JP2014032240A - Image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming device that operates within a rated range of use even if a power factor improving circuit stops its operation, thereby preventing reduction in usability.SOLUTION: An image forming device includes: a PFC failure detection part 116 that detects operation stop of a power factor improving circuit 120; and a device control part 117 that controls (S105) an image forming part so as to form an image in a low-speed printing operation, which is an operation mode consuming less power than the power to be consumed in forming an image while the power factor improving circuit is in operation when the PFC failure detection part 116 detects operation stop of the power factor improving circuit 120 (yes in S102).

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus including a power supply device having a power factor correction circuit, and more particularly to an operation processing method of the image forming apparatus when the power factor correction circuit fails.

  In recent years, in an image forming apparatus having a fixing device and a plurality of driving devices such as a printer, a copying machine, and a facsimile using an electrophotographic process, an improvement in printing speed has been demanded. Further, these image forming apparatuses are required to shorten the first printout time (the time from the start of the printing operation until the output of the first print sheet). Accordingly, the power supplied to the fixing device and the driving device tends to increase, and the power supply device in the image forming apparatus needs to have a large power capacity and high efficiency.

  On the other hand, the power that can be supplied from the commercial power supply to the image forming apparatus has an upper limit in the standard (for example, 15 A or less in Japan), and it is difficult to satisfy this standard if the power supply apparatus simply has a large power capacity. Become. Therefore, it is necessary to improve the operating efficiency of the power supply apparatus, and for this purpose, it is necessary to add a high efficiency circuit. A power factor correction circuit (PFC circuit: Power Factor Correction Circuit) is generally used as this high efficiency circuit. FIG. 8 is a circuit configuration diagram of a general power factor correction circuit. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the same structure as the Example mentioned later, and description here is abbreviate | omitted. The PFC control unit 114 detects the voltage value divided by the resistors 105 and 106. As a result, the PFC control unit 114 protects the FET 103 so as to maintain the OFF state when it is determined that an abnormality has occurred in the power factor correction circuit 120 (broken line portion) and the boosted voltage has become higher than the value to be controlled. It has a function. Further, even when the PFC control unit 114 detects an abnormally high temperature of the power factor correction circuit 120, it has a protection function for maintaining the FET 103 in the OFF state. As described above, the PFC control unit 114 generally has a protection function for controlling the power factor correction circuit 120 to stop its operation when any abnormality is detected.

  However, in the power factor correction circuit 120 shown in FIG. 8, the full-wave rectified waveform of the commercial power supply 100 is converted into the primary smoothing capacitor 107 via the choke coil 102 and the diode 104 even when the protection function is activated and does not operate. To be supplied. That is, the rectification / smoothing operation is the same as that of a normal capacitor input type power supply device. In this case, depending on the voltage value of the commercial power supply 100, the subsequent DC / DC control unit 115 may operate and continue to supply power to the secondary load 112. As a result, the power supply device B continues to supply power to the image forming apparatus having, for example, the load 112 and continues to use the image forming apparatus in a state where the AC input current flows excessively. 100 breaker operations may occur. For this reason, when the PFC control unit 114 detects an abnormality of the power factor correction circuit 120, a power supply apparatus is proposed that outputs an abnormal signal to the load circuit (load 112) and stops the operation of the load circuit based on the abnormal signal. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).

JP 2005-323437 A

  However, for example, in Patent Document 1, although the operation of the power supply device can be continued depending on conditions, the operation of the device itself (load 112) on which the power supply device is mounted is stopped. Therefore, if an abnormality occurs in the power factor correction circuit while the user is using the device, the device stops. For example, if the apparatus is an image forming apparatus such as a printer or a copying machine, the usability may be degraded, such as printing being stopped halfway. Moreover, there is a possibility that usability may be lowered, for example, when it is necessary to use a device in an emergency and a serviceman has to wait for repair.

  The present invention has been made under such circumstances, and aims to reduce the usability by operating the device within the rated operating range even when the operation of the power factor correction circuit is stopped. To do.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention has the following configuration.

  (1) An image forming apparatus comprising a power supply device having a power factor correction circuit and an image forming unit for forming an image on a transfer material, wherein the detection unit detects that the operation of the power factor correction circuit has stopped. And when the detection means detects that the operation of the power factor correction circuit is stopped, the power consumed compared to the power consumed when image formation is performed in the state where the power factor correction circuit is operating. An image forming apparatus comprising: a control unit that controls the image forming unit to perform image formation in an operation mode with a low image quality.

  (2) An image forming apparatus comprising: a power supply device having a power factor correction circuit; a reading unit that reads a document; and an image forming unit that forms an image on a transfer material based on information on the document read by the reading unit. Detecting means for detecting that the operation of the power factor correction circuit is stopped, and when the detection means detects that the operation of the power factor improvement circuit is stopped, the reading operation of the document is performed by the reading means. An image forming apparatus comprising: a control unit that controls to perform image formation by the image forming unit after completion.

  According to the present invention, even when the operation of the power factor correction circuit is stopped, the apparatus can be operated within the rated operating range, thereby reducing the usability degradation.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a power factor correction circuit according to Embodiments 1 and 4 and a diagram illustrating a configuration of an image forming apparatus. 7 is a flowchart illustrating processing operations of the image forming apparatus according to the first exemplary embodiment. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating currents that flow through an image forming apparatus, a power supply apparatus, and a fixing apparatus during normal printing operations when the power factor correction circuit according to the first embodiment operates normally and when the operation stops. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating currents that flow through the image forming apparatus, the power supply apparatus, and the fixing apparatus during a low-speed printing operation when the operation of the power factor correction circuit according to the first embodiment is stopped. The block diagram which shows the power factor improvement circuit of Example 2, 3 7 is a flowchart showing processing operations of the image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment. 7 is a flowchart illustrating processing operations of the image forming apparatus according to the third exemplary embodiment. 8 is a flowchart illustrating processing operations of the image forming apparatus according to the fourth exemplary embodiment. The block diagram which shows the structure of the power supply device which has a power factor improvement circuit of a prior art example

  The mode for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to examples.

  A configuration of an image forming apparatus equipped with a power supply device having a power factor correction circuit according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to a block diagram shown in FIG.

[Power supply]
A power supply device according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. When the commercial power supply 100 is supplied to the power supply device B, the AC voltage is full-wave rectified by the bridge diode 101, and the rectified pulsating voltage waveform is input to the power factor correction circuit 120. The power factor correction circuit 120 is controlled by a PFC (Power Factor Correction) control unit 114 and operates so as to flow a current having the same waveform as the input pulsating voltage waveform to the primary smoothing capacitor 107. The PFC control unit 114 controls the FET 103 to turn on and off, stores power in the choke coil 102 when turned on, and supplies the power stored in the choke coil 102 to the primary smoothing capacitor 107 via the diode 104 when turned off. The PFC control unit 114 performs on / off control of the FET 103 by detecting the voltage value divided by the resistors 105 and 106 and the current value flowing through the resistor 113. In many cases, the power factor correction circuit 120 boosts the input voltage of the commercial power supply 100 to the primary smoothing capacitor 107. The primary smoothing capacitor 107 supplies the smoothed voltage to the transformer 109. The DC / DC control unit 115 controls on / off of the FET 108 and transmits power to the secondary side circuit via the transformer 109. The power transmitted to the secondary side is rectified and smoothed by the diode 110 and the capacitor 111. , Supplied to the load 112. The two-dot chain line portion is a DC / DC converter 121. The power factor correction circuit 120 of the present embodiment is a system in which the current waveform is shaped to match the voltage waveform so as to be close to a sine wave and have the same phase as the voltage, and is an active type power factor improvement circuit.

  Here, the PFC control unit 114 has a protection function for maintaining the FET 103 in the OFF state when it is determined that the boosted voltage is higher than the value to be controlled. Further, the PFC control unit 114 has a temperature detection unit such as a thermistor inside, and has a protection function to maintain the FET 103 in an OFF state even when an abnormally high temperature is detected. Further, the PFC control unit 114 may have a protection function that detects, for example, an overcurrent or an overload and maintains the FET 103 in an off state. In this way, the PFC control unit 114 stops the operation of the power factor correction circuit 120 by maintaining the FET 103 in the off state.

  The power supply device B of this embodiment is different from the conventional power supply device B of FIG. 8 in that it has a PFC failure detection unit 116 (detection means). The PFC failure detection unit 116 constantly monitors the operation of the PFC control unit 114. For example, the PFC failure detection unit 116 monitors the control by which the PFC control unit 114 turns the FET 103 on and off. Here, for example, when the signal that the PFC control unit 114 outputs to the FET 103 is latched at a low level due to the above-described factors, and the OFF time continues for a predetermined time or longer, the PFC failure detection unit 116 improves the power factor. It is determined that the circuit 120 is faulty. Information regarding a predetermined time for the PFC failure detection unit 116 to determine a failure of the power factor correction circuit 120 is stored in advance by the PFC failure detection unit 116.

  When the PFC failure detection unit 116 detects an abnormality in the power factor correction circuit 120, the failure information is output to the device control unit 117 (control unit) of the image forming apparatus A. The apparatus control unit 117 generally controls the operation of the load 112 in the image forming apparatus A. Examples of the load 112 include actuators such as a motor, a fan, and a solenoid, a high voltage generation power source, a latent image scanner device, a sensor, a fixing device 130, and a notification unit 118.

[Image forming apparatus]
FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view illustrating an example of the image forming apparatus A of the present embodiment. The image forming apparatus A includes a scanner unit 200 (reading unit), a printer unit 300, and a finisher 500 that is a post-processing device. When reading the document D by the scanner unit 200, the document D is set on a document tray 400a of an automatic document feeder (hereinafter referred to as ADF) 400. The ADF 400 conveys the set documents D one by one and discharges them on the document discharge tray 312. The scanner unit 200 reads information on a document conveyed by the ADF 400 by the image sensor 309, performs predetermined image processing on the read image data of the document, and then sends the image data to the exposure control unit 310 of the printer unit 300. Output. When reading a document without using the ADF 400, the user lifts the ADF 400, sets the document on the platen glass 302, and performs a document reading process.

  The printer unit 300 includes a transfer material feeding unit 1002 that feeds the transfer material P stored in the cassettes 314 and 315, and an image forming unit that forms an image on the transfer material fed by the transfer material feeding unit 1002. 1003 and the like. The image forming unit 1003 includes a photosensitive drum 311, a developing unit 313, a transfer charger 316, and the like. When forming an image, the photosensitive drum 311 is irradiated with laser light from the exposure control unit 310, thereby exposing the photosensitive drum 311. An electrostatic latent image is formed on the drum 311. The electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 311 is visualized as a toner image by the developing device 313. On the other hand, the transfer material P is conveyed from any one of the cassettes 314 and 315, the manual paper feed unit 325, and the double-sided conveyance path 324 to a transfer unit including the photosensitive drum 311 and the transfer charger 316. The toner image on the photosensitive drum 311 visualized in the transfer portion is transferred to the transfer material P. The fixing device 130 performs a fixing process on the transfer material P after the transfer. The fixing device 130 is supplied with electric power from the commercial power supply 100 and melts and fixes the toner image formed on the transfer material by the electrophotographic process on the transfer material. The transfer material P that has been subjected to the fixing process is discharged to the finisher 500 by the main body discharge roller 318. The finisher 500 performs post-processing such as sorting, stapling, and bookbinding on the transfer material P discharged from the main body discharge roller 318. Note that the notification unit 118 provided on the upper surface of the image forming apparatus A includes a plurality of keys for setting various functions relating to image formation, and a display unit for displaying information indicating a setting state and abnormality. The notification unit 118 includes, for example, an operation panel, and the user accesses the image forming apparatus A and notifies the user of various types of information from the image forming apparatus A.

  Note that the image forming apparatus described above is an example, and the scanner unit 200, the ADF 400, and the finisher 500 can be connected to the image forming apparatus main body as optional devices, and these may not be mounted. Further, the printer unit 300 is not limited to the one illustrated in FIG. 1B, and may be an image forming apparatus including a plurality of image forming units corresponding to a plurality of colors, for example. Further, the image forming apparatus may include a primary transfer unit that transfers a toner image on the photosensitive drum 311 to an intermediate transfer belt and a secondary transfer unit that transfers the toner image on the intermediate transfer belt to a transfer material.

[Processing operation of image forming apparatus]
The processing of this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. In step (hereinafter referred to as S) 101, when the commercial power supply 100 is turned on to the power supply device B in the image forming apparatus A (main unit power is turned on), the power supply device B is activated and a predetermined value is applied to the secondary capacitor 111 Is generated, and power is supplied to the load 112 of the image forming apparatus A. In S102, the PFC failure detection unit 116 monitors the PFC control unit 114 to determine whether or not the power factor correction circuit 120 has a failure. The PFC failure detection unit 116 in the power supply device B constantly monitors for a failure of the power factor correction circuit 120 regardless of whether the image forming apparatus A is on standby or printing. If the PFC failure detection unit 116 determines in S102 that the power factor correction circuit 120 is not in failure, it repeats the processing in S102.

  In S102, when the PFC failure detection unit 116 determines that the power factor correction circuit 120 is in failure, that is, when it is detected that the operation of the power factor improvement circuit 120 has stopped due to some abnormality, the information is transmitted to the device control unit. It outputs to 117. When acquiring information indicating that the power factor correction circuit 120 is in failure from the PFC failure detection unit 116, the device control unit 117 performs the process of S103. In S103, the device control unit 117 causes the failure of the power supply device B to the user by, for example, sounding a warning sound or displaying an abnormality message on the operation panel (hereinafter referred to as an abnormal display) via the notification unit 118. Is notified.

  In step S <b> 104, the device control unit 117 continues to accept the print operation by the user even after detecting the failure of the power supply device B, and determines whether the print operation is accepted (print acceptance). Here, the printing is to execute only the image forming operation. If the apparatus control unit 117 determines in S104 that a print operation has not been received, the process returns to S103. If the apparatus control unit 117 determines in S104 that the print operation has been accepted, that is, if the user requests a print operation after notifying the user of an abnormal display in S103, the process proceeds to S105. In step S <b> 105, the apparatus control unit 117 performs printing so as to suppress the power consumption of the load 112 by performing a low-speed printing operation that is slower than normal, and suppress the current flowing in the power supply apparatus B. Here, the low-speed printing operation is an operation in the image forming apparatus that lowers the transfer material conveyance speed as compared with the normal printing operation, and can be said to be an image forming operation that is executed at a reduced process speed. During low-speed printing operations, the power consumption of the motors that drive the roller group can be reduced, and the total power consumption can be reduced by, for example, reducing or stopping the rotation speed of the cooling fan to reduce the amount of heat generated. Can be suppressed.

  In this embodiment, the apparatus control unit 117 executes the low-speed print operation in the process of S105, but may execute a monochrome print operation, for example. Here, the monochrome print operation is an operation for forming an image with a single color, for example, a black color in an image forming apparatus capable of performing multicolor image formation (color print). During monochrome printing, if the image forming units for each color are driven by separate motors, the number of motors to be driven is reduced, and if the image forming unit for each color is driven by one motor, the load is reduced. By reducing the power consumption, power consumption can be suppressed.

  As described above, in this embodiment, even when the operation of the power factor correction circuit 120 is stopped, the apparatus is operated in a mode in which the apparatus operates with lower power than the power consumed by the apparatus during normal printing.

[Effect of this embodiment]
Here, even when the power factor correction circuit 120 stops operating due to a failure, the image forming apparatus A can perform use at a low speed print operation so that it can be used below the allowable current value of the commercial power supply 100. FIG. -1 (a) to 3-2 (c). FIGS. 3A to 3C are diagrams illustrating the current that flows when the image forming apparatus A performs a printing operation when the commercial power source 100 is a power source of AC 100 V and 60 Hz. Here, the vertical axis represents the current value (unit: A (ampere)), the horizontal axis represents time (unit: ms (milliseconds)), and the frequency half wave (about 8.50) based on the zero cross point of the commercial power supply 100. 333 ms).

  FIG. 3A illustrates the image forming apparatus A (solid line), the power supply apparatus B (broken line), and the fixing apparatus 130 (dashed line) when starting normal printing with the power factor correction circuit 120 operating normally. FIG. The current flowing through the image forming apparatus A is the sum of the current flowing through the power supply apparatus B and the current flowing through the fixing apparatus 130. The apparent current flowing through the image forming apparatus A is 15A, which satisfies the standard of 15A within Japan.

  FIG. 3B is a diagram illustrating currents that flow through the image forming apparatus A, the power supply apparatus B, and the fixing apparatus 130 when starting normal printing in a state where the power factor correction circuit 120 is abnormal and not operating. It is. The current flowing through the image forming apparatus A is the sum of the current flowing through the power supply apparatus B and the current flowing through the fixing apparatus 130. The apparent current flowing through the image forming apparatus A is 17.7A, which exceeds the standard of 15A. Continued use in this state is not preferable because it may cause the power supply device B to break down or the commercial power supply 100 to break.

  FIG. 3C is a diagram illustrating currents that flow through the image forming apparatus A, the power supply apparatus B, and the fixing apparatus 130 when low-speed printing is activated in a state where the power factor correction circuit 120 is abnormal and not operating. It is. The current flowing through the image forming apparatus A is the sum of the current flowing through the power supply apparatus B and the current flowing through the fixing apparatus 130. Since the low-speed printing operation is performed, the current flowing through the power supply device B in FIG. 3-2 (c) is about ½ compared to the current flowing through the power supply device B in FIG. It can be seen that the current value is small. The apparent current flowing through the image forming apparatus A at this time is 12.7 A, which satisfies the standard of 15 A or less.

  As described above, even when the power factor correction circuit 120 is not operating due to a failure, the image forming apparatus A is operated in a state where the allowable current (within 15 A) of the commercial power supply 100 is satisfied by performing the low-speed printing operation. It is possible to make it. As described above, even when an abnormality occurs in the power factor correction circuit 120 in the power supply device B, image formation is performed by limiting the functions of the product within the safe range of the power supply device B and the commercial power supply 100. The downtime of apparatus A can be reduced. Then, image formation can be performed in an operation mode (low speed print operation, monochrome print operation, etc.) with reduced power consumption, and an image forming apparatus that is convenient for the user can be provided. As described above, according to the present embodiment, even when the operation of the power factor correction circuit is stopped, it is possible to operate the device within the rated operating range and reduce the usability deterioration.

  The configuration of an image forming apparatus equipped with a power supply device having a power factor correction circuit according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to a block diagram shown in FIG. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the same structure as Fig.1 (a) of Example 1, and description is abbreviate | omitted.

[Commercial power supply voltage detector]
In the present embodiment, in addition to the block diagram of FIG. 1A of the first embodiment, a commercial power supply voltage detection unit 119 (voltage detection means) for detecting the voltage value of the commercial power supply 100 is provided. The commercial power supply voltage detection unit 119 detects the voltage value of the commercial power supply 100 by detecting the effective value or peak value of the waveform that is full-wave rectified by the bridge diode 101.

[Processing operation of image forming apparatus]
The present embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. Note that the processing of S201 to S204 in the flowchart of FIG. 5 is the same as the processing of S101 to S104 of FIG.

  If the apparatus control unit 117 determines in S204 that the printing operation has been accepted, that is, if the user has requested the printing operation after the failure of the power factor correction circuit 120 is notified to the user in S203, the process proceeds to S205. . In step S <b> 205, the apparatus control unit 117 detects the voltage value of the commercial power supply 100 by using the commercial power supply voltage detection unit 119. In S206, the apparatus control unit 117 determines whether or not the voltage value of the commercial power supply 100 detected by the commercial power supply voltage detection unit 119 in S205 is equal to or greater than a predetermined value V1 (predetermined voltage) (for example, AC90V). If the apparatus control unit 117 determines in S206 that the voltage value of the commercial power source 100 is equal to or greater than the predetermined value V1, the process proceeds to S207. In step S <b> 207, the apparatus control unit 117 performs printing so as to suppress the power consumption of the load 112 by performing a low-speed printing operation that is slower than normal and suppress the current flowing through the power supply apparatus B. On the other hand, if the apparatus control unit 117 determines in S206 that the voltage value of the commercial power supply 100 is smaller than the predetermined value V1, in S208, the apparatus control unit 117 stops without executing the printing operation accepted in S204.

  Here, the predetermined value V1 is that the apparent current flowing through the image forming apparatus A when the power factor improving circuit 120 is not operating due to a failure and the image forming apparatus A performs a low-speed printing operation is a standard value of 15A. It is set not to exceed. As a result, when the power factor correction circuit 120 is not operating due to a failure and the apparent current may exceed the standard 15A, that is, when the voltage value of the commercial power supply 100 is lower than the predetermined value V1, the image forming apparatus A Stop the operation. On the other hand, even when the power factor correction circuit 120 is not operating due to a failure, if the voltage value of the commercial power supply 100 is equal to or higher than the predetermined value V1, the commercial power supply 100 can be connected even if the image forming apparatus A is operated at low speed. The allowable current value is not exceeded. For this reason, the apparatus control unit 117 permits execution of the low-speed printing operation. In the process of S207, the apparatus control unit 117 performs the low-speed printing operation. However, for example, a monochrome printing operation may be performed.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the voltage value of the commercial power supply 100 is added to the operating conditions of the image forming apparatus A, so that the printing operation is performed so as not to exceed the allowable current value of the commercial power supply 100 as compared with the first embodiment. Is possible. That is, even when an abnormality occurs in the power factor correction circuit 120, the optimum operation of the apparatus can be executed according to the voltage value of the commercial power source. As described above, according to this embodiment, even when the operation of the power factor correction circuit is stopped, the apparatus can be operated within the rated operating range, and the decrease in usability can be reduced.

  The configuration of the image forming apparatus including the power supply device having the power factor correction circuit according to the third embodiment is the same as that of FIG. 4 described in the second embodiment, and the description thereof is omitted.

[Processing operation of image forming apparatus]
The present embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. Note that the processing of S301 to S304 in the flowchart is the same as the processing of S101 to S104 of FIG.

  If it is determined in S304 that the printing operation has been accepted, that is, if there is a request for a printing operation by the user, the commercial power supply voltage detection unit 119 detects the voltage value of the commercial power supply 100 in S305. In step S306, the apparatus control unit 117 determines whether the voltage value of the commercial power supply 100 detected by the commercial power supply voltage detection unit 119 in step S305 is equal to or less than a predetermined value V1 (for example, AC90V). If the apparatus control unit 117 determines in S306 that the detected voltage value of the commercial power supply 100 is equal to or less than the predetermined value V1, in S307, the apparatus control unit 117 cancels the printing operation accepted in S304 without executing it.

  If the apparatus control unit 117 determines in S306 that the detected voltage value of the commercial power supply 100 is greater than the predetermined value V1, whether the voltage value of the commercial power supply 100 is greater than or equal to a predetermined value V2 (for example, AC100V) in S308. Judge whether or not. When the apparatus control unit 117 determines in S308 that the voltage value of the commercial power supply 100 is equal to or greater than the predetermined value V2, the process proceeds to S309. In step S <b> 309, the apparatus control unit 117 performs a printing operation so as to suppress the power consumption of the load 112 by performing a low-speed printing operation that is slower than normal, and suppress the current flowing through the power supply device B.

  When the apparatus control unit 117 determines in S308 that the voltage value of the commercial power supply 100 is smaller than the predetermined value V2, that is, when the voltage value of the commercial power supply 100 is larger than the predetermined value V1 and smaller than the predetermined value V2 (for example, 90V If it is greater than 100V, the process proceeds to S310. In step S <b> 310, the apparatus control unit 117 executes, for example, a black monochrome print operation (monochrome low speed print operation) in addition to a low speed print operation that is slower than normal. As a result, the printing operation is executed so as to further reduce the power consumption of the load 112 and the current flowing through the power supply device B.

  Here, the predetermined value V1 and the predetermined value V2 are based on the apparent current that flows through the image forming apparatus A when the image forming apparatus A performs a printing operation in a state where the power factor correction circuit 120 is not operating due to a failure. Is set so as not to exceed 15A. As a result, the printing operation of the image forming apparatus A can be set in more detail than in the second embodiment in accordance with the voltage value of the commercial power supply 100. As described above, the image forming apparatus A according to the present exemplary embodiment can execute a plurality of printing operations in which the power consumed by the load 112 is lower than that in the normal printing operation and the power consumed by the load 112 is different. . Then, the device control unit 117 selects a printing operation according to the voltage value of the commercial power supply 100 detected by the commercial power supply voltage detection unit 119.

  As described above, according to this embodiment, even when the operation of the power factor correction circuit is stopped, the apparatus can be operated within the rated operating range, and the decrease in usability can be reduced.

  The configuration of the image forming apparatus including the power supply device having the power factor correction circuit according to the fourth embodiment is the same as that of FIG. 1A described in the first embodiment, and a description thereof is omitted. In this embodiment, the load 112 in FIG. 1A includes actuators such as a motor, a fan, and a solenoid, a high voltage generating power source, a latent image scanner device, a sensor, a fixing device 130, a notification unit 118, and the like. Is mentioned. Further, in the present embodiment, an image scanner (scanner unit 200 in FIG. 1B) and ADF 400 for reading a document during a copying operation are exemplified.

[Processing operation of image forming apparatus]
The present embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. Note that steps S401 to S403 in the flowchart are the same as steps S101 to S103 in FIG.

  The apparatus control unit 117 continues to accept the copy operation by the user even after detecting a failure of the power factor correction circuit 120 in S402. Here, copying refers to performing an original reading operation and executing an image forming operation based on the read original. In step S404, the apparatus control unit 117 determines whether a copy operation has been accepted. If it is determined that a copy operation has not been received, the process returns to the process in step S403. If the apparatus control unit 117 determines in step S404 that the copy operation has been received, that is, if the user requests a copy operation, the copy original scanning operation is started in step S405. In step S406, the apparatus control unit 117 determines whether the scan operation is completed. If it is determined that the scan operation is not completed, the process returns to step S405. If the apparatus control unit 117 determines in step S406 that the scanning operation has been completed, the apparatus control unit 117 performs a printing operation in step S407.

  Thus, in this embodiment, the scanned image is printed out after the scanning operation is completely completed. Normally, when performing a copy operation, the scan operation and the print operation are performed in parallel. In this embodiment, the apparatus control unit 117 divides the scan operation and the print operation to reduce the maximum power consumption. Then, the image forming apparatus A is operated. In this way, the apparatus control unit 117 performs control so that the current flowing through the image forming apparatus A does not exceed the standard even when the power factor correction circuit 120 is not operating.

  Thus, according to the present embodiment, even when an abnormality occurs in the power factor correction circuit 120 in the power supply device B, the copy operation can be divided so that the print operation is performed after the scan operation is completed. The copy operation can be executed. As described above, according to the present embodiment, even when the operation of the power factor correction circuit is stopped, it is possible to operate the device within the rated operating range and reduce the usability deterioration.

  In the first to fourth embodiments, the electrophotographic process type image forming apparatus has been described as an example. However, the power supply apparatus is not limited to this, and the power supply apparatus of the present invention is an image forming apparatus. It can be applied to all electronic devices other than the above.

[Other Examples]
In the first to fourth embodiments, the PFC failure detection unit 116 monitors the PFC control unit 114 and determines the failure of the power factor correction circuit 120. However, for example, the PFC failure detection unit 116 may monitor the PFC control unit 114 and the device control unit 117 may determine that the power factor correction circuit 120 has failed. In this case, the PFC failure detection unit 116 only performs monitoring for counting off time of the FET 103 controlled by the PFC control unit 114, and outputs the monitored result to the device control unit 117. The device control unit 117 compares the input off time information with a predetermined time held in advance by the device control unit 117. If the off time continues for a predetermined time or longer, the power factor is improved. It is determined that the circuit 120 is faulty. Furthermore, the device control unit 117 may be configured to have the monitoring and failure determination functions of the PFC failure detection unit 116.

  In the fourth embodiment, the printing operation is performed after the scanning operation of the image forming apparatus is completed. However, the image forming apparatus is not limited to the scanning operation as long as it is an operation performed in parallel with the printing operation. For example, as described with reference to FIG. 1B, when the finisher 500 is connected to the image forming apparatus A and the power factor correction circuit 120 is not broken, the printing operation and the post-processing operation are performed in parallel. Done. Here, when the PFC failure detection unit 116 detects a failure of the power factor correction circuit 120, the device control unit 117 performs a post-processing operation after completing the printing operation.

  In step S407 of FIG. 7 in the fourth embodiment, the apparatus control unit 117 performs a printing operation. Here, the apparatus control unit 117 may execute the printing operation for reducing the power consumption described in the first to third embodiments. In other words, in step S407, the apparatus control unit 117 may execute the low-speed printing operation or the monochrome printing operation in step S105 of FIG. In S407, the apparatus control unit 117 performs the operation of the commercial power supply 100 by the commercial power supply voltage detection unit 119 as in the processes of S205 to S208 in FIG. 5 of the second embodiment and the processes in S305 to S310 of FIG. Depending on the detection result of the voltage, the print operation may be selected and executed.

  As described above, in other embodiments, even when the operation of the power factor correction circuit is stopped, it is possible to operate the device within the rated operating range and reduce the usability deterioration.

116 PFC failure detection unit 117 device control unit 120 power factor correction circuit

Claims (7)

A power supply device having a power factor correction circuit;
Image forming means for forming an image on a transfer material;
An image forming apparatus comprising:
Detecting means for detecting that the operation of the power factor correction circuit is stopped;
When the detection means detects that the operation of the power factor correction circuit is stopped, the power consumed is lower than the power consumed when image formation is performed while the power factor correction circuit is operating. Control means for controlling the image forming means to perform image formation in an operation mode;
An image forming apparatus comprising: Voltage detecting means for detecting the voltage of the commercial power supply,
The control unit performs image formation in the operation mode when the voltage of the commercial power source detected by the voltage detection unit is higher than a predetermined voltage, and stops image formation when the voltage is lower than the predetermined voltage. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming unit is controlled. Voltage detecting means for detecting the voltage of the commercial power supply,
The image forming unit can perform image formation in a plurality of operation modes with different power consumptions,
The control unit causes the image forming unit to perform an operation in accordance with the commercial power supply voltage detected by the voltage detection unit when the commercial power supply voltage detected by the voltage detection unit is higher than a predetermined voltage. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a mode is set.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the predetermined voltage is set based on a standard value of the commercial power source.   5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the operation mode is a low-speed printing operation in which a transfer material is conveyed at a speed slower than a predetermined speed and image formation is performed. A plurality of image forming means corresponding to a plurality of colors;
5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the operation mode is a monochrome low-speed print operation in which an image is formed by a single image forming unit. A power supply device having a power factor correction circuit;
Reading means for reading a document;
Image forming means for forming an image on a transfer material based on information of the original read by the reading means;
An image forming apparatus comprising:
Detecting means for detecting that the operation of the power factor correction circuit is stopped;
Control means for controlling to perform image formation by the image forming means after the reading operation of the original by the reading means is completed when the detection means detects that the operation of the power factor correction circuit is stopped; ,
An image forming apparatus comprising:

Images