Feeding Device and Image Forming Apparatus

Description

This application is based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2005-099254 filed in Mar. 30, 2005, the content of which is incorporated hereinto by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a feeding device including a motor that is to be driven with supply of a power thereto, and a feeder that is to be moved by the motor for feeding an object in a feed direction so as to position the object in a desired position, and also to an image forming apparatus including such a feeding device for feeding a recording medium as the object.

2. Discussion of Related Art

As a kind of image forming apparatus, there is known an inkjet printer of serial type including: (a) a feed mechanism including a motor that is to be driven with supply of a power thereto, and a feed roller that is to be rotated by the motor for feeding a medium in a feed direction; (b) a recording head operable to eject an ink toward the medium so as to form an image on the medium; (c) a carriage carrying the recording head; (d) a carriage driver operable to move the carriage in a main scanning direction perpendicular to the feed direction; (e) a feed controller operable, upon reception of a command requesting the medium to be fed to a desired recording position, to control the motor so as to move the feeder to a target operating position that causes the medium to he positioned in the desired recording position; and (f) an ink ejection controller operable, upon positioning of the medium in the desired recording position, to cause at least one ink ejection portion of the recording head to eject the ink therethrough toward the medium. The feed controller is operated to control the motor so as to intermittently move the feeder while the recording head forms the image on the medium, so as to position the medium in the desired recording position by each of successive feed motions of the feeder. The ink ejection controller is operated, based on data representative of the image to be formed, to cause the at least one ink ejection portion of the recording head to eject the ink therethrough while the carriage is being moved by the carriage driver in the main scanning direction after each of the successive feed motions of the medium.

In the above-described inkjet printer in which the recording medium has to be positioned in the desired recording position by each of the successive feed motions of the feed roller, if the recording medium is positioned by each feed motion in a position deviated from the desired recording position, white-colored or dark-colored extraneous lines are likely to appear on the formed image, resulting in poor quality of the image.

For preventing such an undesirable appearance of the lines, in the inkjet printer, commonly, the feed roller is controlled by detecting or monitoring an operating angular position of the feed roller (i.e., position of the recording medium) through an operating angular position detector such as a rotary encoder in each of the successive feed motions of the feed roller.

Conventionally, when the recording medium is to be moved to a certain desired position, the motor is once accelerated and then gradually decelerated such that a rotational velocity of the feed roller is reduced to a sufficiently low value in proximity of the desired position. Then, supply of electric power to the motor is stopped at a point of time at which an actual position of the moved recording medium reaches a motor OFF position that is located before the desired position by a certain amount, so that the feed roller is rotated by inertia for a while and then eventually stopped, as shown in FIG. 11A.

In this arrangement for positioning the recording medium in the desired position, as long as the rotational velocity of the feed roller at the motor OFF position is constantly controlled to be a predetermined value, an amount α of the inertial rotation of the feed roller can be held constant, whereby the feed roller can be stopped in a target operating position that causes the recording medium to be positioned in the desired position. However, due to a torque fluctuation of the feed mechanism (including the motor, feed roller, and power transmission member connecting the motor to the feed roller), if the rotational velocity of the feed roller at the motor OFF position is made lower than the predetermined value, as indicated by broken line in FIG. 11A, the amount α of the inertial rotation of the feed roller after the stop of the power supply to the motor is reduced, whereby the feed roller is likely to be stopped before the target operating position.

Commonly, the above-described motor driving the feed roller is provided by a DC motor. Due to its constructional character, a torque of the DC motor is fluctuated rather than being constant during each one rotation of a drive shaft thereof. That is, the DC motor has a so-called “cogging” by which the torque is cyclically fluctuated. Consequently, the rotation of the feed roller is affected by the cyclic fluctuation of the torque of the DC motor (see FIG. 11B).

Where a reduction in the torque of the DC motor due to the cyclic fluctuation of the torque is caused in vicinity of the motor OFF position, the amount α of rotation of the feed roller after the stop of the power supply to the motor until the stop of rotation of the feed roller is reduced, thereby making it impossible to stop the feed roller in the target operating position, failing to position the recording medium in the desired position.

For preventing such a problem, there is an arrangement, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,702,492 (corresponding to JP-2002-128313A), in which a minimum controllable operating amount of the feed roller is adapted to be integer number of times as large as a cycle length of the cogging of the motor, such that the amount α of the inertial rotation of the feed roller after the stop of the power supply to the motor until the stop of rotation of the feed roller is constantly held in a predetermined amount. In the disclosed arrangement, a gear ratio between the motor and the feed roller is set to be an amount that causes the minimum controllable operating amount of the feed roller to be integer number of times as large as the cycle length of the cogging.

However, in the above-described arrangement, it is not possible to finely adjust control parameters representative of a relationship between the rotation amount of the motor and the feed amount of the recording medium, for accurately control the feed amount of the recording medium in presence of some erroneous variations in dimensions of the feed mechanism such as a diameter of the roller feeder and dimensions of gears, belt or other components constituting the feed mechanism. Thus, the arrangement has a problem that the components of the feed mechanism are required to have extremely high dimensional accuracy, increasing a cost required therefor.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is therefore a first object of the invention to provide a feeding device capable of accurately positioning an object in a desired position even in presence of a cyclic torque fluctuation of a feed mechanism of the device, without necessity of fixing dimensions of components constituting the feed mechanism. It is a second object of the invention to provide an image forming apparatus including such a feeding device. It is a third object of the invention to provide a method of feeding an object by using such a feeding device. The first object may be achieved according to any one of first through fifth aspects of the invention that are described below. The second object may be achieved according to a sixth aspect of the invention that is described below. The third object may be achieved according to a seventh aspect of the invention that is described below.

The first aspect of the invention provides a feeding device for feeding an object in response to a command requesting the object to be moved to a desired position, including: (a) a feed mechanism including a motor that is to be driven with supply of a power thereto, and a feeder that is to be operated by the motor for feeding the object in a feed direction; (b) a power supply controller operable, upon reception of the command, to supply the power to the motor until an actual operating position of the feeder coincides with a power-supply-stop operating position located before a target operating position of the feeder that causes the object to be positioned in the desired position, and to stop the supply of the power to the motor when the actual operating position coincides with the power-supply-stop operating position, for causing the actual operating position to eventually coincide with the target operating position owing to an inertia of the feed mechanism; and (c) a power-supply-stop operating-position determiner operable to determine the power-supply-stop operating position of the feeder in which the supply of the power to the motor is to be stopped, for reducing a positioning error of the object in presence of a torque fluctuation of the feed mechanism, based on the target operating position of the feeder and a cyclic variation of an operating velocity of the feeder that is caused by the torque fluctuation of the feed mechanism.

In the present feeding device, the power-supply-stop operating-position determiner is operated to determine the power-supply-stop operating position of the feeder in which the supply of the power to the motor is to be stopped, for reducing a positioning error of the object in presence of the torque fluctuation of the feed mechanism, by taking account of the target operating position of the feeder and the cyclic variation of the operating velocity of the feeder that is caused by the torque fluctuation of the feed mechanism. Thus, in the present feeding device, the object can be fed to be accurately positioned in the desired position, without the conventional necessity of fixing dimensions of components constituting the feed mechanism. Owing to the elimination of the necessity of fixing the dimensions of the components constituting the feed mechanism, it is possible to finely adjust the various control parameters, for accurately control the feed amount of the object in presence of some erroneous variations in dimensions of the feed mechanism such as a diameter of the roller feeder and dimensions of the other components constituting the feed mechanism. Thus, the present feeding device can be constructed at a low cost.

According to the second aspect of the invention, in the feeding device in the first aspect of the invention, there is further provided an operating position detector operable to detect the actual operating position of the feeder, wherein the power supply controller controls the supply of the power to the motor based on the actual operating position of the feeder that is detected by the operating position detector.

According to the third aspect of the invention, in the feeding device in the first or second aspect of the invention, the power-supply-stop operating-position determiner determines the power-supply-stop operating position of the feeder, based on (i) a positional relationship between the target operating position and a most-deviated-velocity operating position of the feeder in which the operating velocity of the feeder is most deviated from a reference value thereof within each one cycle of the cyclic variation, and (ii) an inertial operating amount by which the feeder is to be operated by the inertia when the operating velocity of the feeder corresponds to the reference value.

According to the fourth aspect of the invention, in the feeding device in the third aspect of the invention, the power-supply-stop position determiner includes: (c-1) a cyclic-variation-related data storage storing data representative of the most-deviated-velocity operating position of the feeder; (c-2) a positional-difference obtainer operable to provisionally determine the power-supply-stop operating position of the feeder based on the target operating position and the inertial operating amount of the feeder, and to obtain a positional difference between the provisionally determined power-supply-stop operating position and the most-deviated-velocity operating position of the feeder that is indicated by the data stored in the cyclic-variation related data storage; and (ii) a power-supply-stop operating-position modifier operable to modify the power-supply-stop operating position that has been provisionally determined, by changing the power-supply-stop operating position by a variable amount that varies depending upon the positional difference obtained by the positional-difference obtainer. The variable amount is larger where the positional difference is small, than where the positional difference is large. The power supply controller stops the supply of the power to the motor when the actual operating position coincides with the power-supply-stop operating position that has been modified by the power-supply-stop operating-position modifier.

In the feeding device according to the fourth aspect of the invention, the positional-difference obtainer is operated, in response to the command requesting the object to be moved to the desired position, to provisionally determine the power-supply-stop operating position of the feeder based on the target operating position and the inertial operating amount of the feeder, and to obtain a positional difference between the provisionally determined power-supply-stop operating position and the most-deviated position of the feeder that is indicated by the data stored in the cyclic-variation related data storage, and the power-supply-stop operating-position modifier is operated to modify the power-supply-stop operating position that has been provisionally determined, by changing the power-supply-stop operating position by the variable amount (compensation amount), which varies depending upon the positional difference obtained by the positional-difference obtainer such that the variable amount is increased with reduction in the positional difference.

As shown in FIG. 11C, a deviation of an actual stop position from the target operating position (target stop position) tends to be increased with a reduction in the positional difference between the power-supply-stop operating position and the most-deviated-velocity operating position of the feeder. That is, there is a tendency that a force braking the feeder is increased with the reduction in the positional difference, in other words, the inertial operating amount of the feeder is reduced with the reduction in the positional difference. In the feeding device according to the fourth aspect of the invention, in view of such a tendency, the power-supply-stop operating position is changed by the amount larger where the positional difference is small, than where the positional difference is large.

According to the fifth aspect of the invention, in the feeding device in any one the first through fourth aspects of the invention, there is further provided a most-deviated-velocity operating-position obtainer operable, upon power-on of the feeding device, to command the power supply controller to supply the power to the motor until the feeder is operated by an operating amount corresponding to at least one cycle of the cyclic variation, and to detect the operating velocity of the feeder in a plurality of operating positions of the feeder while the feeder is being operated by the operating amount. The most-deviated-velocity operating-position obtainer obtains, based on the detected operating velocity in each of the plurality of operating positions, a most-deviated-velocity operating position of the feeder in which the operating velocity of the feeder is most deviated from a reference value thereof within each one cycle of the cyclic variation.

The cycle length of the cyclic variation and the most-deviated-velocity operating position of the feeder may be stored in the above-described cyclic-variation-related data storage or other data storage, for example, before shipment of the feeding device from the factory. However, where the most-deviated-velocity operating position is represented by data defining a distance of the most-deviated-velocity operating position from a reference operating position of the feeder, the accurate-positioning failure anticipator cannot make the above-described determination or anticipation (whether the medium fails to be accurately positioned in the desired recording position or not), based on such data defining the distance of the most-deviated-velocity operating position from the reference operating position, if the data is lost by power off of the feeding device, or if the feeder is moved manually during the power off of the apparatus.

In the feeding device according to the fifth aspect of the invention, since there is provided the most-deviated-velocity operating-position obtainer that is operated to obtain the most-deviated-velocity operating position of the feeder, each time the feeding device is newly powered on, it is possible to always obtain a positional relationship between the most-deviated-velocity operating position and the reference operating position of the feeder, even if the positional relationship is lost by power off of the apparatus, or even if the feeder is moved manually during the power off of the apparatus.

The sixth aspect of the invention provides an image forming apparatus including: the feeding device defined in any one of the first through fifth aspects of the invention; and an image forming device operable to form an image on a medium as the object that is fed by the feeding device.

In the present image forming apparatus, it is possible to accurately position the medium in a predetermined recording position as the desired position even in presence of the cyclic torque fluctuation of a the mechanism of the apparatus, whereby a clear image can be constantly formed on the medium by the image forming device.

The seventh aspect of the invention provides a method of feeding an object, by using a feeding device including (a) a feed mechanism including a motor that is to be driven with supply of a power thereto, and a feeder that is to be operated by the motor for feeding the object in a feed direction, and (b) a power supply controller operable, upon a command requesting the object to be moved to a desired position, to supply the power to the motor until an actual operating position of the feeder coincides with a power-supply-stop operating position located before a target operating position of the feeder that causes the object to be positioned in the desired position, and to stop the supply of the power to the motor when the actual operating position coincides with the power-supply-stop operating position, for causing the actual operating position to eventually coincide with the target operating position owing to an inertia of the feed mechanism. The method includes: inputting the command requesting the power supply controller to move the object to the desired position; and causing, in response to the command, the power supply controller to stop the supply of the power to the motor when the actual operating position of the feeder coincides with the power-supply-stop operating position, which is determined for reducing a positioning error of the object in presence of a torque fluctuation of the feed mechanism, based on the target operating position of the feeder and a cyclic variation of an operating velocity of the feeder that is caused by the torque fluctuation of the feed mechanism.

According to the present feeding method, the power supply controller is caused to stop the power supply to the motor when the actual operating position of the feeder coincides with the power-supply-stop operating position, which is determined for reducing a positioning error of the object in presence of a torque fluctuation of the feed mechanism, based on the target operating position of the feeder and a cyclic variation of an operating velocity of the feeder that is caused by the torque fluctuation of the feed mechanism. Thus, in the present feeding method, the object can be fed to be accurately positioned in the desired position.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other objects, features, advantages and technical and industrial significance of the present invention will be better understood by reading the following detailed description of presently preferred embodiment of the invention, when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a multi function device constructed according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a side view in cross section of the multi function device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an upper plan view showing a part of the multi function device of FIG. 1, in absence of an image reading device;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a control system incorporated in the multi function device of FIG. 1 for controlling a feed motion of a recording medium;

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing a routine executed for computing a most-deviated-velocity operating position;

FIG. 6 is a view showing a cyclic variation of an operating velocity of a feed roller and a reference signal wave that is used for computing the most-deviated-velocity operating position;

FIG. 7 is a flow chart showing a routine executed for controlling a motor during formation of an image on the recording medium;

FIG. 8 is a flow chart showing a routine executed for changing a target operating position (stop position) of the feed roller, and shifting ink ejection portions of a recording head;

FIG. 9 is a view a relationship between a compensation amount F and a phase difference between a most-deviated-velocity phase D and a motor OFF phase Dc;

FIG. 10 is a flow chart showing a routine executed for updating data representative of the most-deviated-velocity operating position;

FIG. 11A is a view showing a manner for stopping the feed roller in the target operating position;

FIG. 11B is a view showing the cyclic variation of the operating velocity of the feed roller, which is caused by a torque fluctuation of a feed mechanism; and

FIG. 11C is a view showing a tendency that a deviation of an actual stop position from a target stop position is increased with a reduction in a phase difference between the motor OFF phase Dc and the most-deviated-velocity phase D.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIGS. 1 and 2 show an image forming apparatus in the form of a multi function device (MFD) 1 which has a printing function, a copying function, a scanning function and a facsimile function. The multi function device 1 has a housing 2 as a main body of the MFD 1. The housing 2 is formed, by injection, of a synthetic resin.

On an upper portion of the housing 2, there is disposed an image reading device 12 operable to read an original or manuscript, for achieving the copying and facsimile functions of the MFD 1. The image reading device 12 is arranged to be pivotable upwardly and downwardly about one end of the housing 2 via a hinge (not shown). An original (manuscript) covering member 13 covering an upper surface of the image reading device 12 is pivotally connected at its rear end to a rear end of the image reading device 12 through a pivot shaft 12a (see FIG. 2) such that the original covering member 13 is pivotable upwardly and downwardly about the pivot shaft 12a.

Further, on the upper surface of the image reading device 12, there is provided a glass plate 16 on which the original or manuscript is to be placed, with the original covering member 13 being opened. Below the grass plate 16, an image scanning device (CIS: contact image sensor) 17 for reading the image on the original is provided so as to be reciprocably movable along a guide rod 44 that extends in a direction perpendicular to a sheet plane of FIG. 2 (i.e., a main scanning direction corresponding to rightward and leftward directions indicated in FIG. 1).

An operation panel 14 is provided in front of the image reading device 12. The operation panel 14 includes various operating keys 14a that are operable by a user to input various commands, and a liquid crystal display (LCD) 14b that displays various information.

In a bottom portion of the housing 2, there is provided a sheet supplying portion 11 for supplying a recording sheet P as a recording medium or object. The sheet supplying portion 11 includes a sheet cassette 3, which is detachably attached to the housing 2 via an opening 2a formed in a front portion of the housing 2, by moving the sheet cassette 3 relative to the housing 2 in the rearward direction. In the present embodiment, the sheet cassette 3 has a construction permitting a plurality of recording sheets P (such as A4-size sheets, legal-size sheets, letter-size sheets, or postcard-size sheets) to be accommodated in the cassette 3 such that the recording sheets P are stacked on each other with short sides of the respective recording sheets P extending in a direction (i.e., the main scanning direction corresponding to the rightward and leftward directions) perpendicular to a sheet-supply direction indicated by arrow A (i.e., a sub-scanning direction corresponding to frontward and rearward directions).

As shown in FIG. 2, the sheet cassette 3 has a slant sheet-separate plate 8 provided by its rear end portion. The sheet-separate plate 8 is convexed in the forward direction, so as to have a convexly curved shape as a whole in its plan view. That is, a central portion of the sheet-separate plate 8 as seen in a widthwise direction of each recording sheet P (i.e., the rightward and leftward directions) swells in the forward direction, while opposite end portions of the plate 8 do not swell. A corrugated-shaped elastic pad is attached to the central portion of the sheet-separate plate 8, so that each recording sheet P is brought into contact at its leading end with the corrugated-shaped elastic pad, whereby separation of each sheet P from the other sheets P is facilitated.

In the sheet supplying portion 11, a sheet supply arm 6a is provided to supply each recording sheet P from the sheet cassette 3. The sheet supply arm 6a is connected at its upper end portion to the housing 2, so as to be pivotable upward and downward. A sheet supply roller 6b is rotatably supported by a lower end portion of the arm 6a, and is driven or rotated by a LF (line feed) motor 54 (see FIG. 4) via a gear train 6c that is provided in the arm 6a. The sheet supply roller 6b cooperates with the above-described corrugated-shaped elastic pad of the sheet-separate plate 8 to separate and feed, one by one, the recording sheets P stacked in the sheet cassette 3, so that each separated sheet P is fed in a sheet supply direction indicated by arrow A. Thus, the separated recording sheet P is fed to a recording portion 7 via a sheet feed path 9 which is provided by a gap defined between first and second path defining member 53, 52 and which includes a generally U-shaped portion extending horizontally. The recording portion 7 serves as image forming device, and is located in a position higher than the sheet cassette 3.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the MFD 1 in absence of the image reading device 12. As shown in FIG. 3, the recording portion 7 is located between a main frame 21 provided by a box-like member opening upward, and first and second elongated plate-like guide members 22, 23 which are respectively supported by two side walls of the main frame 21 and which extend in the main scanning direction. The recording device 7 includes an inkjet-type recording head 4 (see FIG. 2) operable to eject an ink droplet from its lower surface so as to form an image on the recording sheet P, and a carriage 5 carrying the recording head 4.

The carriage 5 is arranged to bridge between the first guide member 22 and the second guide member 23 that is located on a downstream side of the first guide member 22 as viewed in a sheet discharge direction indicated by arrow B, such that the carriage 5 is slideable on the two guide members 22, 23 and accordingly is reciprocably movable in the main scanning direction. A timing belt 24 is provided on an upper surface of the second guide member 23, and is arranged to extend in the main scanning direction and is driven or circulated to reciprocate the carriage 5. A carriage (CR) motor (not shown) is fixed to a lower surface of the second guide member 23, and is operable to drive or circulate the timing belt 24.

In the recording portion 7, a flat platen 26 is fixed to the main frame 21 and is located between the two guide members 22, 23. The platen 26 is elongated in the main scanning direction, and is opposed to the lower surface of the recording head 4 that is carried by the carriage 5.

As shown in FIG. 2, a sheet feed roller 50 and a nip roller 51 are provided on an upstream side of the platen 26 in the sheet-discharge direction B, and cooperate with each other to pinch and feed the recording sheet P toward a space below the lower surface of the recording head 4. The nip roller 51 is opposed to the sheet feed roller 50, and is biased toward the feed roller 50. On a downstream side of the platen 26 as viewed in the sheet discharge direction B, there are provided a discharge roller 28 and rowels or toothed wheels (not shown) that are opposed to the discharge roller 28 and are biased toward the roller 28. The discharge roller 28 is driven or rotated so as to cooperate with the rowels to feed the recording sheet P that has passed through the recording portion 7, toward a sheet discharging portion 10 in the sheet discharge direction B.

The sheet discharging portion 10 discharges the recording sheet P having the image that is formed on its upper surface by the recording portion 7. The sheet discharging portion 10 is provided above the sheet supplying portion 11, and includes a sheet discharge opening 10a that opens, together with the above-described opening 2a, in the front surface of the housing 2. The recording sheets P discharged from the sheet discharging portion 10 in the sheet discharge direction B are stacked on a sheet discharge tray 10b that is located inside of the opening 2a.

In a right-hand front end portion of the housing 2 that is located below the image reading device 12, there is provided an ink storage portion (not shown) for accommodating four ink cartridges that store respective four color inks (i.e., black (Bk), cyan (C), magenta (M), and yellow (Y) inks), for enabling the recording head 4 to perform a full-color printing operation. Each of the four ink cartridges can be attached and detached to and from the ink storage portion, with the image reading device 12 being opened upward. The four ink cartridges are connected to the recording head 4 via respective four flexible ink supply tubes (not shown), so as to supply the inks to the recording head.

The MFD 1 is equipped with a control system including: a microcomputer which incorporates there CPU, ROM, RAM, etc. and which controls an entirety of the MFD 1; and ASCI (application specific integrated circuit) which is operable, in response to commands supplied from the microcomputer (hereinafter simply referred to as CPU 100), to control the components such as the LF motor 54, CR motor, recording head 4 and CIS 17.

To the ASIC, there is connected a panel interface, a parallel interface (or USB interface), and a network control unit (NCU). Through the panel interface, the ASIC receives information inputted by an operator through the operating keys 14a of the operation panel 14, supplies the received information to the CPU 100, and commands the LCD 14b of the operation panel 14 to display various messages, in response to display commands supplied from the CPU 100. Through the parallel interface (or USB interface), the ASIC communicates with an external device such as a personal computer. Through the NCU, the ASIC communicates via a public switched telephone network (PSTN). The NCU is connected to a modem serving to demodulate communication signals supplied to the NCU via the PSTN and to modulate data such as facsimile data that are to be transmitted out from the NCU, into communication signals.

Thus, in the present embodiment, the MFD 1 performs each of the printing, copying, scanning and facsimile functions, by operations of the CPU 100 and the ASIC connected to the same 100. In the present specification, these elements such the panel interface, parallel interface, UBS interface, NCU and modem are not described in detail and not shown in the accompanying drawings.

In the printing, copying or facsimile operation for forming an image on a recording sheet P, the CPU 100 first commands the ASIC to drive or rotate the LF motor 54 in a predetermined direction so as to rotate the sheet supply roller 6b in a sheet supplying direction, so that one recording sheet P is supplied from the sheet cassette 3 toward the sheet feed roller 50. Then, the LF motor 54 is intermittently rotated in an opposite direction (opposite to the above-described predetermined direction) by a predetermined amount per each of its successive rotations, so that each of the sheet feed roller 50 and sheet discharge roller 28 is intermittently rotated by a predetermined amount per each of its successive rotations, in a direction causing the recording sheet P to be fed in the feed direction, for stepwise moving the sheet P, namely, for positioning the sheet P in a desired recording position by each of successive motions of the sheet feed roller 50 and sheet discharge roller 28. The CPU 100 commands the ASIC to rotate the CR motor for moving the carriage 5 in the main scanning direction, and to cause the recording head 4 to eject the ink according to recording data, while the sheet P is temporarily stopped on the platen 26 after each of the successive feed motions of the sheet P.

As a result of the ink ejection made during each of the successive movements of the carriage 5 in the main scanning direction, a portion of the desired image is formed. The CPU 100 commands the ASIC to repeat the above-described intermittent rotation of the LF motor 54 (for feeding the recording sheet P), intermittent rotation of the CR motor (for moving the carriage 5) and intermittent ink ejection of the recording head 4, so as to complete the formation of the desired image on the recording sheet P.

As described above, while the recording sheet P is being fed from the sheet cassette 3 to the recording portion 7, the direction of rotation of the LF motor 54 is changed by the CPU 100, due to the arrangement in which the sheet supply roller 6a, feed roller 50 and discharge roller 28 are simultaneously rotated by a drive force transmitted from the LF motor 54 thereto. In the present embodiment, while the supply roller 6a is rotated in the direction causing the recording sheet P to be supplied from the sheet cassette 3, the feed roller 50 and discharge roller 28 is rotated in a direction opposite to the sheet feed direction causing the recording sheet P to be fed in the feed direction toward the sheet discharging portion 10, so that an inclination of the sheet P, if any, can be corrected owing to contact of its leading end with the feed roller 50 and the nip roller 51 that are rotated in the opposite direction inhibiting the sheet P from being further fed in the feed direction. Subsequently, the direction of rotation of the LF motor 54 is changed to the direction causing the recording sheet P to be fed in the feed direction, so that the sheet P is fed from the recording portion 7 toward the sheet discharge portion 10.

For feeding the recording sheet P in the above-described manner, the gear train 6c connecting the LF motor 54 and the sheet supply roller 6b is selectively placed in a transmission state in which the drive force is transmitted from the LF motor 54 to the sheet supply roller 6b, and in a non-transmission state in which the drive force is not transmitted. The gear train 6c is placed in the transmission state only in a stage of the supply of the sheet P from the sheet cassette 3. It is noted that, in the present embodiment, the feed roller 50, LF motor 54 and components (e.g., timing belt or gears) connecting the feed roller 50 and the LF motor 54 cooperate to constitute a feed mechanism.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the control system including the CPU 100 and the ASCI, which is operable, according to commands supplied from the CPU 100, to control the LF motor 54 for feeding the recording sheet P as described above.

In the present embodiment, the LF motor 54 is provided by a DC brush motor. To the sheet feed roller 50 that is rotated by the LF motor 54, there is connected a rotary encoder 58 for detecting an angular position (i.e., operating position or amount) of the feed roller 50, as shown in FIG. 4.

The rotary encoder 58 includes a rotary disk which is to be rotated together with the sheet feed roller 50 and which has a multiplicity of slits equi-angularly spaced from each other about its axis, and a detecting portion provided by a photointerrupter including a light emitter and a light receiver that are opposed to each other via the slits of the rotary disk. The detecting portion outputs two kinds of pulse trains, i.e., first and second encoder pulse trains ENC1, ENC2, that are offset from each other by a predetermined amount of phase (e.g., one-fourth of one period or cycle length of the pulse trains), so that the direction of the rotation of the feed roller 50 can be easily detected from the two kinds of pulse trains outputted by the detecting portion.

That is, when the LF motor 54 rotates the feed roller 50 and the discharge roller 28 in the sheet feed direction, the first encoder pulse train ENC1 precedes the second encoder pulse trains ENC2 by the predetermined amount of phase. When the LF motor 54 rotates the feed roller 50 and the discharge roller 28 in the direction opposite to the sheet feed direction, the second encoder pulse train ENC2 precedes the first encoder pulse trains ENC1 by the predetermined amount of phase. It is noted that each of the pulse trains ENC1, ENC2 is constituted by successions of pulse signals, and the number of the pulse signals outputted by the detecting portion during each one rotation of the feed roller 50 corresponds to 360° divided by a minimum controllable operating angle θ_Mof the feed roller 50. In other words, a resolution of the encoder corresponds to 360° divided by the minimum controllable operating angle θ_Mof the feed roller 50.

The pulse signals of the pulse trains ENC1, ENC2 outputted by the rotary encoder 58 are inputted to a drive controller 70 that is a part of the ASIC. The drive controller 70 controls the LF motor 54 in response to commands supplied from the CPU 100. Specifically, the drive controller 70 generates a PWM (pulse width modulation) signal for controlling the velocity and direction of the rotation of the LF motor 54, and supplies the PWM signal to a LF motor drive circuit 56, so as to drive the LF motor 54.

The drive controller 70 includes: a group of registers 72 storing various parameters used to control the LF motor 54; a roller-rotation measuring portion 74 operable to measure or calculate the angular position (i.e., operating position or amount) and the rotational velocity of the feed roller 50, based on the pulse signals of the pulse trains ENC1, ENC2 supplied from the rotary encoder 58; a motor driving controller 76 operable to generate a command signal for driving the LF motor 54; and a PWM-signal generator 78 operable, in response to the command signal supplied from the motor driving controller 76, to generate the PWM signal for driving the LF motor 54 with a variable duty ratio. In the present embodiment, the motor driving controller 76, PWM-signal generator 78 and LF motor drive circuit 56 cooperate to constitute a power supply controller.

The roller-rotation measuring portion 74 includes an edge detector 91, an operating position counter 92, and an operation velocity calculator 93. The edge detector 91 detects, based on the pulse signals of the pulse trains ENC1, ENC2 supplied from the rotary encoder 58, a pulse edge indicative of start/end of each pulse signal of the first pulse train ENC1 (e.g., a leading or trailing edge of each pulse signal of the first pulse train ENC1 while the second pulse train ENC2 is in a high level), and a rotation direction of the feed roller 50 (e.g., a forward rotation direction detected if the detected pulse edge is the trailing edge of each pulse signal of the pulse train ENC1, and a reverse rotation direction if the detected signal edge is the leading edge each pulse signal of the pulse train ENC1). The edge detector 91 generates an edge detection signal indicative of the detection of the pulse edge, and supplies the edge detection signal to the operating position counter 92 and the operation velocity calculator 93. Upon supply of the edge detection signal from the edge detector 91, the operating position counter 92 increases a total number of the edge detection signals, when the rotation direction of the feed roller 50 is the sheet feed direction causing the recording sheet P to be fed in the feed direction toward the sheet discharging portion 10. The operating position counter 92 reduces the total number of the edge detection signals, when the rotation direction of the feed roller 50 is the direction opposite to the sheet feed direction (namely, when the recording sheet P is supplied from the sheet cassette 3 by the supply roller 6b). Thus, the operating position counter 92 detects the angular position (i.e., operating position or amount) of the feed roller 50. The operation velocity calculator 93 measures a time interval between successive edge detection signals supplied from the edge detector 91, by comparing the time interval with a period of an internal clock CK having a constant pulse width. That is, the operation velocity calculator 93 counts the number of pulses of the internal clock CK within the time interval between the successive edge detection signals, and calculates the rotational velocity of the feed roller 50 based on the counted number of pulses and the period of the internal clock CK.

The registers 72 include: a register 81 for setting up a condition for starting operation of the drive controller 70; a register 82 for setting feedback (FB) control parameters including various control gains (such as proportional gain and integration gain) required to perform a feedback (FB) control with respect to the rotational velocity of the feed roller 50; a register 83 for setting a target operating position of the feed roller 50 in which the feed roller 50 is to be stopped (i.e., a target feed count value representative of a target operating amount of the feed roller 50 measured from start of the rotation of the feed roller 50); a register 84 for setting a compensation amount calculating function f (x) required to calculate a compensation amount F for reducing a positioning error of the feed roller 50 that is caused by a cyclic variation of the rotational velocity of the roller feeder 50 due to a torque fluctuation of the above-described feed mechanism (for example, originating from cogging of the LF motor 54); a register 85 for setting a most-deviated-velocity phase (most-deviated-velocity operating position) of the feed roller 50 in which the rotational velocity of the feed roller 50 is most deviated from its reference value within each one cycle of the cyclic variation; and a register 86 for setting a cycle length B of the cyclic variation.

Among the various parameters set by the registers 72, all the parameters (except the most-deviated-velocity phase that is to be set by the register 85) are supplied to the respective registers 81, 82, 83, 84 and 86 from the CPU 100. Meanwhile, the most-deviated-velocity phase is supplied to the register 85, upon power on of the MFD 1, from a most-deviated-velocity operating-position calculator 110 which is apart form the drive controller 70 and which is incorporated in the ASIC.

The most-deviated-velocity phase is represented in terms of an angular distance of the most-deviated-velocity phase from a reference angle (reference operating position) of the feed roller 50. A position count value indicated by the operating position counter 92 is set at its initial value (i.e., zero) in the reference operating position of the feed roller 50. Thus, the distance of the most-deviated-velocity phase from the reference operating position is represented by the position count value that is indicated by the operating position counter 92 when an actual operating position of the feed roller 50 coincides with the most-deviated-velocity phase. However, once the MFD1 is powered off, the reference operating position of the feed roller 50 is reset upon power on of the feed roller 50, namely, the position count value indicated by the operating position counter 92 is set at zero in an initial operating position upon power on of the feed roller 50. It is therefore necessary to update, upon resetting of the reference operating position, data representative of the most-deviated-velocity phase and stored in the register 85. To this end, the drive controller 70 includes a data updater 94 operable to update the data representative of the most-deviated-velocity phase, based on the position count value that had been indicated before resetting of the reference operating position.

In the present embodiment, the register 85 storing the above-described data representative of the most-deviated-velocity phase and the register 86 storing data representative of the cycle length B of the cyclic variation cooperate to correspond to a cyclic-variation-related data storage.

The drive controller 70 includes a compensation amount determiner 96 operable, during intermittent movement of the feed roller 50 in formation of an image on the recording medium, to determine or calculate the compensation amount F (by which the target operating position registered in the register 83 is to be changed), according to the compensation amount calculating function f (x) registered in the register 84, on the basis of the most-deviated-velocity phase of the feed roller 50 and the cycle length B registered the respective registers 85, 86. The drive controller 70 further includes a target-operating-position changer 98 operable to change the target operating position as an original target operating position (registered in the register 83) by the compensation amount F determined by the compensation amount determiner 96, and to supply the motor driving controller 76 with data representative of a modified target operating position. In the present embodiment, the registers 72, compensation amount determiner 96 and target-operating-position changer 98 cooperate to constitute a power-supply-stop operating-position determiner. The compensation amount determiner 96 and the target-operating-position changer 98 constitute a positional-difference obtainer and a power-supply-stop operating-position modifier, respectively.

The motor driving controller 76 receives, from the target-operating-position changer 98, the data representative of the modified target operating position, as described above, whereby the LF motor 54 is controlled by the motor driving controller 76 based on the data representative of the modified target operating position in addition to the feedback (FB) control parameters that are supplied to the motor driving controller 76 from the register 82.

Next, there will be described operations of the most-deviated-velocity operating-position calculator 110, the motor driving controller 76, the compensation amount determiner 96, the target operating-position changer 98 and the data updater 94. Although these elements 110, 76, 96, 98, 94 are provided in the ASIC, they may be provided by software control programs that are executed by a microcomputer. For facilitating understanding of the operation of each of the elements, the following description will be made with reference to flow charts that are shown in FIGS. 5, 7 and 8.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing a routine executed by the most-deviated-velocity operating-position calculator 110, for computing the most-deviated-velocity phase. This routine, which is executed only once upon power on of the MFD 1, is initiated with step S110 to read out the cycle length B of the cyclic variation registered in the register 86. The cycle length B is expressed in terms of the number of the edge detection signals outputted from the edge detector 91.

Subsequently, step S120 is implemented to obtain a number K of sets of sample data for sampling the rotational velocity V in the number K of the operating positions of the feed roller 50, by multiplying the cycle length B with a predetermined coefficient n. Then, step S130 is implemented to supply the CPU 100 with a command requesting the LF motor 54 to be driven, such that the fed roller 50 is intended to be rotated by the LF motor 54 in the above-described sheet feed direction at a constant velocity. Then, step S140 is implemented to sample the rotational velocity V in each of the number K of the operating positions of the feed roller 50, which is outputted from the operation velocity calculator 93, while the feed roller 50 is being rotated.

Subsequently, step S150 is implemented to command a resetter of the CPU 100 to reset the position count value C indicated by the operating position counter 92, so as to initialize the position count value C at zero. Then, step S160 is implemented to obtain an average value Vav (as the reference value) from the sampled rotational velocity V in each of the number K of the operating positions of the feed roller 50. Then, step S170 is implemented to calculate an amount of deviation of the sampled rotational velocity V from the average value Vav (see FIG. 6).

Subsequently, step S180 is implemented to set a reference phase Dr of a reference signal wave S at its initial value (i.e., zero) (Dr←θ). The reference phase Dr of the reference signal wave S may be, for example, a phase of a first leading edge of the reference signal wave S. Then, step S190 is implemented to generate the reference signal wave S which has a cycle length equal to the cycle length B of the cyclic variation v and which has at least one cycle (n cycle or cycles), such that the reference phase Dr (e.g., the first leading edge) of the generated reference signal wave S coincides with an actual operating position of the feed roller 50 (i.e., a position in which the feed roller 50 is currently stopped). The reference signal wave S is a data train represented by a rectangular waveform, and each cycle of the reference signal wave S is constituted by one positive region (e.g., high level region with a value of +1) and one negative region (e.g., low level region with a value of −1). Then, step S200 is implemented to perform a product sum computation between the reference signal wave S and the amounts of the deviations of the rotational velocities V in the respective operating positions that overlap with the reference signal wave S, as follows:

σd←v1·S1+v2·S2+ . . . +vK·SK

Subsequently, step S210 is implemented to shift the position of the reference phase Dr by one, namely, to increase the value of the reference phase Dr by one (Dr←Dr+1). Then, step S220 is implemented to determine whether the value of the reference phase Dr has reached to a value corresponding to the cycle length B of the cyclic variation (Dr≧B), so as to see if step S190 (for generating the reference signal wave S) and step S200 (performing the product sum computation) have been implemented number of times corresponding to one cycle of the cyclic variation v.

If a negative decision (NO) is obtained in step S220, the control flow goes back to step S190 so that another reference signal wave S is generated with the position of its reference phase Dr is shifted by one, from a position of the reference phase Dr of a reference signal wave S that was generated in the last implementation of step S190. Step S190 is followed by step S200 to perform the product sum computation between the another reference signal wave S and the amounts of the deviations of the rotational velocities V in the respective operating positions that overlap with the another reference signal wave S.

If a affirmative decision (YES) is obtained in step S220, the control flow goes to step S230 that is implemented to determine one of the reference signal waves S that provides a product sum largest among those provided by the reference signal waves S. Then, step S240 is implemented to obtain the position of the reference phase Dr of the above-described one of the reference signal waves S that provides the largest product sum. Then, step S250 is implemented to determine the most-deviated-velocity phase D of the feed roller 50, based on the obtained position of the reference phase Dr of the above-described one of the reference signal waves S. It is notated that a distance between the reference phase Dr (e.g., first leading edge) of the above-described one of the reference signal waves S and the most-deviated-velocity phase D is a known value.

As described above, the most-deviated-velocity operating-position calculator 110 detects the cyclic variation v of the rotational velocity V of the feed roller 50 rotated by the LF motor 54, namely, the change of the rotational velocity V with respect to the operating angular position of the feed roller 50, and then calculates the sum of the products of the cyclic variation v and each of the plurality of reference signal waves S which are represented by identical waveforms and which are sequentially generated such that each of the reference signal waves S is positioned in a position shifted by a distance corresponding to the resolution of the edge detector 91, from a position of one of the reference signal waves S preceding the each reference signal wave S. Thus, the most-deviated-velocity operating-position calculator 110 performs the product sum computation the number of times corresponding to one cycle of the cyclic variation v, and determines one of the reference signal waves S that provides the largest product sum, so that the calculator 110 obtains a distance of the most-deviated-velocity phase D from the reference operating position, which distance is represented by the position count value C indicated by the operating position counter 92. The calculator 110 includes a data provider for providing the register 85 with data representative of the distance of the most-deviated-velocity phase D from the reference operating position. It is noted that the detection of the cyclic variation v of the rotational velocity V is made preferably over an operating angular range corresponding to at least twice the cycle length B of the cyclic variation.

In the present embodiment, the most-deviated-velocity operating-position calculator 110 serving as a most-deviated-velocity operating-position obtainer is principally constituted by an operating-velocity-deviation-related data storage, a reference signal wave generator and a product-sum-computation-based obtainer. In the most-deviated-velocity operating-position calculator 110, as described above, the most-deviated-velocity phase D can be obtained by the product sum computation, in association with the position count value C indicated by the operating position counter 92, without having to perform a complicated computation such as FFT (fast Fourier transform).

FIG. 7 is a flow chart showing a routine executed by the motor driving controller 76, for controlling the LF motor 54 during formation of an image on the recording sheet P. This routine is initiated with step S310 to read out, from the register 83, a target operating angular position (stop angular position) in which the feed roller 50 is to be positioned by its rotation in the sheet feed direction. Described specifically, in this step S310, the motor drive controller 76 reads out a target feed count value Cf representing, in terms of the position count value C indicated by the operating position counter 92, an amount of rotation by which the feed roller 50 is to be rotated from an actual stop position. Then, step S320 is implemented to calculate a motor-OFF-position count value Cc representative of a motor-OFF operating position (power-supply-stop operating position), based on an actual-position count value C, the target feed count value Cf and an inertial operating amount α by which the feed roller 50 is to be rotated by inertia after supply of the power to the LF motor 54 is stopped, according to an expression (1) as given below. The motor-OFF operating position is an operating angular position of the feed roller 50 in which the supply of the power to the LF motor 54 is to be stopped, for allowing the feed roller 50 to be stopped in the target operating position.

Cc=C+Cf−α (1)

Subsequently, in step S330, the LF motor 54 is driven to rotate the feed roller 50 in the sheet feed direction, and is controlled, as shown in FIG. 11A, such that the rotational velocity V of the feed roller 50 is reduced to be an extremely low value before the actual position count value C indicated by the operating position counter 92 coincides with the motor-OFF-position count value Cc that has been calculated in step S320 (namely, before the feed roller 50 reaches the motor OFF position).

While the LF motor 54 is being driven, step S340 is implemented to determine whether the actual position count value C indicated by the operating position counter 92 has coincided with the motor-OFF-position count value Cc. Until an affirmative decision is obtained in step S340, the implementation of step S330 for driving the LF motor 54 is continued. When the affirmative decision is obtained in step S340, the control flow goes to step S350 that is implemented to stop the supply of the power to the LF motor 54, so as to complete one of successive feed motions of the recording sheet P.

FIG. 8 is a flow chart showing a routine executed by the compensation amount determiner 96 and the target operating-position changer 98, for changing the target operating position (stop position) of the feed roller 50. This routine is initiated with step S410 to read out, from the register 83, the target feed count value Cf representative of the target operating angular position of the feed roller 50, as in step S310 of the above-described routine of FIG. 7. Then, step S420 is implemented to calculate the motor-OFF-position count value Cc (=C+Cf−α), based on the actual-position count value C, the target feed count value Cf and the inertial operating amount α, according to the above-described expression (1), as in step S320 of the routine of FIG. 7.

Subsequently, step S430 is implemented to calculate a phase Dc of the cyclic variation of the rotational velocity V of the feed roller 50, which coincides with the motor-OFF operating position, according to the following expression (2) with parameters in the form of the motor-OFF-position count value Cc and the cycle length B of the cyclic variation. It is noted that, in the expression (2), “mod” represents a remainder obtained by dividing a former value (i.e., Cc) in parentheses by the latter value (i.e., B).

Dc=mod (Cc, B) (2)

Subsequently, step S440 is implemented to calculate a phase difference Cdd between the most-deviated-velocity phase D and the motor OFF phase Dc (that coincides with the motor-OFF operating position), according to the following expression (3) with parameters in the form of the motor OFF phase Dc and the cycle length B of the cyclic variation. It is noted that the phase difference Cdd calculated by the expression (3) is a value not larger than a half the cycle length B of the cyclic variation.

Cdd=mod (Dc−D+B·3/2, B)−B/2 (3)

Subsequently, step S450 is implemented to read out the compensation amount calculating function f (x) from the register 84, and calculate the compensation amount F, by substituting a variable x of the function f (x) with the phase difference Cdd that was obtained in step S440 (F=f (Cdd)).

The compensation amount calculating function f (x) is determined such that the compensation amount F is increased with reduction of the phase difference Cdd, as shown in FIG. 9. That is, the larger the compensation amount F is, the smaller the distance between most-deviated-velocity phase D and the motor OFF phase Dc is.

This is based on the tendency that a deviation of an actual stop position from the target operating position (target stop position) is increased with a reduction in the positional difference between the motor OFF phase Dc and the most-deviated-velocity phase D, as shown in FIG. 11C. In the present embodiment, a point of time at which the power supply to the LF motor 54 is stopped is delayed, namely, the motor-OFF operating position is shifted by an amount corresponding to the above-described deviation, toward the target operating position, for enabling the feed roller 50 to reach the target operating position.

In step S460, the compensation amount F is added to the target feed count value Cf representing the target operating angular position (C+Cf) that is determined by the CPU 100, so that the motor-OFF operating position as an original motor-OFF operating position obtained by the above-described expression (1) is changed to a modified motor-OFF operating position. Then, step S470 is implemented to command the motor driving controller 76 to start the operation of the LF motor 54. The motor driving controller 76, cooperating with the LF motor drive circuit 56 and the PWM-signal generator 78 to constitute the power supply controller, stops the power supply to the LF motor 54 when the actual operating position of the feed roller 50 coincides with the modified motor-OFF operating position.

Therefore, in the MFD 1 constructed according to the invention, even in presence of a cyclic torque fluctuation of the feed mechanism, for example, due to cogging of the LF motor 54, the formation of a clear image can be made owing to an accurate positioning of the recording sheet P relative to the assigned ink ejection nozzles, without suffering from an influence of the cyclic torque fluctuation. In the routine of FIG. 8, steps S410-S440 are implemented by the positional-difference obtainer, and steps S450 and S460 are implemented by the power-supply-stop operating-position modifier.

FIG. 10 is a flow chart showing a routine executed by the data updater 94, for updating data representative of the most-deviated-velocity operating position or phase. This routine is initiated, upon resetting of the position count value indicated by the operating position counter 92 in response to a reset command supplied from the CPU 100, with step S510 that is implemented to read out an actual position count value C (i.e., a count value before resetting of the position count value) indicated by the counter 92, and then set the actual position count value C as a value N.

Subsequently, step S520 is implemented to read out the most-deviated-velocity phase d from the register 85, and then set the most-deviated-velocity phase D as a value M. Then, step S530 is implemented to calculate the most-deviated-velocity phase d after resetting of the position count value, according to the following expression (4) with parameters in the form of the values N, M and the cycle length B of the cyclic variation.

D=mod {M−mod (N, B)+B, B) (4)

Subsequently, step S540 is implemented to register the calculated most-deviated-velocity phase D into the register 85 so as to update the data representative of the most-deviated-velocity operating phase D. Owing to the execution of this routine of FIG. 10, even after the position count value indicated by the operating position counter 92 is reset to its initial value “zero”, the most-deviated-velocity operating phase D is always represented by the data registered in the register 85, in terms of the position count value C indicated by the operating position counter 92, thereby making it possible to constantly monitor a current state of the cyclic variation.

As is clear from the foregoing description, in the MFD 1 constructed according to the above-described embodiment of the invention, the operating angular position of the feed roller 50 in which its rotational velocity is most deviated from the reference value within each one cycle of the cyclic variation v, is stored as the most-deviated-velocity phase D represented in terms of the position count value indicated by the operating position counter 92, and the phase difference Cdd between the most-deviated-velocity phase D and the motor OFF phase Dc (in which the supply of the power to the LF motor 54 is stopped) is calculated upon the feed motion of the recording sheet P that is made before or after each one scanning of the recording head 4 for forming the image on the recording sheet P. Then, the motor-OFF operating position as the original motor-OFF operating position is changed to the modified motor-OFF operating position, such that the positional difference between the modified motor-OFF operating position and the target operating position is reduced with a reduction of the phase difference Cdd.

It is therefore possible to accurately position the recording sheet P in a desired recording position relative to the assigned ink ejection portions of the recording head 4 after each of successive feed motions of the recording sheet P, without suffering from the influence of the cyclic variation v of the rotational velocity V of the feed roller 50 caused by the torque fluctuation of the feed mechanism, whereby the formed image can be made clear. Further, since it is not necessary to fix dimensions of components constituting the feed mechanism for feeding the recording sheet P, unlike in the conventional arrangement, the feed mechanism can be constructed at a low cost.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, each time the MFD 1 is powered on to get the control system ready, the most-deviated-velocity operating-position calculator 110 executes the routine of FIG. 5 so as to obtain the most-deviated-velocity phase D, by actually driving the LF motor 54 to rotate the feed roller 50. In addition, during the operations of the MFD 1, the data updater 94 is commanded to update the data representative of the most-deviated-velocity phase D each time the position count value of the operating position counter 92 is reset, so that the phase of the cyclic variation can be always monitored in view of the position count value C indicated by the operating position counter 92, thereby making it possible to improve the control accuracy.

While the presently preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described above in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the details of the illustrated embodiment, but may be otherwise embodied without departing from the spirit of the invention.

For example, while the rotary encoder 58 is connected to the sheet feed roller 50 in the above-described embodiment, the rotary encoder 58 may be connected to the LF motor 54 such that the rotary disk of the encoder 50 is rotatable together with an output shaft of the LM motor 54.

The present invention is advantageously applied to the control of the LM motor 54 in the MFD 1 having the inkjet-type recording head 4, as described above. However, the invention is equally applicable to any device equipped with a feed mechanism including a motor that is to be driven with supply of a power thereto, and a feeder that is to be operated by the motor for feeding and positioning an object in a desired position.

Claims

1. A feeding device for feeding an object in response to a command requesting the object to be moved to a desired position, comprising: a feed mechanism including a motor that is to be driven with supply of a power thereto, and a feeder that is to be operated by said motor for feeding the object in a feed direction; a power supply controller operable, upon reception of said command, to supply the power to said motor until an actual operating position of said feeder coincides with a power-supply-stop operating position located before a target operating position of said feeder that causes the object to be positioned in said desired position, and to stop the supply of the power to said motor when said actual operating position coincides with said power-supply-stop operating position, for causing said actual operating position to eventually coincide with said target operating position owing to an inertia of said feed mechanism; and a power-supply-stop operating-position determiner operable to determine said power-supply-stop operating position of said feeder in which the supply of the power to said motor is to be stopped, for reducing a positioning error of the object in presence of a torque fluctuation of said feed mechanism, based on said target operating position of said feeder and a cyclic variation of an operating velocity of said feeder that is caused by said torque fluctuation of said feed mechanism.
2. The feeding device according to claim 1, further comprising an operating position detector operable to detect said actual operating position of said feeder, wherein said power supply controller controls the supply of the power to said motor based on said actual operating position of said feeder that is detected by said operating position detector.
3. The feeding device according to claim 1, wherein said power-supply-stop operating-position determiner determines said power-supply-stop operating position of said feeder, based on (i) a positional relationship between said target operating position and a most-deviated-velocity operating position of said feeder in which said operating velocity of said feeder is most deviated from a reference value thereof within each one cycle of said cyclic variation, and (ii) an inertial operating amount by which said feeder is to be operated by said inertia when said operating velocity of said feeder corresponds to said reference value.
4. The feeding device according to claim 3, wherein said power-supply-stop operating position determiner includes: a cyclic-variation-related data storage storing data representative of said most-deviated-velocity operating position of said feeder; a positional-difference obtainer operable to provisionally determine said power-supply-stop operating position of said feeder based on said target operating position and said inertial operating amount of said feeder, and to obtain a positional difference between the provisionally determined power-supply-stop operating position and said most-deviated-velocity operating position of said feeder that is indicated by said data stored in said cyclic-variation related data storage; and a power-supply-stop operating-position modifier operable to modify said power-supply-stop operating position that has been provisionally determined, by changing said power-supply-stop operating position by a variable amount that varies depending upon said positional difference obtained by said positional-difference obtainer, said variable amount being larger where said positional difference is small than where said positional difference is large, wherein said power supply controller stops the supply of the power to said motor when said actual operating position coincides with said power-supply-stop operating position that has been modified by said power-supply-stop operating-position modifier.
5. The feeding device according to claim 4, wherein said positional-difference obtainer provisionally determines, as said determined power-supply-stop operating position, an operating position that is located before said target operating position by a distance corresponding to said inertial operating amount.
6. The feeding device according to claim 4, wherein said power-supply-stop operating-position modifier includes a modification-related data storage storing data representative of a relationship between said variable amount and said positional difference obtained by said positional-difference obtainer.
7. The feeding device according to claim 1, further comprising a most-deviated-velocity operating-position obtainer operable, upon power-on of said feeding device, to command said power supply controller to supply the power to said motor until said feeder is operated by an operating amount corresponding to at least one cycle of said cyclic variation, and to detect said operating velocity of said feeder in a plurality of operating positions of said feeder while said feeder is being operated by said operating amount, wherein said most-deviated-velocity operating-position obtainer obtains, based on the detected operating velocity in each of said plurality of operating positions, a most-deviated-velocity operating position of said feeder in which said operating velocity of said feeder is most deviated from a reference value thereof within each one cycle of said cyclic variation.
8. The feeding device according to claim 7, wherein said most-deviated-velocity operating-position obtainer commands said power supply controller to supply the power to said motor until said feeder is operated by an operating amount corresponding to at least two cycles of said cyclic variation, and detects said operating velocity of said feeder while said feeder is being operated by said operating amount, and wherein said most-deviated-velocity operating-position obtainer includes: an operating-velocity-deviation-related data storage storing data representative of an amount of deviation of the detected operating velocity in each of said plurality of operating positions from an average value of the detected operating velocity as said reference value; a reference signal wave generator operable to generate a plurality of reference signal waves represented by identical waveforms, such that positions of said reference signal waves relative to a reference operating position of said feeder are different from each other, each of said reference signal waves having (a) a cycle length equal to a cycle length of said cyclic variation and (b) at least one cycle each consisting of one positive region and one negative region; and a product-sum-computation-based obtainer operable to perform a product sum computation between each of said reference signal waves and the amounts of the deviations of the detected operating velocities in the respective operating positions overlapping with said each of said reference signal waves, and to determine one of said reference signal waves that provides a product sum largest among those provided by said reference signal waves, said product-sum-computation-based obtainer obtaining a distance of said most-deviated-velocity operating position from said reference operating position of said feeder, based on (i) the position of the determined one of said reference signal waves relative to said reference operating position of said feeder and (ii) a known position of said determined one of said reference signal waves relative to said most-deviated-velocity operating position.
9. The image forming apparatus according to claim 8, wherein said power supply controller includes a cyclic-variation-related data storage storing data related to said cyclic variation of said operating velocity of said feeder, and wherein said most-deviated-velocity operating-position obtainer further includes a data provider providing said cyclic-variation-related data storage with data representative of said distance of said most-deviated-velocity operating position from said reference operating position of said feeder.
10. The feeding device according to claim 1, wherein said power supply controller causes said operating velocity of said feeder to be reduced before said actual operating position coincides with said power-supply-stop operating position, so as to stop the supply of the power to said motor after the reduced operating velocity of said feeder is maintained.
11. The feeding device according to claim 3, further comprising: a cyclic-variation-related data storage storing data representative of a distance of said most-deviated-velocity operating position from a reference operating position of said feeder; a resetter operable to reset said reference operating position of said feeder; and a data updater operable, upon resetting of said reference operating position, to update said data, such that said data represents a distance of said most-deviated-velocity operating position from said reference operating position of said feeder that has been reset by said resetter.
12. The feeding device according to claim 4, wherein said most-deviated-velocity operating position of said feeder is a lowest-velocity operating position of said feeder that causes said operating velocity of said feeder to be lowest within each one cycle of said cyclic variation, and wherein said power-supply-stop operating position is modified by said power-supply-stop operating-position modifier to be shifted toward said target operating position.
13. The feeding device according to claim 1, wherein said feeder is a cylindrical roller which has a circular cross section and which is to be rotated by said motor for feeding the object that is brought into frictional contact with said cylindrical roller, and wherein said actual operating position represents an amount by which said cylindrical roller has been rotated from a reference angular position of said cylindrical roller in a direction causing the object to be fed in said feed direction.
14. An image forming apparatus comprising: the feeding device defined in claim 1; and an image forming device operable to form an image on the object that is fed by said feeding device.
15. A method of feeding an object, by using a feeding device including (a) a feed mechanism including a motor that is to be driven with supply of a power thereto, and a feeder that is to be operated by said motor for feeding the object in a feed direction, and (b) a power supply controller operable, upon a command requesting the object to be moved to a desired position, to supply the power to said motor until an actual operating position of said feeder coincides with a power-supply-stop operating position located before a target operating position of said feeder that causes the object to be positioned in said desired position, and to stop the supply of the power to said motor when said actual operating position coincides with said power-supply-stop operating position, for causing said actual operating position to eventually coincide with said target operating position owing to an inertia of said feed mechanism, said method comprising: inputting said command requesting said power supply controller to move the object to the desired position; and causing, in response to said command, said power supply controller to stop the supply of the power to said motor when said actual operating position of said feeder coincides with said power-supply-stop operating position, which is determined for reducing a positioning error of the object in presence of a torque fluctuation of said feed mechanism, based on said target operating position of said feeder and a cyclic variation of an operating velocity of said feeder that is caused by said torque fluctuation of said feed mechanism.
16. The method according to claim 15, wherein said power-supply-stop operating position of said feeder is determined based on (i) a positional relationship between said target operating position and a most-deviated-velocity operating position of said feeder in which said operating velocity of said feeder is most deviated from a reference value thereof within each one cycle of said cyclic variation, and (ii) an inertial operating amount by which said feeder is to be operated by said inertia when said operating velocity of said feeder corresponds to said reference value.

Priority Claims (1)

Number	Date	Country	Kind
2005099254	Mar 2005	JP	national

Feeding Device and Image Forming Apparatus

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Priority Claims (1)