JP2011221174A - Image forming apparatus, image forming system, control program for image forming apparatus, and recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming system that prevents the direction of the content already printed on a sheet from being different from that of the content recorded, in printing data on the sheet such as a postcard, envelope or perforated sheet that has a printing direction or a difference between front and back sides, while preventing paper jam in an image forming apparatus.SOLUTION: The image forming apparatus A includes: input means 24 for displaying types of print sheets so as to be selected on a monitor 23 of a print host apparatus B and receiving input of the type of the sheet; setting means for setting a direction of a sheet to be set to a paper tray, according to the type of the sheet input in the input means 24; and display means for displaying the direction of the sheets to be set to the paper tray set by the setting means, on either or both the monitor 23 and an operation display section 22 of the image forming apparatus A.

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus of an ink jet system or an electrophotographic system, and an improvement of a control system of an image forming system including the image forming apparatus.

  Inkjet and electrophotographic image forming apparatuses have a paper setting direction (paper setting direction) and a direction of an original or an image forming direction based on image data (hereinafter referred to as an “image forming direction”). In many cases, image formation is performed on a sheet without matching.

  In order to solve this problem, for example, the user inputs the paper setting state (vertical direction or front and back) on the setting screen on the operation unit, and based on this setting information, the paper orientation is determined as the image forming direction. Whether or not they match is determined by the control unit, and when the vertical direction of the paper does not match the image forming direction, the formed image is rotated and the rotated image information is printed. In addition, when the setting of the front and back sides of the paper does not match the printing surface on which a predetermined image is to be printed, the image forming apparatus that matches the front and back by changing the printing order using the double-sided paper reversing mechanism It is disclosed (for example, see Patent Document 1).

  By the way, as a sheet that requires a printing direction such as up / down with respect to the printing direction or distinction between the front and back sides, for example, postcards, envelopes, headers, ruled lines, etc., in which a postal code entry column is printed in advance are printed There is perforated paper. Postcards are thick paper, envelopes have trapezoidal and triangular binding margins, and perforated paper has holes as its name suggests, each of which has characteristics that plain paper does not have.

However, since the above-described conventional image forming apparatus is configured to print an image to be formed on a sheet regardless of how the user sets the sheet, a problem arises in return. For example, when the paper is set on a paper tray or the like with the binding margin of the envelope or the perforated side of the perforated paper set on the upstream side in the transport direction, paper jam is likely to occur inside the image forming apparatus as compared with plain paper.
Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide an image forming apparatus, an image forming system, an image forming apparatus control program, and a recording medium that solve the above-described problems. .

In order to solve the above problems, an image forming apparatus, an image forming system, a control program for an image forming apparatus, and a recording medium according to the present invention employ the following technical means.
According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus including an operation display unit for displaying various types of information relating to image formation, wherein the operation display unit displays the type of paper to be printed on the operation display unit so as to be selectively input. An input unit that accepts an input of a type; a setting unit that sets a paper setting direction in the paper tray according to the type of paper input by the input unit; and a paper setting in the paper tray set by the setting unit The image forming apparatus includes a display unit that displays a direction on the operation display unit.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a print host including an image forming apparatus having an operation display unit for displaying various information related to image image formation, a monitor for displaying various information, and transmitting the image data to the image forming apparatus. An image forming system comprising: an image forming system including: an input unit configured to display the type of paper to be printed on the monitor so as to be selectively input; and to receive an input of the type of paper; and the type of paper input by the input unit Setting means for setting the paper setting direction to the paper tray according to the setting, and the paper setting direction set to the paper tray set by the setting means on either the monitor or the operation display unit, or both And an image forming system including display means for displaying the image.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, the computer causes the display unit to display the type of paper to be printed on the display unit so that the input can be selected and accepts the input of the paper type, and the type of paper input by the input unit. And a setting unit for setting a paper setting direction to the paper tray in response to the setting unit, and an image forming apparatus control program causing the display unit to display the paper setting direction to the paper tray set by the setting unit. It is characterized by.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recording medium on which the image forming apparatus control program according to the third aspect is recorded so as to be readable by a computer.

  According to the present invention, when printing on a postcard, envelope, perforated paper, or the like that requires a printing direction such as up / down with respect to the printing direction or distinction between the front and back, the printed contents of the paper and the recorded contents In addition, it is possible to avoid the occurrence of a paper jam in the image forming apparatus.

1 is a schematic diagram showing an outline of an image forming system according to an embodiment. It is a block diagram. 3 is a flowchart showing a series of operations. It is a front view of the operation display part which showed the example of a display.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described.
This embodiment includes an electrophotographic image forming apparatus A and a print host apparatus B. The image forming apparatus A can be controlled from the print host apparatus B side and can be printed by the image forming apparatus A alone. 1 illustrates an image forming system. The present embodiment illustrates a case where image data in the print host apparatus B is transmitted to the image forming apparatus A and printed on paper.

  As shown in FIG. 1, in the image forming apparatus A, a middle portion of one side surface is formed in a substantially U shape inwardly, and a paper discharge tray unit 1 is provided, and each component is supported inside. An apparatus machine frame 2, an opening / closing door 3 provided on the top surface of the apparatus machine frame 2 so as to be openable and closable, and an original glass 4 provided in the top surface of the apparatus machine frame 2 are placed on the original glass 4. A document reading section 5 for optically reading the image of the document, a paper feed section 6 including a plurality of paper trays and a manual insertion tray (paper tray) 61 provided at the lower part of the apparatus, and an intermediate section of the apparatus. A plurality of image forming units 8 for forming toner images on the photoconductor 7 based on image data read by the document reading unit 5, and an intermediate transfer belt 9 for transferring and conveying the toner images formed on the photoconductor 7. , Paper that is transporting the toner image transported by the intermediate transfer belt 9 A transfer unit 10 to be transferred, a registration roller 11 that feeds a sheet toward the transfer unit 10 at a predetermined timing, a fixing device 12 that is provided near the transfer unit 10 and fixes a toner image on the sheet, and a plurality of guides A sheet, a transport roller, a switching claw, a pair of paper discharge rollers 14 and the like are provided, and the paper is transported from the paper feed unit 6 to the paper discharge tray unit 1 via the transfer unit 10 and the fixing device 12, and from the fixing device 12 A sheet conveying unit 13 that conveys the ejected sheet while being reversed to the transfer unit 10 is configured to be able to input the number of image formations, an image formation mode, and the like, and various information related to image formation such as user input contents is displayed. And an operation display unit 22.

  Further, the image forming apparatus A according to the present embodiment includes a control unit 21 that operates each component as shown in FIG. The control unit 21 is electrically connected to the document reading unit 5, the image forming unit 8, the paper feeding unit 6, the operation display unit 22, and the like, and is directed to the direction of the document placed on the document glass 4 or The image rotation unit 20 that changes the printing direction with respect to the image data transmitted from the print host apparatus B is provided, and information linked with a setting screen displayed on the monitor 23 of the print host apparatus B, which will be described later, is displayed on the print host apparatus. It is configured to be able to input and display on the operation display unit 22 by a command from B.

  The image forming apparatus configured as described above is connected to a print host apparatus B, which will be described later, so as to be capable of bidirectional communication, and is based on image data from the print host apparatus B or an original placed on the original glass 4 Is printed on paper based on image data generated by the original reading unit 5 reading the image.

Next, the operation at the time of executing printing will be described.
First, on the basis of image data, a plurality of image forming units 8 that perform printing on a sheet form toner images of corresponding colors (yellow, magenta, cyan, black) on the respective photoreceptors 7, and toners of each color The image is transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 9 so that the images overlap, and the intermediate transfer belt 9 conveys the toner image to the transfer unit 10.

  On the other hand, the paper in the paper supply unit 6 is transported by the paper transport unit 13 and is held by the registration rollers 11. The registration roller 11 sends the paper to the transfer unit 10 at a predetermined timing immediately before the toner image is positioned on the transfer unit 10, so that the toner image is transferred to the paper by the transfer unit 10.

  The paper carrying the toner image is moved to the fixing device 12 by the paper transport unit 13, and the fixing device 12 fixes the toner image on the paper by applying heat and pressure to the paper carrying the toner image. The paper discharge roller 14 discharges the paper on which the toner image has been fixed discharged from the fixing device 12 toward the paper discharge tray unit 1. Note that single-sided printing paper is discharged to the paper discharge tray unit 1 with the image forming surface facing downward.

  The print host device B is a well-known personal computer having a monitor 23 for displaying various types of information. Using a graphic such as a window, an icon, and a button, the print direction such as the print direction and duplex printing, and the type of paper to be printed Is displayed on the monitor 23 so that it can be selectively input (a setting screen is displayed), and input means for receiving an input of a paper type by operating a pointing device such as a mouse, and the like, according to the paper type input by the input means Setting means for setting the paper setting direction to the paper tray, and control for the image forming apparatus that functions as display means for displaying the paper setting direction to the paper tray set by the setting means on the monitor 23 and the operation display unit 22 The program is installed.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the image forming apparatus control program is software that includes a printer driver 25 and operates in conjunction with a window system (GUI) 26 and individual window applications 27. The image data is transmitted to the image forming apparatus A through the printer driver 25 together with the instruction. The details will be replaced by the following description of the operation.

Next, a series of operations of the image forming system according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
First, in the print host apparatus B, a setting screen is displayed on the monitor 23 by starting up an image forming apparatus control program (S1).

  This setting screen has an input unit for selecting a paper type. The input section for selecting the paper type uses, for example, “plain paper”, “postcard”, “envelope”, “perforated paper”, and “paper that distinguishes the vertical and front / back directions, which are displayed in advance as options. You can select and input from the paper types such as “Yes”. Then, the user selects and inputs the paper type from the paper type setting input unit. Thereby, the setting means sets the paper setting direction determined by the paper type selection (S2).

  In addition, the setting screen includes an input unit for setting a tray to be used from the sheet feeding unit 6 of the image forming apparatus A. For example, automatic tray selection, first tray, second tray,... Are displayed and can be selected and input as appropriate. The default is “automatic tray selection”. If no selection is made, this “automatic tray selection” is automatically selected (S3).

  For the setting of the use tray, when selecting one of “postcard”, “envelope”, “perforated paper”, and “use paper that distinguishes the vertical and front / back directions” in the paper type selection in S2, When the trays for these sheets are limited due to the configuration of the image forming apparatus A (for example, the manual insertion tray 61), it is preferable that a tray that can be automatically used is selected.

  When “plain paper” is selected in the paper type selection in S2, the setting means determines that “paper orientation is not present” (S4N), or the n-th tray selected on the used tray setting screen or automatic Screen for setting the paper setting direction preset on the image forming apparatus A side (for example, the first tray is A4 portrait orientation, the second tray is A3 landscape orientation, etc.) Are displayed on the operation display unit 22 of the image forming apparatus A (S7).

  When selecting one of “postcard”, “envelope”, “perforated paper”, and “use paper that distinguishes the vertical and front / back directions” in the paper type selection in S2, the setting means Yes "(S4Y).

  Then, the print direction for the image data in the print host apparatus B is automatically recognized by the window application 27 or the printer driver 25 or both. This print direction has an input unit for setting the print direction on the setting screen so that the print direction can be changed intentionally, such as by using an aggregation function. For example, selection items such as “90 degree rotation” and “180 degree rotation” are displayed, and a check is made for the corresponding item to set the printing direction. Then, image rotation information indicating the printing direction is added to the image data (S5).

  In addition, the setting screen includes an input unit for setting the paper setting direction. It is determined whether or not the user has made this setting input (S6). When the user inputs a setting (S6Y), there are inevitably one choice of paper setting direction (S6-1), and the user sets the paper along with information on the paper setting direction determined by the paper type selection. Direction setting information is displayed on the setting screen and the operation display unit 22 of the image forming apparatus A by the display means (S7).

  If the user has not set the paper setting direction (S6N), the paper setting direction determined by the paper type selection is selected. In this case, the paper setting direction is one or more options (S6-2). For example, in the case of an “envelope”, the sheet is set in such a direction that the binding margin is positioned on the upstream side in the conveyance direction of the image forming apparatus A. In this case, the paper is set in one direction. However, in the case of “postcard”, the paper is set in two orientations, portrait orientation and landscape orientation (paper jam occurs in the image forming apparatus in both portrait orientation and landscape orientation). Is low). In such a case, a paper setting direction capable of efficient printing is selected. Then, along with information on the paper setting direction determined by the paper type selection, setting information on the paper setting direction by the user is displayed on the setting screen and the operation display unit 22 of the image forming apparatus A by the display unit (S7). .

  The display in S7 is for the n-th tray selected on the used tray setting screen or the automatically selected tray, and the paper setting direction determined by the paper type selection and the automatically recognized printing. The orientation or the printing orientation set by the user is displayed using an expression method that combines a figure and character information, an animation expression method, or the like.

  Here, a display example on the operation display unit 22 of the image forming apparatus A is shown in FIG. FIG. 4 assumes a case where “envelope” is selected as the paper type and the manual insertion tray 61 is automatically selected by selecting the manual insertion tray 61 by the user or selecting “envelope”.

  As shown in FIG. 4, it is displayed that the user sets the paper in the manual insertion tray 61 and the selected paper type is “envelope”, so the binding margin is on the upstream side in the transport direction. The paper set direction is shown, and the print direction by automatic recognition or user setting is shown. If the paper setting direction and the printing direction do not match, as shown in the figure, character information for resetting the printing direction is displayed to alert the user.

  In addition, when the user sets the paper setting direction, the paper setting direction by the user is also illustrated to alert the user. In this way, an image diagram is displayed when printing is performed with the current settings, but it is preferable to blink these pieces of information in order to call the user more attention.

  With this display, the user sets the paper in the correct direction or sets the paper in the correct direction with respect to the n-th tray selected on the use tray setting screen or the automatically selected tray. Check if it is. Also, it is confirmed whether the printing orientation is in the display state (FIG. 3, S8).

  A confirmation button asking whether or not all print settings have been completed is displayed on both the setting screen and the operation display unit 22 of the image forming apparatus A, and printing is started by pressing one of the confirmation buttons (S10). . Note that printing may be started immediately after the paper feeding sensor provided in the paper feeding unit is detected by skipping this step and setting the paper.

  As described above, according to the image forming system according to the present embodiment, the sheet setting direction determined by the user selecting the sheet type is displayed on the operation display unit 22 of the image forming apparatus A and the monitor 23 of the print host apparatus B. Because the user sets the paper in the correct direction according to the display information (reset), such as postcards, envelopes, perforated paper, etc. When printing is performed, it is possible to eliminate the problem that the printed content of the paper does not match the orientation of the recorded content, and it is possible to avoid the occurrence of paper jam in the image forming apparatus A.

  In addition, when a user operation for setting printing conditions and a reading start operation from the document reading unit of the image forming apparatus A use paper that does not require printing direction such as up / down with respect to the printing direction or distinction between front and back If the paper setting direction can be displayed on the operation unit of the image forming apparatus A or the monitor 23 of the print host apparatus B only by performing the above-described operation, as in the prior art. It is possible to omit operations such as inputting the paper setting state separately.

  Therefore, there are two operations performed by the user: printing condition setting (or document reading start operation) and paper setting, and there is no change in the number of operations when printing on paper that does not require printing directionality. Further, by guiding the paper setting direction, the user can set the paper without hesitation when setting the paper, which leads to an improvement in paper operability.

Although the image forming system according to the present embodiment has been described above, the above-described embodiment shows an example of a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited thereto. Various modifications are possible.
For example, in the present exemplary embodiment, the setting unit is processing on the print host device side, but may be processing on the image forming device side. Although this embodiment has been exemplified as the image forming system, the image forming apparatus may be configured to function as the input unit, the setting unit, and the display unit described above. The image forming apparatus control program may cause the computer to function as the input unit, the setting unit, and the display unit, and the image forming apparatus control program is recorded so as to be readable by the computer. A recording medium may be used.

A ... Image forming apparatus B ... Print host device 6 ... Paper feed unit 21 ... Control unit 22 ... Operation display unit 23 ... Monitor 24 ... Input means 25 ... Printer driver 26 ... Window system 27 ... Window application

JP 2004-177741 A

Claims (4)

An image forming apparatus including an operation display unit that displays various information related to image formation,
An input unit that displays the type of paper to be printed on the operation display unit so that the input can be selected and accepts the input of the paper type;
Setting means for setting the paper setting direction in the paper tray according to the type of paper input by the input means;
An image forming apparatus comprising: a display unit configured to display, on the operation display unit, a sheet setting direction set in the sheet tray by the setting unit. An image forming system including an image forming apparatus including an operation display unit that displays various information related to image formation, and a print host device that includes a monitor that displays various information and transmits the image data to the image forming apparatus. There,
An input unit that displays the type of paper to be printed on the monitor so that the input can be selected and receives the input of the paper type;
Setting means for setting the paper setting direction in the paper tray according to the type of paper input by the input means;
An image forming system comprising: a display unit configured to display a paper setting direction in the paper tray set by the setting unit on either one of the monitor and the operation display unit or both. . Computer
An input means for displaying the type of paper to be printed on the display unit so that the input can be selected and receiving the input of the paper type;
Setting means for setting the paper setting direction in the paper tray according to the type of paper input by the input means;
A control program for an image forming apparatus, which causes a paper setting direction set on the paper tray set by the setting means to function as a display means for displaying on the display section.   4. A recording medium, wherein the control program for an image forming apparatus according to claim 3 is recorded so as to be readable by a computer.

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