Method and system for providing an out of paper indication by a printer

Aspects for providing an out of paper indication by a printer are described. The aspects include controlling paper ejection during a print job to provide an out of paper indication with a last sheet of a paper supply in a printer. The controlling of the paper ejection further includes starting ejection of a page of the print job, determining if the page being ejected comprises the last sheet, completing ejection of the page when the page does not comprise the last sheet, and stopping ejection of the page when the page does comprise the last sheet. Additionally, the partial ejection of the last sheet is maintained until paper is added to the paper supply.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to printers, and more particularly to an out of paper indication by a printer.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Many printers do not have a visible paper supply. The paper is stored in drawers or trays with the contents out of sight. When the last piece of paper is used, the printer stops printing, and an indicator turns on to indicate that the printer needs paper. Alternatively, a small Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) screen displays a message that paper is out. To implement such alert systems, sensors are used to detect when a resource is depleted. For instance, the paper tray would include an electrical or electromechanical sensor to detect when the paper tray is empty. The sensor, upon detecting that the resource is close to or at depletion, would signal the printer processor and the printer processor would, in response, enable the paper out indicator in the printer.

While the printer provides an indication of the out of paper condition, many people never notice that the printer has stopped and requires paper. Instead, they simply take their output and leave. Sometimes, their jobs are not complete, because the printer runs out of paper in the middle of the job. When someone finally realizes that the printer needs paper and replenishes the supply, the printer completes the previous job. What is needed is a printer that provides a more noticeable out of paper indicator that encourages users to replenish the paper supply and helps prevent a user from unknowingly walking away with an incomplete print job.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Aspects for providing an out of paper indication by a printer are described. The aspects include controlling paper ejection during a print job to provide an out of paper indication with a last sheet of a paper supply in a printer. The controlling of the paper ejection further includes starting ejection of a page of the print job, determining if the page being ejected comprises the last sheet, completing ejection of the page when the page does not comprise the last sheet, and stopping ejection of the page when the page does comprise the last sheet. Additionally, the partial ejection of the last sheet is maintained until paper is added to the paper supply.

Through the present invention, a straightforward technique provides a clear, visible indication of an out of paper condition to a printer's users. Partial ejection of a last sheet reduces the risk that a user unknowingly retrieves only a partially completed job if the paper were to run out in the middle of the print job. Further, replenishment of the paper is more likely to occur by physically restricting retrieval of the partially ejected sheet until the out of paper status is overcome. These and other advantages of the aspects of the present invention will be more fully understood in conjunction with the following detailed description and accompanying drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1illustrates a printer environment in which aspects of the invention are implemented. A plurality of computers2are in communication with a printer4over a network6. The computer(s)2may comprise any computing system known in the art, such as a personal computer, laptop, palm top, telephony device, desktop system, mainframe, etc. The network6may comprise any computer network known in the art, including a Local Area Network (LAN), Wide Area Network (WAN), Ethernet, the Internet, etc. The printer4may comprise any type of printer known in the art. The printer4includes a printer central processing unit (CPU)8and a plurality of consumable resources10,12, and14. The resources may comprise any type of resource consumed by the printer4, such as paper, toner, fuser oil, etc. For each of the resources10,12, and14there is a resource sensor16,18, and20that detects a level of the resource, particularly when the resource is approximately depleted. For paper resources, the resource sensor would comprise an electromechanical sensor that detects paper in the resource of an input paper tray.

FIG. 2illustrates a block flow diagram of a process for providing an out of paper indication by the printer4in accordance with the present invention. Preferably, the process is provided as program instructions of a suitable programming language and stored on a computer readable medium for performance by the printer CPU8, i.e., is provided as part of a paper handler in printer firmware22, as is well appreciated by those skilled in the art. The process begins by starting paper ejection of a page being printed (step30). A check of the paper status follows (step32) to determine whether the sheet of paper being ejected is the last sheet in the paper tray leading to an out of paper condition. When the paper being ejected is not the last sheet, the ejection of the paper completes (step34). However, when the paper being ejected is the last sheet, the ejection is stopped so that the page is only partially ejected and a prompt for paper to be added is signaled, such as through a message on an LCD message screen of the printer (step36). The partial ejection remains in effect until the paper supply is replenished.

In this manner, the partially ejected paper provides a more visible out of paper indicator to a printer's users. Further, the partial ejection encourages replenishment of the paper by physically restricting retrieval of the partially ejected sheet until the out of paper status is overcome. Additionally, the risk that the owner of that print job would take from the printer output tray only a partially completed job is substantially eliminated.