JP2006020059A - Image processing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image processing apparatus capable of printing under a predetermined printing condition when information from an ID chip cannot be read.
SOLUTION: A process cartridge 2 having a first nonvolatile memory 22 in which information including an ID is recorded, a reading means 7 for reading information from the first nonvolatile memory 22, and a first printing condition for storing predetermined printing conditions. Storage means 6 having two nonvolatile memories 61 and control means 4 for performing printing under the printing conditions stored in the second nonvolatile memory 61 when information from the first nonvolatile memory 22 cannot be read. Image processing device.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus such as a facsimile, a printer, and a copying machine, and more particularly to a technique for dealing with a process cartridge ID that cannot be read.

Patent Document 1 proposes a process cartridge having holding means for storing identification information for identifying the cartridge and predetermined image process information.
In Patent Document 2, a cartridge having a cartridge memory, a developer supply unit having a unit memory, a mounting portion for detachably mounting the cartridge and the developer supply unit to the image forming apparatus, a main body memory, and a developer in the mounting portion Image forming apparatus having detection means for detecting that the developer supply unit may be refilled when the supply unit is mounted, and storage means for storing the detection result in the unit memory and cartridge memory Has been proposed.
In Patent Document 3, when the shipped process cartridge is used for the first time, the recognition code of the main body of the image forming apparatus is transmitted and stored in the process cartridge, and the main body communicates only when the recognition code matches, and matches. A technique for manually rewriting the recognition code when it is not available has been proposed.
In Patent Document 4, a container that has code data that guarantees the quality of the developer and that can be connected to the reading means of the main body when mounted, data indicating the characteristics of the developer, and the number of reuses There has been proposed a technique that has storage means for storing the image, prohibits the operation of the main body when the data in the storage means cannot be read, and changes the image forming conditions based on the characteristic data.
JP-A-10-105021 JP 2001-228691 A JP-A-11-305632 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 06-149051

In a process unit in which an electrophotographic process unit is formed as a cartridge centering on a photoreceptor, information from an ID chip may become unreadable due to an abnormality in the ID chip, ID chip information reading means, or its transmission means. .
An object of the present invention is to provide an image processing apparatus that enables printing under predetermined printing conditions when information from an ID chip becomes unreadable.

In order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, a process cartridge having a first nonvolatile memory in which information including an ID is recorded, a reading unit for reading information from the first nonvolatile memory, Storage means having a second nonvolatile memory for storing predetermined printing conditions; and control means for performing printing under the printing conditions stored in the second nonvolatile memory when information from the first nonvolatile memory cannot be read. An image processing apparatus having the above features is the main feature.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, the control means controls to perform a predetermined number of printings when information from the first nonvolatile memory cannot be read.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, when the information from the first non-volatile memory cannot be read, the control means performs control so as to perform the number of sheets printed according to the use history up to that time. .
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the control means controls to print only a report when information from the first nonvolatile memory cannot be read.
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, when the information from the first nonvolatile memory cannot be read, the control means records a use history in a region different from that of the second nonvolatile memory. And
According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, a plurality of reading means are mounted, and the control means controls the reading so that when one reading means cannot read information from the first nonvolatile memory, the other reading means reads the information. Features the device.
The invention according to claim 7 is characterized in that the control means notifies or displays a warning when the information from the first nonvolatile memory cannot be read. .
In the invention according to claim 8, the control means determines that the information from the first nonvolatile memory cannot be read when the data read from the first nonvolatile memory is a continuous value. The image processing apparatus according to any one of Items 1 to 7 is a main feature.

According to the first aspect, when information from the ID chip becomes unreadable, printing can be performed under predetermined printing conditions, so that the apparatus can be used continuously.
According to the second aspect, when the information from the ID chip becomes unreadable, a predetermined number of sheets can be printed, so that the apparatus can be used continuously.
According to the third aspect, when information from the ID chip becomes unreadable, printing can be performed according to the amount of use up to that time, so that a user with a large amount of use can be provided with a large number of recordable sheets and maintenance. Can be used.
According to the fourth aspect, when the information from the ID chip cannot be read, the report can be printed, so that the state of the apparatus can be confirmed.
According to the fifth aspect, even when the information from the ID chip cannot be read, the usage history is recorded in a different area of the second non-volatile memory, so that the information from the ID chip can be read. The history when it disappears can be accumulated separately.
According to the sixth aspect, since the warning is notified or displayed when the information from the ID chip becomes unreadable, it is possible to warn the user and the administrator that the information from the ID chip cannot be read.
According to the seventh aspect, since a plurality of reading devices are mounted, even when one reading device cannot read information from the ID chip, it can be read by another reading device, and the device is always used. Can be.
According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, it is determined that the information read from the non-volatile memory cannot be read when the data read from the non-volatile memory is a constant value continuously. It can be discriminated and the response can be changed.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of an image processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. The image processing apparatus 1 includes a control unit 4, a recording unit 5, a storage unit 6, a code reading / writing unit 7, a communication unit 8, and a display unit 9.
Each means is connected to the system bus, and the control means 4 controls the whole. The control means 4 includes a calculation means 41 and a counting means 42. The control unit 4 sets printing conditions according to the ID information read from the process cartridge 2 and controls printing by the recording unit 5.
Further, the control unit 4 copies the information stored in the process cartridge 2 to the nonvolatile memory 61 of the storage unit 6. Further, the history information is stored in the storage unit 6. Further, when the information such as the ID cannot be read, the calculating means 41 calculates the printable number of sheets from the previous number of used sheets, and the counting means 42 counts the remaining printable number of sheets.
The recording means 5 includes a process cartridge 2, and the process cartridge 2 includes a nonvolatile memory 22. Furthermore, information such as a cartridge ID is recorded in the nonvolatile memory 22.
The storage unit 6 includes a nonvolatile memory 61, and stores printing conditions suitable for the process cartridge 2 from the read ID, and predetermined printing conditions set when information from the process cartridge 2 cannot be read. .
The code reading / writing means 7 reads and writes the contents of the nonvolatile memory 22. The communication unit 8 is connected to a communication line, and the control unit 4 performs communication control such as notification of device abnormality. The display means 9 is controlled by the control means 4 and displays the status of the apparatus and a warning at the time of abnormality.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of the image processing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. The process cartridge 2 is attached to the image processing apparatus 1 in a detachable manner. The image processing apparatus 1 includes an optical system 1a, a paper feed roller 1b, a paper feed cassette 1c that stores recording paper 3, a transfer roller 1d, a fixing roller 1e, and the like.
On the other hand, the process cartridge 2 includes a charging roller 2a, a developing unit and a toner storage unit 2b, a cleaning unit and a waste toner collecting unit 2c, a photoconductor 2d, and the like. The optical system 1a includes a polygon motor, a polygon mirror, an Fθ lens, a laser diode, a mirror, and the like.
An outline of the operation of the image processing apparatus 1 will be described. The recording paper 3 stored in the paper feed cassette 1c is conveyed to the photoreceptor 2d by the paper feed roller 1b. The photosensitive member 2d is driven to rotate in the clockwise direction. At that time, the photosensitive member 2d is charged by the charging roller 2a, and laser light is irradiated from the optical system 1a to form an electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive member 2d.
The electrostatic latent image is visualized by toner when passing through the developing means and the toner storage portion 2b. The visible image is transferred to the recording paper 3 conveyed to the photoreceptor 2d by the transfer roller 1d. The recording paper 3 is then conveyed to the fixing roller 1e, and the visible image on the recording paper 3 is fixed. The recording paper 3 is then discharged outside the image processing apparatus 1.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the process cartridge. The process cartridge 2 is a unit (AIO) in which a charging roller 2a, a developing unit and a toner storage unit 2b, a cleaning unit and a waste toner collecting unit 2c, and a photosensitive member 2d are integrated.
A non-volatile memory 22 is mounted on the process cartridge 2 shown in FIG. The nonvolatile memory 22 includes information necessary for controlling each photosensitive unit (process cartridge unit), cartridge ID, date of manufacture, date of use, number of times of recycling, number of copies, current date, toner not shown. The toner remaining amount information obtained from the remaining amount sensor is stored. Instead of the nonvolatile memory 22, a printed board on which an IC chip is mounted or a printed board on which a non-contact type IC chip is mounted may be mounted.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a first control example by the control means. When the printing start operation is started, information such as an ID is read from the process cartridge 2 (S1). If the read data is a constant value (Y in S2), it is determined that the data has not been read correctly, a warning is displayed (S3), the printing condition is set to a predetermined value stored in the storage means 6 (S4), Printing is performed under the setting conditions (S5). If it can be read correctly, a printing condition suitable for the process cartridge 2 is set, and printing is performed under the setting condition (S6).
FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a second control example by the control means. When the printing start operation is started, information such as an ID is read from the process cartridge 2 (S11). If the read data is a constant value (Y in S12), it is determined that the data has not been read correctly, a warning is sent (S13), and a flag (FLAG A) that is set when the data cannot be read correctly is set (S14). , S15). The number of printable sheets in the future is calculated from the number of sheets used so far (S16), and the number of printable sheets is set (S17). Also, the history entry area is set as a new area in the storage means 6 (S18).
If the print content is not report printing (N in S19) and there is no printable number (N in S20), the printing is stopped (S21). If report printing or the number of printable sheets still remains, the printing conditions suitable for the process cartridge 2 are set and printed (S23, S24). If the read data is not constant (N in S12), FLAG A is reset (S22), and printing conditions suitable for the process cartridge 2 are set and printed (S23, S24).

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a third control example by the control means. This is a case where two reading means are provided. When the printing start operation is started, information such as an ID is read from the process cartridge by the reading means A (S31, S32). If the read data is a constant value (Y in S33), it is determined that the reading means A has not been read correctly, and FLAG A is set (S34).
Next, information such as an ID is read by the reading means B from the process cartridge 2 (S35). Further, if the read data is a constant value (Y in S36), it is determined that the reading means B has not been read correctly, FLAG B is set (S37), and it is determined that there is a failure. If the read data is not constant, the printing conditions suitable for the process cartridge 2 are set and printed (S38, S39).
In the present embodiment, the condition for enabling printing when the ID becomes unreadable is the number of sheets, but it may be a period. Further, the usage history to be referred to may be used as the usage frequency. Furthermore, the usage history may be the usage history of the device or the usage history of the process cartridge 2. When the usage history of the process cartridge 2 is used, it may be increased or decreased as the usage amount increases.

1 is a functional block diagram of an image processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a configuration diagram of an image processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. The perspective view of a process cartridge. The flowchart which shows the 1st example of control by a control means. The flowchart which shows the 2nd control example by a control means. The flowchart which shows the 3rd example of control by a control means.

Explanation of symbols

2 process cartridge, 22 nonvolatile memory (first nonvolatile memory), 4 control means, 6 storage means, 61 nonvolatile memory (second nonvolatile memory), 7 code reading / writing means (reading means)

Claims (8)

  A process cartridge having a first nonvolatile memory in which information including an ID is recorded, a reading unit for reading information from the first nonvolatile memory, and a memory having a second nonvolatile memory for storing predetermined printing conditions An image processing apparatus comprising: means; and control means for performing printing under a printing condition stored in the second nonvolatile memory when information from the first nonvolatile memory cannot be read.   The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls to perform a predetermined number of prints when information from the first nonvolatile memory cannot be read.   3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the control unit performs control so as to perform printing of the number of sheets corresponding to the use history so far when the information from the first nonvolatile memory cannot be read.   4. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit performs control so that only a report is printed when information from the first nonvolatile memory cannot be read. 5. .   5. The control unit according to claim 1, wherein when the information from the first nonvolatile memory cannot be read, the control unit records a use history in a region different from that of the second nonvolatile memory. The image processing apparatus according to any one of claims.   An image processing apparatus, comprising: a plurality of reading means; and a control means that, when one reading means cannot read information from the first nonvolatile memory, the other reading means reads the information.   The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit notifies or displays a warning when information from the first nonvolatile memory cannot be read. The control means determines that information from the first non-volatile memory cannot be read when the data read from the first non-volatile memory is a constant value continuous. Item 8. The image processing apparatus according to any one of Items 1 to 7.

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