JP2017222064A - Power supply control device, droplet discharge device, power supply control method, and power supply control program - Google Patents

Abstract

A power supply control device capable of being continuously driven during a period in which power supply cannot be obtained. A moving unit that moves a droplet discharging head that discharges droplets, a conveying unit that conveys an object to which droplets are discharged, and a driving unit that operates the droplet discharging head, the moving unit, and the conveying unit. And a power supply control unit that causes the power generation unit that generates power by the power of the drive unit, and a power storage control unit that stores the generated power in the power storage unit. [Selection] Figure 4

Description

  The present invention relates to a power supply control device, a droplet discharge device, a power supply control method, and a power supply control program.

  In recent years, there has been a tendency to digitize information, and image processing apparatuses such as printers and facsimiles used for outputting digitized information and scanners used for digitizing documents have become indispensable devices. Such an image processing apparatus is often configured as a multifunction machine that can be used as a printer, a facsimile, a scanner, or a copier by providing an imaging function, an image forming function, a communication function, and the like.

  In the above-described printers and copiers, ink jet printers that are droplet discharge devices that perform printing by ejecting ink onto a recording medium are widely used. Such an ink jet printer includes a recording head for each color. For example, in a color printer, ink droplets are ejected independently for each color from four recording heads of CMYK (Cyan Magenta Yellow Black) to form a color image.

  By installing a battery in such an ink jet printer and receiving power from a commercial power source, and storing it in the battery that is installed, it operates with power supplied from the battery in the event of a power outage or where there is no electrical outlet. There are some (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  However, the ink jet printer described in Patent Document 1 cannot be driven when the remaining battery level is exhausted when power cannot be supplied.

  The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to continuously drive the droplet discharge device during a period in which power supply cannot be obtained.

  In order to solve the above problems, one embodiment of the present invention includes a moving unit that moves a droplet discharge head that discharges droplets, a transport unit that transports a target to which the droplets are discharged, and the droplet discharge A drive unit driven to operate the head, the moving unit, and the transport unit; a power supply control unit configured to generate power by a power generation unit that generates power using the power of the drive unit; and storing the generated power in the power storage unit And a power storage control unit.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to continuously drive the droplet discharge device during a period in which power supply cannot be obtained.

1 is a schematic external view of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a schematic view of a main part of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a mechanical structure of an image forming output mechanism according to the embodiment of the invention. 1 is a diagram illustrating an overall configuration of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. The block diagram which shows the function of the power supply control part which concerns on embodiment of this invention. 6 is a flowchart showing a process flow of a print output operation according to the embodiment of the present invention. The figure which illustrated the encoder sheet concerning the embodiment of the present invention. The figure which illustrated the screen for performing the setting input of the operation mode which concerns on embodiment of this invention.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the present embodiment, an ink jet printer that is an image forming apparatus including a carriage and a recording head will be described as an example. Such an image forming apparatus performs printing by ejecting ink droplets from a recording head on which nozzles are formed while moving the carriage in a certain direction (hereinafter referred to as “main scanning direction”) with respect to the recording medium. It also functions as a droplet discharge device.

  Also, one or more lines of images are formed by a single movement of the carriage in the main scanning direction, and the next and subsequent lines in the direction perpendicular to the main scanning direction (hereinafter referred to as “sub-scanning direction”) on the recording medium. Similarly, an image is formed. An ink jet printer performs printing on a recording medium by repeating such operations. Note that the image forming apparatus according to the present embodiment generates CMYK (Cyan Magenta Yellow black K) drawing information based on the input print data, and executes image forming output based on the generated drawing information.

  The image forming apparatus according to the present embodiment includes recording heads for each of CMYK, and ejects ink droplets from the recording heads onto the recording medium independently to form a color image. These ink droplets are supplied to the recording head of each color from an ink cartridge loaded for each color in the image forming apparatus.

  First, the structure of the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 1 is a schematic external view of an image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a main part of the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment. In FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals, the paper transport direction is the sub-scanning direction, and the direction orthogonal to the sub-scanning direction is the main scanning direction.

  As shown in FIG. 1, in the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, a scanner unit 3 that is a reading device is disposed on an upper part of a main body housing 2, and an image forming unit 4 and a paper feed are provided inside the main body housing 2. A unit 5, a paper discharge unit 6, an ink cartridge storage unit 7 and the like are provided. An operation display unit 8 is provided on the upper front surface of the main body housing 2 of the image forming apparatus 1. The operation display unit 8 includes a key 8a and a display 8b.

  The scanner unit 3 uses a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) or a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) as a reading element, scans the document, and reads an image of the document.

  As the image forming unit 4, a printer that performs image formation in units of bytes with a predetermined line as 1 byte is used as in the ink jet system. The image forming unit 4 is a recording medium conveyed from the paper feeding unit 5 based on image data of an original read by the scanner unit 3 or image data transmitted from an external information processing apparatus such as a computer via a network. An image is formed on a certain sheet S and discharged to the sheet discharge unit 6.

  Further, the image forming apparatus 1 is provided with an opening / closing cover 9 on the front side of the main body housing 2, and the battery 400 serving as a power storage unit is stored in the main body housing 2 of the opening / closing cover 9 in a replaceable state. Has been. A USB (Universal Serial Bus) connector 10 is provided at the bottom of the opening / closing cover 9.

  Handles 501 and 502 are disposed in the main body housing 2, and a main scanning motor 140 and a sub-scanning motor 150 to be described later can be rotated by rotating the handles 501 and 502.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the paper feeding unit 5 is disposed opposite to the half-moon roller (paper feeding roller) 52 that separates and feeds the paper S from the paper stacking unit 51 one by one, and the paper feeding roller 52. A separation pad 53 is included. The separation pad 53 is made of a material having a large friction coefficient. The sheet feeding unit 5 rotates the sheet feeding roller 52 in a state where the separation pad 53 is urged toward the sheet feeding roller 52, and sends out the sheets S stacked on the sheet stacking unit 51.

  The sheet feeding unit 5 further includes a guide member 54, a counter roller 55, a conveyance guide member 56, a pressing member 58 having a tip pressure roller 57, a conveyance belt 201, a conveyance roller 202 over which the conveyance belt 201 is stretched, and a tension. Including a roller 203. The paper feed unit 5 conveys the paper S sent out from the paper stacking unit 51 onto the conveyance belt 201 by a pressing member 58 having a guide member 54, a counter roller 55, a conveyance guide member 56, and a tip pressure roller 57. .

  The conveyance belt 201 is an endless belt, is stretched between the conveyance roller 202 and the tension roller 203, and is circulated and conveyed in the belt conveyance direction (sub-scanning direction) shown in FIG. The conveyor belt 201 is, for example, a surface layer that is a sheet adsorbing surface formed of a resin material such as pure ETFE pure material having a thickness of about 40 μm that is not subjected to resistance control, and resistance control by carbon using the same material as the surface layer. And a backing layer (medium resistance layer, earth layer) that is being performed.

  The surface of the conveyor belt 201 is charged by a charging roller 62 disposed in the vicinity of the conveyor roller 202, and the sheet S is sucked and conveyed. The conveyance roller 202 is grounded and is disposed in contact with the middle resistance layer (back layer) of the conveyance belt 201, and also functions as an earth roller. Then, the conveyance belt 201 is rotated and conveyed in the belt conveyance direction (sub-scanning direction) shown in FIG. 3 by rotating the conveyance roller 202 by the sub-scanning motor 150.

  The image forming apparatus 1 includes, as the paper discharge unit 6, a separation claw 71 for separating the paper S from the conveyance belt 201, a paper discharge roller 72, and a paper discharge roller 73 in the vicinity of the tension roller 203. A discharge tray 74 is provided below the roller 72. When the paper S on which an image is formed is conveyed to the tension roller 203 by the conveyance belt 201, the paper discharge unit 6 separates the paper S from the conveyance belt 201 by the separation claw 71, and the paper discharge roller 73 and the paper discharge roller The sheet S is discharged onto the sheet discharge tray 74 by 72.

  Further, the image forming apparatus 1 includes a detachable duplex unit 81. The duplex unit 81 rotates the transport belt 201 in the reverse direction, takes in the paper S and reverses it, and feeds the paper again between the counter roller 55 and the transport belt 201. The upper surface of the duplex unit 81 is a manual feed tray 82 for manually feeding the paper S.

  Next, the mechanical structure of the image forming output mechanism in the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a state in which the mechanical configuration of the image forming output mechanism according to the present embodiment is viewed from above.

  As shown in FIG. 3, in the image forming output mechanism according to the present embodiment, the sheet S is transported over a transport roller 202 driven by a sub-scanning motor 150 and a tension roller 203 that operates following the transport roller 202. It is conveyed by the belt 201. This transport direction is the sub-scanning direction. Further, the sub-scanning motor 150, the conveying roller 202, the timing belt connecting the sub-scanning motor 150 and the conveying roller 202 and the conveying belt 201 are conveying units for conveying the paper S.

  A print head used in the inkjet image forming apparatus 1 is attached to a carriage 130. The carriage 130 reciprocates on the guide rod 206 in a direction perpendicular to the paper transport direction by the driving pulley 204, the driven pulley 207, and the timing belt 205 by driving the main scanning motor 140.

  An ink tube 210 for supplying ink from the ink cartridge 209 to the print head is connected to the carriage 130. The serial type ink jet printer performs printing on the entire surface of the paper S by repeatedly scanning the carriage 130 and transporting the paper S.

  The carriage 130 is equipped with a recording head 212 which is a droplet discharge head for discharging CMYK color ink droplets, and discharges ink droplets from ink discharge nozzles 213 arranged in the recording head 212. An image is formed on the paper S by ejecting ink droplets while moving the carriage 130 in the main scanning direction. Accordingly, the carriage 130 functions as a moving unit that moves the droplet discharge head.

  Further, the position information of the carriage 130 is calculated by reading the pattern arranged at equal intervals on the encoder sheet 208 by the encoder 211 arranged fixed to the carriage 130.

  Further, by rotating the handle 502, the rotating shaft 503 driven by the handle 502 is rotated, and the main scanning motor 140 is driven to rotate by the driven pulley 207 and the driving pulley 204, and the carriage 130 can be moved.

  Note that the operation mode of the image forming apparatus 1 includes a normal mode in which power is supplied from the power supply unit 410 or the battery 400 and print output is automatically performed; There is a manual mode in which conveyance is performed manually. In the manual mode, the image forming apparatus 1 can be operated by operating the handles 501 and 502.

  When the operation mode is the manual mode, the carriage 130 is moved manually by operating the handle 502 by the user of the image forming apparatus 1. At that time, the axis of the main scanning motor 140 indirectly connected to the carriage 130 rotates following the movement of the carriage 130 according to the operation of the handle 502. When the motor is physically rotated, power for rotating the motor is converted into electric power. The image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment functions as a power supply control device, and executes control for storing the electric power generated at this time in the battery 400.

  In the transport unit, the transport roller 202 is rotated by the sub-scanning motor 150 being rotated, so that the paper S is transported. Also, when the operation mode is manual, the handle 501 is rotated and the sub-scanning motor 150 is rotated by the rotation being transmitted by the rotation shaft 504 of the handle 501 in the same manner as the movement of the carriage 130. Therefore, in the present embodiment, it is possible to execute the control of rotating the sub-scanning motor 150 by manually performing the sheet conveyance, converting the power for the rotation into electric power, and storing the battery 400 in the electric power.

  The main scanning motor 140 and the sub-scanning motor 150 are electrically connected to the battery 400, respectively, and the electric power generated by the main scanning motor 140 and the sub-scanning motor 150 is stored in the battery 400.

  Next, the overall configuration of the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment. In FIG. 4, the electrical connection is indicated by a solid arrow, and the power flow is indicated by a broken arrow. As shown in FIG. 4, the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment drives a power supply unit 410 configured by an AC power source that is a commercial power source or a household power source, or a battery 400 as a power supply source.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment includes a controller 100, an operation panel 110, a carriage 130, a main scanning motor 140, and a sub scanning motor 150. The operation panel 110 is a user interface that functions as an operation unit and a display unit for inputting and displaying information necessary for the image forming apparatus 1. The carriage 130 has a print head for ejecting ink as a developer on the surface of the paper, and is moved in the main scanning direction during an image forming output operation.

  The main scanning motor 140 is a motor that supplies power for moving the carriage 130 in the main scanning direction. The sub-scanning motor 150 is a motor that supplies power for transporting the paper S, which is an object for forming an image, in the sub-scanning direction.

  The controller 100 is a control unit that controls the operation of the image forming apparatus 1, and as shown in FIG. 4, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 11, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 12, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 13, an NVRAM (Non Volatile RAM) 14, ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) 15, host I / F 17, head driving unit 30, main scanning motor driving unit 21, sub-scanning motor driving unit 22, I / O 31, and power control unit 40 are included. .

  The CPU 11 is a calculation means and controls the operation of each part of the controller 100. The ROM 12 is a read-only nonvolatile storage medium, and stores programs such as firmware. The RAM 13 is a volatile storage medium capable of reading and writing information at high speed, and is used as a work area when the CPU 11 processes information. The NVRAM 14 is a nonvolatile storage medium capable of reading and writing information, and stores a control program and control parameters.

  The ASIC 15 is a hardware circuit that executes image processing necessary for image formation output. The host I / F 17 is an interface for receiving print data from a host device such as a PC (Personal Computer), and uses an Ethernet (registered trademark) or a USB (Universal Serial Bus) interface.

  The head drive unit 30 is hardware for driving a print head mounted on the carriage 130, and drives the carriage 130 according to control by the CPU 11. The head driving unit 30 has a function of acquiring a temperature detection result by a resistance temperature detector provided on the carriage 130.

  The main scanning motor driving unit 21 and the sub scanning motor driving unit 22 drive a motor 170 including a main scanning motor 140 and a sub scanning motor 150, respectively, according to the control of the CPU 11.

  Print data from the host such as an information processing device such as a PC, an image reading device such as an image scanner, and an imaging device such as a digital camera is received by the host I / F 17. The CPU 11 reads and analyzes the print data in the reception buffer included in the host I / F 17 and controls the ASIC 15 to execute image processing and data rearrangement processing necessary for image formation output.

  When the image data is processed by the ASIC 15, the CPU 11 acquires waveform data to be applied to the print head included in the carriage 130 and inputs the waveform data to the head driving unit 30 in order to eject ink according to the processing result. This waveform data is stored in the NVRAM 14, for example.

  The head drive unit 30 converts the waveform data acquired from the CPU 11 into an analog signal and inputs it to the carriage 130 as a drive waveform of the print head. The carriage 130 selectively applies the drive waveform input from the head drive unit 30 to the actuator of the print head to drive the print head.

  The I / O 31 inputs signals from various sensors 160 such as a cover open / close detection sensor of the image forming apparatus 1 and signals from a switch 180 such as an FET switch to the controller 100. The power supply control unit 40 is a power supply control unit that switches power supplied to operate the image forming apparatus 1. During normal operation, the power supply control unit 40 performs control so that power is supplied from the power supply unit 410. However, when the supply of power from the power supply unit 410 stops, the power supply control unit 40 switches so that power is supplied from the battery 400.

  In addition, the power supply control unit 40 causes the power storage unit 420 to store power in the battery 400 when driven by receiving power supplied from the battery 400. The power storage unit 420 causes the battery 400 to store the electric power generated when the main scanning motor 140 and the sub scanning motor 150 are driven.

  In the image forming apparatus 1 configured as described above, when the supply of power from the power supply unit 410 is stopped and the power is supplied from the battery 400, the supply of power from the power supply unit 410 may not be resumed for a long time. is there. The gist of the present invention is that the image forming apparatus 1 can be used without increasing the capacity of the battery in such a case.

  Next, characteristic functions of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing specific functions of the power control unit 40 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 5, the power supply control unit 40 includes an output switching unit 41 and a charge / discharge switching unit 42.

  The output switching unit 41 performs control to switch between supplying power for driving the image forming apparatus 1 from the power supply unit 410 or from the battery 400. The charge / discharge switching unit 42 performs control to switch between discharging electric power from the battery 400 or storing electric power supplied from the outside in the battery 400. Therefore, the charge / discharge switching unit 42 functions as a power storage control unit.

  Next, an operation when the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment performs print output will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing when the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment performs print output.

  When receiving the print instruction information (S601), the power supply control unit 40 confirms the operation mode of the image forming apparatus 1 (S602). The operation mode of the image forming apparatus 1 includes a normal mode in which power is supplied from the power supply unit 410 or the battery 400 and print output is automatically performed, and power is supplied from the battery 400 to transport the carriage 130 and the paper S. There is a manual mode that is performed manually.

  When the operation mode is the normal mode (S602 / No), the CPU 11 sets the main scanning motor 140 and the sub-scanning motor 150 to the main scanning motor driving unit 21 based on the print instruction information acquired via the host I / F 17, respectively. The sub-scanning motor driving unit 22 is driven. In this manner, the scanning of the carriage 130 and the conveyance of the paper S are repeatedly performed to output an image (S603). When the output of all the print output target images included in the print instruction information is completed, the CPU 11 executes control for terminating the present process.

  When the operation mode is the manual mode (S602 / Yes), the CPU 11 inputs the print instruction information acquired via the host I / F 17 to the ASIC 15, executes image processing for performing print output, and waits. Then, when the carriage 130 is moved in the main scanning direction by the user (S604 / Yes), the head driving unit 30 causes the recording head 212 to eject ink droplets at an intended position in accordance with the movement of the carriage 130.

  Even when the carriage 130 is moved manually, the CPU 11 calculates the movement amount of the carriage 130 based on a detection signal output by the encoder 211 detecting and outputting an encoder sheet 208 as shown in FIG. . Therefore, the head drive unit 30 can eject ink droplets to an accurate position based on the print instruction information.

  At this time, the main scanning motor 140 generates electric power by rotating the motor shaft for rotating the main scanning motor 140 (S605). When the operation mode is manual, the charge / discharge switching unit 42 controls the power storage unit 420 to store the power generated by the drive of the main scanning motor 140 in the battery 400. Therefore, the main scanning motor 140 functions as a power generation unit.

  When the ejection of all ink droplets is completed (S606 / Yes), the CPU 11 causes the operation panel 110 to display a screen for notifying the user to carry the paper S. When the user moves the paper S in the sub-scanning direction, the sub-scanning motor 150 generates electric power by rotating the motor shaft for rotating the sub-scanning motor 150 (S607).

  When the operation mode is manual, the charge / discharge switching unit 42 controls the power storage unit 420 to store the power generated by the driving of the sub-scanning motor 150 in the battery 400. Therefore, the sub-scanning motor 150 also functions as a power generation unit.

  Even when the paper is manually conveyed, the CPU 11 calculates the amount of movement of the paper S based on a detection signal output by the encoder 211 detecting and outputting an encoder sheet 208 as shown in FIG. Therefore, the head drive unit 30 can eject ink droplets to an accurate position based on the print instruction information.

  When the conveyance of the sheet S for one line is completed (S608 / Yes), the CPU 11 causes the operation panel 110 to display a screen for notifying the user to move the carriage 130. Thereafter, the processing from S604 is executed again. In this way, by repeatedly executing the movement of the carriage 130 and the sheet conveyance (S608 / No and S609 / No), an image based on the print instruction information is output on the sheet S. When the conveyance of the paper and the ejection of the ink to all the lines are completed (S609 / Yes), the CPU 11 ends this process.

  As described above, the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment generates power using the power of the motor that drives the carriage 130 and the conveyance of the paper S. Since the motor for moving the carriage 130 and the motor for transporting the paper S are essential components in the conventional image forming apparatus, the battery 400 can be charged without providing a new mechanism for power generation. I can do it. Further, since it is possible to store electricity at the same time as printing output, printing output can be continuously executed without using a large-capacity battery even when not connected to the power supply unit 410.

  Note that the operation mode of the image forming apparatus 1 may be designated via the host I / F 17. When the print instruction information is input to the image forming apparatus 1 via the host I / F 17, the information processing apparatus connected to the image forming apparatus 1 is set to the operation mode of the image forming apparatus 1 as shown in FIG. A screen for setting may be displayed and the setting of the operation mode may be input.

  Further, as a configuration for switching the operation mode of the image forming apparatus 1, a configuration using a FET (Field Effect Transistor) as the switch 180 may be used. Since the physical changeover switch consumes a large amount of power, the power consumption can be further reduced by using the FET switch.

1 Image forming apparatus 11 CPU
12 ROM
13 RAM
14 NVRAM
15 ASIC
17 Host I / F
21 Main scanning motor driving unit 22 Sub scanning motor driving unit 30 Head driving unit 31 I / O
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 40 Power supply control part 41 Output switching part 42 Charging / discharging switching part 100 Controller 110 Operation panel 130 Carriage 131 Head driver 132 Recording head 140 Main scanning motor 150 Sub scanning motor 160 Sensor 170 Motor 180 Switch 201 Conveying belt 202 Conveying roller 203 Tension roller 204 Drive pulley 205 Timing belt 206 Guide rod 207 Driven pulley 208 Encoder sheet 209 Ink cartridge 210 Ink tube 211 Encoder 212 Recording head 213 Ink discharge nozzle 400 Battery 410 Power supply unit 420 Power storage unit

JP 2001-146005 A

Claims (8)

A moving unit for moving a droplet discharge head for discharging droplets;
A transport unit for transporting a target from which the droplets are discharged;
A drive unit driven to operate the droplet discharge head, the moving unit, and the transport unit;
A power supply control unit that generates power in a power generation unit that generates power by the power of the drive unit;
A power storage control unit for storing the generated power in the power storage unit;
A power supply control device comprising: The power storage control unit
The power supply control device according to claim 1, wherein the generated power is stored in the power storage unit. The power supply control unit
3. The power supply control device according to claim 1, wherein the power generation unit causes the power generation unit to convert the power of the drive unit into the electric power to execute power generation. 4. The power supply control unit
The power generation unit is configured to cause the power generation unit to generate power by the power of the drive unit when the moving unit and the transport unit are operated in a state in which the power supply is not received. 3. The power supply control device according to any one of 3. The power supply control unit
When the moving unit and the transport unit are operated in a state where the supply of the electric power is not received, the power generation unit is caused to generate power by the power of the drive unit,
The power storage control unit
Storing the generated power in the power storage unit;
The drive unit is
5. The power supply control device according to claim 1, wherein the power supply control device is driven to operate the droplet discharge head in response to the supply of the electric power from the power storage unit. 6.   A droplet discharge device including the power supply control device according to claim 1. Move the droplet discharge head to discharge droplets,
Conveying the object from which the droplets are ejected,
Driving the droplet discharge head, a moving unit that moves the droplet discharge head, and a driving unit that is driven to operate a transport unit that transports an object from which the droplets are discharged;
Causing the power generation unit that generates power by the power of the drive unit to generate power,
A power supply control method characterized by storing generated power in a power storage unit. Moving a droplet discharge head for discharging droplets;
Conveying an object from which the droplets are ejected;
Driving the drive unit to operate the droplet discharge head, a moving unit that moves the droplet discharge head, and a transport unit that transports an object from which the droplet is discharged;
Causing the power generation unit that generates power by the power of the drive unit to generate power;
Storing the generated power in a power storage unit;
A power supply control program for executing