Patent Grant
10793380
The present disclosure relates to a feeding apparatus that performs feeding control of a recording material for a copier, a printer, or the like.
Up to now, an image forming apparatus such as a copier or a printer is provided with a mechanism for separating sheets loaded in a cassette one by one to be fed. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-95371 describes a retard separation method using a roller unit constituted by a feed roller and a separation roller. According to Japanese Patent Laid Open No. 2000-95371, the number of sheets that have been fed is counted, and in a case where the count value becomes a predetermined value, it is determined that the roller unit has reached its end of life (operating lifetime).
When it is determined that the roller unit has reached its end of life, to avoid future conveyance malfunction such as a print failure, the image forming apparatus urges a user, a service man, or the like to replace the roller After the roller unit is replaced with a new (unused) product, the user, the service man, or the like operates the image forming apparatus to reset its end-of-life status, so that the image forming apparatus can recognize that the roller unit has been replaced with the new product. However, in a case where the user, the service man, or the like forgets an operation for resetting the end-of-life status after the roller unit is replaced with the new product, the image forming apparatus does not recognize that the roller unit has been replaced with the new product. As a result, for example, the count number of the number of fed sheets is not reset, and the determination on the end-of-life status of the roller unit is not performed.
In an example, a feeding apparatus automatically determines that a rotary member unit constituted by a feeding rotary member and a separating rotary member is replaced with a new product.
According to an aspect of the present invention, a feeding apparatus includes a rotary member unit including a feeding rotary member configured to feed a recording material and a separating rotary member which forms a nip portion with the feeding rotary member, wherein, in a case where a single recording material is fed to the nip portion, the separating rotary member is configured to be rotated in a predetermined direction by the single recording material and, in a case where a plurality of recording materials are overlapped with one another and fed to the nip portion, the rotation of separating rotary member is configured to be stopped or rotated in a direction opposite to the predetermined direction to separate the overlapped plurality of recording materials from one another at the nip portion, an output unit configured to output a state signal in accordance with a rotation state of the separating rotary member, and a control unit configured to obtain a rotation speed of the separating rotary member from the state signal output from the output unit and, based on the obtained rotation speed of the separating rotary member, to determine that the rotary member unit is replaced with a new product.
Descriptions on a Configuration of an Image Forming Apparatus
According to a first embodiment, a laser beam printer 101 of an electrophotographic method (hereinafter, referred to as a printer 101) is illustrated as an image forming apparatus.
In a state in which the cassette 102 is attached to the main body of the printer 101, a pickup roller 103 corresponding to a pickup rotating body (hereinafter, referred to as a pick roller 103) feeds (conveys) the sheet S loaded in the cassette 102. The sheet S fed by the pick roller 103 is further fed by a feed roller 106 corresponding to a feeding rotary member onto a downstream side in the conveyance direction of the sheet S. Then, the sheet S reaches a top sensor 108 via a registration roller pair 107. A separation roller 105 corresponding to a separating rotary member forms a separation nip portion with the feed roller 106 and avoids feeding of a plurality of sheets S (two sheets or more) onto the downstream side from the separation nip portion together. The operation of the separation roller 105 will be described below in detail. With this configuration, among the sheets S loaded in the cassette 102, only the sheet S located on the topmost position in a direction orthogonal to a bottom surface of the cassette 102 (vertical direction) is fed to the registration roller pair 107.
The sheet S detected by the top sensor 108 is conveyed to an image forming unit next. The image forming unit is provided with a photosensitive drum 109, a charging roller 111, a laser scanner 113, a development apparatus 112, a transfer roller 110, and a fixing apparatus 114. The photosensitive drum 109 is uniformly charged by the charging roller 111 and then irradiated with laser light L by the laser scanner 113, so that an electrostatic latent image is formed on a surface of the photosensitive drum 109. The thus formed electrostatic latent image is supplied with toner from the development apparatus 112 and visualized as a toner image. The photosensitive drum 109 and the transfer roller 110 form a transfer nip portion, and the sheet S is transferred to the transfer nip portion in synchronous with the rotation of the photosensitive drum 109. The toner image formed on the photosensitive drum 109 is transfer onto the sheet S at the transfer nip portion. To transfer the toner image, the transfer roller 110 is applied with a voltage having a polarity opposite to that of the toner image. The sheet S to which the toner image is transferred is conveyed to the fixing apparatus 114 to be heated and pressurized there. As a result, the unfixed toner image transferred to the sheet S is fixed onto the sheet S. The sheet S on which the toner image is fixed is conveyed by a triple roller 116, an intermediate discharge roller 117, and a discharge roller 118 and discharged onto a discharge tray 121. The series of printing operation is ended as described above.
In a case where printing is performed on both sides of the sheet S, the sheet S on which the printing is ended on one side is not discharged onto the discharge tray 121, and the triple roller 116, the intermediate discharge roller 117, and the discharge roller 118 are caused to perform reverse rotation after the rear end of the sheet S passes through the triple roller 116. The sheet S is conveyed to a duplex conveyance path 125 and further conveyed to the image forming unit again by a duplex conveyance roller 122. With this configuration, printing can be performed on both sides of the sheet S.
In
Control Unit
The determination unit 207 executes the lifetime determination of the separation roller 105 based on the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 measured by the measurement unit 206. The determination unit 207 outputs the determined result to the panel output unit 208. The panel output unit 208 notifies the user of the information related to the lifetime of the separation roller 105 which is output from the determination unit 207 via the panel 211 or the external device. The storage unit 209 stores information of a printing request notified from the video controller 202, a time measured by the measurement unit 206 in the past, and the like. The driving control unit 210 controls activation and stopping of the sheet feeding mechanism in accordance with detection results of various sensors which will be described below.
The encoder 203 corresponding to an output unit and the top sensor 108 corresponding to a detection unit are connected to the engine control unit 201. The driving control unit 210 controls the driving of the pick roller 103 by using detection results of these sensors. Herein, a cord wheel arranged on the same axis of that of the separation roller 105 is used as the encoder 203, for example. In addition to the above, an optical rotary encoder, a magnetic rotary encoder, a photo interrupter, and the like can be used in accordance with a predetermined accuracy and a location to be arranged. Furthermore, the panel 211 for the panel output unit 208 to output the information is connected to the engine control unit 201.
Descriptions on the Sheet Feeding Control
Next, sheet feeding control (feeding or conveyance control) of the printer 101 according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to
It should be noted that a position Ps is a leading end position of the sheet S positioned by the rear end regulating plate 126 in
Driving is transmitted to the separation roller 105 in the direction in which the feeding of the sheet S is disturbed (anticlockwise direction in
In addition, at this time, the driving of the feed roller 106 driven by the same driving source as that of the pick roller 103 is switched off. However, since the sheet S1 is conveyed by the registration roller pair 107 in the sheet feeding direction, the feed roller 106 and the separation roller 105 follow the sheet S1 and are driven and rotated. Although the driving of the pick roller 103 is switched from on to off at the timing t2, the separation roller 105 follows the sheet S1 conveyed by the registration roller pair 107 and continues to be driven and rotated. When the rear end of the sheet S1 passes through the position Pp corresponding to the nip portion of the pick roller 103, the influence of the frictional force applied to the sheet S1 by the pick roller 103 disappears. For this reason, vibration is generated in the sheet S1, and the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 may fluctuate in some cases as illustrated at the timing Tc in the graphic representation in (iii) of
New Product Detection of the Separation/Feed Rollers
Next, new product statuses of the separation roller 105 and the feed roller 106 and a change in the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 having the degraded conveyance performance in an end-of-life status of the roller will be described with reference to
Herein, a period for obtaining the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 is set by avoiding a timing when the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 is likely to fluctuate such as the timing Tb or the timing Tc described above. According to the first embodiment, the period for obtaining the average value Va1 is set as a period the separation roller 105 is driven and rotated by following the sheet S conveyed by the registration roller pair 107 after the leading end of the fed sheet S enters the registration roller pair 107. The previously set timing t1 is a starting timing for the period for obtaining the average value Va1 and is set while the average value Va1 can be obtained by avoiding the timing when the rotation of the separation roller 105 is likely to fluctuate. Herein, a time from when the leading end of the sheet S reaches the top sensor 108 until the timing t1 is set as a time T1, and a time from when the leading end of the sheet S reaches the top sensor 108 until the timing t2 is set as a time T2 (see
A maximum value of the ten average values Va1 is set as Va1_max, and a maximum value thereof is set as Va1_min. With this configuration, it is conceivable that a difference between the maximum value Va1_max and the minimum value Va1_min of the average values Va1 of the separation roller 105 is the variation of the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105. As illustrated in
Influence in a Case Where the Paper Powder Adhered onto the Roller is Removed
Even when the paper powder is adhered onto the separation roller 105 or the feed roller 106 to degrade the conveyance performance, the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 may temporarily change to an equivalent level to the roller new product since the paper powder adhered onto the roller is removed at the time of processing for jammed paper or the like.
It should be noted however that the conveyance performance of the separation roller 105 and the feed roller 106 may be degraded in some cases by not only the paper powder but also the roller friction in the roller end-of-life status. For this reason, at the number P2 of fed sheets, after the paper powder is removed, data indicating that the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 is higher than or equal the threshold speed Vth and data indicating that the average value Va1 is lower than the threshold speed Vth may temporarily exist in a mixed manner in some cases. In addition, a period in which the variation of the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 is large and a period in which the variation is small may exist in a mixed manner in some cases.
At the number P2 of fed sheets and thereafter, as the number of fed sheets is further increased, the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 becomes more similar to the roller end-of-life status as in the case at the number P1 of fed sheets again because of the influence of the paper powder adhered onto the roller again and the influence of the roller friction up to the number P2 of fed sheets. In this manner, in a case where the paper powder adhered onto the roller is removed, an erroneous detection may be performed when the roller new product is determined based on only the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 or the variation of the average value Va1.
In view of the above, to avoid the above-described erroneous detection, the roller new product is, determined based on a sheet feeding time (feeding or conveyance time) in addition to the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 or the variation of the average value Va1. Herein, the sheet feeding time refers to a time from when the feeding of the sheet S is started by the pick roller 103 is started until the top sensor 108 detects the leading end of the sheet S.
Therefore, when the roller new product is determined in a case where the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 is higher than or equal to the threshold speed Vth or the variation of the average value Va1 is lower than the threshold and also the sheet feeding time is shorter than the threshold time Tth, it is possible to avoid the erroneous detection. As a result, even in a case where the paper powder adhered onto the roller is removed, it is possible to determine that the roller unit is equivalent to the new product.
Influence of the Multiple Feed of the Subsequent Sheet by the Frictional Force Between the Sheets
Two or more sheets (for example, the sheet S1 and the sheet S2) are overlapped with one another and conveyed to the separation nip portion by the frictional force acting between the sheets S loaded in the cassette 102 in some cases when the single sheet S1 is intended to be fed. This phenomenon is referred to as multiple feed. The rotation speed of the separation roller 105 and the sheet feeding time in a case where the multiple feed occurs will be described.
First, an influence when the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 is obtained will be described. In a case where the multiple feed occurs and the leading end of the sheet S2 reaches the position Pfr corresponding to the separation nip portion before the calculation of Va1, the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 is already lower than or equal to 0 when the calculation of Va1 is started. Herein, a time before the calculation of Va1 is started is before the timing t1 in
In view of the above, according to the present embodiment, when the minimum value at which the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 may be normally measured is set as Vath, in a case where the average value Va1 is lower than the threshold Vath, it is determined that exists the leading end of the subsequent sheet S2 at the separation nip portion. Then, the roller new product determination is not performed by using the average value Va1 data.
Next, an influence when the sheet feeding time is obtained will be described. In a case where the subsequent sheet S2 is taken out to the separation nip portion as a result of as the multiple feed because of the influence of the friction, the feeding of the subsequent sheet S2 is started in a state in which the leading end is at the position Pfr corresponding to the separation nip portion. As a result, the feeding time of the subsequent sheet S2 is shortened by the amount corresponding to the distance from Ps to Pfr as compared with a case where the leading end is at the leading end position Ps of the sheet S while being positioned by the rear end regulating plate 126. According to this, in a case where the multiple feed to the separation nip portion occurs, even when the roller unit is not replaced with the new product, there is a fear that the average value Va1 becomes higher than the threshold speed Vth, and the sheet feeding time becomes shorter than the threshold time Tth. As a result, there is a fear that it is erroneously detected that the roller is replaced with the new product.
In view of the above, according to the present embodiment, in a case where the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 becomes 0 or lower at a timing before the timing Td when the rear end of the sheet S1 in
It should be noted however that, in the case of the first sheet feeding after the cassette 102 is inserted into the printer 101, the movement of the leading end position by the frictional force acting between the sheets S does not occur. For this reason, in the case of the first sheet feeding after the cassette 102 is inserted into the printer 101, the roller new product determination is performed by using the sheet feeding time data without depending on the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 at the time of the previous sheet feeding. With this configuration, it is possible to avoid the erroneous detection of the roller new product because of the multiple feed due to the leading end position of the subsequent sheet.
Roller Unit New Product Determination Processing
A new product determination method for the roller unit according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to flow charts of
First,
In S103, the engine control unit 201 stores the time from when the sheet feeding operation is started until the top sensor 108 detects the leading end of the sheet S which is measured by the measurement unit 206 in the storage unit 209. The engine control unit 201 also starts the measurement of the elapsed time from the timing when the sheet S reaches the top sensor 108 by the measurement unit 206. In S104, the elapsed time since the engine control unit 201 determines whether or not the top sensor 108 reaches the leading end of the sheet S has elapsed the time T1. In S104, in a case where the engine control unit 201 determines that the elapsed time has not elapsed the time T1, the processing returns to S104, and the measurement unit 206 continues measuring the elapsed time since the leading end of the sheet S has reached the top sensor 108. In S104, in a case where the engine control unit 201 determines that the elapsed time has elapsed the time T1, the processing proceeds to S105.
In S105, the engine control unit 201 starts the measurement of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 by the measurement unit 206 based on the rotation state of the separation roller 105 which is detected by the encoder 203. In S106, the engine control unit 201 determines whether or not the elapsed time since the leading end of the sheet S has reached the top sensor 108 has elapsed the time T2. In S106, in a case where the engine control unit 201 determines that the elapsed time has not elapsed the time T2, the processing returns to S106 and continues measuring the elapsed time since the leading end of the sheet S has reached the top sensor 108 by the measurement unit 206. In S106, in a case where the engine control unit 201 determines that the elapsed time has elapsed the time T2, the processing proceeds to S107.
In S107, the engine control unit 201 stores the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 which is measured by the measurement unit 206 after the elapse of the time T1 until the elapse of the time T2 in the storage unit 209. In S108, the engine control unit 201 ends the sheet feeding operation by the driving control unit 210. It should be noted that the end of the sheet feeding operation herein indicates the control for switching the electromagnetic clutch 301 from on to off while the rotation of the motor 300 continues. That is, since the motor 300 continues rotating, the sheet S is conveyed to the image forming unit by the registration roller pair 107.
In S109, the engine control unit 201 determines whether or not the elapsed time since the leading end of the sheet S has reached the top sensor 108 has elapsed the time Td. In S109, in a case where the engine control unit 201 determines that the elapsed time has not elapsed the time Td, the return returns to S109, and the elapsed time since the leading end of the sheet S has reached the top sensor 108 is continuously measured by the measurement unit 206. In S109, in a case where the engine control unit 201 determines that the elapsed time has elapsed the time Td, in S110, the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 upon the elapse of the time Td which is measured by the measurement unit 206 is stored in the storage unit 209, and the processing proceeds to S111.
In S111, the engine control unit 201 ends the measurement of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 and the measurement of the elapsed time by the measurement unit 206, and the processing proceeds to S112. In S112, the determination unit 207 of the engine control unit 201 determines whether or not the roller unit is the new product based on the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 and the sheet feeding time which are measured by the measurement unit 206, and the processing is ended. The processing in S112 will be described in detail below.
In S113, the engine control unit 201 determines whether or not the sheet feeding time currently measured by the measurement unit 206 exceeds a threshold time Te set for determining that a feeding failure occurs. In S113, in a case where the engine control unit 201 determines that the elapsed time does not exceed the threshold time Te, the processing returns to S102, and the driving control unit 210 maintains the driving of the pick roller 103 to continue the sheet feeding operation. In S113, in a case where the engine control unit 201 determines that the elapsed time exceeds the threshold time Te, the processing proceeds to S114. In S114, the engine control unit 201 stops the driving of the pick roller 103 by the driving control unit 210 to end the sheet feeding operation and also end the measurement of the sheet feeding time by the measurement unit 206. In S115, the engine control unit 201 determines that a conveyance malfunction such as a delayed print error has occurred, for example, and notifies the user that the conveyance malfunction has occurred via the panel 211 or the external device to end the processing.
Next, a detail of the new product determination processing for the roller unit in S112 will be described with reference to
In S203, the engine control unit 201 determines whether or not the status of the roller unit is the end-of-life status. For example, in a case where the number of fed sheets reaches a recommended value for the roller replacement, the engine control unit 201 can determine that the roller unit is in the end-of-life status. In a case where the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 is below a threshold a predetermined number of times in succession or a case where the variation of the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 exceeds a threshold a predetermined number of times in succession, it may be similarly determined that the roller unit is in the end-of-life status. When the engine control unit 201 determines that the roller unit is in the end-of-life status, the engine control unit 201 changes the status to the end-of-life status. Herein, the method of determining whether or not the roller unit is in the end-of-life status is not limited to the above-described method. In S203, in a case where the engine control unit 201 determines that the status of the roller unit is the end-of-life status, the processing proceeds to S204. In S201, in a case where the engine control unit 201 determines that the status of the roller unit is not the end-of-life status, the new product determination for the roller unit is ended.
In S204, in a case where the rotation speed data of the separation roller 105 upon the elapse of the time Td at the time of the previous sheet feeding is higher than the previously set threshold Vath, the engine control unit 201 advances the processing to S205. In S204, in a case where the rotation speed data of the separation roller 105 upon the elapse of the time Td at the time of the previous sheet feeding is lower than or equal to the previously set threshold Vath, the engine control unit 201 ends the new product determination for the roller unit.
In S205, the engine control unit 201 reads out the information of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 since the time T1 has elapsed until the time T2 has elapsed. The engine control unit 201 calculates the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 in a period since the time T1 has elapsed until the time T2 has elapsed. In S206, the engine control unit 201 determines whether or not the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 which is calculated in S205 is within a range of an upper limit and a lower limit of the previously set average value Va1 (hereinafter, referred to as within an upper and lower limit value range). In S206, in a case where the engine control unit 201 determines that the calculated average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 is out of the upper and lower limit value range, the new product determination for the roller unit is ended.
In S206, in a case where the engine control unit 201 determines that the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 is within the previously set upper and lower value range, the processing proceeds to S207. In S207, the engine control unit 201 stores the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 which is calculated in S205 in the storage unit 209. It should be noted that when the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 is stored in the storage unit 209, the sheet feeding time data measured at the time of the sheet feeding when the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 is stored is also stored.
In S208, the engine control unit 201 determines whether or not the number of data pieces of the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 stored in the storage unit 209 is higher than or equal to, for example, 11. Herein, the number of data pieces stored in the storage unit 209 is not limited to 11. In S208, in a case where the engine control unit 201 determines that the number of data pieces stored in the storage unit 209 is lower than 11, the new product determination for the roller unit is ended. In S208, in a case where the engine control unit 201 determines that the number of data pieces stored in the storage unit 209 is higher than or equal to 11, the processing proceeds to S209.
In S209, the engine control unit 201 deletes the single oldest data piece among the 11 pieces of data of the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 which are stored in the storage unit 209. The engine control unit 201 further deletes the single oldest data piece among the 11 pieces of sheet feeding time data which are measured at the same sheet feeding time as the data pieces of the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 which are stored in the storage unit 209.
In S210, the engine control unit 201 extracts the minimum value Va1_min from among the ten data pieces of the average value Va1 stored in the storage unit 209, and in a case where the minimum value Va1_min is higher than or equal to the threshold speed Vth, the processing proceeds to S211. In S210, in a case where the minimum value Va1_min is lower than the threshold speed Vth, the engine control unit 201 ends the new product determination for the roller unit.
In S211, the engine control unit 201 extracts a maximum value T_max from among the ten pieces of sheet feeding time data measured at the same sheet feeding time as the ten pieces of data of the average value Va1 stored in the storage unit 209. In a case where the maximum value T_max is lower than the threshold time Tth, the engine control unit 201 advances the processing to S212. In a case where the maximum value T_max is higher than or equal to the threshold time Tth, the new product determination for the roller unit is ended.
In S212, the engine control unit 201 determines that the roller unit is the new product and changes the status to the new product status. The engine control unit 201 notifies the user that the roller unit is the new product by using the panel 211 by the panel output unit 208 and ends the roller unit new product determination.
Herein, in S210, it is determined as to whether or not the minimum value Va1_min is higher than or equal to the threshold speed Vth, but as described above, the determination may be performed based on the variation of the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105. The engine control unit 201 extracts the maximum value Va1_max and the minimum value Va1_min from among the ten pieces of data of the average value Va1 stored in the storage unit 209 and obtains a difference between the maximum value Va1_max and the minimum value Va1_min. The engine control unit 201 determines whether or not the difference between the maximum value Va1_max and the minimum value Va1_min, that is, the variation of the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 is lower than or equal to a threshold speed Vd for determining that the roller unit is the new product. In S210, in a case where the difference between the maximum value Va1_max and the minimum value Va1_min is lower than or equal to the threshold speed Vd, the engine control unit 201 advances the processing to S211. In S210, in a case where the difference between the maximum value Va1_max and the minimum value Va1_min is higher than the threshold speed Vd, the engine control unit 201 ends the new product determination for the roller unit.
Furthermore, the variation of the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 is set as the difference between the maximum value and the minimum value of the data recorded in the storage unit 209, but a standard deviation, a variance, or the like of the data recorded in the storage unit 209 may also be used. The number of data pieces of the average value Va1 of the rotation speed which are stored in the storage unit 209 may also be changed to the appropriate number of data pieces depending on the method of calculating the variation.
According to the method of determining whether or not the roller unit is the new product based on the variation of the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105, an influence from an environment, a variation of parts, or the like can be reduced as compared with the method depending on whether or not the average value Va1 is higher than or equal to the threshold speed Vth. Even in a case where an average rotation speed of the separation roller 105 varies depending on an environment such as temperature and humidity or a variation of parts, when a magnitude of the variation indicating the stability of the adaptability of the separation roller 105 with respect to the sheet S is actually checked, it is possible to minimize the influence from the difference in the average rotation speed. In addition, a frictional coefficient of a sheet surface, a weight, or the like varies a paper category (type) of the sheet S varies, and the behavior of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 changes. To take this influence into account, the rotation state of the separation roller 105 during a period in which the separation roller 105 is driven by the friction against the sheet S is monitored instead of a period in which the separation roller 105 contacts with the feed roller 106 to be driven. With this configuration, the influence affecting the conveyance performance depending on the paper type is also taken into account, and it is possible to more accurately determine the end-of-life status of the separation roller.
In addition, to avoid the erroneous detection by unexpected abnormality data, the new product determination for the roller unit may perform the following determination. For example, in a case where the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 and the sheet feeding time or the variation of the average value Va1 and the sheet feeding time exceed the thresholds plural times in succession within a predetermined period of time, it may be determined as the new product of the roller unit.
In addition, the thresholds for the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 and the sheet feeding time may be changed depending on the environment or the paper type. Furthermore, in a case where the environment significantly changes from the previous sheet feeding and a case where the paper type is changed, to avoid the erroneous detection for the new product of the roller unit due to the influence from the above-described circumstances affecting the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 and the sheet feeding time, a configuration may also be adopted in which the determination of the new product detection is not performed for a period of time.
With the above-described configuration, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to determine whether or not the roller unit (the separation roller 105 and the feed roller 106) is the new product status based on the rotation information of the separation roller 105. When it is detected that the image forming apparatus is replaced with the new product after the roller unit is put into the end-of-life status and the status is automatically changed, it is possible to detect the end-of-life status again even for the roller after the replacement. With this configuration, even in a case where the user, the service man, or the like forgets resetting the end-of-life status after the replacement of the new product of the roller unit, it becomes possible to accurately determine the end-of-life status of the replaced unit, and a future conveyance malfunction such as a print failure can be avoided in advance.
A second embodiment will be described. The descriptions of the main parts are similar to the first embodiment, and only parts different from the first embodiment will be described herein.
Descriptions on the Sheet Feeding Control
First, the sheet feeding control of the printer 101 according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to
As described above, the driving of the pick roller 103 is turned off in the printer 101 according to the second embodiment under a condition where the leading end of the sheet S2 reaches the position Pfr corresponding to the separation nip portion and the rotation of the separation roller 105 has stopped or rotated in the opposite direction. Since the sheet S2 is fed in advance while being overlapped with the sheet S1, it is possible to align the leading end position of the sheet S2 to the position Pfr corresponding to the separation nip portion. The above-described sheet feeding control will be hereinafter referred to as preceding sheet feeding. When the preceding sheet feeding is performed, it is possible to shorten a distance between the rear end of the sheet S1 and the leading end of the sheet S2 (hereinafter, referred to as a sheet interval) in a case where the sheet feeding operation is continuously performed. That is, it is possible to refine the number of printed sheets per unit time and productivity of the printer 101.
In the sheet feeding control described with reference to
New Product Detection of the Separation/Feed Rollers
Next, the new product detection for the separation roller 105 and the feed roller 106 according to the second embodiment will be described. In the printer 101 according to the second embodiment, in a case where the preceding sheet feeding is not performed such as a case of the first sheet feeding after the cassette 102 is attached to the main body of the printer 101 or printing of the single sheet (the number of job sheets is 1), it is possible to determine whether or not the roller unit is the new product by a method similar to that of the first embodiment. On the other hand, in a case where the preceding sheet feeding is performed, the roller new product determination method different from that of the first embodiment is used. Herein, a case where the preceding sheet feeding has been performed refers to a state in which the preceding sheet feeding operation is executed when a leading sheet (denoted as S1) ahead of a target sheet (denoted as S2) is fed, and the leading end of the target sheet S2 is aligned with the position Pfr corresponding to the separation nip portion.
According to the first embodiment, it is determined as to whether or not the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 becomes lower than or equal to 0 before the timing Td in
In view of the above, the printer 101 according to the second embodiment corrects a difference of the sheet feeding time in a case where the preceding sheet feeding is performed and detects the roller new product.
Roller Unit New Product Determination Processing
The new product determination method for the separation roller 105 and the feed roller 106 according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to flow charts of
In
In S314, the engine control unit 201 determines whether or not the rotation of the separation roller 105 is stopped based on the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 which is currently measured by the measurement unit 206. In S314, in a case where the engine control unit 201 determines that the rotation of the separation roller 105 not stopped and the rotation continues, the processing returns of S314, and the measurement of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 still continues. In S314, in a case where the engine control unit 201 determines that the rotation of the separation roller 105 stops, the processing proceeds to S315. It should be noted that the engine control unit 201 does not necessarily need to stand by until the rotation of the separation roller 105 stops in S314, and the processing may proceed to S315 at a timing when the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 is lower than the threshold speed.
In S315, the engine control unit 201 stores the history indicating that the preceding sheet feeding has been performed in the storage unit 209 and stops the driving of the pick roller 103 by the driving control unit 210 in S316 to end the sheet feeding operation, and the processing proceeds to S312. The processing in S317 to S319 is similar to the processing in S113 to S115 of
Next, a detail of the new product determination processing for the roller unit in S313 will be described with reference to
In S402, the engine control unit 201 subtracts the time Tsfr (correction time) equivalent to the distance from the leading end position Ps of the sheet S to Pfr from the sheet feeding time data stored in the storage unit 209 and stores the data after the calculation in the storage unit 209 as the sheet feeding time at that time. The processing in S403 to S412 is similar to the processing in S203 to S212 of
As described above, according to the second embodiment, the following benefit is attained in addition to the benefit of the first embodiment. According to the second embodiment, in the image forming apparatus provided with the sheet feeding control function for performing the preceding sheet feeding to align the leading end position of the subsequent sheet S2 to the separation nip portion, the influence based on the difference in the sheet feeding time due to the presence or absence of the preceding sheet feeding is reduced or eliminated, and it is possible to determine the new product of the roller unit.
Herein, the time Tsfr may be changed depending on the number of fed sheets of the roller or the end-of-life status by taking into account the conveyance performance degradation caused by the roller friction. In addition, the time Tsfr may be changed depending on the paper type or the environment by taking into account the influence affecting the sheet feeding time due to the paper type or the environment.
A third embodiment will be described. The descriptions of the main parts are similar to the first embodiment, and only parts different from the first embodiment will be described herein.
New Product Detection of the Separation/Feed Rollers
The new product detection for the separation roller 105 and the feed roller 106 according to the third embodiment will be described.
According to the third embodiment, a predetermined number Dall of data pieces of the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 and the sheet feeding time are stored. When the printer 101 performs the sheet feeding and the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 and the sheet feeding time data are newly measured, the oldest data is deleted, and the latest data is stored. Among the stored data, an average value of the average value Va1 of the rotation speed data of the separation roller 105 for a predetermined number Dold (for example, five pieces) of oldest data is set as Vold, and an average value of the sheet feeding time data for a predetermined number fold (for example, five pieces) of oldest data is set as Told. In addition, among the stored data, an average value of the average value Va1 of the rotation speed data of the separation roller 105 for a predetermined number Dnew (for example, five pieces) of latest data is set as Vnew, and an average value of the sheet feeding time data for the predetermined number Dnew (for example, five pieces) of latest data is set as Tnew. As a result, in a case where the separation roller 105 and the feed roller 106 is replaced with the new product roller at the number P3 of fed sheets, the difference between Vnew and Vold and the difference between Told and Tnew are increased.
Therefore, it is possible to determine the new products of the separation roller 105 and the feed roller 106 similarly as in the first embodiment depending on whether or not the difference between Vnew and Vold and the difference between Told and Tnew is higher than or equal to the predetermined threshold. As compared with the method of previously setting the predetermined threshold as in the first embodiment, it is possible to suppress the influence from the variation of the rotation speed of the separation roller or the sheet feeding time caused by the individual difference of the printers and rollers onto the detection accuracy.
Roller Unit New Product Determination Processing
The new product determination method for the separation roller 105 and the feed roller 106 according to the third embodiment will be described with reference to a flow chart of
In
In S509, the engine control unit 201 deletes the single oldest data piece among the 16 data pieces of the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 which are stored in the storage unit 209. The engine control unit 201 further deletes the single oldest data piece among the 16 data pieces of sheet feeding time data which are measured at the same sheet feeding time as the data pieces of the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 which are stored in the storage unit 209.
In S510, the engine control unit 201 calculates the average value Vold of the predetermined number of oldest data pieces, for example, five pieces of data from the data of the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 stored in the storage unit 209 to be stored in the storage unit 209. Furthermore, in S510, the engine control unit 201 calculates an average value Told of the predetermined number of oldest data pieces, for example, five pieces of data from the sheet feeding time data stored in the storage unit 209 to be stored in the storage unit 209. Herein, the number of data pieces stored in the storage unit 209 is not limited to five.
In S511, the engine control unit 201 calculates an average value Vnew of the predetermined number of latest data pieces, for example, five pieces of data from the data of the average value Va1 of the rotation speed of the separation roller 105 stored in the storage unit 209 to be stored in the storage unit 209. Furthermore, in S511, the engine control unit 201 calculates an average value Tnew of the predetermined number of latest data pieces, for example, five pieces of data from the sheet feeding time data stored in the storage unit 209 to be stored in the storage unit. 209. Herein, the number of data pieces stored in the storage unit 209 is not limited to five.
In S512, the engine control unit 201 determines whether or not a difference between the average value Vnew and the average value Vold stored in the storage unit 209 is higher than or equal to a threshold Vth2. In a case where the difference between the average value Vnew and the average value Vold is higher than or equal to the threshold Vth2, the processing proceeds to S513. In a case where the difference between the average value Vnew and the average value Vold is lower than the threshold Vth2, the roller new product determination is ended.
In S513, the engine control unit 201 determines whether or not a difference between the average value Told and the average value Tnew stored in the storage unit 209 is higher than or equal to a threshold Vth4. In a case where the difference between the average value Told and the average value Tnew is higher than or equal to the threshold Vth4, the processing proceeds to S514. In a case where the difference between the average value Told and the average value Tnew is lower than the threshold Vth4, the roller new product determination is ended.
In S514, the engine control unit 201 determines that the roller unit is the new product and changes the status to the new product status. The engine control unit 201 also uses the panel 211 and notifies the user that the roller unit is the new product by the panel output unit 208 and ends the roller unit new product determination.
With the above-described configuration, according to the third embodiment, the following benefit is attained in addition to the benefit of the first embodiment. As compared with the method of previously setting the predetermined threshold as in the first embodiment, when the data pieces in the two or more groups are selected to be compared with one another according to the third embodiment, it is possible to suppress the influence from the variation of the rotation speed of the separation roller or the sheet feeding time caused by the individual difference of the printers and rollers onto the detection accuracy.
According to the first to third embodiments described above, the descriptions have been provided while the configuration including the pickup roller 103, the separation roller 105, and the feed roller 106 is used as the feeding mechanism of the sheet S, but the configuration is not limited to this. For example, a configuration may be adopted in which the feed roller 106 contacts with the sheet S loaded in the cassette 102 and also forms the separation nip portion with the separation roller 105. In the case of this configuration, since the feed roller 106 also plays the role of the pickup roller 103, the pickup roller 103 does not need to be provided. It should be noted that the sheet feeding time is measured by using the driving start timing of the feed roller 106 as a starting point instead of the driving start timing of the pickup roller 103 in the case of this configuration.
In addition, according to the first to third embodiments described above, the separation roller 105 and the feed roller 106 have been described as the examples, but the configuration is not limited to this. For example, not only the rollers but also a rotating body such as a belt may also be set as the target. A configuration may be adopted in which the separation roller 105 and the feed roller 106 are integrally constructed and can be replaced together, or a configuration may also be adopted in which the separation roller 105 and the feed roller 106 can individually be replaced.
Moreover, according to the first to third embodiments described above, the example of the laser beam printer has been described, but the configuration may be applied to a feeding optional apparatus that can be detachably attached to the laser beam printer main body. In this case, the control unit illustrated in
Furthermore, according to the first to third embodiments described above, the example of the laser beam printer has been described, but the image forming apparatus to which the embodiment of the present disclosure is applied is not limited to this, and a printer such as an inkjet printer or a copier based on another printing system may also be used.
While the present disclosure has been described with reference to embodiments, it is to be understood that the disclosure is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. The scope of the following claims is to be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent structures and functions.
This application claims the benefit of Japanese Patent Application No. 2017-141120 filed Jul. 20, 2017, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017-141120 | Jul 2017 | JP | national |
| Number | Name | Date | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7588245 | Mandel | Sep 2009 | B2 |
| 10364109 | Hirano | Jul 2019 | B2 |
| 20030193126 | Hoberock | Oct 2003 | A1 |
| Number | Date | Country |
|---|---|---|
| 11-35183 | Feb 1999 | JP |
| 11035183 | Feb 1999 | JP |
| 2000095371 | Apr 2000 | JP |
| 2003341866 | Dec 2003 | JP |
| 2011184129 | Sep 2011 | JP |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20190023513 A1 | Jan 2019 | US |
