JP2020122892A - Image forming system - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide an image forming system that identifies the cause of odor from a difference in composition of odor and executes an appropriate operation according to the cause.SOLUTION: On an odor exhaust path from image forming units 211Y, 211M, 211C, and 211K of an image forming apparatus 100 through a fan 205, a fixing device 226, and a fan 206 up to the outside the image forming apparatus 100, odor sensors 201, 202, 203, and 204 are disposed. The odor sensors 201, 202, 203, and 204 have the odor component detection characteristics different from each other, and identify an odor component from the combination of voltage values detected by the sensors. When a result of identification indicates that the odor is derived from toner and developer, the image forming system displays an error message on an operation panel and starts up an air conditioner. When the odor is derived from overheat of the fixing device 226, the image forming system displays a warning message on the operation panel, stops the operation of the image forming apparatus 100, and notifies a service person of the fact.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image forming system, and more particularly to a technique for identifying an operating state of an image forming apparatus from a difference in odor composition and taking necessary measures.

Since an electrophotographic image forming apparatus uses a device that applies a high voltage such as an image forming unit or a device that has a high temperature such as a fixing unit, an odor may be generated depending on the operating state.

For example, odor may occur when a resin such as phenol is melted or the recording paper wound around the fixing unit is burnt due to a failure around the fixing unit. Focusing on this point, for example, by detecting an incomplete combustion gas using a gas sensor, an abnormality of the device is discovered, operation of the device is stopped to ensure safety, and whether or not parts can be reused An electronic device that improves determination accuracy has been proposed (see Patent Document 1). In addition, there is also proposed a technology that detects an abnormality in the fixing unit or the high-voltage power supply unit by detecting carbon dioxide (CO ₂ :Carbon Dioxide) gas or carbon monoxide (CO: Carbon Monoxide) gas and stops the operation of the apparatus. (See Patent Document 2).

Further, when the image forming apparatus is installed in a closed room with poor ventilation, if an odor derived from toner or developer is generated by a normal image forming operation, the odor stays in the room and the May cause discomfort. Such an odor can be removed by using a filter, but a filter with a fine mesh tends to be clogged due to a cause other than the odor, and the frequency of replacement tends to increase.

For this reason, a technique has been proposed in which an odor generation situation is monitored using a gas sensor, and the exhaust path is switched so that the odor is exhausted through a filter only when the odor is strong (for example, see Patent Document 3). ).

JP, 2013-097130, A JP, 2005-092010, A JP, 2008-268427, A

However, it occurs when it is not necessary to stop the device operation such as the odor generated when the device operation needs to be stopped, such as when a device failure occurs, and the odor derived from toner or developer. The odor is the same as the odor component constituting the odor.

For this reason, when it is assumed only to detect the odor resulting from the device failure as in the above-mentioned conventional technique, even if the odor resulting from the toner failure is detected, the odor resulting from the device failure is not detected. There is a possibility that the odor derived from the erroneous detection is erroneously detected, the device is unnecessarily stopped, and the convenience of the user is reduced.

Similarly, if only detecting odor derived from toner etc. is assumed, if the device is continuously operated while erroneously recognizing odor derived from device failure as odor derived from toner etc. The resulting damage may be large.

Note that such a problem also occurs in an image forming system including an image forming apparatus equipped with an odor sensor and a server apparatus that monitors the detection result of the odor sensor and controls the operation of the image forming apparatus. obtain.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and provides an image forming system that identifies the cause of odor generation from the difference in the composition of the odor and performs an appropriate operation according to the cause. The purpose is to

To achieve the above object, the image forming system according to the present invention identifies a odor component that constitutes the odor from a combination of a plurality of detection means having different odor detection characteristics and the detection results of the plurality of detection means. And a control unit that controls the image forming system to perform an action to be taken in accordance with the identified odorous component.

In this case, when the identification unit identifies that the odorous component derived from the toner or the developer is included, the control unit may drive and control the ventilation unit that ventilates the atmosphere of the image forming system. Good.

Further, the odor component derived from the toner or the developer may include styrene and xylene.

Further, the ventilation unit may be an air conditioning facility that adjusts the atmosphere, and the control unit may perform the ventilation by starting the air conditioning facility or switching an operation mode.

Further, the control means determines that the odor component derived from the toner or the developer is included when the identification means identifies that the odor component derived from the toner or the developer is included, and the concentration of the odor component is higher than a predetermined concentration. The image forming operation may be controlled so as to suppress the generation of the odorous component.

Further, the control means executes at least one of lowering the fixing temperature, lowering the paper transport speed, and increasing the paper transport interval so that the generation of odorous components derived from the toner or the developer is suppressed. May be controlled as follows.

Further, the control unit may perform control so as to stop the image forming operation when the identification unit identifies that the odorous component that is a precursor of the device failure is included.

Further, the odorous component that is a precursor of the device failure may include at least one of a substance contained in a resin forming the device, an odorous component generated when a paper or a substrate material is burnt, and carbon monoxide.

Further, the substance contained in the resin that constitutes the device may include phenol.

Further, the odor component generated when the paper or the substrate material is burnt may include aldehydes and carbon monoxide.

Further, the plurality of detection means may include at least one of a semiconductor gas sensor and a bio gas sensor.

Further, it may be provided with notifying means for notifying the user or the service person of the device, according to the composition of the odorous component identified by the identifying means.

In addition, an operation panel that presents information to the user and receives an instruction input from the user may be provided, and the notification unit may perform the notification using the operation panel.

Further, the notification means may transmit the notification to a terminal device used by the user.

The notification means may send the notification to at least one of the service server and the terminal device used by the service person.

Further, the image forming apparatus may include the detection unit, the identification unit, and the control unit.

An image forming apparatus including the detecting unit and the control unit, a detection result receiving unit that receives a detection result of the detecting unit from the image forming apparatus, the identifying unit, and an identification result of the identifying unit are formed into the image forming unit. The identification device may include an identification result notifying unit that notifies the device.

In this way, it is possible to use a plurality of detection means having different odor detection characteristics from each other, and the image forming apparatus can continue to use the odor components identified based on the detection result. Or, it is determined whether the operation of the image forming apparatus should be stopped, and the operation mode of the image forming apparatus is changed to operate, or a device linked to the image forming apparatus is operated to generate an offensive odor. Sometimes it is possible to take appropriate measures.

It is a figure which shows the structure of the image forming system which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a main configuration of image forming apparatus 1. 3 is a block diagram showing a main configuration of a control unit 200. FIG. (A) to (d) are graphs illustrating the detection characteristics of the odor sensors 201, 202, 203, and 204, respectively. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the control unit 200. It is a table which illustrates the component determination table 304a. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an operation mode in which the distance between sheets is expanded to suppress odor generation compared to the normal mode. It is a flow chart explaining operation of control part 200 concerning a 2nd embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure explaining the structure of the learning model 9. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of a control unit 200 of the image forming apparatus 100 according to the third exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of a base server 160. FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the base server 160. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of a control unit 200 of the image forming apparatus 100 according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the base server 160. It is a figure explaining the structure for detecting the odor component containing the odor filters 1511, 1512, 1513, and 1514 which concern on the modification of this invention.

An embodiment of an image forming system according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
[1] First Embodiment (1-1) Configuration of Image Forming System First, the configuration of the image forming system according to the present embodiment will be described.

As shown in FIG. 1, the image forming system 1 is a system in which a LAN (Local Area Network) 130 at a user site and a base server 160 at a service base are connected via the Internet 150, and a wireless connection to the Internet 150 is provided. It is also possible to access the mobile terminal device 180 of the service person via the LAN base unit 170. The service base is a business office for performing maintenance management of the multi-function peripheral (MFP) 100 installed at the user site, and the service person is a worker who performs maintenance management of the multi-function peripheral 100.

At the user site, the multifunction peripheral 100, the user terminal device 110, and the air conditioner (AC) 120 are connected to each other via a LAN 130, which is connected to the Internet 150 via a firewall 140. ing. The multifunction device 100 has a plurality of functions such as a print function, a scan function, a copy function, a facsimile function, and a BOX function. The multifunction device 100 can further control the operation of the air conditioner 120 via the LAN 130.

The print function is a function for executing the image forming process using the instructed image data. The scan function is a function of reading a document and generating image data. The copy function is a function of executing an image forming process using the image data generated by using the scan function. The facsimile function is a function of transmitting image data generated by using the scan function to another facsimile device via a facsimile line, and then receiving image data from the other facsimile device via the facsimile line. .. The BOX function is a function of recording and holding instructed image data.

The user terminal device 110 is, for example, a personal computer (PC).

When a predetermined malfunction occurs in the multifunction peripheral 100, a notification to that effect is transmitted to at least one of the base server 160 and the mobile terminal device 180. The air conditioner 120 has a ventilation function and can reduce odor in the user site.
(1-2) Configuration of MFP 100 Next, the configuration of the MFP 100 will be described.

As shown in FIG. 2, the multifunction device 100 includes an image forming unit 210, a paper feeding unit 240, and an image reading unit 250, and the image reading unit 250 is an automatic document feeder (ADF) not shown. By feeding the originals one by one from a bundle of originals using the so-called sheet-through method, or by reading the original placed on a platen glass (not shown) by the scanner moving method, Generate image data.

The image forming unit 210 generates image data generated by the image reading unit 250, image data stored by using the BOX function, or image data designated by a print job received from the user terminal device 110 via the LAN 130. To execute the image forming process.

Therefore, the image forming unit 210 includes image forming units 211Y, 211M, 211C, and 211K that form toner images of yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K), respectively. .. Since the image forming units 211Y, 211M, 211C, and 211K have the same configuration, the image forming unit 211Y that forms a yellow toner image will be described as an example.

The image forming unit 211Y includes a photosensitive drum 212Y, a charging device 213Y, a developing device 215Y, a primary transfer roller 217Y, and a cleaning device 219Y, which are sequentially arranged in the circumferential direction along the outer peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 212Y. .. Further, the image forming unit 211Y shares the exposure device 214 with the other image forming units 211M, 211C and 211K.

When forming a toner image, the image forming unit 211Y first uniformly charges the outer peripheral surface of the photoconductor drum 212Y by using the charging device 213Y. The exposure device 214 exposes the outer peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 212Y line by line according to the image data to form an electrostatic latent image. The developing device 215Y supplies the Y-color toner supplied from the toner cartridge 216Y to the outer peripheral surface of the photoconductor drum 212Y to visualize the electrostatic latent image and form a toner image.

The control unit 200 can control the distance between sheets when the plurality of pages are continuously image-formed by controlling the timing at which the exposure device 214 forms the electrostatic latent image. When the paper-to-paper distance is small, the productivity of the multifunction peripheral 100 can be improved, but odors originating from the toner or the developer are likely to be generated. When the distance between sheets is large, the productivity is reduced, but the generation of odor can be suppressed.

A primary transfer bias voltage is applied between the primary transfer roller 217Y and the photosensitive drum 212Y, and the toner image carried by the photosensitive drum 212Y is sandwiched between the primary transfer roller 217Y and the photosensitive drum 212Y. In this state, electrostatic transfer is sequentially performed on the intermediate transfer belt 218 that rotates (primary transfer). The cleaning device 219Y scrapes off and discards the toner remaining on the outer peripheral surface of the photoconductor drum 212Y after the primary transfer. The image forming units 211M, 211C, and 211K also form toner images of MCK color in the same manner, and primarily transfer the toner images onto the intermediate transfer belt 218.

In the case of forming a multicolor toner image, the toner images formed in this manner are primarily transferred so that the toner images of the respective colors overlap each other on the intermediate transfer belt 218. Multicolor printing may use all four color toners, or may form only some of the toner images of some of the four colors. When a toner image of a single color is formed, only the toner image of that color is primarily transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 218.

The intermediate transfer belt 218 is a so-called endless belt, and is stretched around a drive roller 220, a driven roller 221, a primary transfer roller 217Y, and the like, and is driven in accordance with the rotation of the drive roller 220 to a predetermined direction in the arrow A direction. Rotate at system speed. The control unit 200 controls the system speed according to the odor generation situation. The secondary transfer roller 222 is pressed against the drive roller 220 with the intermediate transfer belt 218 sandwiched therebetween, and the secondary transfer nip 223 is formed by this pressure contact.

The paper feeding unit 240 includes one or a plurality of paper feeding cassettes 241, and each of the paper feeding cassettes 241 can store a recording sheet S having a different size or paper type. In parallel with the image forming units 211Y, 211M, 211C and 211K forming toner images, the paper feeding unit 240 feeds the recording sheets S one by one from the designated paper feeding cassette 241.

The recording sheet S sent out is conveyed along the conveying path 224, and the skew is corrected by abutting the leading end of the pair of registration rollers 225 which are not rotating to form a loop. Thereafter, the registration roller 223 starts rotating at the same timing as the intermediate transfer belt 218 conveys the toner image to the secondary transfer nip 223, and conveys the recording sheet S to the secondary transfer nip 223. As a result, the relative positional relationship between the recording sheet S and the toner image in the sub-scanning direction (the same direction as the sheet conveying direction) is adjusted.

A secondary transfer bias voltage is applied to the secondary transfer roller 222, and the toner image carried by the intermediate transfer belt 218 is electrostatically transferred onto the recording sheet S (secondary transfer). The recording sheet S to which the toner image is secondarily transferred is conveyed to the fixing device 226 along the sheet conveying path 224 by using a resin guide member (not shown).

The fixing device 226 has a fixing nip formed by pressing a cylindrical pressure roller 229 into a cylindrical fixing roller 227 containing a heat source 228. The pressure roller 229 is subordinate to the fixing roller 227 and conveys the toner image on the recording sheet S while thermally fixing the toner image. The fixing device 226 passes the recording sheet S through the fixing nip to press the high-temperature fixing roller 227 to melt the toner image. Further, since the pressure roller 229 is pressed against the fixing roller 227, the fused toner image is pressed onto the recording sheet S. As a result, the toner image is thermally fixed on the recording sheet S.

The recording sheet S on which the toner image is thermally fixed is discharged onto the paper discharge tray 231 by the paper discharge roller pair 230. In the present embodiment, the paper discharge tray 231 is provided in a so-called in-body space sandwiched between the image forming unit 210 and the image reading unit 250 in the vertical direction.

When the image forming process is continuously executed using a large number of recording sheets S, the image forming units 211Y, 211M, 211C and 211K and the exposure device 214 generate heat. If the image forming units 211Y, 211M, 211C and 211K and the exposure device 214 are heated by this heat generation, the accuracy of the image forming process may be reduced. Therefore, the fan 205 exhausts the atmosphere of the image forming units 211Y, 211M, 211C and 211K and the exposure device 214.

The air exhausted by the fan 205 is blown through the gap between the intermediate transfer belt and the toner cartridge 216Y or the like along the broken line arrow B, and heads toward the fixing device 226. At this time, the odor volatilized from the toner and the developer is also sent. That is, the intake side of the fan 205 is directed to the image forming units 211Y, 211M, 211C and 211K and the exposure device 214. An odor sensor 201 is provided on the exhaust side of the fan 205 and detects an odor component contained in the air. The odor sensor 201 may be arranged at the same position as the odor sensors 202, 203 and 204 described later.

The fixing device 266 rotates the fixing roller 227 and the pressure roller 229 to convey the recording sheet S, thereby generating an airflow from the receiving port for receiving the recording sheet S to the discharging port for discharging the recording sheet S. The odor sent out by the fan 205 is sent to the fan 206 by this air flow.

The air exhausted by the fan 206 passes through the filter 207 and is exhausted to the outside of the image forming apparatus 100. Odor sensors 202, 203, and 204 are provided on the air flow path from the filter 207 to the outside of the image forming apparatus 100, and detect the odor components contained in the air that has passed through the filter 207. As described later, the odor sensors 201, 202, 203 and 204 have different detection characteristics.

The control unit 200 controls the operation of each unit of the image forming apparatus 100 to execute various processes or refers to an operation panel (not shown) with reference to detection results of sensors such as the odor sensors 201, 202, 203, and 204. Use to accept user instructions and present information to users.

The control unit 200 can also notify the base server 160 or the mobile terminal device 180 of a service person via the LAN 130 and control the ventilation operation of the air conditioner 120.
(1-3) Configuration of Control Unit 200 Next, the configuration of the control unit 200 will be described.

As shown in FIG. 3, the control unit 200 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 301, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 302, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 303, and the like. The boot program is read and started, and the OS (Operating System) and the control program read from the HDD (Hard Disk Drive) 304 are executed using the RAM 303 as a working storage area. The HDD 304 also stores a component determination table 304a described later.

A NIC (Network Interface Card) 305 executes processing for communicating with the user terminal device 110, the air conditioner 120, the base server 160, and the mobile terminal device 180 via the LAN 130 and the Internet 150. The operation panel 306 includes a liquid crystal display (LCD) 306a, a touch pad 306b, and hard keys 306c. The liquid crystal display 306a is used to present information to the user, and the touch pad 306b and hard keys 306c are used. It is used to accept instruction input from the user.

The odor sensors 201, 202, 203 and 204 detect odor components and output a detection voltage according to the concentration of the odor components. The CPU 301 identifies the presence or absence of each odor component from the combination of the detected voltage values of the odor sensors 201, 202, 203 and 204.

The CPU 301 also monitors the states of the image forming unit 210, the paper feeding unit 240, and the image reading unit 250, and controls the operations.
(1-4) Odor sensors 201, 202, 203 and 204
In this embodiment, a semiconductor sensor and a biosensor are used together as an odor sensor. The semiconductor sensor is a sensor that detects an odor by utilizing the change in the resistance value of the semiconductor due to the adsorption of the odor molecule on the semiconductor surface and the surface reaction with the odor molecule. For example, a commercially available semiconductor VOC sensor can detect odors at a parts per billion (ppb) level, so it is considered practical to detect odorous components in the multifunction peripheral 100.

In addition, a bio-type sensor, for example, applies a sensitizing film to a piezoelectric thin film of lead zirconate titanate (PZT), and applies a voltage to the sensitizing film to cause resonance, and odor molecules are attached to the sensitizing film. Some odors are detected by detecting the change in the resonance frequency due to the change in the output voltage of the piezoelectric film. The sensitive film is formed by firing tin oxide powder, sintering it, and adding a catalyst, and a catalyst corresponding to the gas to be detected is used.

The bio-type sensor has a characteristic interaction with a probe molecule fixed on the gate insulating film of a field-effect transistor, and when an odor molecule to be measured is adsorbed or bound to the bio-sensor, it is caused by the charge of the odor molecule. Some odors are detected by utilizing the change in drain current-gate voltage characteristics.

The odor sensors 201, 202 and 203 are semiconductor type sensors, and the odor sensor 204 is a bio type sensor. As shown in FIG. 4, the odor sensors 201, 202, 203, and 204 have different odor detection characteristics. In each of the graphs of FIGS. 4A to 4D, the horizontal axis represents the concentration of each odor component in ppm: parts per million, and the vertical axis represents the detected voltage value of each odor component [ V].

As shown in FIG. 4A, the odor sensor 201 has a high sensitivity for xylene and styrene and a high detection voltage value when compared at the same concentration, whereas it has a high detection voltage value, whereas phenol and carbon monoxide (CO: Carbon monoxide). ) Is low in sensitivity. The sensitivity to aldehydes is somewhere in between.

Aldehydes are a general term for organic compounds having a structure in which one hydrogen atom is substituted on the carbonyl carbon in the molecule, and can be generated by the burning of paper. However, the odor sensor 201 is located immediately on the exhaust side of the fan 205. Aldehydes that are disposed at the positions and that can be generated by the burning of the recording sheet S in the fixing device 266 are exhausted to the outside of the image forming apparatus 100 by the fan 206. Therefore, it is unlikely that the aldehydes generated by the burning of the recording sheet S diffuse to the odor sensor 201 and the odor sensor 201 reacts with the aldehydes.

As shown in FIG. 4B, the odor sensor 202 has high sensitivity to carbon monoxide, but low sensitivity to xylene, styrene, aldehydes and phenol. When the recording sheet S is jammed (jammed) in the fixing device 266 and the recording sheet S wound around or pressed against the fixing roller 227 is incompletely burned by the high temperature fixing roller 227, carbon monoxide is generated. The odor sensor 202 is useful for detecting such charring of paper.

On the other hand, the odor sensor 202 has low sensitivity to phenol and the like generated by heating the fixing device 266, members around the fixing device 266, the resin material used for the housing of the image forming apparatus 100, and the like. Therefore, it is not suitable for detecting the occurrence of a malfunction of the fixing device 266 when the recording device S does not have a paper jam in the fixing device 266.

Further, since the sensitivity to styrene and xylene generated from the toner and the developer is low, it is unlikely that the malfunction of the fixing device 266 is erroneously detected by reacting with these odorous components.

Since the odor sensor 203 has a high sensitivity to phenol as shown in FIG. 4C, it is possible to detect phenol generated from the resin material with high sensitivity. However, the detection voltage rises in response to xylene or styrene generated from the toner or the developer. Therefore, the odor sensor 203 detects whether the fixing device 266 is malfunctioning or the fixing device 266 is not malfunctioning and only xylene and styrene are generated in the normal operation. It is difficult to make a distinction using only the voltage.

Moreover, since the sensitivity to aldehydes and carbon monoxide is low, it is difficult to detect the burning of the recording sheet S using the odor sensor 203.

As shown in FIG. 4D, the odor sensor 204 has a high sensitivity to aldehydes and a low sensitivity to xylene and styrene, and therefore can accurately detect the burning of the recording sheet S. However, since the sensitivity to phenol and carbon monoxide is low, it is difficult to detect the malfunction of the fixing device 266 when the paper jam does not occur.
(1-5) Identification of Odor Component and Control of Device Operation Next, a method of identifying an odor component and controlling the device operation will be described.

As shown in FIG. 5, the control unit 200 first initializes the value of the work variable n representing the number of times styrene or xylene was continuously detected to 0 (S501). Since the concentration of styrene or xylene increases as the number of detections n increases, it is possible to determine whether the concentration of styrene or xylene is high or low by using the number of detections n.

Next, when it comes to the detection timing of the odor component (S502: YES), the detected voltage values of the odor sensors 201, 202, 203 and 204 are referred to (S503). The timing of detecting the odorous component is, for example, when the multifunction peripheral 100 is powered on, when the image forming process is being performed, at a predetermined number of sheets, when a jam or trouble is detected, and at a predetermined time after the detection.

The control unit 200 compares the acquired detection voltage value with a predetermined threshold value, and determines “high” and “low” for the odor sensors 201, 202, and 204, and “high” and “medium” for the odor sensor 203. Then, it is classified as to which one of "Low" and "Low" (S504). The predetermined threshold value may be different for each odor sensor, and it is desirable to determine it according to the concentration of the odor component that can be generated.

In particular, regarding phenol, aldehydes and carbon monoxide, it is possible to detect the malfunction of the fixing device 266, and regarding styrene and xylene, the threshold value of the detection voltage value should be determined so that the user's complaint about odor does not occur. It is even more preferable. Further, if the easiness of the generation of the odorous component varies with the aging of the multifunction peripheral 100, the predetermined threshold may be updated according to the cumulative number of printed sheets or the like.

Next, the odor component corresponding to the combination of the classification results of the detection voltages of the odor sensors 201, 202, 203 and 204 is identified with reference to the component determination table 304a (S505). When there is no odor component corresponding to the combination of the detection voltage classification results in the component determination table 304a, it is determined that no odor component has been detected.

FIG. 6 is a table exemplifying the component determination table 304a. As illustrated in FIG. 6, when the detection result of the odor sensor 201 is classified as “high” and the detection results of the odor sensors 202, 203, and 204 are classified as “low”, it is determined that styrene has been detected. judge. On the other hand, when only the detection result of the odor sensor 203 is classified as “high” and the detection results of the odor sensors 201, 202 and 204 are classified as “low”, it is determined that phenol is detected.

Although FIG. 6 illustrates the case where only one odor substance corresponds to the combination of the detection voltage classification results, a plurality of odor substances may correspond to the combination of the detection voltage classification results. .. For example, normal operation may generate both styrene and xylene. In this case, two odorous substances, styrene and xylene, correspond to the combination of the detection voltage classification results.

When phenol, aldehydes, or carbon monoxide is detected (S506: YES), the fixing device 266 is overheated for some reason and the resin member around the fixing device 226 is softened or deformed, or the inside of the fixing device 226 is deformed. It is determined that the recording sheet is burnt. Therefore, by stopping the operation of the multifunction peripheral 100, the heating of the fixing device 226 is stopped, and the error message is displayed to the user by displaying an error message on the operation panel 306. Alternatively, the service person is notified that carbon monoxide has been detected (S507). An error message may be sent to the user terminal device 110 in addition to the operation panel 306.

For example, when phenol is detected, the service person will prepare a member such as a cover that seems to have released phenol as a replacement part. Further, the service person identifies the cause of the error message displayed on the operation panel 306 and the coping method, and explains it to the administrator or the user of the multifunction peripheral 100. When aldehydes or carbon monoxide is detected, an error message indicating that the recording sheet remaining in the fixing device 266 is scorched may be displayed.

When notifying the service person, the mobile terminal device 180 of the service person may be notified, or the base server 160 of the service base may be notified. Further, both of them may be notified. The cause may be inquired about the odorous component detected by the notification and the countermeasure, and the service person who has received the notification confirms the cause and the countermeasure and contacts the user such as the administrator of the multifunction peripheral 100. You can go to the user site immediately.

When styrene or xylene is detected (S508: YES), the air conditioner 120 starts the ventilation operation to reduce the concentrations of styrene and xylene in the atmosphere of the multifunction peripheral 100, and a warning message is displayed on the operation panel 306. Is displayed (S509). Also in this case, a warning message may be sent to the user terminal device 110 in addition to the operation panel 306. By doing so, for example, it is possible to eliminate the discomfort caused by the offensive odor of styrene or xylene in the office.

Furthermore, the number of detections n is increased by 1 (S510). When neither styrene nor xylene is detected (S508: NO), the detection number n is initialized to 0 (S513). When the number of times of detection n is larger than the predetermined number of times N (S511: YES), it is determined that the concentration of styrene or xylene is high, and the operation mode of the multifunction peripheral 100 is changed to the operation mode of suppressing odor. The service person is notified that the concentration of styrene or xylene is high (S512).

The operation mode for suppressing the odor refers to, for example, an operation mode in which the fixing temperature is lowered within the target temperature range, an operation mode in which the system speed is slowed, and an operation mode in which printing is performed by expanding the paper distance. When the fixing temperature is lowered within the range of the target temperature, the temperature applied to the toner image carried by the recording sheet in the fixing device 226 is lowered, so that the odor that may be generated at the time of fixing and derived from the toner or the developer is reduced. You can In addition, when the fixing temperature is lowered, if the system speed is also lowered, the amount of heat applied to the toner at the time of fixing can be secured.

Also, if the system speed is decreased, the number of printed sheets per unit time can be made lower than the number of printed sheets in the normal mode, so the consumption amount of toner or developer per unit time can be reduced in the normal mode. Can be reduced than consumption. Therefore, the amount of styrene and xylene generated per unit time can be made smaller than that in the normal mode, so that the odor derived from the toner or the developer can be suppressed.

Furthermore, even if the system speed is not reduced, as shown in FIG. 7, if the distance between sheets in continuous paper feeding is larger than the distance between sheets in the normal mode, the number of sheets printed per unit time is changed to the normal mode. Since it can be further reduced, it is possible to suppress the odor derived from the toner and the like.

Since the ventilation operation of the air conditioner 120 is started in step S509 together with the change of the operation mode, the concentration of styrene or xylene in the atmosphere of the multifunction peripheral 100 can be reduced. In consideration of the productivity of the multifunction peripheral 100, it is desirable that the paper distance in the high density mode is not too large. However, since the ventilation capacity of the air conditioner 120 may differ depending on the installation environment of the multifunction peripheral 100, it is desirable to set the paper distance in the high density mode according to the installation environment. Further, the higher the concentration of styrene or xylene, the larger the distance between sheets in the high concentration mode may be.

When the number of times of detection n is less than or equal to the predetermined number of times N (S511: NO) and after the process of step S512 is completed, the process proceeds to step S502 and the above process is repeated.

With this configuration, since the odorous components are specified by using the plurality of odorous sensors having different detection characteristics from each other, it is possible to determine whether the multifunction peripheral 100 can be continuously used or the use must be stopped. Even when it is determined that the multifunction machine 100 cannot be used as it is, the operation mode of the multifunction machine 100 is changed or the air conditioner 120 is operated, and an appropriate response is taken when an offensive odor occurs. Can be taken.
[2] Second Embodiment Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. The image forming system 1 according to the present embodiment has substantially the same configuration as the image forming system 1 according to the first embodiment described above, but is different in the method of identifying an odor component. The following mainly describes the difference. In the present specification, members and the like that are common to the embodiments are given common reference numerals.

The operation of the control unit 200 according to this embodiment will be described.

As shown in FIG. 8, when the odor detection timing comes (S801: YES), the control unit 200 controls the odor sensors 201, 202, 203, and 204 to be the same as in the first embodiment. By referring to the detected voltage value (S802), the odorous component is identified (S803).

When identifying the odor component, the control unit 200 uses the learning model 9 as shown in FIG. The learning model 9 has a three-layer structure including an input layer 901, an intermediate layer 902, and an output layer 903. The input layer 901 is provided with four nodes corresponding to the odor sensors 201, 202, 203, and 204, respectively. There is. The output layer 903 corresponds to odorous components of "high concentration styrene", "low concentration styrene", "high concentration xylene", "low concentration xylene", "phenol", "aldehydes" and "carbon monoxide". 7 nodes are provided. The intermediate layer 902 is composed of the number of nodes required to identify each odor component from each detection voltage value of the odor sensors 201, 202, 203 and 204.

The output value vector X ₁ of the input layer 901 is a four-dimensional vector having the detected voltage values of the odor sensors 201, 202, 203 and 204 as components. The output value vector X ₂ of the intermediate layer 902 is calculated by using the output value vector X ₁ of the input layer 901 as in the following expression (1).

X ₂ =f(A ₁ X ₁ +B ₁ )... (1)
Here, A ₁ is a weight parameter matrix, B ₁ is a bias parameter vector, and f(·) is an activation function. A known activation function may be used as the activation function f(·), and the weighting parameter matrix A ₁ and the bias parameter vector B ₁ are calculated using a known learning algorithm.

Similarly to the output value vector X ₂ of the intermediate layer 902, the output value vector X ₃ of the output layer 903 is also calculated using the following equation (2).

_{X 3 = f (A 2 X} 2 + B 2) ... (2)
Similar to the intermediate layer 902, the weighting parameter matrix A ₂ and the bias parameter vector B ₂ may also be calculated using a known learning algorithm.

In step S803, using the output value vector X ₁ of the input layer 901 having the detected voltage values of the odor sensors 201, 202, 203, and 204 acquired in step S802 as components, the output values of the intermediate layer 902 and the output layer 903 are used. The vectors X ₂ and X ₃ are sequentially calculated. The odor component is identified using the output value vector X ₃ of the output layer 903 calculated in this way.

Further, using the output value vector X ₁ of the input layer 901 having the detected voltage values of the odor sensors 201, 202, 203 and 204 obtained in step S802 as a component, machine learning is performed by a known learning algorithm, and a weight parameter matrix A ₂ , A ₃ and bias parameter vectors B ₂ , B ₃ are updated (S804). By this machine learning, the accuracy of identifying the odorous component can be improved by using the learning model 9.

When phenol, aldehydes, or carbon monoxide is detected from the identification result in step S803 (S805: YES), the device operation of the multifunction peripheral 100 is performed as in step S507 of FIG. 5 in the first embodiment. Is stopped, an error message is displayed on the operation panel 306, and a serviceman is notified (S806).

When high-concentration styrene, low-concentration styrene, high-concentration xylene, or low-concentration xylene is detected (S807: YES), the air conditioner 120 is turned on as in step S509 of FIG. 5 in the first embodiment. While starting, a warning message is displayed on the operation panel 306 (S808).

Further, when high-concentration styrene or high-concentration xylene is detected (S809: YES), the operation mode of the multifunction peripheral 100 is set to the odor suppressing operation, as in step S512 of FIG. 5 in the first embodiment. The mode is changed to notify the service person (S810).

As described above, even when the learning model 9 is used, the same effect as that of the first embodiment can be obtained. Further, since the machine learning is performed every time the odor is detected, it is possible to keep the detection accuracy of the odor component high in accordance with the change with time of the multifunction peripheral 100.
[3] Third Embodiment Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described. The image forming system 1 according to the present embodiment has substantially the same configuration as the image forming system 1 according to the second embodiment described above, but is different in that the odor component is identified by the base server 160. The following mainly describes the difference.
(3-1) Operation of Control Unit 200 of Multifunction Device 100 The operation of the control unit 200 according to this embodiment will be described.

As shown in FIG. 10, when the odor detection timing comes (S1001: YES), the control unit 200 refers to the detection voltage values of the odor sensors 201, 202, 203, and 204 (S1002), and detects the detection voltage value. Is transmitted to the base server 160 (S1003). After that, when the identification result of the odorous component is received from the base server 160 (S1004: YES), in steps S1005 to S1010, the same processing as steps S805 to S810 of FIG. 8 in the second embodiment is executed. ..
(3-2) Configuration and Operation of Base Server 160 Next, the configuration and operation of the base server 160 will be described.

As shown in FIG. 11, the base server 160 includes a CPU 1101, a ROM 1102, a RAM 1103, etc., and the CPU 1101 executes the program read from the HDD 1104 using the RAM 1103 as a working storage area. The ROM 1102 stores a boot program for starting the CPU 1101. The NIC 1105 executes processing for the CPU 1101 to communicate with the multifunction peripheral 100 or the mobile terminal device 180 of a service person via the Internet 150 or the like.

As illustrated in FIG. 12, when the base server 160 receives the detection voltage values of the odor sensors 201, 202, 203, and 204 from the multifunction peripheral 100 (S1201: YES), the steps of FIG. 8 in the second embodiment described above. Similar to S803, the learning model 9 is used to identify the odor component (S1202), and the identification result is transmitted to the multifunction peripheral 100 (S1203). After that, machine learning is executed by using the detected voltage value, and the weighting parameter matrices A ₂ and A ₃ and the bias parameter vectors B ₂ and B ₃ which are learning parameters are updated.

By doing so, the number of times machine learning is performed is increased by the number of multifunction machines 100 as compared with the case where machine learning is performed for each multifunction machine 100, so that the accuracy of identifying odorous components can be promptly improved. it can.

In addition, when the concentration of the odorous component that can be generated differs depending on the model of the multifunction device 100, or when the same model is equipped with odor sensors having different detection characteristics, the base server 160 determines that It is desirable to use and update the learning parameter for each combination of the model and the detection characteristic of the odor sensor. By doing so, the odor component can be identified more accurately.
[4] Fourth Embodiment Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described. The image forming system 1 according to the present embodiment has substantially the same configuration as the image forming system 1 according to the above-described third embodiment, while the base server 160 sends the service person to the service person according to the identification result of the odor component. The difference is that notification is given. The following mainly describes the difference.
(4-1) Operation of Control Unit 200 of MFP 100 The operation of the control unit 200 according to the present embodiment will be described.

As shown in FIG. 13, the operation of the control unit 200 according to the present embodiment is substantially the same as the operation of the control unit 200 according to the third embodiment shown in FIG. 10, while the operation of the third embodiment is performed. In this embodiment, the service person is notified in steps S1006 and S1010 of FIG. 10, but in the present embodiment, the service person is not notified in steps 1306 and S1310 of FIG.
(4-2) Operation of Base Server 160 Next, the configuration and operation of the base server 160 will be described.

As shown in FIG. 14, the base server 160 according to the present embodiment executes the processing from step S1405 to S1408 in addition to the operation of the control unit 200 according to the third embodiment shown in FIG. To do.

That is, when phenol, aldehydes or carbon monoxide is detected (S1405: YES), the service person in charge of the multifunction machine 100 is notified that the odorous component has been detected by the multifunction machine 100 ( S1406). If the concentration of styrene or xylene is high (S1407: YES), the service person in charge of the multifunction device 100 is notified that the odorous component has been detected by the multifunction device 100 (S1408).

When the base server 160 identifies the odor component, the base server 160 can confirm the fact without the need to notify the base server 160 from the multifunction peripheral 100 that the base device 160 has detected the odor component. Therefore, it is possible to execute the same processing as that of the first embodiment without notifying the multi-function peripheral 100 to the base server 160.

Further, since the multifunction device 100 does not know the working status of the service person who is in charge of maintenance and management of the multifunction device 100, even if the service person is notified that the odorous component has been detected, the service person does not always promptly promptly notify the service person. It may not be possible to deal with it. On the other hand, since the base server knows the operating status of the service person, it is possible to select an appropriate service person, issue the notification, and promptly respond to the service person. In particular, when the fixing device 266 is overheated, the damage due to the overheating may be expanded unless the service person responds immediately, which is effective.
[5] Modifications The present invention has been described above based on the embodiments, but it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and the following modifications can be implemented. ..
(5-1) In the above embodiment, the case where the multifunction peripheral 100 is installed at the user site has been described as an example, but it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to this, and instead of this, a printer device is used. Even when single-function machines such as scanners, copying machines, and facsimile machines are installed at user sites, multiple odor sensors with different detection characteristics are installed in these single-function machines to identify odor components. If so, the same effect as that of the above-described embodiment can be obtained.
(5-2) In the above embodiment, the case where the odor component is identified using the three-layer learning model 9 has been described as an example, but it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to this. A learning model having more than one layer may be used, or another learning model or identification method may be used, and in these cases, the same effect as that of the above-described embodiment can be obtained.
(5-3) In the above embodiment, the case where three semiconductor type sensors and one bio type sensor are used has been described as an example, but it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to this and the number of units different from this May be a combination of. Also, an odor sensor other than the semiconductor type sensor and the bio type sensor may be used. Further, needless to say, the number of odor sensors is not limited to four, and the effect of the present invention can be obtained if the number is two or more.
(5-4) In the second embodiment described above, the case where the multifunction peripheral 100 executes machine learning has been described as an example, but it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to this, and the complex such as the base server 160. The multifunction device 100 notifies the devices other than the machine 100 of the detected voltage values of the odor sensors 201, 202, 203, and 204, and the notified devices are the weight parameter matrices A ₂ , A ₃ and the bias parameter vector B ₂ , The learning parameter such as B ₃ may be updated and delivered to the multifunction peripheral 100. Even in this case, the accuracy of identifying the odor component using the learning model 9 can be improved.
(5-5) In the above embodiment, the case of detecting styrene, xylene, phenol, aldehydes and carbon monoxide has been described as an example, but it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited thereto. Other odor components may be detected in place of some or all of the components or in addition to these odor components. When there are many types of odor components to be detected, it is necessary to increase the number of odor sensors in order to identify the odor components.
(5-6) In the above embodiment, the case where the odor derived from the toner or the developer and the odor derived from the overheating of the fixing device 266 are detected has been described as an example, but the present invention is not limited to this. Needless to say, odors generated by other causes may be identified. Even if there are few types of odor components that can be generated, if there are many causes of odor that should be distinguished and distinguished, it is desirable to increase the number of odor sensors according to the types of generation sources.
(5-7) In the above embodiment, the case where odor sensors having different detection characteristics of odor components are used has been described as an example, but it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to this, and instead of the following, You may do it. For example, odor components contained in a plurality of odors that have passed through odor filters having different odor component absorption characteristics may be detected separately using an odor sensor.

In FIG. 15, a pre-stage duct 1502 is provided on the exhaust side of a fan 1501 for exhausting the odor from the odor generation source to the outside of the multifunction machine 100, and the post-stage ducts 1521, 1522, 1523 and 1524 are connected. The rear ducts 1521, 1522, 1523, and 1524 have odor filters 1511, 1512, 1513, and 1514 attached to their intake ports, respectively.

The odor filters 1511, 1512, 1513 and 1514 remove or reduce different odor components from the odors flowing into the rear ducts 1521, 1522, 1523 and 1524. Odor sensors 1531, 1532, 1533 and 1534 are arranged in the rear ducts 1521, 1522, 1523 and 1524, respectively, and the rear ducts 1521, 1522, 1523 are passed through the odor filters 1511, 1512, 1513 and 1514, respectively. And the odor component contained in the odor flowing into 1524 is detected.

The detection characteristics of the odor sensors 1531, 1532, 1533 and 1534 may be the same or different depending on the combination of the odor component to be detected and the filter characteristics of the odor filter.

In the above embodiment, if styrene or xylene, which is an odor component derived from toner or developer, is removed by the odor filter 207 provided on the exhaust side of the fan 206, odor derived from toner or developer is generated. However, it is possible to prevent erroneous recognition that an odor is generated due to overheating of the fixing device 266. Therefore, regarding the odor sensors 202, 203, and 204, regardless of the sensitivity to styrene or xylene, phenol is generated due to melting of the resin member, or aldehydes and carbon monoxide are caused due to charring of the paper. It is only necessary to use an odor sensor that can identify whether the odor is occurring.

Even in this case, it is possible to obtain the same effect as in the case of using the odor sensors having different odor component detection characteristics.
(5-8) The image forming system according to the present invention may be the image forming apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment, or according to the second to fourth embodiments and modified examples. It may be the image forming system 1. The effect of the present invention is the same whether the device for identifying the odor component is the image forming device 100 or a device other than the image forming device 100 such as the base server 160.
(5-9) In the above embodiment, the case where the charring of the paper in the fixing device is detected by detecting the aldehydes or carbon monoxide has been described as an example, but the present invention is not limited to this. Needless to say, charring of the substrate material may be detected by detecting aldehydes or carbon monoxide. When the substrate is arranged in the vicinity of the fixing device 266 inside the multifunction peripheral 100, the substrate may be burnt due to overheating of the fixing device 266. In such a case, overheating of the fixing device 266 can be detected by detecting aldehydes or carbon monoxide even if paper jam does not occur inside the fixing device 266.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The image forming apparatus according to the present invention is useful as an apparatus that discriminates an operating state from a difference in odor composition and takes necessary measures.

1……………………………………………… Image forming system 1
9………………………………………………Learning model 100……………………………………Multifunction machine 110………………………………User terminal 120………………………………………… Air conditioner 160…………………………………… Base server 180…………………………………… Mobile terminal 200 ……………………………………… Control units 201, 202, 203, 204… Odor sensor 206………………………………… Filter 304a …………………………… ……… Component identification table

Claims (17)

A plurality of detection means having different odor detection characteristics,
From the combination of the detection results of the plurality of detection means, an identification means for identifying the odor component constituting the odor,
An image forming system, comprising: a control unit that controls the image forming system to perform an action to be taken according to the identified odor component. The control means drive-controls a ventilation means for ventilating the atmosphere of the image forming system when the identification means determines that the odorous component derived from the toner or the developer is included. The image forming system according to Item 1. The image forming system according to claim 2, wherein the odorous components derived from the toner or the developer include styrene and xylene. The ventilation means is an air conditioning facility for adjusting the atmosphere,
The image forming system according to claim 2, wherein the control unit causes the ventilation by starting the air conditioning facility or switching an operation mode. The control means, when the identification means identifies that the odorous component derived from the toner or the developer is contained, and the concentration of the odorous component is higher than a predetermined concentration, the odor derived from the toner or the developer. The image forming system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the image forming operation is controlled so that the generation of components is suppressed. The control means controls to execute at least one of a lowering of fixing temperature, a lowering of paper conveyance speed and an increase of paper conveyance interval so that generation of odorous components derived from toner or developer is suppressed. The image forming system according to claim 5, wherein: 7. The control unit controls to stop the image forming operation when the identifying unit identifies that an odor component that is a sign of a device failure is included. The image forming system according to 1. The odorous component that is a precursor of the device failure is characterized in that it contains at least one of a substance contained in a resin forming the device, an odorous component generated when a paper or a substrate material is burnt, and carbon monoxide. The image forming system according to claim 7. The image forming system according to claim 8, wherein the substance contained in the resin forming the apparatus includes phenol. The image forming system according to claim 8 or 9, wherein the odorous components generated when the paper or the substrate material is burnt include aldehydes and carbon monoxide. The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of detection units include at least one of a semiconductor gas sensor and a bio gas sensor. The image forming system according to any one of claims 1 to 11, further comprising a notification unit that notifies a user or a serviceman of the apparatus of the composition according to the composition of the odorous component identified by the identification unit. An operation panel that presents information to the user and receives instruction input from the user,
13. The image forming system according to claim 12, wherein the notification unit makes the notification on the operation panel. The image forming system according to claim 12, wherein the notification unit transmits the notification to a terminal device used by the user. 15. The image forming system according to claim 12, wherein the notifying unit sends the notification to at least one of a service server and a terminal device used by the service person. The image forming system according to claim 1, comprising an image forming apparatus including the detecting unit, the identifying unit, and the control unit. An image forming apparatus including the detection unit and the control unit,
A detection result receiving unit that receives the detection result of the detecting unit from the image forming apparatus;
The identification means;
The image forming system according to claim 1, further comprising: an identification device including an identification result notifying unit that notifies the image forming apparatus of an identification result obtained by the identifying unit.

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