JP2013123823A - Image forming device, program for controlling the image forming device, and method for controlling the image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To detect a portion where abnormality or failure occurs and the cause in an early stage by performing an error diagnosis when some error occurs in an image forming device, and to prevent irreparable fatal failure which is caused by operating the device in the abnormal state or the failure state.SOLUTION: When the error occurs in the image forming device, an error level of the error having occurred is determined from the content of the error, the operation state when the error occurs, and occurrence frequency up to that time of the error in the operation state by referring to an error level determination table.

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, an image forming apparatus control program, and an image forming apparatus control method, and more particularly, to an error detection method in an image forming apparatus.

  In recent years, there has been a tendency to digitize information, and image processing apparatuses such as printers and facsimiles used for outputting digitized information and scanners used for digitizing documents have become indispensable devices. Such an image processing apparatus is often configured as a multifunction machine that can be used as a printer, a facsimile, a scanner, or a copier by providing an imaging function, an image forming function, a communication function, and the like.

  The above-mentioned multifunction peripherals are composed of many units or parts. If a malfunction or failure of the multifunction peripheral occurs due to failure or lifetime of these units, it is necessary to perform repairs and maintenance such as replacement. There is. However, since it is necessary for the user to stop a part or all of the functions of the multi-function peripheral during repair or maintenance, the multi-function peripheral cannot be used during repair or maintenance. Furthermore, when performing repairs and maintenance, the user may need a long time to find the cause of the abnormality or failure, and the user cannot use the multi-function device not only during the repair and maintenance, but also during this time. There is a problem.

  This problem also occurs when maintenance is performed on a portion where an abnormality can occur as a preventive measure before an abnormality actually occurs. In order to solve such problems, the time to find the cause of the abnormality is shortened by diagnosing where the abnormality of the multifunction device is occurring or diagnosing it and then performing repairs and maintenance. It is necessary to shorten the time during which the machine cannot be used.

  In this way, as a technology for diagnosing where or where an abnormality of a multifunction device is occurring, a technology for estimating a failure location, a technology for extracting a candidate for a failure location or a location that may cause a failure, and a device Techniques for determining the presence / absence of an abnormal state and predicting the occurrence of a device failure have been devised and already known.

  However, the above-mentioned multifunction peripherals are composed of many units or parts, and there are various causes for the malfunctions and failures. Therefore, even if the above technology is applied, A misdiagnosis may occur, such as when diagnosing a different location as a failure or failure location, or when diagnosing a failure or failure even though no failure or failure has actually occurred. .

  That is, in such a multifunction device, the same problem as the above problem, that is, a problem that it takes a long time to find the cause of the abnormality in performing repair and maintenance, and the cause of the malfunction or failure are There arises a problem that unnecessary repair and maintenance of different parts may be performed.

  Therefore, in order to solve the above problems in the multifunction device, that is, in order to shorten the time required to find the cause of the abnormality in performing repairs and maintenance, and in order not to perform unnecessary repairs and maintenance, there is a problem. It is necessary to more accurately diagnose where and where a failure occurs or to eliminate misdiagnosis.

  Therefore, in order to solve such problems, in order to eliminate more false detections or misdiagnosis for device errors, the device operation states are classified into multiple types, and they occur for each classified operation state. A technique has been disclosed in which an error table that stores either an error that may occur or an error that may not occur is referred to, and the correctness of the error is determined from the error that has occurred and the operating state at the time of error detection. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).

  In the above-described multifunction device, for example, when a paper jam frequently occurs, it is a minor error that can occur normally. Some are configured to notify. In a multi-function machine configured in this way, each time an error occurs, the error occurrence count is measured for each error type. If the same error occurs repeatedly within a certain period, It is supposed to diagnose.

  By the way, in such a multi-function peripheral, for example, an error that should occur during printing, such as an ink end, is a minor error that can normally occur, such as when it occurs during standby. If an error occurs in an operating state that cannot occur, the mechanism, unit, module, etc. related to the error may have an abnormality or failure due to deterioration over time, regardless of the number of occurrences or minority of the error. Suspected of occurring.

  That is, although it is a minor error that can occur normally, if the error occurs in an operating state where it cannot originally occur, deterioration of the multifunction device over time has progressed to a considerable degree, Since it is considered that a failure has occurred, it is necessary to immediately stop the operation of the device and perform repairs and maintenance.

  However, since errors such as ink end and paper jam are minor errors that are inherent to multifunction devices, they are not usually regarded as serious errors regardless of the operating status, and such errors occur. However, even if it is a minor error that can occur normally, it is left as it is, or the operation of the device is continued as it is, resulting in a fatal failure that cannot be recovered was there.

  That is, in the conventional technology, the error is judged by referring to the error occurrence frequency or by referring to the frequency of occurrence of the error. Even if it occurs in an operating state that cannot occur, it is diagnosed as a normal error, so even if such an error occurs, it is left as it is, or the operation of the device is continued as it is. There was a problem that could lead to a fatal failure that could not be recovered.

  For example, in the case of the method disclosed in Patent Document 1, an abnormality or failure is determined based on the content of the detected error and the operation state of the apparatus when the error occurs. This is a determination as to whether or not it is a false detection. In this case, since various errors may occur in a device with a complicated configuration, the determination as to whether or not the detected error is a false detection depends on the content of the error and the operation state of the device when the error occurs. It is not something that can be done uniformly based on.

  The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and when an error occurs in the image forming apparatus, by performing error diagnosis, the location and cause of the occurrence of an abnormality or failure can be identified at an early stage. The purpose of the detection is to prevent an unrecoverable fatal failure caused by operating the device in an abnormal state or failure state.

  In order to solve the above problem, an image forming apparatus having a function of diagnosing an error that has occurred, the status information indicating the operation state when the error occurs from the error information included in the operation log, and the occurrence An error information acquisition unit that acquires error content information of an error that has occurred, an error log storage unit that stores the acquired status information and the acquired error content information as an error log for each error that has occurred, and the storage An occurrence frequency determining unit that determines an occurrence frequency of an error including status information and error content information that is the same as the acquired status information and the acquired error content information from the acquired error log; The error level, which is the index shown in, is determined by the error level information and frequency of occurrence for each status. Referring to Buru, characterized in that it comprises an error level determination unit which determines the error level based on said obtained status information and the and the acquired error code the determined frequency.

  According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a control program for an image forming apparatus having a function of diagnosing an error that has occurred, and indicates an operation state when the error occurs from error information included in an operation log. A step of acquiring status information and error content information of the error that has occurred, a step of storing the acquired status information and the acquired error content information as an error log for each error that has occurred; A step of determining an error occurrence frequency including status information and error content information identical to the acquired status information and the acquired error content information from an error log, and an index indicating the degree of error in stages An error level judgment table in which an error level is determined by error content information and frequency of occurrence for each status. See, characterized in that and a step of determining the error level to the image forming apparatus on the basis of said acquired status information and the and the acquired error code the determined frequency.

  According to still another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a control method for an image forming apparatus having a function of diagnosing an error that has occurred, wherein an operation state when the error occurs is determined from error information included in an operation log. Status information and error content information of the error that has occurred are acquired, the acquired status information and the acquired error content information are stored as an error log for each error that has occurred, and the stored error log To determine the frequency of occurrence of the error including the acquired status information and the same status information and error content information as the acquired error content information, and the error level as an index indicating the degree of error in stages Refer to the error level determination table defined by the error content information and the occurrence frequency for each status, and the acquired status And determining the error level based on the occurrence frequency distribution and the and the acquired error code is the determined.

  According to the present invention, when an error occurs in the image forming apparatus, an error diagnosis is performed to quickly detect the location or cause of the abnormality or failure, and the operation of the device in the abnormal state or failure state. It is possible to prevent an unrecoverable fatal failure caused by performing the operation.

1 is an external schematic view of an ink jet printer according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is sectional drawing when the inkjet printer which concerns on embodiment of this invention is seen from the left side surface. It is a permeation | transmission figure when the inkjet printer which concerns on embodiment of this invention is seen from upper direction. It is a figure which shows the structure of the nozzle formation surface currently formed in each nozzle of the recording head of the inkjet printer which concerns on embodiment of this invention. 1 is a block diagram schematically showing a hardware configuration of an inkjet printer and peripheral devices thereof according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the function structure of the error determination part which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the error code table which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the error level determination table which the table management part of the inkjet printer which concerns on embodiment of this invention manages. It is a figure which shows the example of the content of the error corresponding | compatible process according to the error level of the error which generate | occur | produced in the inkjet printer which concerns on embodiment of this invention. 6 is a flowchart for explaining a process when an error occurs in the inkjet printer according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, as an example of an image forming apparatus, an ink jet printer that performs printing on a sheet by discharging a recording liquid from the recording head while moving a carriage on which the recording head is mounted in parallel with the sheet. Will be described as an example.

  When an error occurs, the inkjet printer according to the present embodiment determines an error level of the error that has occurred, and performs subsequent error handling processing according to the determined error level. Here, the error level is an index indicating the degree of error in a stepwise manner, and the higher the error level, the more serious the error, and the greater the influence on the ink jet printer. The error level will be described later.

  That is, one of the gist of the ink jet printer according to the present embodiment is that when an error occurs, referring to the error level determination table, the error content that has occurred, the operation state when the error has occurred, and its The error level of the generated error is determined from the frequency of occurrence of the error in the operating state. The ink jet printer according to the present embodiment performs error handling processing according to the error level determined above after an error occurs.

  Here, the error determination table refers to the details of the error that has occurred (paper jam, ink end, etc.), the operation status when the error occurred (printing, preparing, etc.), and the error so far in that operation status. This is a table in which the error level is determined by the frequency of occurrence of the error. The error determination table will be described later.

  In the present embodiment, the ink jet printer generates CMYK (Cyan Magenta Yellow Key Plate) drawing information based on the input print data, and executes image formation output based on the generated drawing information.

  First, an outline of the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is an external schematic diagram of an inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment includes a paper feed tray 2, a paper discharge tray 3, a cartridge loading unit 4, an operation unit 5, a cover 7, and an ink cartridge 10.

  The paper feed tray 2 is provided for loading paper as a recording medium, and the paper on which the image is formed is discharged to the paper discharge tray 3 and stocked. The cartridge loading unit 4 is mounted with four color ink cartridges, ie, a yellow ink cartridge 10y, a cyan ink cartridge 10c, a magenta ink cartridge 10m, and a black ink cartridge 10k. . The cartridge loading unit 4 includes an openable / closable cover 7 for attaching and detaching the ink cartridge 10.

  The operation unit 5 is an output interface that visually displays the state of the ink jet printer 1 or an input interface when the user directly operates the ink jet printer 1 or inputs information to the ink jet printer 1. The ink cartridge 10 includes an ink cartridge 10k, an ink cartridge 10c, an ink cartridge 10m, and an ink cartridge 10y, and is mounted on the cartridge loading unit 4 as described above.

  In addition, although it has been described that the ink cartridges of four colors are mounted in the cartridge loading unit 4, a cartridge for processing liquid may be mounted in addition to this. Here, the processing liquid is an ink jet processing liquid having ink adhesion to the recording medium, adhesiveness, transparency, drying, recording image bleeding suppression, and storage stability, and forms an image immediately after ink ejection. The above performance is exhibited by being discharged to the part.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the internal configuration and mechanism of the ink jet printer 1 according to the present embodiment will be described. In the following drawings, the side on which the paper discharge tray 3 is disposed is the front of the inkjet printer 1. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment as viewed from the left side. FIG. 3 is a transmission diagram when the ink jet printer 1 according to the present embodiment is viewed from above. In FIGS. 2 and 3, the same or corresponding parts are denoted by the same reference numerals.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the inkjet printer 1 according to this embodiment includes a paper feed tray 2, a paper discharge tray 3, a carriage support bar 31, a carriage 33, a paper stacking unit 41, paper 42, a paper feed roller 43, and a separation pad. 44, guide member 45, counter roller 46, conveyance guide member 47, pressing member 48, tip pressure roller 49, conveyance belt 51, conveyance roller 52, tension roller 53, charging roller 56, recording guide member 57, separation claw 61 , A paper discharge roller 62, a paper discharge roller 63, a duplex unit 71, and a manual feed tray 72. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 3, the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment includes a maintenance and recovery mechanism 81.

  The ink cartridge 10 includes an ink cartridge 10k, an ink cartridge 10c, an ink cartridge 10m, and an ink cartridge 10y. The carriage 33 includes a recording head 34 and a sub tank 35. A maintenance / recovery mechanism 81 includes a cap 82 and a wiper blade 83. The empty discharge receiver 84 is configured.

  Further, the recording head 34 includes a droplet discharge 34k, a droplet discharge 34c, a droplet discharge 34m, and a droplet discharge 34y, and the cap 82 includes a cap 82k, a cap 82c, a cap 82m, and a cap 82y. .

  Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3, the internal configuration and mechanism of the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment will be described separately for a portion related to a recording operation on a sheet and a portion related to a sheet transport operation.

  First, the part regarding the recording operation on the sheet of the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment will be described. The cartridge loading unit 4 is mounted with four color ink cartridges, ie, a yellow ink cartridge 10y, a cyan ink cartridge 10c, a magenta ink cartridge 10m, and a black ink cartridge 10k. .

  The carriage support bar 31 is a guide member horizontally mounted on a left frame and a right frame, which are left and right side plates (not shown), and holds the carriage 33 slidably in the main scanning direction shown in FIG.

  The carriage 33 is slidably held in the main scanning direction shown in FIG. 2 by the carriage support bar 31 and the stay 32, and is moved and scanned by a main scanning motor (not shown) via a main scanning belt (not shown). The carriage 33 includes a recording head 34 for ejecting ink droplets of each color of yellow (Y), cyan (C), magenta (M), and black (K). Further, the recording head 34 includes four droplet discharge heads, that is, droplet discharge heads 34y, 34c, 34m, and 34k, independently for each color. The recording head 34 may be configured to include one droplet discharge head having four nozzle rows that discharge droplets of each color.

  Here, the configuration of the nozzle formation surface formed on each nozzle of the recording head 34 of the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating the structure of the nozzle formation surface formed on each nozzle of the recording head 34 of the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the recording head 34 of the ink jet printer 1 according to the present embodiment includes a nozzle row 34kn composed of a large number of nozzles N that eject black ink, and a large number of droplets of processing liquid. A black droplet discharge head 34k having a nozzle row 34skn composed of nozzles N is provided. Similarly, the recording head 34 of the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment includes a cyan droplet discharge head 34c, a magenta droplet discharge head 34m, and a yellow droplet discharge head 34y.

  Each of these four droplet discharge heads is arranged in parallel to the sub-scanning direction shown in FIG. 3 and arranged in parallel to the main scanning direction shown in FIG. Is mounted on the recording head 34 with the head facing downward.

  The droplet discharge head constituting the recording head 34 according to the present embodiment is an inkjet head, and utilizes a phase change caused by liquid film boiling using a piezoelectric actuator such as a piezoelectric element and an electrothermal transducer such as a heating resistor. For example, a thermal actuator, a shape memory alloy actuator using a metal phase change due to a temperature change, an electrostatic actuator using an electrostatic force, or the like having pressure generating means for generating a pressure for discharging a droplet is used.

  The ink jet printer 1 according to the present embodiment can be driven by being divided in time in addition to simultaneously driving all the droplet discharge heads of the recording head 34. Therefore, when the inkjet printer 1 drives all the droplet discharge heads of the recording head 34 at the same time, the recording quality is deteriorated due to the influence of crosstalk between the droplet discharge heads, and a large current is required temporarily. Problems such as an increase in the capacity of the power supply due to the above can be avoided by driving each droplet discharge head divided in time.

  The recording head 34 includes a driver IC (not shown) and is connected to the controller 100 shown in FIG. 5 via a wire harness (not shown). Then, the driver IC receives a signal from the controller 100 shown in FIG. 5 via the wire harness and controls a motor (not shown) based on the received signal, whereby each droplet discharge head of the recording head 34 is driven. .

  The maintenance / recovery mechanism 81 maintains or recovers the nozzle state of each droplet discharge head of the recording head 34 during non-recording or standby. In the present embodiment, the standby maintenance and recovery mechanism 81 is provided in the left non-printing area as shown in FIG. The maintenance / recovery mechanism 81 has a cap 82 for capping the nozzle surface of each droplet discharge head of the recording head 34, a wiper blade 83 which is a blade member for wiping the nozzle surface, and has been thickened by drying or the like. And an empty discharge receptacle 84 for discharging excess recording liquid.

  The cap 82 includes four caps 82 c, 82 m, 82 y, and 82 k so as to correspond to the respective droplet discharge heads of the recording head 34, and these four caps are the liquids of the recording head 34. They are arranged in the same direction with the same width as the droplet discharge heads.

  Further, the maintenance / recovery mechanism 81 is provided with a suction pump (not shown) for sucking the thickened recording liquid and bubbles from the inside of each nozzle while the cap 82 is capping each nozzle surface of the recording head 34. That is, the caps 82c, 82m, 82y, and 82k function as suction caps or moisturizing caps.

  Then, the waste liquid of the recording liquid generated by the maintenance and recovery operation by the maintenance and recovery mechanism 81, the ink discharged to the cap 82, and the ink discharged to the empty discharge receiver 84 are discharged and stored in a waste liquid tank (not shown). . Ink adhering to the wiper blade 83 is removed by a wiper cleaner (not shown) and discharged to the waste liquid tank.

  With this configuration, the nozzle formation surface is moisturized by capping the nozzle formation surface of each droplet discharge head of the recording head 34 during non-recording or standby of the inkjet printer 1. It is possible to prevent ejection failure due to drying of the recording liquid in each droplet ejection head, and it is possible to maintain stable ejection performance.

  Next, a part related to the sheet transport operation of the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment will be described. The paper feed tray 2 stores the paper 42 to be recorded by the inkjet printer 1 by stacking it on the paper stacking unit 41.

  The ink jet printer 1 includes a sheet feeding unit (not shown) configured by a sheet feeding roller 43 and a separation pad 44 to separate and feed sheets one by one from the sheets 42 stacked on the sheet stacking unit 41. . As shown in FIG. 1, the paper feed roller 43 is disposed substantially at the top end of the paper stacking portion 41, and the separation pad 44 is disposed at a position facing the paper feed roller 43. The separation pad 44 is made of a material having a large friction coefficient.

  The ink jet printer 1 includes a guide member 45 that guides the paper 42, a counter roller 46, a transport guide member 47, and a tip pressure roller 49 in order to send the separated paper 42 to the lower side of the recording head 34. The pressing member 48 and the conveyor belt 51 are provided at the positions shown in FIG.

  The conveyor belt 51 is an endless belt and is configured to be stretched between a conveyor roller 52 and a tension roller 53. The conveyance belt 51 rotates in the sub-scanning direction shown in FIG. 3 when the conveyance roller 52 is rotationally driven by a sub-scanning motor (not shown) by a sub-scanning motor (not shown).

  The ink jet printer 1 includes a charging roller 56 as a charging unit for charging the surface of the transport belt 51 at a position shown in FIG. The charging roller 56 is disposed so as to come into contact with the surface layer of the transport belt 51 and to rotate following the rotation of the transport belt 51. The transport roller 52 also functions as an earth roller serving as an earth, and is disposed so as to contact the back layer of the transport belt 51.

  Note that the conveyor belt 51 has either a one-layer structure or a multilayer structure of two or more layers. When the conveyor belt 51 has a multilayer structure of two or more layers, the side that contacts the paper 42 or the charging roller is an insulating layer. Formed on the opposite side with a conductive layer. On the other hand, when the transport belt 51 has a single-layer structure, there is no difference in conductivity between the side contacting the paper 42 and the charging roller and the opposite side, so the entire layer is formed of an insulating material. The transport roller 52 also functions as an earth roller serving as an earth, and is disposed so as to be in contact with the back layer of the transport belt 51.

  With such a configuration, the ink jet printer 1 can convey the sheet 42 separated by the sheet feeding unit to the position facing the recording head 34 by electrostatically attracting the sheet 42 to the conveying belt 51.

  At this time, an alternating voltage is applied to the charging roller so that a positive output and a negative output are alternately repeated from an AC (Alternating Current) bias supply unit (not shown). As a result, the transport belt 51 is alternately charged in a strip shape with a predetermined width between plus and minus in the sub-scanning direction shown in FIG. When the sheet 42 is fed onto the conveyance belt 51 charged with the plus and minus alternately, the sheet 42 is electrostatically attracted to the conveyance belt 51 and moved in the sub-scanning direction shown in FIG. Be transported.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a recording guide member 57 is arranged on the upper back side of the conveying belt 51 so as to correspond to the recording area by the recording head 34. The recording guide member 57 is disposed in parallel to the recording surface of the recording head 34, and moreover the recording head than the tangent of two rollers (conveying roller 52 and tension roller 53) that support the conveying belt 51. It arrange | positions so that it may protrude to 34 side. With such a configuration, the conveyance belt 51 maintains high-precision flatness in an area corresponding to a recording area by the recording head 34.

  Further, the inkjet printer 1 includes a separation claw 61 for separating the paper 42 from the conveying belt 51, a paper discharge roller 62, and a paper discharge roller 63 for discharging the paper 42 recorded by the recording head 34. A paper discharge unit (not shown) including a paper discharge tray 3 is provided. In the inkjet printer 1, a separation claw 61, a paper discharge roller 62, a paper discharge roller 63, and a paper discharge tray 3 are arranged at the position shown in FIG. Further, the height from the sheet discharge roller 62 and the sheet discharge roller 63 to the sheet discharge tray 3 is increased to some extent in order to increase the number of sheets that can be stored in the sheet discharge tray 3.

  The duplex unit 71 is detachably attached to the back surface of the inkjet printer 1. The duplex unit 71 takes in the paper 42 by rotating the transport belt 51 in the reverse direction, reverses the front and back, and feeds the paper again between the counter roller 46 and the transport belt 51. In the present embodiment, the upper surface of the duplex unit 71 is configured as a manual feed tray 72.

  In addition to the internal configuration and mechanism described above, the inkjet printer 1 according to this embodiment includes an output interface that visually displays the state of the inkjet printer 1, a user directly operating the inkjet printer 1, or the inkjet printer 1. An input interface for inputting information is provided.

  The ink jet printer 1 according to the present embodiment includes an interface for receiving information from an external storage medium such as an SD (Secure Digital) memory card, and a network interface for receiving information from the outside via a network.

  Furthermore, a communication circuit unit (interface) such as a USB (Universal Serial Bus) for transmitting / receiving data to / from the host device is provided on the inner rear side of the inkjet printer 1 and controls the entire image forming apparatus. A control circuit board constituting the controller 100 is provided. The controller 100 will be described later with reference to FIG.

  In the ink jet printer 1 configured as described above, the sheets 42 separated one by one from the sheet feeding tray 2 by the sheet feeding unit are guided substantially vertically upward by the guide 45, and the conveyance belt 51 and the counter roller 46 are Then, the leading end is guided by the conveying guide member 47 and pressed against the conveying belt 51 by the leading end pressing roller 49, and the conveying direction is changed by approximately 90 ° to be fed.

  The ink jet printer 1 stops the fed paper 42 at the position where the recording guide member 57 is disposed, and scans the recording head 34 while scanning the carriage 33 along the carriage support bar 31 based on the drawing information. By driving each of the droplet ejection heads, ink droplets are ejected onto the fed paper 42 to record one line. When the recording for one line is completed, the inkjet printer 1 conveys the fed paper 42 by a predetermined amount and records the next line. The ink jet printer 1 performs the recording operation by receiving a recording end signal in the controller 100 shown in FIG. 5 or receiving a signal notifying that the rear end of the fed paper 42 has passed the recording area. At the end, the paper 42 is discharged to the paper discharge tray 3.

  When the inkjet printer 1 finishes the recording operation, the carriage 33 moves to the home position. Then, each droplet discharge head of the recording head 34 discharges excess recording liquid to the empty discharge receiver 84, is capped by the cap 82, and is sucked by the suction pump in the capped state, thereby discharging each droplet. Excess recording liquid and bubbles are discharged from the nozzle of the head.

  Next, the hardware configuration of the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment and its peripheral devices will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a block diagram schematically showing a hardware configuration of the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment and its peripheral devices. In FIG. 5, the electrical connection is indicated by a solid arrow.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the inkjet printer 1 according to this embodiment includes a controller 100, an operation panel 111, and a printer engine 112. In addition, a host device 200 and an external memory 300 are connected as peripheral devices to the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment.

  The controller 100 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 101, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 102, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 103, an NVRAM (Non Volatile RAM) 104, an HDD 105, an input / output buffer 106, a panel I / F 107, an engine I. / F108, USB I / F109, network I / F110, and memory I / F111.

  The CPU 101 is a calculation unit and controls the operation of the entire inkjet printer 1. That is, the CPU 101 performs control related to the movement operation of the carriage 33, the conveyance operation of the paper 42, the movement operation of the recording head 34, and the like. The ROM 102 is a read-only nonvolatile storage medium, and stores programs such as a program for performing operation control of the CPU 101, data management of each module, and control thereof, and firmware.

  The RAM 103 is a volatile storage medium capable of reading and writing information at high speed, and is used as a work area when the CPU 101 processes information. The RAM 103 is also used as a buffer for managing and storing image data in units of pages, and as a bitmap memory for storing video data obtained by converting the buffer data into a print data pattern.

  The NVRAM 104 is a nonvolatile storage medium capable of reading and writing information, and stores an OS (Operating System), various control programs, application programs, and the like. The HDD 105 is a non-volatile storage medium capable of reading and writing information like the NVRAM 104, and stores an OS (Operating System), various control programs, application programs, and the like, and has a large data capacity such as image data. It is a storage medium for storing data.

  The NVRAM 104 and the HDD 105 store print data, data for setting main device information of the inkjet printer 1, data for update data, and the like. In addition, the NVRAM 104 and the HDD 105 are also used as storage areas for storing data such as operation logs and error logs of the inkjet printer 1 and data input from external devices.

  In such a hardware configuration, a program stored in a storage medium such as the ROM 102, the NVRAM 104, the HDD 105, or an optical disk (not shown) is read out to the RAM 103, and the CPU 101 performs an operation according to the program loaded in the RAM 103, whereby software A control unit is configured. The software control unit configured as described above configures an error determination unit 400 that is a main functional block for achieving the effect according to the present embodiment. In addition, a functional block that realizes the functions of the ink jet printer 1 according to the present embodiment is configured by a combination of the software control unit configured in this way and hardware. The error determination unit 400 will be described later.

  The input / output buffer 106 temporarily stores information in order to absorb / adjust the time lag between the input / output and the processing when the information is exchanged between the external device and the controller 100. The panel I / F 107 is an interface for the controller 100 to communicate with the operation panel 200. The controller 100 displays information on the operation panel 111 via the panel I / F 107 or is input via the operation panel 112. Get information.

  The engine I / F 108 is an interface for the controller 100 to communicate with the printer engine 113, and the controller 100 controls or drives the printer engine 113 via the engine I / F 108.

  The USB I / F 109 is for the inkjet printer 1 to communicate with an information processing terminal such as a PC (Personal Computer), an image reading device such as an image scanner, and a host device 200 such as an imaging device such as a digital camera via a USB cable. Interface. The network I / F 110 is an interface for the inkjet printer 1 to communicate with the host device 200 via a network, and an interface such as Ethernet (registered trademark) is used. The host device 300 generates print data for the inkjet printer 1 to perform image formation output, and causes the inkjet printer 1 to perform image formation output.

  The memory I / F 111 is an interface for the controller 100 to communicate with an external memory 300 such as an SD memory card. The external memory 300 stores print data, data for setting main device information of the ink jet printer 1, data for update data, and the like, and is input from each data such as an operation log and error log of the ink jet printer 1 and from an external device. It is used as a storage area for storing stored data.

  The operation panel 112 is a visual user interface for the user to check the state of the inkjet printer 1. The operation panel 111 is an output interface for visually displaying the state of the ink jet printer 1 and is an input when the user directly operates the ink jet printer 1 or inputs information to the ink jet printer 1 as a touch panel. It is also an interface. That is, the operation panel 112 includes a function for displaying an image for receiving an operation by the user. The printer engine 113 executes image formation on a recording medium by being controlled or driven by the controller 100 via the engine I / F 108.

  In the inkjet printer 1 configured as described above, one of the gist according to the present embodiment is that when an error occurs, the error level determination table is referred to and the error content that occurred and the error occurred. The error level of the generated error is determined from the operation state and the frequency of occurrence of the error in the operation state. The ink jet printer according to the present embodiment performs error handling processing according to the error level determined above after an error occurs.

  That is, the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment is a minor error that can normally occur, such as when an error that should occur during printing, such as an ink end, occurs during standby. By detecting that the error has occurred in an operating state that could not occur, the mechanism, unit, module, etc. related to the error over time, regardless of the number of occurrences of the error or the minority of the error. It is possible to detect that an abnormality or failure has occurred due to deterioration or the like.

  Therefore, according to the ink jet printer according to the present embodiment, it is possible to detect the location and cause of the abnormality or failure at an early stage, and to notify the user of an appropriate time for repair or maintenance. Further, according to the ink jet printer 1 according to the present embodiment, it is possible to prevent an unrecoverable fatal failure due to being left in an abnormal state or a failure state or being continuously operated. Furthermore, according to the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment, it is possible to reduce waste of resources such as paper and ink due to printing in an abnormal state or a failure state. Details will be described below.

  First, the error determination unit 400 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration of the error determination unit 400 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 6, the error determination unit 400 according to the present embodiment includes a log determination unit 410, an error log acquisition unit 420, an error log recording unit 430, an occurrence count measurement unit 440, an error level determination unit 450, and a table management unit. 460.

  The log determination unit 410 detects error information from the operation log of the inkjet printer 1. When the log determination unit 410 detects error information from the operation log, the error log acquisition unit 420 acquires error information that is not stored in the error log recording unit 430 from the operation log and generates an error log for each error that occurs as an error log. Save in the recording unit 430. That is, here, the error log acquisition unit 420 functions as an error information acquisition unit. The error log acquisition unit 420 further includes a status information acquisition unit 421, a date / time information acquisition unit 422, and an error code acquisition unit 423.

  A status information acquisition unit 421, a date / time information acquisition unit 422, and an error code acquisition unit 423 each indicate an operation state of the inkjet printer 1 when an error occurs from an operation log for error information that is not stored in the error log recording unit 430. Status information, date and time information when an error occurs, and an error code indicating the error content when an error occurs are acquired and stored in the error log recording unit 430 as an error log.

  Here, the status information is information indicating the operation state of the inkjet printer 1, and examples of the status include “preparing”, “standby”, and “printing”. The status information acquisition unit 421, the date / time information acquisition unit 422, and the error code acquisition unit 423 each acquire information when the log determination unit 410 detects an error log from the operation log.

  The error code is information for classifying the error, and is information uniquely determined from the content of the error that has occurred in the inkjet printer 1 by referring to the error code table. The error code will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of an error code table according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 7, the error code table according to the present embodiment is stored in the NVRAM 104 or the HDD 105 shown in FIG.

  In the example shown in FIG. 7, the error code “Error 01” is “error end”, the error code “Error 02” is “Error Jam”, and the error code is “Error 03”. It can be seen that the error contents “temperature abnormality” are associated with each other. Thus, the inkjet printer 1 can uniquely determine the error code from the content of the error that has occurred by referring to the error code table. The error code table shown in FIG. 7 is an example, and the present invention is not limited to this.

  The error log recording unit 430 is a storage unit that stores the error log acquired by the error log acquisition unit 420, and is realized by the NVRAM 104 or the HDD 105 illustrated in FIG. That is, here, the error recording unit 430 functions as an error log storage unit. The occurrence count measurement unit 440 measures the number of occurrences of each error code so far for each status from the error log stored in the error log recording unit 430. Further, the occurrence count measurement unit 440 determines the occurrence frequency based on the measured occurrence count. That is, here, the occurrence count measurement unit 440 functions as an occurrence frequency determination unit.

  Here, the occurrence frequency is a threshold value for the number of occurrences determined stepwise in advance, for example, “low” if the number of occurrences is less than or equal to the first threshold, and the range from the first threshold to the next threshold. Is an index indicating the degree of occurrence of an error based on the number of occurrences, such as “medium” and “high” if the number of occurrences is greater than all thresholds. As for the occurrence frequency, the threshold width is set finely to divide into more stages, the threshold width is set to be different for each stage, the error occurrence interval and the number of occurrences within a certain period are considered For example, the steps may be set as necessary, for example.

  When an error occurs in the inkjet printer 1, the error level determination unit 450 refers to the error level determination table managed by the table management unit 460, the error code of the error that has occurred, and the status when the error has occurred, The error level of the error that has occurred is determined and acquired from the frequency of occurrence of the error code in the status so far. That is, here, the error level determination unit 450 functions as an error level determination unit. The error level determination table is stored in the NVRAM 104 or the HDD 105.

  Here, the error level is an index indicating the degree of error in a stepwise manner, and the higher the error level, the more serious the error, and the greater the influence on the ink jet printer. In the present embodiment, the error level is classified into three levels of “error level 1”, “error level 2”, and “error level 3”.

  The “error level 1” is set for an error that occurs in an operating state that is a minor error that can normally occur and is naturally predicted to cause the minor error. For example, “error level 1” is an error caused by an ink end and occurs during printing or an error caused by a paper jam and occurs during printing. Is set.

  “Error level 1” is a minor error that can occur normally, but is set for an error that occurs in a status that cannot occur originally. This is a minor error that can normally occur, but is likely to be a false detection if it occurs in an operating state that cannot normally occur. For example, “error level 1” is set when the frequency of occurrence of errors due to ink end during preparation is “low”.

  In other words, “error level 1” is an error that does not directly relate to an abnormality of the device even if it occurs normally, or an error that may occur depending on the usage method. Depending on the frequency of occurrence, it is set for errors that are suspected of device malfunctions.

  “Error level 2” is set for an error that is a medium error and has a high possibility of being abnormal when it occurs. “Error level 2” is set for an error that can be continued even though the operation of the device is better, for example, an error due to a normal temperature abnormality during printing, or an error due to maintenance failure. .

  “Error level 2” is a minor error that can occur normally, but is set when the frequency of occurrence of an error that occurs in an operating state that cannot occur originally is “medium”. For example, “error level 2” is set when the frequency of occurrence of errors due to ink end during preparation is “medium”.

  “Error level 3” is a high-level error, and is set for an error that is suspected of being abnormal or malfunctioning. “Error level 3” is due to an error that should not continue the operation of the device, for example, an error due to an ink cartridge being dropped during printing, preparation, or standby, or a temperature abnormality that may cause a fire. Set for errors.

  “Error level 3” is a minor error that can occur normally, but is set when the frequency of occurrence of an error that occurs in an operating state that cannot occur originally is “high”. For example, “error level 3” is set when the frequency of occurrence of errors due to ink end during preparation is “high”.

  Note that the above-described method and concept for setting an error for each error level can be applied to other operation states and error contents. In this embodiment, the error level is divided into three stages, but it may be divided into more detailed stages. The error setting for each error level is not limited to the method and concept described above, and may be set according to the error and the influence of the error on the inkjet printer 1 as appropriate.

  The error level determination table is a table in which the error level is determined by the error code of the error that occurred, the status when the error occurred, and the frequency of occurrence of the error in the status so far. is there. In other words, the error level determination table is a table for specifying the error level determined by the concept as described above based on the error code and the occurrence frequency for each status.

  Here, the error level determination table managed by the table management unit 460 of the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of an error level determination table managed by the table management unit 460 of the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the error level determination table managed by the table management unit 460 of the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment includes the error code of the error that has occurred, the status when the error has occurred, and the status. The error level is determined by the frequency of occurrence of the error so far.

  For example, if the error code is “Error 01”, “Ink end”, if the occurrence frequency is “Low”, the error is not an error that cannot occur when the status is “Preparing” or “Waiting”. However, since there is a high possibility of erroneous detection, “error level 1” is set. In addition, when the status is “printing”, “ink end” is a minor error that can occur normally, and thus is set to “error level 1”.

  Further, for example, in the case of “ink end” with the error code “error 01”, if the occurrence frequency is “high”, it cannot originally occur when the status is “preparing” or “standby”. Since it means that errors frequently occur, the possibility of erroneous detection is low, and “error level 3” is set. On the other hand, when the status is “Printing”, even if the occurrence frequency of “Ink end” is “High”, it is a minor error that can occur normally, so it is the same as when the occurrence frequency is “Low” , “Error level 1” is set.

  As described above, the ink jet printer 1 refers to the error code table and the error level determination table, so that the error content of the error that has occurred, the operation state when the error has occurred, and the error status in the operation state. The error level can be uniquely determined from the occurrence frequency so far.

  The error processing unit 470 performs error handling processing according to the error level of an error that has occurred in the inkjet printer 1. The error handling process is determined in advance according to the error level. In this embodiment, for example, as shown in FIG. 9, the error handling process is determined according to the error level.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of the content of error handling processing according to the error level of an error that has occurred in the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 9, when an error occurs, the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment performs error handling processing corresponding to the error level of the error that has occurred. The content of the error handling process shown in FIG. 9 is an example and is not limited to this, and may be appropriately defined according to the mode of the inkjet printer 1 and the error level setting.

  Further, the table shown in FIG. 9 is not stored as a table, but the operation shown in FIG. 9, that is, an error is detected in the code of the program for causing the CPU 101 to operate as the error processing unit 470. The contents of the control to be executed by the inkjet printer 1 in accordance with the detected error level in the case of being performed are described.

  Next, processing when an error occurs in the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 10 is a flowchart for explaining processing when an error occurs in the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 10, when an error occurs in the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment, first, the log determination unit 410 detects a newly added error log from the operation log (S1001 / YES), The error log acquisition unit 420 acquires a newly added error log from the operation log (S1002), and stores the acquired error log in the error log recording unit 430 (S1003). Then, the occurrence count measurement unit 440 measures the number of occurrences of the error including the same status and error code as the error that has occurred this time from the error log saved in the error log recording unit 430 and saves it ( In step S1004), the occurrence frequency is determined based on the measured number of occurrences (S1005).

  Next, the error level determination unit 450 refers to the error level determination table managed by the table management unit 450, the error code of the error that has occurred this time, the status when the error has occurred, and the occurrence determined in S1005 The error level is determined based on the frequency (S1006). When the error level is determined, the error processing unit 470 executes error handling processing according to the determined error level as described with reference to FIG. 9 (S1007), and the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment causes the error processing to be performed. The process in the case of occurrence of is terminated.

  As described above, when an error occurs, the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment refers to the error level determination table, the error content that has occurred, the operation state when the error has occurred, and The error level of the generated error is determined from the frequency of occurrence of the error in the operating state. The ink jet printer according to the present embodiment performs error handling processing according to the error level determined above after an error occurs.

  That is, the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment is a minor error that can normally occur, such as when an error that should occur during printing, such as an ink end, occurs during standby. By detecting that the error has occurred in an operating state that could not occur, the mechanism, unit, module, etc. related to the error over time, regardless of the number of occurrences of the error or the minority of the error. It is possible to detect that an abnormality or failure has occurred due to deterioration or the like.

  Therefore, according to the ink jet printer according to the present embodiment, it is possible to detect the location and cause of the abnormality or failure at an early stage, and to notify the user of an appropriate time for repair or maintenance. Further, according to the ink jet printer 1 according to the present embodiment, it is possible to prevent an unrecoverable fatal failure due to being left in an abnormal state or a failure state or being continuously operated. Furthermore, according to the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment, it is possible to reduce waste of resources such as paper and ink due to printing in an abnormal state or a failure state.

  In addition, the inkjet printer 1 according to the present embodiment is a minor error that can normally occur, such as when an error that should occur during printing, such as an ink end, occurs during standby. If the error occurs in an operating state that cannot occur, if the frequency of occurrence is low, there is a possibility of false detection, so the error level is set low, and if the frequency of occurrence is high, it is a false detection. Since the possibility is low and the possibility of abnormality or failure is high, the error level is set stepwise according to the frequency of occurrence.

  Therefore, according to the ink jet printer 1 according to the present embodiment, although it is a minor error that can normally occur, when the error occurs in an operating state that cannot originally occur, the above-described error occurs even if the occurrence frequency increases. By judging the error as a false detection, even if the above error occurs, it is left as it is, or the operation of the device is continued as it is, leading to an unrecoverable fatal failure. Can be prevented.

  In the above embodiment, an ink jet printer has been described. However, the present invention is not particularly limited to this, and other than the ink jet type, for example, a laser printer, an MFP that can be used as a printer, a facsimile, a scanner, and a copying machine ( Even a MultiFunction Peripheral (multi-function peripheral) is applicable.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Inkjet printer 2 Paper feed tray 3 Paper discharge tray 4 Cartridge loading part 10 Ink cartridge 31 Carriage support bar 33 Carriage 34 Recording head 41 Paper stacking part 42 Paper 43 Paper feed roller 44 Separation pad 45 Guide member 46 Counter roller 47 Conveyance guide member 48 Pressing member 49 Pressure roller 51 Conveying belt 52 Conveying roller 53 Tension roller 57 Recording guide member 61 Separation claw 62 Discharging roller 63 Discharging roller 71 Duplex unit 72 Manual feed tray 81 Maintenance recovery mechanism 82 Cap 83 Wiper blade 84 Empty discharging Receiver 100 Printer driver 100 Control unit 101 CPU
102 ROM
103 RAM
104 NVRAM
105 HDD
106 I / O buffer 107 Panel I / F
108 Engine I / F
109 USB I / F
110 network I / F
111 Memory I / F
112 Operation Panel 113 Printer Engine 200 Host Device 300 External Memory 400 Error Determination Unit 410 Log Determination Unit 420 Error Log Acquisition Unit 421 Status Information Acquisition Unit 422 Date / Time Information Acquisition Unit 423 Error Code Acquisition Unit 430 Error Log Recording Unit 440 Error Number Counting Section 450 Error level determination section 460 Table management section 470 Error processing section

JP 2005-341252 A

Claims (7)

An image forming apparatus having a function of diagnosing an error that has occurred,
Status information indicating an operation state when the error occurs from error information included in the operation log, and an error information acquisition unit that acquires error content information of the generated error;
An error log storage unit that stores the acquired status information and the acquired error content information as an error log for each error that has occurred;
From the stored error log, an occurrence frequency determination unit that determines an occurrence frequency of an error including status information and error content information that is the same as the acquired status information and the acquired error content information,
The error level, which is an index indicating the degree of error step by step, refers to an error level determination table defined by error content information and occurrence frequency for each status, and the acquired status information and the acquired error code And an error level determination unit that determines an error level based on the determined occurrence frequency,
An image forming apparatus comprising:   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the error content information is an error code indicating a content of the error that has occurred.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: an error processing unit that executes a process for handling the generated error in accordance with the determined error level.   The occurrence frequency determining unit determines the occurrence frequency from the stored error log based on the acquired status information and the number of occurrences of errors including the same status information and error code as the acquired error code. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is an image forming apparatus. The error information acquisition unit acquires date and time information when the error occurs,
The error log storage unit stores the acquired date and time information as an error log for each error that has occurred,
The occurrence frequency determining unit, based on the acquired date and time information of the error including the status information and error code that are the same as the acquired status information and the acquired error code, from the stored error log. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an occurrence frequency is determined. A control program for an image forming apparatus having a function of diagnosing an error that has occurred,
Obtaining status information indicating an operation state when the error occurs and error content information of the generated error from error information included in the operation log;
Storing the acquired status information and the acquired error content information as an error log for each error that has occurred;
Determining an occurrence frequency of an error including status information and error content information identical to the acquired status information and the acquired error content information from the stored error log;
The error level, which is an index indicating the degree of error step by step, refers to an error level determination table defined by error content information and occurrence frequency for each status, and the acquired status information and the acquired error code And determining an error level based on the determined occurrence frequency;
And a control program for the image forming apparatus. A method of controlling an image forming apparatus having a function of diagnosing an error that has occurred,
From the error information included in the operation log, obtain status information indicating the operation state when the error occurs and error content information of the error that has occurred,
The acquired status information and the acquired error content information are stored as an error log for each error that has occurred,
From the stored error log, determine the frequency of occurrence of the error including the status information and error content information identical to the acquired status information and the acquired error content information,
The error level, which is an index indicating the degree of error step by step, refers to an error level determination table defined by error content information and occurrence frequency for each status, and the acquired status information and the acquired error code And an error level is determined based on the determined occurrence frequency.

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