Patent Publication Number: US-2007097449-A1

Title: Image forming device

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
      The present invention relates to an image forming device, such as a copying machine, a multifunction machine, and a printer.  
     BACKGROUND INFORMATION  
      In recent years, there has been a rapid popularization in the use of image forming devices, such as copying machines, multifunction machines, and printers, in offices and homes. These image forming devices are sometimes used as standalones, and are sometimes connected by wired and wireless networks to data communications terminals, such as personal computers and mobile telephones.  
       FIG. 4  is a schematic drawing of an image forming device  40 , which comprises a touch panel  11  for a user to input a print command.  
      In addition,  FIG. 5  is a schematic view of a common image forming system, wherein a user can execute a desired printing by sending a print command from a personal computer  42 , a mobile telephone  43 , and the like, to the image forming device  40 .  
      Incidentally, in such an image forming device  40 , distortions of the image formed may arise due to changes in the environment (e.g., temperature and humidity), changes in the voltage when printing, and the like. To overcome these problems, the image forming device normally performs a variety of calibrations (automatic compensation) periodically at a rate of, for example, once every hundredth printing or once every five hours. Concrete examples of such calibrations are already known in the art.  
      Accordingly, a typical example of a calibration is the detection of a drop in the toner concentration by forming a reference pattern outside of the image forming area of a photoreceptor, and optically reading the pattern.  
      Various other calibrations are also performed and these procedures normally take from one to several minutes; if a print command is input during this time, then the print command transitions to a wait state. Consequently, techniques to notify the user that the print command is in a wait state are already known in the art.  
      In addition, it is known in the art to notify a user of the time needed between cancellation of a wait state and actual completion of printing.  
      However, these techniques have the problems mentioned below.  
      Not much attention may be paid to calibration when actually using an image forming device. For example, it may not matter if there is some distortion of the image when printing a document image consisting of characters rather than of an image, such as a photograph or a drawing.  
      With these techniques, there is only a method in which the user just stands by until calibration is completed. However, with the printing of a document that is urgently needed, and the like, it is conceivable that [the user] will want to temporarily suspend calibration and give priority to printing the relevant document.  
      The present invention considers such problems; an object of the present invention is to provide an image forming device wherein, if there is a print command during calibration, then the user can select the priority order of the calibration and the print command.  
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      To solve the abovementioned problems, the present invention adopts the following means.  
      The present invention uses a determining means that, if a print command is received during calibration, determines a priority order of the calibration and the print command; and a controlling means that controls the execution of the calibration and the print command in accordance with the determined priority order. The determination of the priority order is judged based on the instruction of the user, the progress status of the calibration, the urgency level of the calibration, and the like.  
      Based on the above, if a print command is received during calibration, the user can select the priority order of the calibration and the print command. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       FIG. 1  is a block diagram of the image forming device of the present invention.  
       FIG. 2  is an example of a message displayed to the user.  
       FIG. 3  is a block diagram of the image forming device of the present invention.  
       FIG. 4  is a schematic drawing of a common image forming device.  
       FIG. 5  is a schematic drawing of a common image forming system. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
     First Embodiment  
      The following is a detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention, referencing the drawings.  
       FIG. 1  is a block diagram of an image forming device  100  of the present embodiment.  FIG. 4  is a schematic drawing of this image forming device  100 . A controlling means  106  controls the operation of a printing means  104  and a compensating means  105 . The compensating means  105  performs various calibrations (automatic compensation). The controlling means  106  suspends the operation of the printing means  104  during this calibration, and suspends calibration by the compensating means  105  when the printing means  104  is printing.  
      The image forming device  100  comprises a communicating means  101  that communicates with a data communications terminal  190 , such as a personal computer connected to a network like a LAN (local area network). Accordingly, the user of the data communications terminal  190  can transmit a print command from the data communications terminal  190  to the image forming device  100 .  
      First, the print command transmitted from the data communications terminal  190  is received by the communicating means  101 , and is then inputted into a receiving means  102 . When a print command is inputted, the receiving means  102  notifies an informing means  103  to the effect that a print command was received. If notified to the effect that a print command was received, the informing means  103  judges whether calibration is presently being performed by the compensating means  105 .  
      If it is judged that calibration is being performed, then the informing means  103  inquires with a progress status detecting means  108  for the progress status of the calibration. If there is an inquiry, the progress status detecting means  108  notifies the informing means  103  of, for example, the time until calibration will be completed, the completion percentage of the entire calibration, and the like. Furthermore, with the present embodiment, the progress status detecting means  108  notifies the informing means  103  of the time until calibration will be completed.  
      If notified of the time until completion, the informing means  103  informs the data communications terminal  190 , via the communicating means  101  and the network, of the notified time and makes a request regarding the determination of the priority order of the calibration and the print command.  
      The data communications terminal  190  displays the time needed until the completion of calibration and displays a request to determine the priority order on a monitor  191 , as depicted in  FIG. 2 , if notified of such.  
      If informed of the time needed until the completion of calibration and of a request to determine the priority order, such are displayed on the monitor  191  of the data communications terminal  190 , as depicted in  FIG. 2 .  
      If the time until completion of the calibration and a request to determine the priority order are displayed on the monitor  191  of the information communications terminal  190 , then the user decides which to perform first—the calibration or the print command—by considering the time until completion of calibration. After the user decides which to perform first, the user inputs the priority order of the calibration and the print command into the data communications terminal  190  and transmits the priority order to the image forming device  100  via the network. Furthermore, with the present embodiment, the user selects YES in  FIG. 2  if he or she decides that the print command should be performed first, and selects NO in  FIG. 2  if he or she decides that calibration should be performed first.  
      When the priority order is transmitted, the communicating means  101  inputs the received priority order into a determining means  107 . When the priority order is inputted, the determining means  107  determines such as the priority order, and inputs the determined priority order into the controlling means  106 .  
      If the inputted priority order indicates that the priority of the calibration is higher than the print command, then the controlling means  106  causes the compensating means  105  to execute that calibration until it is completed, and, when that calibration is completed, [the controlling means  106 ] acquires the print command from the receiving means  101  and causes the printing means  104  to execute it.  
      However, if the inputted priority order indicates that the priority of the print command is higher than the calibration, then the controlling means  106  interrupts the calibration being executed in the compensating means  105 , acquires the print command from the receiving means  101 , and causes the printing means  104  to execute it. If the print command is completed, the controlling means  106  causes the executing means  105  to execute the interrupted calibration.  
      It is possible, if the printing of a document is needed urgently, to immediately print the relevant document by executing the print command first because, as described above, the user can select whether to execute calibration or the print command first.  
      In addition, if it is judged that calibration is not being performed when a print command has been inputted from the data communications terminal  190  to the receiving means  102 , then the informing means  103  notifies the receiving means  102  that calibration is not being performed. If notification is given that calibration is not being performed, then the receiving means  102  inputs the received print command into the controlling means  106 .  
      If a print command is inputted from the receiving means  102 , then the controlling means  106  causes the printing means  104  to execute the received print command.  
      Consequently, the print command is executed immediately if a print command is received when calibration is not being executed.  
     Second Embodiment  
      If a print command is received during calibration in the first embodiment, then the informing means  103  inquires with the user for the priority order of the calibration and the print command; however, if the progress of calibration is well underway, then the informing means  103  may determine that the priority order of calibration is higher than the print command without inquiring with the user for the priority order.  
      For example, if calibration is almost finished, or if notified by the progress status detecting means  108  that the progress status is such that calibration will finish in a few seconds, then the informing means  103  notifies the determining means  107  of the progress status without inquiring with the user for the priority order. If notified by the informing means  103  of the progress status, then the determining means  107  determines that the priority order of calibration is higher than the print command, and inputs this into the controlling means  106 .  
     Third Embodiment  
      In the image forming device of the first and second embodiments, the progress status of calibration may be substituted by an urgency level of calibration. The urgency level is, for example, defined by how much a value, which is the target for judging whether to execute calibration, deviates from the normal value. If using an urgency level, then an urgency level detecting means  301 , which detects the urgency level of calibration, is provided instead of the progress status detecting means  108  in the image forming device  100 , as depicted in  FIG. 3 . This urgency level detecting means  301  detects the urgency level of calibration, for example, periodically.  
      If the urgency level is high, i.e., if the value, which is the target of the calibration, deviates greatly from the normal value, then the informing means  103  notifies the determining means  107  of the urgency level without inquiring with the user for the priority order. If notified of the urgency level by the informing means  103 , then the determining means  107  determines that the priority of calibration is higher than the print command, and inputs this into the controlling means  106 .