JP6501308B2 - Information presentation system and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an information presentation system that presents to a user a method for coping with a defect that has occurred in an image forming apparatus such as an electrophotographic printer or a multifunction peripheral.

  In an electrophotographic image forming apparatus in which toner is fixed on a predetermined recording medium to form an image, a charging device charges the surface of a photosensitive drum as an electrostatic latent image carrier, and the surface of the photosensitive drum is exposed to light. By exposing at, an electrostatic latent image based on image information is formed. Then, the developer carrier develops a toner image by supplying a toner as a developer to the electrostatic latent image.

  The transfer device provided at a position facing the surface of the photosensitive drum transfers the toner image on the surface of the photosensitive drum to a predetermined recording medium based on the transfer voltage applied from the transfer power source. The toner image transferred to the recording medium is fixed by application of heat and pressure from a fixing device, and the series of image forming processes is completed.

  For example, Patent Document 1 describes a technique for determining a transfer voltage to be applied to a transfer device from detection results of thickness, resistance, dielectric constant and the like of a recording medium.

JP, 2008-242026, A

However, when printing is performed on a special recording medium such as an OHP film or a thick paper exceeding 300 g / m ² which is different from a normal storage medium called plain paper, the transfer condition and the fixing condition are said to be optimal. In addition, transfer failure and fixing failure may occur. When such an operation failure occurs, conventionally, it is necessary to perform voltage adjustment relating to transfer and fixing via an adjustment function provided by the apparatus with reference to a manual attached to the apparatus, and this adjustment operation is complicated. It was difficult to understand.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a situation, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a recording medium without the need for complicated adjustment operations even when an operation failure such as a transfer failure or a fixing failure occurs. It is an object of the present invention to provide an information presentation system and an image forming apparatus capable of performing printing under the optimum setting conditions according to which high quality printed matter can be obtained.

In order to solve the above problems, an information presentation system according to the present invention is an information presentation system configured by connecting a terminal device, an image forming apparatus, and a server device via a communication network, The terminal device includes a display unit that displays transmission information transmitted from the server device, and an operation unit that receives input of input information for the display content displayed on the display unit, and the image forming apparatus includes: An image forming unit that forms an image on a predetermined recording medium, a setting information storage unit that stores medium information and apparatus setting information on the recording medium, and the apparatus setting information stored in the setting information storage unit is propagated to the outside A media setting information storage unit for storing medium device setting information which is device setting information associated with each type of the recording medium; A setting change determination unit configured to determine and present setting change content to be applied to the image forming unit based on the information, the device setting information, and the medium device setting information; and the server device sets the setting as the transmission information. The change content is transmitted to the terminal device, and the image forming apparatus changes the device setting applied to the image forming unit based on the setting change content permitted in the terminal device, and the information communication is performed. When the medium information related to the recording medium currently used is not stored in the setting information storage unit, the unit notifies the terminal apparatus to that effect, and the terminal apparatus receives the notification and the server apparatus receives the notification. It is characterized by making a connection with

Further, the image forming apparatus according to the present invention comprises an electrostatic latent image carrier for carrying an electrostatic latent image, a developing member for developing a toner image by supplying toner to the electrostatic latent image, and the toner image. Image forming means having a transfer member for transferring the toner image onto the recording medium, a fixing member for fixing the toner image transferred onto the recording medium, and a conveyance member for conveying the recording medium, medium information on the recording medium, A setting information storage unit for storing device setting information, the apparatus setting information stored in the setting information storage unit is propagated to the outside, and the medium information related to the medium information currently used is transmitted to the setting information storage unit An information communication unit for notifying the terminal device of the fact that the information is not stored, and after notification from the information communication unit, transmitted from the external server to the terminal device, and permitted by the terminal device It is characterized in that the and a device setting changing means for changing the device setting to be applied to the image forming means based on the setting change to the device configuration information.

  According to the present invention, even when an operation failure such as a transfer failure or a fixing failure occurs, printing can be performed under the optimum setting conditions according to the recording medium without requiring a complicated adjustment operation, and high quality can be achieved. It is possible to provide an information presentation system and an image forming apparatus capable of obtaining various printed materials.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram for explaining the overall configuration of an information presentation system according to an embodiment. FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration view illustrating a configuration of an image forming apparatus according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a schematic view illustrating the configuration of an image forming unit according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram for explaining a functional configuration of the image forming apparatus according to the present embodiment. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the information presentation system which concerns on this embodiment. It is a schematic diagram explaining the structural example of the information setting which a server apparatus provides, and a setting presentation screen. It is a schematic diagram explaining the structural example of the information setting which a server apparatus provides, and a setting presentation screen. It is a schematic diagram explaining the structural example of the information setting which a server apparatus provides, and a setting presentation screen. It is a schematic diagram explaining the structural example of the information setting which a server apparatus provides, and a setting presentation screen. It is a schematic diagram explaining the structural example of the information setting which a server apparatus provides, and a setting presentation screen. It is a schematic diagram explaining the structural example of the information setting which a server apparatus provides, and a setting presentation screen. It is a schematic diagram explaining the structural example of the information setting which a server apparatus provides, and a setting presentation screen. It is a schematic diagram explaining the structural example of the information setting which a server apparatus provides, and a setting presentation screen.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to the following description, and can be appropriately modified without departing from the scope of the present invention.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram for explaining the overall configuration of the information presentation system 1 according to the present embodiment. In the information presentation system 1 according to the present embodiment, an image forming apparatus 2 for forming an image on a recording medium, a portable terminal apparatus 3 such as a smartphone, a tablet, a notebook personal computer (PC), and a server apparatus 4 are wired. It is configured to be connected via a network 5 constructed by a communication network such as wireless and the like.

  In the present embodiment, the image forming apparatus 2 and the terminal device 3 used by the user are installed at the installation place L1 such as home or work, and the server apparatus 4 is installed at the service center S1 separated from the installation place L1. Are supposed to be The network 5 is a so-called Internet, and is also called a cloud. The network 5 connects devices installed in places isolated from each other to exchange information with each other.

  The image forming apparatus 2 is configured as an MFP (Multi-Function Peripheral) and has a printer function for forming an image on a sheet as a recording medium, a function as an image scanner for reading an image on a document, and a communication function. By combining these functions, one device can operate as a printer, a copying machine (copying machine), a facsimile machine or the like. When the image forming apparatus 2 according to the present embodiment functions as a printer, it is configured to be able to form a desired color image on a sheet of, for example, A3 size or A4 size.

  Here, the configuration of the image forming apparatus 2 according to the present embodiment will be described using the schematic configuration diagram of FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, in the image forming apparatus 2, various components are disposed inside an apparatus housing 10 formed in a substantially box shape. In the following description, the right end portion in FIG. 2 is used as the front of the image forming apparatus 2, and the vertical direction, the horizontal direction, and the front-rear direction when viewed from the front are defined. In the present invention, the image forming unit 31, the fixing unit 26, the transfer roller 35, the sheet feeding unit 15, the middle conveyance unit 20, the discharge unit 29 and the like are driven to form an image on a sheet in the image forming apparatus 2. Each member is described as being included in the image forming means.

  The image forming apparatus 2 is configured such that the overall operation is totally controlled by the image forming apparatus control unit 11. The image forming apparatus control unit 11 is connected to the terminal device 3 by wire or wireless via the image forming apparatus communication unit 12. The image forming apparatus control unit 11 receives the image information representing the image to be printed from the terminal device 3 and receives the image forming instruction of the image information, forms the print image on the sheet P (image forming processing (print Process).

  A display / operation unit 13 is provided above the device housing 10 to display various information and to receive user's operation input. The display operation unit 13 includes, for example, a touch panel portion in which a liquid crystal panel and a touch sensor are integrated, and an operation button portion formed of a combination of a numeric button, an arrow button, and the like. In the following description, for convenience of explanation, the touch panel portion is referred to as a display unit 13A, and the operation button portion is referred to as an operation unit 13B.

  A sheet storage cassette 14 for storing sheets P and a sheet P for separating and feeding sheets P stored one by one in the lowermost portion in the apparatus casing 10. A unit 15 is provided. The sheet feeding unit 15 is located on the upper front end of the sheet storage cassette 14 and advances the sheet P along a conveyance path W indicated by an alternate long and short dash line.

  In addition to the guide 16 for guiding the sheet P, the sheet feeding section 15 includes the hopping roller 17 disposed on the upper front end of the sheet storage cassette 14, the registration roller 18 disposed near the end of the guide 16, and the guide 16. And a plurality of rollers and the like arranged along the same.

  The paper feeding unit 15 rotates each roller such as the hopping roller 17 based on control by the image forming apparatus control unit 11. The hopping roller 17 picks up the sheets P while separating them one by one from the sheet storage cassette 14 by rotating and feeds the sheets P along the transport path W. The sheet P advances along the transport path W so as to be folded back and upward along the transport path W while being guided by the guides 16 by the rotation of each roller, and the leading end reaches the registration roller 18 eventually. The resist roller 18 conveys the sheet P to the middle conveyance unit 20 while correcting so-called skew, in which the side of the sheet P is inclined with respect to the traveling direction, by applying an appropriate resistance to the sheet P.

  The middle conveyance unit 20 includes an idle roller 21 disposed in the vicinity of the rear side of the registration roller 18, a drive roller 22, and a transfer belt 23 as an endless belt member stretched by the idle roller 21 and the drive roller 22. .

  The middle conveyance unit 20 drives the transfer belt 23 in the direction of the arrow E1 in the drawing by rotating the drive roller 22 based on the control by the image forming apparatus control unit 11. A sheet P is placed on the upper portion of the transfer belt 23, and the sheet P advances from the front to the rear as the transfer belt 23 is driven. That is, the upper portion of the transfer belt 23 forms the conveyance path W. A belt cleaning device 24 is provided below the lower portion of the transfer belt 23 to remove the toner remaining on the sheet P without being transferred.

  Further, four image forming units 25C, 25M, 25Y, and 25K are arranged in order from the rear to the front along the conveyance path W above the middle conveyance unit 20. The image forming units 25C, 25M, 25Y, and 25K (hereinafter, these may be collectively referred to as the image forming unit 25) are cyan (C), magenta (M), yellow (Y), and black (K), respectively. Although the toners corresponding to the respective colors are contained, the other configuration is the same.

  Here, the configuration of the image forming unit 25 according to the present embodiment will be described using the schematic configuration diagram of FIG. 3. As shown in FIG. 3, the image forming unit 25 includes an image forming unit 31, a toner cartridge 32, an LED (Light Emitting Diode) head 33, and a transfer roller 35.

  The toner cartridge 32 has a storage space for storing unused toner as a developer, and is detachably mounted above the image forming unit 31. The toner cartridge 32 supplies the unused toner contained therein to the toner containing portion 41 of the image forming portion 31.

  The image forming unit 31 includes, in addition to the toner storage unit 41, a supply roller 42, a development roller 43, a regulation blade 44, a photosensitive drum 45, and a charging roller 46. The image forming unit 31 receives the driving force from the drum motor 37 to rotate the supply roller 42, the developing roller 43, and the charging roller 46 in the direction of the arrow R2 (counterclockwise) in FIG. Is rotated in the direction of arrow R1 (clockwise) in the figure. Further, the image forming unit 31 applies a bias voltage to the supply roller 42, the developing roller 43, the regulating blade 44 and the charging roller 46 to charge them.

  The supply roller 42 has, for example, an elongated cylindrical conductor made of stainless steel as an axis, and the peripheral side surface thereof is covered with an elastic layer, for example, a conductive silicone rubber foam or a conductive urethane rubber foam. In addition, acetylene black, carbon black, etc. may be added to this elastic layer in order to provide semiconductivity. The supply roller 42 causes the toner in the main toner portion 41 to adhere to the circumferential side by charging, and causes the toner to adhere to the circumferential side of the developing roller 43 by rotation.

  The developing roller 43 has, for example, an elongated cylindrical conductor made of stainless steel as an axis, and the peripheral side surface is covered with an elastic layer made of urethane rubber, silicone rubber or the like and a surface layer covering the surface of the elastic layer. There is. The surface layer is formed by surface-treating the surface of the elastic layer using a urethane solution, or by applying an acrylic resin or an acrylic-fluorinated copolymer resin to the surface of the elastic layer. When the surface layer is formed of an acrylic resin or an acrylic-fluorinated copolymer resin, the conductivity is imparted by adding carbon black. After excess toner is removed from the circumferential side surface by the regulation blade 44, the developing roller 43 brings the circumferential side surface into contact with the circumferential side surface of the photosensitive drum 45.

  The restriction blade 44 is made of, for example, a stainless steel plate having a predetermined thickness, and a bending process is applied to a part of the restriction blade 44 to form an abutting portion that abuts on the circumferential side surface of the developing roller 43. The contact portion is adjusted to apply a predetermined linear pressure to the circumferential side surface of the developing roller 43.

  The photosensitive drum 45 is configured, for example, by sequentially laminating a thin film charge generating layer and a charge transporting layer on the peripheral side surface of a cylindrical aluminum tube made of aluminum. Therefore, the circumferential side surface of the photosensitive drum 45 can be charged. The photosensitive drum 45 rotates in the direction of arrow R1 in the drawing to bring the developing roller 43 into contact with the portion of the electrostatic latent image formed by the irradiation light based on the image information irradiated from the LED head 33 described later. As a result, the toner adheres and the toner image is developed.

  The charging roller 46 has, for example, an elongated cylindrical conductor made of stainless steel as an axis, and the circumferential side surface thereof is coated with a conductive elastic material such as epikudohydrin. The circumferential side surface of the charging roller 46 is in contact with the circumferential side surface of the photosensitive drum 45. The charging roller 46 contacts the photosensitive drum 45 in a charged state to charge the circumferential side surface of the photosensitive drum 45 uniformly.

  The LED head 33 includes an LED array formed by arranging a plurality of LED chips in a straight line along the left-right direction, and a predetermined time with a light emission pattern based on image information supplied from the image forming apparatus control unit 11 By emitting light at intervals, the photosensitive drum 45 is exposed. As a result, an electrostatic latent image is formed on the circumferential side surface of the photosensitive drum 45 near its upper end.

  The transfer roller 35 is disposed immediately below the photosensitive drum 45, and holds the upper portion of the transfer belt 23 between the vicinity of the upper end on the circumferential side and the vicinity of the lower end of the photosensitive drum 45. A predetermined bias voltage is applied to the transfer roller 35, and the driving force is supplied from the drum motor 37, whereby the transfer roller 35 rotates in the direction of the arrow R2 in the drawing. As a result, when the sheet P is conveyed along the conveyance path W, the transfer roller 35 can transfer the toner image developed on the circumferential side surface of the photosensitive drum 45 onto the sheet P.

  In this manner, each image forming unit 25 sequentially transfers the toner images of the respective toner colors to the sheet P conveyed from the front along the conveyance path W and advances the sheet P while being overlapped.

  Here, a fixing device 26 is provided in the vicinity of the rear end of the middle conveyance unit 20 shown in FIG. The fixing device 26 includes a heating roller 27 and a pressure roller 28. The heating roller 27 is formed in a cylindrical shape with its central axis in the left-right direction, and a heater is provided inside. The pressure roller 28 is formed in the same cylindrical shape as the heating roller 27, and the upper surface is pressed against the lower surface of the heating roller 27 with a predetermined pressing force. The fixing device 26 heats the heating roller 27 and rotates the heating roller 27 and the pressure roller 28 in predetermined directions, respectively, under the control of the image forming apparatus control unit 11. As a result, the fixing unit 26 applies heat and pressure to the sheet P delivered from the image forming unit 25, that is, the sheet P on which the four color toner images are superimposed, to fix the toner, and is received further to the rear. hand over.

  At the rear of the fixing unit 26, a sheet discharge unit 29 is disposed. The paper discharge unit 29 is configured by a combination of a guide for guiding the paper P, a plurality of rollers, and the like as the paper supply unit 15. The paper discharge unit 29 appropriately rotates the rollers under the control of the image forming apparatus control unit 11 to convey the sheet P delivered from the fixing unit 26 upward and backward, and further fold it forward. Then, the sheet is discharged onto the sheet discharge tray 10T formed on the upper surface of the apparatus housing 10.

  The image forming apparatus 2 is configured to cause the LED heads 33 to emit light in the image forming units 25 of the respective colors to form toner images and to sequentially transfer these to the sheet P when performing the printing process. There is.

  Next, the functional configuration of the image forming apparatus 2 according to the present embodiment will be described using the functional block diagram of FIG. 4. The image forming apparatus control unit 11 includes a central processing unit (CPU) 51 and an image forming apparatus storage unit 52. An image forming apparatus storage unit 52 as a setting information storage unit stores various programs and various data. Specifically, the image forming apparatus storage unit 52 is configured by a non-volatile ROM (Read Only Memory), a flash memory, a hard disk drive, a volatile RAM (Random Access Memory), etc. The sheet setting of the sheet P to be stored is stored.

  The CPU 51 of the image forming apparatus control unit 11 reads out a predetermined program from the image forming apparatus storage unit 52 and executes the program to form the image output unit 53 and the measuring unit 54 as functional blocks. Image output unit 53 receives a print instruction of an image from terminal device 3 via image forming apparatus communication unit 12, or when it receives a predetermined print operation via operation unit 13B, fixing control unit 61, exposure control unit 62, and outputs a print instruction to the voltage control unit 63 and the drive control unit 64. By controlling the temperature and humidity sensor 66, the gauge side portion 54 measures, for example, the temperature near the heating roller 27 of the fixing device 26, and outputs the measurement result to the fixing control unit 61.

  The fixing control unit 61 controls the temperature of the heating roller 27 of the fixing device 26 based on the print instruction from the image output unit 53. The exposure control unit 62 controls the light emission of the LED head 33 based on the image to be printed. The voltage control unit 63 controls voltages applied to the charging roller 46, the developing roller 43, the supply roller 42, the regulating blade 44, and the transfer roller 35, respectively. The drive control unit 64 controls the rotational drive of the drum motor 37. The toner remaining amount detection unit 65 detects the toner remaining amount in the toner cartridge 32.

  The image forming apparatus communication unit 12 as an information communication unit may be, for example, a wired Local Area Network (LAN) or IEEE 802.11a / b / g compliant with the standards of IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) 802.3 u / ab. It is connected to the network 5 by a wireless LAN conforming to the standard such as / n / ac. The image forming apparatus communication unit 12 supplies various information and data received from the terminal device 3 or the server device 4 via the network 5 to the image forming apparatus control unit 11 while performing predetermined modulation processing and demodulation processing. The various information and data supplied from the image forming apparatus control unit 11 are transmitted to the terminal device 3 and the server device 4 via the network 5.

  The image forming apparatus control unit 11 receives the user's operation instruction received through the operation unit 13B, the apparatus information stored in the image forming apparatus storage unit 52, etc. Are configured to be able to be sent to.

  Next, the terminal device 3 will be described. The terminal device 3 according to the present embodiment assumes, for example, a portable smartphone, a tablet terminal or the like as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, such a terminal device 3 includes a terminal device control unit 71, a terminal device display unit 72, a terminal device input unit 73, and a terminal device communication unit 74. The terminal device 3 is used by the same user as the image forming apparatus 2 at the same setting place L1 as the image forming apparatus 2 described above.

  The terminal device control unit 71 is configured by a CPU, a storage unit, and the like (not shown) in the same manner as the image forming apparatus control unit 11, and various types of programs stored in the storage unit are read and executed. Execute the function of The terminal device display unit 72 is configured of, for example, a liquid crystal panel or the like, and displays various information. The terminal device input unit 73 includes, for example, a touch sensor or the like, and receives an input operation of the user. The terminal device display unit 72 and the terminal device input unit 73 are configured as a touch panel in which a liquid crystal panel and a touch sensor are integrated as in the display operation unit 13 of the image forming apparatus 2.

  The terminal device communication unit 74 is connected to the network 5 by a wireless LAN conforming to the standards such as IEEE 802.11a / b / g / n / ac. The terminal device communication unit 74 supplies various information and data received from the image forming device 2 and the server device 4 via the network 5 to the terminal device control unit 71 while performing predetermined modulation processing, demodulation processing and the like. The various information and data supplied from the terminal device control unit 71 are transmitted to the image forming device 2 and the server device 4 via the network 5.

  With such a configuration, the terminal device 3 performs various communications with the server device 4 or the like via the network 5, executes various programs according to the user's operation input, and displays various information on the display screen. Do.

  Next, the server device 4 will be described. The server device 4 is connected to the network 5 (i.e., a cloud) and is also called a cloud server. Such a server device 4 includes a server device control unit 81, a server device storage unit 82 as a medium setting information storage unit, and a server device communication unit 83. The server device control unit 81 is configured around a CPU (not shown), and executes various arithmetic processing in accordance with various programs and the like.

  Similar to the image forming device storage unit 52, the server device storage unit 82 is configured of a non-volatile ROM, a flash memory, a hard disk drive and the like, a volatile RAM and the like. The server device storage unit 82 stores various programs in a rewritable flash memory or hard disk drive in advance, and sequentially stores the device information received from the image forming device 2.

  Then, the server device control unit 81 reads out and executes various programs stored in the server device storage unit 82 to realize, for example, various functional blocks such as the display order determination unit 84 and the like.

  The server device communication unit 83 is connected to the network 5 by a wired LAN conforming to the standard such as IEEE 802.3 u / ab. The server device communication unit 83 supplies various n information and data received from the image forming device 2 or the device terminal 3 via the network 5 to the server device control unit 81 while performing predetermined modulation processing, demodulation processing and the like. The various information and data supplied from the server device control unit 81 are transmitted to the image forming device 2 and the terminal device 3 via the network 5.

  With such a configuration, for example, the server apparatus 4 receives information such as apparatus information from the image forming apparatus 2 and stores the information in the server apparatus storage unit 82, and various requests from the terminal apparatus 3 or the like via the network 5. Can be received, various processes can be executed according to the request, and the execution result can be transmitted to the terminal device 3. The server apparatus 4 is also connected to another image forming apparatus (not shown) via the network 5 to receive apparatus information, and executes various processes in response to requests from other terminal apparatuses (not shown). It is configured to earn.

  In the menu displayed by the display unit 13A of the image forming apparatus 2 and the terminal apparatus display unit 72 of the terminal device 3, the server apparatus storage unit 83 is a change menu for changing the transfer voltage, a change menu for changing the fixing temperature, and printing. Media device setting information associated with each sheet type, such as a change menu for changing the speed, is held. Here, each change menu held by the server apparatus storage unit 83 can be changed in the range of ± 3 setting values for the setting value of each menu. Specifically, the transfer voltage is 100 V, the fixing temperature is 5 ° C, and the printing speed change is 27 PPM, 24 PPM, 21 PPM, 18 PPM, 15 PPM, respectively for thin paper / plain paper / thick paper / thick paper / very thick paper. Changes are possible.

  Next, the printing operation of the image forming apparatus 2 having the above configuration will be described. Since the image forming units 25 for black (K), yellow (Y), magenta (M), and cyan (C) basically operate in the same manner, the image forming unit 25K for black (K) is used here. explain.

  When the image output unit 53 of the image forming device control unit 11 receives a print instruction of an image via the image forming device communication unit 12, the print operation is started. Specifically, the image output unit 53 outputs a print instruction to the drive control unit 64.

  The drive control unit 64 issues a rotational drive instruction to the drum motor 37, and the photosensitive drum 45 rotates the developing roller 43 and the supply roller 42 in the direction of arrow R2 in FIG.

  When the photosensitive drum 45 rotates, the charging roller 46 rotates with the photosensitive drum 45 to uniformly charge the circumferential side surface of the photosensitive drum 45 uniformly. The exposure control unit 62 controls the light emission of the LED head 33 based on the image to be printed to form an electrostatic latent image on the circumferential side surface of the photosensitive drum 45.

  When an electrostatic latent image is formed on the circumferential side surface of the photosensitive drum 45, the toner held by the supply roller 42 is supplied to the surface of the developing roller 43. When the toner on the surface of the developing roller 43 passes through the regulating blade 44, the layer thickness is regulated by the shearing force of the regulating blade 44 and becomes uniform. When the circumferential side surface of the developing roller 43 to which the uniformly regulated toner adheres contacts the circumferential side surface of the photosensitive drum 45 on which the electrostatic latent image is formed, the electrostatic latent image on the circumferential side surface of the photosensitive drum 45 is developed with toner A toner image is formed.

  On the other hand, the transfer belt 23 is driven in the direction of arrow E1 in FIG. 1 by the rotation of the drive roller 22. Then, the sheet P is fed out along the transport path W by the hopping roller 17 and nipped and conveyed by the registration roller 18. Thereafter, the sheet P is conveyed by the transfer belt 23. A toner image is similarly formed on the photosensitive drum 45 in the yellow (Y) image forming unit 25Y, the magenta (M) image forming unit 25M, and the cyan (C) image forming unit 25C. The toner image on the side surface of the photosensitive drum 45 is sequentially transferred onto the sheet P by the transfer roller 35 to which a predetermined bias voltage is applied.

  Heat and pressure are applied to the sheet P to which the toner image has been transferred by passing through the nip portion between the heating roller 27 heated in advance and the pressure roller 28 disposed opposite to the heating roller 27. The toner on the sheet P is fixed. The sheet P subjected to the fixing process is discharged from the paper discharge unit 29 to the paper discharge tray 10T, and the series of print processing ends.

  Next, an information presentation system according to the present embodiment will be described. In this embodiment, when a problem occurs in the image forming apparatus 2, the terminal apparatus 3 accesses the server apparatus 4 via the network 5 (cloud), searches for a coping method, and changes the setting of the image forming apparatus 2. Are supposed to do.

  Further, in the present embodiment, transfer failure and fixing failure are assumed as problems generated in the image forming apparatus 2. The transfer failure is a defect in which a dot image such as halftone is dusty and a horizontal streak occurs when the transfer voltage is high, and when the transfer voltage is low, solid printing is not normally transferred and the print density of the image is thin. In the case of the fixing failure, when the fixing temperature is too high, the toner on the sheet moves to the roller of the fixing unit, the print density of the image becomes thin, and when the fixing temperature is too low, the toner is not fixed on the sheet. It says a defect that comes off.

  When such a problem occurs, the user needs to adjust the transfer voltage change menu, the fixing temperature change menu, the printing speed change menu, etc. provided by the apparatus with reference to the manual provided with the apparatus. The adjustment work was complicated and difficult to understand.

  The present invention provides an information presentation system capable of easily performing adjustments such as the transfer voltage change, the fixing temperature change, and the printing speed change, based on the storage presence / absence of the sheet setting regarding the sheet P used by the user. It is. The operation of the information presentation system according to the present embodiment will be described using FIGS. 5 to 12. Here, FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the information presentation system according to the present embodiment, and FIGS. 6 to 12 are schematic diagrams for explaining an example of the information setting provided by the server device 4 and the configuration presentation screen. It is.

  First, at step S10 in FIG. 5, when the above problem occurs in the image forming apparatus 2, the image forming apparatus control unit 11 stores the sheet setting of the sheet P currently used as a recording medium in the image forming apparatus storage unit 52. Check if it is.

  For example, when the sheet setting of sheet P such as “excellent white”, “excellent gloss”, “excellent paper” is stored in image forming apparatus storage unit 52 as sheet setting of sheet P (step S 11 Yes), image formation is performed. The apparatus control unit 11 reads the corresponding sheet setting (step S12), and applies the apparatus setting based on the read sheet setting (step S13).

  On the other hand, when the sheet setting is not stored in the image forming device storage unit 52 (No in step S11), the terminal device control unit 71 is notified via the image forming device communication unit 12 and the terminal device communication unit 74 accordingly. . The terminal device control unit 71 that has received the notification uses, for example, a browser program or the like to connect to the network 5 (cloud) via the terminal device communication unit 74 (step S14). Then, the terminal device control unit 71 causes the terminal device display unit 72 to display the FAQ screen provided by the server device 4 via the server device communication unit 83 (step S15).

  Here, FIG. 6A shows a configuration example of the FAQ screen 100 displayed by the terminal device display unit 72. The FAQ screen 100 is a screen specialized for the input of the sheet information, and as the input items, “maker name” input box 101, “medium name” input box 102, “thickness” input box 103, and “color” "The input box 104 is provided.

  As shown in the registration example 110 of FIG. 6B, the user makes "Kishu Paper" in the "maker name" input box 101, "color fine paper" in the "medium name" input box 102, and "thickness" input box. In the case where each item of “very thick mouth” in 103 and “blue” in “color” input box 104 is input through the terminal device input unit 73 and the recommended setting provided by the server device 4 is searched, “ Of the "Yes" button 111 and the "No" button 112, the "Yes" button 111 is pressed, and the sheet information is registered (step S16). The input example here is merely an example, and the input item is appropriately changed according to the type of sheet used by the user.

  In step S16, when the sheet information is registered, the display order determining unit 84 of the server apparatus control unit 81 determines the recommended setting applicable to the image forming apparatus 2 based on the input sheet information, and the determination is performed. The content is transmitted to the terminal device 3. The terminal device control unit 71 that has received the determination content via the terminal device communication unit 74 causes the terminal device display 72 to display the recommendation setting screen 120 as illustrated in FIG. 7 (step S17).

  In the recommendation setting screen 120 shown in FIG. 7, the adjustment values of the transfer setting 121, the fixing temperature 122, and the sheet thickness (printing speed) 123 determined by the display order determining unit 84 of the server device 4 based on the sheet information registered by the user. Are displayed respectively.

  The user refers to the recommendation setting screen 120 displayed, and determines whether or not the setting content is applied to the apparatus (step S18).

  When the user accepts the adjustment values of the transfer setting 121, the fixing temperature 122, and the sheet thickness (printing speed) 123 displayed on the recommendation setting screen 120, the “tray displayed on the selection screen 124 of the recommendation setting screen 120. The user presses either the 1 "button 125a or the" MPT "button 125b. Here, the tray button to be displayed is based on tray information currently mounted by the image forming apparatus 2, and application of the device setting is decided upon depression of the tray button. When the user presses either the "tray 1" button 125a or the "MPT" button 125b, a print confirmation screen 130 shown in FIG. 8 is displayed.

  Based on the instruction of the print confirmation screen 130 shown in FIG. 8, the user executes the print operation. At this time, the server apparatus control unit 81 transmits information related to the determined apparatus setting to the image forming apparatus 2 via the server apparatus communication unit 83. The image forming apparatus 2 that has received the information related to the device setting performs the printing operation by changing the device setting based on the received information. If the problem is resolved as a result of the printing operation, the user presses the “Yes” button 131 a on the printing confirmation screen 130. The elimination information of the problem caused by the pressing of the "Yes" button 131a is transmitted to the server device 4 and is totaled.

  On the other hand, if the problem is not resolved as a result of the printing operation, the user presses the “No” button 131 b on the printing confirmation screen 130. When the "No" button 131b is pressed, the display order determination unit 84 of the server device control unit 81 determines again the device settings applicable to the image forming device 2, and transmits the determined contents to the terminal device 3 Do. The terminal device control unit 71 that has received the determination content via the terminal device communication unit 74 causes the setting change screen 140 to be displayed as shown in FIG. 9 via the terminal device display 72.

  In the setting change screen 140 shown in FIG. 9, a setting change plan for the transfer setting 141 and the paper thickness setting 142 is proposed, and the user selects the “Yes” button on the setting change screen 140 when accepting the proposed setting change plan. Press 143a. When the user presses the "Yes" button 143a, the print confirmation screen 150 having the same content as the print confirmation screen 130 shown in FIG. 8 is displayed (FIG. 10).

  Based on the instruction of the print confirmation screen 130 shown in FIG. 10, the user executes the print operation. If the problem is resolved as a result of the printing operation, the user presses the “Yes” button 151 a on the printing confirmation screen 150. The elimination information of the problem caused by the pressing of the "Yes" button 151a is transmitted to the server device 4 and is totaled.

  On the other hand, if the problem is not resolved as a result of the printing operation, the user presses the “No” button 151 b on the printing confirmation screen 150. When the "No" button 151b is pressed, the display order determination unit 84 of the server device control unit 81 determines again the device settings applicable to the image forming device 2, and transmits the determined contents to the terminal device 3 Do. The terminal device control unit 71 that has received the determination content via the terminal device communication unit 74 displays a further setting change screen via the terminal device display 72, and works to solve the problem.

  By the way, in the recommendation setting screen 120 shown in FIG. 7, the user presses the “Yes” button 126 a when searching for another user setting. When not searching for another user setting, the "No" button 126b is pressed.

  When the user presses the “Yes” button 126 a, the display order determining unit 84 of the server device control unit 81 transmits the totaled result collected so far to the terminal device 3. The terminal device control unit 71 that receives the tabulation result via the terminal device communication unit 74 causes the user setting search result screen 160 as shown in FIG. 11 to be displayed via the terminal device display 72. Here, the counting result indicates the result of counting the cases where the problem is eliminated as a result of the setting change based on the proposal of the display order determining unit 84 of the server device control unit 81.

  In the user setting search result screen 160 shown in FIG. 11, the counting result which has been counted up by the server device 4 is divided into the transfer setting 161 and the sheet thickness setting 162 and displayed. For example, in the transfer setting 161, as a result of adopting the adjustment value +2 as the transfer setting and applying the device setting, it is indicated that there are 105 users whose printing results have been improved. Therefore, in addition to the proposal by the display order determination unit 84 of the server device control unit 81, the user can determine a more optimal device setting by using a user setting search result which is a demonstration result of another user .

  When the user accepts the setting change plan based on the user setting search result, the user presses the “Yes” button 163 a of the user setting search result screen 160. When the user presses the "Yes" button 163a, the print confirmation screen 170 having the same content as the print confirmation screens 130 and 150 shown in FIGS. 8 and 10 is displayed (FIG. 12).

  Based on the instruction of the print confirmation screen 170 shown in FIG. 12, the user executes the print operation. If the problem is resolved as a result of the printing operation, the user presses the “Yes” button 171 a on the printing confirmation screen 170. The elimination information of the problem caused by the pressing of the "Yes" button 171a is transmitted to the server device 4 and is totaled.

  On the other hand, if the problem is not resolved as a result of the printing operation, the user presses the “No” button 171 b on the printing confirmation screen 170. When the “No” button 171 b is pressed, the display order determination unit 84 of the server device control unit 81 determines again the device settings applicable to the image forming device 2, and transmits the determined contents to the terminal device 3. Do. The terminal device control unit 71 that has received the determination content via the terminal device communication unit 74 displays a further setting change screen via the terminal device display 72, and works to solve the problem.

  In the above description, the information setting provided by the server device 4 and the setting presentation screen are displayed on the terminal device display unit 72 of the terminal device 3 and the information input is performed via the terminal device input unit 73. The information setting provided by the server device 4 and the setting presentation screen may be displayed on the display unit 13A of the image forming apparatus 2 and information input may be performed via the operation unit 13B.

  In the prior art, when a problem occurs in the image forming apparatus, the user refers to the manual attached to the apparatus and adjusts the transfer voltage change menu, the fixing temperature change menu, the printing speed change menu, etc. provided by the apparatus. It is necessary and this adjustment work is complicated and difficult to understand. On the other hand, according to the present embodiment, by searching for sheet information (setting), it is possible to present optimum settings and to automatically change the apparatus settings of the image forming apparatus by the server apparatus on the network. There are various special media used by the user, and it is not possible to register all sheet information in the apparatus, so it is possible to respond by registering the sheet information used by the user in the server apparatus on the network. Further, for example, even when the characteristics of the sheet change due to the 4M fluctuation, it is possible to promptly cope by registering new sheet information in the server device.

  Although the MFP has been described as an example of the image forming apparatus in the description of the present invention, the present invention is also applicable to a printer (Single Function Printer) having no copying function. Although the direct transfer method has been described as the transfer method of the image forming apparatus, the present invention is also applicable to an intermediate transfer method. In this case, the secondary transfer voltage may be changed. You may also download and print custom media with modified transfer and fixing settings. Further, the recommendation setting may be such that the information posted by the user to the service center or the like may be shared, or the maker may be registered, or may be registered by obtaining the usage status from the image forming apparatus.

Reference Signs List 1 information presentation system 2 image forming apparatus 3 terminal apparatus 4 server apparatus 5 network 10 apparatus housing 10T discharge tray 11 image forming apparatus control unit 12 image forming apparatus communication unit 13 display operation unit 13A display unit 13B operation unit 14 paper storage cassette Reference Signs List 15 sheet feeding unit 16 guide 17 hopping roller 18 registration roller 20 middle conveyance unit 21 idle roller 22 drive roller 23 transfer belt 24 belt cleaning devices 25C, 25M, 25Y, 25K image forming unit 26 fixing device 27 heating roller 28 pressure roller 29 Discharging unit 31 Image forming unit 32 Toner cartridge 33 Exposure head 35 Transfer roller 41 Toner storage unit 42 Supply roller 43 Development roller 44 Regulation blade 45 Photosensitive drum 46 Charge roller 51 CPU
52 image forming apparatus storage unit 53 image output unit 54 total side 61 fixing control unit 62 exposure control unit 63 voltage control unit 64 drive control unit 65 toner remaining amount detecting unit 66 temperature and humidity sensor 71 terminal device control unit 72 terminal device display unit 73 terminal device input unit 74 terminal device communication unit 81 server device control unit 82 server device storage unit 83 server device communication unit 84 display order determination unit

Claims (7)

An information presentation system configured by connecting a terminal device, an image forming apparatus, and a server device via a communication network,
The terminal device is
A display unit for displaying transmission information transmitted from the server device;
And an operation unit for receiving input of input information for the display content displayed on the display unit,
The image forming apparatus is
An image forming unit that forms an image on a predetermined recording medium;
A setting information storage unit that stores medium information and apparatus setting information on the recording medium;
An information communication unit for propagating the device setting information stored in the setting information storage unit to the outside;
The server device is
A medium setting information storage unit that stores medium device setting information which is device setting information associated with each type of the recording medium;
A setting change determination unit configured to determine and present setting change content to be applied to the image forming unit based on the input information, the device setting information, and the medium device setting information;
The server device transmits the setting change content as the transmission information to the terminal device.
The image forming apparatus changes the apparatus setting applied to the image forming unit based on the setting change content permitted in the terminal apparatus .
The information communication unit is
When the medium information on the recording medium to be used currently is not stored in the setting information storage unit, the terminal device is notified of that effect.
The terminal device is
An information presentation system characterized by connecting with the server device after receiving a notification . The image forming unit is
A transfer member for transferring a toner image to the recording medium;
A fixing member for fixing the toner image transferred to the recording medium ;
A conveying member for conveying the recording medium;
The information presentation system according to claim 1, wherein a device setting applied to the image forming unit is a transfer voltage, a fixing temperature, and a conveyance speed of the recording medium. The server device is
The terminal device further includes an aggregation unit that aggregates information on the setting change content permitted in the terminal device,
Transmitting the counting result in the counting unit as transmission information in response to a request from the terminal device
The information presentation system according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that In the information on the contents of the setting change permitted in the terminal device, the aggregation unit may aggregate information on which the problem is eliminated as a result of the printing operation.
The information presentation system according to claim 3, characterized in that The setting change determination unit
When the setting change content is not permitted in the terminal device, the setting change content to be applied to the image forming unit is again determined and presented.
The information presentation system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that The setting change determination unit
Redetermining and presenting setting change content to be applied to the image forming unit to the image forming apparatus
The information presentation system according to claim 5, characterized in that An electrostatic latent image carrier that carries an electrostatic latent image;
A developing member for developing a toner image by supplying toner to the electrostatic latent image;
A transfer member for transferring the toner image to a recording medium;
A fixing member for fixing the toner image transferred to the recording medium;
An image forming unit having a transport member for transporting the recording medium;
A setting information storage unit that stores medium information and apparatus setting information on the recording medium;
While the apparatus setting information stored in the setting information storage unit is propagated to the outside, when the medium information related to the medium information currently used is not stored in the setting information storage unit, the fact is notified to the terminal device An information communication unit to notify,
An apparatus setting that is transmitted from the external server to the terminal apparatus after notification from the information communication unit, and changes the apparatus setting to be applied to the image forming unit based on the setting content change for the apparatus setting information permitted in the terminal apparatus Providing a change means
An image forming apparatus characterized by