A consumable chip data storage method, consumable chip and imaging cartridge

Abstract

The application provides a consumable chip data storage method, comprising the following steps: S101, monitoring the power supply voltage of the consumable chip after the consumable chip is powered on; S102, when it is monitored that the voltage supplied by the printing device to the consumable chip drops to a rated value, prolonging the power supply voltage drop time of the consumable chip through a power-down delay circuit, and writing the data in the volatile memory to the non-volatile memory. The application also provides a consumable chip and an imaging cartridge. The application can effectively improve the storage life of the consumable chip, and make the imaging cartridge be more effectively reused repeatedly.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a printing device, and more particularly to a consumable chip data storage method, a consumable chip and an imaging box. Background Art

[0002] Memories are widely used in imaging cartridges such as toner cartridges, toner cartridges, fusers, and ink cartridges of printing equipment. This type of memory is called a consumable chip, which is used to record the factory information of the imaging cartridge and the status information of the consumables during the printing process. The consumable chip is a non-volatile memory, commonly FLASH or EEPROM, and its storage life is limited, generally with an erase and write life of 100,000 times. Once the consumables of the imaging cartridge are exhausted, consumables can be added to the imaging cartridge and the data of its consumable chip can be reset, allowing the old consumables to be reused. However, during the printing process, the printing device continuously reads and writes the consumable chip of the imaging cartridge, and the storage life of the chip is also consumed. After the imaging cartridge has been reused once or twice, the consumable chip may also reach its storage life and can no longer store data normally, resulting in the entire imaging cartridge being unable to be reused. Summary of the Invention

[0003] In response to the problems in the background technology, the present invention proposes a consumable chip data storage method, comprising:

[0004] S101, after the consumable chip is powered on, the supply voltage of the consumable chip is monitored; S102, when it is monitored that the voltage supplied to the consumable chip by the printing device drops to the rated value, the power supply voltage drop time of the consumable chip is extended through the power-off delay circuit, and the data in the volatile memory is written to the non-volatile memory.

[0005] On the other hand, the present invention proposes a consumable chip, comprising: a low-voltage detection unit, which is used to detect whether the power supply to the consumable chip by the printing device is cut off. If the power supply voltage drops to a threshold voltage, a signal is sent to notify the main control unit; a main control unit, which processes the commands transmitted by the printing device; a signal interface unit, which is a signal transmission channel for communication between the printing device and the main control unit; a volatile memory and a non-volatile memory; a power-off delay circuit, which is used to extend the power-off time of the internal circuit of the consumable chip when the printing device cuts off the power to the consumable chip, so that the main control unit saves the data of the corresponding address of the volatile memory to the non-volatile memory.

[0006] On the other hand, the present invention provides an imaging box, comprising the consumable chip as described above.

[0007] The beneficial effects of the present invention are: effectively improving the storage life of the consumable chip, so that the imaging box can be reused more effectively. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0008] In order to make the present invention more easily understood, the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the specific embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings. These drawings only depict typical embodiments of the present invention and should not be considered as limiting the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0009] Figure 1 This is a circuit diagram of the consumable chip of the present invention.

[0010] Figure 2 The figure is a flow chart of the working method of the consumable chip of the present invention.

[0011] Figure 3 This is a circuit component diagram of one embodiment of the consumable chip of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0012] The following describes the embodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those skilled in the art can better understand the present invention and implement it. However, the enumerated embodiments are not intended to limit the present invention. Unless there is a conflict, the following embodiments and the technical features in the embodiments may be combined with each other, wherein the same components are represented by the same figure marks.

[0013] First embodiment

[0014] like Figure 1 As shown, the consumable chip data storage method of the present invention.

[0015] S101 , after the consumable chip is powered on, the supply voltage of the consumable chip is monitored.

[0016] Preferably, in one embodiment, after the consumable chip is powered on, the data on the non-volatile memory is read and stored in the volatile memory, and then the power supply voltage of the consumable chip is monitored.

[0017] S102: When it is detected that the voltage supplied to the consumable chip by the printing device has dropped to a rated value, the power-off delay circuit is used to extend the voltage drop time of the consumable chip, and the data in the volatile memory is written to the non-volatile memory. Preferably, the data is written to the corresponding address in the non-volatile memory.

[0018] Preferably, the method of the present invention further comprises: S103, after the consumable chip is powered on, detecting the command signal sent by the printing device, and continuing to wait if no command signal is sent.

[0019] Preferably, the method of the present invention further includes: S104, if it is a read command, the consumable chip reads the data at the corresponding address of the volatile memory and responds to the printing device via the signal interface unit. S105, if it is a write command, the chip main control unit saves the write command data to the corresponding address of the volatile memory. S106, if it is any other command, the chip performs the corresponding command processing and responds to the relevant information to the printing device via the signal interface unit. S107, if it is not a read command, a write command, or any other command, then the consumable chip continues to wait for the next signal sent by the printing device.

[0020] Preferably, after the operating voltage of the consumable chip supplied by the monitoring printing device is reduced to the rated value, an interrupt signal is generated, and the consumable chip performs interrupt service. During the interrupt service, the data in the volatile memory is saved back to the corresponding address of the non-volatile memory. After the saving is completed, the consumable chip returns to the previous operating state.

[0021] Preferably, a capacitor is used in the power-off delay circuit to extend the supply voltage drop time of the consumable chip.

[0022] According to a second aspect, the present invention provides a consumable chip, such as Figure 2 As shown, the consumable chip includes: a main control unit, a volatile memory, a non-volatile memory, a low voltage detection unit, a power-off delay circuit and a signal interface unit.

[0023] The signal interface unit is connected to the printing device and serves as a signal transmission channel for communication between the printing device and the main control unit.

[0024] The main control unit processes signals transmitted by the signal interface unit and responds to data with the printing device through the signal interface unit. The main control unit reads and writes data from volatile and non-volatile memory. Upon receiving a low-voltage alarm signal from the low-voltage detection unit, the main control unit initiates a low-voltage interrupt service and writes data from volatile memory to non-volatile memory.

[0025] Non-volatile memory is commonly used in FLASH and EEPROM. It stores the manufacturing information of the imaging cartridge chip, such as the consumable model, print capacity, serial number, and production date. If the chip loses power, the non-volatile memory retains data written to the consumable chip during printing, such as the print date, number of pages printed, and remaining capacity.

[0026] Volatile memory is used to temporarily store data written by the printing device to the consumable chip during the printing process, such as the printing date, number of printed pages, remaining capacity, etc. SRAM volatile memory is commonly used.

[0027] The low voltage detection unit is used to detect whether the power supply from the printing device to the consumable chip is off. If the power supply voltage drops to the rated voltage, a signal is sent to notify the main control unit to perform corresponding power-off processing.

[0028] The power-off delay circuit is used to extend the power-off time of the internal circuit of the consumable chip when the printing device cuts off the power to the consumable chip, ensuring that there is enough time and power for the main control unit to save the data at the corresponding address of the volatile memory to the non-volatile memory.

[0029] During the same printing process, the printing device will read and write the consumable chip of the imaging box multiple times. During this process, the printing device will keep the consumable chip in a powered-on working state. After receiving the write instruction from the printing device, the main control unit of the consumable chip of the present invention temporarily stores the data in the instruction in the volatile memory. The low voltage detection unit monitors the power supply voltage. When it detects that the voltage supplied to the consumable chip by the printing device drops, the power-off delay unit slowly powers down the voltage to ensure that there is enough time and voltage to write the data to be written from the volatile memory to the corresponding address of the non-volatile memory of the consumable chip. In this way, the original multiple erasing and writing of the consumable chip in one printing process can be reduced to one erasing and writing. The service life of the imaging box chip is greatly improved.

[0030] Specifically, after receiving a write instruction from the printing device, the consumable chip temporarily stores the data in the instruction in the volatile memory. More specifically, the consumable chip is powered on, reads the data in the non-volatile memory, and saves the data in the volatile memory.

[0031] Start the low voltage detection unit to collect the supply voltage of the consumable chip in real time for real-time monitoring.

[0032] At the same time, the main control unit checks whether the signal interface unit has received a command signal from the printing device. If not, it continues to wait. If it is a read command, the main control unit reads the data from the corresponding address in the volatile memory and transmits the data to the printing device through the signal interface unit. If it is a write command, the chip main control unit saves the write command data to the corresponding address in the volatile memory. If it is any other command, the chip performs the corresponding command processing and transmits the relevant information to the printing device through the signal interface unit. If it is not a read command, a write command, or any other command, it continues to wait for the next signal from the printing device.

[0033] When the low voltage detection unit detects that the voltage supplied to the consumable chip of the printing device drops to the rated value, the low voltage detection unit generates an interrupt signal to the main control unit. The main control unit performs a low voltage detection interrupt service, and saves the data in the volatile memory back to the corresponding address of the non-volatile memory during the interrupt service. After the saving is completed, the main control unit returns to the previous execution state.

[0034] Figure 3 A preferred embodiment of the consumable chip of the present invention is shown.

[0035] The main control unit, volatile memory, non-volatile memory storage unit, and low-voltage detection unit are all integrated into the CX32L003 MCU (reference numeral U1). A 10µF capacitor C1 is connected in parallel between VCC and GND on U1 to serve as a power-off delay circuit. P1 is the signal interface unit through which U1 communicates with the printing device.

[0036] The calculation formula of the capacitance parameter C in the delay circuit is as follows:

[0037] C=I max *T max / ΔU

[0038] Among them, I max is the maximum operating current of the consumable chip, T max is the maximum time required to erase a memory block, and ΔU is the voltage difference between the trigger voltage of the low voltage detector and the minimum operating voltage of the consumable chip.

[0039] by Figure 3 Taking the embodiment shown as an example, the maximum operating current of U1 is 3mA, and the time to erase a storage block (a block is 512 bytes, which is enough storage space for the consumable chip to store data) is at most 5ms. The voltage supplied by the printing device to the consumable chip is 5V, that is, the voltage supplied to U1 is 5V. If a power outage occurs, when the voltage drops to the rated operating voltage of the consumable chip 4.4V, the low voltage detector of U1 is triggered to generate a low voltage detection interrupt message, thereby causing the main control unit of U1 to enter the interrupt service program. The minimum operating voltage of U1 is 2.4V (referring to the minimum operating voltage of the main control unit and the two memories). There is a voltage difference of 2V between 4.4V when the low voltage detector is triggered and the minimum operating voltage of U1 of 2.4V. According to the above parameters and the calculation formula C=I max *T max / ΔU=3mA*5ms / 2V=7.5uF. This embodiment uses a 10uF power-off delay capacitor, which allows the main control unit of U1 to have sufficient time and power to transfer the data of the easily lost storage unit to the non-volatile memory, thereby realizing power-off data preservation. This can reduce the number of times the non-volatile memory is erased and written during use inside the printing device, thereby increasing its storage life.

[0040] In this implementation case, in a printing device, once the printing device supplies power to the consumable chip through the signal interface unit P1 of the consumable chip, the main control unit of U1 reads the corresponding address data of the non-volatile memory inside U1 and stores it in the volatile memory inside U1. If U1 receives a read command sent by the printing device through the signal interface unit P1, the main control unit inside U1 responds to the printing device through the signal interface unit P1 with the corresponding address data of the volatile memory inside U1. If U1 receives a write command sent by the printing device through the signal interface unit P1, the main control unit inside U1 saves the data to the corresponding address of the volatile memory inside U1. If it is other commands, the main control unit inside U1 performs other corresponding command processing and responds to the relevant information to the printing device through the signal interface unit P1.

[0041] On the other hand, the present invention further provides an imaging box, which includes the consumable chip as described above.

[0042] The embodiments described above are merely preferred embodiments of the present invention. The phrases "in one embodiment," "in another embodiment," "in yet another embodiment," or "in other embodiments" used in this specification may refer to one or more of the same or different embodiments of the present disclosure. Any common changes and substitutions made by those skilled in the art within the scope of the present invention are intended to be encompassed within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A consumable chip data storage method, characterized in that: include: S101, after the consumable chip is powered on, the data on the non-volatile memory is read and saved in the volatile memory, and then the supply voltage of the consumable chip is monitored; S102, when it is detected that the voltage supplied to the consumable chip by the printing device drops to a rated value, the power supply voltage drop time of the consumable chip is extended by the power-off delay circuit, and the data in the volatile memory is written to the non-volatile memory; Among them, a capacitor is used in the power-off delay circuit to extend the supply voltage drop time of the consumable chip. The calculation formula of the capacitor is as follows: Among them, I max is the maximum operating current of the consumable chip, T max The maximum time required to erase and write a storage block for the consumable chip, It is the voltage difference between the trigger voltage of the low voltage detector and the minimum operating voltage of the consumable chip.

2. The consumable chip data storage method according to claim 1, characterized in that: Also includes: S103, after the consumable chip is powered on, it detects the command signal sent by the printing device, and continues to wait if there is no command signal.

3. The consumable chip data storage method according to claim 2, characterized in that: Also includes: S104, if it is a read command, the consumable chip reads the data at the corresponding address of the volatile memory and responds the data to the printing device through the signal interface unit; S105, if it is a write command, the chip main control unit saves the write command data to the corresponding address of the volatile memory; S106, if it is other commands, the chip processes the corresponding command and responds to the printing device with relevant information through the signal interface unit; S107: If it is not a read command, a write command or other commands, then continue to wait for the next signal sent by the printing device.

4. The consumable chip data storage method according to claim 2, characterized in that: In step S102, after the operating voltage of the consumable chip supplied by the monitoring printing device is reduced to the rated value, an interrupt signal is generated, and the consumable chip performs interrupt service. During the interrupt service, the data in the volatile memory is saved back to the corresponding address of the non-volatile memory. After the saving is completed, the consumable chip returns to the previous operating state.

5. A consumable chip, characterized in that: include: A low voltage detection unit is used to detect whether the power supply of the printing device to the consumable chip is off. If the power supply voltage drops to a threshold voltage, a signal is sent to notify the main control unit. After the consumable chip is powered on, the data on the non-volatile memory is read and stored in the volatile memory. Then, the low voltage detection unit is started to monitor the power supply voltage of the consumable chip. a main control unit that processes commands transmitted by the printing device; The signal interface unit is a signal transmission channel for communication between the printing device and the main control unit; Volatile and non-volatile memory; The power-off delay circuit is used to extend the power-off time of the internal circuit of the consumable chip when the printing device cuts off the power to the consumable chip, so that the main control unit saves the data of the corresponding address of the volatile memory to the non-volatile memory. Among them, a capacitor is used in the power-off delay circuit to extend the supply voltage drop time of the consumable chip. The calculation formula of the capacitor is as follows: Among them, I max is the maximum operating current of the consumable chip, T max The maximum time required to erase and write a storage block for the consumable chip, It is the voltage difference between the trigger voltage of the low voltage detector and the minimum operating voltage of the consumable chip.

6. The consumable chip according to claim 5, characterized in that: After the operating voltage of the consumable chip supplied by the monitoring printing device is reduced to the rated value, an interrupt signal is generated, and the consumable chip performs interrupt service. During the interrupt service, the data in the volatile memory is saved back to the corresponding address in the non-volatile memory. After the saving is completed, the consumable chip returns to the previous operating state.

7. An imaging box, characterized in that: Comprising the consumable chip according to any one of claims 5-6.

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