JP2025054018A - Image forming apparatus, control method thereof, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a technique for improving convenience when a user performs printing on paper.SOLUTION: An image formation device comprises: an image formation part 201B for printing on paper; a paper feeding part 235 for feeding paper via a paper conveyance path to the image formation part 201B; a paper type detection sensor 260 provided on the paper conveyance path and detecting a paper type; and a CPU 280 setting printing on the paper, and detecting that first paper fed by the paper feeding part 235 runs out. When detecting that first paper fed by the paper feeding part 235 runs out, the CPU 280 sets the type of second paper detected by the paper type detection sensor 260 for printing on the second paper fed by the paper feeding part 235 after the detection.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

This disclosure relates to an image forming apparatus, a control method thereof, and a program.

Some image forming devices are equipped with a paper type detection sensor (media sensor) on the paper transport path in order to measure characteristics of the paper, such as the surface properties and basis weight of the paper, and detect the type of paper. In such image forming devices, for example, the type of paper (paper type) is identified from a paper type database (media library) stored in advance based on the characteristics of the paper fed in a print job. Then, in such image forming devices, high-quality printouts can be obtained by using the print control parameters for the identified paper type in image formation control.

Furthermore, in order to accommodate a wide variety of paper types, Patent Document 1 describes a technology that allows a user to change print control parameters corresponding to pre-stored paper types as desired, and adds and stores the changed print control parameters as user-defined print control parameters.

JP 2022-26815 A

When a sheet of paper that is being printed using print control parameters corresponding to the type of paper detected by the paper type detection sensor runs out of the paper feed section, if the print control parameters are to be inherited for the paper that is fed subsequently, the user needs to be aware of the type of paper being fed. In this case, there is an issue that the convenience of the user when printing on paper is reduced.

This disclosure has been made in light of these issues, and aims to provide technology that improves convenience for users when printing on paper.

The image forming device disclosed herein includes an image forming means for printing on paper, a paper feeding means for feeding the paper to the image forming means via a paper transport path, a paper type detection means provided on the paper transport path for detecting the type of the paper, a setting means for making settings related to the printing on the paper, and a detection means for detecting that a first paper being fed by the paper feeding means has run out, and when the detection means detects that the first paper has run out, the setting means sets the type of the second paper detected by the paper type detection means for the printing on a second paper fed by the paper feeding means after the detection.

This disclosure makes it possible to improve the convenience for users when printing on paper.

1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of an image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a control system of the image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a schematic configuration of the paper type detection sensor shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 . FIG. 10 illustrates the first embodiment of the present disclosure and shows an example of a setting screen for paper placed in the manual paper feed tray. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure in a control method for an image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a display screen when no paper is present in a manual feed tray that is set to a setting other than “automatic detection when printing” shown in FIG. 4B in the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a display screen when no paper has been present in the manual feed tray in which the setting of “automatic detection during printing” shown in FIG. 4B is set in the first embodiment of the present disclosure. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure in a control method for an image forming apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 11 illustrates an example of a warning display screen displayed on the display unit according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure.

Below, a mode (embodiment) for carrying out the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the embodiment described below is an example, and the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiment described below.

First Embodiment
First, the first embodiment will be described.

<General Configuration of Image Forming Apparatus>
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a schematic configuration of an image forming apparatus 200 according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure.

The image forming device 200 shown in FIG. 1 has an image forming device main body 201A, an image reading device 202, and a display unit 250.

The image forming device main body 201A includes an image forming section 201B that forms an image on a sheet S transported through a sheet transport path H. The image forming device main body 201A also includes a cassette paper feed section 230 that feeds a sheet S from a paper feed cassette 1 that is a paper storage means for storing the sheet S. The cassette paper feed section 230 includes a pickup roller 2 that is a paper feed means, and a separation section that includes a feed roller 3 and a retard roller 4 for separating the sheet S sent out from the pickup roller 2. The image forming device main body 201A also includes a manual paper feed section 235 that is a paper feed means that feeds a sheet S to the image forming section 201B through the paper transport path H from a manual paper feed tray 5 that holds and stacks the sheet S. This manual paper feed section 235, like the cassette paper feed section 230, includes a pickup roller 502 that is a paper feed means, and a feed roller 503 and a retard roller 504 that are separation sections. The image forming apparatus main body 201A also includes a blower fan, which is a blowing means for blowing air to the paper S loaded on the manual paper feed tray 5, and FIG. 1 illustrates a blowing nozzle 272 included in this blower fan. The image forming apparatus main body 201A also includes a detection sensor provided on the paper transport path H, which includes a paper type detection sensor (media sensor) 260 for measuring the characteristic quantities of the paper S to detect the type (paper type) of the paper, and a paper detection sensor 505 for detecting the paper S.

The image forming unit 201B, which is an image forming means for printing on paper S, is configured as a four-drum full-color system. Specifically, the image forming unit 201B is equipped with a laser scanner 210 and four process cartridges 211 that form toner images of four colors, yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K). Here, each process cartridge 211 is equipped with a photosensitive drum 212K, a charger 213K that is a charging means, and a developer 214K that is a developing means. In addition, the image forming unit 201B is equipped with a secondary transfer unit 201D and a fixing unit 201E arranged above the process cartridges 211. The toner cartridge 215K is a toner cartridge for supplying toner to the developer 214K.

The secondary transfer section 201D is provided with a transfer belt 216 wound around a drive roller 216a and a tension roller 216b. In addition, a primary transfer roller 219K is provided inside the transfer belt 216, which abuts against the transfer belt 216 at a position opposite the photosensitive drum 212K. Here, the transfer belt 216 rotates in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 1 by a drive roller 216a driven by a drive unit (not shown). A secondary transfer roller 217 that transfers the color image formed on the transfer belt 216 to the paper S is provided at a position opposite the drive roller 216a of the secondary transfer section 201D. Furthermore, a fixing section 201E is arranged above the secondary transfer roller 217, and a first discharge roller pair 225a, a second discharge roller pair 225b, and a double-sided reversal section 201F are arranged at the upper left of the fixing section 201E. The double-sided reversing section 201F is equipped with a pair of reversible reversing rollers 222 and a paper re-transport path R that transports the paper S with an image formed on one side to the image forming section 201B again.

The image reading device 202 is an image reading device that is installed approximately horizontally above the image forming device main body 201A. Between the image reading device 202 and the image forming device main body 201A, a discharge space V for discharging paper is formed.

The display unit 250 is provided at the top of the image forming device 200 and is a display unit capable of accepting operational input from the user.

<Operation of Image Forming Apparatus>
Next, the operation of the image forming apparatus 200 will be described.
First, when the image forming apparatus 200 receives image information of an original to be printed, the image forming apparatus 200 processes the image information, converts it into an electric signal, and transmits it to the laser scanner 210 of the image forming unit 201B. In the image forming unit 201B, the surface of the photosensitive drum 212K, the surface of which is uniformly charged to a predetermined polarity and potential by the charger 213K, is sequentially exposed to a laser. As a result, electrostatic latent images of yellow, magenta, cyan, and black are sequentially formed on the photosensitive drum of each process cartridge 211, respectively.

After this, the image forming device 200 develops this electrostatic latent image with toner of each color to make it visible, and transfers the toner images of each color on each photosensitive drum to the transfer belt 216 in a sequentially overlapping manner by the primary transfer bias applied to the primary transfer roller 219K. This forms a toner image on the transfer belt 216. In parallel with the formation of this toner image, the paper S is transported one sheet at a time by the cassette paper feed unit 230 through the paper transport path H to the pair of registration rollers 240, where the skew is corrected. After the skew is corrected, the paper S is transported by the pair of registration rollers 240 to the secondary transfer unit 201D, where the toner images are transferred all at once onto the paper S by the secondary transfer bias applied to the secondary transfer roller 217. Next, the paper S onto which the toner image has been transferred is transported to the fixing unit 201E, where the toners of each color melt and mix under heat and pressure in the roller nip formed by the pressure roller 220a and the heating roller 220b, and are fixed as a color image on the paper S. After this, the paper S with the fixed image is discharged to the discharge space V by the first discharge roller pair 225a and the second discharge roller pair 225b provided downstream of the fixing unit 201E, and is stacked on the stacking unit 223 protruding from the bottom surface of the discharge space V. When forming images on both sides of the paper S, after the images are fixed, the paper S is transported to the paper re-transport path R by the reversing roller pair 222, and is transported again to the image forming unit 201B.

Figure 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a control system of an image forming apparatus 200 according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. In this Figure 2, components similar to those shown in Figure 1 are given the same reference numerals, and detailed descriptions thereof will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 2, the image forming device 200 includes, as a control system, an image forming unit 201B, a cassette paper feed unit 230, a manual paper feed unit 235, a display unit 250, a paper type detection sensor 260, a blower fan 270, a CPU 280, a HDD 281, and a RAM 282.

The CPU 280 controls the entire image forming apparatus 200. The HDD (hard disk drive) 281 stores the control program according to this embodiment and the initial values of various setting values. The CPU 280 executes the control program according to this embodiment read from the HDD 281 to realize the procedure of the image forming process and the processing procedures of each flowchart described below. The RAM 282 stores various information under the control of the CPU 280. For example, the RAM 282 stores print control parameters for each type of paper S in a first storage area. It is preferable that the RAM 282 is a rewritable memory that does not require a storage and retention operation. Furthermore, when the user changes the print control parameters corresponding to the referenced type of paper S, the CPU 280 additionally stores the changed print control parameters in the first storage area described above as user-defined print control parameters corresponding to the type of paper S.

The display unit 250 includes a panel and buttons capable of displaying an operation screen, and when an instruction such as starting a print operation is input, the display unit 250 sends the instruction information to the CPU 280. The instruction information such as starting a print operation may be input by a user operating the display unit 250, or may be input from an external device such as a personal computer, tablet terminal device, or smartphone connected via a network (not shown). When the instruction information to start a print operation is input, the CPU 280 drives and controls a paper feed and transport motor (not shown) in accordance with the instruction information to feed and transport the paper S. The CPU 280 also controls image formation (printing) by the image forming unit 201B by setting print control parameters for the image forming unit 201B. The image forming unit 201B prints on the paper S based on the print control parameters set by the CPU 280.

The paper type detection sensor 260 is provided on the paper transport path H, and is a paper type detection means for measuring the characteristics of the paper S fed through the paper transport path H to detect the type (paper type) of the paper S. The paper type refers to the type of paper S. For example, the paper type detection sensor 260 detects characteristics such as the surface properties and thickness of the transported paper S, and the CPU 280 determines the type (paper type) of the paper S from the detection results. In this embodiment, the detection of the type (paper type) of the paper S by the paper type detection sensor 260 is defined as the detection of characteristics such as the surface properties and thickness of the paper S by the paper type detection sensor 260, and the determination of the type (paper type) of the paper S by the CPU 280 from the detection results.

The blower fan 270 is a blowing unit that blows air toward a specific type of paper S loaded in the manual paper feed tray 5 shown in FIG. 1. The blower fan 270 includes a fan motor 271 and a blowing nozzle 272 shown in FIG. 1.

<General configuration of paper type detection sensor and paper type detection process>
Next, a schematic configuration of the paper type detection sensor 260 shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 and a paper type detection process performed by the paper type detection sensor 260 will be described.

Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of the schematic configuration of the paper type detection sensor 260 shown in Figures 1 and 2. In Figure 3, the same components as those shown in Figures 1 and 2 are given the same reference numerals, and detailed descriptions thereof are omitted.

The paper type detection sensor 260 includes an LED 261 as a light emitting element, a photodiode 262 as a light receiving element, and a guide section 263 for guiding the paper S. Specifically, the paper type detection sensor 260 is capable of detecting the amount of reflected light emitted by the LED 261 using the photodiode 262. The CPU 280 receives the detection signal of the photodiode 262 of the paper type detection sensor 260 as the output value of the paper type detection sensor 260. The CPU 280 can determine the type of paper S being passed according to the difference in the received value due to the characteristics of each paper S, such as the surface property and thickness. The CPU 280 then optimally controls the image formation speed and the target temperature of the fixing unit according to the type of paper S determined here.

As described above, in this embodiment, the CPU 280 uses the output value of the paper type detection sensor 260 to determine the type of paper S, so that the user does not need to consciously set the type of paper S. Therefore, in the image forming device 200 according to this embodiment, a mode (hereinafter referred to as the "automatic media setting mode") is provided in which the type of paper S is detected by the paper type detection sensor 260 and print control parameters and the like are automatically set according to the detected type of paper S. On the other hand, in the image forming device 200 according to this embodiment, a mode (hereinafter referred to as the "manual media setting mode") in which the user manually sets the type of paper S to be used as in the conventional case is also provided. By operating the display unit 250, the user can set in advance either the automatic media setting mode or the manual media setting mode for each cassette paper feed unit 230. Note that the default mode is set to the automatic media setting mode. In addition, the setting value indicating whether the setting mode is the automatic media setting mode or the manual media setting mode is stored in the RAM 282 shown in FIG. 2. Note that the schematic configuration of the paper type detection sensor 260 shown in FIG. 3 is an example, and the present disclosure is not limited to this configuration. The paper type detection sensor 260 may be configured to combine, for example, a light-emitting element such as an LED 261, a light-receiving element such as a photodiode 262, and an ultrasonic sensor such as a piezoelectric element, or may be a sensor having other configurations.

<General configuration of manual paper feed unit and paper feed process>
Next, a schematic configuration of the manual feed unit 235 shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 and a paper feed process by the manual feed unit 235 will be described.

The manual paper feed unit 235 includes a manual paper feed tray 5, a pickup roller 502, a feed roller 503, and a retard roller 504. The manual paper feed unit 235 further includes a blower fan 270, which serves as a blower.

For example, when the start button is pressed, the manual feed section 235 starts feeding the paper S. At this time, if the type of paper S is, for example, a specific type of coated paper, the blower fan 270 blows air onto the paper S. Then, after a predetermined time has passed, the topmost paper S, in which the adhesive force between the sheets has been reduced, is sent to a separation section consisting of a feed roller 503 and a retard roller 504 by the rotation of the pickup roller 502. Note that, if the type of paper S is, for example, plain paper, the blower fan 270 does not blow air onto the topmost paper S. The leading edge of the paper S separated into one sheet by the separation section described above is detected by the paper detection sensor 505, and the type (paper type) is detected by the paper type detection sensor 260. The paper S is then sent to the registration roller pair 240 via the paper transport path H by the transport roller pair 506.

The operation of the manual paper feed section 235 thereafter is the same as that of the cassette paper feed section 230 described above. The toner image is transferred to the paper S at the secondary transfer section 201D at the appropriate timing. The toner image is then fixed to the paper S in the fixing section 201E, and the paper S is discharged to the stacking section 223 by the first discharge roller pair 225a. When forming images on both sides of the paper S, the paper S is reversed in the double-sided reversing section 201F and transported again to the registration roller pair 240 via the paper re-transport path R. Thereafter, as in the case of the first side, the paper S with images formed on both sides is discharged to the stacking section 223, and the series of image formation is completed.

<Settings for paper placed in manual feed tray>
4 illustrates the first embodiment of the present disclosure and is a diagram showing an example of setting screens 410 and 420 for the paper S placed on the manual paper feed tray 5. The setting screens 410 and 420 shown in FIG. 4 are displayed on the display unit 250 under the control of the CPU 280.

Specifically, FIG. 4(a) shows a setting screen 410 that is displayed on the display unit 250 when paper S is placed in the manual paper feed tray 5. The setting screen 410 shown in FIG. 4(a) has a "Change paper size" button 411, a "Change paper type" button 412, a display area 413 for the currently set paper type, and an OK button 414. The setting screen 410 shown in FIG. 4(a) allows the paper size setting and paper type setting to be changed, and the paper type can be specified by pressing the "Change paper type" button 412.

When the "Change Paper Type" button 412 is pressed on the setting screen 410 shown in FIG. 4(a), the screen transitions to the setting screen 420 shown in FIG. 4(b). The setting screen 420 shown in FIG. 4(b) has an "Automatically detect when printing" button 421, a "Select from list" button 422, a cancel button 423, and an OK button 424. The "Automatically detect when printing" button 421 is a setting button for executing an operation to detect the type of paper S fed from the manual paper feed tray 5 by the paper type detection sensor 260. When the "Select from list" button 422 is pressed, the CPU 280 displays a paper type list screen (not shown) on the display unit 250, and any paper type can be selected. At this time, the paper type list displayed on the display unit 250 displays a list of paper types (paper types) that exist in a paper type database previously stored in, for example, the HDD 281. When the "Auto detect when printing" button 421 is pressed on the setting screen 420 shown in FIG. 4B, or the type of paper S is selected from the paper type list screen (not shown) and then the OK button 424 is pressed, the screen returns to the setting screen 410 shown in FIG. 4A. When the OK button 414 is pressed on the setting screen 410 shown in FIG. 4A, the CPU 280 stores the setting information for the paper S placed on the manual paper feed tray 5 in the HDD 281.

<Processing Procedure for Image Formation Processing of Print Job>
Fig. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure in a control method for the image forming apparatus 200 according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. Specifically, Fig. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure in an image forming process for a print job in the image forming apparatus 200 according to the first embodiment. The flowchart shown in Fig. 5 includes control steps for a case where there is no paper S in the manual paper feed tray 5. Moreover, each step of the flowchart shown in Fig. 5 is performed by the CPU 280 executing a control program read from the HDD 281 and loaded into the RAM 282.

The flowchart shown in FIG. 5 starts when a print job is input after paper S is placed on the manual paper feed tray 5 and the paper settings described in FIG. 4 are completed. The print job here is, for example, a copy job in which the user operates the display unit 250 to select the paper feed location set by pressing the "Automatic detection when printing" button 421 shown in FIG. 4B. Alternatively, the print job here may be a PDL print job in which the paper feed location set to "Automatic detection when printing" is selected by a printer driver on an information processing terminal device such as a personal computer connected via a network. Also, consider a print job in which a paper feed location set to "Automatic detection when printing" is set in the print job settings, and the paper type of the print job is set to "Automatic" or "Automatic selection" without explicitly specifying the paper type. In this case, the paper type detection sensor (media sensor) 260 measures the characteristics of the paper S to detect the type of the paper S.

When the process of the flowchart shown in FIG. 5 starts, in step S501, the CPU 280 issues a paper feed command for the paper feed operation of paper S on the manual paper feed tray 5.

Next, in step S502, the CPU 280 determines whether or not there is paper S on the manual feed tray 5. Specifically, the CPU 280 detects whether or not there is paper S on the manual feed tray 5, and if it detects that there is no paper S on the manual feed tray 5, it determines that there is no paper S on the manual feed tray 5. Here, the CPU 280 that performs the process of detecting whether or not there is paper S on the manual feed tray 5 (including detecting that there is no paper S) constitutes a detection means. In the following description, the paper S that the CPU 280 detects as having disappeared from the manual feed tray 5 will be referred to as the "first paper" as necessary.

If the result of the determination in step S502 is that there is no paper S on the manual feed tray 5 (S502/No), the process proceeds to step S503. When the process proceeds to step S503, the CPU 280 determines whether or not new paper S has been placed on the manual feed tray 5. If the result of this determination is that new paper S has not been placed on the manual feed tray 5 (S503/No), the process waits in step S503 until new paper S is placed on the manual feed tray 5.

Also, if the result of the determination in step S503 is that a new sheet S has been placed on the manual feed tray 5 (S503/Yes), the process proceeds to step S504. Here, in the following description, the sheet S determined in step S503 to have been newly placed on the manual feed tray 5 will be referred to as the "second sheet" as necessary.

When the process proceeds to step S504, the CPU 280 determines whether the paper type detection sensor 260 has identified the paper type of the paper S (first paper) that was determined in step S502 to be not on the manual paper feed tray 5.

If the result of the determination in step S504 is that the paper type of the first sheet has been identified by the paper type detection sensor 260 (S504/Yes), proceed to step S505.

Here, an example of the display screen will be described.
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a display screen when no paper is present in the manual feed tray 5 in which a setting other than "automatic detection during printing" shown in FIG. 4B is set in the first embodiment of the present disclosure. A display screen 610 shown in FIG. 6A displays information 611 indicating that the target paper feed unit is the manual feed unit 235 (manual feed tray 5), a paper type display area 612, a stop button 613, an OK button 614, and the like. The display screen 610 shown in FIG. 6A is a screen displayed on the display unit 250 when the manual feed unit 235 (manual feed tray 5) runs out of paper S. In the display screen 610 shown in FIG. 6A, "plain paper" is set in the paper type display area 612. After the display screen 610 shown in FIG. 6A is displayed on the display unit 250, when paper S is replenished in the manual feed unit 235 (manual feed tray 5), a display screen 620 shown in FIG. 6B is displayed on the display unit 250. A display screen 620 shown in Fig. 6B displays a paper type display area 621, an OK button 622, etc. In the case of Fig. 6, when the manual paper feed unit 235 (manual paper feed tray 5) runs out of paper S, the paper type display area 612 and the paper type display area 621 display "plain paper."

Figure 7 is a diagram showing an example of a display screen when paper runs out in the manual feed tray 5, which is set to "automatic detection when printing" as shown in Figure 4(b) in the first embodiment of the present disclosure. Display screen 710 shown in Figure 7(a) displays information 711 indicating that the target paper feed unit is the manual feed unit 235 (manual feed tray 5), a paper type display area 712, a stop button 713, an OK button 714, etc. This display screen 710 shown in Figure 7(a) is a screen that is displayed on the display unit 250 when paper S runs out in the manual feed unit 235 (manual feed tray 5). In the display screen 710 shown in Figure 7(a), "automatic detection when printing" is set in the paper type display area 712. After the display screen 710 shown in FIG. 7A is displayed on the display unit 250, when paper S is replenished in the manual paper feed unit 235 (manual paper feed tray 5), the display screen 720 shown in FIG. 7B is displayed on the display unit 250. The display screen 720 shown in FIG. 7B displays a paper type display area 721, an OK button 722, etc. In the case of FIG. 7, when paper S runs out in the manual paper feed unit 235 (manual paper feed tray 5), as shown in the paper type display area 712 and the paper type display area 721, the paper type is not a specified paper type but is "automatically detected at the time of printing."

Here, we return to the explanation of FIG.
In step S505, the CPU 280 sets the paper type information for the second paper to "automatic detection during printing" instead of the paper type identified by the paper type detection sensor 260 for the first paper.

When the processing of step S505 is completed, or when it is determined in step S504 that the paper type of the first sheet has not been identified by the paper type detection sensor 260 (S504/No), the process returns to step S501.

Also, if the result of the determination in step S502 is that paper S is present on the manual feed tray 5 (S502/Yes), the process proceeds to step S506. When the process proceeds to step S506, the CPU 280 starts feeding paper S on the manual feed tray 5. Here, if the process in the flowchart of FIG. 5 has gone through steps S502 to S505 and moved to steps S501 to S506, the above-mentioned feeding of the second paper is started in this step.

Next, in step S507, the CPU 280 determines whether the paper type of the paper S that started to be fed in step S506 has been identified by the paper type detection sensor 260. Here, if the process in the flowchart of FIG. 5 has gone through steps S502 to S505 and moved to steps S501 to S507, in this step it is determined whether the paper type of the second paper described above has been identified by the paper type detection sensor 260.

If the result of the judgment in step S507 is that the paper type has not been specified by the paper type detection sensor 260 for the paper S that started to be fed in step S506 (S507/No), proceed to step S508. When proceeding to step S508, the CPU 280 uses the paper type detection sensor 260 to detect the type of paper for the paper S that started to be fed in step S506. Then, for printing the paper S that started to be fed in step S506, the CPU 280 sets the type of paper detected in this step using the paper type detection sensor 260. The CPU 280 that sets the settings related to the printing of this paper S, specifically, the type of paper S detected using the paper type detection sensor 260, constitutes a setting means. Here, if the process proceeds to steps S501 to S508 after the processes of steps S502 to S505 in the process of the flowchart in FIG. 5, in this step, the paper type is detected using the paper type detection sensor 260 for the second paper described above. In this case, in this step, the second paper type detected using the paper type detection sensor 260 is set.

When the process of step S508 is completed, or when it is determined in step S507 that the paper type of the paper S that started to be fed in step S506 has been identified by the paper type detection sensor 260 (S507/Yes), the process proceeds to step S509. When the process proceeds to step S509, the CPU 280 executes an image formation process on the paper S based on the type of paper S detected and set in step S508, and prints the paper S.

Next, in step S510, the CPU 280 determines whether all pages of the print job have been printed. If the result of this determination is that printing has not yet been completed for all pages of the print job (S510/No), the CPU 280 returns to step S501 and performs the processes from step S501 onwards for the pages of the print job that have not yet been printed.

On the other hand, if the result of the determination in step S510 is that printing has been completed for all pages of the print job (S510/Yes), the process of the flowchart shown in FIG. 5 ends.

In the image forming apparatus 200 according to the first embodiment described above, the CPU 280 detects that the first sheet being fed by the manual feed unit 235, which is a sheet feeding unit, has run out (S502/No in FIG. 5). When the CPU 280 detects that the first sheet has run out, the CPU 280 sets the type of the second sheet detected by the sheet type detection sensor 260 for printing the second sheet fed by the manual feed unit 235 after the detection (S505, 508 in FIG. 5). In other words, for printing the second sheet, the CPU 280 sets the type of the second sheet detected by the sheet type detection sensor 260, not the sheet type information set for the first sheet that has run out of paper to be fed.
According to this configuration, when a user prints on any paper, the user does not need to know the type of paper and does not need to take the time to determine the type of paper. This makes it possible to improve the convenience of the user when printing on paper.

Second Embodiment
Next, a second embodiment will be described. In the following description of the second embodiment, the description of the matters common to the first embodiment will be omitted, and only the matters different from the first embodiment will be described.

The schematic configuration of the image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment is similar to the schematic configuration of the image forming apparatus 200 according to the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1. In addition, the control system of the image forming apparatus 200 according to the second embodiment is similar to the example configuration of the control system of the image forming apparatus 200 according to the first embodiment shown in FIG. 2.

<Processing Procedure for Image Formation Processing of Print Job>
Fig. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure in a control method for the image forming apparatus 200 according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure. Specifically, Fig. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure in an image forming process for a print job in the image forming apparatus 200 according to the second embodiment. The flowchart shown in Fig. 8 includes a control step when there is no paper S in the manual paper feed tray 5, and a warning display step when the paper type is different before and after the paper S is replenished in the manual paper feed tray 5. Moreover, each step of the flowchart shown in Fig. 8 is performed by the CPU 280 executing a control program read from the HDD 281 and loaded into the RAM 282.

The flowchart shown in FIG. 8 starts when a print job is input after paper S is placed on the manual paper feed tray 5 and the paper settings described in FIG. 4 are completed. The print job here is, for example, a copy job in which the user operates the display unit 250 to select the paper feed location set by pressing the "Automatic detection when printing" button 421 shown in FIG. 4B. Alternatively, the print job here may be a PDL print job in which the paper feed location set to "Automatic detection when printing" is selected by a printer driver on an information processing terminal device such as a personal computer connected via a network. Also, consider a print job in which a paper feed location set to "Automatic detection when printing" is set in the print job settings, and the paper type of the print job is set to "Automatic" or "Automatic selection" without explicitly specifying the paper type. In this case, the paper type detection sensor (media sensor) 260 measures the characteristics of the paper S to detect the type of the paper S.

When the process of the flowchart shown in FIG. 8 starts, in step S801, the CPU 280 issues a paper feed command for the paper feed operation of paper S on the manual paper feed tray 5.

Next, in step S802, the CPU 280 determines whether or not there is paper S on the manual feed tray 5. Specifically, the CPU 280 detects whether or not there is paper S on the manual feed tray 5, and if it detects that there is no paper S on the manual feed tray 5, it determines that there is no paper S on the manual feed tray 5. Here, the CPU 280 that performs the process of detecting whether or not there is paper S on the manual feed tray 5 (including detecting that there is no paper S) constitutes a detection means. In the following description, the paper S that the CPU 280 detects as having disappeared from the manual feed tray 5 will be referred to as the "first paper" as necessary.

If the result of the determination in step S802 is that there is no paper S on the manual feed tray 5 (S802/No), the process proceeds to step S803. When the process proceeds to step S803, the CPU 280 determines whether or not new paper S has been placed on the manual feed tray 5. If the result of this determination is that new paper S has not been placed on the manual feed tray 5 (S803/No), the process waits in step S803 until new paper S is placed on the manual feed tray 5.

Also, if the result of the determination in step S803 is that a new sheet S has been placed on the manual feed tray 5 (S803/Yes), the process proceeds to step S804. Here, in the following description, the sheet S determined in step S803 to have been newly placed on the manual feed tray 5 will be referred to as the "second sheet" as necessary.

When the process proceeds to step S804, the CPU 280 determines whether the paper type of the paper S (first paper) determined in step S802 to be not on the manual paper feed tray 5 has been identified by the paper type detection sensor 260.

If it is determined in step S804 that the paper type of the first paper has already been identified by the paper type detection sensor 260 (S804/Yes), the process proceeds to step S805. When the process proceeds to step S805, the CPU 280 stores paper type information indicating the type of the first paper identified by the paper type detection sensor 260 in the RAM 282 as paper type information when no paper is present. Note that this paper type information when no paper is present and stored in the RAM 282 is only stored while the print job is being executed, and is erased after the print job is completed.

Next, in step S806, the CPU 280 sets the paper type information for the second paper to "automatic detection during printing" instead of the paper type identified by the paper type detection sensor 260 for the first paper.

When the processing of step S806 is completed, or when it is determined in step S804 that the paper type of the first sheet has not been identified by the paper type detection sensor 260 (S804/No), the process returns to step S801.

Also, if the result of the determination in step S802 is that paper S is present on the manual feed tray 5 (S802/Yes), the process proceeds to step S807. When the process proceeds to step S807, the CPU 280 starts feeding paper S on the manual feed tray 5. Here, if the process in the flowchart of FIG. 8 has gone through steps S802 to S806 and moved to steps S801 to S808, the above-mentioned feeding of the second paper is started in this step.

Next, in step S808, the CPU 280 determines whether the paper type of the paper S that started to be fed in step S807 has been identified by the paper type detection sensor 260. If the process in the flowchart of FIG. 8 has gone through steps S802 to S806 and moved to steps S801 to S808, this step determines whether the paper type of the second paper described above has been identified by the paper type detection sensor 260.

If the result of the judgment in step S808 is that the paper type of the paper S that started to be fed in step S807 has not been specified by the paper type detection sensor 260 (S808/No), proceed to step S809. When proceeding to step S809, the CPU 280 uses the paper type detection sensor 260 to detect the type of paper for the paper S that started to be fed in step S807. Then, for printing the paper S that started to be fed in step S807, the CPU 280 sets the type of paper detected in this step using the paper type detection sensor 260. The CPU 280 that sets the settings related to the printing of this paper S, specifically, the type of paper S detected using the paper type detection sensor 260, constitutes a setting means. Here, if the process proceeds to steps S801 to S809 after the processes of steps S802 to S806 in the process of the flowchart in FIG. 8, in this step, the paper type of the second paper described above is detected using the paper type detection sensor 260. In this case, in this step, the second paper type detected using the paper type detection sensor 260 is set.

When the process of step S809 is completed, or when it is determined in step S808 that the paper type of the paper S that started to be fed in step S807 has been identified by the paper type detection sensor 260 (S808/Yes), the process proceeds to step S810. When the process proceeds to step S810, the CPU 280 determines whether there is paper type information for when no paper is present that was stored in the RAM 282 in step S805.

If the result of the determination in step S810 is that there is paper type information stored in RAM 282 when no paper is present in step S805 (S810/Yes), the process proceeds to step S811. When the process proceeds to step S811, CPU 280 determines whether the second paper type detected in step S809 is the same as the first paper type based on the paper type information stored in RAM 282 when no paper is present in step S805.

If the result of the determination in step S811 is that the type of the second paper detected in step S809 is not the same as the type of the first paper based on the paper type information when no paper was present and stored in RAM 282 in step S805 (S811/No), the process proceeds to step S812. When the process proceeds to step S812, CPU 280 causes display unit 250, which is a display means, to display a warning message indicating that the type of the second paper after replenishment is not the same as the type of the first paper before replenishment.

Fig. 9 illustrates a second embodiment of the present disclosure, and is a diagram showing an example of a warning display screen 900 displayed on the display unit 250. The warning display screen 900 uses a screen that is displayed when copy printing is performed, and is provided with a stop button 901, a close button 902, and a warning display area 903. Specifically, the warning display area 903 in Fig. 9 displays a warning message stating "Paper type is different from before replenishment," as information indicating that the type of second paper after replenishment is not the same as the type of first paper before replenishment.

Here, we return to the explanation of FIG.
When the process of step S812 is completed, the process proceeds to step S813. Also, when it is determined in step S811 that the second paper type detected in S809 is the same as the first paper type based on the paper type information when no paper is present and stored in RAM 282 in S805 (S811/Yes), the process proceeds to step S813. Also, when it is determined in step S810 that there is no paper type information when no paper is present and stored in RAM 282 in S805 (S810/No), the process proceeds to step S813.

When the process proceeds to step S813, the CPU 280 performs image formation processing on the paper S based on the type of paper S detected and set in step S809, and prints the paper S.

Next, in step S814, the CPU 280 determines whether all pages of the print job have been printed. If the result of this determination is that printing has not yet been completed for all pages of the print job (S814/No), the CPU 280 returns to step S801 and performs the processes from step S801 onwards for the pages of the print job that have not yet been printed.

On the other hand, if the result of the determination in step S814 is that printing has been completed for all pages of the print job (S814/Yes), the process of the flowchart shown in FIG. 8 ends.

In the image forming apparatus 200 according to the second embodiment described above, when the paper type detection sensor 260 detects a second paper type (S809 in FIG. 8), if the second paper type is different from the first paper type, the display unit 250 displays a warning (S812 in FIG. 8).
According to this configuration, when a user prints on any paper, the user does not need to know the type of paper and does not need to take the time to determine the type of paper. This makes it possible to improve the convenience of the user when printing on paper.

Other Embodiments
The present disclosure can also be realized by a process in which a program for implementing one or more of the functions of the above-described embodiments is supplied to a system or device via a network or a storage medium, and one or more processors in a computer of the system or device read and execute the program. The present disclosure can also be realized by a circuit (e.g., ASIC) that implements one or more of the functions.
This program and a computer-readable storage medium having the program stored thereon are included in the present disclosure.

The above-mentioned embodiments of the present disclosure are merely examples of concrete ways of implementing the present disclosure, and the technical scope of the present disclosure should not be interpreted in a limiting manner based on these. In other words, the present disclosure can be implemented in various forms without departing from its technical concept or main features.

Embodiments of the present disclosure include the following configurations, methods, and programs.
[Configuration 1]
an image forming means for printing on paper;
a paper feed means for feeding the paper to the image forming means via a paper transport path;
a paper type detection means provided on the paper transport path for detecting the type of the paper;
A setting unit for setting the printing on the paper;
a detection means for detecting that the first sheet being fed by the sheet feeding means has run out;
having
The image forming apparatus is characterized in that, when the detection means detects that the first paper has run out, the setting means sets the type of the second paper detected by the paper type detection means for the printing of the second paper fed by the paper feeding means after the detection.
[Configuration 2]
The image forming apparatus according to configuration 1, further comprising a display unit that displays a warning when the second paper type detected by the paper type detection unit is different from the first paper type detected by the paper type detection unit when the second paper type detected by the paper type detection unit is detected by the paper type detection unit.
[Configuration 3]
The image forming apparatus according to configuration 1 or 2, characterized in that, when the detection means does not detect that the first paper has run out, the setting means sets the type of the first paper detected by the paper type detection means for the printing of the first paper.
[Configuration 4]
4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the paper type detection unit detects the type of the paper by using a feature amount of the paper.
[Method 1]
A method for controlling an image forming apparatus including an image forming unit for printing on paper, a paper feed unit for feeding the paper to the image forming unit via a paper transport path, and a paper type detection unit provided on the paper transport path for detecting a type of the paper, comprising:
a setting step for setting the printing on the paper;
a detection step of detecting that the first sheet being fed by the sheet feeding means has run out;
having
The control method for an image forming apparatus, characterized in that the setting step, when it is detected in the detection step that the first paper has run out, sets the type of the second paper detected by the paper type detection means for the printing of the second paper fed by the paper feeding means after the detection.
[Program 1]
A program for causing a computer to execute each step of the method for controlling an image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment.

200: Image forming device, 201A: Image forming device main body, 201B: Image forming unit, 202: Image reading device, 230: Cassette paper feed unit, 235: Manual paper feed unit, 250: Display unit, 260: Paper type detection sensor, 270: Blowing fan, 271: Fan motor, 272: Spray nozzle, 280: CPU, 281: HDD, 282: RAM, S: Paper

Claims (6)

an image forming means for printing on paper;
a paper feed means for feeding the paper to the image forming means via a paper transport path;
a paper type detection means provided on the paper transport path for detecting the type of the paper;
A setting unit for setting the printing on the paper;
a detection means for detecting that the first sheet being fed by the sheet feeding means has run out;
having
The image forming apparatus is characterized in that, when the detection means detects that the first paper has run out, the setting means sets the type of the second paper detected by the paper type detection means for the printing of the second paper fed by the paper feeding means after the detection. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a display unit that displays a warning when the second paper type detected by the paper type detection unit is different from the first paper type detected by the paper type detection unit when the second paper type detected by the paper type detection unit is detected by the paper type detection unit. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the setting means sets the type of the first paper detected by the paper type detection means for the printing of the first paper when the detection means does not detect that the first paper has run out. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the paper type detection unit detects the type of the paper by using a characteristic amount of the paper. A method for controlling an image forming apparatus including an image forming unit for printing on paper, a paper feed unit for feeding the paper to the image forming unit via a paper transport path, and a paper type detection unit provided on the paper transport path for detecting a type of the paper, comprising:
a setting step for setting the printing on the paper;
a detection step of detecting that the first sheet being fed by the sheet feeding means has run out;
having
The control method for an image forming apparatus, characterized in that the setting step, when it is detected in the detection step that the first paper has run out, sets the type of the second paper detected by the paper type detection means for the printing of the second paper fed by the paper feeding means after the detection. A program for causing a computer to execute each step of the control method for an image forming apparatus according to claim 5.

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