JP3299527B2 - Inappropriate cartridge detection method and apparatus, system, and storage medium - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an improper cartridge in which a replaceable cartridge set in an image forming apparatus such as a printer, a facsimile, a copying machine, etc. TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a method, an apparatus, a system, and a storage medium for detecting whether or not an image is stored.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, in an electrophotographic printer, a toner cartridge filled with toner is used as a developing medium. This toner cartridge is filled with a certain amount of toner at the time of manufacture, and is set exchangeably with the printer. This toner cartridge does not require replenishment of toner from the refill bottle into the toner storage chamber in the printer, so there is no need to worry about soiling hands and clothes with toner, and since it is only necessary to replace the toner cartridge, There are advantages such as easy operation.

[0003] By further developing the toner cartridge,
A process cartridge equipped with a photosensitive drum, a charging roller, a developing roller, a cleaning unit, and the like is also known.
This process cartridge is also widely used in personal printers and the like because the photosensitive drum and the like are also replaced at the same time as the toner is replaced, so that maintenance is simple and a maintenance contract is not particularly required. .

[0004] Used cartridges are collected by a printer manufacturer via a cartridge dealer. From the viewpoint of environmental pollution prevention and effective use of resources, printer manufacturers disassemble used cartridges, inspect each part and reuse normal ones, and dissolve and pelletize plastic parts as plastic materials. Reusing. The recycling of this cartridge has also reduced the selling price of the cartridge.

[0005] Not all used cartridges are returned to the printer manufacturer, but some of them are sent to a toner refiller. The toner refilling company contracts refilling for a predetermined fee, disassembles the cartridge, and supplies an appropriate toner. There are also toner refillers that purchase used cartridges, disassemble the cartridges, supply toner, and then sell the cartridges to general users as remanufactured cartridges at considerably lower prices than new cartridges.

[0006] The toner (genuine product) to be filled at the time of manufacturing the cartridge determines the toner component in consideration of the process characteristics of the printer (photosensitive drum characteristics, charging voltage, cleaning characteristics, fixing characteristics). However, the toner used by the toner refiller has a different composition component from the genuine toner, so that the printing quality may be deteriorated. Also, if the refilled cartridge is used beyond the warranty period, the performance of the photosensitive drum, the charging roller, and the like will be degraded, resulting in poor print quality and failure.

[0007] When the print quality is degraded or a failure occurs, the user often misunderstands that the cause is in the printer even though the replenished toner has a cause. As a result, the reliability of the printer that has been steadily accumulated is lost at once. Further, some users may not trust the manufacturer of the printer, and may feel disgust about all products handled by the manufacturer.

In order to maintain the reliability of the printer manufacturer, refilling of consumables such as toner and ink by a refiller is prevented in advance, or an improper cartridge refilled with consumables cannot be reused. It is necessary to consider measures such as.

As a measure for preventing the occurrence of an inappropriate cartridge, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-28320 discloses a process cartridge provided with a counter for counting the number of prints and an electromagnetic brake for preventing the rotation of the developing roller. ing. In this process cartridge, the toner consumption is indirectly checked from the number of prints, and when the number of prints reaches a certain value, it is assumed that toner has run out, and the electromagnetic brake is activated. Since the rotation of the developing roller is prevented by this electromagnetic brake, once the toner runs out, regardless of whether or not toner is replenished,
The process cartridge cannot be used.
Therefore, it is determined that the process cartridge containing the toner but the electromagnetic brake is applied is an inappropriate cartridge.

[0010]

However, since the above-mentioned cartridge requires an electromagnetic brake and a counter, there is a problem that the process cartridge becomes complicated, large, and high in cost. Further, since the state where the electromagnetic brake is applied can be immediately recognized, the electromagnetic brake can be removed or the brake cannot be applied when the process cartridge is disassembled, so this is not an effective countermeasure.

Further, since there are a print with a large number of characters and a print with an extremely small number of characters, it is impossible to accurately measure the remaining amount of toner by estimating the remaining amount of toner from the number of prints. For this reason, even though the toner remains, the electromagnetic brake may operate to make the process cartridge unusable. This is a waste of resources.

According to the present invention, there is provided a method for detecting an unsuitable cartridge which reliably detects an unsuitable cartridge refilled with consumables such as toner and ink without increasing the size of the cartridge and with a simple and inexpensive configuration. It is an object to provide an apparatus, a system, and a storage medium.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a method, an apparatus, a system, and a storage medium for detecting an improper cartridge in which an improper cartridge refilled with consumables cannot be used.

[0014]

The cartridge is disassembled when refilling consumables. Therefore, by checking whether the cartridge has been disassembled, it is possible to indirectly detect refilling of the consumables. In other words, the improper cartridge detecting device according to the first aspect stores consumables used for image recording, and is provided at a joint between an upper portion and a lower portion of a cartridge set exchangeably in the image forming apparatus. And an electric component which is damaged when the upper part and the lower part are separated from each other, and a judging means for judging an inappropriate cartridge when the electric part is detected to be damaged. .

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the determination of an inappropriate cartridge is performed when the cartridge is set in the image forming apparatus.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for detecting an improper cartridge, wherein a display means for displaying a warning when it is determined that the cartridge is an improper cartridge is provided.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an improper cartridge detecting apparatus, wherein when the cartridge is determined to be an improper cartridge, an inhibiting means for inhibiting an image forming operation of the image forming apparatus in which the cartridge is set is provided. It is characterized by the following.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of detecting an improper cartridge, wherein a consumable used for image recording is stored, and an upper portion and a lower portion of the cartridge set exchangeably in the image forming apparatus are separated. Sometimes, when the electrical component attached to the joint is damaged and the cartridge is reused, the damage of the electrical component is detected to determine that the cartridge is inappropriate, and a warning is displayed or an image is displayed. It is characterized in that the forming operation is prohibited.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an improper cartridge detection system, comprising a disassemblable upper cartridge and a lower cartridge, one of which is formed to store a consumable used for image recording. A cartridge having an electric component that is damaged when the cartridge and the lower cartridge are separated, an image forming unit that forms an image on recording paper, and a check that the electric component of the replaceably set cartridge is damaged. And an image forming apparatus having a means for judging the cartridge to be an inappropriate cartridge when detected, and prohibiting a warning or an image forming operation.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the cartridge detection system, a photosensitive drum on which an electrostatic latent image is formed, a charging roller for charging the photosensitive drum, and the electrostatic latent image are developed with toner. And a developing roller for converting the toner image into a toner image.

The storage medium according to the present invention has a step of detecting whether or not an electric component provided at a joint between an upper portion and a lower portion of a cartridge is normal, and a step of detecting whether the electric component is abnormal. A program for executing the step of determining that the cartridge is inappropriate is stored.

[0022]

FIG. 1 shows an electrophotographic printer to which the present invention is applied. Printer 10
The cartridge 12 is set in the printer main body 11 in a replaceable manner. The cartridge 12 includes a toner chamber 13 filled with toner 14 and a photosensitive drum 1.
5, a charging roller 16 and a developing roller 17 are provided, in the form of a so-called process cartridge.

The photosensitive drum 15 is provided with a photoconductive film on the outer peripheral surface of a metal cylindrical body. Charging roller 1
Reference numeral 6 comprises a metal shaft, a conductive urethane foam cylinder fitted to the outer periphery thereof, and a semiconductive plastic tube fitted to the outside of the urethane foam. The charging roller 16 is in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 15 by the elasticity of the urethane foam. Also,
In order to apply a constant voltage between the photosensitive drum 15 and the charging roller 16, the cylindrical body of the photosensitive drum 15 and the shaft of the charging roller 16 are connected to a power supply circuit in the printer main body 11. For this connection, the cartridge 12 and the printer body 11 are provided with electrical contacts (not shown).

On the paper feed tray 20, a plurality of recording papers 2
1 is set. The recording paper 21 at the top of the paper feed tray 20 is pulled out by a paper feed roller 22 and fed to a pair of transport rollers 23. The transport roller pair 23 is
The recording paper 21 is nipped and conveyed to a transfer position. At this transfer position, a transfer roller 24 is arranged, and when the cartridge 12 is set, the transfer roller 24 and the photosensitive drum 15 come into contact with each other.

During printing, the photosensitive drum 15 rotates clockwise at a constant speed. The outer peripheral surface of the photosensitive drum 15 is uniformly charged when the photosensitive drum 15 passes while contacting the charging roller 16. The semiconductor laser 26 is driven according to the image data, and generates intensity-modulated laser light. This laser light enters the rotating photosensitive drum 24 via the polygon mirror 27. Polygon mirror 27
Indicates that the laser beam is applied in the axial direction of the photosensitive drum 24 (main scanning direction)
Raster scan by shaking the camera. Photosensitive drum 1
In No. 5, an electrostatic latent image is formed on the outer periphery since the portion irradiated with the laser beam is neutralized.

The toner 14 in the toner chamber 13 adheres to the outer periphery of the rotating developing roller 17 and is conveyed. Toner 1
4 passes through the regulating blade 28 (see FIG. 4) while being transported while being attached to the developing roller 17. During this passage,
The toner 14 is charged to a polarity opposite to that of the photosensitive drum 15 by friction with the regulating blade 28. When the toner 14 is carried to the photosensitive drum 15, the photosensitive drum 15 is
Therefore, the electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive drum 15 is visualized as a toner image.

The rotation of the photosensitive drum 15 causes the toner image to move to the transfer position. At this transfer position, the recording paper 2
1 is moved between the transfer roller 24 and the photosensitive drum 15 at the same speed as the peripheral speed of the photosensitive drum 15. Since the transfer roller 24 is biased at a potential opposite to that of the toner image, the toner image on the photosensitive drum 15 is transferred to the recording paper 21.

The recording paper 21 onto which the toner image has been transferred is conveyed toward a fixing device 29. The fixing device 29 includes a pair of fixing rollers 30 and a heater (not shown), and heats and melts the toner. The melted toner is adsorbed on the recording paper 21. Recording paper 2 after fixing
1 is discharged from the printer main body 11.

2 to 4 show an example of the cartridge. FIG. 2 shows the upper cartridge, and FIG. 3 shows the lower cartridge. FIG. 4 shows an assembled state.
The main bodies 34 and 35 of the upper cartridge 32 and the lower cartridge 33 are black molded plastic products.

2 and 4, a toner chamber 13 is formed in the upper cartridge 32, and is filled with a predetermined amount of toner 14 at the time of manufacture. This toner chamber 13
An elongated toner supply port 13a is formed below the toner supply port, and is closed with a seal tape (not shown) before use. A filling port (not shown) for filling the toner 14 is provided on a side surface of the toner chamber 13, and is sealed with a cap 37 after the filling of the toner 14. Reference numeral 38 denotes a top plate of the toner chamber 13, which is adhered to the upper cartridge main body 34.

The charging roller 16 is rotatably attached to the upper cartridge body 34. An exposure opening 39 is formed at a position close to the charging roller 16, and the laser beam passes through the exposure opening 39 and is exposed to the photosensitive drum 1.
5 is incident.

In order to connect the upper cartridge 32 to the lower cartridge 33, two locking claws 40 are provided on the toner chamber 13 side and two locking claws 41 are formed on the charging roller 16 side in the upper cartridge body 34. Are formed. As shown in FIG. 4, reference numerals 42 to 44 denote sponge tapes for closing the gaps so that the toner 14 does not enter the exposure chamber 45.

3 and 4, a photosensitive drum 15 and a developing roller 17 are rotatably mounted on the lower cartridge body 35. The lower cartridge body 35 is provided with a driven gear 46 that meshes with a drive gear (not shown) provided in the printer body 11. A gear 47 mounted coaxially with the developing roller 17.
Are meshed with a driven gear 46, and a gear 48 mounted coaxially with the photosensitive drum 15 is meshed with a gear 47. Accordingly, the rotation of the driven gear 46 is transmitted to the developing roller 17 via the gear 47 and further transmitted to the photosensitive drum 15 via the gear 48. An opening 49 is formed in a portion located below the photosensitive drum 15. The transfer roller 24 enters through the opening 62 and comes into contact with the photosensitive drum 15.

At the tip of the support plate 50, a cleaning blade 51 is attached.
Scraping off excess toner adhering to the A squeeze sheet 53 is attached to the lower cartridge body 35 in order to collect the scraped toner in the waste toner chamber 52. The waste toner chamber 52 includes a support plate 5
0, a cleaning blade 51, and a squeeze sheet 53.

Since the upper end of the support plate 50 is in contact with the sponge tape 44, the waste toner chamber 52 and the exposure chamber 45 are partitioned, so that the used toner does not leak from the cartridge 12 through the exposure chamber 45. Like that. Further, the sponge tape 42 contacts the inside of the lower cartridge main body 35, and the sponge tape 43 contacts the upper end of the regulating blade 28. By partitioning the toner chamber 13 side and the exposure chamber 45 by these sponge tapes 42 and 43, unused toner 14 is
5 to prevent leakage from the cartridge 12.

The lower cartridge body 35 has an engagement hole 5
6 and a locking projection 57 are provided. When the upper cartridge 32 is fitted into the lower cartridge 33, the engagement holes 5
6, the engaging claw 40 of the upper cartridge body 34 is fitted,
The locking protrusions 57 of the upper cartridge body 34
Engage. These locking claws 40, 41, engaging holes 56,
The upper cartridge 32 and the lower cartridge 33 are integrally assembled by the locking projection 57.

In FIG. 4, an IC circuit 58 on which a CPU 70 and a memory 71 (see FIG. 5) are mounted is provided at a joint between the upper cartridge 32 and the lower cartridge 33, and is electrically connected to the printer main body 11. ing. IC
The terminal of the circuit 58 is joined to both the upper cartridge main body 34 and the lower cartridge main body 35, and is cut off when the upper cartridge 32 and the lower cartridge 33 are separated from each other to be in a non-conductive state.

In FIG. 5 showing the electrical configuration of the printer,
The printer body 11 includes a CPU 60 (hereinafter referred to as a printer C).
PU), a memory 61 (hereinafter, referred to as a printer memory), an image forming unit 62 including a laser 26, a polygon mirror 27, and the like, a fixing unit 29, a display 63, and the charging roller 16
A charging circuit 64 for applying a voltage to the motor and a driving motor 65 are provided. The motor 65 is driven by a driver 66 to rotate the developing roller 17 and the photosensitive drum 15. The printer body 11 and the cartridge 12 include:
Electrical contacts (not shown) for electrically connecting the electrical components are provided.

The cartridge 12 includes a photosensitive drum 15,
A rotation detector 67, an IC circuit 58, and the like are provided. The IC circuit 58 includes a CPU (hereinafter referred to as a cartridge CPU).
) 70 and a memory (hereinafter referred to as a cartridge memory) 71. The rotation detecting section 67 monitors the number of rotations of the photosensitive drum 15 and determines the life of the cartridge 12 based on the number of rotations. As the rotation detecting unit 67, for example, a photo interrupter including a light source and a light receiving unit that receives light from the light source is used.

At one end of the photosensitive drum 15, a projection 15a is provided. The light source and the light receiving unit are arranged at positions facing each other with the projection 15a interposed therebetween. When the photosensitive drum 15 rotates and the projection 15a passes through the rotation detecting unit 67, light traveling from the light source to the light receiving unit is blocked, and the photoelectric current emitted from the light receiving unit changes. The rotation detector detects that the photosensitive drum 15 has made one rotation by detecting a change in the photoelectric current. Note that a reflection type photo sensor may be used instead of the photo interrupter. Alternatively, a micro switch may be provided and turned on by the projection 15a to detect the passage of the projection 15a.

When the rotation detector 67 detects that the photosensitive drum 15 has made one rotation, it outputs a detection signal to the cartridge CPU 70. When receiving the detection signal, the cartridge CPU 70 adds “1” to the accumulated value of the previous rotation number stored in the cartridge memory 71 and writes the new accumulated value to the cartridge memory 71.

The printer memory 61 stores the cartridge 1
A predetermined value serving as a reference when determining the life of No. 2 is set in advance. As the predetermined value, the smallest life rotation among the life rotation number at which the photosensitive drum 15 reaches the end of life, the life rotation number at which the developing roller 17 reaches the end of life, and the life rotation number at which the charging roller 16 reaches the end of life is selected. . In this example,
Since the cumulative value of the number of rotations of the photosensitive drum 15 is counted,
When the life rotation speed other than the photosensitive drum 15 is used, the rotation speed equivalent to the rotation speed of the photosensitive drum 15 is used as the predetermined value. When detecting the rotation of the developing roller 17 instead of the photosensitive drum 15, the developing roller 17
The rotation speed equivalent to the rotation speed is used.

The printer CPU 60 performs a sequence control of each part of the printer 10 and a cartridge CPU 70.
Through the cartridge memory 71. When the accumulated value becomes equal to or more than a predetermined value, the printer CPU 60 determines that the cartridge 12 has reached the end of its life, and displays on the display 63 that the cartridge 12 has reached the end of its life, that it should be replaced with a new cartridge, and the like. . The display 63 is provided on an outer surface of the printer main body 11 together with an operation panel (not shown). In addition,
In addition to the liquid crystal display, the display may be a warning display by voice.

The operation of the above configuration will now be described with reference to FIG.
This will be described with reference to FIG. To load the cartridge 12 into a cartridge chamber (not shown) of the printer main body 11, first, the seal tape is peeled off from the new cartridge 12, and the toner supply port 13a is opened. When the toner discharge port 13a is opened, the toner 14 in the toner chamber 13 can be supplied to the developing roller 17. Next, the lid of the cartridge chamber is opened, and the cartridge 12 is loaded into the cartridge chamber. When the cartridge 12 is completely loaded in the cartridge chamber, the cartridge 12 and the printer main body 11 are electrically connected.

When the printer power is turned on, the cartridge 12 is checked. If the printer power is already turned on, the printer CPU 60 receives a signal from a switch (not shown) for detecting that the lid of the cartridge chamber is closed, determines that the cartridge 12 has been set, and Check 12 is performed.

The printer CPU 60 includes a cartridge CP
Through U70, the accumulated value written in the cartridge memory 71 is read. Here, in the cartridge 12 whose toner has been refilled by the toner refiller, the terminal of the IC circuit 58 is damaged at the time of refilling, and the printer CPU 60 cannot access the cartridge memory 71, so that the accumulated value cannot be read. . At this time, the printer CPU 60 determines that the cartridge has been disassembled and the toner has been refilled and is improper, issues a warning message indicating that the cartridge should be replaced, and receives a print request from a personal computer or the like. However, the printing operation of the image forming unit 62 is prohibited.

If the cartridge is not a regular cartridge provided by the printer maker, the IC circuit 58 may not be provided. In such a cartridge,
The printer CPU 60 cannot read the data of the accumulated value from the cartridge memory 71. Also in this case, the printer CPU 60 determines that the cartridge is inappropriate, displays a warning, and prohibits the printing operation.

On the other hand, if the data of the accumulated value can be read from the cartridge memory 71, the printer CPU 60 determines that the cartridge is an appropriate cartridge provided by the printer maker, and performs the printing operation of the image forming section 62. Tolerate. When there is a print request from a personal computer or the like, the printer CPU 60 controls the sequence of the image forming unit 62 and records images and characters on the recording paper 21.

During normal operation of the printer 10, the cartridge CPU 70 receives a detection signal from the rotation detecting unit 71 each time the photosensitive drum 15 makes one rotation, and updates the accumulated value of the cartridge memory 71. The printer CPU 60
Each time a certain number of sheets are printed, the cartridge memory 71 is printed.
Read the accumulated value written in. Printer CPU 60
Detects that the accumulated value has reached a predetermined value or more, determines that the cartridge 12 has reached the end of its life, and displays on the display 63 that the cartridge 12 has reached its end of life.

Since the consumption amount of the toner 14 changes according to the content of the print, the accumulated value may reach a predetermined value before the toner 14 is completely used, and the life may be determined. However, even in such a case, since a certain level of print quality is ensured, it is beneficial for the user to make it possible to use all of the remaining toner, and also to contribute to resource saving. Therefore, even if the life is displayed, printing can be performed as long as the cartridge 12 is not removed from the printer main body 11.

In the case of an improper cartridge obtained by disassembling the cartridge and refilling the toner, the printer 10 does not execute the printing operation even if a print request is issued from a personal computer or the like. As a result, toner refilling can be prevented. In addition, the printing quality is prevented from deteriorating due to the use of improper toner, and the printer is prevented from malfunctioning. Further, in the process cartridge, components such as the photosensitive drum 15 can be prevented from being used after the quality assurance period has elapsed, and the print quality can be prevented from deteriorating.

The used cartridge which has reached the end of its life is
The cartridges are collected and recycled by a printer manufacturer via a cartridge distributor. The printer manufacturer removes the locking claw 40 from the engagement hole 56, and
Is disengaged from the locking projection 57, and the cartridge 12 is disassembled into the upper cartridge 32 and the lower cartridge 33.
After that, the cartridge 12 is disassembled and cleaned, and then each component is inspected. Healthy parts are reused and plastic parts are melted back into pellets.

A part of the used cartridge is
The toner refiller, who is sent to the toner refiller, disassembles the cartridge 12 into an upper cartridge 32 and a lower cartridge 33. During this disassembly, the terminals of the IC circuit 58 are destroyed as described above.
After the cartridge 12 is disassembled, a sealing tape is attached to the toner outlet 13a and the cartridge is closed. Next, the cap 37 of the upper cartridge 32 is removed, and the toner 14 is refilled into the toner chamber 13. After the toner 14 is refilled, the cap 37 is fitted again, and the toner chamber 13 is sealed.
The upper cartridge 32 and the lower cartridge 33 are assembled, packaged, and returned to the user. Since the IC circuit 58 has been destroyed, the refilled toner cartridge is determined to be an improper cartridge and cannot be printed, as described above.

In the above embodiment, the case where the number of rotations of the photosensitive drum 15 is measured has been described.
2 may be provided with a toner remaining amount measuring device. When the toner remaining amount measuring device detects that the toner has run out, the running out of toner is displayed on the display 63 of the printer main body 11.
Also in this case, when the cartridge 12 is disassembled, the electrical components constituting the toner remaining amount measuring device are destroyed, so that the printer CPU 60 cannot obtain the toner remaining amount data. When this state occurs, the printer CPU 6
0 is determined to be an inappropriate cartridge.

Further, according to the present invention, the cartridge 12
A memory, and an ID representing identification information of the cartridge 12
The number may be stored. When the cartridge 12 is disassembled, the terminal of the IC memory is damaged.
The PU 60 cannot read the ID number from the IC memory, and can determine that the cartridge 12 is improper.

Further, data representing the type and density of the toner can be recorded in the IC memory. In this case, the printer CPU 60 sets the I
The toner data is read out from the C memory, the heater temperature of the fixing unit 29 is adjusted so that the toner is fixed at the optimum melting temperature, and the output of the laser 26 is adjusted so that the amount of toner adhering to the photosensitive drum 15 becomes constant. Can be adjusted. This IC memory is attached to the joint between the upper cartridge and the lower cartridge, and is broken by disassembly.

Also, instead of an IC circuit or IC memory,
Electronic components such as resistors and capacitors may be used. In this case, since the electronic component is destroyed, a circuit including the electronic component fails. Based on the presence or absence of the failure, it is possible to detect an inappropriate cartridge in which the cartridge is disassembled and toner is replenished.

FIG. 7 shows a storage medium (CD, floppy, I
An example is shown in which a procedure for detecting and prohibiting use of an inappropriate cartridge stored in a C memory, MO, or the like is executed, or a program for realizing functions and means is installed in a printer. The printer main body 80 is connected to a personal computer 81, and character data and image data of the personal computer 81 are sent to the printer main body 80 and printed on recording paper.

If the execution of the procedure for detecting and prohibiting the use of an improper cartridge as shown in FIG. 6 is not given to the printer main body 80, it is possible to detect the improper cartridge or to prohibit its use. Can not. It is necessary to install a program for detecting and using an inappropriate cartridge in such a printer main body 80.

A program for executing the flowchart shown in FIG. 6 is stored in the CD 82 as a storage medium. The CD 82 is set in a CD drive (not shown) of the personal computer 81. The personal computer 81 reads the program stored on the CD 82 and writes the program on the hard disk 83 of the printer main body 80.

The CPU 84 of the printer main body 80 executes the program written in the hard disk 83 to detect an improper cartridge as described above.
Then, a warning and a use prohibition are issued.

The input device 85 is for inputting image data and character data from a scanner, a digital camera or the like. The ROM 86 stores a program for controlling the printing operation of the printing unit 87, a program for image processing, and the like. The RAM 88 is used for temporarily storing data.

It is to be noted that the CD 82 may be directly set in the printer main body 80 and the necessary program may be written in the printer main body 80. Further, a cartridge may be checked by using a CD set in the printer main body 80 and executing a program read from the CD.

Although the above-described example is a process cartridge, the present invention can be applied to a toner cartridge containing only toner. The present invention is further applicable to an ink cartridge containing ink for an ink jet printer, a ribbon cartridge containing an ink ribbon for a dot printer, a ribbon cartridge containing an ink ribbon for a thermal printer, and the like. Further, the present invention is applied to an image forming apparatus such as a facsimile, a copying machine, etc., in addition to the printer.

[0065]

As described in detail above, the present invention provides
The electric parts that are damaged when the upper and lower parts of the cartridge are separated are attached to the cartridge, and when the cartridge is disassembled, the damage of the electric parts is detected. Therefore, the cartridge is disassembled and the toner is refilled. An improper cartridge can be reliably and easily detected.

Further, according to the present invention, when an improper cartridge is detected, a warning is displayed or printing is prohibited, so that the printing quality is deteriorated by using poor toner. In addition, it is possible to prevent the printer from breaking down by reusing the cartridge whose life has expired.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of an electrophotographic printer.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an upper cartridge.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a lower cartridge.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of a cartridge in which an upper cartridge and a lower cartridge are assembled.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating an electrical configuration of the electrophotographic printer.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example in which the number of rotations of the photosensitive drum is stored on the cartridge side.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating an example of installing a program for detecting and using an inappropriate cartridge from a storage medium into a printer.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Printer 11 Printer main body 12 Cartridge 13 Toner chamber 14 Toner 32 Upper cartridge 33 Lower cartridge 58 IC circuit 70 Cartridge CPU 71 Cartridge memory

────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-6-95501 (JP, A) JP-A-4-362961 (JP, A) JP-A-6-19302 (JP, A) JP-A-6-95302 149051 (JP, A) JP-A-10-142913 (JP, A) JP-A-4-16455 (JP, U) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G03G 21/18 G03G 21 / 00 510

Claims (8)

(57) [Claims] A consumable used for image recording is stored in a joint between an upper part and a lower part of a cartridge set exchangeably in an image forming apparatus, and the upper part and the lower part are provided. An improper cartridge detection device, comprising: an electric component that is broken when separated; and a determination unit that determines that the cartridge is an improper cartridge when the breakage of the electric component is detected. 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the determination of the inappropriate cartridge is performed when the cartridge is set in the image forming apparatus. 3. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a display unit for displaying a warning when the cartridge is determined to be inappropriate. 4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a prohibition unit configured to prohibit an image forming operation of the image forming apparatus in which the cartridge is set when the cartridge is determined to be inappropriate. Detecting device for improper cartridge according to the above. 5. An electric part attached to a joint when a consumable used for image recording is stored and an upper part and a lower part of a cartridge set exchangeably in the image forming apparatus are separated from each other. If the cartridge is damaged and the cartridge is reused, it is determined that the cartridge is inappropriate by detecting damage to the electrical components, and a warning is displayed,
Alternatively, a method for detecting an inappropriate cartridge, wherein an image forming operation is prohibited. 6. A consumables storage chamber provided with a disassemblable upper cartridge and a lower cartridge, and formed on one of the upper cartridge and a consumable used for image recording, and a breakage when the upper cartridge and the lower cartridge are separated. Cartridge that has an electrical component to be replaced, an image forming unit that forms an image on recording paper, and a cartridge that is set to be exchangeable is determined to be an inappropriate cartridge when it is detected that the electrical component is damaged. A warning or a means for prohibiting an image forming operation. 7. The cartridge includes a photosensitive drum on which an electrostatic latent image is formed, a charging roller for charging the photosensitive drum, and a developing roller for developing the electrostatic latent image with toner to form a toner image. 7. The system according to claim 6, wherein the cartridge is provided. 8. A step of detecting whether or not an electric component provided at a junction between an upper portion and a lower portion of a cartridge is normal, and if the electric component is abnormal, the cartridge is determined to be improper. A storage medium storing a program for executing the steps of: