KR100561476B1 - Method of measuring toner amount used in laser printer - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method for measuring the toner usage of a laser printer using adjacent dot pixels to more accurately calculate the toner usage at the time of printing. The method comprises the steps of: (a) interpreting the print data to generate an image of one page and calculating the total number of dot pixels to be printed in the image; (b) calculating the number of adjacent dot pixels in the image; (c) multiplying the number of adjacent dot pixels by a predetermined weight; (d) subtracting the number of adjacent dot pixels multiplied by the weight from the total number of dot pixels; And (e) calculating the toner remaining amount by subtracting the subtracted dot pixel number from the current remaining amount of toner. Thus, according to the present invention, it is possible to accurately calculate the amount of toner usage close to reality, and thus to provide accurate toner remaining amount information to the user, and to inform the exact time of toner replacement, thereby saving toner.

Description

How to measure toner usage in laser printers {Method of measuring toner amount used in laser printer}

1 is a flowchart showing a conventional method of measuring toner usage.

2 is a block diagram showing a laser printer according to the present invention.

3 is a flowchart illustrating a toner usage measuring method according to the present invention.

4 is a diagram illustrating an image having adjacent dot pixels.

5 is a diagram illustrating an image without adjacent dot pixels.

<Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

10 ... laser printer, 12 ... kernel section,

14 emulation section, 16 engine section,

18 ... developing unit, 20 ... adjacent dot pixel counting unit.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for measuring toner usage of a laser printer, and more particularly, to a method for measuring toner usage of a laser printer using adjacent dot pixels in order to more accurately calculate the toner usage in printing.

When printing a document using a laser printer, toner usage is calculated and the user is informed of the remaining amount of toner.

1 is a flowchart showing a conventional method of measuring toner usage. Referring to FIG. 1, an image of one page is generated by analyzing print data of a document received by a laser printer (S10). The number of dot pixels to be printed in an image of one page is calculated (S12), and the calculated number of dot pixels is subtracted from the current toner remaining amount (S14). It is determined whether the subtracted toner remaining amount is less than or equal to the reference value, that is, the toner is insufficient (S16). If the toner is not low, the document is printed (S20). On the other hand, if it is determined in step S16 that the toner is low, a message indicating that the remaining amount of toner is insufficient is displayed on the LCD (S18), and then the document is printed (S20).

As described above, the manner of calculating the toner usage simply by the number of dot pixels may be incorrect. This is because the toner usage actually used may vary when only one dot is taken in the laser printer and when the dots are continuously taken as a continuous pixel. For example, even if 1000 dots are printed on one document, the amount of toner usage is not necessarily 1000. That is, when the dots are scattered, the toner usage may be about 1000, but when these dots are adjacent, the toner usage may be about 800. Therefore, when toner usage is calculated only by the number of dot pixels, inaccurate toner usage may be calculated, thereby displaying the wrong toner remaining amount to the user and causing damage to the user.

 SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above disadvantages, the present invention provides a method of measuring toner usage of a laser printer that can more accurately measure toner usage by subtracting the number of adjacent dot pixels from the total number of dot pixels. have.

The present invention to achieve the above technical problem, (a) interpreting the print data to generate an image of one page, and calculating the total number of dot pixels to be printed in the image; (b) calculating the number of adjacent dot pixels in the image; (c) multiplying the number of adjacent dot pixels by a predetermined weight; (d) subtracting the number of adjacent dot pixels multiplied by the weight from the total number of dot pixels; And (e) subtracting the subtracted dot pixel count from the current toner remaining amount to calculate the remaining toner amount.

Preferably, the step (b) comprises the steps of calculating the number of dot pixels adjacent to the horizontal axis; And calculating the number of dot pixels adjacent to the vertical axis.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description of the present invention, when it is determined that detailed descriptions of related well-known technologies or configurations may unnecessarily obscure the subject matter of the present invention, the detailed description will be omitted. In addition, terms to be described below are terms defined in consideration of functions in the present invention, which may vary according to intention or custom of a user or an operator. Therefore, the definition should be made based on the contents throughout the specification.

2 is a block diagram showing a laser printer 10 according to the present invention. As shown, the laser printer 10 includes a kernel portion 12, an emulation portion 14, an engine portion 16, a developer portion 18, and an adjacent dot pixel number calculating portion 20.

The kernel unit 12 receives and outputs print data from the outside, and the emulation unit 14 receives print data from the kernel unit to generate an image of one page. The engine unit 16 performs an actual print job by using the one-page image generated by the emulation unit, and the developer unit 18 coats the toner on the charged photosensitive drum when the print job is in progress. The adjacent dot pixel calculator 20 calculates the number of dot pixels adjacent to the horizontal axis and the number of dot pixels adjacent to the vertical axis. Alternatively, the adjacent dot pixel number calculating unit 20 may be included in the emulation unit 14.

Now, the toner usage measuring method of the laser printer according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a toner usage measuring method according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 3, the emulation unit 14 interprets the print data received from the kernel unit 12, generates an image of one page (S30), and outputs the image to the engine unit 16. The emulation unit 14 also calculates the total number of dot pixels to be printed in the image of one page (S32). In other words, it counts how many pixels are currently printed on the print page. The total number of dot pixels is transmitted to the engine unit along with image information of one page.

The adjacent dot pixel number calculator 20 calculates the number of dot pixels adjacent to the horizontal axis in the image of the one page (S34), calculates the number of dot pixels adjacent to the vertical axis (S36), and calculates the calculated adjacent dots. The number of pixels is multiplied by a predetermined weight and then transmitted to the engine unit 16.

The engine unit 16 uses the developer unit 18 to actually print the toner on the paper for the image received from the emulation unit 14, while the adjacency in the total number of dot pixels received by the emulation unit 14 is achieved. The number of adjacent dot pixels multiplied by the weight received by the dot pixel number calculator 20 is subtracted (S38). The engine unit 16 subtracts the subtracted dot pixel number from the current toner remaining amount of the developing unit 18 (S40), and then stores the subtracted toner remaining amount in the developing unit.

It is determined whether the subtracted toner remaining amount is less than or equal to the reference value, that is, the toner is insufficient (S42). If the toner is not low, a document is printed (S46). On the other hand, if it is determined in step S42 that the toner is low, a message indicating that the remaining amount of toner is low is displayed on a predetermined display unit (not shown), for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD) (S44) to allow the user to replace the toner. It is recommended to do it. Then, the document is printed (S46).

4 and 5, an embodiment according to the present invention will now be described. 4 is a diagram illustrating an image having adjacent dot pixels, and FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an image having no adjacent dot pixels.

The present invention is characterized in that it comprises a step of calculating pixels adjacent to the horizontal axis and pixels adjacent to the vertical axis. At this time, the number of adjacent dot pixels is multiplied by a predetermined weight to correct the total number of dot pixels. The reason for calculating adjacent pixels is that toner is saved between adjacent pixels in the amount of toner usage, and to subtract the amount of toner saving generated from the total number of dot pixels. In Fig. 4, black circles 40 represent dot pixels to be printed, and small circles 42 represent boundary regions of adjacent pixels.

The equation for correcting the total dot pixel number is as follows.

 [Equation 1]

CDPC = HCDPC + VCDPC.

Here, CDPC is the number of adjacent dot pixels, HCDPC is the number of dot pixels adjacent on the horizontal axis, and VCDPC is the number of dot pixels adjacent on the vertical axis.

[Equation 2]

TDPC = DPC-(CDPC * TSR).

Here, Total Dot Pixel Count (TDPC) is the total actual toner usage of one page, Dot Pixel Count (DPC) is the total number of dot pixels in the image of one page, and TSR (Toner Save Rate) is the weight. In other words, the actual amount of toner used can be reduced by adjacent dot pixels. Adjacent dot pixels can be referred to as overlap regions of adjacent pixels to which toners are continuously attached, and the actual amount of toner is reduced by the amount of overlap. The weight is a constant expressed as a ratio between 0 and 1, and may be determined according to a developer provided in the laser printer.

[Equation 3]

LTR = CTR-TDPC.

Here, LTR (Last Toner Remainder) is the final toner remaining amount after printing, and CTR (Current Toner Remainder) is the current toner remaining amount before printing.

A concrete example will be described using the above equation.

Assume that the remaining amount of toner is 1000 and the weight is 25% (0.25). Referring to FIG. 4, the total number of dot pixels DPC to be printed is 25, which is the sum of the black circles 40. The number of adjacent dot pixels CDPC can be counted as a small circle 42 which is a boundary area of adjacent pixels. The number of adjacent dot pixels HCDPC is 20 on the horizontal axis, and the number of dot pixels VCDPC adjacent on the vertical axis is also counted. 20.

If this is applied to the equations (1) to (3), it is as follows.

CDPC = 20 + 20 = 40.

TDPC = 25-(40 * 0.25) = 15.

LTR = 1000-15 = 985.

Now, referring to FIG. 5, since the total number of dot pixels to be printed (DPC) is 13 which is the sum of the black dots 50, and the number of adjacent dot pixels (CDPC) is 0, this is represented by Equations 1 to 3 above. If applied, it is as follows.

CDPC = 0 + 0 = 0.

TDPC = 13-(0 * 0.25) = 13.

LTR = 1000-13 = 987.

As described above, the toner usage amount in the image shown in FIG. 4 is 15, and the toner usage amount in the image shown in FIG. Thus, it can be seen that the usage of the toner is almost similar. The above results can be confirmed through actual experiments.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention pertains may make various changes without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined in the appended claims. It will be appreciated that modifications or variations may be made. Accordingly, modifications to future embodiments of the present invention will not depart from the technology of the present invention.

As described above, by using the present invention, it is possible to accurately calculate the amount of toner usage close to reality, and thus to provide the user with accurate toner remaining information, and to inform the exact time of toner replacement, thereby saving toner. .

Claims (4)

(a) interpreting the print data to generate an image of one page and calculating the total number of dot pixels to be printed in the image; (b) calculating the number of adjacent dot pixels in the image; (c) multiplying the number of adjacent dot pixels by a predetermined weight; (d) subtracting the number of adjacent dot pixels multiplied by the weight from the total number of dot pixels; And (e) subtracting the subtracted dot pixel count from the current toner remaining amount to calculate the remaining amount of toner. The method of claim 1, wherein step (b) (b1) calculating the number of dot pixels adjacent to the horizontal axis; And and (b2) calculating the number of dot pixels adjacent to the vertical axis. The method of claim 1, And the weight is determined according to the developer provided in the laser printer. The method of claim 1, And the weight is determined in a range of 0 to 1.

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