination means for determining that the second consumable item is a refill item when the second consumable item is greater than the consumable item whose identification information comparison part matches. The image forming apparatus according to any one of 1 to 7, wherein: A part of the consumables identification information is used as the identification information comparison part.
The image forming apparatus
A storage means for storing consumable identification information comparing portions of consumables that have been mounted on the image forming apparatus so far, and consumable condition information representing the consumable condition of the consumables;
Whether the second consumable newly attached to the image forming apparatus is a genuine product matches the identification information comparison portion of the second consumable in the identification information comparison portion stored by the storage means. Genuine product discriminating means for discriminating whether there is something to do,
When the second consumable is determined to be a genuine product by the genuine product discriminating means, the consumption level of the second consumable stored in the second consumable is stored by the storage means. When the second consumable item and the identification information comparison part match the consumable item larger than the consumable item, the second consumable item functions as a refill item judging means for judging that the second consumable item is a refill item,
A program for causing a computer to execute that information stored by the storage means continues to be stored even when the power is turned off. A part of the consumables identification information is used as the identification information comparison part.
The image forming apparatus
A storage means for storing consumable identification information comparing portions of consumables that have been mounted on the image forming apparatus so far, and consumable condition information representing the consumable condition of the consumables;
Whether the second consumable newly attached to the image forming apparatus is a genuine product matches the identification information comparison portion of the second consumable in the identification information comparison portion stored by the storage means. Genuine product discriminating means for discriminating whether there is something to do,
When the second consumable is determined to be a genuine product by the genuine product discriminating means, the consumption level of the second consumable stored in the second consumable is stored by the storage means. When the second consumable item and the identification information comparison part match the consumable item larger than the consumable item, the second consumable item functions as a refill item judging means for judging that the second consumable item is a refill item,
A computer-readable storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to execute the information stored by the storage means even when the power is turned off.

Images