KR20220128755A - Method for cartridge information reset on the printing device - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a cartridge information reset method for resetting cartridge information which is information about a cartridge of a memory chip installed in a printing device. The cartridge information resetting method includes: an installation step of installing a cartridge information reset device to be in contact with pins of a memory chip; a collecting step of collecting and storing identification information which is information for identifying a plurality of printing devices from the memory chip; a storage step of storing reset information which is information for resetting the cartridge information; a generating step of generating a reset command signal; and a calculation step of identifying the printing devices according to the identification information when the reset command signal is generated, and overwriting the reset information on the memory chip, thereby resetting the cartridge information of the memory chip. In accordance with the present invention, since the cartridge information stored in the memory chip of the printing devices can be initialized, the cartridge information reset method can have an effect of continuously using the printing devices equipped with an infinite ink supply system.

Description

How to reset cartridge information of printing device

The present invention relates to a method for resetting cartridge information of a printing apparatus, and more particularly, to a cartridge of a printing apparatus that enables continuous use of the printing apparatus by resetting cartridge information stored in a memory chip of a printing apparatus equipped with an infinite ink supply. It relates to a method of resetting information.

In general, a printing apparatus such as a printer or a copier is equipped with a cartridge containing ink therein. When the ink contained in the cartridge is exhausted, the cartridge must be replaced. At this time, the usage state of the cartridge, the replacement time, etc. can be checked according to the cartridge information stored in the memory chip of the printing apparatus.

Here, cartridge information means not only basic information about the cartridge, but also whether the cartridge is properly installed in the printing device, whether the installed cartridge is compatible with the printing device, information whose value changes depending on the use of the cartridge, e.g. For example, information on the remaining amount of ink remaining in the cartridge, the number of remaining pages that can be printed according to the remaining amount of ink, information on the usage history of the cartridge, and the like are included.

In recent years, an endless ink supply device configured to continuously supply ink to a cartridge from the outside has been developed and is widely used. In the case of such an infinite method, there is an advantage that the user can easily supply the ink directly, but even by this method, if a preset amount of ink (that is, the amount of ink accommodated in the cartridge) is printed, printing is performed. A cartridge replacement alarm occurs in the device, and the printing device cannot be used continuously. Therefore, the authentication chip of the cartridge must be reset using a resetter. However, the method of resetting using a resetter is inconvenient in that the cartridge must be withdrawn and initialized whenever a cartridge replacement alarm occurs.

In addition, for continuous use of the printing apparatus, it is necessary to reset the cartridge usage information stored in the memory chip. However, as shown in FIG. 1, the prior art ink cartridge initialization device, that is, the resetter resets the authentication chip by contacting the terminal 5 exposed to the authentication chip of the cartridge, but separately in the memory chip of the printing device. There is a problem in that the prior art resetter cannot be applied because the terminal 5 is not exposed.

Republic of Korea Patent Registration No. 10-0769738 Republic of Korea Patent Registration No. 10-0478410

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the problems of the prior art, and to reset cartridge information stored in a memory chip of a printing device equipped with an infinite ink supply, thereby enabling continuous use of the printing device. A reset method is provided.

According to the present invention, there is provided a cartridge information reset method for resetting cartridge information, which is information about a cartridge of a memory chip installed in a printing apparatus, wherein the cartridge information reset device is installed so as to be in contact with the pins of the memory chip. step; a collecting step of collecting and storing identification information, which is information for identifying a plurality of printing devices, from the memory chip; a storage step of storing reset information, which is information for resetting the cartridge information; generating a reset command signal; and an operation step of identifying the printing apparatus according to the identification information when the reset command signal is generated, and resetting the cartridge information of the memory chip by overwriting the reset information on the memory chip. This is achieved by the cartridge information reset method.

Also, the identification information may be collected by comparing and analyzing source codes of a plurality of the printing apparatuses.

In addition, the operation step includes an identification step of identifying the printing apparatus according to the identification information when the reset command signal is generated, a loading step of loading the reset information corresponding to the identified printing apparatus, and and a reset step of resetting the cartridge information of the memory chip by overwriting the reset information on a corresponding partition of the memory chip.

The method may further include an ECC adding step of adding an error correcting code (ECC) to the loaded reset information after the loading step.

In addition, after the identification step, it may further include a verification step of verifying the integrity of the stored reset information.

According to the present invention, since cartridge information stored in the memory chip of the printing device can be initialized, there is an effect that the printing device equipped with the infinite ink supply can be continuously used.

On the other hand, the effects of the present invention are not limited to the above-mentioned effects, and various effects may be included within the range apparent to those skilled in the art from the description below.

1 shows a prior art ink cartridge initialization device,
2 is a view of the cartridge information reset method of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention as a whole,
Figure 3 shows the detailed steps of the calculation step of the cartridge information reset method of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention,
4 is an overall view of the cartridge information reset device of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention,
Figure 5 shows that the jig portion of the cartridge information reset device of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is fixed to the substrate,
6 is a diagram illustrating a process in which a jig unit of a cartridge information reset device of a printing apparatus is fixed to a substrate according to an embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 7 shows a jig of various shapes of the cartridge information reset device of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention,
8 is an overall view of the pin block portion of the cartridge information reset device of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention,
9 is a plan view of the pin block portion of the cartridge information reset device of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention,
10 is an exploded perspective view of the pin block part of the cartridge information reset device of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;
11 is a view showing the operation process of the pin block unit of the cartridge information reset device of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention,
12 is a view showing the electrical connection of the memory chip, the pin block unit and the control unit of the cartridge information reset device of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention,
13 is an overall view of the control unit of the cartridge information reset device of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention,
14 is a view showing the detailed configuration of the operation unit of the cartridge information reset device of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, some embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to exemplary drawings. In adding reference numerals to the components of each drawing, it should be noted that the same components are given the same reference numerals as much as possible even though they are indicated on different drawings.

In the description of the embodiment of the present invention, if it is determined that a detailed description of a related known configuration or function interferes with the understanding of the embodiment of the present invention, the detailed description thereof will be omitted.

In addition, in describing the components of the embodiment of the present invention, terms such as first, second, A, B, (a), (b), etc. may be used. These terms are only for distinguishing the elements from other elements, and the essence, order, or order of the elements are not limited by the terms.

The present invention relates to a cartridge information resetting apparatus and method for resetting cartridge information stored in a memory chip (c) of a printing apparatus equipped with an endless ink supply that continuously supplies ink to a cartridge to enable continuous use of the printing apparatus. will be.

Here, the printing apparatus may be provided as, for example, an inkjet printer, an inkjet copier, or an inkjet multifunction printer, and the memory chip (c) of the printing apparatus is a non-volatile memory chip such as a NAND Flash memory chip (c). (c) may be provided. The NAND-type flash memory chip (c) is known to be capable of storing data even when power is not supplied and has a relatively high degree of integration.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings, the cartridge information reset device 100 of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail.

Figure 1 shows a prior art ink cartridge initialization device, Figure 2 is a general view of the cartridge information reset method of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 3 is an embodiment of the present invention It shows the detailed steps of the calculation step of the method for resetting cartridge information of the printing apparatus, Figure 4 is an overall view of the cartridge information resetting apparatus of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 5 is an embodiment of the present invention It shows that the jig part of the cartridge information reset device of the printing apparatus according to the example is fixed to the substrate, and FIG. 6 shows the process in which the jig part of the cartridge information reset device of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is fixed to the substrate. 7 shows a jig of various shapes of a cartridge information reset device of a printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 8 is a cartridge information reset apparatus of a printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 9 is a plan view of a pin block unit of a cartridge information reset device of a printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 10 is a cartridge information reset of a printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is an exploded perspective view of the pin block part of the device, and FIG. 11 shows the operation process of the pin block part of the cartridge information reset device of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 12 is printing according to an embodiment of the present invention. It shows the electrical connection of the memory chip, the pin block unit and the control unit of the cartridge information reset device of the device, and FIG. 13 shows the overall control section of the cartridge information reset device of the printing device according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 14 shows the detailed configuration of the calculation unit of the cartridge information reset device of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 to 14 , the cartridge information reset device 100 of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a jig unit 110 , a pin block unit 120 , and a control unit 130 . do.

The jig unit 110 is installed and fixed on the substrate (b) of the printing apparatus. It is disposed on the memory chip (c) portion of the substrate (b) and the pin block unit 120 to be described later is the pin of the memory chip (c). to be in contact with and electrically connected to.

4 to 6 , the jig part 110 includes, in more detail, an upper jig 111 , a lower jig 112 , an installation part 113 , and a fastening part 114 . .

The upper jig 111 guides the pin block part 120 to be described later to be disposed on the upper part of the memory chip c, and is coupled to the lower jig 112 to be described later and fixed to the substrate b, and is described later on the upper surface. The installation part 113 is formed, and a space in which the substrate (b) of the printing apparatus can be accommodated may be formed on the lower surface.

The lower jig 112 is coupled to the upper jig 111 to be fixed to the substrate b, and a space in which the substrate b can be accommodated may be formed on the upper surface.

Meanwhile, as shown in FIG. 7 , the upper jig 111 and the lower jig 112 may be provided in various shapes according to the shape of the substrate b of the printing apparatus.

The installation part 113 provides a space in which the pin block part 120 and the control part 130 to be described later are installed, and may be formed on the upper surface of the upper jig 111 . That is, after the pin block unit 120 is installed in the space formed in the installation unit 113 , when the control unit 130 is installed on the upper surface of the pin block unit 120 , the pin block unit 120 and the control unit 130 are electrically connected to each other. can be connected to

The fastening part 114 is provided in plurality to fasten the upper jig 111 and the lower jig 112, and may fasten the upper jig 111 and the lower jig 112 by screw coupling, but is not limited thereto. As long as the upper jig 111 and the lower jig 112 are fastened so that the upper jig 111 and the lower jig 112 can be fixed to the substrate (b), any type may be used.

In more detail, first, the upper jig 111 in which the pin block part 120 is installed is located on the portion where the memory chip c of the substrate b is disposed, and then the lower jig 112 is installed in the substrate b. In a manner in which the pin block part 120 is disposed and fixed on the upper part of the memory chip (c) and is secured to the pin of the memory chip (c) in such a manner that it is fastened through the upper jig 111 and the fastening part 114 in the lower part of the can be contacted.

The pin block unit 120 is in contact with the pins of the memory chip c installed on the substrate b and is electrically connected to the memory chip c, and is installed in the installation unit 113 of the jig unit 110 . That is, the pin block unit 120 of the present invention is in electrical and mechanical contact with the pins exposed at both corners of the memory chip c, and is used as a connector for resetting the cartridge information stored in the memory chip c. means

As shown in FIGS. 8 to 11 , the pin block part 120 is, in more detail, a housing part 121 , a floating part 122 , a base part 123 , and an elastic part 124 , It includes a pin part 125 and a board part 126 .

The housing part 121 is installed on the installation part 113 of the upper jig 111 and is disposed on the memory chip c, and includes a floating part 122 to be described later, a base part 123, and an elastic part. 124, the pin portion 125, and the installation space (s) for installing the board portion 126 may be formed therein.

The floating part 122 is formed with a plurality of first through-holes h1 and may be installed to be movable up and down in the installation space s formed in the housing part 121 .

The memory chip (c) of the substrate (b) of the printing apparatus may be provided as a NAND Flash memory chip (c) of a dual inline package (DIP) type among integrated circuit (IC) types, , Here, the DIP type refers to an integrated circuit type in which pins protrude from both sides of the rectangular housing, that is, at the corners of two surfaces.

At this time, the first through hole h1 formed in the floating part 122 is formed in the floating part 122 so that the pin part 125 to be described later can contact the pins of the above-described DIP type memory chip c. It may be formed in plurality at both corners, respectively, in the longitudinal direction.

In addition, the first through-holes h1 may be provided as needed according to the number of pins of the memory chip c to which the pin portions 125 to be described later are to be contacted. For example, 3, 2, 4), each group may be formed spaced apart from each other.

Meanwhile, the memory chip c may be provided in a small outline package (SOP) type or a quad flat package (QFP) type, and in this case, the first through hole h1 may be formed to suit each type. .

For example, the QFP type means an integrated circuit type in which the pins of the memory chip c protrude from the corners of four surfaces of the housing. When the memory chip c is provided in the QFP type, the first through hole h1 ) may be formed in plurality along the longitudinal direction at the corners of four surfaces of the floating part 122 so that the pin part 125 to be described later can contact the pins of the QFP type memory chip c.

On the other hand, the floating part 122 may have a plurality of protrusions 122a formed at the corners so as to be in contact with the housing of the memory chip c in a stable manner. In this case, the protrusion 122a may be formed so that the corner portion is inclined inwardly and outwardly. Accordingly, since the contact area of the floating part 122 with the memory chip c can be minimized, even when the floating part 122 is in contact with the memory chip c, heat generated by the memory chip c can be minimized. This can be effectively dissipated, and the floating part 122 can be prevented from being deformed by heat.

The base part 123 is formed with a plurality of second through holes h2, and is installed in the installation space s formed in the housing part 121, the floating part 122 is disposed on the upper surface, and the board part ( 126) may be disposed.

A support part 123a is protruded from the upper surface of the base part 123, and the support part 123a supports the pin part 125 inserted into the second through hole h2, and the support part 123a has a plurality of second parts. Two through-holes h2 are formed and are provided as a pair and protrude on the upper surface of the body part with a spaced distance from each other so that the pin parts 125 to be described later can contact the pins of the above-described DIP type memory chip (c). can be

The elastic part 124 elastically supports the floating part 122 , and a plurality of elastic parts 124 are provided between the floating part 122 and the base part 123 . Such an elastic part 124 may be provided as a spring, but is not limited thereto, and may be provided with any type as long as it elastically supports the floating part 122 .

The pin unit 125 has one end in contact with the board unit 126 to be described later and the other end in contact with the pin of the memory chip c to be electrically connected. A plurality of second through-holes h2 of the base unit 123 are provided. ) and installed respectively. That is, the cartridge information stored in the memory chip c and the reset information stored in the control unit 130 may be transmitted through the pin unit 125 .

In addition, the pin part 125 may be provided as a POGO pin in the form of a cylinder in which a spring is accommodated. The pin portion 125 in the form of a pogo pin includes a plunger, a spring, and a barrel.

The plunger is in contact with the pin of the memory chip c, and the head of the plunger may have various shapes depending on the shape of the pin of the memory chip c to be contacted.

The spring provides an elastic force to the plunger, and moves the plunger up and down through the process of being compressed and returned. That is, when the head of the plunger is pressed, the spring inside the barrel is compressed, and the plunger can move up and down as the spring is compressed.

The barrel provides a space in which the above-described plunger and spring are installed, and also serves to conduct current. That is, when the head of the plunger is in contact with the pin of the memory chip c, the current flows from the plunger to the barrel and then to the board part 126 to be described later.

On the other hand, the pin part 125 may be provided as a probe pin that is tapered so that a metal wire is cut to a predetermined length and the tip is tapered by etching or machining.

When the floating part 122 is pressed, the other end of the pin part 125 may be exposed to the outside through the first through hole h1 of the floating part 122 to contact the pins of the memory chip c.

11 , before the pin block unit 120 comes into contact with the memory chip c, the pin unit 125 is not exposed inside the floating unit 122 . After that, after the upper jig 111 in which the pin block part 120 is installed is located on the portion where the memory chip c of the substrate b is disposed, the lower jig 112 is installed in the lower part of the substrate b. When combined with the upper jig 111 , the other end of the pin part 125 is pushed out through the first through hole h1 while the floating part 122 in contact with the memory chip c is pressed by the jig part 110 . When exposed, the pin portion 125 may contact the pin of the memory chip c to conduct electricity with the board portion 126 to be described later.

The board part 126 is electrically connected to the pin part 125 by contacting one end of the pin part 125, and is electrically connected to the controller 130 to be described later, and is located in the installation space (s) of the housing part 121 . can be installed.

According to the pin block unit 120 as described above, it is electrically connected to the pin of the memory chip (c) to which the existing resetter cannot be applied, so that the cartridge information can be reset.

When the reset command signal is generated, the control unit 130 identifies the printing device and resets the cartridge information of the memory chip (c), and is installed in the installation unit 113 of the upper jig 111 and the pin block unit 120 can be electrically connected to.

Here, the cartridge information stored in the memory chip (c) may include initial value information of the cartridge use information, the cartridge initialization information item, and the cartridge initialization information item.

The cartridge usage information means information of a cartridge to be used when the printing apparatus is operated. For example, the cartridge usage information may be whether the cartridge is authenticated, whether the cartridge is installed, whether or not there is an error in the cartridge, the amount of ink remaining in the cartridge, the number of pages remaining that can be printed according to the amount of ink remaining in the cartridge, the number of cartridge resets, etc. .

The cartridge initialization information refers to information that must be changed to reflect the regeneration state of the cartridge when ink is replenished from the infinite ink supply, and includes any one or more of cartridge usage information. For example, the cartridge initialization information may include the amount of remaining ink in the cartridge, the number of remaining pages that can be printed according to the remaining amount of ink in the cartridge, the number of cartridge resets, and the like.

The cartridge initial value information means an initial value of the cartridge initialization information. For example, if the cartridge initialization information is the amount of ink remaining in the cartridge, the number of pages that can be printed according to the amount of ink remaining in the cartridge, and the number of cartridge resets, the cartridge initial value information is '100%', '10000page', ' 0 times.

13 , the control unit 130 includes, in more detail, a substrate unit 131 , a communication unit 132 , a generation unit 133 , a storage unit 134 , and an operation unit 135 . do.

The board unit 131 provides a space in which the communication unit 132 , the generation unit 133 , the storage unit 134 , and the calculation unit 135 to be described later are installed, and is provided as a printed circuit board (PCB) and the communication unit 132 . ), the generating unit 133 , the storage unit 134 , and the calculating unit 135 are electrically connected to each other, and installed in the installation unit 113 of the upper jig 111 to be electrically connected to the pin block unit 120 . have.

The communication unit 132 communicates with the memory chip (c) to receive cartridge information from the memory chip (c) or to transmit reset information to the memory chip (c). electrically connected.

The generating unit 133 generates a reset command signal, is installed on the substrate unit 131 , and is electrically connected to the operation unit 135 . The generating unit 133 is provided in a button type, so that a reset command signal can be generated when a user presses a button, and a reset command signal can be generated by a determination unit 135f to be described later.

The storage unit 134 collects and stores identification information, which is information for identifying the printing device, and stores reset information, which is information for resetting cartridge information of the memory chip (c), and is installed in the substrate unit 131 . . The reset information may be stored in the storage unit 134 after being classified for each model of each printing apparatus.

Here, the identification information may be collected by comparing and analyzing the source codes of a plurality of printing apparatuses and databaseizing them. For example, if the source code of address 0x6c of both printers is checked and '0x04, 0x62' and '0x04, 0x61' are identified, respectively, both printers can be identified as different. Furthermore, if the source code at address 0xb4 of both printers is checked and both printers are identified as '0x04, 0x64', it is possible to identify both printers by comparing whether there is a tes or oem string after the fwbuild string in the source code. can

The reset information corresponds to the cartridge initial value information, for example, cartridge information of the memory chip c, that is, the remaining amount of ink remaining in the cartridge, the number of printable remaining pages according to the remaining amount of ink in the cartridge, and resetting the cartridge. In order to reset the number of times to '100%', '10000 page', and '0 times', respectively, it means information to be overwritten in the corresponding partition of the memory chip (c).

The operation unit 135 identifies the printing device when the reset command signal is generated, and writes the cartridge information of the memory chip c by overwriting the reset information corresponding to the identified printing device on the corresponding partition of the memory chip c. It resets and controls the communication unit 132 , the generation unit 133 , and the storage unit 134 , and is installed in the substrate unit 131 and electrically connected to the communication unit 132 , the generation unit 133 , and the storage unit 134 . is connected to

As shown in FIG. 14 , the operation unit 135 includes, in more detail, a verification unit 135b, an identification unit 135a, a load unit 135c, an ECC unit 135d, and a reset unit 135e. and a determination unit 135f.

The identification unit 135a identifies a printing apparatus according to databased identification information when a reset command signal is generated, and includes a load unit 135c and an ECC unit 135d to describe information on the identified printing apparatus model later. can transmit

The verification unit 135b verifies the integrity of the reset information stored in the storage unit 134 , and may detect and correct whether the reset information stored in the storage unit 134 is damaged. At this time, predetermined values for reset information corresponding to each printing apparatus are stored in the storage unit 134 , and the verification unit 135b compares the predetermined values with the actual values, and when the values match, reset information It is assumed that ? is not damaged, and data can be loaded in the load unit 135c, which will be described later.

The load unit 135c loads reset information corresponding to the printing apparatus model identified by the identification unit 135a, and may load reset information to be overwritten in a plurality of partitions of the memory chip c, respectively.

The ECC unit 135d detects and corrects an error occurring due to data corruption of the memory chip c when the reset information is overwritten on the corresponding partition of the memory chip c by the reset unit 135e to be described later. In order to do this, an ECC (Error Correcting Code) is added to the reset information loaded from the load unit 135c. According to the ECC unit 135d as described above, each ECC is calculated according to the model of the printing apparatus. The effect of significantly reducing the error when resetting the chip (c) is expected.

Meanwhile, methods applicable to the ECC unit 135d include a Single Error Correction-Double Error Detection (SEC-DEC) method, a Single-Chip Chipkill method, and a double-chip method. It may include a double-chip chipkill method and the like.

The reset unit 135e resets the cartridge information of the memory chip c by overwriting the loaded reset information on the corresponding partition of the memory chip c, where the partition of the memory chip c is where the boot loader is stored. a first partition, a second partition in which an operating system (OS) is stored, and a third partition in which a file system is stored. Cartridge information of the memory chip c may be reset by overwriting the reset information corresponding to each partition in each partition. In this case, if there are a plurality of OSs and a plurality of second partitions exist, reset information may be overwritten in each of the plurality of second partitions.

The determination unit 135f determines whether a reset period has arrived and causes the generation unit 133 to generate a reset command signal. In the cartridge usage information stored in the memory chip (c), the amount of remaining ink in the cartridge becomes less than 5%, or the number of printable pages is based on the amount of remaining ink in the cartridge in the cartridge usage information. If it is determined that the value is less than 5% of the initial value information, the generator 133 may control to generate a reset command signal.

Meanwhile, the determination unit 135f may control the generation unit 133 to generate a reset command signal according to a reset period preset by the user. For example, if the user sets the cartridge information of the memory chip c to be reset every two weeks, the determination unit 135f may control the generation unit 133 to generate a reset command signal every two weeks.

According to the determination unit 135f as described above, the cartridge information of the memory chip (c) is automatically reset without the user having to separately reset the printing device or the cartridge, so that the printing device can be continued to be used. It has the effect of greatly reducing the hassle.

According to the cartridge information reset method 100 of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention including the jig unit 110, the pin block unit 120, and the control unit 130 as described above, the Since the cartridge information stored in the memory chip (c) can be initialized, there is an effect that a printing apparatus equipped with an infinite ink supply can be continuously used.

From now on, with reference to the accompanying drawings, the cartridge information reset method (S100) of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail.

Figure 2 shows the cartridge information reset method of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention as a whole, Figure 3 shows the detailed steps of the calculation step of the cartridge information reset method of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention did it

As shown in Fig. 2, the cartridge information reset method (S100) of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention includes an installation step (S110), a collection step (S120), a storage step (S130), and a generation step (S140) and an operation step (S150).

The installation step (S110) is a step in which the cartridge information reset device 100 of the above-described printing device is installed on the substrate (b) of the printing device so as to be in contact with the pins of the memory chip (c). In the installation step (S110), the jig unit 110 so that the pin block unit 120 of the cartridge information reset device 100 of the printing apparatus is in contact with the pin of the memory chip c of the substrate b and is electrically connected. is arranged and fixed to the memory chip (c) portion of the substrate (b) of the printing apparatus.

Here, the cartridge information stored in the memory chip (c) may include initial value information of the cartridge use information, the cartridge initialization information item, and the cartridge initialization information item.

The cartridge usage information means information of a cartridge to be used when the printing apparatus is operated. For example, the cartridge usage information may be whether the cartridge is authenticated, whether the cartridge is installed, whether or not there is an error in the cartridge, the amount of ink remaining in the cartridge, the number of pages remaining that can be printed according to the amount of ink remaining in the cartridge, the number of cartridge resets, etc. .

The cartridge initialization information refers to information that must be changed to reflect the regeneration state of the cartridge when ink is replenished from the infinite ink supply, and includes any one or more of cartridge usage information. For example, the cartridge initialization information may include the amount of remaining ink in the cartridge, the number of remaining pages that can be printed according to the remaining amount of ink in the cartridge, the number of cartridge resets, and the like.

The cartridge initial value information means an initial value of the cartridge initialization information. For example, if the cartridge initialization information is the amount of ink remaining in the cartridge, the number of pages that can be printed according to the amount of ink remaining in the cartridge, and the number of cartridge resets, the cartridge initial value information is '100%', '10000page', ' 0 times.

The collecting step S120 is a step in which identification information, which is information for identifying a plurality of printing devices, is collected from the memory chip c and stored in the storage unit 134 .

Here, the identification information may be collected by comparing and analyzing the source codes of a plurality of printing apparatuses and databaseizing them. For example, if the source code of address 0x6c of both printing devices is checked in the collection step S120 and it is identified as '0x04, 0x62' and '0x04, 0x61', respectively, both printing devices can be identified as different. Furthermore, if the source code at address 0xb4 of both printers is checked and both printers are identified as '0x04, 0x64', it is possible to identify both printers by comparing whether there is a tes or oem string after the fwbuild string in the source code. can

The storage step ( S130 ) is a step in which reset information, which is information for resetting the cartridge information of the memory chip, is stored in the storage unit 134 . Such reset information may be stored separately for each model of each printing apparatus.

Here, the reset information corresponds to the cartridge initial value information, for example, cartridge information of the memory chip c, that is, the remaining amount of ink remaining in the cartridge, the number of remaining pages that can be printed according to the remaining amount of ink in the cartridge, and resetting the cartridge. In order to reset the number of times to '100%', '10000 page', and '0 times', respectively, it means information to be overwritten in the corresponding partition of the memory chip (c).

The generating step S140 is a step in which the reset command signal is generated from the generating unit 133 . At this time, the generating unit 133 is provided in a button type, and a reset command signal may be generated by a user pressing the button, and a reset command signal may be generated by a determination step S156 to be described later.

In the calculation step (S150), when the reset command signal is generated in the generation step (S140), the printing device is identified according to the identification information, and the reset information is overwritten on the memory chip (c) so that the cartridge information of the memory chip (c) is This is the reset step.

As shown in Fig. 3, the operation step (S150) is more specifically, the identification step (S151), the load step (S153), the ECC addition step (S154), the reset step (S155), and the determination step ( S156).

The identification step (S151) is a step in which a printing device is identified according to identification information when the reset command signal is generated in the generation step (S140), and information on the identified printing device model is loaded into the load unit 135c and the ECC unit 135d ) can be passed as

The verification step (S152) is a step in which the integrity of the reset information stored in the storage unit 134 is verified, and it is possible to detect and correct whether the reset information stored in the storage unit 134 is damaged. At this time, in the storing step (S130), predetermined values are stored for the reset information corresponding to each printing apparatus, and the verification step (S152) compares these predetermined values with the actual values, It is assumed that is not damaged, and enables data to be loaded in the loading step (S153), which will be described later.

The loading step S153 is a step in which reset information corresponding to the printing device identified in the identification step S151 is loaded, and reset information to be overwritten in each of the plurality of partitions of the memory chip c is loaded.

In the ECC adding step (S154), when the reset information is overwritten on the corresponding partition of the memory chip (c) in the reset step (S155), the data of the memory chip (c) is damaged and an error occurs in order to detect and correct it. This is a step in which an error correcting code (ECC) is added to the reset information loaded in the loading step (S153). According to the ECC adding step S154 as described above, since each ECC is calculated according to the model of the printing apparatus, the effect of significantly reducing errors when resetting the memory chip c is expected.

The reset step (S155) is a step in which the cartridge information of the memory chip (c) is reset by overwriting the corresponding partition of the memory chip (c) with the reset information loaded in the loading step (S153). Here, the partition of the memory chip c includes a first partition in which a boot loader is stored, a second partition in which an OS (Operation System) is stored, and a third partition in which a file system is stored. The cartridge information of the memory chip (c) may be reset by overwriting the reset information corresponding to the first partition, the second partition, and the third partition, respectively, loaded in the corresponding partition, respectively. In this case, if there are a plurality of OSs and a plurality of second partitions exist, reset information may be overwritten in each of the plurality of second partitions.

The determination step (S156) is a step in which the generator 133 generates a reset command signal by determining whether a reset period has arrived. In spite of being supplied, the remaining amount of ink remaining in the cartridge among the cartridge usage information of the cartridge information stored in the memory chip (c) is less than 5%, or the number of remaining pages that can be printed out of the cartridge usage information according to the remaining ink in the cartridge If it is determined that it is less than 5% of the initial value of the cartridge, it is a step of controlling the generation unit 133 to generate a reset command signal.

Meanwhile, in the determination step S156, the generator 133 may be controlled to generate a reset command signal according to a reset period preset by the user. For example, if the user sets the cartridge information of the memory chip c to be reset every two weeks, the determination step S156 may control the generator 133 to generate a reset command signal every two weeks.

According to the determination step (S156) as described above, the cartridge information of the memory chip (c) is automatically reset without the user having to separately reset the printing device or the cartridge, so that the printing device can be continued to be used. It has the effect of greatly reducing the hassle.

Printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention including the installation step (S110), the collection step (S120), the storage step (S130), the generation step (S140), and the calculation step (S150) as described above According to the cartridge information reset method ( S100 ) of the printing apparatus, since the cartridge information stored in the memory chip (c) of the printing apparatus can be initialized, there is an effect that the printing apparatus equipped with an infinite ink supply can be continuously used.

In the above, even though it has been described that all components constituting the embodiment of the present invention operate by being combined or combined into one, the present invention is not necessarily limited to this embodiment. That is, within the scope of the object of the present invention, all of the components may operate by selectively combining one or more.

In addition, terms such as "comprises", "comprises" or "have" described above mean that the corresponding component may be inherent unless otherwise stated, so excluding other components Rather, it should be construed as being able to further include other components. All terms including technical and scientific terms have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention belongs, unless otherwise defined. Terms commonly used, such as those defined in the dictionary, should be interpreted as being consistent with the contextual meaning of the related art, and are not interpreted in an ideal or excessively formal meaning unless explicitly defined in the present invention.

And, the above description is merely illustrative of the technical idea of the present invention, and various modifications and variations will be possible without departing from the essential characteristics of the present invention by those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains.

Therefore, the embodiments disclosed in the present invention are not intended to limit the technical spirit of the present invention, but to illustrate, and the scope of the technical spirit of the present invention is not limited by these embodiments. The protection scope of the present invention should be interpreted by the following claims, and all technical ideas within the scope equivalent thereto should be construed as being included in the scope of the present invention.

100: cartridge information reset device of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention
110: jig part
b: substrate
c: memory chip
111: upper jig
112: lower jig
113: installation part
114: fastening part
120: pin block part
121: housing part
s : installation space
122: floating part
h1: first through hole
122a: protrusion
123: base part
h2: second through hole
123a: support
124: elastic part
125: pin part
126: board part
130: control unit
131: substrate part
132: communication department
133: generator
134: storage
135: arithmetic unit
135a: Verification unit
135b: identification unit
135c: rod part
135d: ECC part
135e: reset unit
135f: Judgment
S100: Cartridge information reset method of the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention
S110: Installation step
S120: collection step
S130: save step
S140: creation step
S150: Calculation step
S151: identification step
S152: Verification step
S153: Loading stage
S154: ECC additional step
S155: reset step
S156: Judgment stage

Claims (5)

A cartridge information reset method for resetting cartridge information, which is information about a cartridge of a memory chip installed in a printing device, comprising:
an installation step in which the cartridge information reset device is installed so as to be in contact with the pins of the memory chip;
a collecting step of collecting and storing identification information, which is information for identifying a plurality of printing devices, from the memory chip;
a storage step of storing reset information, which is information for resetting the cartridge information;
a generating step of generating a reset command signal; and
when the reset command signal is generated, the printing apparatus is identified according to the identification information, and the cartridge information of the memory chip is reset by overwriting the reset information on the memory chip; How to reset information. The method according to claim 1,
The identification information is
A method of resetting cartridge information of a printing apparatus, characterized in that it is collected by comparing and analyzing the source codes of a plurality of the printing apparatuses. The method according to claim 1,
The calculation step is
When the reset command signal is generated, an identification step of identifying the printing apparatus according to the identification information; a loading step of loading the reset information corresponding to the identified printing apparatus; and a reset step of resetting the cartridge information of the memory chip by overwriting the corresponding partition of the printing apparatus. 4. The method of claim 3,
After the loading step,
The method of resetting cartridge information of a printing apparatus further comprising an ECC adding step of adding an ECC (Error Correcting Code) to the loaded reset information. 4. The method of claim 3,
After the identification step,
Cartridge information reset method of the printing apparatus further comprising a verification step of verifying the integrity of the stored reset information.

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