Patent Grant
8050579
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, and, more particularly to an image forming apparatus capable of changing fixing temperature and a method for the image forming apparatus.
Conventionally, in image forming apparatuses such as a multifunction color copying apparatus (an MFP), types of media on which color image and the like are printed increase. Even when printing media are limited to paper, various types of paper having different thicknesses and the like are used.
Such types of paper are usually distinguished by basis weight (unit: g/m2) indicating weight per a fixed area. For example, papers in groups of basis weights 64 to 105, 106 to 163, 164 to 209, 210 to 256, and 257 to 300 are called plain paper, thick paper 1, thick paper 2, thick paper 3, and thick paper 4. These basis weights are usually written on packages of sheets. A user selects one of the groups of the written basis weights, whereby a printing condition corresponding to a type of paper belonging to the selected group is automatically set. In general, it is desirable to change a printing condition according to basis weight. However, basis weight may be unknown. In such a case, it is difficult to easily detect basis weight. It is possible to calculate basis weight from the density and thickness of a sheet. Although it is difficult to measure the density of a sheet, the measurement of paper thickness is relatively easy compared with the measurement of density. Therefore, there are known devices that detect paper thickness in order to learn a paper type and the like.
One of these paper thickness detecting devices includes a pair of conveying rollers that convey a sheet. The paper thickness detecting device measures a displacement amount of the conveying rollers when the sheet is passed between the conveying rollers and detects paper thickness from this displacement amount. In other words, the conveying rollers are used also as paper thickness detecting rollers.
In another one of the paper thickness detecting devices, a roller exclusively used for paper thickness detection is provided separately from the conveying rollers, a counter plate is provided to be opposed to this roller. The paper thickness detecting device measures an amount of displacement of the paper thickness detecting roller by a sheet entering between the counter plate and the paper thickness detecting roller and detects paper thickness.
Still another one of the paper thickness detecting devices includes, for example, as disclosed in JP-A-2003-237982, a driving roller instead of the counter plate and rotates the driving roller in synchronization with the conveyance of a sheet.
Such paper thickness detecting devices in the past detect paper thickness in any case. A paper type is estimated from the paper thickness. Therefore, usually, this paper thickness detection is performed, density is assumed, a paper type is estimated, and a printing condition, for example, fixing temperature of a toner image developed with a toner is changed according to the thickness of a sheet detected by the paper thickness detection. Consequently, in most cases, satisfactory printing can be performed.
However, as described above, even if paper thickness is fixed, when the density of the sheet is outside an assumed range of values, it is likely that basis weight changes and an optimum printing condition changes. In such a case, a sufficiently satisfactory printed image may not be obtained.
The present invention has been devised in view of the above points and it is an object of the present invention to provide an image forming apparatus capable of changing fixing temperature that can automatically distinguish a paper type and perform printing and can perform satisfactory printing and an image forming method for the image forming apparatus.
According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus capable of changing fixing temperature including a paper-type detecting unit that detects a paper type of a sheet to be printed, a fixing unit that sets fixing temperature on the basis of the paper type detected by the paper-type detecting unit and fixes a toner image on the sheet, and a fixing-temperature changing unit that changes the fixing temperature of the fixing unit to high temperature when a printed image fixed by the fixing unit is an image that fades or is matte compared with fixing temperature for an image that is rough or is glossy.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming method capable of changing fixing temperature, the image forming method including detecting the thickness of a sheet to be printed, fixing a toner image on the sheet at predetermined fixing temperature corresponding to a paper type based on the thickness detected in the detecting, changing the fixing temperature in the fixing to first fixing temperature when a printed image fixed in the fixing is an image that is rough or is glossy and changing the fixing temperature to a second fixing temperature higher than the first fixing temperature when the printed image fixed in the fixing is an image that fades or is matte, and fixing the toner image on a new sheet again after the fixing temperature is changed in the changing.
An embodiment of the present invention is explained in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following explanation, it is assumed that an image forming apparatus according to the embodiment is a multifunction color copying apparatus.
A handle 104 is provided below the operation panel 102 on a front surface of the apparatus main body 100 to allow the user to open the inside of the main body when, for example, a paper jam occurs.
Paper feeding cassettes 111, 112, 113, and 114 are detachably provided in a lower part of the apparatus main body 100. Sheets of different sizes and paper types are stored in the paper feeding cassettes, respectively.
A post-processing apparatus 115 is attached on the left side of the apparatus main body 100. In the apparatus main body 100, a latent image described later is formed, printed, and fixed on a sheet. The sheet is subjected to processing such as aligning and stapling in the post-processing apparatus 115 and discharged from a sheet discharge port 116. The sheet discharged from the sheet discharge port 116 is stacked on a stacking tray 117.
When the user presses a setting and registration button of the operation panel 102, first, a general setting registration screen is displayed on the touch panel display 103. When the user clicks a sheet setting icon of this screen, a sheet setting screen shown in
Above these kinds of display, a guidance “after selecting a cassette, please select a paper type and press the setting and registration button of the operation panel” is displayed. According to this guidance, the user touches any one of paper feeding cassettes of the main body side icon 118, then, touches an icon of a paper type displayed on the right side, and selects a paper type stored in the selected paper feeding cassette. By repeating this operation, paper types are displayed in respective paper feeding cassette positions of the main body side icon 118. When the user presses the setting and registration button of the operation panel 102, a correspondence relation between the paper feeding cassettes and the paper types stored in the paper feeding cassettes is stored in a cassette-sheet-correspondence recognizing unit 122.
An electric schematic configuration of the multifunction color copying apparatus according to this embodiment shown in
The fixing unit 127 includes a fixing processing unit 127a that applies image fixing processing to the predetermined sheet and a fixing-voltage control unit 127b that controls fixing voltage in performing the fixing processing. The fixing-voltage control unit 127b is a fixing-temperature changing unit that changes fixing temperature by controlling fixing voltage.
A schematic structure of the MFP according to this embodiment in which a flow of a sheet is mainly drawn is shown in
The plain paper 1, the plain paper 2, the thick paper 1, and the thick paper 2 are stored in the paper feeding cassettes 111, 112, 113, and 114. The sheets stored in the paper feeding cassettes are selectively extracted one by one by paper feeding rollers 201, 202, 203, and 204 as required and fed to a paper-thickness detecting and conveying unit 205. A circuit that drives the paper feeding rollers 201, 202, 203, and 204 is also included in the sheet-supply control unit 123 shown in
The paper-thickness detecting and conveying unit 205 includes, as described later, the paper-thickness detecting unit 124 that detects the thickness of the conveyed sheet 118, two pairs of conveying rollers for conveying the sheet, i.e., two conveying driving rollers 206A and two conveying driven rollers 206B. The sheet, the thickness of which is detected by the paper-thickness detecting unit 124 of the paper-thickness detecting and conveying unit 205, is conveyed and aligned by a pair of registration rollers 207a and 207b. The sheet aligned by the registration rollers 207a and 207b is supplied to the developing and transfer unit 126. The electrostatic latent image generated by the latent-image generating unit 125 shown in
The sheet having the toner image transferred thereon is subjected to image fixing processing, i.e., printing by the fixing unit 127. The printed sheet is discharged from the apparatus main body 100 through several pairs of conveying rollers 208 and enters the post-processing apparatus 115. The sheet that enters the post-processing apparatus 115 is subjected to various kinds of post processing such as stapling (not shown) in the post-processing apparatus 115, discharged from the sheet discharge port 116, and stacked on the stacking tray 117.
A flowchart of operations in selecting plain paper in this embodiment is shown in
On the other hand, in Act S101, when the user is not sure which of the plain paper 1 and the plain paper 2 a sheet corresponds to, the user clicks the icon P0 of the plain paper (automatic).
Then, in Act S104, this apparatus measures the thickness of the sheet using the paper-thickness detecting and conveying unit 205. The measurement of the thickness of the sheet by the paper-thickness detecting and conveying unit 205 is described in detail later.
In the next Act S105, the apparatus estimates basis weight according to the detected paper thickness and automatically sets a printing condition (fixing temperature in the fixing unit) corresponding to the basis weight. Thereafter, the apparatus performs printing in Act S103 under the printing condition automatically set.
After performing the printing in Act S103, in the next Act S106, the user determines, looking at a printed image, whether satisfactory printing is performed. If the printed image is satisfactory, the printing is finished.
On the other hand, when the satisfactory printed image is not obtained, in the next Act S107, the user determines whether the printed image is rough or is glossy. When such a phenomenon occurs in the printed image, in Act S108, the user sets a paper type to the plain paper 1. Thereafter, in Act S103, the apparatus performs printing again.
When the phenomenon does not occur in Act S107, in Act S109, the user determines whether the printed image fades or is matte. When such a phenomenon occurs, the user shifts to Act S110 and sets a printing condition for the plain paper 2 shown in
After the developing and transfer unit 126 transfers a toner image onto a sheet, the fixing processing unit 127a of the fixing unit 127 performs fixing processing for the toner image. The fixing-voltage control unit 127b controls temperature for the fixing processing. The icon P1 of the plain paper 1 and the icon P2 of the plain paper 2 are associated with the fixing-voltage control unit 127b.
When the plain paper 1 is selected, the fixing-voltage control unit 127b controls fixing temperature as a printing condition to set fixing temperature in the fixing unit 127 within a range of about 150° C. to about 175° C. (first fixing temperature).
On the other hand, when the plain paper 2 is selected, the fixing-voltage control unit 127b controls fixing temperature as a printing condition to set fixing temperature in the fixing unit 127 within a range of about 160° C. to about 180° C. (second fixing temperature).
A guidance indicating in what kind of state of a printed image a paper type is set to the plain paper 1 or the plain paper 2 is written in, for example, a manual of this apparatus. The user reads this manual, looks at a state of a printed image, and sets a paper type to the plain paper 1 or the plain paper 2.
Alternatively, the apparatus may display the guidance on the touch panel display 103 and cause the user to select a paper type. The apparatus displays a question “Is printing satisfactory?” on the touch panel display 103 when printing is performed, causes the user to display an answer “Yes” or “No” below the question, and displays an indication (a) “a printed image is rough or is glossy” and an indication (b) “a printed image fades or is matte” below “Yes”. When “Yes” is selected, the apparatus finishes the printing.
When “No” is selected, the apparatus allows the user to select the two indications (a) and (b). When (a) is selected, the apparatus automatically sets a printing condition for the plain paper 1 shown in
In this way, when the apparatus displays the guidance on the touch panel display 103 and causes the user to select a paper type, there is an advantage that the user can easily select the plain paper 1 or the plain paper 2.
Automatic detection of paper thickness by the paper-thickness detecting and conveying unit 205 shown in
The sectional structure of the paper-thickness detecting and conveying unit 205 is shown in
The sheet passes between a conveyance guide 301A and a conveyance guide 301B. Schematically, the conveyance guide 301A is formed in a reverse L shape in section. The conveyance guide 301B is formed in an L shape in section. The sheet 118 is conveyed upward by the conveying driving rollers 206A and the conveying driven rollers 206. The conveyance guide 301B is configured to be movable in a lateral direction, i.e., a direction of an arrow 305 such that, when the sheet 118 jams during the conveyance, the sheet 118 can be easily removed.
A sectional view in which the conveyance guide 301B and the conveying driven rollers 206B are separated from the conveyance guide 301A and the conveying driving rollers 206A is shown in
Openings 302a are provided in the conveyance guide 301A. Openings 302b are provided in the conveyance guide 301B. The conveying driving rollers 206A and the conveying driven rollers 206B are set in contact with each other through the openings 302a and the openings 302b. When the sheet 118 is fed from the paper feeding cassettes 111 to 114, the sheet 118 is nipped by the conveying driving rollers 206A and the conveying driven rollers 106B and conveyed in an arrow direction (upward). As described later, the thickness of the sheet is detected by the paper-thickness detection unit 124 during the conveyance.
An opening 306 provided between the two openings 302b of the conveyance guide 301B shown in
As shown in
As shown in
An overall configuration of the paper-thickness detecting unit 124 is shown in
The bearing 404 is pressed in a direction of the conveyance guide 301A and the conveying driving rollers 206A with predetermined pressure by a not-shown spring or the like. A pressing load P of the spring is, for example, 100 g. As shown in
If the pressing load P is too large, when the sheet 118 enters between the conveyance guide 301A and the conveyance guide 301B, the sheet 118 buckles without being smoothly conveyed. When the pressing load P is too small, the bearing 404 is not properly brought into contact with the sheet 118. The bearing 404 tends to be separated from the sheet 118 by the vibration of the driving system. The bearing 404 also separates from the sheet 118 because of the shock of the entrance of the sheet 118. Therefore, it is difficult to measure accurate thickness of the sheet 118 if the pressing load P is too low.
When the distance D is too large, a position where the bearing 404 comes into contact with the sheet 118 is away from a position where the sheet 118 is driven to be conveyed, i.e., a contact position of the conveying driving rollers 206A and the conveying driven rollers 206B. Since the bearing 404 does not have a function of conveying the sheet 118, even in such a situation, sheet conveying force is small in the position where the bearing 404 comes into contact with the sheet 118. As a result, normal conveyance of the sheet 118 tends to be difficult. In this way, in general, the sheet conveying force by the conveying driving rollers 206A and the conveying driven rollers 206B, the pressing load P of the bearing 404, and the distance D are related.
Therefore, although the pressing load P of the bearing 404 is different depending on a material, the structure, and the like of the bearing 404, the sheet conveying force, and the like, usually, the pressing load P only has to be about 60 g to 140 g and is preferably about 80 g to 120 g. Although the distance D is different depending on the length of a contact section of the conveying driving rollers 206A and the conveying driven roller 206B, the conveying force, and the like, usually, the distance D only has to be about 0 mm to 10 mm and is preferably in a range from about 2 mm to 8 mm.
When the sheet 118 is conveyed along the conveyance guide 301A, the bearing 404 rotates in a direction indicated by an arrow 405a. The arm 403 shifts, i.e., pivots in a direction indicated by an arrow 405b because of the thickness of the sheet 118. A magnet is provided near a fulcrum of the arm 403. A magnetic resistance sensor that uses magnetic resistance, a resistance value of which changes according to a change in a magnetic field, is provided near the magnet.
An electric signal output of the magnetic resistance sensor is inputted to the voltage detecting circuit 406. An output voltage of the voltage detecting circuit 406 is sampled, for example, ten times by the sampling circuit 407. The output voltage is sampled and sampled values are averaged because, when the bearing 404 is moved in a direction indicated by an arrow 405b by the vibration of the apparatus or the conveyance of the sheet 118, a value of the magnetic resistance changes and the output voltage of the voltage detecting circuit 406 changes.
Voltage values sampled by the sampling circuit 407 are averaged by the averaging circuit 408 and inputted to the voltage-difference detecting circuit 409. The voltage-difference detecting circuit 409 detects a difference in the averaged voltage value. This voltage difference corresponds to the thickness of the sheet 118. The magnetic resistance of the magnetic resistance sensor acts in a direction in which the resistance value decreases when the sheet 118 is conveyed to the paper-thickness detecting unit 124. The output voltage value of the voltage detecting circuit 406 decreases.
A voltage value detected by the voltage detecting circuit 406 is set to 1 mV with respect to the thickness 1 μm of the sheet 118. Usually, since the thickness of plain paper is about 100 μm, the output voltage is detected as about 100 mV for the plain paper. For example, if the voltage V0 before sheet passage is 3.3 V and the thickness of paper is large around about 1.35 V, the voltage value changes in a decreasing direction.
For example, when it is assumed that the sheet 118 is nipped by the bearing 404 from time T1 to T2 and the sheet 118 is conveyed and returns to an original state at time T3, as shown in
At time T1, the sheet 118 is conveyed to the paper-thickness detecting unit 124, the sheet 118 is nipped by the bearing 404 and the conveyance guide 301A, and the bearing 404 rotates as indicated by an arrow 405a and pivots as indicated by an arrow 405b. At this point, a value of the magnetic resistance in the magnetic resistance sensor decreases. After time T2, the output value of the voltage detecting circuit 406 falls below V0 as shown in
Even in a state in which the sheet 118 is nipped by the bearing 404 and the conveyance guide 301A and moves, the bearing 404 is moved by the movement of the sheet 118 and the vibration of the apparatus. According to the movement of the bearing 404, the output voltage value of the voltage detecting circuit 406 fluctuates. The fluctuating voltage values are sampled, for example, ten times by the sampling circuit 407 and averaged by the averaging circuit 408. An average value of the voltage values is inputted to the voltage-difference detecting circuit 409 as a voltage value V1 in a state in which the sheet 118 is inserted.
The voltage-difference detecting circuit 409 outputs, as a voltage difference, a value obtained by subtracting the voltage value V1 from the voltage value V0 detected earlier. This value (V0−V1) corresponds to the thickness of the sheet 118. The thickness of the sheet 118 is detected. In this way, if paper thickness is detected as a difference of voltage values rather than a voltage value, it is possible to cancel an offset of voltages. A problem such as a change in a voltage value due to distortion by a conveyance guide is eliminated. Therefore, there is an advantage that paper thickness can be more accurately measured.
In the explanation of the embodiments, the present invention is applied to the multifunction color copying apparatus. However, the present invention can be applied not only to the multifunction color copying apparatus but also to other image forming apparatuses that have image generating units, which generate images printed on recording sheets, and designate a type of paper to be printed such as a normal copying machine, a printer, and a facsimile.
In the embodiments of the present invention, fixing temperature is changed according to whether a printed image is rough or is glossy or whether an image fades or is matte. However, in the present invention, directing attention only to the gloss of the printed image, fixing temperature may be changed according to whether the gloss is large or small.
In the embodiments of the present invention, paper thickness is detected by the paper-thickness detecting unit having the specific configuration to estimate a paper type and perform printing. However, paper thickness may be detected by other apparatuses to estimate a paper type and perform printing.
Moreover, the present invention may be adapted not to detect paper thickness but to directly detect a paper type and perform printing under a printing condition corresponding to the paper type. In short, if a paper-type detecting unit that can estimate a paper type and directly detect a paper type is provided, the object of the present invention can be attained.
In the explanation in the embodiments of the present invention, after a toner image is obtained, the toner image is transferred onto a sheet. However, the present invention can be applied when the toner image is not transferred but is formed on the sheet.
In the explanation in the embodiments of the present invention, fixing temperature in performing fixing of a transferred image is changed as a printing condition. However, the present invention can be applied when a printing condition other than the fixing temperature is changed.
In the present invention, usually, a paper type is automatically detected according to paper thickness. However, when it is desired to further improve a printed image, it is possible to reset a printing condition according to a state of the printed image and obtain a more satisfactory image.
Obviously, many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is therefore to be understood that, within the scope of the appended claims, the present invention may be practiced otherwise than as specification.
This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority from U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/972,240 filed on Sep. 13, 2007, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
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