JPH0538050A - Controller for image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To reduce frequent occurrence of shut-off of a breaker at the time of parallel use of an image forming apparatus and other electric unit in an environment having wrong power source circumstances such as home, an office, etc. CONSTITUTION:The controller for an image forming apparatus comprises current detecting means 206 for detecting a first total current value of a special system including the image forming apparatus 200 of a power source facility, predicting means for predicting a current value used for the apparatus 200, calculating means A for calculating a second total current value based on the first total current value and the predicting current value, and comparing means for comparing a current capacity of a special system of the facility with the second total current value. If an excess current is predicted as a result of comparison by the comparing means, a special process which does not break a breaker 204, such as a process for controlling to conserve a conducting current of a fixing heater is conducted by operation control means B, and an image forming process is executed by the state that the breaker 204 is not opened.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a control device for an image forming apparatus such as a digital copying machine.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, in various devices using electric power,
It is necessary to reduce the power consumption. In this respect, when considering the power consumption of OA devices which are currently widely used in offices and homes, many copying machines and laser printers that use electrophotographic technology consume large amounts of power. 600-1000 with just the fixing unit
It consumes power such as W. For this reason, various technologies for reducing the power consumption and effectively utilizing the power have been proposed and implemented for this type of image forming apparatus itself. For example, there is a phase control method in which the first half of the half cycle of the light quantity is assigned to the exposure lamp and the latter half is assigned to the fixing heater.

[0003]

However, in a room originally made for living such as an office or a condominium, an increasing number of examples use a large number of OA devices, and in such an environment where the power supply situation is not good. Below, it is easy to cause inconveniences such as breaker interruption and abnormal power supply voltage drop due to excessive current. In such a situation, some countermeasure is required in the image forming apparatus, which is one of the most power consuming devices. For example, a process that requires less fixing energy in the electrophotographic system, a fixing device having high thermal efficiency, etc. Has been studied, but it is not a perfect countermeasure against the power supply situation.

[0004]

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a current detecting means for detecting a first total current value of a specific system including an image forming apparatus of a power supply facility, and a current used by the image forming apparatus. Predicting means for predicting a value, calculating means for calculating a second total current value based on the first total current value and the predicted current value, a current capacity of a specific system of the power supply equipment, and the second Comparing means for comparing the total current value of 1) with operation amount controlling means for causing the image forming apparatus to perform a specific process that does not prevent the breaker from being shut off according to the comparison result by the comparing means.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the first aspect of the invention, a power distribution unit attached to the image forming apparatus is provided, and the current detection unit is supplied with the first total current value through the power distribution unit. Is to be detected.

In the invention according to claim 1 or 2, when the comparison result in which the second total current value exceeds the current capacity of the specific system of the power supply equipment is output, the specific processing to be performed by the operation control means. According to the third aspect of the present invention, the second total current value is a process of controlling the power supply current to the fixing heater in the image forming apparatus so that the second total current value does not exceed the current capacity of a specific system of the power supply equipment.

According to the fourth aspect of the invention, the energization current is controlled to be power saving by the energization timing of the specific units in the image forming apparatus so that the second total current value does not exceed the current capacity of the specific system of the power supply equipment. It was decided to process.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the image forming processing speed of the image forming apparatus is reduced.

According to the sixth aspect of the invention, when the second total current value exceeds the current capacity of the specific system of the power supply equipment and the comparison result is output to perform the specific processing, the fact is displayed on the display unit. A display control means is provided.

According to the seventh aspect of the invention, the image information read by the image forming apparatus is at least 1 without being printed out.
The processing is stored in the image memory for pages.

According to the invention described in claim 8, in the invention described in claim 7, when the comparison result in which the second total current value does not exceed the current capacity of the specific system of the power supply equipment is output, the comparison result is stored in the image memory. The presence / absence of the recorded image information is detected, and when the image information is present, the operation control means for performing a specific process of giving priority to the image information in the image memory and printing it out.

On the other hand, in the invention described in claim 9, claim 1
Alternatively, in the invention described in 2, a detection unit that is connected to a specific system including an image forming apparatus of a power supply facility and detects breaker breakage; and a storage unit that stores the total current value and the breaker breakage in association with each other. Was set up.

At this time, in the invention described in claim 10, the effective range is set to the learning value of the current capacity of the breaker, and the total current value data when the breaker is cut off outside this effective range is invalidated.

According to the eleventh aspect of the present invention, an initial value is set for the learning value of the current capacity of the breaker, and before the learning of the effective current capacity of the breaker, the breaking of the breaker is avoided by using the initial value. I did it.

[0015]

In general, in the case of an image forming apparatus, the current consumption value of each unit as a constituent element thereof is predetermined, and the current consumption can be predicted at the start of operation. on the other hand,
As for the operation of the image forming apparatus, the full power supply operation such as the normal operation is not necessarily required unless the integrity is required. In consideration of such a point, according to the invention of claim 1, the first total current value of the specific system of the power supply equipment is detected as the power supply current, the current consumption of the image forming apparatus is predicted, and the power supply By predicting the current used with respect to the current capacity, it is possible to predict in advance an accident due to an excessive current that will break the breaker, and to effectively distribute limited electric power to avoid such a situation. By performing only the processing, it is possible to prevent the trouble due to frequent breaker interruptions while ensuring safety.

In this case, according to the invention of claim 2,
Since the image forming apparatus is provided with the power distribution means, it is not necessary to dispose the current detecting means outside the image forming apparatus.

As a specific specific process when the used current is predicted to exceed the capacity of the power source, the invention according to claim 3 is one of the units of the largest current consumption in the image forming apparatus. By controlling the current supplied to the heater to save power and perform the image forming process, it is possible to prevent an accident due to an excessive current that may cause breaker interruption. At this time, since the fixing unit generally has a large heat capacity, the temperature required for fixing can be maintained even if the heater is energized with a sufficient margin by controlling the energizing current, and normal image formation is achieved.

Considering the case where there are a plurality of large current consumption units that are driven intermittently, the maximum current value of the entire device can be suppressed to a low value if the drive timings do not overlap. Further, it can be said that a heater having a large heat capacity such as a fixing heater has little influence on the apparatus even if the energization timing to the heater is deviated from the original timing. Therefore, according to the invention of claim 4, for example, by controlling the energization timing between the units such that the fixing heater is not energized while the exposure light source is on, the breaker is shut off in a state in which image formation is hardly disturbed. It becomes possible not to.

Further, according to the invention of claim 5, the image forming processing speed is reduced to extend the time for the transfer sheet to pass through the fixing portion, so that the energizing current to the fixing heater is stopped or minimized. The fixability can be maintained, and it becomes possible to prevent the breaker from being cut off in a state where there is almost no hindrance to image formation.

When the specific processing is performed so as not to exceed the current capacity as described above, the operation as the image forming processing is limited in some way. According to the invention of claim 6, the fact is stated. For example, by displaying a message such as "Power saving is in progress, power saving operation is being performed", the user does not feel anxiety or distrust due to an operation different from usual.

Further, according to the invention described in claim 7, an image memory capable of storing at least one page of image data is utilized, and when a current consumption exceeding the power supply capacity is predicted, a large current is generated. By storing the read image data in the image memory while ensuring a large reduction in current by disabling the consuming printer section, the minimum image processing required without the interruption of the breaker. Can be done.

At this time, according to the invention described in claim 8, when such a storing process to the image memory is performed, when the printer unit is in a usable power supply state, the image is stored. By giving priority to the printout of the image data, the process will not be confused.

By the way, in the above breaker cutoff prevention processing, it is necessary to detect the current capacity of the power supply system. However, if this is manually input, it may be an actual input error or the breaker's ability. In some cases, this may not be the case, and in some cases optimum control may not be possible. In this respect, according to the invention of claim 9, by detecting the breaker of the breaker and learning the actual current capacity of the power supply system from the current value at that time, the optimum breaker cut-off prevention control according to the actual situation can be realized. It will be possible.

In this case, according to the invention of claim 10,
By setting an effective range for the learning value, for example, an upper limit, when a breaker is cut off due to a large current instantaneously exceeding the actual current capacity, this instantaneous large current value is detected. Is prevented from being learned as a current capacity, and the reliability of the learned value is improved.

According to the eleventh aspect of the present invention, even when the breaker has not been shut off even once, the breaker shutoff prevention process based on the initial value can be performed.

[0026]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. First, in this embodiment, a digital copying machine is used as a target image forming apparatus, and the configuration and operation of the digital copying machine will be described. FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing the overall configuration of a digital copying machine. When roughly classified, an automatic document feeder (ADF) 2, a sorter unit 3, a double-sided reversing unit 4 and the like are attached to a copying machine main body 1. To be done.

The copying machine main body 1 comprises a scanner section, an optical writing section, a photoconductor section, a developing section, a paper feeding section and the like. Here, the schematic configuration and operation of each unit will be described. First, the scanner unit is equipped with a light source 5 with a reflecting mirror and a first mirror 6, and a first scanner that moves at a constant speed,
Equipped with 2nd and 3rd mirrors 7 and 8, 1/2 of the 1st scanner
And a second scanner that moves following the first scanner at a speed of. The original on the contact glass 9 is optically scanned by these first and second scanners, and the reflected image is guided to the lens 11 via the color filter 10 and imaged on the one-dimensional solid-state image pickup element 12. Here, a fluorescent lamp or a halogen lamp can be used as the light source 5, but in consideration of wavelength stability and long life, a fluorescent lamp is generally used.
A CCD is generally used as the one-dimensional solid-state imaging device 12. Since the image signal read by the one-dimensional solid-state imaging device 12 is an analog value, it is A / D converted and various image processings (for example, binarization, multi-value conversion, gradation processing, etc.) are performed by the image processing board 13. Magnification processing, editing processing, etc.) is performed and converted into a digital signal as a set of spots.

In order to obtain color image information, here, a color filter 10 that allows only the information of the required color to pass through is provided in the middle of the optical path guided from the original document to the solid-state image pickup device 12 so as to be movable back and forth. Therefore, the color filter 10 is moved in and out in accordance with the scanning of the document, and the functions such as multiple transfer and double-sided copy are activated each time, so that various kinds of copies can be created.

Next, the optical writing section will be described. The image processing after the image processing is performed by the optical writing unit 15 in the form of a set of light points by raster scanning of laser light.
Written on 6. 3 and 4 show the optical writing unit 15
FIG. 3 is a plan view and a front view showing FIG. The laser light emitted from the semiconductor laser 17 is collimated by the collimator lens 18 and is shaped into a light flux having a constant shape by the aperture 19. After that, it is incident on the polygon mirror 21 in a form compressed by the first cylinder lens 20 in the sub-scanning direction. The polygon mirror 21 formed in an accurate polygonal shape is rotated by a polygon motor 22 in a certain direction at a constant speed, and the laser light incident on the polygon mirror 21 is
The reflected light is deflected by the rotation of the polygon mirror 21. The deflected laser light enters the fθ lens 23, is converted so that scanning light having a constant angular velocity is scanned on the photoconductor 16 at a constant speed, and is imaged on the photoconductor 16 so as to have a minimum light spot. At this time, the light that has passed through the fθ lens 23 is guided outside the image area by the synchronization detection mirror 24 through the synchronization detection light introducing section 25.
And is propagated to the sensor unit by the optical fiber, and is used for synchronous detection serving as a cue reference in the main scanning direction. The process of outputting the image data for one line after a lapse of a fixed time after the synchronization signal is output is similarly repeated for each line,
Two-dimensional optical writing is performed.

In the photoconductor section, the photoconductor 16 is
It has a photosensitive layer on the peripheral surface which is sensitive to a semiconductor laser beam having a wavelength of 780 nm, and such a photosensitive layer includes an organic photoconductor (OPC), α-Si, Se-Te, etc. Uses OPC). Generally, in the case of laser writing, a negative / positive (N / P) process of shining light on an image portion and a positive / positive (P / P / P / n) process of shining light on the background
P) There are two types of process, but here, the former N
/ P process method. Also, the charger 2
Reference numeral 8 denotes, for example, a scorotron type, which is configured such that the surface of the photoconductor 16 is uniformly negatively charged, and when the image forming portion is irradiated with laser light, the electric charge at that portion is dropped. As a result, the background portion of the surface of the photoreceptor 16 is -750 to -800V,
An electrostatic potential image is formed on the surface of the photoconductor 16 when the image portion has a potential of about -500V. The developing device 29 applies a bias voltage of -500 to -600 V to the developing roller,
The latent image is visualized by attaching charged toner to the latent image.
The visualized image is transferred by applying a + electric charge by the transfer charger 30 onto the transfer paper that is fed and conveyed in synchronization with the photoconductor 16. After transfer, the transfer paper is subjected to AC charge removal by the separation charger 31 and separated from the photoconductor 16. After the transfer, the residual toner is scraped off and removed by the cleaning device 32 by the cleaning device 32, and the residual potential is erased by the light irradiation of the static elimination lamp 33.

Next, the paper feeding section will be described. Here, it is possible to carry out double-sided copying or re-feeding by having a plurality of paper feed cassettes 35 and passing the transfer paper once transferred through a re-feeding loop 36. When one of the plurality of paper feed cassettes 35 is selected and the start button is pressed, the paper feed roller near the selected paper feed cassette 35 rotates and paper is fed until the leading edge of the paper hits the registration roller 37. It At this time, although the registration roller 37 is stopped, the registration roller 37 starts rotating at the timing of the image position on the photoconductor 16 to feed the photoconductor 16. After that, as described above, the transfer / separation operation is performed, and the transfer sheet after the transfer is suctioned and conveyed by the separation / conveyance unit 38. After that, the image is fixed by the heat fixing device 39, and during normal copying, it is guided to the sheet discharge port on the sorter unit 3 side by the switching claw 39. On the other hand, at the time of multiple copy, the paper output path to the sorter unit 3 side is closed by switching the switching claw 39, and the paper is guided to the registration roller 37 side again through the lower paper re-feeding loop 36. Further, in the case of double-sided copying, there are two kinds of cases, that is, only the copying machine main body 1 is used and the case where the double-sided reversing unit 4 is used. For example, in the former case, the switching claw 39 moves downward. The guided paper is further guided downward by the switching claw 40, and further guided by the switching claw 41 below it onto the tray 42 below the re-feeding loop 36. Then, the sheet is fed back from the tray 42 by the roller 43 in the re-feeding loop 36 in an inverted state, fed to the registration roller 37 side and used for double-sided copying.

Next, the ADF 2 will be described. The ADF 2 automatically performs the operation of guiding the originals one by one onto the contact glass 9 and discharging the originals after copying. That is, the originals placed on the original feeding table 51 are separated and fed one by one by the feeding roller 52, and are conveyed and set to a predetermined position on the contact glass 9 by the conveying belt 53. When a predetermined number of copies (exposure) are completed, the original is again discharged onto the discharge tray 54 by the conveyor belt 53.

The sorter unit 3 selectively discharges the transfer paper discharged from the copying machine main body 1, for example, in page order, page by page, or to a preset bin 55.

Further, the double-sided reversing unit 4 will be described. As described above, the double-sided copying using only the copying machine main body 1 can perform only the double-sided copying for each sheet, but by using the double-sided reversing unit 4, the double-sided copying can be performed collectively. That is, when making a double-sided copy for a plurality of sheets collectively, the double-sided reversing unit 4 is operated by the switching claw 39.
Sent to. The paper that has entered the double-sided reversing unit 4 is discharged and stacked on the double-sided tray 57 by the paper discharge roller 56. At this time, the transfer paper is aligned vertically and horizontally. The transfer sheets accumulated on the double-sided tray 57 are re-fed by the re-feeding roller 58 at the time of back side copying. At this time, the switching claw 41 directly guides the sheet to the refeeding loop 36.

Next, the electrical equipment control system will be described.
First, FIG. 5 shows a block diagram of the entire electrical equipment control.
The main control board 61 controls the scanner control circuit 62, the sorter control board 63, the double-sided control board 64, the paper feed control board 65, and the operation unit 66 and the application system 67. Has been done.
A power supply circuit 68 from a general commercial power supply is connected to the main control board 61 and the like.

The scanner control circuit 62 will now be described. As shown in FIG. 6, the ADF control plate 69 for the ADF 2, the ballast 70 for the fluorescent lamp (light source) 5, the scanner motor 71, the memory unit 72, etc. In addition, an APS solenoid, an ADF solenoid, etc. are connected. For the memory unit 72, the read signal from the CCD (solid-state image sensor) 12 is the image preprocessor (IPP) 73,
It is input via an image process unit (IPU) 74, and is also connected to an external storage device 75.

Further, as shown in FIG. 7, sensors 76 such as an inlet sensor, a bin sensor, a drive motor 77, loads 78 such as an interrupt solenoid are connected to the sorter control plate 63. The double-sided control plate 64 includes solenoids 79 such as a tray solenoid and clutches 8 such as a paper feed clutch.
0, a jogger motor 81, and sensors 82 such as paper discharge detection are connected.

Further, as shown in FIG. 8, the sheet feeding control plate 65 has solenoids 83 such as a toner replenishing solenoid, clutches 84 such as a registration clutch, and various sensors 85.
At the same time, an intake fan 86 and a transport fan 87 are connected.

Looking at the power supply circuit 68, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 3, electric power is supplied from the general commercial power source to the AC system load, while DC voltage is generated by the DC power source 92 and supplied to the main control board 61 and the scanner control circuit 62. Here, an AC drive plate 93, a main motor drive plate 94, a polygon motor drive plate 95, and a high-voltage power supply 96 are prepared for the AC system load.

On the other hand, such an electric equipment control system will be described from another point of view. As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the main control board 61 as a control unit of the digital copying machine used in this embodiment has two CPUs 101 and 102, and the CPU 101 takes charge of sequence-related control. The CPU 102 is configured to take charge of operation-related control. CPUs 101 and 102 are
Connected by serial interface.

First, the sequence control side will be described with reference to FIG. The CPU 101 for sequence control is
It sets and outputs conditions related to paper transport timing, image formation, paper size detection sensor, sensor 103 for paper transport such as paper discharge detection and registration detection, double-sided reversing unit, high-voltage power supply unit, relay, solenoid, motor, etc. The driver 104, the sorter unit 3, the scanner unit 105, etc. are connected.

Regarding the sensor 103, as described above, a paper size sensor that detects the size and orientation of the paper loaded in the paper feed cassette 35 and outputs an electric signal according to the detection result, registration detection, and paper ejection detection. There is an input from a sensor for detecting the presence or absence of supply such as oil end and toner end, and a sensor for detecting machine abnormality such as door open and fuse blown.

Regarding the double-sided reversing unit, as described above, the motor for aligning the paper width, the paper feed clutch, the solenoid for changing the transport path, the paper presence / absence detection sensor, the home position sensor for the side fence for paper width alignment,
There are sensors related to paper transport. The high-voltage power supply unit applies predetermined high-voltage power to the outputs of the charging charger, the transfer charger, the separation charger, and the developing bias electrode only by the duty obtained by the PWM control. In the PWM control, the feedback value of each high-voltage power output is converted into a digital value by A / D conversion and is controlled to be equal to the target value.

Regarding the driver relationship, as described above,
Paper feed clutch, registration clutch, counter, motor,
There are solenoids for toner supply, power relays, fixing heaters, etc.

Further, it is connected to the sorter unit 3 by a serial interface, and a CP for sequence is used.
It is configured such that the paper is conveyed at a predetermined timing according to a signal from U101 and is discharged to each bin 55.

Further, a fixing temperature, a photosensor input, a monitor input of the semiconductor laser 17, a reference voltage of the semiconductor laser 17, feedback values of output values from various high-voltage power supplies, and the like are input to the analog input of the CPU 101. An input from a thermistor provided in the fixing device 39 performs on / off control or phase control of the fixing heater so that the temperature of the fixing portion becomes constant. The photo sensor input is used for controlling the toner density by inputting a photo pattern created at a predetermined timing by a photo transistor and controlling the on / off of the toner supply clutch by detecting the density of the pattern. . Also,
The toner end is also detected by this density detection.

Next, the operation-related control is shown in FIG.
This will be described with reference to 0. The main CPU 102 controls a plurality of serial ports and a calendar IC, and the plurality of serial ports includes a CPU 1 for sequence control.
01, uninterruptible power supply 91, operation unit 106,
The editor 107, scanner control circuit 62, application unit 67, etc. are connected.

The operation unit 106 has a display for displaying the key input by the operator and the status of the copying machine, and informs the main CPU 102 of the key input information by serial communication. Based on this information, the main CPU 102 determines whether the indicator of the operation unit unit 106 is on or off, and serially transmits the operation unit unit 106. Operation unit 10
6 turns on, turns off or blinks the display according to the information from the main CPU 102. The main CPU 102 further determines the operating conditions of the machine from the obtained information and performs sequence control at the start of copying.
The information is transmitted to 01.

In the scanner control circuit 62, as shown in FIG. 6, scanner servo motor drive control and image processing,
Information regarding image reading is serially transmitted to the CPU 102, and interface processing between the ADF control board 69 and the sequence CPU 101 is performed.

The application unit 67 is an external device (facsimile, printer, etc.) and the main CPU 102.
It is an interface between and, and exchanges preset information contents. The editor 107 is a unit for inputting an editing function, and serially transmits image editing data (masking, trimming, image shift, etc.) input by the operator to the CPU 102. Calendar IC108
Stores the date and time and can be called by the CPU 102 at any time. Therefore, the current time is displayed on the display of the operation unit 106 and the machine on / off time is set to turn on / off the power of the machine. It is possible to control off by timer.

A signal switching gate array 109 is also provided. This signal switching gate array 109 is C
In response to a select signal from PU 102, page memory 1
The image data (DATA0 to 7) stored in 10 and various synchronization signals are output in the following three directions. First
Is output from the scanner control circuit 62 to the image control circuit 111. In this case, the image signal transferred from the scanner as 8-bit data (however, it can also be 4-bit or 1-bit) is used as the laser beam scanner unit 1.
This is output to the image control circuit 111 in synchronization with the synchronization signal PMSYNC from 05. The second is output from the scanner control circuit 62 to the application unit 108. In this case, the image signal transferred from the scanner as 8-bit data is transferred to the application unit 108.
Output in parallel. Application unit 108
Then, the input image data is output to an output device such as a printer connected to the outside. The third is output from the application unit 108 to the image control circuit 111. In this case, the image signal transferred from the input unit externally connected to the application unit 108 with 8-bit data (however, it can be 4 bits or 1 bit) is used as the laser beam scanner unit 10.
The signal is output to the image control circuit 111 in synchronization with the synchronization signal PMSYNC from 5. When the image signal from the outside has 4 bits or 1 bit, it is necessary to perform a process of converting it into 8-bit data.

The CPU 102 has a ROM 112.
And the RAM 113 are connected. RAM1 here
Reference numeral 13 is a non-volatile memory to which a backup battery (not shown) is connected. As a result, the data contents are not erased even when the power is turned off. Therefore, the count values of various counters such as the total copy number counter and the jam counter, the illuminance setting value of the light source 5, the setting value of the fixing heater temperature, etc. I can remember it. These data can be changed using a numeric keypad or the like, if necessary.

Next, the structure of the image scanner unit is shown in FIG.
This will be described with reference to 1. The analog image signal output from the CCD image sensor 12 is an image preprocessor IP.
The signal processing circuit 121 inside the P73 amplifies and corrects the light amount, and the A / D converter 122 converts the signal into a digital multilevel signal. This signal is subjected to correction processing by the shading correction circuit 123, and the image processing unit IPU
It is output to 74.

The IPU 74 is constructed as shown in FIG. That is, the image signal applied to the IPU 74 is emphasized in the high frequency range by the MTF correction circuit 124 and the scaling circuit 125.
Is electrically scaled (according to magnification data in the main scanning direction set by the scanner control circuit 62) by the γ conversion circuit 12
6 is applied. The γ conversion circuit 126 performs conversion processing so that the input characteristics are optimized according to the characteristics of the machine, and the image signal output from the γ conversion circuit 126 is predetermined by the switch 128 of the data depth switching mechanism 127. Is converted to the quantization level of. This data depth switching mechanism 1
Reference numeral 27 includes a 4-bit conversion circuit 129, a binarization circuit 130, a dither circuit 131, and a switch 132, as shown in FIG.
As shown in (c), the data is switched to three data types. First, the 4-bit conversion circuit 129 outputs 4-bit data as shown in FIG.
Then, the input 8-bit multivalued data is converted into binary data by a preset fixed threshold value, and 1-bit data as shown in FIG. 13C is output. The dither circuit 131 produces an area gradation with 1-bit data as shown in FIG. The switch 128 selects one of these three data types and outputs it as DATA0-7.

The scanner control circuit 62 follows the instructions from the CPU 102 to stabilize the ballast 70 and the timing control circuit 13.
3. Controls the variable power circuit 125 and the scanner drive motor 71 in the IPU 74. The ballast 70 is the scanner control circuit 6
According to the instruction from 2, the light source 5 is turned on / off and the light amount is controlled. The rotary encoder 13 is attached to the drive shaft of the motor 71.
4 are connected, and the position sensor 135 detects the reference position of the sub-scanning drive mechanism.

The timing control circuit 133 outputs each signal according to the instruction from the scanner control circuit 62. That is,
When reading is started, a transfer signal for transferring data for one line to the shift register and a shift clock pulse for outputting the data in the shift register bit by bit are given to the CCD 12. The pixel synchronization clock pulse CLK, the main scanning synchronization pulse LSYNC, and the main scanning effective period signal LGATE are output to the image reproduction system control unit. This pixel synchronization clock pulse CLK is a signal almost the same as the shift clock pulse given to the CCD 12,
The main scanning synchronization pulse LSYNC is used by the image writing unit 15
Main scanning synchronization signal PMSYNC output by the beam sensor
Although the signal is almost the same as that of the pixel synchronization clock pulse C
It is output in synchronization with LK. Further, the main scanning effective period signal LGATE is a signal which becomes H level at the timing when the output data DATA0 to DATA7 are regarded as effective data. Incidentally, in this embodiment, the CCD 12 is supposed to output valid data of 4800 bits per line.

When the scanner control circuit 62 receives a reading start instruction from the CPU 102, the light source 5 is turned on, the scanner drive motor 71 is started to drive, the timing control circuit 133 is controlled, and the reading by the CCD 12 is started. Further, the sub-scanning effective period FGATE is set to the H level. This signal FGATE becomes L level when the time required to scan the maximum reading length (in this example, the size in the longitudinal direction of A3 size) in the sub-scanning direction after being set to H level.

By the way, the memory system 14 of the present embodiment.
1 will be described with reference to FIG. The image signal from the CCD 12 is output as 8-bit data through the IPP 73 having the functions of shading correction, black level correction, and light amount correction. This data is the multiplexer (MUX) 1
Selected in 42, it has a spatial frequency high-frequency emphasis function (MTF correction function), a speed conversion function (magnification change function), a γ conversion function, and a data depth conversion function (8 bit / 4 bit / 1 bit conversion function). It is processed by the IPU 74 and output to the printer section PR through the multiplexer 143.

In the case of a system having a frame memory for image data, as shown in FIG. 15, the image data from the IPU 74 is temporarily stored in the memory device (MEM) 144.
In the memory device 144, and when necessary, it is retrieved from the memory device 144 and output to the printer PR. Also, I
It is also common to store the image data from the PU 74 to the printer PR and at the same time store the image data in the memory device 144 and copy the second and subsequent sheets with the image data from the memory device 144.

In this respect, in the present embodiment, a data flow as shown in FIG. 16 is provided so that both the data processed by the IPU 74 and the raw data can be taken into the memory device 144. Has been done. That is, FIG.
The data flow can be changed by switching the three multiplexers 142, 145, 143 shown in FIG. For example, a single scanner scan can generate multiple IP
When outputting a copy in which the parameters of U74 are changed, the multiplexer 142 is set to A when scanning the scanner.
Side, multiplexer 145 to B side, multiplexer 14
3 is set to the A side and the first sheet is output. At this time, the raw data is stored in the memory device 144 through the multiplexer 145. For the second and subsequent sheets, the multiplexer 142 is set to the B side, the data from the memory device 144 is input to the IPU 74, and the multiplexer 143 is output to the printer PR. At this time, the parameters of the IPU 74 are changed every time one copy is made. It can be achieved by such a procedure.

When holding compact data such as 1-bit data, the multiplexer 145 is set to A
The output of the IPU 74 is taken into the memory device 144. In this case, the printer PR switches to the binary data (1 bit) mode and performs the copy operation.

Signals EXTIN and EXT shown in FIG.
UT is an image data input / output signal from the external storage device 75.

By the way, as the memory device 144, for example, one having a structure as shown in FIG. 17 is used. That is, the compressor (COMP) 146 and the expander (EX
P) 147 and before and after the memory unit 148,
In addition to actual data, compressed data can be stored. In this configuration, the compressor 146 must operate at scanner speed and the decompressor 147 must operate at printer speed. Actual data in memory unit 14
8 to store the data in the multiplexers 149 and 15
0 is set to the A side, and when compressed data is used, it is set to the B side.

Here, the memory unit 148 is constructed, for example, as shown in FIG. That is, FIG.
The data width converters 155, 156 are provided at the input and output of the memory block 157 in order to handle the three image data types shown in (a) to (c) and code data which is compressed data. Further, the direct memory controllers (DMC) 158 and 159 write data into or read data from a predetermined address of the memory block 157 according to the number of packed data and the memory data width.

The data type of the image data shown in FIG. 19 will be described. Normally, the speed of image data from the scanner or to the printer is constant regardless of 8-bit data, 4-bit data or 1-bit data. That is, the period of 1 pixel is fixed in the device.
In the apparatus of this embodiment, 1-bit data, 4-bit data, 8-bit data and M
It is defined by SB justification. The blocks for packing and unpacking this data into the data width (16 bits) of the memory block 157 are the data width converters 155 and 156. By packing, the memory block 157 can be used according to the data depth.
44 can be effectively used.

The compressor 146 as shown in FIG.
Instead of using the decompressor 147 and the decompressor 147, the pixel process unit (PPU) 161 may be arranged outside the memory unit 148 as shown in FIG. The PPU 161 is a unit that expresses a logical operation (for example, AND, OR, EXOR, NOT) between image data, and has a function of calculating memory output data and input data and outputting the same to the printer PR, and memory output and input data. (For example, scanner data) is calculated and stored again in the memory unit 148. Switching between the output printer PR and the memory unit 148 is performed by the multiplexers 162 and 163. This function is generally used for image synthesis, and is used, for example, to place overlay data in a memory unit and overlay the scanner data.

Next, a configuration example in which the external storage device 75 is used to store image data will be described with reference to FIG. First, copy the image data to floppy disk 16
When the data is stored in 5, the data is output from the EXTOUT to the floppy disk controller (FDC) 168 controlled by the file controller 167 through the interface 166,
The floppy disk 165 on the floppy disk drive (FDD) 169 is stored. Under the control of the file controller 167, a hard disk controller (HDC) 170, a hard disk drive (HDD)
There is also 171, and reading / writing on the hard disk is also possible. Specifically, the normally used format data and overlay data are stored in the HDD 171 side so that they can be used as needed.

FIG. 22 shows a configuration capable of 100% recovery even when the processing speeds of compression and decompression are not in time. The memory unit 148 stores data and image data that are compressed at the same time as the scanner scan. The incoming data is stored in different memory areas, but the compressed data is directly input to the decompressor 147 and decompressed. All data for one page is in memory unit 14
If the processing time of the compressor 146 and the decompressor 147 ends normally by the time of entering 8, the compressed data memory area remains and the raw data area is canceled. If the error detection circuit 151 has the compressor 146 or the decompressor 1
When the error signal from 47 is detected, the compressed data area is immediately canceled and the raw data is adopted.

The memory management unit (MMU) 175 is a unit for controlling the memory unit 148 so that two input data and one output data can be simultaneously input / output to / from the memory unit 148. By verifying compression and decompression in real time, high speed and reliability and effective utilization of the memory area are ensured. In this embodiment,
In such a configuration, the memory management unit 175 allows dynamic allocation of the memory area, but two memory units for raw data and compressed data may be provided.

In any case, the configuration shown in FIG. 22 must satisfy both the number of stored pages and the printing speed so that a plurality of pages are stored and output to the printer in real time as in electronic sorting. Suitable for various applications.

In the image forming apparatus 200 using such a digital copying machine, as shown in FIG. 1A, for example, a breaker 204 is provided as a specific system 202 for the power supply line 201, separately from the other system 203. The power is supplied from the outlet 205 connected to the own power supply line via the power supply line, and other outlets 205 can be appropriately connected with electric devices. Such an image forming apparatus 2
A current sensor 206 is provided in the breaker 204 as a current detection means for detecting the total current value of the specific system 202 including 00 (this is the first total current value) in real time. The sensor system of the current sensor 206 is not particularly limited, but a non-contact type using a current transformer is used in this embodiment. The output of the current sensor 206 is output via the amplifier 207 to the image forming apparatus 20.
It is input to the controller (main control board 61) in 0,
Taken into the CPU 102 through the A / D converter 208,
It is configured to be monitored.

On the other hand, the predicting means for predicting the current value used by the image forming apparatus 200 will be described. Usually, in the image forming apparatus 200, the used current value of a specific unit is prepared as data, and the used current value can be known by searching this data with software. Here, focusing on the fixing device 39 as a specific unit,
A method of knowing the predicted current value will be described with reference to an example of one control method.

The first is an on / off control system, which is shown in FIG.
In the circuit shown in FIG. 3, as the control of the energization state of the fixing heater 211, there is only two types of control: on or off. According to this method, the circuit is simple, and switching at the zero point of the AC voltage has the advantage of less noise, and is therefore frequently used. As a specific control method, the temperature of the fixing roller is detected by the detection circuit 213 through a temperature sensor such as the thermistor 212, PID calculation is performed based on the past history and the current data, and the energization cycle within a predetermined time is shown in FIG. It is determined as shown in the waveform during the on / off control. In addition, because of cycle control,
A zero cross detection circuit 214 is provided. Further, a triac 215 is connected to the fixing heater 211 and is configured to be on / off controlled (or the following phase angle control) by the conduction angle phase control by the trigger circuit 216. With simpler control, the temperature may be turned off if the temperature is higher than the predetermined temperature, and may be turned on if the temperature is lower than the predetermined temperature. There are two types of current values: zero or full energization, and it is easy to predict the current value. The off current value can be predicted as zero, and the on current value can be predicted as the full energization value. Is.

The second is a phase control system in which the energization amount of the fixing heater 212 is varied by controlling the conduction phase angle. Although there is a problem that noise is likely to occur and the circuit becomes complicated, it has the advantage that the control resolution is high and there is no abrupt current change, so that adverse effects such as power supply voltage drop are less likely to occur. In the case of this method, the used current value is determined by the phase angle and the input voltage, but here the input voltage is simply the standard value (1 in Japan).
It is fixed to 00V) and the current value corresponding to the phase angle is prepared as data. Even in this system, the temperature of the fixing roller is detected by the detection circuit 213 through a temperature sensor such as the thermistor 212, and PID calculation is performed based on the past history and the current data. Here, the triac 2 is used.
The conduction angle of 15 is determined as shown in the waveform during phase control in FIG. 24, and is controlled via the trigger circuit 216. The current value can be predicted by this phase angle.

Therefore, as the temperature control of the fixing device 39, as shown in the flow chart of FIG. 25, it is divided into ON / OFF control or phase control after PID calculation, and if ON / OFF control, the flow chart of FIG. When the phase control is performed, the trigger control processing shown in the flowchart of FIG. 27 is performed.

Next, comparison with the current capacity of the power source will be described. When changing the energization state of the fixing heater 211 of the fixing device 39, the current value of the current is sampled, and the fixing device 39 is changed from the energization state to be set.
Of the current value is used as the total current value after the state change (this is the second total current value). That is, FIG.
The part for performing the process A shown in (b) corresponds to the computing means. Therefore, the current capacity of the power supply which is already known by some method is compared with the second total current value, and when the current capacity of the power supply is exceeded, the breaker 204 is prevented from shutting down due to this state change. Therefore, a specific process is executed. Further, during the execution of the specific process, such comparison operation is periodically repeated to cancel the process. Further, as an example of a specific process for preventing overcurrent, if the fixing control is on / off control, as shown in FIG. 1C, a specific process flag is set to turn off the trigger, and By clearing the cycle number counter, a specific process B for turning off the power supply to the fixing heater 211 is performed. The part that performs this process B corresponds to the operation control means.

Even when the fixing heater 211 is turned off, the fixing roller generally has a large heat capacity, so that the temperature required for fixing can be maintained for a while, and the copying operation is almost normal. Can be continued.

On the other hand, when the fixing control is based on the phase control method, since the energization control state is multi-valued, it is possible to energize the fixing heater 211 within a range not exceeding the power supply capacity. That is, the difference between the current total current value and the current capacity of the power supply may be maximized, and the phase angle may be limited to allow the current to flow. FIG. 28 is a flowchart showing the control for such a specific process C. According to this method, it is possible to effectively use the limited power source power and to extend the time or period during which the temperature required for fixing can be maintained, as compared with the case of the above method (the method of FIG. 1C). Become. This corresponds to the "specific processing for controlling the energizing current of the fixing heater" in the invention of claim 3.

By the way, in order to fix the toner on the transfer paper, it is necessary to apply a predetermined heat energy. However, if the energizing current to the fixing heater 211 is limited as described above in order to prevent overcurrent, the original operation will be lost. Then, Figure 2
As shown in FIG. 9 (a), the supplied energy becomes insufficient and the temperature drops. In this respect, if the copying operation is performed under the control of extending the interval of continuous copying (one copy cycle) to reduce the copying speed, the time during which fixing is not performed increases, and as shown in FIG. During this time, the temperature can be recovered and the copyable time can be extended under the condition that the current is limited. Such processing corresponds to the "specific processing for reducing the image forming processing speed" in the invention of claim 5. FIG. 30 is a flow chart showing variable control of the copy speed depending on the necessity of the specific processing,
In the normal time, the control is performed at the timing shown in FIG. 31 (a), and in the specific processing, the control is performed at the interval delayed timing as shown in FIG. 31 (b).

Further, if a process with some limitation is performed to prevent overcurrent as described above, side effects such as a decrease in fixing temperature and a decrease in copy speed may actually appear.
Depending on the status of other devices, the execution time of such specific processing may be prolonged, and a normal copy may not be obtained. That is, the fixing property deteriorates as the fixing temperature decreases, and the fixing may become impossible at last, and when the fixing roller is rotated at a temperature equal to or lower than the melting point of the toner, the fixed toner may damage the roller. Sometimes given. Therefore, when the fixing temperature falls below a predetermined value, it is necessary to prohibit the copy operation as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 32 to prevent the occurrence of defective copying and damage to the rollers. However, if such a side effect suddenly occurs, only a user who is familiar with the device can know how to deal with it, and this may give a general user a sense of distrust. Therefore, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 33, on the display unit 222 of the operation panel 221, to that effect, that is, a warning display 223 such as "power over" or a warning message display such as "power saving is in progress due to power over". 224
Is displayed as a warning. FIG. 34 is a flowchart showing the control of the display control means for performing such display. The display to that effect during the specific processing corresponds to the invention of claim 6. In addition, such a warning display enables some users to temporarily turn off other electric devices to prioritize the copy operation, which enables an appropriate response.

Next, the second embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG.
37 to 37. In the present embodiment, as a specific process for preventing overcurrent, energization control is performed at energization timing. Image forming apparatus 2
Units having a large current consumption in 00 include a fixing unit 39 having a fixing heater 211, an image reading unit having an exposure lamp 5, and a drive motor. Among these, those that are energized intermittently can suppress the peak value of the current consumption of the image forming apparatus 200 as a whole if the energization timings do not overlap. When each element is viewed from such a point of view, the exposure lamp 5 and the drive motor cannot perform their functions unless they are energized at regular timings, but the fixing heater 211 has no effect on the functions even if the timing is slightly deviated. Few. Therefore, even if the fixing heater 211 is not energized while the exposure lamp 5 is on, the exposure lamp 5 is off while the document is not exposed. Therefore, if the fixing heater 211 can be energized during this period, the fixability is improved. The current value can be suppressed with almost no influence on the above. Therefore, in the present embodiment, for example, when the fixing control is on / off control, the difference between the second total current value and the current capacity of the power supply becomes small as shown in the flowchart of FIG. If this happens, as a preventive measure, the above-mentioned timing control is executed so that the operation control is performed with an increased margin for fluctuations in power consumption of other devices.

If the fixing control is the phase control method, it may be controlled as shown in the flowchart of FIG. The "predetermined value" in the figure means a predetermined value added to the normal value as shown in FIG.

The specific processing as shown in FIG. 35 or FIG. 36 corresponds to the "processing for controlling the energization current by the energization timing of the specific units" in the invention of claim 4.

Further, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. This embodiment corresponds to the invention described in claim 2, and uses a part of the image forming apparatus 200 itself as the power distribution apparatus 231, and uses the external line 232 for other equipment that the image forming apparatus 200 should manage. Are all connected to this power distribution device 231. Further, in the image forming apparatus 200, the AC circuit 233 and the outlet 234 are also connected. With such a configuration, the current sensor 206 that detects the total current value supplied through the power distribution device 231 may be provided in the image forming apparatus 200 itself, and as in the case of FIG. There is no need to place the current sensor 206 outside the device 200.

The operation control such as other specific processing may be performed in the same manner as in the case of the first and second embodiments described above.

Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG.
42 to 42. This embodiment corresponds to the invention described in claims 7 and 8, and is provided with a page memory 110 capable of storing at least one page of image data as shown in FIG. 10 in the first embodiment. Applies to In the image forming apparatus 200, which is a digital copying machine including the page memory 110, when the printer unit cannot be used due to an abnormality or the like, only the reading operation is executed and the read image data is stored in each of the page memories 110. Techniques such as, are known. In this embodiment, as a different utilization method of the page memory 110, when the predicted current value may exceed the current capacity of the power supply, the page memory 11 is used.
By using 0, only the original is read and the print output operation is not performed.

That is, as a process when the current over is predicted, when changing the energization state of the fixing heater 211, a current value is predicted and a saving for preventing a breaker breakage due to the current capacity over is prevented. The electric power processing is executed as a special processing, but in the present embodiment, before the control of the fixing heater 211, the entire printer section including such fixing heater 211 is made inoperative to reduce the used current. . As described above, in this type of apparatus, the fixing heater 211 and the printer unit including many motors require an overwhelmingly large current.
1 consumes as much as 700 to 800 W of electric power, so that a large current reduction effect can be expected by disabling the printer unit as in the present embodiment.

Such processing will be described with reference to the flow charts of FIGS. 39 to 41. First, the flow chart of this example is configured as a part of the program of the main CPU 102 shown in FIG. 10 and the like, and is started when the current over is predicted as in the case of the above-described embodiment. First, a copy interruption instruction is issued to the program module as shown in FIG. 40 in which the copy operation is being executed by the power failure prevention program module shown in FIG. This instruction gives the same effect as pressing the clear / stop key during copying, and completes the copy being executed without activating a new copy operation even if it is not the final copy. Following this, a printer shutdown instruction is issued. The program module shown in FIG. 41, which manages the printer unit, puts the printer in a sleep state according to this instruction. In the resting state, power supply to the fixing heater 211, the drive motor, and the like is stopped, and the print output is not performed. As a result, the current consumption is greatly reduced. In this state, generally, there is a sufficient current for operating the scanner, so if there is still a document to be read, the output destination of the image data is switched from the printer unit side to the page memory 110 side and the image reading is restarted. Let If all the originals have been read, the reading operation is not performed, but the fact that the reading is possible is notified by some means and the process waits. It should be noted that the storage destination of the image data during such an operation is preferably a non-volatile memory such as a floppy disk or a hard disk in consideration of the possibility of power failure. By such a series of operations, it is possible to minimize the decrease in productivity related to image processing due to the influence of the current consumption of other devices.

A description will be given of the recovery after the specific processing such as the inoperability of the printer section and the storage in the page memory 110. When the current consumption of the other device decreases and the printer unit returns to a level at which the printer unit can be operated, the hibernate state of the printer is released and the printer returns to the normal state. At this time, if a new copy operation is started while the image data obtained by the above-mentioned power failure prevention processing is left in the page memory 110, the read operation will be forgotten and copy will be made again. It is easy to make mistakes such as. Furthermore, if the image data is left in the page memory 110 and another copy is started during sorting or stapling,
It may lead to troublesome troubles such as page errors. In this regard, in this embodiment, when the normal state is restored, it is checked whether or not the image data by the power failure prevention processing is in the page memory 110, and if there is, it is controlled so as to be preferentially printed out. .

The flowchart of FIG. 42 shows such processing. This flowchart is also for the CPU 10
It is configured as a part of the program in 2 and is started when the printer unit returns from the idle state to the normal state. When activated, first, it is checked whether the page memory 110 (or the floppy disk or the hard disk) stores image data by the power failure prevention processing. If the image data is not stored, the processing is performed in the same manner as when the power is normally turned on, and the initial conditions such as the start-up of the fixing heater 211 are waited for and the copying is permitted. On the other hand, when the image data is stored, the input to the printer is switched from the scanner side to the reading from the page memory 110 side, and if the initial condition is satisfied, the page memory 1 is not permitted to be copied.
The image data read from 10 is printed out. As a result, it is possible to maintain continuity with the print output before the printer unit does not operate, and it is possible to avoid problems such as page misalignment when using a post-processing device such as a sorter or stapler as much as possible. When this process is complete,
It returns to the normal standby state, copying is allowed, and a new copy instruction is waited for.

Further, a fifth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 43 to 45. First, as in each of the above-described embodiments, it is necessary to detect the current capacity of the power supply system in order to perform the power saving process to prevent power failure when the current over is predicted, but Even if the input is set and the breaker capacity is set to be, for example, the current capacity of 30 A, there is a possibility that optimum control cannot be performed and the breaker is cut off due to an input error or a difference from the actual value of the breaker. . Therefore, in the present embodiment, the breaker 204 is detected to be shut down, and the power supply capacity of the power supply system is learned from the current value at that time, so that optimum control in accordance with the actual power supply situation can be performed. is there.

Therefore, in this embodiment, as in the above-described embodiment, first, as shown in FIG. 1A, the current sensor 206 for detecting the total current value of the power supply equipment is provided in the breaker 204. It is provided against. Here, the image forming apparatus 200 samples the total current in a specific cycle and stores the current value in the memory. At this time, not only the latest data but also the past history is stored in the memory, and when this storage area is full, rewriting is controlled so that the oldest data is erased and the latest data is stored. further,
As the logging information of the total current value, the sampling data is stored in the nonvolatile memory 113 in association with the time at a specific cycle. The time information is obtained from the calendar IC 111. Here, the history information of the total current value is used to know a short-term current change. For example, when breaker interruption is detected by the method described later, the current change immediately before is detected, and the current value at which breaker interruption occurs is estimated. The latter logging information is used to know the current change in a long time range, and is mainly used by a service person or the like to check the power supply situation and the like.

Next, breaker cutoff detection, which is a feature of this embodiment, will be described. This interruption detection method includes, for example, a method using a breaker that outputs an interruption signal and a method using a detection circuit for the total current value. In the former case, a breaker function that outputs a cutoff signal is used. For example, as shown in FIG. 43, the mechanical contact 242 is interlocked with the breaker 241 being cut off.
What changes from closed to open is used. The contact 242 is connected to the input interface 243 and the input port 23.
The CPU 102 in the image forming apparatus 200 is input via 4 to monitor. The CPU 102 side processes the breaker cutoff signal within several tens of milliseconds after the power is turned off (breaker 241 is cut off) until the operation is stopped. This method is simple and reliable,
It has the drawback of requiring a special breaker 241 and wiring between the devices 200.

In the latter case, the current sensor 206 is used, and the hardware configuration shown in FIG. 1A may be used without any special device or wiring for detecting breaker 204 interruption. That is, since it has a device and wiring for detecting the total current, it is used to detect the breakage of the breaker 204. In this case, at least the image forming apparatus 200 of the present embodiment should be supplied with power. Therefore, if the total current becomes zero, this is regarded as the breaker 204 being cut off. However,
When the power is cut off due to a power failure or the like, the breaker 204 is not cut off, but the total current becomes zero, which is a disadvantage indistinguishable from breaker cutoff. However, such a drawback can be overcome to some extent by checking the effective range of the learning value described later, and is not a fatal injury. Also in this method, as in the former case, the power is turned off (breaker cutoff).
Necessary processing is executed within several tens of milliseconds from when the operation is stopped to when the operation is stopped.

Based on the detection of the breaker cutoff,
Current capacity learning is performed. This processing is shown in FIG.
And the flowchart of FIG. 45. This process is started by breaker breakage detection, and the history immediately before the total current value is checked by breakage detection, and the current value causing breaker breakage is estimated by means such as finding the peak value. The current value is stored in the non-volatile memory 113 together with the occurrence time of the interruption, and the breaker 204
(Or 241) is stored as the total current value at the time of interruption.
Similar to the sampling of the total current value described above, not only the latest data but also the past history are stored in the non-volatile memory 113. When this storage area becomes full, the oldest data is erased and rewritten with the latest data. To be controlled. Next, check the validity of this data. That is, it is confirmed that it is within the effective range programmed in advance. For example, in devices for general homes, condominiums, and offices, it is unlikely that the breaker capacity will be 5 A or less or 50 A or more, so such a value is programmed as an effective range. As a result, the reliability of the detection data is improved, and the probability of malfunction in the case of a power failure in the latter detection method described above can be reduced. next,
The learning value so far is compared with the new effective data, and if the new data has a smaller value, the new data is learned as the current capacity of the breaker and stored in the non-volatile memory 113. Thereafter, the learning value is used to perform breaker cutoff prevention processing.

By the way, in the case of such a learning control method, no processing can be performed until learning is performed at least once, that is, until the breaker 204 (or 241) is shut off once. Therefore, in this embodiment, the learning value is set to an initial value. Similar to the case of the above-mentioned effective range, the upper limit of the breaker capacity can be estimated to some extent depending on the environment in which it is used, so that a value of 50 A, for example, is stored in advance in the non-volatile memory 113 as an initial value for learning. By doing so, it is possible to immediately perform the breaker interruption prevention process after the machine is installed.

[0097]

Since the present invention is configured as described above, according to the invention of claim 1, the first total current value of the specific system including the image forming apparatus of the power supply equipment is detected as the power supply current. However, by predicting the current consumption of the image forming apparatus and predicting the current used with respect to the current capacity of the power supply, it is possible to predict in advance an accident due to excessive current that will break the breaker, and avoid such a condition. Since only limited power is effectively distributed so that only specific processing is performed, it is possible to prevent troubles due to frequent breaker interruptions while ensuring safety.

In this case, according to the invention of claim 2,
Since the image forming apparatus is provided with the power distribution means, it is not necessary to dispose the current detecting means outside the image forming apparatus.

Further, as a specific specific processing when the used current is predicted to exceed the capacity of the power supply, for example, according to the invention of claim 3, the unit of the largest current consumption in the image forming apparatus is used. Since the image forming process is performed by controlling the power supply current to the fixing heater, which is one of them, it is possible to prevent an accident due to an excessive current that may break the breaker, and the fixing unit generally has a high heat capacity. Since the size is large, the temperature required for fixing can be maintained and normal image formation can be performed even if there is a margin of energization by controlling the energizing current to the heater.

Further, when there are a plurality of high current consumption units that are driven intermittently, the maximum current value of the entire device can be kept low unless the drive timings overlap, and like the fixing heater. In consideration of the fact that the one having a large heat capacity has little influence on the apparatus even if the energization timing to the heater is deviated from the original timing, in the invention according to claim 4, for example, the fixing heater is energized while the exposure light source is on. Since the energization timing between the units is controlled so that the breakers are not interrupted, it is possible to prevent the breaker from being cut off in a state where the image formation is hardly disturbed.

According to the fifth aspect of the invention, the image forming processing speed is reduced to extend the time for the transfer sheet to pass through the fixing section. Therefore, the energizing current to the fixing heater is stopped or minimized. In that case, the fixing property can be maintained, and it becomes possible to prevent the breaker from being cut off in a state where the image formation is hardly hindered.

While the specific processing is performed so as not to exceed the current capacity as described above, the operation as the image forming processing is limited in some way. According to the invention of claim 6, that effect is provided. , For example, "I'm in power saving mode because of power over"
It is possible to prevent the user from feeling uneasy or distrustful by an operation different from the usual one.

Further, according to the invention of claim 7, an image memory capable of storing at least one page of image data is used, and when a current consumption exceeding the power supply capacity is predicted, a large current is generated. The consumption of the printer is disabled and a large reduction in current is ensured, while reading image data is stored in the image memory, so the breaker is not shut off and the necessary minimum Image processing can be performed.

At this time, according to the invention described in claim 8, when such a storage process to the image memory is performed, when the printer unit is in a usable power supply state, the image is stored. Since the printout of the image data is prioritized, the printout can be processed without confusion.

For such breaker cut-off prevention processing, it is necessary to detect the current capacity of the power supply system. However, if this is used as a manual input, the actual situation may occur due to an input error or the breaker's ability. In some cases, the optimum control may not be possible, but in some cases,
According to the invention described above, the breaker cutoff is detected, and the actual current capacity of the power supply system is learned from the current value at that time. Therefore, it is possible to perform optimum breaker cutoff prevention control in accordance with the actual situation.

In this case, according to the invention of claim 10,
By setting an effective range for the learning value, for example, an upper limit, when a breaker is cut off due to a large current instantaneously exceeding the actual current capacity, this instantaneous large current value is detected. Can be prevented from being learned as a current capacity, and the reliability of the learned value can be improved.

According to the eleventh aspect of the present invention, even when the breaker has not been shut off even once, the breaker shutoff prevention process based on the initial value can be performed.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of the present invention, (a) is a block diagram showing an outline of power supply equipment, (b) is a flowchart showing processing of arithmetic means, and (c) is an example of processing of operation control means. It is a flowchart showing.

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of the entire digital copying machine.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a configuration of a writing system.

FIG. 4 is a front view thereof.

FIG. 5 is a schematic block diagram showing an entire electrical equipment control system.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram mainly showing the vicinity of a scanner control system.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram mainly showing a sorter and a double-sided control system.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram mainly showing a paper feed control system.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram mainly showing a sequence control system.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram mainly showing a main control system.

FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing a processing circuit in the scanner.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing an IPU configuration.

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing an IPU output data format.

FIG. 14 is a block diagram showing a memory system.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram showing an example of its general configuration.

FIG. 16 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of the embodiment system.

FIG. 17 is a block diagram showing a memory device.

FIG. 18 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of the memory unit.

FIG. 19 is a schematic diagram showing a data configuration example.

FIG. 20 is a block diagram showing a modified example of the memory device.

FIG. 21 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of an external storage device.

FIG. 22 is a block diagram showing another modification of the memory device.

FIG. 23 is a block diagram showing a fixing heater control system.

FIG. 24 is a timing chart showing fixing heater energization control.

FIG. 25 is a flowchart showing a fixing heater control calculation.

FIG. 26 is a flowchart showing trigger control in the case of an on / off control method.

FIG. 27 is a flowchart showing trigger control in the case of the phase control method.

FIG. 28 is a flowchart showing a specifying process in the case of the phase control method.

FIG. 29 is a characteristic diagram showing a fixing temperature characteristic at the time of current limited copying depending on the presence / absence of a decrease in copy speed.

FIG. 30 is a flowchart showing copy management in the copy speed reduction method.

FIG. 31 is a timing chart showing a data length accompanying a change in copy speed.

FIG. 32 is a flowchart showing fixing temperature monitoring.

FIG. 33 is a schematic plan view showing an operation display unit.

FIG. 34 is a flowchart showing a warning display process.

FIG. 35 is a flowchart of trigger control showing the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 36 is a flowchart showing trigger control in the phase control method.

FIG. 37 is a waveform chart showing a predetermined value to be corrected.

FIG. 38 is a block diagram showing a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 39 is a flowchart of a power outage prevention process showing the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 40 is a flowchart showing copy processing.

FIG. 41 is a flowchart showing printer management processing.

FIG. 42 is a flowchart showing a restoration process.

FIG. 43 is a block diagram showing a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 44 is a flowchart showing current capacity learning processing.

FIG. 45 is a flowchart showing a nonvolatile memory initialization process.

[Explanation of symbols]

200 image forming apparatus 202 Specific system 204 breakers 206 Current detection means (also breaker cutoff detection means) 211 Fixing heater 222 display 224 Display to that effect 231 power distribution means 241 breakers 232 Breaker cutoff detection means A calculation means B operation control means

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁵ Identification code Internal reference number FI Technical display location G03G 15/20 109 6830-2H H02H 3/08 N 9061-5G H04N 1/00 E 4226-5C ( 72) Inventor Tomonori Fukui 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo, Japan Ricoh Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Kiyoto Kiyoto, 1-3-3 Nakamagome, Tokyo Ota-ku, Ricoh Company, Ltd.

Claims (11)

[Claims] 1. A current detecting means for detecting a first total current value of a specific system including an image forming apparatus of a power supply facility, a predicting means for predicting a current value used by the image forming apparatus, and the first Calculating means for calculating a second total current value on the basis of the total current value and the predicted current value, and comparing means for comparing the current capacity of a specific system of the power supply facility with the second total current value. A control device for an image forming apparatus, comprising: an operation control means for performing a specific process of the image forming apparatus that does not prevent a breaker from being shut off according to a comparison result by the comparing means. 2. A power distribution unit attached to the image forming apparatus,
A current detection unit that detects a first total current value supplied through the power distribution unit, a prediction unit that predicts a current value used by the image forming apparatus, and a first total current value and the predicted current value. Calculating means for calculating a second total current value based on
Comparing means for comparing the current capacity of the specific system of the power supply equipment with the second total current value, and performing the specific processing of the image forming apparatus that does not prevent the breaker from being cut off according to the comparison result by the comparing means. A control device for an image forming apparatus, comprising: an operation control means for controlling the operation. 3. The second total current value does not exceed the current capacity of the specific system of the power supply equipment when the comparison result is output in which the second total current value exceeds the current capacity of the specific system of the power supply equipment. 3. The control device for an image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the operation control means is configured to perform a specific process for power-saving control of a current supplied to the fixing heater in the image forming apparatus. 4. The second total current value does not exceed the current capacity of the specific system of the power supply equipment when a comparison result is output in which the second total current value exceeds the current capacity of the specific system of the power supply equipment. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the operation control means is configured to perform a specific process for controlling power saving of the entire energizing current according to the energizing timing of specific units in the image forming apparatus. Control device. 5. An operation control for performing a specific process for reducing an image forming processing speed by an image forming apparatus when a comparison result in which the second total current value exceeds the current capacity of a specific system of the power supply equipment is output. The control device of the image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control device is a means. 6. When the second total current value exceeds the current capacity of a specific system of the power supply equipment and a comparison result is output to perform a specific process, a display control means for displaying that effect on a display unit. It is provided, Claim 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5
A control device for the image forming apparatus described. 7. The image forming apparatus is a digital image forming apparatus having an image memory for at least one page, and when a comparison result in which the second total current value exceeds the current capacity of a specific system of the power supply equipment is output. 3. The control device for an image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the operation control means is configured to perform a specific process of storing the image information read by the image forming apparatus in the image memory without printing it. 8. When the comparison result is output in which the second total current value does not exceed the current capacity of the specific system of the power supply equipment, the presence or absence of the image information stored in the image memory is detected and the image information exists. 8. The control device for an image forming apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the control device is an operation control unit that performs a specific process of giving priority to the image information in the image memory to print out when performing. 9. A detection means connected to a specific system including an image forming apparatus of a power supply facility to detect breaker breakage, and a storage means for storing the total current value and the breaker breakage in association with each other. Claim 1 or 2 characterized by
A control device for the image forming apparatus described. 10. The image according to claim 9, wherein an effective range is set for the learning value of the current capacity of the breaker, and the total current value data when the breaker is cut off outside this effective range is invalidated. Forming device control device. 11. A breaker current capacity learning value is set to an initial value that regulates an upper limit, and before the effective breaker current capacity learning is learned, the breaker interruption is avoided by using the initial value. The control device for an image forming apparatus according to claim 9 or 10.