JP2012234016A - Image processing apparatus and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a technique capable of forming an image depending on image quality desired by a user while reducing a work load of a user in an image forming apparatus capable of mounting a fixing device suitable for each of a plurality kinds of recording media.SOLUTION: A control part 12 of an image forming apparatus 1 discriminates the kind of recording medium supplied to an image forming section 17 and the type of fixing device mounted on the image forming section 17 and determines whether or not the fixing device is suitable for the recording medium depending on the discrimination result. When the fixing device is determined to be not suitable for the recording medium, the control part 12 determines whether the replacement of the fixing device by one that is suitable for the recording medium is awaited according to a signal output from a UI part 14. When it is selected by a user that the fixing device is not replaced, the control part 12 allows the image forming section 17 to perform image formation processing without waiting for the replacement of the fixing device.

Description

  The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus and an image forming apparatus.

  In an image forming apparatus that performs an image forming process by an electrophotographic method, in order to appropriately fix a toner image on a sheet by a fixing unit, it is necessary to consider a fixing temperature and pressure according to the type and size of the sheet. Especially for special paper such as thick paper and envelopes and wide paper size, the settings can be switched according to the physical operation of the user, such as lever operation or physical fixing device replacement. An apparatus for performing a fixing process has been developed (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2008-058365 A

  According to the present invention, in an image forming apparatus in which a fixing device suitable for each of a plurality of types of recording media can be mounted, an image can be formed according to the image quality desired by the user while reducing the work load on the user. The purpose is to provide technology that can be used.

  According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus for determining a type of a recording medium supplied by a supplying unit that supplies the recording medium to an image forming unit that forms a toner image on the recording medium. A type determining unit and a second type for determining the type of fixing unit that is attached to the image forming unit and fixes the toner image to the recording medium by heating and pressurizing the recording medium on which the toner image is formed. Whether the fixing unit is suitable for the recording medium using the determining unit, the type of the recording medium determined by the first type determining unit, and the type of the fixing unit determined by the second type determining unit. When the determination result by the first determination unit and the first determination unit is negative, the process waits for the fixing unit to be replaced with one suitable for the recording medium. A second determination unit that determines whether or not according to a signal output from an operation unit operated by a user, and if the determination result by the second determination unit is affirmative, the fixing unit Waits until it is detected that the recording medium has been changed to one suitable for the recording medium, and when it is detected, the image forming unit performs image forming processing, while the determination result by the first determination unit is positive. A control unit that causes the image forming unit to perform the image forming process without waiting for replacement of the fixing unit when there is a negative determination result or when the determination result by the second determination unit is negative; It is characterized by.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the image processing apparatus, the control unit refers to a flag storage unit that stores a flag indicating whether or not to wait for replacement of the fixing unit. Indicates that the image forming unit does not wait for replacement, the image forming unit performs the image forming process without waiting for replacement of the fixing unit.

  An image processing apparatus according to claim 3 of the present invention is the image processing apparatus, wherein the control means is configured to store a flag stored in the flag storage means when the determination result by the first determination means is negative. Is changed to a value indicating the determination result by the second determination means.

  An image processing apparatus according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is the image processing apparatus, wherein the control unit includes the first unit when the recording medium supplied by the supply unit is a predetermined type of recording medium. The image forming unit causes the image forming unit to perform the image forming process without waiting for replacement of the fixing unit without causing the first determining unit and the second determining unit to perform the determining process.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the image processing apparatus, the flag storage unit includes a plurality of flags corresponding to each of a plurality of storage units that store recording media supplied to the image forming unit. And the control unit determines whether to wait for replacement of the fixing unit with reference to a flag corresponding to a storage unit that is a supply source of the recording medium supplied to the image forming unit. It is characterized by doing.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the image processing apparatus according to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the image processing apparatus further includes an authentication unit that authenticates a user, and the flag storage unit stores a plurality of flags corresponding to each of the users. The control means refers to a flag corresponding to the user authenticated by the authentication means and determines whether or not to wait for replacement of the fixing means.

  An image forming apparatus according to a seventh aspect of the present invention includes the image processing apparatus and the image forming unit.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, in an image forming apparatus in which a fixing device suitable for each of a plurality of types of recording media can be mounted, the fixing device is replaced when the fixing device is not suitable for the recording medium. Compared to the case where it is not determined whether or not to wait, it is possible to perform image formation according to the image quality desired by the user while reducing the user's workload.
According to the second aspect of the present invention, it is possible to reduce a user's work load compared to a case where determination using a flag indicating whether or not to wait for replacement of the fixing device is not performed.
According to the third aspect of the present invention, it is possible to reduce the user's work load as compared with the case where the flag value is not changed according to the operation content of the user.
According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the user's workload is reduced compared to a case where control is not performed so as not to determine whether or not to wait for replacement of the fixing device when a specific type of recording medium is used. Can be reduced.
According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to set whether or not to wait for replacement of the fixing device for each of the plurality of storage units that store the recording medium.
According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to set whether or not to wait for replacement of the fixing device for each of a plurality of users.
According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, in an image forming apparatus in which a fixing device suitable for each of a plurality of types of recording media can be mounted, the fixing device is replaced when the fixing device is not suitable for the recording medium. Compared to the case where it is not determined whether or not to wait for this, it is possible to perform image formation according to the image quality desired by the user while reducing the workload on the user.

2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of an image forming apparatus. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of an image forming unit. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of an image forming apparatus. FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of processing performed by the image forming apparatus. It is a figure which shows an example of the screen displayed on a UI part. FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining a specific operation example of the image forming apparatus.

<Configuration>
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of an image forming apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The image forming apparatus 1 is an apparatus that forms an image by electrophotography. The image forming apparatus 1 includes an image forming function for forming an image on a recording medium such as a sheet, a copying function for copying an image, and an image formed on the recording medium in accordance with data sent from another computer such as a personal computer. A scanning function for reading The functions provided in the image forming apparatus 1 are not limited to these functions, and may include, for example, a facsimile function. Further, the image forming apparatus 1 is not limited to the one having all the functions described above. For example, the image forming apparatus 1 may have a configuration having an image forming function and a copying function and not having other functions. The recording medium on which an image is formed by the image forming apparatus 1 is not limited to paper, and may be a transparent synthetic resin sheet such as an OHP (OverHead Projector) sheet. It may be of the material.

  As illustrated, each part of the image forming apparatus 1 is connected to a bus 11, and data is exchanged between each part via the bus 11. In the figure, the control unit 12 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 121, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 122, and a RAM (Random Access Memory) 123, and forms an image according to a computer program stored in the ROM 122 or the storage unit 13. The apparatus 1 is controlled. The control unit 12 is an example of an image processing apparatus according to the present invention. The storage unit 13 is a storage unit such as a hard disk, and stores various programs such as a program related to the control of the image forming apparatus 1. The UI unit 14 includes a liquid crystal display that functions as a touch panel, and the user of the image forming apparatus 1 performs various operations by touching the liquid crystal display. The communication unit 18 is connected to the communication line 2 with a communication cable, and performs data communication with other devices connected to the communication line 2. Examples of the communication line 2 include a telephone line and a LAN (Local Area Network).

  The image reading unit 15 includes an optical system member (not shown), optically reads an image formed on a recording medium, and generates image data representing the read image. The image processing unit 16 performs various types of image processing such as color correction and gradation correction on the image represented by the input image data, and yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (from the image processed image). C) Image data of each color image of black (B) is generated, and the generated image data is output to the image forming unit 17. The image processing unit 16 is configured by an integrated circuit such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit).

  The image forming unit 17 forms an image on a recording medium by electrophotography. The image forming unit 17 is an example of an image forming unit according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of the image forming unit 17. In the figure, photosensitive drums 171Y, 171M, 171C, and 171K are photosensitive drums each having a photoconductive layer such as an organic photosensitive material formed on the surface thereof. The chargers 172Y, 172M, 172C, and 172K respectively apply charges with a charging bias in which AC and DC (direct current) are superimposed on the surface of the photosensitive drums 171Y, 171M, 171C, and 171K, and uniformly charge the chargers. It is. The exposure device 173 is an exposure device including a beam emission source such as a laser diode. The exposure unit 173 exposes the photosensitive drums 171Y, 171M, 171C, and 171K according to the image data supplied from the image processing unit 16, and electrostatic latent images on the surfaces of the photosensitive drums 171Y, 171M, 171C, and 171K. Form.

  The toner cartridges 174Y, 174M, 174C, and 174K store yellow, magenta, cyan, and black toners, respectively, and supply them to the developing units 175Y, 175M, 175C, and 175K as necessary. The developing devices 175Y, 175M, 175C, and 175K form toner images by attaching toner to the electrostatic latent images formed on the surfaces of the photosensitive drums 171Y, 171M, 171C, and 171K, respectively. The primary transfer rolls 176Y, 176M, 176C, and 176K face the photosensitive drums 171Y, 171M, 171C, and 171K through the intermediate transfer belt 177, respectively, and transfer the toner images to the intermediate transfer belt 177 at the facing positions. The intermediate transfer belt 177 holds the toner images transferred by the primary transfer rolls 176Y, 176M, 176C, and 176K, respectively. The intermediate transfer belt 177 is supported by a plurality of support rolls 178 and moves while circling in a direction indicated by an arrow A1 in the drawing. The secondary transfer roll 179 transfers the toner image transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 177 to the conveyed recording medium.

  The transport roll 180 transports the recording medium to the secondary transfer roll 179. The transport roll 180 is an example of a supply unit that supplies the recording medium to an image forming unit that forms a toner image on the recording medium. The transport roll 180 transports a recording medium stored in a storage unit (paper feed tray) (not shown) for storing the recording medium, or a recording inserted into a manual feed tray (not shown) into which a user inserts the recording medium. Transport media. The fixing device 181 fixes the toner image on the recording medium by heating and pressing the recording medium on which the toner image is transferred by the secondary transfer roll 179.

  A plurality of types of fixing devices 181 can be attached to and detached from the image forming apparatus 1, and a user of the image forming apparatus 1 uses the fixing device 181 according to his / her application by attaching it to the image forming apparatus 1. . Here, as the fixing device 181 mounted on the image forming apparatus 1, two types of fixing devices 181 including a standard fixing device 181A and a wide paper fixing device 181B are used. Each fixing device 181 is manufactured so as to perform a fixing process suitable for each of a plurality of types of recording media. The standard fixing device 181A is a fixing device used for a recording medium having a standard paper size. The wide paper fixing device 181B is a fixing device used for a wide recording medium. The wide paper fixing device 181B is designed to have a temperature and pressure suitable for use with a wide recording medium. In this embodiment, it is possible to perform fixing processing on a wide recording medium by using another fixing device 181 such as the standard fixing device 181A. In this case, an image formed on the recording medium may be subjected to fixing processing. The image quality may be degraded. That is, by using the wide fixing device 181B when using a wide recording medium, a higher quality image is formed than when using another fixing device.

  A user of the image forming apparatus 1 uses the image forming apparatus 1 while appropriately replacing the fixing device 181 according to the type of recording medium. Specifically, for example, when wide paper is used and the standard fixing device 181A is attached to the image forming apparatus 1, the fixing device 181 of the image forming apparatus 1 is changed to the wide paper fixing device 181B. The image forming process is performed.

  The storage unit 13 includes a determination flag storage area 131 as illustrated. The determination flag storage area 131 stores a determination flag that is referred to in a determination process for determining whether or not to wait for the fixing device 181 to be replaced. The control unit 12 of the image forming apparatus 1 determines whether or not to perform standby by referring to this flag in a standby determination process described later. Since this standby determination process will be described later, detailed description thereof will be omitted here.

  Next, the functional configuration of the image forming apparatus 1 will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of the image forming apparatus 1. In the figure, a sheet type determination unit 101, a fixing device type determination unit 102, a first determination unit 103, a second determination unit 104, and an image processing control unit 105 are computer programs stored in the ROM 122 or the storage unit 13 by the control unit 12. This is realized by reading and executing. In the figure, a paper type discriminating unit 101 is an example of a first type discriminating unit that discriminates the type of recording medium supplied to the image forming unit by the supplying unit according to the present invention. The paper type discriminating unit 101 responds to a signal output from a sensor (not shown) that detects the size and thickness of the supplied recording medium and information related to the recording medium transport source (paper feed tray and manual feed tray). The type of recording medium is determined.

  The fixing device type determination unit 102 is an example of a second type determination unit that determines the type of the fixing unit according to the present invention. The fixing device type determination unit 102 acquires information related to the type of the fixing device 181 attached to the image forming apparatus 1 by executing processing such as reading from a predetermined storage area, and based on the acquired information. The type of the fixing device 181 is determined.

  The first determination unit 103 is attached to the image forming apparatus 1 using the type of the recording medium determined by the paper type determination unit 101 and the type of the fixing device 181 determined by the fixing device determination unit 102. It is determined whether or not the fixing device 181 is suitable for the recording medium supplied to the image forming unit 17. For this determination, for example, a table indicating the correspondence relationship between the type of the recording medium and the type of the fixing device is held in the storage unit 13, and the first determination unit 103 performs the determination with reference to this table. Alternatively, for example, the first determination unit 103 detects the thickness of the recording medium according to a signal output from a sensor (not shown) that detects the thickness of the recording medium, and the detected thickness is determined in advance. It may be compared with the determined threshold value, and the determination may be performed according to the comparison result. The first determination unit 103 corresponds to an example of a first determination unit according to the present invention.

  The second determination unit 104 determines that the fixing device 181 is suitable for the recording medium when the determination result of the first determination unit 103 is negative (that is, if the fixing device 181 is determined not to be suitable for the recording medium). Whether or not to wait for a replacement is determined according to a signal output from the UI unit 14 operated by the user. The second determination unit 104 corresponds to an example of a second determination unit according to the present invention. The user can select whether or not to replace the fixing device 181 according to his / her application. The user selects whether or not to replace the fixing device 181 by operating the UI unit 14, and the UI unit 14 outputs a signal corresponding to the operation content of the user.

  The image processing control unit 105 controls the image forming process using the determination result of the first determination unit 103 and the determination result of the second determination unit 104. When the determination result of the second determination unit 104 is affirmative (that is, when it is determined to wait for the fixing device 181 to be replaced), the image processing control unit 105 is suitable for the recording medium. It waits until it is detected that it has been replaced, and when it is detected that it has been replaced, it instructs the image forming unit 17 to execute the image forming process.

  On the other hand, when the determination result by the first determination unit 103 is affirmative (that is, when it is determined that the fixing device 181 mounted on the image forming apparatus 1 is suitable for the recording medium). ) Or when the determination result of the second determination unit 104 is negative (that is, when it is determined not to wait for replacement of the fixing device 181), the image forming unit does not wait for replacement of the fixing device 181. 17 is instructed to execute the image forming process. The image processing control unit 105 corresponds to an example of a control unit according to the present invention.

<Operation>
Next, processing performed by the image forming apparatus 1 will be described with reference to a flowchart shown in FIG. The image forming apparatus 1 is instructed to execute an image forming process when the user operates the UI unit 14 or receives image data to be processed from an external apparatus. Prior to executing the image forming process, the user can set in advance whether or not to replace the fixing device 181 each time. The control unit 12 of the image forming apparatus 1 displays on the UI unit 14 a screen for prompting the user to select whether or not to replace the fixing device 181 each time (hereinafter referred to as “exchange mode”). When the user performs an operation of selecting one according to the displayed screen, the UI unit 14 outputs a signal corresponding to the operated content to the control unit 12. The control unit 12 selects an exchange mode according to the signal output from the UI unit 14 (step S1), and sets a value indicating the selected exchange mode in the determination flag stored in the determination flag storage area 131.

  Next, the control unit 12 determines whether or not the recording medium conveyed to the image forming unit 17 is an insertion sheet (that is, a banner sheet) (step S2). This determination is performed by determining whether or not the recording medium conveyed to the image forming unit 17 is inserted into the manual feed tray. If it is determined that the sheet is an insertion sheet (step S2; YES), the control unit 12 proceeds to the process of step S9 without performing the process of step S3, and causes the image forming unit 17 to execute the image forming process. That is, when the recording medium supplied to the image forming unit 17 is a predetermined type of recording medium (here, an insertion sheet), the control unit 12 does not perform the determination process of step S3 or step S6. Further, the image forming unit 17 is caused to perform image forming processing without waiting for replacement of the fixing device 181.

  On the other hand, when it is determined in step S2 that the sheet is not an insertion sheet (step S2; NO), the control unit 12 determines the type of the recording medium conveyed and the fixing device mounted on the image forming apparatus 1. The type of the recording medium 181 is determined, and it is determined whether or not the conveyed recording medium is suitable for the fixing device 181 attached to the image forming apparatus 1 (step S3). If it is determined in step S3 that the recording medium is suitable for the fixing device 181 (step S3; YES), the control unit 12 proceeds to the process of step S9 without performing the processes of step S4 to step S8. . On the other hand, if it is determined in step S3 that the recording medium is not suitable for the fixing device 181 (step S3; NO), the control unit 12 displays a message prompting the user to replace the fixing device 181. It is determined whether or not (step S4). This determination is performed by the control unit 12 referring to the value of the determination flag stored in the determination flag storage area 131.

  When it is determined in step S4 that no message is displayed (step S4; NO), the control unit 12 proceeds to the process of step S9 without performing the processes of step S5 to step S8. That is, the control unit 12 refers to the determination flag stored in the determination flag storage area 131, and if this flag indicates that the fixing device 181 is not waited for, the image is displayed without waiting for the fixing device to be replaced. The forming unit 17 is caused to perform image forming processing. On the other hand, if it is determined that a message is to be displayed (step S4; YES), the control unit 12 ends the process when the image forming unit 17 is executing an image forming process for another recording medium. When the processing is completed, a message for prompting replacement of the fixing device 181 is displayed on the UI unit 14 (step S5).

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen displayed on the UI unit 14. As shown in the figure, a message such as “Replace the fixing device” is displayed on the UI unit 14, and a “Continue processing without replacement” button B 1, a “Cancel” button B 2, and the like are displayed. The In the screen shown in FIG. 5, a diagram showing a method for replacing the fixing device 181 may be displayed.

  The user can replace the fixing device 181 to perform image forming processing, and when the user does not require high-quality output (for example, when performing trial printing), the fixing device. It is also possible to continue the image forming process as it is without exchanging 181, and any one can be selected according to its own use. When replacing the fixing device 181, the user replaces the fixing device 181 by opening the front cover of the image forming apparatus 1 while referring to the screen displayed on the UI unit 14. On the other hand, when the image forming process is continued without replacing the fixing device 181, the user selects the “continue processing without replacing” button B 1 on the screen illustrated in FIG. 5.

  The control unit 12 determines the operation selected by the user (step S6). When the fixing device 181 is replaced by the user (step S6; “fixing device is replaced”), the control unit 12 returns to the processing of step S3, and the replaced fixing device 181 is suitable for the recording medium. (Step S3). On the other hand, when it is selected in step S6 that the image forming process is continued without replacing the fixing device 181 (step S6; “continue as it is”), the control unit 12 updates the determination flag. A screen for selecting whether or not is displayed on the UI unit 14. The user selects whether or not to update the determination flag according to the screen displayed on the UI unit 14, and when the control unit 12 is selected to update the determination flag (step S7; YES), the determination flag is stepped. The value is changed to a value indicating the determination result of S6 (step S8). When the above process is completed, the control unit 12 instructs the image forming unit 17 to perform the image forming process, causes the image forming process to be performed on the recording medium (step S9), returns to the process of step S2, and then A determination process is performed for the recording medium to be conveyed.

  Here, a specific operation example of the image forming process performed by the image forming apparatus 1 will be described with reference to FIG. In the example shown in FIG. 6, image forming processing is performed using eight recording media. First, a banner sheet is added, and standard recording media are added to the first, fifth, and seventh sheets. A wide recording medium is used for the fourth and sixth sheets. In the example shown in FIG. 6, when the fixing device 181 suitable for each recording medium type is used, the user replaces the standard recording fixing device 181A with the wide paper fixing device 181B on the second recording medium. Next, it is necessary to replace the wide sheet fixing device 181B with the standard fixing device 181A on the fifth recording medium, and also to replace the fixing device 181 with the sixth and seventh sheets. . However, there are cases where the user does not require high-quality output, and in that case, it is complicated for the user to replace the fixing device 181 each time. On the other hand, in this embodiment, the user can select whether or not to replace the fixing device 181 according to his / her application.

  As described above, in the present exemplary embodiment, it is determined whether or not the fixing device 181 is suitable for each of the recording media to be subjected to image formation. It is determined whether or not a screen for prompting is displayed. That is, if the user desires, the fixing device 181 can be replaced each time, and if not desired, the printed matter optimum for the user can be obtained without replacement or by performing only a minimum replacement.

<Modification>
As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to embodiment mentioned above, It can implement with another various form. An example is shown below. In addition, you may combine each following aspect suitably.
(1) In the above-described embodiment, two types of fixing devices, the standard fixing device 181A and the wide paper fixing device 181B, are used as the fixing device, but the type of fixing device is not limited to these. Alternatively, another type of fixing device may be used. For example, a fixing device dedicated to cardboard or a fixing device dedicated to envelopes may be used. In the above-described embodiment, standard-size paper and wide-width paper are used as the recording medium. However, the type of the recording medium is not limited to these, and various types of recording such as cardboard and envelopes can be used. A medium is used.

(2) In the above-described embodiment, the determination flag storage area 131 is configured to store a plurality of determination flags corresponding to each of a plurality of storage units (paper feed trays) that store recording media. Whether or not to wait for replacement of the fixing device 181 may be determined with reference to a determination flag corresponding to a storage unit that is a supply source of the recording medium supplied to the image forming unit 17.

(3) In the above-described embodiment, whether to wait for the replacement of the fixing device 181 may be determined for each user. In this case, for example, the determination flag storage area 131 is configured to hold a plurality of determination flags corresponding to each of the users, and the control unit 12 authenticates the user and determines corresponding to the authenticated user. Whether or not to wait for replacement of the fixing device 181 may be determined with reference to the flag.

(4) The programs stored in the ROM 122 or the storage unit 13 described above are a magnetic recording medium (magnetic tape, magnetic disk (HDD (Hard Disk Drive), FD (Flexible Disk)), etc.), optical recording medium (optical disk, etc.). ), And stored in a computer-readable recording medium such as a magneto-optical recording medium or a semiconductor memory. Alternatively, it may be downloaded to the image forming apparatus 1 via a communication line such as the Internet.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Image forming apparatus, 2 ... Communication line, 11 ... Bus, 12 ... Control part, 13 ... Memory | storage part, 14 ... UI part, 15 ... Image reading part, 16 ... Image processing part, 17 ... Image forming part, 18 ... Communication unit 121... CPU, 122... ROM, 123... RAM, 101... Paper type determination unit, 102... Fixing device type determination unit, 103. 131 ... Determination flag storage area

Claims (7)

A first type discriminating unit for discriminating the type of recording medium supplied by a supplying unit that supplies the recording medium to an image forming unit that forms a toner image on the recording medium;
A second type discriminating unit that discriminates the type of fixing unit that is mounted on the image forming unit and fixes the toner image on the recording medium by heating and pressurizing the recording medium on which the toner image is formed;
Using the type of the recording medium determined by the first type determining unit and the type of the fixing unit determined by the second type determining unit, it is determined whether the fixing unit is suitable for the recording medium. First determining means for
If the determination result by the first determination means is negative, whether or not to wait for the fixing means to be replaced with one suitable for the recording medium is determined from the operation means operated by the user. Second determination means for determining according to an output signal;
If the determination result by the second determination unit is affirmative, the image forming unit waits until it is detected that the fixing unit has been replaced with one suitable for the recording medium. While the image forming process is performed, if the determination result by the first determination unit is affirmative or the determination result by the second determination unit is negative, the replacement of the fixing unit is awaited. An image processing apparatus comprising: a control unit that causes the image forming unit to perform the image forming process without using the image forming unit. The control means refers to a flag storage means for storing a flag indicating whether or not to wait for replacement of the fixing means. When the flag indicates that the replacement is not waited for, the control means waits for replacement of the fixing means. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming unit performs the image forming process without performing the process. The control means changes the value of the flag stored in the flag storage means to a value indicating the determination result by the second determination means when the determination result by the first determination means is negative. The image processing apparatus according to claim 2. When the recording medium supplied by the supply means is a predetermined type of recording medium, the control means does not cause the first determination means and the second determination means to perform determination processing. The image processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the image forming unit performs the image forming process without waiting for replacement of the fixing unit. The flag storage unit stores a plurality of flags corresponding to each of a plurality of storage units that store recording media supplied to the image forming unit,
The control unit determines whether to wait for replacement of the fixing unit with reference to a flag corresponding to a storage unit that is a supply source of a recording medium supplied to the image forming unit. The image processing apparatus according to claim 2. With authentication means to authenticate users,
The flag storage means stores a plurality of flags corresponding to each of the users,
The image processing according to claim 2, wherein the control unit determines whether to wait for replacement of the fixing unit with reference to a flag corresponding to the user authenticated by the authentication unit. apparatus. The image processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
An image forming apparatus comprising: the image forming unit.

Images