JP3948590B2 - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus that includes a printer, a facsimile machine, a copier, a scanner, and a complex machine thereof, and further includes peripheral devices such as a large-capacity paper feeding device and a paper post-processing device. The present invention relates to a quality judgment control technique (including paper feeding by a paper feeding unit).
[0002]
[Prior art]
In general, in an image forming apparatus, the actual printing paper arrival time t detected by a timing sensor installed in the printing paper conveyance path is compared with a preset time T set for machine control to compare the conveyance quality. In the case of a conveyance failure, the machine stop control is performed, and the printing paper stop position and the like are displayed on the display unit.
[0003]
FIG. 7 is a timing chart of the conventional sheet conveyance control, and FIG. 8 is a flowchart of the conventional sheet conveyance control.
Here, T is a preset time, TK is a set time from the start to the arrival of the paper feed sensor, TM is a set time from the start to the arrival of the intermediate feed sensor, TR is a set time from the start to the arrival of the registration sensor, and Tr is A set time from the start to the start of registration roller rotation and TH denotes a set time from the start to the arrival of the paper discharge sensor. Further, t represents an actual required time (measured value) corresponding to T.
[0004]
In FIG. 8, the paper feed sensor detects the required time tK (the required time to the paper feed sensor; the same applies hereinafter) (S1), and if tK ≦ TK (GO in S2), the paper has passed within the set time TK. Then, the process proceeds to the next step S3. If tK ≦ TK (NG in S2), it is determined that paper is not fed (conveyance failure; jam) (S4), and the machine is stopped.
[0005]
Similarly, the intermediate feed sensor detects the required time tM (S3) and determines tM ≦ TM (S5). In the same manner as described above, if the actual conveyance time is within the predetermined time, the process proceeds to step S6, and if not, no paper is fed (S7). In step S6, tR is detected by the registration sensor, and tR ≦ TR is determined (S8). If so, the process proceeds to step S9. If not, no paper is fed (S10). In step S9, similarly, tH is detected by the front discharge sensor, and tH ≦ TH is determined (S11). If so, the process proceeds to the next step, and if not, no paper is fed (S12).
[0006]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
As the transport unit (feed roller unit, intermediate feed roller unit, registration roller unit, etc.) deteriorates with time, the transport performance also deteriorates. For example, the deterioration with the passage of time will be described by taking a sheet feeding roller unit as an example.
[0007]
The feed roller unit is composed of a feed roller and an electromagnetic clutch that turns on and off the rotation from the drive mechanism in response to a feed start / stop signal. However, the outer diameter of the feed roller decreases due to wear. As a result, the sheet conveyance speed seems to be delayed, and the switching time due to a decrease in the frictional resistance value of the clutch transmission sliding surface of the electromagnetic clutch becomes longer (delayed). These two phenomena combine to cause deterioration of the paper feed roller unit over time. In the case of a system that directly drives a conveyance roller such as a stepping motor instead of an electromagnetic clutch, the cause of the conveyance delay (deterioration of the unit) is mostly due to the wear of the sheet feeding roller.
[0008]
Due to this deterioration with time, the sheet conveyance time (required time) tK in the sheet feeding roller unit increases (delays) with time, causing deterioration in conveyance performance. When the preset time TK is exceeded, it is determined that the paper is not fed (jam) and the machine is stopped.
[0009]
As described above, conventionally, since the deterioration of the conveyance performance is detected only after the paper is poorly conveyed (non-feed in FIG. 8), the machine stops suddenly, which hinders the user's business. There is a problem that. In addition, there is a case where a call for replacing the transport unit to the service area is sudden and cannot be dealt with immediately.
[0010]
Also, in the past, machines that have reached the specified service life and number of pieces must be replaced uniformly, so replacement units and parts must be replaced. It was not preferable from the viewpoint of effective use of resources (environmental problems). In this way, sudden machine stoppages and service area calls occur, and even units and parts that have not yet reached the end of their life can be replaced, making it difficult to maintain customer reliability.
[0011]
Similarly, preparation of service areas and planning, replacement units, and parts inventory are difficult to minimize. Furthermore, in order to know the quality information of the machine, it was difficult to obtain quality information of many machines on the market, because it was necessary to prepare a separate measuring instrument each time and measure various characteristics. .
[0012]
The present invention has been made in view of such a background, and it is possible to maintain the operational efficiency and effectively utilize resources by grasping the deterioration state of the machine in advance before stopping the machine. An object is to provide an apparatus.
[0013]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 compares the arrival time of the sheet detected by a predetermined timing sensor installed in the sheet conveyance path with a preset time, and In an image forming apparatus that determines a paper conveyance failure and displays on a display unit, based on a signal for starting paper feeding and a signal issued when the paper reaches a predetermined timing sensor Deterioration obtained by subtracting a variable predetermined time ΔT from detection means for detecting the arrival time t of the paper, the arrival time t of the paper, and a set time T that is determined as non-feed due to deterioration of the transport function. The comparison means for comparing the set time for determination T ′, and the graph showing the relationship between the accumulated number of sheets conveyed and the arrival time of the sheets, the time t detected by the detecting means for each predetermined number of sheets conveyed and the time And the cumulative number of paper transports When a predicted line obtained based on the actually measured line is drawn, the cumulative number of sheets transported that the parts of the transport path have a lifetime is predicted from the intersection of the predicted line and the line indicating the set time T. , and a calculating means for calculating a life expectancy number by subtracting the sheet conveying accumulated number when said detecting means from the sheet conveying accumulated number of the said life has detected, the calculation of the residual life number by the calculating means, the comparing means after the comparison was carried out a predetermined number of times at, it counts the number of times the t ≧ T ', performed at least during exceeds a determined number of times the該回number previously set, resulting life expectancy number of calculation, preset displayed on the display unit together with the warning information showing that exceeding the number of determinations, or is characterized in that it comprises a control hand stage tell the remote diagnosis system.
[0014]
In order to achieve the above object, according to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the arrival time of the sheet detected by the detecting means for each predetermined number of sheets conveyed after the image forming apparatus is manufactured. The apparatus further includes storage means for storing t, and the control means reads the arrival time t of the paper stored from the storage means as self-diagnosis information.
[0015]
In order to achieve the above object, according to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the timing sensor is installed in each unit constituting the conveyance path, and the control means is the comparison means. A comparison is made between the arrival time t of the paper detected on the basis of a signal that arrives at a timing sensor corresponding to the unit for each unit and a set time T ′ for deterioration determination provided for each unit. After performing the predetermined number of times, the number of times t ≧ T ′ is counted , and when the number of times exceeds a predetermined number of determinations, the number of remaining lives obtained as a result of the calculation relating to the unit and the warning information are displayed on the display unit It displayed on, or is characterized in that tell the remote diagnosis system.
[0018]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram illustrating a paper conveyance system of the image forming apparatus.
In the paper transport path from the paper feed tray 1 to the paper discharge unit, the paper feed roller 3, the intermediate feed roller 5, the registration roller 8, the transfer / separation unit 10, the fixing unit 11, A front paper discharge roller 13 and a rear paper discharge roller 15 are provided. Further, a paper feed sensor 4, an intermediate feed sensor 6, a registration sensor 7, a front paper discharge sensor 12, and a rear paper discharge sensor 14 for detecting the arrival time t of the paper are arranged in the vicinity of each roller and roller. Opposite to the transfer / separation unit 10, there is an image forming unit 9 comprising a photoconductor, a charging and developing device.
[0019]
Next, the sheet conveying operation will be described. When the paper feed roller 3 rotates in response to the paper feed start signal, only one sheet is separated and conveyed toward the intermediate feed roller 5. When the leading edge of the paper 2 passes, the paper feed sensor 4 detects this and issues a signal (0 → 1).
[0020]
The arrival time t of the paper 2 that has passed the intermediate feed roller 5 is detected by the intermediate feed sensor 6 and the registration sensor 7. Further, the intermediate feed roller 5 is stopped by detecting the leading edge of the sheet of the registration sensor 7. The timing is normally set to a timing at which the leading edge of the sheet 2 hits the stopped registration roller 8 slightly and stops.
[0021]
The registered sheet 2 is conveyed again by the registration roller 8 that has started rotating upon receiving a registration roller rotation start signal, and is guided to the front discharge roller 13 through the processes of the transfer / separation unit 10 and the fixing unit 11. At this time, the arrival time t is detected by the front discharge sensor 12 and then reaches the rear discharge roller 15, and the arrival time t is detected by the rear discharge sensor 14.
[0022]
Conventionally, the control for determining good / bad paper conveyance from the relationship between the arrival time t detected by each sensor and the set time T is as shown in the flow of FIG. In the present invention, new processing steps A, B, and C are added based on the conventional control as shown in the flowchart of FIG.
[0023]
FIG. 2 is a control block diagram of the image forming apparatus of the present invention.
A timing sensor 22, a comparison / determination unit 23, a memory 24, and a display unit 25 are provided centering on the control unit 21. A remote diagnosis system 27 is connected to the control unit 21 through a telephone line 26.
[0024]
Here, the control unit 21 is responsible for overall control. The timing sensor 22 is a general term for the sensors 4, 6, 7, 12, and 14 shown in FIG. The comparison determination means 23 compares and determines deterioration determination set times T ′ and t, which will be described later. The memory 24 stores the timing t detected by the timing sensor 22 as a data log.
[0025]
This storage is performed automatically for each set number of sheets or manually at any time (manufacturing, installation, use of a predetermined number of sheets, maintenance, etc.). Then, it can be appropriately searched as self-diagnosis information (during maintenance or by remote diagnosis using a telephone line). The display means 25 displays the state before the conveyance failure as warning information. This warning information is also transmitted to the remote diagnosis system 27.
[0026]
FIG. 3 is a timing chart of the sheet conveyance control of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a flowchart of the sheet conveyance control of the present invention.
In both figures, T and t have the same meaning as in the conventional example. In the present invention, a degradation determination time T ′ that is reduced by a minute time ΔT with respect to the preset setting time T is newly set. For example, with respect to TK, T′K becomes T′K = TK−ΔTK. Others are the same. The minute time ΔT can be set according to the determined deterioration tendency of the unit or component. If it is set to be slightly larger, deterioration from the early stage is detected, and if it is set to be slightly smaller, quality information immediately before the unit and parts are down can be obtained.
[0027]
The contents of the flowchart of FIG. 4 will be described below.
The contents of steps S1 to S12 are the same as those of the conventional example shown in FIG. In the present invention, in order to obtain unit deterioration information, deterioration determination / warning flows are provided at three locations (A, B, C) of the paper feed roller unit, the intermediate feed roller unit, and the registration roller unit. Since the configuration and operation are the same, a description will be given by taking a paper feed roller unit as an example.
[0028]
The leading edge arrival time tK information of the sheet 2 detected and measured by the sheet feed sensor 4 is simultaneously input to the newly set deterioration determination / warning flow A together with the jam determination flow as the conventional flow.
[0029]
Next, the content of the deterioration determination / warning flow A will be described. tK and T′K are compared and determined a predetermined number of times N (times). That is, tK and T′K are measured N times, and each is compared and determined. Then, the number of times n (times) at which tK ≧ T′K is established is counted (A-1). Here, when the number of times (n) exceeds a predetermined number of times of determination (m), a warning is displayed as an output. FIG. 4 shows a case where m = 0. That is, if n = 0 (GO at A-2), the counter is reset (A-3) and this is repeated. If n ≧ 1 (NG in A-2), a warning is displayed as an output (A-4).
[0030]
How to display this warning
(1) Display on the machine operation panel (display means 25 in FIG. 2) (so that the user can understand).
(2) A service person in the service area displays on the operation panel using a self-diagnosis function at the time of visit (so as not to be understood by the user).
(3) Display on the CRT of the system by the remote diagnosis system 27 using the telephone line 26 or the like.
Etc., can be selected as appropriate. With this warning information, the service area can easily and accurately grasp the quality state of the machine.
[0031]
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a first display example of the operation panel, and FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a second display example of the operation panel.
In the example of FIG. 5, the screen of the operation panel (corresponding to the display means 25 of FIG. A marking unit 32 is provided after the replacement unit name, together with information on the cumulative number and date. In this case, the registration roller unit is marked with a black circle, and it can be seen at a glance that the registration roller 8 is a unit that requires a lifetime.
[0032]
In the example of FIG. 6, a time-dependent deterioration graph, a unit name, and a life expectancy number are displayed instead of marking. TK is a preset time from the start of paper feed until the leading edge of the paper 2 reaches the paper feed sensor 4, and tK is the actual measurement time. The tK measurement data is automatically recorded when the preset number is reached. For example, every 50K or every 100K.
[0033]
Here, when a graph is displayed to search for quality information, as shown in FIG. 6, an N-tK (number of sheets-conveying time) graph 33 shows an actual measurement point x for every 100K sheets and an actual measurement curve (which is connected to it). A prediction curve (broken line) obtained by extending it is displayed along with a solid line. The intersection Mx (K sheets) between the prediction curve (broken line) and the preset time TK is the predicted life number of this replacement unit. If the cumulative number at the time of retrieval is No, the remaining life number Nx is Nx = Mx−No. Is required.
[0034]
This calculation is automatically performed by a program incorporated in advance, and the number of remaining lifes is displayed on the operation panel 31 so that it can be recognized at a glance.
Note that the CRT screen of the remote diagnosis system 27 may be used instead of the operation panel 31 in FIGS.
[0035]
It goes without saying that the contents of the above-described inventions can be applied not only to the image forming apparatus main body but also to peripheral devices of the image forming apparatus such as a large-capacity paper feed tray, ADF, paper post-processing device, and extension tray.
[0036]
【The invention's effect】
According to the first aspect of the present invention, since the deterioration state of the transport unit can be grasped in advance before the machine is stopped due to a transport failure, it is possible to avoid a problem that the printing work is interrupted due to a sudden machine stop. . Also, if the transport quality judgment result is good, it can be seen that there is no need to replace the unit and parts, so that the unit and parts can be used to their full life, not only to the benefit of the customer, but also to save resources. Labor saving can be achieved. Therefore, it is possible to ensure the reliability of the machine and improve the trust of the printer and the machine manufacturer. In addition, since the degree of machine deterioration can be objectively grasped and displayed, communication between the user and the maintenance department can be performed smoothly. Furthermore, in the maintenance department, it is possible to reduce calls due to a sudden machine stop and to make a maintenance plan.
[0037]
According to the second aspect of the present invention, the future down time of the machine can be predicted. In addition, since information on deterioration over time can be easily obtained as actual live market information, it should be fed back to the development and design department to provide useful quality information for the development and design of the next model. Can do.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram illustrating a paper transport system of an image forming apparatus.
FIG. 2 is a control block diagram of the image forming apparatus of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a timing chart of sheet conveyance control according to the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a flowchart of sheet conveyance control according to the present invention.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a first display example of an operation panel.
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a second display example of the operation panel.
FIG. 7 is a timing chart of conventional paper conveyance control.
FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a conventional sheet conveyance control.
[Explanation of symbols]
21 Control Unit 22 Timing Sensor 23 Comparison Judgment Unit 24 Memory 25 Display Unit 26 Telephone Line 27 Remote Diagnosis System

Claims (3)

Image formation in which a paper arrival time detected by a predetermined timing sensor installed in the paper conveyance path is compared with a preset time to determine the paper conveyance failure and display on the display unit In the device
Detecting means for detecting the arrival time t of the paper based on a signal for starting the paper feeding and a signal generated when the paper reaches a predetermined timing sensor;
A comparison for comparing the arrival time t of the sheet with a deterioration determination setting time T ′ obtained by subtracting a predetermined variable time ΔT from a reference setting time T that is determined as non-feed due to deterioration of the transport function. Means,
A graph showing the relationship between the cumulative number of sheets transported and the arrival time of the sheets is obtained based on an actual measurement line composed of the time t detected by the detecting means for each predetermined number of transported sheets and the cumulative number of sheets transported at that time. when depicting predicted line is to predict the sheet conveyance accumulated number of components is the life of the transport path from the intersection of the line indicating the predicted line and the setting time T, the paper conveyance becomes the life and a calculating means for calculating a life expectancy number by subtracting the sheet conveying accumulated number when said detecting means from the accumulated number is detected,
The calculation of the life expectancy by the calculating means is performed at least when the comparison means performs the comparison a predetermined number of times, then counts the number of times t ≧ T ′, and the number of times exceeds a predetermined number of determinations , resulting life expectancy number of calculation, the image forming apparatus characterized by comprising a control hand stage displayed on the display unit together with the warning information indicating that exceeds the determination preset number of times, or to tell the remote diagnosis system . Storage means for storing a paper arrival time t detected by the detection means for each predetermined number of paper transports after the image forming apparatus is manufactured ;
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit reads the arrival time t of the sheet stored from the storage unit as self-diagnosis information. The timing sensor is installed in each unit constituting the transport path,
The control unit is configured to determine, for each unit, the arrival time t of the sheet detected based on a signal generated by reaching the timing sensor corresponding to the unit for each unit and a deterioration determination provided for each unit. After a predetermined number of comparisons with the set time T ′, the number of times t ≧ T ′ is counted , and when the number exceeds the preset number of determinations , the life expectancy obtained as a result of the calculation for the unit The image forming apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the number of sheets and the warning information are displayed on a display unit or transmitted to a remote diagnosis system.

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