JP2016078401A - Image formation device and consumable supply - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable, even in a case where a consumable supply such as an ink cartridge has passed its expiration date, continuation of printing using the consumable supply when an actually-printed output image has no degradation.SOLUTION: An image formation device comprises: expiration date determination means 11a which determines whether or not a consumable supply has passed its expiration date on the basis of the manufacturing date acquired from the consumable supply and the present date; printing control means 11b which outputs an image quality check sheet when it is determined that the consumable supply has passed its expiration date; image quality degradation determination means 11c which determines whether or not the image quality of the image quality check sheet is degraded with respect to a prescribed standard on the basis of an image quality check pattern scanned from the image quality check sheet; notification input means 11d which notifies of the image quality degradation determination result of the image quality check sheet and a message, and receives the presence/absence of printing continuation execution; and printing permission means 11e which permits a printing part 10 to execute printing on the basis of a printing job using the attached consumable supply when the printing continuation execution is input.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus and a consumable that can be used when the consumable such as an ink cartridge has not expired even when its expiry date has been exceeded.

  2. Description of the Related Art Image forming apparatuses such as printers, copiers, and facsimiles that employ an ink jet recording method that forms an image by ejecting ink droplets onto a recording medium are widely used. In such an ink jet recording apparatus, the information processing device reads information such as the date of manufacture and the date of installation stored in the storage medium of the ink cartridge, detects the expiration date after manufacture or the expiration date after installation, and installs it. When the expiry date is displayed on the screen of the information processing device, etc., and consumables such as ink cartridges have exceeded their expiry date, a warning is displayed to the user to encourage replacement of the consumables A printing system has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2007-140666 A

  However, the deterioration of consumables is affected by various environmental factors such as the printer installation environment and consumable storage environment. Usually, the expiry date of consumables is determined in the shortest in consideration of the worst values of these environments.

  For this reason, if stored in good environmental conditions, the consumables can be used, but the replacement is prompted only after the period of use has passed, and consumables that should still be usable must be replaced. Sometimes you do n’t.

  In particular, if the user has a low inventory of consumables, it is harsh for the user to dispose of consumables that have a sufficient remaining amount just because they have passed their expiration date, resulting in poor customer satisfaction. There is also a risk of inviting.

  On the other hand, the reason why the manufacturer sets the expiration date is that the ink is misdirected (MD), misfired (MF), and color deteriorated due to deterioration of consumables such as time change of components and natural evaporation of contents. It is to prevent the occurrence of image quality degradation. If the user accidentally uses such deteriorated consumables, the output image may be reduced and customer satisfaction may be reduced.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a problem. Even when a consumable item such as an ink cartridge has exceeded its expiration date, if the output image actually printed does not deteriorate, the consumable item is removed. It is an object of the present invention to provide an image forming apparatus and a consumable that can continue printing.

  In order to achieve the above object, a first feature of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention is that image forming is performed in which a consumable item storing a manufacturing date is mounted and printing is performed by a printing unit using the consumable item. An expiration date determining means for acquiring a manufacturing date from the consumable and determining whether the consumable has exceeded an expiration date based on the acquired manufacturing date and a current date; A printing control means for outputting an image quality check sheet by causing the printing means to print an image quality check pattern for an image quality check when it is determined that the expiry date has exceeded the expiration date; and scanning from the image quality check sheet Based on the image quality check pattern, the image quality deterioration determining means for determining the image quality deterioration in the image quality check sheet, the user is notified of the image quality deterioration determination result, and the print Based on the notification input means for receiving presence / absence of execution and the necessity of continuous printing received by the notification input means, the printing means performs printing based on a print job using the mounted consumables. Printing permission means for permitting or prohibiting.

  In addition, a second feature of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention is that the image quality deterioration determination unit determines whether the image quality of the image quality check sheet has deteriorated from a predetermined reference based on the image quality check pattern. In addition, when it is determined that the image quality of the image quality check sheet is deteriorated from a predetermined standard, the area of the image quality deterioration portion is further calculated, and the degree of image quality deterioration is determined based on the calculated area of the image quality deterioration portion. Then, the presence / absence and degree of image quality deterioration is output as the image quality deterioration determination result.

  A third feature of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention is that the image quality deterioration determining means stores the image quality deterioration determination result in the data storage unit as deterioration information at the time of image quality deterioration determination, and at the time of the current image quality deterioration determination. When the deterioration information stored at the time of the previous image quality deterioration determination is stored in the data storage unit, the data storage unit determines the image quality deterioration in the image quality check sheet based on the deterioration information, while at the time of the current image quality deterioration determination If the deterioration information stored at the time of the previous image quality deterioration determination is not stored, the image quality deterioration in the image quality check sheet is determined based on the image quality check pattern scanned from the image quality check sheet.

  In addition, the fourth feature of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention is that a printing unit that performs printing using the consumables, a manufacturing date from the consumables, and the acquired manufacturing date and present The expiration date determining means for determining whether or not the expendable item has exceeded the expiration date based on the date of the image, and if it is determined that the expendable item has exceeded the expiration date, the image quality check pattern for image quality check is printed A printing control unit that outputs an image quality check sheet by causing the printing unit to print, and whether or not the image quality of the image quality check sheet is deteriorated from a predetermined standard when it is determined that the expendable item has exceeded the expiration date Is stored in the consumable, the image quality deterioration in the image quality check sheet is determined based on the deterioration information, and it is determined that the consumable has exceeded the expiration date. In addition, when the deterioration information is not stored in the consumable item, an image quality deterioration determination unit that determines image quality deterioration in the image quality check sheet based on an image quality check pattern scanned from the image quality check sheet; Based on the notification input means for notifying the user of the determination result and receiving the presence / absence of the print continuation execution, and the necessity of the print continuation execution received by the notification input means, based on the print job using the same A print permission unit that permits or prohibits execution of printing, and a consumable that is detachably attached to the image forming apparatus, wherein the image quality deterioration determination result determined by the image quality deterioration determination unit is used as deterioration information. The data storage means for storing is provided.

  According to the first feature of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, the date of manufacture is acquired from the consumable item to determine whether or not the expiration date has been exceeded. Output and determine image quality deterioration in the image quality check sheet, notify the user of the image quality deterioration determination result, accept whether or not to continue printing, and attach it to the printing means based on whether or not to continue printing The execution of printing based on the print job is permitted or prohibited by using the consumables.

  Therefore, if the consumables such as ink cartridges are stored well and the image quality does not deteriorate even after the expiration date, the user can continue to use the consumables with peace of mind. Further, from the maker side, after notifying the user that the expiration date has been exceeded, the user can be made to refer to the image quality degradation determination result to determine whether or not to continue printing.

  Further, according to the second feature of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, when the image quality of the image quality check sheet is deteriorated from a predetermined standard, the degree of image quality deterioration is further determined based on the area of the image quality deterioration portion. Then, the determination result or the like is notified to the user.

  Therefore, even when image quality degradation occurs after the expiry date of consumables has elapsed, the user refers to the notification from this device and decides whether to continue using or replace the consumables depending on the degree of image quality degradation. You can select and use consumables with peace of mind.

  According to the third feature of the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the image quality degradation determination result is stored as degradation information in the data storage unit when the image quality degradation is determined, and the previous image quality degradation is determined when the current image quality degradation is determined. When deterioration information at the time of determination is stored, image quality deterioration in the image quality check sheet is determined based on the deterioration information, while deterioration information at the time of previous image quality deterioration determination is not stored at the time of the current image quality deterioration determination The image quality deterioration in the image quality check sheet is determined based on the image quality check pattern scanned from the image quality check sheet.

  Therefore, it is not necessary to output an image quality check sheet after the next time in order to determine image quality degradation due to consumables.

  According to the fourth feature of the consumable item according to the present invention, when the image quality deterioration determination unit determines that the image quality of the image quality check sheet is deteriorated from a predetermined standard, the determination result is stored as deterioration information. Since the data storage means is provided, even if the consumable is used in another image forming apparatus, the deterioration information stored in the data storage unit of the consumable is referred to the user, and the user can continue printing. When the presence / absence is received and execution of continuous printing is input, execution of printing based on the print job can be permitted using the mounted consumables.

  Therefore, even when a consumable item such as an ink cartridge that has exceeded its expiration date is used in another image forming apparatus, printing using the consumable item can be continued if the actually printed output image is not deteriorated.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an inkjet printing apparatus that is an embodiment of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of an ink jet printing apparatus that is an embodiment of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the image check sheet | seat in which image degradation generate | occur | produced. It is a figure which shows an example of an image quality degradation determination result screen when there is no image quality degradation. It is a figure which shows an example of the image quality degradation determination result screen in case image quality degradation is large. It is a figure which shows an example of the image quality degradation determination result screen when image quality degradation is small. It is a flowchart which shows the effect | action of the inkjet printing apparatus which is the modification 1 of the image forming apparatus which concerns on this invention.

  Hereinafter, an inkjet printing apparatus 1 that is an embodiment of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

(Example)
An ink jet printing apparatus 1 of an embodiment of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes a main body device and an ink cartridge for each color detachably attached to the main body device, and the ink jet head provided in the main body device from the ink cartridge. An ink jet printing apparatus 1 that performs printing by supplying and discharging ink will be described as an example.

<Configuration of Inkjet Printing Apparatus 1>
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of an inkjet printing apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  An ink jet printing apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes ink cartridges 20C, 20M, 20Y, and 20K and a main body device having a configuration other than the ink cartridges 20C, 20M, 20Y, and 20K. The ink jet printing apparatus 1 with the ink cartridges 20C, 20M, 20Y, and 20K attached to the main body apparatus will be described as an example.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the main body device of the ink jet printing apparatus 1 includes ink jet heads 10C, 10M, 10Y, and 10K corresponding to C (cyan), M (magenta), Y (yellow), and K (black) inks. The printing paper 10 is conveyed at a speed determined by printing conditions by an annular conveyance belt (not shown) provided on the opposed surfaces of the inkjet heads 10C, 10M, 10Y, and 10K. However, printing is performed in line units with ink ejected from the inkjet heads 10C, 10M, 10Y, and 10K.

  The ink cartridges 20C, 20M, 20Y, and 20K are configured to be attachable to and detachable from the main body device, respectively, and ink bottles 21C, 21M, 21Y, and 21K that store ink, and non-contact ICs 22C that store various types of information related to each ink. , 22M, 22Y, 22K.

  Each ink is supplied from a corresponding ink bottle 21C, 21M, 21Y, 21K, and an ink bottle 21C that supplies C (cyan) ink and an ink bottle 21M that supplies M (magenta) ink. , Y (yellow) ink bottle 21Y, and K (black) ink bottle 21K are provided. In the following description, the ink bottle 21 will be used as a representative when the ink color is not particular. The same applies to other functional units.

  The ink supplied from the ink bottle 21 passes through an ink circulation path (not shown) formed by a pipe made of resin, metal, etc., and is temporarily stored in a downstream tank (not shown) provided on the downstream side of the inkjet head 10. The ink stored in the downstream tank (not shown) is sent to an upstream tank (not shown) provided on the upstream side of the inkjet head 10 by a pump, and a large number of inks are ejected from the upstream tank (not shown). Liquid is fed to the inkjet head 10 provided with the nozzle.

  The ink that has not been ejected by the inkjet head 10 is returned to a downstream tank (not shown).

  The non-contact IC (reference numeral 22) has a data storage unit 23 and performs wireless data communication with the control unit 11 of the main device.

  The data storage unit 23 stores data such as the date of manufacture of the ink cartridge 20 and the remaining amount of ink stored in the ink bottle 21, and each ink cartridge written by the inkjet printing apparatus 1 as described later. 20 deterioration information is stored. In the present invention and this embodiment, the remaining ink amount data is not used and can be omitted.

  The ink jet printing apparatus 1 includes a control unit 11 that controls the main body device, a memory 12, a timer 13, a scanner 14, and an operation panel 15 having a display unit 15a such as a liquid crystal monitor.

  The control unit 11 is composed of a CPU and the like, and controls the main unit and executes a program (not shown) to thereby determine an expiration date determination unit 11a, a print control unit 11b, an image quality deterioration determination unit 11c, a notification input unit 11d, and It functions as the print permission unit 11e.

  The expiration date determination unit 11a acquires the date of manufacture from the ink cartridge that is a consumable item, and determines whether the ink cartridge has exceeded the expiration date based on the acquired date of manufacture and the current date.

  The print control unit 11b causes the printing unit 10 to print based on the print job when continuation of printing is permitted. Further, when it is determined that the ink cartridge has exceeded the expiration date, the printing control unit 11b causes the printing unit 10 to print the image quality check sheet by causing the printing unit 10 to print an image quality check pattern for checking the image quality regardless of permission to continue printing. Output.

  Based on the image quality check pattern scanned from the image quality check sheet, the image quality deterioration determination means 11c determines the presence and degree of image quality deterioration in the image quality check sheet, here as described later.

  The notification input unit 11d notifies the user of the image quality deterioration determination result of the image quality check sheet and a message indicating that the ink cartridge has exceeded the expiration date, and accepts the necessity of continuous printing by the user operation. It is optional and can be omitted to notify a message indicating that the ink cartridge has expired.

  The print permission unit 11e permits continuation of printing based on the print job using the mounted ink cartridge when the expiration date of the mounted ink cartridge has not been exceeded. Further, the print permission unit 11e permits or prohibits the printing unit 10 to perform printing based on the print job using the mounted consumables based on the necessity of continuous printing received by the notification input unit 11d. To do. Specifically, when continuous execution is input by the notification input unit 11d, the printing unit 10 is allowed to execute printing based on a print job using the attached consumables, while the notification input unit 11d When the print continuation execution is not input, the printing unit 10 is prohibited from executing printing based on the print job using the attached consumables.

  The memory 12 stores in advance the expiration date of each ink cartridge 20, the reference pattern (reference data) for determining the image quality deterioration, and the threshold value of the deterioration area for determining the degree of image quality deterioration.

  The timer 13 outputs the current date and the like.

  The scanner 14 scans a document. In the present invention, any scanner that can scan the image quality check sheet S may be used.

  The operation panel 15 accepts an operation for selecting a paper size, the number of printed sheets, a print density, a printing format for double-sided printing or single-sided printing, and an operation for selecting whether or not to continue printing. The operation panel 15 includes a display unit 15a such as a liquid crystal monitor that displays various messages.

<Operation of inkjet printing apparatus>
Next, the operation of the ink jet printing apparatus 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the following description, for example, the ink cartridge 20 is described as an example of the consumable item.

  FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure in the inkjet printing apparatus 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 2, in the inkjet printing apparatus 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention, when the expiration date of the ink cartridge 20 that is a consumable item comes (step S <b> 101; YES), first, the expiration date determination unit of the control unit 11. 11a starts wireless communication with the non-contact IC (reference numeral 22) of the ink cartridge 20, and acquires the date of manufacture stored in the data storage unit 23 of the ink cartridge 20 (step S103).

  Here, the expiry date confirmation timing of consumables is based on whether the user presses the power-on switch of this apparatus, or the return from the power saving mode is detected, or based on the amount of ink used or the usage time. It may be determined. Further, the date of manufacture is not acquired from the data storage unit 23 of the non-contact IC (reference numeral 22) of each ink cartridge 20, but the date of manufacture is a number or a barcode (including a two-dimensional barcode). It may be obtained by reading from image data such as a label or a tag described in the above.

  Next, the expiration date determining means 11 a of the control unit 11 determines the date from the date of manufacture based on the information on the date of manufacture acquired from the ink cartridge 20 and the information on the current date acquired by the timer 13. The elapsed date is calculated (step S105), and it is determined whether or not the elapsed date exceeds the expiration date of each ink cartridge 20 stored in advance in the memory 12 (step S107).

  Here, when it is determined that the elapsed date does not exceed the expiration date of use of the ink cartridge 20 (step S107; NO), the print permission unit 11e uses a currently installed ink cartridge based on the print job. The continuation of printing is permitted (step S109).

  On the other hand, when it is determined that the elapsed date has exceeded the expiration date of use of the ink cartridge 20 (step S107; NO), an instruction is sent from the expiration date determination unit 11a to the print control unit 11b, and the print control of the control unit 11 is performed. The means 11b causes the image quality check sheet on which the image quality check pattern for image quality check is printed to be printed with the corresponding color ink from each ink jet head 10C, 10M, 10Y, 10K of the printing unit 10 (step S113). .

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of an image quality check sheet S of an image quality check pattern in which image quality degradation has occurred.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the image quality check sheet S is provided with ink of each color of C (cyan), M (magenta), Y (yellow), and K (black) from each inkjet head 10 at a constant thin interval. A plurality of ejections are performed, and striped check patterns PC, PM, PY, and PK of each color are printed.

  In FIG. 3, image quality deterioration of misfire (MF), which is a non-ejection of ink, occurs in the check pattern PM of M (magenta), while misdirection (MD) of ink bending occurs in the check pattern PK of K (black). ) Shows a case where image quality deterioration occurs.

  Next, the image quality check sheet S on which the image quality check pattern of each color is printed is scanned by the scanner 14, and the image quality check patterns PC, PM, PY, and PK of each color as shown in FIG. Reading (step S115), the image quality deterioration determination unit 11c of the control unit 11 performs predetermined processing such as image data of the image quality check sheet S output from the scanner 14 and a reference pattern for image quality deterioration determination stored in the memory 12 in advance. It is compared with the reference data, and it is determined whether or not image quality deterioration has occurred for each color (step S117). The scanning of the image quality check sheet S by the scanner 14 may be set by the user, or the output image quality check sheet S is automatically circulated in the inkjet printing apparatus 1 by a conveyor belt (not shown). It may be conveyed to 14 and scanned.

  When it is determined that there is no image quality deterioration in the determination processing in step S117 (NO), the image quality deterioration determination unit 11c uses the determination result that there is no image quality deterioration as deterioration information, and the data storage unit 23 or the memory of the non-contact IC 22 of the ink cartridge 20 12 (step S119).

  Thereafter, the notification input unit 11d of the control unit 11 displays the image quality deterioration determination result screen 160 without image quality deterioration as shown in FIG. 4 on the display unit 15a of the operation panel 15 based on the determination result in the image quality deterioration determination unit 11c. (Step S121), the user selects whether to continue printing or replace the ink cartridge (Step S123).

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of the image quality deterioration determination result screen 160 without image quality deterioration displayed on the display unit 15a in the process of step S121.

  As shown in FIG. 4, in the image quality degradation determination result screen 160 without image quality degradation, for example, when magenta (M) has exceeded the expiration date but no image quality degradation has occurred, the notification input unit 11d of the control unit 11 First, based on the determination result in the image quality deterioration determination unit 11c, the image quality deterioration determination result “Magenta (M) color misdirection (MD); None, Misfire (MF); None, Color degradation; None” is displayed. To do.

  In addition, the notification input unit 11d of the control unit 11 displays “This ink has exceeded the expiration date on the image quality deterioration determination result screen 160 without image quality deterioration” based on the determination result in the image quality deterioration determination unit 11c. A message indicating that the magenta (M) ink cartridge 20M has expired is displayed, such as “Do you want to continue using the product as it is?”.

  In addition, the notification input unit 11d of the control unit 11 displays a replacement button 161 for selecting replacement of the ink cartridge 20M and a continuation button 162 for selecting the continuation of printing by the user on the image quality deterioration determination result screen 160. .

  When the user selects the continuation button 162 with reference to the image quality degradation determination result screen 160 without image quality degradation displayed on the display unit 15a (step S123; continuation of printing), the control unit 11 performs the process of step S109. In step S109, the print permission unit 11e permits the printing unit 10 to continue printing based on the print job using the currently installed ink cartridge. On the other hand, when the user presses the replacement button 161 on the image quality deterioration determination result screen 16 (step S123; replacement), printing using the currently installed ink cartridge is prohibited, and the ink of the ink with degraded image quality is displayed. It is determined whether or not the cartridge 20M has been replaced (step S125).

  Here, when the ink cartridge 20M of the ink having deteriorated image quality is replaced (step S125; YES), the print permission unit 11e proceeds to the process of step S109 and is replaced with the printing unit 19 and is currently mounted. The continuation of printing based on the print job is permitted using the ink cartridge that has been printed.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S117 that the color ink cartridge 20 has image quality deterioration such as misfire (MF), misdirection (MD), or color deterioration based on the image quality check sheet S (YES), Subsequently, the area of the image quality deterioration portion in the image quality check sheet S (hereinafter abbreviated as the deterioration area) is calculated (step S127).

  Next, the image quality deterioration determination unit 11c compares the calculated deterioration area with a threshold value of the deterioration area stored in advance in the memory 12 or the like, and determines whether or not the deterioration area is larger than the threshold value ( Step S129).

  Here, when the degradation area is larger than the threshold value (Yes), the image quality degradation determination unit 11c regards that the image quality degradation is significant, that is, the image quality degradation is large, and the degradation area is larger than the threshold value and the significant image quality. Is stored in the data storage unit 23 or the memory 12 of the non-contact IC 22 of the ink cartridge 20 in which the deterioration in image quality has occurred (step S131), and continues as shown in FIG. An image quality degradation determination result screen 170 that prohibits use is displayed on the display unit 15a (step S133). Here, the threshold value is, for example, about 10% with respect to the surface area of the image quality check sheet S, and in the case of a deteriorated area exceeding the surface area, it is determined that the image quality is greatly deteriorated because a significant decrease in image quality has occurred.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of an image quality deterioration determination result screen 170 that prohibits continuous use due to large image quality deterioration displayed on the display unit 15a in the process of step S133.

  As shown in FIG. 5, in the image quality deterioration determination result screen 170 that prohibits continuous use due to large image quality deterioration, for example, when the expiration date is exceeded for magenta (M) and the image quality deterioration area is larger than the threshold, the control unit 11 notification input means 11d has a content such as “magenta (M) color misdirection (MD); present, misfire (MF); present, color degradation; present” based on the determination result in the image quality deterioration determination means 11c. Display the image quality degradation judgment result.

  In addition, the notification input means 11d of the control unit 11 is based on the determination result in the image quality deterioration determination means 11c. “This ink has exceeded the expiration date. In addition, the image quality is significantly decreased due to the deterioration of the ink. The use of this ink is prohibited as it may lead to damage of the parts. A message such as “The ink cartridge 20 is replaced and a replacement button 171 for selecting replacement of the ink cartridge 20 is displayed.

  In the image quality degradation determination result screen 170 that prohibits continuous use due to large image quality degradation, since the image quality degradation is extremely large, printing is continued in the image quality degradation judgment result screen 160 without image quality degradation shown in FIG. The continue button 162 to be selected is not displayed.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S129 that the degradation area is equal to or less than the threshold value (NO), the image quality degradation determination unit 11c assumes that an image degradation with small image quality degradation has occurred, and the degradation area is equal to or less than the threshold value. Degradation information indicating that the degradation in image quality is small is stored in the data storage unit 23 or the memory 12 of the non-contact IC 22 of the ink cartridge 20 (step S135), and the degradation in image quality is small as shown in FIG. The image quality deterioration determination result screen 180 is displayed on the display unit 15a (step S137).

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of the image quality deterioration determination result screen 180 with small image quality deterioration displayed on the display unit 15a in the process of step S137.

  As shown in FIG. 6, in the image quality degradation determination result screen 180 with small image quality degradation, for example, the expiration date for magenta (M) is exceeded and image quality degradation of misfire (MF) occurs and the image quality degradation area is the threshold value. In the case of the following, the notification input unit 11d of the control unit 11 determines “magenta (M) color misdirection (MD); none, misfire (MF); present, based on the determination result in the image quality degradation determination unit 11c. The image quality degradation determination result “color degradation; none” is displayed.

  In addition, the notification input means 11d of the control unit 11 is based on the determination result in the image quality deterioration determination means 11c, “This ink has exceeded the expiration date. In addition, the image quality is deteriorated due to ink deterioration. Replace the ink as soon as possible. Do you want to continue using it as it is? "A message is displayed indicating that the magenta (M) ink cartridge 20M has expired and that the ink cartridge 20M should be replaced.

  Further, the notification input means 11d of the control unit 11 is an exchange button for selecting the replacement of the ink cartridge 20M on the image quality deterioration determination result screen 180 as in the case of the image quality deterioration determination result screen 160 without image quality deterioration shown in FIG. 181 and a continuation button 182 that allows the user to select continuation of printing are displayed.

  When the user selects the continuation button 182 with reference to the image quality degradation determination result screen 180 with small image quality degradation displayed on the display unit 15a (step S139; continuation of printing), the control unit 11 performs the process of step S109. In step S109, the print permission unit 11e permits the printing unit 19 to continue printing based on the print job using the currently installed ink cartridge. On the other hand, when the user presses the replacement button 161 on the image quality deterioration determination result screen 16 (step S123; replacement), printing using the currently installed ink cartridge is prohibited, and the ink of the ink with degraded image quality is displayed. It is determined whether or not the cartridge 20M has been replaced (step S125).

  Then, when the ink cartridge 20M of the ink having deteriorated image quality is replaced (step S125; YES), the print permission unit 11e moves to the process of step S109 and is replaced and currently mounted on the printing unit 19. Continuation of printing based on the print job is permitted using the existing ink cartridge.

  As described above, according to the inkjet printing apparatus 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention, when a consumable item such as the ink cartridge 20 has exceeded its expiration date, the image quality check sheet S is printed out and scanned, The deterioration is determined, and the determination result is notified to the user on the image quality deterioration determination result screen, and the user is allowed to select whether to continue printing or to prohibit printing and replace consumables.

  As a result, for example, even when the ink cartridge 20 in a good storage state has passed the expiration date, there is no image quality deterioration such as misdirection (MD), misfire (MF), or color deterioration on the printed matter. 4 is displayed on the display unit 15a of the operation panel 15 as shown in FIG. 4 indicating that there is no image quality deterioration, so that the user can continue to use the ink cartridge 20 with peace of mind. it can.

  Further, even when the ink cartridge 20 in a good storage state has passed the expiration date and image quality degradation has occurred, if the image quality degradation area is smaller than a predetermined threshold and the degree of image quality degradation is small, that fact 6 is displayed on the display unit 15a of the operation panel 15 as shown in FIG. 6, and when the user performs printing regardless of the image quality, the ink cartridge 20 is similarly relieved. Can continue to be used.

  On the other hand, from the manufacturer side of the inkjet printing apparatus 1, the user has been informed on the image quality deterioration determination result screens 160 to 180 that the expiration date of the ink cartridge 20 has expired regardless of whether or not the image quality has deteriorated. The deterioration determination result is also notified to the user, and the use of the ink cartridge 20 whose expiration date has passed can be finally left to the user's selection.

  In the inkjet printing apparatus 1 according to the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the deterioration information is written to the data storage unit 23 or the memory 12 of the non-contact IC 22 of the ink cartridge 20, but the present invention is not limited to this. The deterioration information may not be written in the data storage unit 23 or the memory 12. However, in the first modification described below, it is necessary to read the deterioration information written in the data storage unit 23 of the ink cartridge 20, and in this case, the deterioration information is written in the data storage unit 23, etc. There is a need.

(Modification 1)
In the ink jet printing apparatus 1 that is the image forming apparatus of the above embodiment, the deterioration information stored in the data storage unit 23 of the non-contact IC 22 of the ink cartridge 20 is not used, but stored in the data storage unit 23 or labeled (not shown). In the first modification, when the deterioration information is stored in the data storage unit 23, the determination is made as to whether or not the expiration date has been exceeded. Deterioration information is used. Accordingly, since the configuration of the inkjet printing apparatus 1 of the first modification is the same as that of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the characteristic operation will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the operation of the ink jet printing apparatus 1 of the first modification according to the present invention. In addition, the same step number is attached | subjected to the same process as the flowchart which shows the effect | action of the inkjet printing apparatus 1 of the Example shown in FIG. 2, and description is abbreviate | omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 7, in the inkjet printing apparatus 1 of the first modification, when the expiry date of expendable supplies arrives (step S <b> 101; YES), as in the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the use of the control unit 11. The term determining means 11a obtains the date of manufacture from the data storage unit 23 of the ink cartridge 20 or image data such as a label or a tag (step S103), and then calculates the elapsed date from the date of manufacture. In step S105, it is determined whether or not the elapsed date exceeds the expiration date of use of the ink cartridge 20 (step S107). The steps so far are the same as those in the embodiment shown in FIG.

  Here, when it is determined that the elapsed date does not exceed the expiration date of use of the ink cartridge 20 (step S107; NO), the print permission unit 11e uses a currently installed ink cartridge based on the print job. The continuation of printing is permitted (step S109).

  On the other hand, when it is determined in the determination process in step S107 that the expiration date has been exceeded (Yes), the data storage unit 23 subsequently determines when the image quality deterioration determining unit 11c determines the previous image quality deterioration for consumables such as the ink cartridge 20. It is determined whether or not the deterioration information stored in the storage is stored (step S201).

  Here, when the deterioration information stored in the data storage unit 23 of the ink cartridge 20 or the like at the time of the previous image quality deterioration determination is not stored (step S201; NO), the image quality deterioration determination unit 11c refers to the previous deterioration information. Since the deterioration of the image quality of the image cannot be determined, the inkjet printing apparatus 1 of the first modification outputs the image quality check sheet S after the process of step S113 in FIG. 2 as in the case of the inkjet printing apparatus 1 of the embodiment. The subsequent processing is performed.

  On the other hand, when the deterioration information stored in the data storage unit 23 of the ink cartridge 20 or the like at the time of the previous image quality deterioration determination is stored (step S201; YES), the image quality deterioration determination unit 11c subsequently continues the previous image quality deterioration determination. The content of the deterioration information stored at the time of deterioration determination is determined (step S203).

  When the content of the deterioration information stored at the previous image quality deterioration determination is “no deterioration”, the process proceeds to step S121 in FIG. 2, and the notification input unit 11d of the control unit 11 displays the image quality as shown in FIG. An image quality degradation determination result screen 160 without degradation is displayed on the display unit 15a of the operation panel 15, and the subsequent processing is performed.

  When the content of the deterioration information stored at the previous image quality deterioration determination is “low deterioration”, the process proceeds to step S137 in FIG. 2, and the notification input unit 11d of the control unit 11 determines the image quality as shown in FIG. A small degradation image quality judgment result screen 180 is displayed on the display unit 15a of the operation panel 15, and the subsequent processing is performed.

  When the content of the deterioration information stored at the previous image quality deterioration determination is “large deterioration”, the process proceeds to step S133 in FIG. 2, and the notification input unit 11d of the control unit 11 displays the image quality as shown in FIG. An image quality deterioration determination result screen 170 that prohibits continuous use due to large deterioration is displayed on the display unit 15a of the operation panel 15, and then it is determined whether or not a consumable item such as the ink cartridge 20 has been replaced by the process of step S125.

  If consumables such as the ink cartridge 20 are not exchanged (step S125; NO), the process waits until they are exchanged. If exchanged (step S125; YES), for example, the process returns to step S201. Then, it is determined again whether or not the deterioration information is stored in the consumables such as the newly replaced ink cartridge 20, and the subsequent processing is performed.

  For this reason, when the deterioration information is not stored in the consumables such as the newly replaced ink cartridge 20 (step S201; NO), the processing after step S113 shown in FIG. When the deterioration information is stored in the consumables such as the newly replaced ink cartridge 20 (step S201; YES), the determination process in step S203 described above is performed. Then, the subsequent processing is executed.

  On the other hand, when the deterioration information is stored in the consumables such as the newly replaced ink cartridge 20 (step S201; YES), the process proceeds to step S203, and the subsequent processes are executed as described above. To do.

  Therefore, according to the inkjet printing apparatus 1 of the first modification of the present invention, whether or not the deterioration information is stored in the consumable item such as the ink cartridge 20 when the consumable item such as the ink cartridge 20 has exceeded its expiration date. When the deterioration information is not stored, the image quality check sheet S is output to determine the deterioration of the image quality as in the case of the inkjet printing apparatus 1 of the embodiment, while the deterioration information is stored. Displays a determination result screen (FIG. 4) without image quality deterioration, a determination result screen with low image quality deterioration (FIG. 6), and a determination result screen with large image quality deterioration (FIG. 5) based on the deterioration information. Then, the user is notified of a determination result of the image quality, a message for allowing the user to select whether or not to replace the consumables, and the like.

  As a result, according to the inkjet printing apparatus 1 of the first modification, the same effect as that of the inkjet printing apparatus 1 of the embodiment can be obtained, and when deterioration information is stored in the consumables such as the ink cartridge 20, The image quality determination result can be notified to the user without outputting the image quality check sheet S, and wasteful ink consumption can be prevented.

[Modification 2]
In the description of the inkjet printing apparatus 1 according to the first modification, as shown in FIG. 7, when a consumable item such as the ink cartridge 20 is replaced (step S125; YES), the process returns to step S201, and again, Although it has been described that it is determined whether or not the deterioration information is stored in the consumables such as the newly replaced ink cartridge 20, the present invention is not limited to this, and the ink cartridge newly replaced after returning to the process of step S101. It may be determined whether the expiry date confirmation timing has arrived for the consumables such as 20 or the like, or the manufacturing date of the consumables such as the newly replaced ink cartridge 20 is acquired after returning to the process of step S103. Then, the subsequent processing may be performed.

[Modification 3]
Further, in the description of the inkjet printing apparatus 1 of the first modification, as shown in FIG. 7, when the consumable item such as the ink cartridge 20 exceeds the expiration date (step S107; YES), the deterioration information of the consumable item is stored. If YES (step S201; YES), based on the deterioration information, the determination result screens 160 to 180 shown in FIGS. 4 to 6 corresponding to the deterioration of the image quality are displayed, and the image quality determination result and the consumable are exchanged. Although it has been described that the user is informed of a message or the like that allows the user to select whether to perform or not, even if deterioration information is stored, it is old after a predetermined period of time such as one month has elapsed since the storage of the deterioration information In this case, the state of consumables such as the ink cartridge 20 has also changed.

  Therefore, even if deterioration information is stored in the determination process of step S201, if the storage date and time (recording date and time) of the deterioration information is older than a current period by a predetermined period or more, the deterioration information is not stored. Similarly to the case where the image is not stored (step S201; NO), the process may proceed to step S113 shown in FIG. 2 to output the image quality check sheet S again to determine the deterioration of the image quality.

[Modification 4]
In the description of Modification 1, the deterioration information is written in the data storage unit 23 of the non-contact IC 22 of the ink cartridge 20 and the deterioration information is read from the ink cartridge 20. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Alternatively, the deterioration information may be read from the memory 12 by writing into the memory 12 of the inkjet printing apparatus 1.

  In the above description of the first to fourth modifications, the inkjet printing apparatus has been described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and can be applied to a stencil printing apparatus and other printing apparatuses.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Inkjet printing apparatus 10 ... Printing part (inkjet head)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Control part 11a ... Expiration date determination means 11b ... Print control means 11c ... Image quality deterioration determination means 11d ... Notification input means 11e ... Print permission means 12 ... Memory 13 ... Timer 14 ... Scanner 15 ... Operation panel 15a ... Display part 20 ... Ink cartridge 21 ... Ink bottle 22 ... Non-contact IC
23. Data storage unit

Claims (4)

An image forming apparatus in which a consumable item in which a manufacturing date is stored is mounted and printing is performed by a printing unit using the consumable item,
An expiration date determining means for acquiring a date of manufacture from the consumable item, and determining whether the expendable item has exceeded an expiration date based on the acquired date of manufacture and the current date;
If it is determined that the consumable has exceeded the expiration date, a printing control unit that outputs an image quality check sheet by causing the printing unit to print an image quality check pattern for image quality check; and
Image quality deterioration determination means for determining image quality deterioration in the image quality check sheet based on an image quality check pattern scanned from the image quality check sheet;
A notification input means for notifying the user of the image quality deterioration determination result and receiving the necessity of continuous printing;
Print permission means for permitting or prohibiting execution of printing based on a print job using the mounted consumables based on the necessity of continuous printing execution received by the notification input means;
An image forming apparatus comprising: The image quality deterioration determining means is
When determining whether the image quality of the image quality check sheet has deteriorated from a predetermined standard based on the image quality check pattern and determining that the image quality of the image quality check sheet has deteriorated from a predetermined standard Further, the image quality degradation portion area is calculated, the image quality degradation degree is determined based on the calculated image quality degradation portion area, and the presence / absence and degree of the image quality degradation is output as the image quality degradation determination result. Item 2. The image forming apparatus according to Item 1. The image quality deterioration determining means is
When the image quality deterioration is determined, the image quality deterioration determination result is stored in the data storage unit as deterioration information.
When the deterioration information stored at the time of the previous image quality deterioration determination is stored in the data storage unit at the time of the current image quality deterioration determination, while determining the image quality deterioration in the image quality check sheet based on the deterioration information,
When the deterioration information stored at the time of the previous image quality deterioration determination is not stored in the data storage unit at the time of the current image quality deterioration determination, the image quality deterioration in the image quality check sheet based on the image quality check pattern scanned from the image quality check sheet The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus includes: A consumable that is detachably provided in the image forming apparatus,
The image forming apparatus includes:
Printing means for executing printing using the consumables;
An expiration date determining means for acquiring the date of manufacture from the consumable and determining whether the expendable has exceeded the expiration date based on the acquired date of manufacture and the current date;
A printing control unit that outputs an image quality check sheet by causing the printing unit to print an image quality check pattern for an image quality check when it is determined that the expendable item has exceeded the expiration date;
If it is determined that the expendable item has exceeded the expiration date, deterioration information indicating whether the image quality of the image quality check sheet has deteriorated from a predetermined standard is stored in the expendable item. Determining image quality deterioration in the image quality check sheet based on the information;
When it is determined that the expendable item has exceeded the expiration date, and the deterioration information is not stored in the expendable item, the image quality in the image quality check sheet is determined based on the image quality check pattern scanned from the image quality check sheet. Image quality deterioration determining means for determining deterioration;
A notification input means for notifying the user of the image quality degradation determination result and receiving presence / absence of continuous printing;
A printing permission unit that permits the printing unit to execute printing based on a print job using the consumable when the notification input unit inputs printing continuation execution;
The consumables are
A consumable comprising: a data storage unit that stores the image quality degradation determination result determined by the image quality degradation determination unit as degradation information.

Images