Communication methods, information processing devices, image forming devices and consumables

Abstract

This disclosure relates to the field of printing technology, and more specifically, to a communication method, an information processing apparatus, an image forming apparatus, and consumables. The communication method according to this disclosure, applied to an information processing apparatus, includes: acquiring consumption increment data, which is used to indicate the consumption information of consumables corresponding to a printing task performed by the image forming apparatus; determining, based on the consumption increment data, cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumables corresponding to the printing task; and sending the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data to the image forming apparatus. The communication method according to this disclosure enables timely and reliable synchronization of consumable consumption increment data between the image forming apparatus and the information processing apparatus, facilitating user understanding of consumable status information, improving the stability of printing operations, and without incurring additional data and communication overhead.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure relates to the field of printing technology, and more specifically, to a communication method, an information processing apparatus, an image forming apparatus, and consumables. Background Technology

[0002] An image forming apparatus is a device that forms an image on a recording medium using imaging principles, including but not limited to printers, copiers, fax machines, multifunction image making and copying devices, electrostatic printing devices, and any other similar devices. Image forming apparatuses typically have removable consumables containing consumable materials. For example, for laser printers, the corresponding consumables can be toner cartridges or imaging units, and the corresponding consumable materials are toner or a photosensitive drum; for inkjet printers, the corresponding consumables can be ink cartridges, and the corresponding consumable materials are toner or ink.

[0003] To facilitate consumable management, information processing devices (e.g., consumable chips) are typically configured to work in conjunction with the consumables. When consumables are installed in an image forming apparatus, the information processing device can communicate and interact with the image forming apparatus. Consumable consumption information is one of the key data points for consumables, used to determine the remaining or consumed amount, thus informing the user of consumable availability. Current technology lacks a solution for timely and reliable synchronization of consumable consumption information between the image forming apparatus and the information processing device. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This disclosure is made in view of the above-mentioned problems. This disclosure provides a communication method, an information processing apparatus, an image forming apparatus, and consumables.

[0005] According to one aspect of this disclosure, a communication method is provided, applied to an information processing apparatus, comprising: acquiring consumption increment data, the consumption increment data being used to indicate consumption information of consumable materials corresponding to a printing task performed by an image forming apparatus; determining, based on the consumption increment data, cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumable materials corresponding to the printing task; and sending the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data to the image forming apparatus.

[0006] According to one aspect of this disclosure, a communication method is provided, applied to an information processing apparatus, comprising: receiving a print job completion instruction; acquiring, based on the print job completion instruction, incremental consumption status data of consumable materials corresponding to the print job, wherein the incremental consumption status data is determined according to the incremental consumption data and is used to indicate whether the incremental consumption data is normal or abnormal, and / or the identifier corresponding to the incremental consumption data is a normal identifier or an abnormal identifier; the incremental consumption data is used to indicate the consumption information of consumable materials corresponding to the print job performed by an image forming apparatus; and sending the incremental consumption status data to the image forming apparatus.

[0007] According to one aspect of this disclosure, an information processing apparatus is provided, comprising: an information acquisition module for acquiring consumption increment data, the consumption increment data being used to instruct an image forming apparatus to perform consumption information of consumable materials corresponding to a printing task; an information processing module for determining, based on the consumption increment data, cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of consumable materials corresponding to the printing task; and an information transmission module for transmitting the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data to the image forming apparatus.

[0008] According to one aspect of this disclosure, a communication method is provided, applied to an image forming apparatus, comprising: sending consumption increment data to an information processing device, the consumption increment data being used to indicate consumption information of consumable materials corresponding to the image forming apparatus performing a printing task; acquiring cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of consumable materials from the information processing device; and generating consumable status information based on the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data, wherein the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of consumable materials are determined by the information processing device based on the consumption increment data.

[0009] According to one aspect of this disclosure, an image forming apparatus is provided for performing the communication method described above.

[0010] According to one aspect of this disclosure, a consumable is provided, comprising: a housing; a developer container located within the housing for containing developer; and an information processing apparatus as described above.

[0011] According to one aspect of this disclosure, a consumable is provided, comprising: a photosensitive drum; a charging roller for charging the photosensitive drum; and an information processing device as described above.

[0012] According to the communication method, information processing apparatus, image forming apparatus, and consumables of this disclosure, the information processing apparatus determines and feeds back the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumables corresponding to the printing task to the image forming apparatus based on the consumption increment data. This enables timely and reliable synchronization of the consumption information of the consumables between the image forming apparatus and the information processing apparatus. This allows the image forming apparatus to determine whether the information processing apparatus or the corresponding consumables meet expectations, making it easier for users to understand the status information of the consumables and improving the stability of the printing operation. Attached Figure Description

[0013] The above and other objects, features, and advantages of this disclosure will become more apparent from the more detailed description of the embodiments thereof in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The drawings are provided to further illustrate the embodiments of this disclosure and form part of the specification. They are used together with the embodiments of this disclosure to explain the disclosure and do not constitute a limitation thereof. In the drawings, the same reference numerals generally represent the same components or steps.

[0014] Figure 1 This is a structural block diagram illustrating an image forming system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0015] Figure 2A and Figure 2B This is a structural block diagram of an image forming system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0016] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the structure of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0017] Figure 4 This is a flowchart illustrating a communication method applied to an information processing device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0018] Figure 5 This is a flowchart further illustrating a communication method applied to an information processing device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0019] Figure 6 This is a flowchart illustrating a communication method applied to an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0020] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram illustrating a communication method of an image forming system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0021] Figure 8 This is a block diagram illustrating an information processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0022] Figure 9 This is a block diagram illustrating an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0023] Figures 10 to 14 This is a block diagram illustrating consumables according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0024] Figure 15 This is a schematic diagram illustrating a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0025] Figure 16 This is a schematic diagram illustrating a computer program product according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Detailed Implementation

[0026] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this disclosure more apparent, exemplary embodiments according to this disclosure will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are merely some embodiments of this disclosure, and not all embodiments of this disclosure. It should be understood that this disclosure is not limited to the exemplary embodiments described herein.

[0027] First, refer to Figures 1 to 2B An image forming system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is described. Figure 1 This is a structural block diagram illustrating an image forming system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 2A and Figure 2B This is a structural block diagram of an image forming system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0028] like Figure 1 As shown, the image forming system 10 includes an image forming apparatus 100 and consumables 200. The image forming apparatus 100 is the part of the image forming system 10 that performs the image forming operation, and the consumables 200 are replaceable parts of the image forming system 10. For example, when the image forming apparatus 100 is an inkjet printer, laser printer, 3D printer, label printer, or dot matrix printer, the corresponding consumables 200 are ink cartridges, toner cartridges, drum units, toner cartridges, ribbon cartridges, etc.

[0029] One possible approach is that the consumable 200 has a modular structure, comprising a drum cartridge and a developing cartridge that are detachable from each other. Figure 1 (Not shown in the image), wherein the drum cartridge includes a photosensitive drum and a charging roller, and the developing cartridge includes a developer container, a developing roller, and a developer delivery element. Another possible implementation is that the consumable 200 is an integrated structure, for example: the consumable 200 includes a developer container, a developing roller, a developer delivery element, a photosensitive drum, a charging roller, etc. Figure 1 (Not shown in the image).

[0030] Furthermore, the consumable 200 may also consist only of a housing and a developer container. It should be further noted that the consumable 200 may also be the aforementioned developer cartridge or drum cartridge. The aforementioned developer container is used to hold a developer such as toner, and the developer delivery element is a component such as a toner feed roller or a toner feed screw used for stirring and / or conveying the toner. Of course, the aforementioned developer cartridge may also consist only of the aforementioned developer container, and this is not limited here. Furthermore, the aforementioned developer cartridge may also consist only of the aforementioned developer container and developer delivery element, and this is not limited here.

[0031] In one possible implementation, the consumable 200 may also include a toner cartridge and / or an imaging assembly. The toner cartridge is used to deliver toner to the imaging assembly when the toner in the imaging assembly is insufficient, so that the image forming apparatus 100 forms an image based on the toner delivered by the imaging assembly. When the consumable 200 is a toner cartridge, it may only include a housing and a developer container, or it may include a housing, a developer container, and a developer delivery element; this application does not limit this. When the consumable 200 is an imaging assembly, it may include a housing, a developer container, a developer delivery unit, a charging roller, a photosensitive drum, etc. A developer transfer channel is provided between the developer container and the imaging assembly; this application embodiment does not limit this.

[0032] It should be noted that the consumable 200 mentioned in the embodiments of this application can also be other easily damaged components, parts, or units (such as paper boxes) in the image forming apparatus 100 that need to be replaced, which also belong to the technical solutions corresponding to the consumable 200 protected in this application.

[0033] To facilitate the management of consumable 200, consumable 200 is also used in conjunction with consumable chip 210, which is an electronic device with storage function. Consumable chip 210 may also include other components such as a chip control unit (e.g., a microcontroller unit, MCU). In one embodiment, consumable chip 210 can be installed on consumable 200. This can be done either before or after the consumable 200 leaves the factory. In another embodiment, consumable chip 210 does not need to be installed on consumable 200, but is fixed to image forming apparatus 100 using mounting hardware or adhesive. When consumable 200 is used in image forming apparatus 100, the contact points of consumable chip 210 make electrical contact with the corresponding contact terminals of image forming apparatus 100, thereby achieving electrical connection between consumable chip 210 and image forming apparatus 100. When the image forming apparatus 100 is not using the consumable 200 (the consumable 200 is not in operation), the contact points of the consumable chip 210 may or may not make contact with the corresponding contact terminals of the image forming apparatus 100. For example, when the consumable 200 is installed in the image forming apparatus 100 but not in use, or when the consumable 200 is removed from the image forming apparatus 100. It should be noted that when the consumable 200 has the aforementioned split structure including a drum cartridge and a developing cartridge that are detachable from each other, the drum cartridge and the developing cartridge are usually each equipped with a consumable chip 210.

[0034] When the consumable 200 is installed on the image forming apparatus 100, the consumable chip 210 is communicatively connected to the image forming apparatus 100. This communication connection can be via contacts, an antenna, or a coil, and this embodiment does not limit this. It should be noted that the consumable chip 210 stores information including raw data, which is information related to the image forming system 10. For example, the raw data can include at least one of the following categories: 1) Imaging control related parameters, such as printing engine control parameter information, specifically high-pressure control parameters, fixing temperature parameters, paper feed speed control parameters, etc. When the image forming apparatus is a color printer, it also includes color calibration parameter information or calibration patterns; 2) Consumable related parameters, such as various proportional factors for calculating toner consumption; or basic attribute information of the consumable, specifically including the consumable model, serial number, and capacity / life of the consumable. It should be noted that those skilled in the art can also design the consumable chip 210 to store other types of raw data according to actual needs, and this embodiment does not limit this.

[0035] In some possible implementations, the information processing device in this embodiment is a consumable chip 210 or a consumable chipset (not shown). When the consumable chip 210 is electrically connected to the image forming apparatus 100, the consumable chip 210 can communicate with the image forming apparatus 100 and provide information related to the consumable 200 to the image forming apparatus 100, enabling the image forming apparatus 100 to obtain basic information about the consumable 200, such as the manufacturer, type, color, capacity, and usage of the recording material (toner, ink). Furthermore, during the image forming operation, the image forming apparatus 100 can also write updated information about the consumable 200 (e.g., developer usage) into the consumable chip 210. In one embodiment, the consumable chip 210 includes a substrate and a plurality of contact points disposed on the substrate. Each contact point is used to electrically connect with a plurality of contact terminals disposed on the image forming apparatus 100, thereby realizing communication between the image forming apparatus 100 and the consumable chip 210. The plurality of contact points may include a power contact VCC, a ground contact GND, a data line contact SDA, and a clock line contact SCL. In another embodiment, the consumable chip 210 in this application embodiment may further include an adapter board in addition to the substrate. The adapter board is electrically connected to the substrate, and at least a portion of the aforementioned plurality of contact points may be disposed on the adapter board.

[0036] For details, see Figure 2A The second communication interface 211 of the consumable chip 210 can be electrically connected to the first communication interface 104 of the image forming apparatus 100, thereby connecting the processor 102 of the image forming apparatus 100 via the first communication interface 104. In one embodiment, the first communication interface 104 and the second communication interface 211 can be I2C interfaces respectively. The second power supply interface 212 of the consumable chip 210 can be electrically connected to the first power supply interface 105 of the image forming apparatus 100, thereby allowing the image forming apparatus 100 to supply power to the consumable chip 210 via the first power supply interface 105 and the second power supply interface 212. In one embodiment, the image forming apparatus 100 further includes a memory 101 and a power supply module 103. The memory 101 is connected to the processor 102 and can store computer execution instructions. When performing corresponding processing, the image forming apparatus 100 can execute the computer execution instructions stored in the memory 101 via the processor 102. The power supply module 103 is connected to the memory 101 and the processor 102 respectively, and can supply power to the memory 101 and the processor 102 to ensure normal operation.

[0037] In one embodiment, the information processing device of this application includes a first consumable chip and a second consumable chip. See also Figure 2B The first consumable chip 210 (the first consumable chip 210 is...) Figure 2A The image forming apparatus 100 and the first consumable chip 210 are communicatively connected. When the image forming apparatus 100 communicates with the first consumable chip 210, the image forming apparatus 100 acts as the master and sends instructions to the first consumable chip 210, and the first consumable chip 210 acts as the slave and responds to the instructions sent by the master. When the first consumable chip 210 and the second consumable chip 220 communicate, the first consumable chip 210 acts as the master and sends instructions to the second consumable chip 220, and the second consumable chip 220 acts as the slave and responds to the instructions sent by the first consumable chip 210. The instructions sent by the first consumable chip 210 to the second consumable chip 220 can be generated by the first consumable chip 210 or forwarded by the first consumable chip 210 from the image forming apparatus 100. In this case, the first consumable chip 210 determines which device should process the instructions sent by the image forming apparatus 100. If it determines that the instructions should be processed by the second consumable chip 220, it forwards the instructions to the second consumable chip 220. The third communication interface 213 of the first consumable chip 210 can be electrically connected to the fourth communication interface 221 of the second consumable chip 220. In one embodiment, the third communication interface 213 and the fourth communication interface 221 can be wired communication interfaces, preferably I2C interfaces, or optical, infrared or other suitable information transmission path interfaces.

[0038] In some embodiments, a switch (not shown) controlled by the first consumable chip 210 is provided in the communication link between the first consumable chip 210 and the second consumable chip 220 and the image forming apparatus 100. When the first consumable chip 210 determines that communication between the first consumable chip 210 and the image forming apparatus 100 is required at the current stage, the communication link between the first consumable chip 210 and the image forming apparatus 100 is connected by the switch, or the communication link between the first consumable chip 210 and the image forming apparatus 100 remains connected. When the first consumable chip 210 determines that communication between the second consumable chip 220 and the image forming apparatus 100 is required at the current stage, the communication link between the second consumable chip 220 and the image forming apparatus 100 is connected by the switch. When the first consumable chip 210 determines that communication between the second consumable chip 220 and the image forming apparatus 100 is not required at the current stage, the communication link between the second consumable chip 220 and the image forming apparatus 100 is disconnected by the switch. The information processing apparatus of this application embodiment may include a chipset, which includes a first consumable chip 210 and a second consumable chip 220.

[0039] In some possible implementations, the information processing device of this application includes the aforementioned consumable chip or consumable chip set, and an auxiliary circuit module. The consumable chip is connected to the auxiliary circuit module, specifically through a wired communication interface, or through an optical, infrared, or other suitable information transmission path interface. The auxiliary circuit module is used to implement some or additional functions of the consumable chip. The auxiliary circuit module can respond to the indication of the consumable chip, or be enabled by a signal other than the instruction of the consumable chip, to provide the consumable chip or the main device with corresponding data information or waveform information, etc. The auxiliary circuit module may include logic units such as AND gates, OR gates, NOT gates, flip-flops, etc., and may also include circuit units of devices such as FPGAs, MCUs, DSPs, etc. Those skilled in the art can design the auxiliary circuit module according to actual needs. The embodiments of this application do not limit the composition and specific functions of the auxiliary circuit module.

[0040] It should be noted that when the image forming apparatus can accommodate multiple consumables, each consumable is equipped with an information processing device, or some consumables are equipped with information processing devices. That is, the relationship between consumables and information processing devices can be one-to-one. For example, the image forming apparatus can accommodate six consumables, and each of these six consumables is equipped with an information processing device. The relationship between consumables and information processing devices can also be one-to-many. For example, the image forming apparatus can accommodate six consumables, and one of these consumables is equipped with an information processing device. This information processing device processes the information between the six consumables and the image forming apparatus. For example, the information processing device stores information corresponding to the six consumables; it provides information corresponding to the six consumables to the image forming apparatus; or it receives information corresponding to the six consumables sent by the image forming apparatus.

[0041] Furthermore, the image forming apparatus includes an image forming control unit and an image forming unit, wherein the image forming control unit is used to control the entire image forming apparatus, and the image forming unit is used to form an image on the fed paper based on image data under the control of the image forming control unit.

[0042] The image forming control unit can be a System on Chip (SoC). An SoC is a miniature system composed of multiple system components, configured to control the imaging processing operations of the image forming apparatus. This includes processes such as linear correction, noise reduction, bad pixel removal, and detail enhancement of image data to improve the quality of the output image. The image forming control unit also performs data transmission and reception, command transmission and reception, and engine control-related processing operations for printing images. For example, it transmits and receives data, print engine control commands, and status information via interface units (including but not limited to USB ports, wired network ports, wireless network ports, or other interfaces).

[0043] See Figure 3 , Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the structure of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 3 As shown, the image forming unit of the image forming apparatus 300 may include: a developer container 11, a developing component 12, a developer delivery element 13, a photosensitive component 14, a transfer component 15, and a fixing assembly 5, etc. The paper to be printed moves in the paper feeding direction, and after passing through the toner feeding operation of the developer delivery element 13 and the developing operation of the developing component 12, it reaches the clamping area between the photosensitive component 14 and the transfer component 15 for transfer, and then passes through the fixing assembly 5 for fixing to complete the image forming operation. The developer container 11 is used to hold the developer, which can be a toner, carbon powder, or other materials; the developing component 12 includes: a developing roller, etc.; the developer delivery element 13 includes: a toner feeding roller, etc.; the photosensitive component 14 includes: an organic photoconductor (OPC) and a charging roller, etc., wherein the charging roller is used to charge the photosensitive drum.

[0044] Typically, the image forming apparatus 300 has at least one consumable removably mounted. Figure 3 Taking the image forming apparatus 300 shown as an example, the image forming apparatus 300 is detachably equipped with four consumables (respectively...). Figure 3 The consumables 1, 2, 3, and 4 shown are used to provide the image forming apparatus 300 with four colors of developer: black (K), cyan (C), magenta (M), and yellow (Y), respectively. Of course, in other embodiments, the number of consumables installed in the image forming apparatus 300 may be increased or decreased, for example, to five or six, or even more or fewer, etc., and this application does not limit this.

[0045] The communication method according to embodiments of the present disclosure will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The communication method according to embodiments of the present disclosure is described in detail below with reference to... Figures 1 to 3 The image forming apparatus and / or information processing apparatus in the described image forming system are executed.

[0046] Figure 4 This is a flowchart illustrating a communication method applied to an information processing device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Specifically, the communication method includes the following steps.

[0047] In step S401, the consumption increment data is obtained.

[0048] In embodiments of this disclosure, the consumption increment data is used to indicate the consumption information of consumable materials corresponding to the image forming apparatus performing a printing task. The consumption information may be one or more of the following: number of pages printed, printing time, developer consumption (e.g., toner weight in grams; or toner dots in thousands), and the rotation distance of the photosensitive drum.

[0049] It should be understood that a print job according to embodiments of the present disclosure may include one or more print jobs. For example, when a print job includes multiple print jobs, the image forming apparatus may shut down the print engine after all print jobs are completed, or trigger the start and stop of the print engine once each print job is completed.

[0050] According to one embodiment of this disclosure, a print job can correspond to a print task. The completion of each print job signifies the completion of the corresponding print task, simultaneously triggering the start and stop of the print engine. That is, one start and stop of the print engine corresponds to one print task. It is understood that the start and end of a print task can be determined based on a print task start command and a print task end command. Specifically, the start and end of a print task can be determined based on "job start" and "job end" flags. It is also understood that when the image forming apparatus executes the corresponding print task, the information processing apparatus can acquire at least one consumption increment data.

[0051] According to another embodiment of this disclosure, a printing task may also correspond to multiple printing jobs, and the image forming apparatus triggers the start and stop of the printing engine based on the start and completion of all printing jobs.

[0052] In embodiments of this disclosure, acquiring data from the incremental consumption data may mean that the information processing device determines data from itself based on a specific acquisition method, or it may mean that the information processing device acquires data from the image forming apparatus.

[0053] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing device may first acquire the associated data of the consumption increment data, and then convert the consumption increment data based on the associated data of the consumption increment data to obtain the consumption increment data.

[0054] In the communication process between the information processing device and the image forming device, if the information processing device obtains consumption increment data from the image forming device, in one embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing device can directly read and parse the instructions received in real time from the image forming device to obtain the consumption increment data. In another embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing device can also cache the instructions received in real time from the image forming device, and then parse the cached instructions to obtain the consumption increment data. In yet another embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing device can also determine the consumption increment data based on business data under a specific business scenario, which can be obtained from the image forming device.

[0055] In another embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing apparatus may also obtain consumption increment data from an external device (e.g., a repeater). That is, the external device, such as the repeater, first receives the consumption increment data sent by the image forming apparatus, and then the information processing apparatus obtains the consumption increment data from the external device, such as the repeater.

[0056] Taking the acquisition of consumption increment data from the image forming apparatus by the information processing apparatus as an example, in embodiments of this disclosure, the information processing apparatus, for example, refers to... Figure 1 , Figure 2A The described consumable chip 210, or Figure 2B The consumable chips 210 and 220 described, and the image forming apparatus, for example, refer to Figures 1 to 2B The image forming apparatus 100 described herein. In one embodiment of this disclosure, reference is made to... Figure 2A The structure shown indicates that acquiring consumption increment data from the image forming apparatus can, for example, mean that the consumable chip 210 receives consumption increment data from the image forming apparatus 100, which is electrically connected thereto, via a communication interface. In another embodiment of this disclosure, referring to... Figure 2B The structure shown, acquiring consumption increment data from the image forming apparatus, can also represent, for example, the second consumable chip 220 receiving consumption increment data from the image forming apparatus 100 via the first consumable chip 210. In this case, the first consumable chip 210 may be, for example, a consumable chip providing basic functions (e.g., communication functions), while the second consumable chip 220 may be, for example, a consumable chip performing a communication method according to an embodiment of this disclosure.

[0057] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the incremental consumption data includes at least one incremental consumption sub-data; or the incremental consumption data includes at least one set of incremental consumption sub-data groups, wherein a set of incremental consumption sub-data groups includes a predetermined number of incremental consumption sub-data.

[0058] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the incremental consumption data includes at least one incremental consumption sub-data and a corresponding sub-data identifier; or the incremental consumption data includes at least one set of incremental consumption sub-data groups and a corresponding sub-data group identifier, wherein a set of incremental consumption sub-data groups includes a predetermined number of incremental consumption sub-data items, the sub-data group identifier includes a predetermined number of sub-data identifiers, the sub-data identifier includes an intra-group sequence number identifier, or the sub-data identifier includes both a group sequence number identifier and an intra-group sequence number identifier. In this embodiment, the information processing device can acquire at least one incremental consumption sub-data and a corresponding sub-data identifier; or it can acquire at least one set of incremental consumption sub-data groups and a corresponding sub-data group identifier. Specifically, the information processing device can sequentially acquire each incremental consumption sub-data item and its corresponding sub-data identifier within the incremental consumption sub-data group.

[0059] It should be understood that the sub-data identifier is used to identify the corresponding consumption increment sub-data in the consumption increment data, so as to more accurately determine the consumption increment status data. The specific form of the sub-data identifier can be numbers, letters or other forms of identifiers, as long as they can identify the corresponding consumption increment sub-data. This application embodiment does not impose specific limitations.

[0060] In embodiments of this disclosure, the consumption increment sub-data can be used to indicate consumption information corresponding to a preset task quantity. For example, the consumption increment sub-data can be used to indicate one or more of the following: consumption information corresponding to a predetermined number of printed pages (e.g., 10 pages), consumption information corresponding to a predetermined printing time (e.g., 60 seconds), consumption information corresponding to a predetermined amount of developer (e.g., toner weight in grams; or toner dots in thousands of dots), and consumption information corresponding to a predetermined photosensitive drum rotation distance (e.g., 4000 mm).

[0061] It is important to understand that there are several different ways to obtain incremental data, which will be discussed in more detail below.

[0062] In one embodiment of this disclosure, acquiring consumption increment data may include acquiring consumption increment data from the image forming apparatus. Specifically, when the consumption increment data includes at least one consumption increment sub-data and a corresponding sub-data identifier, the information processing apparatus can receive the consumption increment sub-data and the sub-data identifier from the image forming apparatus; or, when the consumption increment data includes at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups and a corresponding sub-data group identifier, the information processing apparatus can receive the consumption increment sub-data groups and the corresponding sub-data group identifiers from the image forming apparatus, that is, the information processing apparatus receives a predetermined number of consumption increment sub-data and a predetermined number of sub-data identifiers. It is understood that in this embodiment, the information processing apparatus can receive the consumption increment sub-data and the sub-data identifiers from the image forming apparatus.

[0063] In another embodiment of this disclosure, acquiring consumption increment data may include acquiring at least one consumption increment sub-data from the image forming apparatus and determining a sub-data identifier corresponding to each of the at least one consumption increment sub-data. Specifically, the information processing device may acquire the consumption increment sub-data from the image forming apparatus by receiving the consumption increment sub-data from the image forming apparatus; or the information processing device may determine the consumption increment sub-data from business data in a specific business scenario, which can be acquired from the image forming apparatus. Then, the sub-data identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data is determined based on the consumption increment sub-data acquired by the information processing device. Specifically, the information processing device may count the acquired at least one consumption increment sub-data and determine the sub-data identifier corresponding to each of the at least one consumption increment sub-data based on the counting result. For example, when the information processing device receives each consumption increment sub-data, it may count the data. Based on the first received consumption increment sub-data being counted as 1, the sub-data identifier corresponding to the first consumption increment sub-data is determined. Then, based on the second received consumption increment sub-data being counted as 2, the sub-data identifier corresponding to the second consumption increment sub-data is determined, and so on. Alternatively, the information processing device can also time the acquisition of at least one consumption increment sub-data, and determine the sub-data identifier corresponding to each consumption increment sub-data based on the timing result. For example, if one consumption increment sub-data can be received every 10 seconds, the information processing device can start timing after receiving the print task start command. When the first consumption increment sub-data is acquired within the preset time range of the 10th second, the corresponding timing result can be determined, thereby determining the sub-data identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data (e.g., it can be recorded as 1). As another example, if one consumption increment sub-data can be received every 10 seconds, the information processing device can determine its corresponding sub-data identifier (e.g., it can be recorded as 1) after receiving the first consumption increment sub-data and start timing. When the second consumption increment sub-data is acquired within the preset time range of the 10th second, the sub-data identifier corresponding to the second consumption increment sub-data can be determined (e.g., it can be recorded as 2).

[0064] In another embodiment of this disclosure, acquiring the consumption increment data may include acquiring at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups from the image forming apparatus, and determining a sub-data group identifier corresponding to each of the at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups. Specifically, the information processing device acquiring the consumption increment sub-data groups from the image forming apparatus may be that the information processing device receives the consumption increment sub-data groups from the image forming apparatus; alternatively, the information processing device may determine the consumption increment sub-data groups from business data in a specific business scenario, which can be acquired from the image forming apparatus. Then, based on the consumption increment sub-data groups acquired by the information processing device, a sub-data group identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data groups is determined.

[0065] Specifically, the information processing device can count the consumption increment sub-data in at least one set of acquired consumption increment sub-data groups, and determine the sub-data group identifier corresponding to each of the at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups based on the counting results. For example, if a set of consumption increment sub-data groups includes three consumption increment sub-data items, the information processing device can count each consumption increment sub-data item it receives. Based on the fact that the in-group sequence number identifier corresponding to the first received consumption increment sub-data item is counted as 1, the corresponding sub-data identifier is determined. Then, the counting continues for the next consumption increment sub-data item. When the third consumption increment sub-data item is received, its corresponding sub-data identifier can be determined, thereby determining the sub-data group identifier corresponding to the entire set of consumption increment sub-data groups (i.e., including the sub-data identifiers corresponding to all consumption increment sub-data items in the entire set of consumption increment sub-data groups). Alternatively, the information processing device can also time the consumption increment sub-data in at least one set of acquired consumption increment sub-data groups, and determine the sub-data group identifier corresponding to each of the at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups based on the timing results. For example, a set of consumption increment sub-data includes three consumption increment sub-data. If one consumption increment sub-data can be received every 10 seconds, the information processing device can start timing after receiving the print task start command. When the first consumption increment sub-data is acquired within the preset time range of 10 seconds, the corresponding timing result can be determined, thereby determining the sub-data identifier corresponding to that consumption increment sub-data. Timing continues. When the second consumption increment sub-data is acquired within the preset time range of 20 seconds, its corresponding sub-data identifier can be determined. When the third consumption increment sub-data is acquired within the preset time range of 30 seconds, its corresponding sub-data identifier can be determined. Then, the consumption of this set can be determined. The sub-data group identifier corresponding to the incremental sub-data group; for example, a set of consumption incremental sub-data groups includes 3 consumption incremental sub-data. If one consumption incremental sub-data can be received every 10 seconds, the information processing device can determine its corresponding sub-data identifier after receiving the first consumption incremental sub-data and start timing. When the second consumption incremental sub-data is obtained within the preset time range of the 10th second, the sub-data identifier corresponding to the second consumption incremental sub-data can be determined. When the third consumption incremental sub-data is obtained within the preset time range of the 20th second, the sub-data identifier corresponding to the third consumption incremental sub-data can be determined. Thus, the corresponding sub-data group identifier of this set of consumption incremental sub-data groups can be obtained.

[0066] In practical applications, image forming apparatuses can employ multiple different statistical methods to obtain varying consumption increment data for the same consumable to meet the business needs of different scenarios. For example, if the consumable is toner, in scenario 1, the image forming apparatus calculates toner consumption increment data 1; in scenario 2, it calculates toner consumption increment data 2. Both data are then sent to a processing unit, which may include an information processing unit. This unit can directly use consumption increment data 2 for business processing in scenario 2, or it can determine consumption increment data 2 based on consumption increment data 1 (consumption increment data 1 being one implementation of associated data with consumption increment data 2), and then use consumption increment data 2 for business processing in scenario 2.

[0067] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the consumption increment sub-data acquired by the information processing device can be determined based on the consumption information of consumable materials corresponding to a preset task quantity in the printing job. As mentioned above, the preset task quantity can be, for example, one or more of the following: a predetermined number of pages to print (e.g., 10 pages), a predetermined printing time (e.g., 60 seconds), a predetermined developer consumption (e.g., toner weight in grams; or toner dots in thousands of dots), and a predetermined photosensitive drum rotation distance. In other words, the consumption increment sub-data can at least indicate the consumption amount of consumable materials. The consumption increment sub-data includes the consumption increment sub-data of consumable materials in the printing job that is equal to or less than the preset task quantity. Specifically, if the preset task quantity is a predetermined number of pages to print (e.g., 10 pages), then the consumption increment sub-data can be the consumption amount of consumable materials corresponding to 10 pages, or the consumption amount of consumable materials corresponding to less than 10 pages.

[0068] In the embodiments of this disclosure, during the process of consuming material information synchronously between the image forming apparatus and the information processing apparatus, the image forming apparatus sends consumption increment sub-data to the information processing apparatus. The following will further describe different methods by which the image forming apparatus sends consumption increment sub-data.

[0069] Sending Method 1: Sending data one by one while consuming incremental sub-data

[0070] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus sends a consumption increment sub-data every time it performs a preset number of printing tasks.

[0071] Furthermore, the consumption increment data includes at least one consumption increment sub-data and a corresponding sub-data identifier. Taking the consumption increment data including two consumption increment sub-data and corresponding sub-data identifiers as an example, refer to Table 1 below. Table 1 shows the information of the consumption increment sub-data and sub-data identifiers included in the consumption increment data of an embodiment.

[0072] Table 1:

[0073]

[0074] In Table 1, id1 and id2 are sub-data identifiers, and d1 and d2 are consumption increment sub-data, used to indicate the consumption amount of consumable materials. id1 is the sub-data identifier corresponding to d1, and id2 is the sub-data identifier corresponding to d2. In one embodiment of this disclosure, the aforementioned sub-data identifiers and corresponding consumption increment sub-data can be included in a single write instruction and sent to the information processing device. Specifically, the information processing device obtains consumption increment data from the image forming apparatus. The image forming apparatus can send two write instructions to the information processing device, each containing one consumption increment sub-data and a corresponding sub-data identifier. The information processing device can obtain the write instructions from the image forming apparatus and then determine the consumption increment sub-data and its corresponding sub-data identifier based on the write instructions. In another embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing device can first obtain the consumption increment sub-data from the image forming apparatus and then determine the corresponding sub-data identifier for the consumption increment sub-data based on a counting or timing method.

[0075] More specifically, the timing of when the image forming apparatus sends a consumption increment sub-data can be configured according to specific business needs. In one embodiment of this disclosure, the preset task quantity includes one preset sub-task quantity or a combination of multiple preset sub-task quantities. For example, if the preset task quantity is 10 pages, and the image forming apparatus needs to perform a total of 20 pages of printing, the image forming apparatus sends a consumption increment sub-data to the information processing device every 10 pages of printing. After completing the 20-page printing task, the image forming apparatus has cumulatively sent two consumption increment sub-data to the information processing device. As another example, if the preset task quantity is 10 pages and the printing time is 30 seconds, the image forming apparatus first performs the 10-page printing task, then sends the first consumption increment sub-data to the information processing device. After printing the remaining pages for 30 seconds, it sends the second consumption increment sub-data to the information processing device, and so on, until the entire printing task is completed.

[0076] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus can configure a strategy for sending incremental sub-data based on the total workload of the printing task. For example, if the total workload of the printing task is greater than or equal to a preset total workload threshold (e.g., a preset total workload threshold of 100 pages), the incremental sub-data can be sent once at a first preset sub-task interval (e.g., a preset sub-task interval of 10 pages, or a preset sub-task interval of 30 seconds). If the total workload of the printing task is less than the preset total workload threshold (e.g., a preset total workload threshold of 100 pages), the incremental sub-data can be sent once at a second preset sub-task interval (e.g., a preset sub-task interval of 5 pages, or a preset sub-task interval of 15 seconds).

[0077] In embodiments of this disclosure, the consumption increment sub-data includes: consumption increment sub-data of consumable materials in a printing task that is equal to or less than a preset task quantity. In one embodiment of this disclosure, if the total task quantity of a printing task is greater than or equal to a preset task quantity, for example, for a total task quantity of 105 pages, if the preset task quantity is set to 10 pages, the consumption increment data may include multiple consumption increment sub-data, and the information processing device can acquire the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the preset task quantity. For example, the consumption increment sub-data may refer to consumption increment sub-data d1, d2, ..., d10 of consumable materials equal to the preset task quantity, wherein each of the above consumption increment sub-data indicates the consumption amount of consumable materials corresponding to 10 pages. In addition, the consumption increment sub-data may also refer to consumption increment sub-data d11 of consumable materials corresponding to a printing task with a less than preset task quantity, wherein the consumption increment sub-data d11 indicates the consumption amount of consumable materials corresponding to 5 pages. Thus, the consumption increment sub-data d1, d2, ..., d11 indicate the consumption increment of consumable materials corresponding to a total of 105 pages. In another embodiment of this disclosure, if the total number of printing tasks is less than the preset number of tasks, for example, for a total number of 8 pages to be printed, if the preset number of tasks is set to 10 pages, the consumption increment data may include a consumption increment sub-data. In this case, the consumption increment sub-data refers to the consumption increment sub-data d1 of the consumable material corresponding to the printing task with a total number of printing tasks less than the preset number of tasks. Thus, the consumption increment sub-data d1 indicates the consumption amount of consumable material corresponding to a total of 8 pages.

[0078] Furthermore, if a printing task includes multiple print jobs and each print job has a small workload, the print jobs can be merged to meet the preset workload before sending the consumption increment sub-data. For example, taking the consumption increment sub-data sent every 10 pages as an example, print job 1 has a workload of 3 pages, print job 2 has a workload of 3 pages, and print job 3 has a workload of 5 pages; when print job 3 is executed, the preset workload of 10 pages is met, and a consumption increment sub-data (i.e., the consumption increment sub-data of consumable materials equal to the preset workload) is sent. When print job 3 is completed, the remaining consumption increment sub-data (i.e., the consumption increment sub-data of consumable materials less than the preset workload) is sent to synchronize the information to the information processing device.

[0079] In one embodiment of this disclosure, if a printing task includes multiple print jobs and each print job has a small workload, incremental consumption sub-data corresponding to each print job can be sent separately. For example, incremental consumption sub-data can be sent every 10 pages. For instance, if each print job is less than a preset workload, assuming print job 1 has 8 pages, print job 2 has 5 pages, and print job 3 has 4 pages, then executing print job 1, print job 2, and print job 3 can trigger incremental consumption sub-data (i.e., incremental consumption sub-data for materials less than the preset workload) once each. For example, if some print jobs have a workload greater than or equal to a preset task quantity, while others have a workload less than the preset task quantity, assuming print job 1 has a workload of 15, print job 2 has a workload of 10, and print job 3 has a workload of 4, then when executing print job 1, the image forming device can synchronize the consumption increment sub-data (including the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to pages 1-10 and 11-15) to the information processing device twice. When executing print job 2, the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to pages 10 of print job 2 can be directly synchronized to the information processing device. When executing print job 3, the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to pages 4 of print job 3 can be directly synchronized to the information processing device. In the above embodiment, determining the triggering time of consumption increment sub-data according to a single print job and a preset task quantity allows for more timely synchronization of consumption increment sub-data, further improving the reliability of synchronizing consumption information between the image forming device and the information processing device, and reducing the possibility of the information processing device failing to synchronize the latest consumption information in a timely manner due to abnormal factors such as power outages.

[0080] Alternatively, in one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus can configure the timing of sending a consumption increment sub-data based on the execution time of the print job. For example, at predetermined print time intervals (e.g., a predetermined print time of 60 seconds), a consumption increment sub-data of the actual print volume for the corresponding time period is sent to the information processing apparatus. Furthermore, if the print job includes multiple print jobs and the print time of each print job is less than the predetermined print time, the multiple print jobs can be merged, and the consumption increment sub-data can be sent only after the actual print time meets the predetermined print time.

[0081] In another embodiment of this disclosure, if a print job includes multiple print jobs and the printing time of some print jobs is less than the predetermined printing time, then the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the aforementioned partial print jobs can be sent separately. Specific sending examples can be found in the description of sending according to the predetermined number of pages printed, and will not be repeated here.

[0082] Similarly, in one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus can configure the timing of sending a consumption increment sub-data according to the developer consumption amount or the rotation distance of the photosensitive drum corresponding to the printing task.

[0083] It is important to note that regardless of whether the timing of sending a consumption increment sub-data is configured based on the predetermined number of pages to be printed, the predetermined printing time, the predetermined developer consumption, and / or the predetermined drum rotation distance, the consumption information of the consumable materials indicated by the consumption increment sub-data itself can be characterized in the same way. For example, when sending consumption increment sub-data according to the predetermined number of pages to be printed, the specific consumption information can be characterized by the page number information. The consumption information of the consumable materials indicated by the consumption increment sub-data itself can also be characterized in different ways. For example, when sending consumption increment sub-data according to the predetermined printing time, the specific consumption information can be characterized by the page number information; similarly, when sending consumption increment sub-data according to the predetermined number of pages to be printed, the specific consumption information can be characterized by the developer consumption. It is easy to understand that the combination of the timing of sending consumption increment sub-data and the method of representing the consumption information indicated by the consumption increment sub-data itself is not limited to the above, but includes any combination of the two.

[0084] Sending Method 2: Packet Sending Consuming Incremental Sub-Data

[0085] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus sends a set of consumption increment sub-data groups after performing multiple preset number of print jobs. During the sending of a set of consumption increment sub-data groups, the image forming apparatus may send a corresponding sub-data group identifier. A set of consumption increment sub-data groups includes a predetermined number of consumption increment sub-data items, and the sub-data group identifier includes a predetermined number of sub-data identifiers. The sub-data identifiers include either an intra-group sequence number identifier or both an intra-group sequence number identifier and an intra-group sequence number identifier. In other words, the image forming apparatus groups the consumption increment sub-data sent to the information processing device. As described above in the first method of sending consumption increment sub-data, the image forming apparatus may include the consumption increment sub-data and the sub-data identifier in a single write instruction and send it to the information processing device. It should be understood that, during the process of sending a set of consumption increment sub-data groups, the image forming apparatus can send multiple consumption increment sub-datas one by one to the information processing device in the manner described in the first method of sending consumption increment sub-data. Similarly, the sub-data identifier can be sent to the information processing device along with the consumption increment sub-data. When the image forming apparatus has finished sending a predetermined number of consumption increment sub-datas in a set of consumption increment sub-data groups and a predetermined number of sub-data identifiers in a set of sub-data group identifiers, the information processing device can obtain the corresponding set of consumption increment sub-data groups and sub-data group identifiers.

[0086] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the sub-data identifier includes an intra-group sequence identifier. For example, if every 3 consumption increment sub-data items and the corresponding 3 sub-data identifiers are grouped together, then the consumption increment sub-data group includes 3 consumption increment sub-data items, and the sub-data group identifier includes 3 sub-data identifiers. See Table 2 below. Table 2 shows the information of consumption increment data in one embodiment. The consumption increment data includes two groups of consumption increment sub-data groups and the corresponding sub-data group identifiers.

[0087] Table 2:

[0088]

[0089] In Table 2, the sub-data group identifiers corresponding to the first group (Group1) can include sub-data identifiers id1, id2, and id3. id1, id2, and id3 can also be understood as the intra-group sequence number identifiers corresponding to the first group of sub-data group identifiers. The consumption increment sub-data group corresponding to the first group can include consumption increment sub-data d1, d2, and d3. The sub-data group identifiers corresponding to the second group (Group2) can include sub-data identifiers id4, id5, and id6. id4, id5, and id6 can also be understood as the intra-group sequence number identifiers corresponding to the second group of sub-data group identifiers. The consumption increment sub-data group corresponding to the second group can include consumption increment sub-data d4, d5, and d6.

[0090] In another embodiment of this disclosure, the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence identifier and an intra-group sequence identifier. For example, if every 5 consumption increment sub-data items and the corresponding 5 sub-data identifiers are grouped together, then the consumption increment sub-data group includes 5 consumption increment sub-data items, and the sub-data group identifier includes 5 sub-data identifiers. See Table 3 below. Table 3 shows the consumption increment data information of an embodiment, which includes two groups of consumption increment sub-data groups and the corresponding sub-data group identifiers.

[0091] Table 3:

[0092]

[0093] In Table 3, the group sequence identifier is an identifier that indicates the sub-data identifier in a group of sub-data group identifiers relative to the sub-data identifiers in other groups, such as Gid1 and Gid2. The intra-group sequence identifier is an identifier that indicates the sub-data identifier within a group relative to other sub-data identifiers, such as id1, id2, id3, id4, and id5. The intra-group sequence identifier is associated with the corresponding group sequence identifier. Specifically, the sub-data group identifiers corresponding to the first group (Group1) may include sub-data identifiers (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id3), (Gid1, id4), and (Gid1, id5), and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data groups may include consumption increment sub-data d1, d2, d3, d4, and d5; the sub-data group identifiers corresponding to the second group (Group2) may include sub-data identifiers (Gid2, id1), (Gid2, id2), (Gid2, id3), (Gid2, id4), and (Gid2, id5), and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data groups may include consumption increment sub-data d6, d7, d8, d9, and d10. In one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus can send the consumption increment sub-data and the corresponding sub-data identifier in each group of consumption increment sub-data to the information processing apparatus. For example, the image forming apparatus can send the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id1) and the consumption increment sub-data d1 together to the information processing apparatus. Specifically, the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id1) and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data d1 can be included in a write instruction and sent to the information processing apparatus. It should be understood that the sub-data identifiers in a group of sub-data group identifiers can be sent in the order of the group's sequence number identifiers. For example, the first group of sub-data group identifiers can be sent in the order of (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id3), (Gid1, id4), and (Gid1, id5). Alternatively, the sub-data identifiers in a group of sub-data group identifiers may not be sent in the order of the group's sequence identifiers, but may be sent in any random order, such as (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id4), (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id5), (Gid1, id3).

[0094] In another embodiment of this disclosure, the sub-data identifiers in a set of sub-data group identifiers may also be sent in a specific order, such as (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id3), (Gid1, id5), (Gid1, id7), (Gid1, id9).

[0095] It should be understood that the sending order of each sub-data identifier in the sub-data group identifier can be set according to actual needs, and this disclosure embodiment does not make specific limitations.

[0096] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus sequentially sends corresponding consumption increment sub-data according to the consumption information of consumable materials updated during the execution of the printing task. This can synchronize the consumption increment data to the information processing device, thereby realizing timely and reliable synchronization of consumable material consumption information between the image forming apparatus and the information processing device.

[0097] More specifically, in one embodiment of this disclosure, the sub-data identifier and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data can be included in a single write instruction, following a sending strategy of sending one write instruction every 10 pages, with 5 instructions sent per group. If the total print job is less than 50 pages, 5 instructions are still sent. For example, if the total print job is 40 pages, the insufficient portion (i.e., the 5th instruction) of the consumption increment sub-data can be filled with 0, and the sub-data identifier will also be sent together. Specifically, when the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and a group intra-sequence number identifier, the 5th write instruction can include the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id5) and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data d5, where Gid1 is the group sequence number identifier, id5 is the group intra-sequence number identifier, and d5 indicates a consumption of 0. Similarly, if the total print job is 45 pages, the corresponding consumption increment sub-data d5 indicates a consumption of 5 pages. In the above embodiments, it can be guaranteed that a group of consumption increment sub-data includes a predetermined number of consumption increment sub-data entries. During the execution of a printing task, the image forming apparatus can send consumption increment sub-data and corresponding sub-data identifiers to the information processing apparatus one by one. For example, when the total printing task is 140 pages, following the rule of sending one write instruction (including sub-data identifier and consumption increment sub-data) every 10 pages, with 5 instructions sent in each group, the first group can send the write instructions corresponding to pages 1-50. For example, the 5 write instructions sent sequentially in the first group can include (Gid1, id2, d2), (Gid1, id4, d4), (Gid1, id1, d1), (Gid1, id5, d5), and (Gid1, id3, d3), where d2, d4, d1, d5, and d3 correspond to the consumption of pages 1-10, 11-20, 21-30, 31-40, and 41-50, respectively. Similarly, the second group... Write commands corresponding to pages 51-100 can be sent. For example, the second group of 5 sequentially sent write commands may include (Gid2, id3, d3), (Gid2, id4, d4), (Gid2, id1, d1), (Gid2, id5, d5), and (Gid2, id2, d2). The third group can send write commands corresponding to pages 101-140. For example, the third group of 5 sequentially sent write commands may include (Gid3, id1, d1), (Gid3, id4, d4), (Gid3, id3, d3), (Gid3, id5, d5), and (Gid3, id2, d2). The fifth write command in the third group contains the consumption increment sub-data d2, indicating a consumption of 0 pages. It should be noted that in the example shown in this embodiment, the sub-data identifiers in a group of sub-data identifiers can be sent out of order, and the order of sending the consumption increment sub-data follows the order of the actual consumption of consumable materials in the printing task.

[0098] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the write instruction may include not only the consumed incremental sub-data and the corresponding sub-data identifier, but also other information such as the target address. The target address is used to identify the address of the target slave device (e.g., the target information processing device) for communication.

[0099] In one embodiment of this disclosure, after receiving the consumed incremental sub-data and the sub-data identifier, the information processing device can store the consumed incremental sub-data and the sub-data identifier. When the image forming apparatus completes the transmission of a set of consumed incremental sub-data groups, it can send a set of completion flags, thereby enabling the information processing device to determine that the transmission of the set of consumed incremental sub-data groups has been completed and to determine whether the data it has received is complete. Specifically, the information processing device can determine whether the data it has received is complete by judging the number of sub-data identifiers and the number of consumed incremental sub-data.

[0100] In one embodiment of this disclosure, similar to the embodiment described above that sends one write instruction every 10 pages, the image forming apparatus may also send one write instruction every 10 seconds, with 5 instructions sent per group. If the total printing time for the print job is less than 50 seconds, 5 instructions are still sent. For example, if the total printing time for the print job is 40 seconds, the insufficient portion (i.e., the 5th instruction) of the consumption increment sub-data is filled with 0, and the sub-data identifier is also sent together. Specifically, when the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and a group intra-sequence number identifier, the 5th write instruction may include the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id5) and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data d5, where Gid1 is the group sequence number identifier, id5 is the group intra-sequence number identifier, and d5 indicates a consumption of 0. Similarly, if the total printing time for the print job is 45 seconds, the corresponding consumption increment sub-data d5 indicates the consumption for 5 seconds. During the execution of the printing job, the image forming apparatus can send the consumption increment sub-data and the corresponding sub-data identifier to the information processing apparatus one by one. For example, if the total printing time is 140 seconds, following the rule of sending one write command every 10 seconds, with each group sending 5 commands, the first group can send write commands corresponding to tasks from 1 to 50 seconds. For example, the 5 write commands sent sequentially in the first group could include (Gid1, id2, d2), (Gid1, id4, d4), (Gid1, id1, d1), (Gid1, id5, d5), and (Gid1, id3, d3), where d2, d4, d1, d5, and d3 correspond to the consumption time of 1-10 seconds, 11-20 seconds, 21-30 seconds, 31-40 seconds, and 41-50 seconds, respectively. Similarly, the second group can send 51- The write commands corresponding to a 100-second task, for example, the 5 write commands sent sequentially in the second group can include (Gid2, id3, d3), (Gid2, id4, d4), (Gid2, id1, d1), (Gid2, id5, d5), (Gid2, id2, d2). The third group can send write commands corresponding to tasks from 101 to 140 seconds. For example, the 5 write commands sent sequentially in the third group can include (Gid3, id1, d1), (Gid3, id4, d4), (Gid3, id3, d3), (Gid3, id5, d5), (Gid3, id2, d2). The fifth write command in the third group contains the consumption increment sub-data d2, indicating that the consumption is 0.

[0101] It's important to understand that when the image forming apparatus performs a printing task, it can break it down into one or more consumption increment sub-data. For example, one consumption increment sub-data can be sent for each preset number of printing tasks. As the printing task progresses, the information processing device can promptly receive several consumption increment sub-data and update consumable usage information (such as the remaining or consumed amount of consumables). This ensures timely synchronization of consumption information. Furthermore, after receiving the consumption increment sub-data, the information processing device can more precisely identify any anomalies in its transmission, facilitating rapid determination of the consumption increment status data reflecting the status of the consumption increment data. This helps ensure the integrity and reliability of the consumption increment data transmitted between the image forming apparatus and the information processing device, enabling more refined management of consumption information. Additionally, the information processing device can receive one consumption increment sub-data every preset number of printing tasks. This avoids excessively frequent data synchronization between the image forming apparatus and the information processing device while ensuring the timeliness and reliability of consumption information synchronization, making it suitable for various image forming scenarios.

[0102] After obtaining the consumption increment data in step S401, the method executed by the information processing device proceeds to step S402.

[0103] In step S402, based on the consumption increment data, the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumable materials corresponding to the printing task are determined.

[0104] In one embodiment of this disclosure, when the image forming apparatus transmits consumption increment sub-data in the manner described in mode one or mode two, the information processing apparatus determines consumption increment status data based on one or more of the consumption amount indicated by the consumption increment sub-data, the sub-data identifier, and the reception time of the consumption increment data. The consumption increment status data is used to indicate whether the consumption increment sub-data is normal sub-data or abnormal sub-data, and / or whether the sub-data identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data is a normal identifier or an abnormal identifier.

[0105] In the above embodiments, when the image forming apparatus synchronously consumes information to the information processing apparatus, it may be subject to interference from various factors, resulting in data loss or errors, i.e., data anomalies. By synchronizing data according to the method of synchronizing incremental sub-data, the information processing apparatus can more promptly judge the received data for anomalies, which facilitates the subsequent correction of the data when anomalies occur, ensuring the integrity and accuracy of data transmission. Moreover, the information processing apparatus can quickly determine whether an anomaly has occurred for each incremental sub-data, enabling more refined anomaly judgment and quickly determining the status of the incremental consumption data. For example, the information processing apparatus can quickly locate whether a certain incremental sub-data is normal or abnormal, or locate whether the sub-data identifier corresponding to a certain incremental sub-data is a normal identifier or an abnormal identifier.

[0106] It should be understood that, in the embodiments of this disclosure, the incremental consumption data includes at least one incremental consumption sub-data and a corresponding sub-data identifier; or the incremental consumption data includes at least one group of incremental consumption sub-data and a corresponding sub-data group identifier, wherein the incremental consumption sub-data group includes a predetermined number of incremental consumption sub-data, and the sub-data group identifier includes a predetermined number of sub-data identifiers. In other words, each consumption increment sub-data has a corresponding sub-data identifier. By marking the consumption increment sub-data with sub-data identifiers, refined anomaly detection can be achieved. This allows the information processing device to distinguish different consumption increment sub-data, accurately locate consumption increment sub-data with anomalies, and facilitate data management. The corresponding consumption increment sub-data can be matched simply by the sub-data identifier. For example, when the received sequence number jumps, duplicates, or is lost, the information processing device can immediately identify the possible anomalies in the data transmission process, providing a basis for subsequent refined anomaly judgment. For instance, when a print job corresponding to a certain print task experiences an anomaly during data synchronization, the information processing device can quickly identify which consumption increment sub-data in the print job are abnormal. Compared to only being able to judge that the entire print job is abnormal, the anomaly judgment of this solution is more refined. When some consumption increment sub-data in the entire print job are abnormal, the image forming device does not need to correct the data of the entire print job. Only the consumption increment sub-data with anomalies can be corrected, which can reduce the amount of data processing and improve the transmission efficiency of subsequent consumption correction data.

[0107] Specifically, in one embodiment of this disclosure, if the consumption amount indicated by the consumption increment sub-data is not within a predetermined consumption range, the consumption increment sub-data is determined to be abnormal sub-data, and / or the sub-data identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data is determined to be an abnormal identifier. The predetermined consumption range can be set according to actual circumstances.

[0108] If the image forming apparatus transmits consumption increment sub-data in the above-described transmission method one, for example, if the sub-data identifier is id2, the corresponding consumption increment sub-data is d2, and the predetermined consumption range is the consumption range corresponding to a 10-page print job, if the consumption indicated by the consumption increment sub-data d2 is not within the predetermined consumption range, then the consumption increment sub-data id2 is determined to be abnormal sub-data, and the sub-data identifier id2 corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data d2 is determined to be an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d2 may be determined to be abnormal sub-data; or only the sub-data identifier id2 may be determined to be an abnormal identifier.

[0109] For example, if the sub-data identifier is id3, the corresponding consumption increment sub-data is d3, and the predetermined consumption range is the consumption range corresponding to a 10-second print task, if the consumption increment sub-data d3 indicates a consumption range outside the predetermined consumption range, then the consumption increment sub-data d3 is determined to be an abnormal sub-data, and the sub-data identifier id3 corresponding to consumption increment sub-data d3 is also determined to be an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d3 can be determined to be an abnormal sub-data; or, only the sub-data identifier id3 can be determined to be an abnormal identifier.

[0110] If the image forming apparatus sends the consumption increment sub-data in the manner described in Method 2 above. In one embodiment of this disclosure, when the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and a group sequence number identifier, for example, for consumption increment sub-data d2 and sub-data identifier (Gid1, id2); if the predetermined consumption range corresponds to the consumption range of a 10-page print job, and if the consumption indicated by consumption increment sub-data d2 is not within the predetermined consumption range, then consumption increment sub-data d2 is determined to be abnormal sub-data, and the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id2) corresponding to consumption increment sub-data d2 is determined to be an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, only consumption increment sub-data d2 may be determined to be abnormal sub-data; or, only sub-data identifier (Gid1, id2) may be determined to be an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, when the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier, for example, for consumption increment sub-data d2 and sub-data identifier id2; if the consumption amount indicated by consumption increment sub-data d2 is not within the predetermined consumption range, then consumption increment sub-data d2 is determined to be abnormal sub-data, and the sub-data identifier id2 corresponding to consumption increment sub-data d2 is determined to be an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, only consumption increment sub-data d2 may be determined to be abnormal sub-data; or only sub-data identifier id2 may be determined to be an abnormal identifier.

[0111] In another embodiment of this disclosure, when the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and a group-internal sequence number identifier, for the consumption increment sub-data d3 and the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id3); if the predetermined consumption range corresponds to the consumption range of a 10-second print job, and the consumption indicated by the consumption increment sub-data d3 is not within the predetermined consumption range, then the consumption increment sub-data d3 is determined to be an abnormal sub-data, and the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id3) corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data d3 is an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d3 can be determined to be an abnormal sub-data; or only the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id3) can be determined to be an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, when the sub-data identifier includes a group-internal sequence number identifier, for example, for the consumption increment sub-data d2 and the sub-data identifier id2; if the consumption indicated by the consumption increment sub-data d2 is not within the predetermined consumption range, then the consumption increment sub-data d2 is determined to be an abnormal sub-data, and the sub-data identifier id2 corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data d2 is an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, it may be possible to identify only the consumption increment sub-data d2 as an anomalous sub-data; or, it may be possible to identify only the sub-data identifier id2 as an anomalous identifier.

[0112] In one embodiment of this disclosure, when multiple sub-data identifiers are in a non-continuous state, the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the sub-data identifiers missing from the continuous state is determined to be abnormal sub-data, and / or the missing sub-data identifier is determined to be an abnormal identifier.

[0113] For example, if the image forming apparatus sends consumption increment sub-data in the manner described above, and the information processing apparatus continuously receives the consumption increment sub-data and its corresponding sub-data identifiers, and if id1 and id3 are received sequentially, since multiple sub-data identifiers id1 and id3 are in a non-continuous state, the consumption increment sub-data d2 corresponding to the missing sub-data identifier id2 relative to the continuous state (id1, id2, id3) is determined to be abnormal sub-data, and the missing sub-data identifier id2 is determined to be an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d2 may be determined to be abnormal sub-data; or only the sub-data identifier id2 may be determined to be an abnormal identifier.

[0114] For example, if the image forming apparatus transmits consumption increment sub-data in the manner described in Method 2 above, the information processing apparatus can continuously receive consumption increment sub-data from a set of consumption increment sub-data groups and sub-data identifiers from a set of sub-data group identifiers. When the sub-data identifiers include in-group sequence identifiers, assuming one set of sub-data group identifiers includes three sub-data identifiers (id1, id2, id3), if the information processing apparatus receives sub-data identifiers id1 and id3, then it determines that the consumption increment sub-data d2 corresponding to the missing sub-data identifier id2 relative to the continuous state (id1, id2, id3) is abnormal sub-data, and the missing sub-data identifier id2 is an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, it can determine only the consumption increment sub-data d2 as abnormal sub-data; or, it can determine only the sub-data identifier id2 as an abnormal identifier.

[0115] Specifically, in one embodiment of this disclosure, if the sub-data identifier included in the last received consumption increment data is different from the last sub-data identifier included in the print job end instruction sent by the image forming apparatus, the missing sub-data identifier is determined to be an abnormal identifier, and / or the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the missing sub-data identifier is determined to be abnormal sub-data. The missing sub-data identifier includes the last sub-data identifier, or the last sub-data identifier and the missing sub-data identifier between the last sub-data identifier and the sub-data identifier included in the last received consumption increment data. It should be understood that this embodiment can be applied to the technical solutions of Method 1 or Method 2 described above, depending on the actual situation.

[0116] For example, if the last received consumption increment data includes a sub-data identifier id4, and the last sub-data identifier included in the print job end command sent by the image forming apparatus is id5, then the missing sub-data identifier id5 is determined to be an abnormal identifier, and the consumption increment sub-data d5 corresponding to the missing sub-data identifier id5 is also determined to be abnormal sub-data. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d5 can be determined to be abnormal sub-data; or, only the sub-data identifier id5 can be determined to be abnormal.

[0117] For example, if the last received consumption increment data includes sub-data identifier id3, and the last sub-data identifier included in the print job end command sent by the image forming apparatus is id5, then the missing sub-data identifiers id4 and id5 are determined to be abnormal identifiers, and the consumption increment sub-data d4 and d5 corresponding to the missing sub-data identifiers id4 and id5 are abnormal sub-data. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d4 and d5 can be determined to be abnormal sub-data; or, only the sub-data identifiers id4 and id5 can be determined to be abnormal identifiers.

[0118] Specifically, in one embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing device can determine that the missing sub-data identifier is an abnormal identifier based on whether the sub-data identifiers are continuous and based on the combination of the sub-data identifiers included in the last received consumption increment data and the last sub-data identifier included in the print task end instruction, and / or that the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the missing sub-data identifiers is abnormal sub-data. For example, during the execution of a print task by the image forming apparatus, the image forming apparatus sequentially sends multiple consumption increment sub-data d1, d2, d3, d4, d5 and their corresponding sub-data identifiers id1, id2, id3, id4, id5. The sub-data identifiers received consecutively by the information processing device are id1, id3, and id4, where id4 is the sub-data identifier of the last received consumption increment data, and the last sub-data identifier included in the print task end instruction sent by the image forming apparatus is id5. Therefore, the missing sub-data identifiers id2 and id5 are determined to be abnormal identifiers, and the consumption increment sub-data d2 and d5 corresponding to the missing sub-data identifiers id2 and id5 are abnormal sub-data. Alternatively, it is possible to identify only the consumption increment sub-data d2 and d5 as anomalous sub-data; or, it is possible to identify only the sub-data identifiers id2 and id5 as anomalous identifiers.

[0119] Specifically, in one embodiment of this disclosure, if no consumption increment data is received within a predetermined receiving time range, the corresponding consumption increment sub-data is determined to be abnormal sub-data, and / or the corresponding sub-data identifier is determined to be an abnormal identifier. The predetermined receiving time range can be set according to actual circumstances.

[0120] If the image forming apparatus transmits the consumption increment sub-data in the manner described above, for example, if the information processing device can receive a write instruction from the image forming apparatus every predetermined reception time (e.g., 10 milliseconds), then correspondingly, the information processing device can receive one consumption increment sub-data every 10 milliseconds. If the predetermined reception time range is 10 milliseconds to 15 milliseconds, if no consumption increment sub-data is received after a 20-millisecond interval following the reception of consumption increment sub-data d1, then the consumption increment sub-data d2 that should have been received is considered lost, thereby determining that the corresponding consumption increment sub-data d2 is abnormal sub-data, and the corresponding sub-data identifier id2 is an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d2 can be determined to be abnormal sub-data; or, only the sub-data identifier id2 can be determined to be an abnormal identifier.

[0121] If the image forming apparatus sends the consumption increment sub-data in the manner described above (e.g., in the case of sending write instructions in groups and sequentially), the information processing device can receive one write instruction from the image forming apparatus every predetermined reception time (e.g., 10 milliseconds). Correspondingly, the information processing device can receive one consumption increment sub-data every 10 milliseconds, where the predetermined reception time range is 10 milliseconds to 15 milliseconds. In one embodiment of this disclosure, when the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and a group intra-sequence number identifier, if no consumption increment sub-data is received after a 20-millisecond interval following the reception of consumption increment sub-data d1, it is considered that the consumption increment sub-data d2 that should have been received has been lost, thereby determining that the corresponding consumption increment sub-data d2 is abnormal sub-data, and the corresponding sub-data identifier (Gid1, id2) is an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, it may be possible to determine only that the consumption increment sub-data d2 is abnormal sub-data; or, it may be possible to determine only that the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id2) is an abnormal identifier. In another embodiment of this disclosure, when the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier, if no consumption increment sub-data is received after a 20-millisecond interval following the receipt of consumption increment sub-data d1, then the consumption increment sub-data d2 that should have been received is considered lost, thereby determining that the corresponding consumption increment sub-data d2 is abnormal sub-data, and the corresponding sub-data identifier id2 is an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d2 can be determined to be abnormal sub-data; or, only the sub-data identifier id2 can be determined to be an abnormal identifier.

[0122] In one embodiment of this disclosure, if the image forming apparatus sends consumption increment sub-data in the manner described in the second method, when the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and an intra-group sequence number identifier, in the case that the group sequence number identifiers corresponding to multiple sub-data group identifiers are in a non-continuous state, it is determined that the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the missing group sequence number identifier relative to the continuous state is abnormal sub-data, and / or the sub-data identifier corresponding to the missing group sequence number identifier is abnormal identifier.

[0123] For example, the information processing device can continuously receive consumption increment sub-data groups and their corresponding sub-data group identifiers. If it sequentially receives the sub-data group identifiers of the first group and the third group, specifically, the sub-data group identifiers of the first group include (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id2), and (Gid1, id3), and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data groups include d1, d2, and d3; and the sub-data group identifiers of the third group include (Gid3, id1), (Gid3, id2), and (Gid3, id3), and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data groups include d7, d8, and d9, it can be determined that the sequentially received sub-data group identifiers are... If the corresponding group sequence identifiers Gid1 and Gid3 are in a non-continuous state, then the missing group sequence identifier relative to the continuous state is determined to be Gid2. This means that the sub-data group identifiers of the second group are missing, including (Gid2, id1), (Gid2, id2), and (Gid2, id3). The corresponding consumption increment sub-data groups include d4, d5, and d6. Therefore, it can be determined that the consumption increment sub-data d4, d5, and d6 corresponding to the missing group sequence identifier Gid2 are abnormal sub-data, and the sub-data identifiers (Gid2, id1), (Gid2, id2), and (Gid2, id3) corresponding to the missing group sequence identifier are abnormal identifiers. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d4, d5, and d6 can be determined as abnormal sub-data; or, only the sub-data identifiers (Gid2, id1), (Gid2, id2), and (Gid2, id3) can be determined as abnormal identifiers.

[0124] In one embodiment of this disclosure, if the image forming apparatus sends consumption increment sub-data in the manner described in the second method, when the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and an intra-group sequence number identifier, if the group sequence number identifier of the last received sub-data identifier is different from the last group sequence number identifier included in the print job end instruction sent by the image forming apparatus, it is determined that the sub-data identifier corresponding to the missing group sequence number identifier is an abnormal identifier, and / or the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the missing group sequence number identifier is abnormal sub-data, wherein the missing group sequence number identifier includes the last group sequence number identifier, or the last group sequence number identifier and the missing group sequence number identifier between the last group sequence number identifier and the group sequence number identifier of the last received sub-data identifier.

[0125] In one embodiment of this disclosure, if a set of sub-data group identifiers includes three sub-data identifiers, and the image forming apparatus sends three sets of sub-data group identifiers and corresponding consumption increment sub-data groups, specifically, the first set of sub-data group identifiers includes (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id2), and (Gid1, id3), and the corresponding first set of consumption increment sub-data groups includes d1, d2, and d3; the second set of sub-data group identifiers includes (Gid2, id1), (Gid2, id2), and (Gid2, id3), and the corresponding second set of consumption increment sub-data groups includes d4, d5, and d6; the third set of sub-data group identifiers includes (Gid3, id1), (Gid3, id2), and (Gid3, id3), and the corresponding third set of consumption increment sub-data groups includes d7, d8, and d9. For example, if the group sequence identifier of the last received sub-data identifier is Gid2, and the last group sequence identifier included in the print job end command sent by the image forming apparatus is Gid3, then the sub-data identifiers (Gid3, id1), (Gid3, id2), and (Gid3, id3) corresponding to the missing group sequence identifier Gid3 are determined to be abnormal identifiers, and the consumption increment sub-data d7, d8, and d9 corresponding to the missing group sequence identifier Gid3 are determined to be abnormal sub-data. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d7, d8, and d9 can be determined to be abnormal sub-data; or, only the sub-data identifiers (Gid3, id1), (Gid3, id2), and (Gid3, id3) corresponding to the missing group sequence identifier Gid3 can be determined to be abnormal identifiers. For example, if the last received sub-data identifier has a group sequence number identifier of Gid1, and the last group sequence number identifier included in the print job end instruction sent by the image forming apparatus is Gid3, then the missing group sequence number identifiers are determined to be Gid2 and Gid3. Therefore, the sub-data identifiers (Gid2, id1), (Gid2, id2), and (Gid2, id3) corresponding to the group sequence number identifier Gid2 are determined to be abnormal identifiers, and the sub-data identifiers (Gid3, id1), (Gid3, id2), and (Gid3, id3) corresponding to the group sequence number identifier Gid3 are determined to be abnormal identifiers. The consumption increment sub-data d4, d5, and d6 corresponding to the missing group sequence number identifier Gid2 are determined to be abnormal sub-data, and the consumption increment sub-data d7, d8, and d9 corresponding to the missing group sequence number identifier Gid3 are determined to be abnormal sub-data. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d4, d5, d6, d7, d8, and d9 can be identified as anomalous sub-data; or, only the sub-data identifiers (Gid2, id1), (Gid2, id2), (Gid2, id3), (Gid3, id1), (Gid3, id2), and (Gid3, id3) can be identified as anomalous identifiers.

[0126] In one embodiment of this disclosure, when a sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and an intra-group sequence number identifier, the sub-data identifier that does not meet the preset intra-group sequence number identifier rule is determined as an abnormal identifier.

[0127] When the image forming apparatus sends the consumed incremental sub-data and the corresponding sub-data identifier in the manner described above, the abnormal identifier can be determined based on the situation where the intra-group sequence identifier is lost or the intra-group sequence identifier is incorrect.

[0128] In one embodiment of this disclosure, if the preset intra-group sequence number identifier rule specifies that the intra-group sequence number identifiers in a group of sub-data group identifiers include id1, id2, id3, id4, and id5, and for a group of sub-data group identifiers with group sequence number identifier Gid1, the sub-data group identifiers include (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id3), (Gid1, id4), and (Gid1, id5), if some intra-group sequence number identifiers are missing, for example, if the received sub-data identifiers are (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id4), (Gid1, id1), and (Gid1, id5), then it is determined that the missing intra-group sequence number identifier is id3. The intra-group sequence number identifier id3 does not satisfy the preset intra-group sequence number identifier rule, and its corresponding sub-data identifier (Gid1, id3) is determined to not satisfy the preset intra-group sequence number identifier rule, and the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id3) is determined to be an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, if an error occurs in the group sequence identifier, for example, if the received sub-data identifier is (Gid1, id6), the sub-data identifiers (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id3), (Gid1, id4), and (Gid1, id5) that do not meet the preset group sequence identifier rules will be identified as abnormal identifiers. Alternatively, if the received sub-data identifiers are (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id3), (Gid1, id4), and (Gid1, id6), the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id5) that does not meet the preset group sequence identifier rules will be identified as an abnormal identifier.

[0129] Furthermore, for a group of sub-data group identifiers with group sequence number identifier Gid1, including (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id3), (Gid1, id4), and (Gid1, id5), the preset intra-group sequence number identifier rule stipulates that the intra-group sequence number identifiers in a group of sub-data group identifiers include id1, id2, id3, id4, and id5. For example, if the sub-data identifiers received by the information processing device are (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id4), (Gid1, id1), and (Gid1, id5), then the missing intra-group sequence number identifier is determined to be id3, and the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id3) is determined to be an abnormal identifier. If the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id3) is d3, then the consumption increment sub-data d3 can be determined to be abnormal sub-data.

[0130] In another embodiment of this disclosure, the sub-data identifier corresponding to the preset identifier that is different from the in-group sequence identifier corresponding to the sub-data group identifier in the preset identifier set is determined as an abnormal identifier. The preset identifier set includes a preset number of preset identifiers.

[0131] For example, when a sub-data identifier includes both a group sequence number identifier and an intra-group sequence number identifier, if the preset identifier set is {id1, id2, id3, id4, id5}, which contains five preset identifiers, the corresponding intra-group sequence number identifiers are determined to be id1, id2, id3, id4, and id5 based on this preset identifier set. For a sub-data group identifier with group sequence number identifier Gid1, if the received sub-data identifiers are (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id4), (Gid1, id1), and (Gid1, id5), then it is determined that id3 is not in the preset identifier set. The sub-data identifier (Gid1, id3) corresponding to the preset identifier id3, which is different from the intra-group sequence number identifier of the sub-data group identifier, is determined to be an abnormal identifier; that is, (Gid1, id3) is an abnormal identifier. It can be understood that if the information processing device receives a sub-data group identifier whose corresponding intra-group sequence number identifier is not in the preset identifier set, then the corresponding sub-data identifier can be determined to be an abnormal identifier.

[0132] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id3) is determined as an abnormal identifier. If the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id3) is d3, the consumption increment sub-data d3 can be determined as an abnormal sub-data.

[0133] In one embodiment of this disclosure, after determining that the indicator consumption increment sub-data is normal or abnormal sub-data, and / or the sub-data identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data is normal or abnormal, the information processing device determines the cumulative consumption increment data of the consumable materials corresponding to the printing task based on one or more consumption increment sub-data that are normal sub-data, or determines the cumulative consumption increment data of the consumable materials corresponding to the printing task based on one or more consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the sub-data identifier that are normal identifiers. Specifically, the cumulative consumption increment data can be determined by accumulating the consumption amount indicated by the above-mentioned consumption increment sub-data.

[0134] In one embodiment of this disclosure, in the process of determining the cumulative consumption increment data by accumulation, the information processing device may perform accumulation processing as soon as it receives a consumption increment sub-data that meets the accumulation conditions, or the information processing device may perform accumulation processing on all consumption increment sub-data that meet the accumulation conditions after the printing task is completed.

[0135] In another embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing device may perform accumulation processing after receiving each set of consumption increment sub-data that meets the accumulation conditions.

[0136] In one embodiment of this disclosure, if the information processing device receives consumption correction data, and the accumulation condition is met, it can determine the corrected cumulative consumption increment data based on the consumption correction data. That is, the above process also belongs to the process of determining the cumulative consumption increment data.

[0137] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the consumption increment status data can also be determined in other ways. Specifically, the consumption increment status data includes anomaly indication information indicating that the consumption increment sub-data is abnormal sub-data. The anomaly indication information corresponds to the sub-data identifier of the consumption increment sub-data that is not added to the cumulative consumption increment data. In other words, the anomaly indication information can be determined based on the sub-data identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that is not added to the cumulative consumption increment data. In this case, the consumption increment sub-data that is not added to the cumulative consumption increment data may be the consumption increment sub-data that the information processing device determines as abnormal sub-data based on one or more of the judgment conditions mentioned above, such as the consumption amount indicated by the consumption increment sub-data, the sub-data identifier, and the reception time of the consumption information.

[0138] Alternatively, consumption increment sub-data that is not added to the cumulative consumption increment data may also be consumption increment sub-data that, although satisfying one or more of the judgment conditions mentioned above based on consumption amount indicated by consumption increment sub-data, sub-data identifier, and reception time of consumption information, is not added to the cumulative consumption increment data by the information processing device. For example, under certain communication conditions, communication between the image forming apparatus and the information processing device may be unreliable. In order to improve the reliability of data synchronization, the information processing device may, based on the communication conditions with the image forming apparatus, consider the current communication unreliable, and therefore consider the consumption increment sub-data received under such communication conditions to be unreliable, and thus not add it to the cumulative consumption increment data.

[0139] After determining the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumable materials corresponding to the printing task in step S402, the process proceeds to step S403.

[0140] In step S403, the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data are sent to the image forming apparatus.

[0141] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing device can send cumulative consumption increment data, or consumption increment status data, or both cumulative consumption increment data and consumption increment status data to the image forming apparatus. When the information processing device sends cumulative consumption increment data to the image forming apparatus, this cumulative consumption increment data can be cumulative consumption increment data corrected based on consumption correction data, or it can be uncorrected cumulative consumption increment data. For example, if there are no abnormalities during the synchronization of consumption increment data, only the cumulative consumption increment data determined based on all consumption increment sub-data in the consumption increment data needs to be sent to the image forming apparatus. Conversely, if there are abnormalities during the synchronization of consumption increment data, the cumulative consumption increment data determined based on the normal consumption increment sub-data in the consumption increment data can be sent to the image forming apparatus first, and then the cumulative consumption increment data corrected based on the consumption correction data can be sent to the image forming apparatus. It is understood that by actively sending consumption increment status data to the image forming apparatus, the information processing device can provide feedback on abnormalities during the synchronization of consumption increment data corresponding to the printing task, allowing the image forming apparatus to promptly detect abnormalities and take appropriate corrective actions to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the data corresponding to the printing task.

[0142] As will be further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings, sending cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data to the image forming apparatus will further generate consumable status information by the image forming apparatus. This facilitates the image processing apparatus in determining that the information processing apparatus or the consumables corresponding to the information processing apparatus do not meet expectations, and facilitates the information processing apparatus in correcting the synchronization data. The consumable status information includes one or more of normal information, abnormal information, or consumption correction data. Normal information indicates that the information processing apparatus or the consumables corresponding to the information processing apparatus meet expectations; abnormal information indicates that the information processing apparatus or the consumables corresponding to the information processing apparatus do not meet expectations; and consumption correction data is determined based on consumption increment sub-data as abnormal sub-data, and / or based on consumption increment sub-data corresponding to a sub-data identifier as an abnormal identifier. The specific form of the sub-data identifier can be numbers, letters, or other forms of identifiers, as long as they can identify the corresponding consumption increment sub-data. This application embodiment does not impose specific limitations.

[0143] In some embodiments of this disclosure, after the information processing device determines the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data, it can directly feed back the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data to the image forming apparatus; or it can feed back the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data to the image forming apparatus in response to the instruction of the image forming apparatus.

[0144] In some embodiments of this disclosure, the information processing device determines the number of abnormal data based on the consumption increment state data and sends the number of abnormal data to the image forming device. The number of abnormal data is determined based on abnormal identifiers and / or abnormal sub-data. Specifically, after the information processing device determines the consumption increment state data, it can calculate the corresponding number of abnormal data. For example, the number of abnormal data can be obtained by counting the number of sub-data identifiers that serve as abnormal identifiers; this number of abnormal data can represent the number of abnormal identifiers. Alternatively, the number of abnormal data can be obtained by counting the number of consumption increment sub-data that serve as abnormal sub-data; this number of abnormal data can represent the number of abnormal sub-data. In one embodiment, if both the number of abnormal identifiers and the number of abnormal identifiers are calculated, either one can be arbitrarily selected as the number of abnormal data.

[0145] The number of abnormal data points is used by the image forming apparatus to determine whether the proportion of abnormal data exceeds a predetermined threshold. Specifically, after the information processing device sends the number of abnormal data points to the image forming apparatus, the image forming apparatus can determine the proportion of abnormal data. This proportion can be determined based on the number of abnormal data points and the total amount of incremental consumption sub-data sent by the image forming apparatus during the entire printing job, or based on the number of abnormal data points and the total amount of sub-data identifiers sent by the image forming apparatus during the entire printing job. Then, the image forming apparatus can determine whether the proportion of abnormal data exceeds the predetermined threshold, and further determine whether the information processing device or the consumables corresponding to the information processing device meet expectations.

[0146] In one embodiment of this disclosure, after determining the number of abnormal data based on the number of abnormal identifiers, the information processing device may send the number of abnormal data and the sub-data identifier corresponding to the abnormal identifier together to the image forming device, or it may send the number of abnormal data and the sub-data identifier corresponding to the abnormal identifier to the image forming device separately.

[0147] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the communication method applied to an information processing device further includes acquiring consumption correction data; and generating corrected cumulative consumption increment data based on the consumption correction data and the cumulative consumption increment data. Specifically, the consumption correction data can be determined based on consumption increment sub-data that serves as abnormal sub-data, and / or based on consumption increment sub-data corresponding to a sub-data identifier that serves as an abnormality identifier. It is understood that the consumption correction data can be determined based on consumption increment status data. When an abnormal situation exists during the synchronization of consumption increment data, the consumption correction data is mainly determined based on the consumption increment sub-data in the consumption increment status data that represents the abnormal state. The consumption correction data can correct the cumulative consumption increment data.

[0148] Specifically, in one embodiment of this disclosure, the consumption correction data may be correction data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that is an anomaly sub-data, and / or correction data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that is an anomaly identifier sub-data. That is, the consumption correction data consists of at least one correction data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data. For example, taking the consumption correction data as the correction data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that is an anomaly identifier sub-data, when the information processing device feeds back the sub-data identifier that is an anomaly identifier to the image forming device, the image forming device can feed back the corresponding consumption increment sub-data correction data to the information processing device based on the aforementioned sub-data identifier, that is, feed back the consumption correction data. It is understood that the consumption correction data fed back to the information processing device can be one or more.

[0149] In another embodiment of this disclosure, the consumption correction data may also be obtained by accumulating the correction data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that serves as the abnormal sub-data, or by accumulating the correction data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that serves as the abnormal identifier. That is, the consumption correction data is a sum of correction data corresponding to all consumption increment sub-data indicating abnormalities, and the correction data of the aforementioned consumption increment sub-data is the consumption amount corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data. For example, taking the consumption correction data as an example of accumulating the correction data of the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that serves as the abnormal identifier, when the information processing device feeds back the sub-data identifier that serves as the abnormal identifier to the image forming device, the image forming device can determine the correction data of the corresponding consumption increment sub-data based on the aforementioned sub-data identifier, accumulate all the correction data to obtain the consumption correction data, and then feed back the consumption correction data to the information processing device.

[0150] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the consumption increment status data sent by the information processing device to the image forming device may include consumption increment sub-data as an anomaly sub-data and its sub-data identifier. In another embodiment of this disclosure, the consumption increment status data sent by the information processing device to the image forming device may simply be a sub-data identifier as an anomaly identifier. The aforementioned anomaly identifier can indicate the corresponding consumption increment sub-data. By sending only the anomaly identifier, the data transmission volume can be effectively reduced, which is beneficial to improving communication efficiency. Based on this, the image forming device can obtain corresponding consumption correction data so that the information processing device can correct the accumulated consumption increment data.

[0151] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the consumption increment status data sent by the information processing device to the image forming device may include consumption increment sub-data as normal sub-data and its sub-data identifier. Based on this, the image forming device can determine consumption increment sub-data as abnormal sub-data and its sub-data identifier based on the aforementioned consumption increment sub-data. In another embodiment of this disclosure, the consumption increment status data sent by the information processing device to the image forming device may simply be a sub-data identifier as a normal identifier. Based on this, the image forming device can determine a sub-data identifier as an abnormal identifier based on the aforementioned sub-data identifier. Further, the image forming device can obtain corresponding consumption correction data so that the information processing device can correct the accumulated consumption increment data.

[0152] Understandably, the information processing device can proactively analyze abnormalities in data synchronization during the printing process and feed back the incremental consumption status data to the image forming device. This can improve the accuracy of consumable usage information and help ensure the normal operation of subsequent image forming jobs. Since the image forming device cannot determine the possible abnormalities in data synchronization after sending data, analyzing the abnormalities based on the data received by the information processing device can more accurately identify problems such as data loss and errors that occur during the synchronization process, thereby improving the reliability and accuracy of data synchronization.

[0153] Furthermore, in one embodiment of this disclosure, the consumption correction data is generated by the image forming apparatus based on the consumption increment status data sent by the information processing apparatus and then sent to the information processing apparatus. Alternatively, the consumption correction data may also be determined by the information processing apparatus based on previously stored or cached data.

[0154] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing device does not verify the received data during the printing process, but corrects the data after the printing task is completed to ensure the accuracy of the synchronized data of the information processing device. Unlike the method of receiving and verifying data during the printing process, the embodiment of this disclosure can greatly reduce the amount of data that needs to be verified, and can reduce communication overhead to a certain extent.

[0155] Above, refer to Figure 4 A communication method applied to an information processing apparatus according to embodiments of the present disclosure is described. According to the communication method applied to an information processing apparatus according to embodiments of the present disclosure, the information processing apparatus determines and feeds back to the image forming apparatus the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumable material corresponding to the printing task based on consumption increment data. This achieves timely and reliable synchronization of consumable material consumption information between the image forming apparatus and the information processing apparatus. This allows the image forming apparatus to determine whether the information processing apparatus or the corresponding consumable material meets expectations, facilitates user understanding of the consumable material status information, and helps improve the stability of printing operations.

[0156] Figure 5 This is a flowchart further illustrating a communication method applied to an information processing device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Specifically, the communication method includes the following steps.

[0157] In step S501, a print job completion instruction is received.

[0158] In the embodiments of this disclosure, the print task completion instruction is used to instruct the image forming apparatus to complete the print task. When the information processing apparatus receives the print task completion instruction, it can determine that the corresponding print task has been completed, which facilitates the execution of subsequent processing operations.

[0159] In step S502, based on the print task end instruction, the consumption increment status data of the consumable materials corresponding to the print task is obtained.

[0160] In embodiments of this disclosure, in response to a print job completion command, the information processing device can acquire incremental consumption status data of consumable materials corresponding to the print job. The incremental consumption status data is determined based on the incremental consumption data and is used to indicate whether the incremental consumption data is normal or abnormal, and / or whether the identifier corresponding to the incremental consumption data is a normal identifier or an abnormal identifier. The incremental consumption data is used to indicate the consumption information of consumable materials corresponding to the print job performed by the image forming apparatus. The consumption information can be one or more of the following: number of pages printed, print time, developer consumption (e.g., toner weight in grams; or toner dots in thousands of dots), and the rotation distance of the photosensitive drum.

[0161] It is important to understand that after a printing task is completed, the information processing device can acquire the consumption increment status data, promptly detect any abnormalities in data synchronization during the printing task, and proactively send the consumption increment status data to the image forming device. This allows the image forming device to report any abnormalities in the consumption increment data synchronization process corresponding to the printing task, enabling the image forming device to promptly identify the problems and take appropriate corrective actions to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the data corresponding to the printing task.

[0162] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing device may first acquire consumption increment data and, based on the consumption increment data, determine the consumption increment status data of the consumable materials corresponding to the printing task.

[0163] In one embodiment of this disclosure, when a printing task includes a printing job, the printing task is considered complete upon completion of the printing job, thereby generating a corresponding printing task end instruction.

[0164] In embodiments of this disclosure, acquiring data from the incremental consumption data may mean that the information processing device determines data from itself based on a specific acquisition method, or it may mean that the information processing device acquires data from the image forming apparatus.

[0165] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing device may first acquire the associated data of the consumption increment data, and then convert the consumption increment data based on the associated data of the consumption increment data to obtain the consumption increment data.

[0166] In the communication process between the information processing device and the image forming device, if the information processing device obtains consumption increment data from the image forming device, in one embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing device can directly read and parse the instructions received in real time from the image forming device to obtain the consumption increment data. In another embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing device can also cache the instructions received in real time from the image forming device, and then parse the cached instructions to obtain the consumption increment data. In yet another embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing device can also determine the consumption increment data based on business data under a specific business scenario, which can be obtained from the image forming device.

[0167] Taking the acquisition of consumption increment data from the image forming apparatus by the information processing apparatus as an example, in embodiments of this disclosure, the information processing apparatus, for example, refers to... Figure 1 , Figure 2A The described consumable chip 210, or Figure 2B The consumable chips 210 and 220 described, and the image forming apparatus, for example, refer to Figures 1 to 2B The image forming apparatus 100 described herein. In one embodiment of this disclosure, reference is made to... Figure 2A The structure shown indicates that acquiring consumption increment data from the image forming apparatus can, for example, mean that the consumable chip 210 receives consumption increment data from the image forming apparatus 100, which is electrically connected thereto, via a communication interface. In another embodiment of this disclosure, referring to... Figure 2B The structure shown, acquiring consumption increment data from the image forming apparatus, can also represent, for example, the second consumable chip 220 receiving consumption increment data from the image forming apparatus 100 via the first consumable chip 210. In this case, the first consumable chip 210 may be, for example, a consumable chip providing basic functions (e.g., communication functions), while the second consumable chip 220 may be, for example, a consumable chip performing a communication method according to an embodiment of this disclosure.

[0168] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the incremental consumption data includes at least one incremental consumption sub-data; or the incremental consumption data includes at least one set of incremental consumption sub-data groups, wherein a set of incremental consumption sub-data groups includes a predetermined number of incremental consumption sub-data.

[0169] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the incremental consumption data includes at least one incremental consumption sub-data and a corresponding sub-data identifier; or the incremental consumption data includes at least one set of incremental consumption sub-data groups and a corresponding sub-data group identifier, wherein a set of incremental consumption sub-data groups includes a predetermined number of incremental consumption sub-data items, the sub-data group identifier includes a predetermined number of sub-data identifiers, the sub-data identifier includes an intra-group sequence number identifier, or the sub-data identifier includes both a group sequence number identifier and an intra-group sequence number identifier. In this embodiment, the information processing device can acquire at least one incremental consumption sub-data and a corresponding sub-data identifier; or it can acquire at least one set of incremental consumption sub-data groups and a corresponding sub-data group identifier. Specifically, the information processing device can sequentially acquire each incremental consumption sub-data item and its corresponding sub-data identifier within the incremental consumption sub-data group.

[0170] It should be understood that the sub-data identifier can be in the form of numbers, letters or other forms of identifiers, as long as it can identify the corresponding consumption increment sub-data. This application embodiment does not impose specific restrictions.

[0171] In embodiments of this disclosure, the consumption increment sub-data can be used to indicate one or more of the following: consumption information corresponding to a predetermined number of printed pages (e.g., 10 pages), consumption information corresponding to a predetermined printing time (e.g., 60 seconds), consumption information corresponding to a predetermined amount of developer (e.g., toner weight in grams; or toner dots in thousands of dots), and consumption information corresponding to a predetermined photosensitive drum rotation distance (e.g., 4000 mm).

[0172] It is important to understand that there are several different ways to obtain incremental data, which will be discussed in more detail below.

[0173] In one embodiment of this disclosure, acquiring consumption increment data may include acquiring consumption increment data from the image forming apparatus. Specifically, when the consumption increment data includes at least one consumption increment sub-data and a corresponding sub-data identifier, the information processing apparatus can receive the consumption increment sub-data and the sub-data identifier from the image forming apparatus; or, when the consumption increment data includes at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups and a corresponding sub-data group identifier, the information processing apparatus can receive the consumption increment sub-data groups and the corresponding sub-data group identifiers from the image forming apparatus, that is, the information processing apparatus receives a predetermined number of consumption increment sub-data and a predetermined number of sub-data identifiers. It is understood that in this embodiment, the information processing apparatus can receive the consumption increment sub-data and the sub-data identifiers from the image forming apparatus.

[0174] In another embodiment of this disclosure, acquiring consumption increment data may include acquiring at least one consumption increment sub-data from the image forming apparatus and determining a sub-data identifier corresponding to each of the at least one consumption increment sub-data. Specifically, the information processing device may acquire the consumption increment sub-data from the image forming apparatus by receiving the consumption increment sub-data from the image forming apparatus; or the information processing device may determine the consumption increment sub-data from business data in a specific business scenario, which can be acquired from the image forming apparatus. Then, the sub-data identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data is determined based on the consumption increment sub-data acquired by the information processing device. Specifically, the information processing device may count the acquired at least one consumption increment sub-data and determine the sub-data identifier corresponding to each of the at least one consumption increment sub-data based on the counting result. For example, when the information processing device receives each consumption increment sub-data, it may count the data. Based on the first received consumption increment sub-data being counted as 1, the sub-data identifier corresponding to the first consumption increment sub-data is determined. Then, based on the second received consumption increment sub-data being counted as 2, the sub-data identifier corresponding to the second consumption increment sub-data is determined, and so on. Alternatively, the information processing device can also time the acquisition of at least one consumption increment sub-data, and determine the sub-data identifier corresponding to each consumption increment sub-data based on the timing result. For example, if one consumption increment sub-data can be received every 10 seconds, the information processing device can start timing after receiving the print task start command. When the first consumption increment sub-data is acquired within the preset time range of the 10th second, the corresponding timing result can be determined, thereby determining the sub-data identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data (e.g., it can be recorded as 1). As another example, if one consumption increment sub-data can be received every 10 seconds, the information processing device can determine its corresponding sub-data identifier (e.g., it can be recorded as 1) after receiving the first consumption increment sub-data and start timing. When the second consumption increment sub-data is acquired within the preset time range of the 10th second, the sub-data identifier corresponding to the second consumption increment sub-data can be determined (e.g., it can be recorded as 2).

[0175] In another embodiment of this disclosure, acquiring the consumption increment data may include acquiring at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups from the image forming apparatus, and determining a sub-data group identifier corresponding to each of the at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups. Specifically, the information processing device acquiring the consumption increment sub-data groups from the image forming apparatus may be that the information processing device receives the consumption increment sub-data groups from the image forming apparatus; alternatively, the information processing device may determine the consumption increment sub-data groups from business data in a specific business scenario, which can be acquired from the image forming apparatus. Then, based on the consumption increment sub-data groups acquired by the information processing device, a sub-data group identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data groups is determined.

[0176] Specifically, the information processing device can count the consumption increment sub-data in at least one set of acquired consumption increment sub-data groups, and determine the sub-data group identifier corresponding to each of the at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups based on the counting results. For example, if a set of consumption increment sub-data groups includes three consumption increment sub-data items, the information processing device can count each consumption increment sub-data item it receives. Based on the fact that the in-group sequence number identifier corresponding to the first received consumption increment sub-data item is counted as 1, the corresponding sub-data identifier is determined. Then, the counting continues for the next consumption increment sub-data item. When the third consumption increment sub-data item is received, its corresponding sub-data identifier can be determined, thereby determining the sub-data group identifier corresponding to the entire set of consumption increment sub-data groups (i.e., including the sub-data identifiers corresponding to all consumption increment sub-data items in the entire set of consumption increment sub-data groups). Alternatively, the information processing device can also time the consumption increment sub-data in at least one set of acquired consumption increment sub-data groups, and determine the sub-data group identifier corresponding to each of the at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups based on the timing results. For example, a set of consumption increment sub-data includes three consumption increment sub-data. If one consumption increment sub-data can be received every 10 seconds, the information processing device can start timing after receiving the print task start command. When the first consumption increment sub-data is acquired within the preset time range of 10 seconds, the corresponding timing result can be determined, thereby determining the sub-data identifier corresponding to that consumption increment sub-data. Timing continues. When the second consumption increment sub-data is acquired within the preset time range of 20 seconds, its corresponding sub-data identifier can be determined. When the third consumption increment sub-data is acquired within the preset time range of 30 seconds, its corresponding sub-data identifier can be determined. Then, the consumption of this set can be determined. The sub-data group identifier corresponding to the incremental sub-data group; for example, a set of consumption incremental sub-data groups includes 3 consumption incremental sub-data. If one consumption incremental sub-data can be received every 10 seconds, the information processing device can determine its corresponding sub-data identifier after receiving the first consumption incremental sub-data and start timing. When the second consumption incremental sub-data is obtained within the preset time range of the 10th second, the sub-data identifier corresponding to the second consumption incremental sub-data can be determined. When the third consumption incremental sub-data is obtained within the preset time range of the 20th second, the sub-data identifier corresponding to the third consumption incremental sub-data can be determined. Thus, the corresponding sub-data group identifier of this set of consumption incremental sub-data groups can be obtained.

[0177] In practical applications, image forming apparatuses can employ multiple different statistical methods to obtain varying consumption increment data for the same consumable to meet the business needs of different scenarios. For example, if the consumable is toner, in scenario 1, the image forming apparatus calculates toner consumption increment data 1; in scenario 2, it calculates toner consumption increment data 2. Both data are then sent to a processing unit, which may include an information processing unit. This unit can directly use consumption increment data 2 for business processing in scenario 2, or it can determine consumption increment data 2 based on consumption increment data 1 (consumption increment data 1 being one implementation of associated data with consumption increment data 2), and then use consumption increment data 2 for business processing in scenario 2.

[0178] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the consumption increment sub-data acquired by the information processing device can be determined based on the consumption information of consumable materials corresponding to a preset task quantity in the printing job. As mentioned above, the preset task quantity can be, for example, one or more of the following: a predetermined number of pages to print (e.g., 10 pages), a predetermined printing time (e.g., 60 seconds), a predetermined developer consumption (e.g., toner weight in grams; or toner dots in thousands of dots), and a predetermined photosensitive drum rotation distance. In other words, the consumption increment sub-data can at least indicate the consumption amount of consumable materials. The consumption increment sub-data includes the consumption increment sub-data of consumable materials in the printing job that is equal to or less than the preset task quantity. Specifically, if the preset task quantity is a predetermined number of pages to print (e.g., 10 pages), then the consumption increment sub-data can be the consumption amount of consumable materials corresponding to 10 pages, or the consumption amount of consumable materials corresponding to less than 10 pages.

[0179] In the embodiments of this disclosure, during the process of consuming material information synchronously between the image forming apparatus and the information processing apparatus, the image forming apparatus sends consumption increment sub-data to the information processing apparatus. The following will further describe different methods by which the image forming apparatus sends consumption increment sub-data.

[0180] Sending Method 1: Sending data one by one while consuming incremental sub-data

[0181] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus sends a consumption increment sub-data every time it performs a preset number of printing tasks.

[0182] Furthermore, the consumption increment data includes at least one consumption increment sub-data and a corresponding sub-data identifier. Taking the consumption increment data including two consumption increment sub-data and corresponding sub-data identifiers as an example, refer to Table 1, which shows the information of the consumption increment sub-data and sub-data identifiers included in the consumption increment data of one embodiment.

[0183] In Table 1, id1 and id2 are sub-data identifiers, and d1 and d2 are consumption increment sub-data, used to indicate the consumption amount of consumable materials. id1 is the sub-data identifier corresponding to d1, and id2 is the sub-data identifier corresponding to d2. In one embodiment of this disclosure, the aforementioned sub-data identifiers and corresponding consumption increment sub-data can be included in a single write instruction and sent to the information processing device. Specifically, the information processing device obtains consumption increment data from the image forming apparatus. The image forming apparatus can send two write instructions to the information processing device, each containing one consumption increment sub-data and a corresponding sub-data identifier. The information processing device can obtain the write instructions from the image forming apparatus and then determine the consumption increment sub-data and its corresponding sub-data identifier based on the write instructions. In another embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing device can first obtain the consumption increment sub-data from the image forming apparatus and then determine the corresponding sub-data identifier for the consumption increment sub-data based on a counting or timing method.

[0184] More specifically, the timing of when the image forming apparatus sends a consumption increment sub-data can be configured according to specific business needs. In one embodiment of this disclosure, the preset task quantity includes one preset sub-task quantity or a combination of multiple preset sub-task quantities. For example, if the preset task quantity is 10 pages, and the image forming apparatus needs to perform a total of 20 pages of printing, the image forming apparatus sends a consumption increment sub-data to the information processing device every 10 pages of printing. After completing the 20-page printing task, the image forming apparatus has cumulatively sent two consumption increment sub-data to the information processing device. As another example, if the preset task quantity is 10 pages and the printing time is 30 seconds, the image forming apparatus first performs the 10-page printing task, then sends the first consumption increment sub-data to the information processing device. After printing the remaining pages for 30 seconds, it sends the second consumption increment sub-data to the information processing device, and so on, until the entire printing task is completed.

[0185] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus can configure a strategy for sending incremental sub-data based on the total workload of the printing task. For example, if the total workload of the printing task is greater than or equal to a preset total workload threshold (e.g., a preset total workload threshold of 100 pages), the incremental sub-data can be sent once at a first preset sub-task interval (e.g., a preset sub-task interval of 10 pages, or a preset sub-task interval of 30 seconds). If the total workload of the printing task is less than the preset total workload threshold (e.g., a preset total workload threshold of 100 pages), the incremental sub-data can be sent once at a second preset sub-task interval (e.g., a preset sub-task interval of 5 pages, or a preset sub-task interval of 15 seconds).

[0186] In embodiments of this disclosure, the consumption increment sub-data includes: consumption increment sub-data of consumable materials in a printing task that is equal to or less than a preset task quantity. In one embodiment of this disclosure, if the total task quantity of a printing task is greater than or equal to a preset task quantity, for example, for a total task quantity of 105 pages, if the preset task quantity is set to 10 pages, the consumption increment data may include multiple consumption increment sub-data, and the information processing device can acquire the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the preset task quantity. For example, the consumption increment sub-data may refer to consumption increment sub-data d1, d2, ..., d10 of consumable materials equal to the preset task quantity, wherein each of the above consumption increment sub-data indicates the consumption amount of consumable materials corresponding to 10 pages. In addition, the consumption increment sub-data may also refer to consumption increment sub-data d11 of consumable materials corresponding to a printing task with a less than preset task quantity, wherein the consumption increment sub-data d11 indicates the consumption amount of consumable materials corresponding to 5 pages. Thus, the consumption increment sub-data d1, d2, ..., d11 indicate the consumption increment of consumable materials corresponding to a total of 105 pages. In another embodiment of this disclosure, if the total number of printing tasks is less than the preset number of tasks, for example, for a total number of 8 pages to be printed, if the preset number of tasks is set to 10 pages, the consumption increment data may include a consumption increment sub-data. In this case, the consumption increment sub-data refers to the consumption increment sub-data d1 of the consumable material corresponding to the printing task with a total number of printing tasks less than the preset number of tasks. Thus, the consumption increment sub-data d1 indicates the consumption amount of consumable material corresponding to a total of 8 pages.

[0187] Furthermore, if a printing task includes multiple print jobs and each print job has a small workload, the print jobs can be merged to meet the preset workload before sending the consumption increment sub-data. For example, taking the consumption increment sub-data sent every 10 pages as an example, print job 1 has a workload of 3 pages, print job 2 has a workload of 3 pages, and print job 3 has a workload of 5 pages; when print job 3 is executed, the preset workload of 10 pages is met, and a consumption increment sub-data (i.e., the consumption increment sub-data of consumable materials equal to the preset workload) is sent. When print job 3 is completed, the remaining consumption increment sub-data (i.e., the consumption increment sub-data of consumable materials less than the preset workload) is sent to synchronize the information to the information processing device.

[0188] In one embodiment of this disclosure, if a printing task includes multiple print jobs and each print job has a small workload, incremental consumption sub-data corresponding to each print job can be sent separately. For example, incremental consumption sub-data can be sent every 10 pages. For instance, if each print job is less than a preset workload, assuming print job 1 has 8 pages, print job 2 has 5 pages, and print job 3 has 4 pages, then executing print job 1, print job 2, and print job 3 can trigger incremental consumption sub-data (i.e., incremental consumption sub-data for materials less than the preset workload) once each. For example, if some print jobs have a workload greater than or equal to a preset task quantity, while others have a workload less than the preset task quantity, assuming print job 1 has a workload of 15, print job 2 has a workload of 10, and print job 3 has a workload of 4, then when executing print job 1, the image forming device can synchronize the consumption increment sub-data (including the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to pages 1-10 and 11-15) to the information processing device twice. When executing print job 2, the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to pages 10 of print job 2 can be directly synchronized to the information processing device. When executing print job 3, the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to pages 4 of print job 3 can be directly synchronized to the information processing device. In the above embodiment, determining the triggering time of consumption increment sub-data according to a single print job and a preset task quantity allows for more timely synchronization of consumption increment sub-data, further improving the reliability of synchronizing consumption information between the image forming device and the information processing device, and reducing the possibility of the information processing device failing to synchronize the latest consumption information in a timely manner due to abnormal factors such as power outages.

[0189] Alternatively, in one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus can configure the timing of sending a consumption increment sub-data based on the execution time of the print job. For example, at predetermined print time intervals (e.g., a predetermined print time of 60 seconds), a consumption increment sub-data of the actual print volume for the corresponding time period is sent to the information processing apparatus. Furthermore, if the print job includes multiple print jobs and the print time of each print job is less than the predetermined print time, the multiple print jobs can be merged, and the consumption increment sub-data can be sent only after the actual print time meets the predetermined print time.

[0190] In another embodiment of this disclosure, if a print job includes multiple print jobs and the printing time of some print jobs is less than the predetermined printing time, then the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the aforementioned partial print jobs can be sent separately. Specific sending examples can be found in the description of sending according to the predetermined number of pages printed, and will not be repeated here.

[0191] Similarly, in one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus can configure the timing of sending a consumption increment sub-data according to the developer consumption amount or the rotation distance of the photosensitive drum corresponding to the printing task.

[0192] It is important to note that regardless of whether the timing of sending a consumption increment sub-data is configured based on the predetermined number of pages to be printed, the predetermined printing time, the predetermined developer consumption, and / or the predetermined drum rotation distance, the consumption information of the consumable materials indicated by the consumption increment sub-data itself can be characterized in the same way. For example, when sending consumption increment sub-data according to the predetermined number of pages to be printed, the specific consumption information can be characterized by the page number information. The consumption information of the consumable materials indicated by the consumption increment sub-data itself can also be characterized in different ways. For example, when sending consumption increment sub-data according to the predetermined printing time, the specific consumption information can be characterized by the page number information; similarly, when sending consumption increment sub-data according to the predetermined number of pages to be printed, the specific consumption information can be characterized by the developer consumption. It is easy to understand that the combination of the timing of sending consumption increment sub-data and the method of representing the consumption information indicated by the consumption increment sub-data itself is not limited to the above, but includes any combination of the two.

[0193] Sending Method 2: Packet Sending Consuming Incremental Sub-Data

[0194] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus sends a set of consumption increment sub-data groups after performing multiple preset number of print jobs. During the sending of a set of consumption increment sub-data groups, the image forming apparatus may send a corresponding sub-data group identifier. A set of consumption increment sub-data groups includes a predetermined number of consumption increment sub-data items, and the sub-data group identifier includes a predetermined number of sub-data identifiers. The sub-data identifiers include either an intra-group sequence number identifier or both an intra-group sequence number identifier and an intra-group sequence number identifier. In other words, the image forming apparatus groups the consumption increment sub-data sent to the information processing device. As described above in the first method of sending consumption increment sub-data, the image forming apparatus may include the consumption increment sub-data and the sub-data identifier in a single write instruction and send it to the information processing device. It should be understood that, during the process of sending a set of consumption increment sub-data groups, the image forming apparatus can send multiple consumption increment sub-datas one by one to the information processing device in the manner described in the first method of sending consumption increment sub-data. Similarly, the sub-data identifier can be sent to the information processing device along with the consumption increment sub-data. When the image forming apparatus has finished sending a predetermined number of consumption increment sub-datas in a set of consumption increment sub-data groups and a predetermined number of sub-data identifiers in a set of sub-data group identifiers, the information processing device can obtain the corresponding set of consumption increment sub-data groups and sub-data group identifiers.

[0195] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the sub-data identifier includes an intra-group sequence identifier. For example, if every 3 consumption increment sub-data items and the corresponding 3 sub-data identifiers are grouped together, then the consumption increment sub-data group includes 3 consumption increment sub-data items, and the sub-data group identifier includes 3 sub-data identifiers. See Table 2, which shows the consumption increment data information of one embodiment. The consumption increment data includes two groups of consumption increment sub-data groups and the corresponding sub-data group identifiers.

[0196] In Table 2, the sub-data group identifiers corresponding to the first group (Group1) can include sub-data identifiers id1, id2, and id3. id1, id2, and id3 can also be understood as the intra-group sequence number identifiers corresponding to the first group of sub-data group identifiers. The consumption increment sub-data group corresponding to the first group can include consumption increment sub-data d1, d2, and d3. The sub-data group identifiers corresponding to the second group (Group2) can include sub-data identifiers id4, id5, and id6. id4, id5, and id6 can also be understood as the intra-group sequence number identifiers corresponding to the second group of sub-data group identifiers. The consumption increment sub-data group corresponding to the second group can include consumption increment sub-data d4, d5, and d6.

[0197] In another embodiment of this disclosure, the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence identifier and an intra-group sequence identifier. For example, if every 5 consumption increment sub-data items and the corresponding 5 sub-data identifiers are grouped together, then the consumption increment sub-data group includes 5 consumption increment sub-data items, and the sub-data group identifier includes 5 sub-data identifiers. See Table 3, which shows the consumption increment data information of an embodiment, which includes two groups of consumption increment sub-data groups and the corresponding sub-data group identifiers.

[0198] In Table 3, the group sequence identifier is an identifier that indicates the sub-data identifier in a group of sub-data group identifiers relative to the sub-data identifiers in other groups, such as Gid1 and Gid2. The intra-group sequence identifier is an identifier that indicates the sub-data identifier within a group relative to other sub-data identifiers, such as id1, id2, id3, id4, and id5. The intra-group sequence identifier is associated with the corresponding group sequence identifier. Specifically, the sub-data group identifiers corresponding to the first group (Group1) may include sub-data identifiers (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id3), (Gid1, id4), and (Gid1, id5), and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data groups may include consumption increment sub-data d1, d2, d3, d4, and d5; the sub-data group identifiers corresponding to the second group (Group2) may include sub-data identifiers (Gid2, id1), (Gid2, id2), (Gid2, id3), (Gid2, id4), and (Gid2, id5), and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data groups may include consumption increment sub-data d6, d7, d8, d9, and d10. In one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus can send the consumption increment sub-data and the corresponding sub-data identifier in each group of consumption increment sub-data to the information processing apparatus. For example, the image forming apparatus can send the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id1) and the consumption increment sub-data d1 together to the information processing apparatus. Specifically, the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id1) and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data d1 can be included in a write instruction and sent to the information processing apparatus. It should be understood that the sub-data identifiers in a group of sub-data group identifiers can be sent in the order of the group's sequence number identifiers. For example, the first group of sub-data group identifiers can be sent in the order of (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id3), (Gid1, id4), and (Gid1, id5). Alternatively, the sub-data identifiers in a group of sub-data group identifiers may not be sent in the order of the group's sequence identifiers, but may be sent in any random order, such as (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id4), (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id5), (Gid1, id3).

[0199] In another embodiment of this disclosure, the sub-data identifiers in a set of sub-data group identifiers may also be sent in a specific order, such as (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id3), (Gid1, id5), (Gid1, id7), (Gid1, id9).

[0200] It should be understood that the sending order of each sub-data identifier in the sub-data group identifier can be set according to actual needs, and this disclosure embodiment does not make specific limitations.

[0201] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus sequentially sends corresponding consumption increment sub-data according to the consumption information of consumable materials updated during the execution of the printing task. This can synchronize the consumption increment data to the information processing device, thereby realizing timely and reliable synchronization of consumable material consumption information between the image forming apparatus and the information processing device.

[0202] More specifically, in one embodiment of this disclosure, the sub-data identifier and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data can be included in a single write instruction, following a sending strategy of sending one write instruction every 10 pages, with 5 instructions sent per group. If the total print job is less than 50 pages, 5 instructions are still sent. For example, if the total print job is 40 pages, the insufficient portion (i.e., the 5th instruction) of the consumption increment sub-data can be filled with 0, and the sub-data identifier will also be sent together. Specifically, when the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and a group intra-sequence number identifier, the 5th write instruction can include the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id5) and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data d5, where Gid1 is the group sequence number identifier, id5 is the group intra-sequence number identifier, and d5 indicates a consumption of 0. Similarly, if the total print job is 45 pages, the corresponding consumption increment sub-data d5 indicates a consumption of 5 pages. In the above embodiments, it can be guaranteed that a group of consumption increment sub-data includes a predetermined number of consumption increment sub-data entries. During the execution of a printing task, the image forming apparatus can send consumption increment sub-data and corresponding sub-data identifiers to the information processing apparatus one by one. For example, when the total printing task is 140 pages, following the rule of sending one write instruction (including sub-data identifier and consumption increment sub-data) every 10 pages, with 5 instructions sent in each group, the first group can send the write instructions corresponding to pages 1-50. For example, the 5 write instructions sent sequentially in the first group can include (Gid1, id2, d2), (Gid1, id4, d4), (Gid1, id1, d1), (Gid1, id5, d5), and (Gid1, id3, d3), where d2, d4, d1, d5, and d3 correspond to the consumption of pages 1-10, 11-20, 21-30, 31-40, and 41-50, respectively. Similarly, the second group... Write commands corresponding to pages 51-100 can be sent. For example, the second group of 5 sequentially sent write commands may include (Gid2, id3, d3), (Gid2, id4, d4), (Gid2, id1, d1), (Gid2, id5, d5), and (Gid2, id2, d2). The third group can send write commands corresponding to pages 101-140. For example, the third group of 5 sequentially sent write commands may include (Gid3, id1, d1), (Gid3, id4, d4), (Gid3, id3, d3), (Gid3, id5, d5), and (Gid3, id2, d2). The fifth write command in the third group contains the consumption increment sub-data d2, indicating a consumption of 0 pages. It should be noted that in the example shown in this embodiment, the sub-data identifiers in a group of sub-data identifiers can be sent out of order, and the order of sending the consumption increment sub-data follows the order of the actual consumption of consumable materials in the printing task.

[0203] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the write instruction may include not only the consumed incremental sub-data and the corresponding sub-data identifier, but also other information such as the target address. The target address is used to identify the address of the target slave device (e.g., the target information processing device) for communication.

[0204] In one embodiment of this disclosure, after receiving the consumed incremental sub-data and the sub-data identifier, the information processing device can store the consumed incremental sub-data and the sub-data identifier. When the image forming apparatus completes the transmission of a set of consumed incremental sub-data groups, it can send a set of completion flags, thereby enabling the information processing device to determine that the transmission of the set of consumed incremental sub-data groups has been completed and to determine whether the data it has received is complete. Specifically, the information processing device can determine whether the data it has received is complete by judging the number of sub-data identifiers and the number of consumed incremental sub-data.

[0205] In one embodiment of this disclosure, similar to the embodiment described above that sends one write instruction every 10 pages, the image forming apparatus may also send one write instruction every 10 seconds, with 5 instructions sent per group. If the total printing time for the print job is less than 50 seconds, 5 instructions are still sent. For example, if the total printing time for the print job is 40 seconds, the insufficient portion (i.e., the 5th instruction) of the consumption increment sub-data is filled with 0, and the sub-data identifier is also sent together. Specifically, when the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and a group intra-sequence number identifier, the 5th write instruction may include the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id5) and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data d5, where Gid1 is the group sequence number identifier, id5 is the group intra-sequence number identifier, and d5 indicates a consumption of 0. Similarly, if the total printing time for the print job is 45 seconds, the corresponding consumption increment sub-data d5 indicates the consumption for 5 seconds. During the execution of the printing job, the image forming apparatus can send the consumption increment sub-data and the corresponding sub-data identifier to the information processing apparatus one by one. For example, if the total printing time is 140 seconds, following the rule of sending one write command every 10 seconds, with each group sending 5 commands, the first group can send write commands corresponding to tasks from 1 to 50 seconds. For example, the 5 write commands sent sequentially in the first group could include (Gid1, id2, d2), (Gid1, id4, d4), (Gid1, id1, d1), (Gid1, id5, d5), and (Gid1, id3, d3), where d2, d4, d1, d5, and d3 correspond to the consumption time of 1-10 seconds, 11-20 seconds, 21-30 seconds, 31-40 seconds, and 41-50 seconds, respectively. Similarly, the second group can send 51- The write commands corresponding to a 100-second task, for example, the 5 write commands sent sequentially in the second group can include (Gid2, id3, d3), (Gid2, id4, d4), (Gid2, id1, d1), (Gid2, id5, d5), (Gid2, id2, d2). The third group can send write commands corresponding to tasks from 101 to 140 seconds. For example, the 5 write commands sent sequentially in the third group can include (Gid3, id1, d1), (Gid3, id4, d4), (Gid3, id3, d3), (Gid3, id5, d5), (Gid3, id2, d2). The fifth write command in the third group contains the consumption increment sub-data d2, indicating that the consumption is 0.

[0206] It is important to understand that the step of determining the incremental consumption status data of consumable materials corresponding to a printing task based on the incremental consumption data, as described above, can be performed either before or after receiving the printing task completion instruction. Once the information processing device receives the printing task completion instruction, it can acquire all the incremental consumption status data corresponding to that printing task.

[0207] Regarding the method by which the information processing device determines the consumption increment status data, in one embodiment of this disclosure, when the image forming apparatus sends the consumption increment sub-data in the manner described in Method 1 or Method 2, the information processing device determines the consumption increment status data based on one or more of the consumption amount indicated by the consumption increment sub-data, the sub-data identifier, and the reception time of the consumption increment data. The consumption increment status data is used to indicate whether the consumption increment sub-data is normal sub-data or abnormal sub-data, and / or whether the sub-data identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data is a normal identifier or an abnormal identifier.

[0208] Specifically, in one embodiment of this disclosure, if the consumption amount indicated by the consumption increment sub-data is not within a predetermined consumption range, the consumption increment sub-data is determined to be abnormal sub-data, and / or the sub-data identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data is determined to be an abnormal identifier. The predetermined consumption range can be set according to actual circumstances.

[0209] If the image forming apparatus transmits consumption increment sub-data in the above-described transmission method one, for example, if the sub-data identifier is id2, the corresponding consumption increment sub-data is d2, and the predetermined consumption range is the consumption range corresponding to a 10-page print job, if the consumption indicated by the consumption increment sub-data d2 is not within the predetermined consumption range, then the consumption increment sub-data id2 is determined to be abnormal sub-data, and the sub-data identifier id2 corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data d2 is determined to be an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d2 may be determined to be abnormal sub-data; or only the sub-data identifier id2 may be determined to be an abnormal identifier.

[0210] For example, if the sub-data identifier is id3, the corresponding consumption increment sub-data is d3, and the predetermined consumption range is the consumption range corresponding to a 10-second print task, if the consumption increment sub-data d3 indicates a consumption range outside the predetermined consumption range, then the consumption increment sub-data d3 is determined to be an abnormal sub-data, and the sub-data identifier id3 corresponding to consumption increment sub-data d3 is also determined to be an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d3 can be determined to be an abnormal sub-data; or, only the sub-data identifier id3 can be determined to be an abnormal identifier.

[0211] If the image forming apparatus sends the consumption increment sub-data in the manner described in Method 2 above. In one embodiment of this disclosure, when the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and a group sequence number identifier, for example, for consumption increment sub-data d2 and sub-data identifier (Gid1, id2); if the predetermined consumption range corresponds to the consumption range of a 10-page print job, and if the consumption indicated by consumption increment sub-data d2 is not within the predetermined consumption range, then consumption increment sub-data d2 is determined to be abnormal sub-data, and the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id2) corresponding to consumption increment sub-data d2 is determined to be an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, only consumption increment sub-data d2 may be determined to be abnormal sub-data; or, only sub-data identifier (Gid1, id2) may be determined to be an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, when the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier, for example, for consumption increment sub-data d2 and sub-data identifier id2; if the consumption amount indicated by consumption increment sub-data d2 is not within the predetermined consumption range, then consumption increment sub-data d2 is determined to be abnormal sub-data, and the sub-data identifier id2 corresponding to consumption increment sub-data d2 is determined to be an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, only consumption increment sub-data d2 may be determined to be abnormal sub-data; or only sub-data identifier id2 may be determined to be an abnormal identifier.

[0212] In another embodiment of this disclosure, when the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and a group-internal sequence number identifier, for the consumption increment sub-data d3 and the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id3); if the predetermined consumption range corresponds to the consumption range of a 10-second print job, and the consumption indicated by the consumption increment sub-data d3 is not within the predetermined consumption range, then the consumption increment sub-data d3 is determined to be an abnormal sub-data, and the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id3) corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data d3 is an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d3 can be determined to be an abnormal sub-data; or only the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id3) can be determined to be an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, when the sub-data identifier includes a group-internal sequence number identifier, for example, for the consumption increment sub-data d2 and the sub-data identifier id2; if the consumption indicated by the consumption increment sub-data d2 is not within the predetermined consumption range, then the consumption increment sub-data d2 is determined to be an abnormal sub-data, and the sub-data identifier id2 corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data d2 is an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, it may be possible to identify only the consumption increment sub-data d2 as an anomalous sub-data; or, it may be possible to identify only the sub-data identifier id2 as an anomalous identifier.

[0213] In one embodiment of this disclosure, when multiple sub-data identifiers are in a non-continuous state, the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the sub-data identifiers missing from the continuous state is determined to be abnormal sub-data, and / or the missing sub-data identifier is determined to be an abnormal identifier.

[0214] For example, if the image forming apparatus sends consumption increment sub-data in the manner described above, and the information processing apparatus continuously receives the consumption increment sub-data and its corresponding sub-data identifiers, and if id1 and id3 are received sequentially, since multiple sub-data identifiers id1 and id3 are in a non-continuous state, the consumption increment sub-data d2 corresponding to the missing sub-data identifier id2 relative to the continuous state (id1, id2, id3) is determined to be abnormal sub-data, and the missing sub-data identifier id2 is determined to be an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d2 may be determined to be abnormal sub-data; or only the sub-data identifier id2 may be determined to be an abnormal identifier.

[0215] For example, if the image forming apparatus transmits consumption increment sub-data in the manner described in Method 2 above, the information processing apparatus can continuously receive consumption increment sub-data from a set of consumption increment sub-data groups and sub-data identifiers from a set of sub-data group identifiers. When the sub-data identifiers include in-group sequence identifiers, assuming one set of sub-data group identifiers includes three sub-data identifiers (id1, id2, id3), if the information processing apparatus receives sub-data identifiers id1 and id3, then it determines that the consumption increment sub-data d2 corresponding to the missing sub-data identifier id2 relative to the continuous state (id1, id2, id3) is abnormal sub-data, and the missing sub-data identifier id2 is an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, it can determine only the consumption increment sub-data d2 as abnormal sub-data; or, it can determine only the sub-data identifier id2 as an abnormal identifier.

[0216] Specifically, in one embodiment of this disclosure, if the sub-data identifier included in the last received consumption increment data is different from the last sub-data identifier included in the print job end instruction sent by the image forming apparatus, the missing sub-data identifier is determined to be an abnormal identifier, and / or the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the missing sub-data identifier is determined to be abnormal sub-data. The missing sub-data identifier includes the last sub-data identifier, or the last sub-data identifier and the missing sub-data identifier between the last sub-data identifier and the sub-data identifier included in the last received consumption increment data. It should be understood that this embodiment can be applied to the technical solutions of Method 1 or Method 2 described above, depending on the actual situation.

[0217] For example, if the last received consumption increment data includes a sub-data identifier id4, and the last sub-data identifier included in the print job end command sent by the image forming apparatus is id5, then the missing sub-data identifier id5 is determined to be an abnormal identifier, and the consumption increment sub-data d5 corresponding to the missing sub-data identifier id5 is also determined to be abnormal sub-data. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d5 can be determined to be abnormal sub-data; or, only the sub-data identifier id5 can be determined to be abnormal.

[0218] For example, if the last received consumption increment data includes sub-data identifier id3, and the last sub-data identifier included in the print job end command sent by the image forming apparatus is id5, then the missing sub-data identifiers id4 and id5 are determined to be abnormal identifiers, and the consumption increment sub-data d4 and d5 corresponding to the missing sub-data identifiers id4 and id5 are abnormal sub-data. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d4 and d5 can be determined to be abnormal sub-data; or, only the sub-data identifiers id4 and id5 can be determined to be abnormal identifiers.

[0219] Specifically, in one embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing device can determine that the missing sub-data identifier is an abnormal identifier based on whether the sub-data identifiers are continuous and based on the combination of the sub-data identifiers included in the last received consumption increment data and the last sub-data identifier included in the print task end instruction, and / or that the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the missing sub-data identifiers is abnormal sub-data. For example, during the execution of a print task by the image forming apparatus, the image forming apparatus sequentially sends multiple consumption increment sub-data d1, d2, d3, d4, d5 and their corresponding sub-data identifiers id1, id2, id3, id4, id5. The sub-data identifiers received consecutively by the information processing device are id1, id3, and id4, where id4 is the sub-data identifier of the last received consumption increment data, and the last sub-data identifier included in the print task end instruction sent by the image forming apparatus is id5. Therefore, the missing sub-data identifiers id2 and id5 are determined to be abnormal identifiers, and the consumption increment sub-data d2 and d5 corresponding to the missing sub-data identifiers id2 and id5 are abnormal sub-data. Alternatively, it is possible to identify only the consumption increment sub-data d2 and d5 as anomalous sub-data; or, it is possible to identify only the sub-data identifiers id2 and id5 as anomalous identifiers.

[0220] Specifically, in one embodiment of this disclosure, if no consumption increment data is received within a predetermined receiving time range, the corresponding consumption increment sub-data is determined to be abnormal sub-data, and / or the corresponding sub-data identifier is determined to be an abnormal identifier. The predetermined receiving time range can be set according to actual circumstances.

[0221] If the image forming apparatus transmits the consumption increment sub-data in the manner described above, for example, if the information processing device can receive a write instruction from the image forming apparatus every predetermined reception time (e.g., 10 milliseconds), then correspondingly, the information processing device can receive one consumption increment sub-data every 10 milliseconds. If the predetermined reception time range is 10 milliseconds to 15 milliseconds, if no consumption increment sub-data is received after a 20-millisecond interval following the reception of consumption increment sub-data d1, then the consumption increment sub-data d2 that should have been received is considered lost, thereby determining that the corresponding consumption increment sub-data d2 is abnormal sub-data, and the corresponding sub-data identifier id2 is an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d2 can be determined to be abnormal sub-data; or, only the sub-data identifier id2 can be determined to be an abnormal identifier.

[0222] If the image forming apparatus sends the consumption increment sub-data in the manner described above (e.g., in the case of sending write instructions in groups and sequentially), the information processing device can receive one write instruction from the image forming apparatus every predetermined reception time (e.g., 10 milliseconds). Correspondingly, the information processing device can receive one consumption increment sub-data every 10 milliseconds, where the predetermined reception time range is 10 milliseconds to 15 milliseconds. In one embodiment of this disclosure, when the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and a group intra-sequence number identifier, if no consumption increment sub-data is received after a 20-millisecond interval following the reception of consumption increment sub-data d1, it is considered that the consumption increment sub-data d2 that should have been received has been lost, thereby determining that the corresponding consumption increment sub-data d2 is abnormal sub-data, and the corresponding sub-data identifier (Gid1, id2) is an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, it may be possible to determine only that the consumption increment sub-data d2 is abnormal sub-data; or, it may be possible to determine only that the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id2) is an abnormal identifier. In another embodiment of this disclosure, when the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier, if no consumption increment sub-data is received after a 20-millisecond interval following the receipt of consumption increment sub-data d1, then the consumption increment sub-data d2 that should have been received is considered lost, thereby determining that the corresponding consumption increment sub-data d2 is abnormal sub-data, and the corresponding sub-data identifier id2 is an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d2 can be determined to be abnormal sub-data; or, only the sub-data identifier id2 can be determined to be an abnormal identifier.

[0223] In one embodiment of this disclosure, if the image forming apparatus sends consumption increment sub-data in the manner described in the second method, when the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and an intra-group sequence number identifier, in the case that the group sequence number identifiers corresponding to multiple sub-data group identifiers are in a non-continuous state, it is determined that the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the missing group sequence number identifier relative to the continuous state is abnormal sub-data, and / or the sub-data identifier corresponding to the missing group sequence number identifier is abnormal identifier.

[0224] For example, the information processing device can continuously receive consumption increment sub-data groups and their corresponding sub-data group identifiers. If it sequentially receives the sub-data group identifiers of the first group and the third group, specifically, the sub-data group identifiers of the first group include (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id2), and (Gid1, id3), and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data groups include d1, d2, and d3; and the sub-data group identifiers of the third group include (Gid3, id1), (Gid3, id2), and (Gid3, id3), and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data groups include d7, d8, and d9, it can be determined that the sequentially received sub-data group identifiers are... If the corresponding group sequence identifiers Gid1 and Gid3 are in a non-continuous state, then the missing group sequence identifier relative to the continuous state is determined to be Gid2. This means that the sub-data group identifiers of the second group are missing, including (Gid2, id1), (Gid2, id2), and (Gid2, id3). The corresponding consumption increment sub-data groups include d4, d5, and d6. Therefore, it can be determined that the consumption increment sub-data d4, d5, and d6 corresponding to the missing group sequence identifier Gid2 are abnormal sub-data, and the sub-data identifiers (Gid2, id1), (Gid2, id2), and (Gid2, id3) corresponding to the missing group sequence identifier are abnormal identifiers. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d4, d5, and d6 can be determined as abnormal sub-data; or, only the sub-data identifiers (Gid2, id1), (Gid2, id2), and (Gid2, id3) can be determined as abnormal identifiers.

[0225] In one embodiment of this disclosure, if the image forming apparatus sends consumption increment sub-data in the manner described in the second method, when the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and an intra-group sequence number identifier, if the group sequence number identifier of the last received sub-data identifier is different from the last group sequence number identifier included in the print job end instruction sent by the image forming apparatus, it is determined that the sub-data identifier corresponding to the missing group sequence number identifier is an abnormal identifier, and / or the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the missing group sequence number identifier is abnormal sub-data, wherein the missing group sequence number identifier includes the last group sequence number identifier, or the last group sequence number identifier and the missing group sequence number identifier between the last group sequence number identifier and the group sequence number identifier of the last received sub-data identifier.

[0226] In one embodiment of this disclosure, if a set of sub-data group identifiers includes three sub-data identifiers, and the image forming apparatus sends three sets of sub-data group identifiers and corresponding consumption increment sub-data groups, specifically, the first set of sub-data group identifiers includes (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id2), and (Gid1, id3), and the corresponding first set of consumption increment sub-data groups includes d1, d2, and d3; the second set of sub-data group identifiers includes (Gid2, id1), (Gid2, id2), and (Gid2, id3), and the corresponding second set of consumption increment sub-data groups includes d4, d5, and d6; the third set of sub-data group identifiers includes (Gid3, id1), (Gid3, id2), and (Gid3, id3), and the corresponding third set of consumption increment sub-data groups includes d7, d8, and d9. For example, if the group sequence identifier of the last received sub-data identifier is Gid2, and the last group sequence identifier included in the print job end command sent by the image forming apparatus is Gid3, then the sub-data identifiers (Gid3, id1), (Gid3, id2), and (Gid3, id3) corresponding to the missing group sequence identifier Gid3 are determined to be abnormal identifiers, and the consumption increment sub-data d7, d8, and d9 corresponding to the missing group sequence identifier Gid3 are determined to be abnormal sub-data. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d7, d8, and d9 can be determined to be abnormal sub-data; or, only the sub-data identifiers (Gid3, id1), (Gid3, id2), and (Gid3, id3) corresponding to the missing group sequence identifier Gid3 can be determined to be abnormal identifiers. For example, if the last received sub-data identifier has a group sequence number identifier of Gid1, and the last group sequence number identifier included in the print job end instruction sent by the image forming apparatus is Gid3, then the missing group sequence number identifiers are determined to be Gid2 and Gid3. Therefore, the sub-data identifiers (Gid2, id1), (Gid2, id2), and (Gid2, id3) corresponding to the group sequence number identifier Gid2 are determined to be abnormal identifiers, and the sub-data identifiers (Gid3, id1), (Gid3, id2), and (Gid3, id3) corresponding to the group sequence number identifier Gid3 are determined to be abnormal identifiers. The consumption increment sub-data d4, d5, and d6 corresponding to the missing group sequence number identifier Gid2 are determined to be abnormal sub-data, and the consumption increment sub-data d7, d8, and d9 corresponding to the missing group sequence number identifier Gid3 are determined to be abnormal sub-data. Alternatively, only the consumption increment sub-data d4, d5, d6, d7, d8, and d9 can be identified as anomalous sub-data; or, only the sub-data identifiers (Gid2, id1), (Gid2, id2), (Gid2, id3), (Gid3, id1), (Gid3, id2), and (Gid3, id3) can be identified as anomalous identifiers.

[0227] In one embodiment of this disclosure, when a sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and an intra-group sequence number identifier, the sub-data identifier that does not meet the preset intra-group sequence number identifier rule is determined as an abnormal identifier.

[0228] When the image forming apparatus sends the consumed incremental sub-data and the corresponding sub-data identifier in the manner described above, the abnormal identifier can be determined based on the situation where the intra-group sequence identifier is lost or the intra-group sequence identifier is incorrect.

[0229] In one embodiment of this disclosure, if the preset intra-group sequence number identifier rule specifies that the intra-group sequence number identifiers in a group of sub-data group identifiers include id1, id2, id3, id4, and id5, and for a group of sub-data group identifiers with group sequence number identifier Gid1, the sub-data group identifiers include (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id3), (Gid1, id4), and (Gid1, id5), if some intra-group sequence number identifiers are missing, for example, if the received sub-data identifiers are (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id4), (Gid1, id1), and (Gid1, id5), then it is determined that the missing intra-group sequence number identifier is id3. The intra-group sequence number identifier id3 does not satisfy the preset intra-group sequence number identifier rule, and its corresponding sub-data identifier (Gid1, id3) is determined to not satisfy the preset intra-group sequence number identifier rule, and the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id3) is determined to be an abnormal identifier. Alternatively, if an error occurs in the group sequence identifier, for example, if the received sub-data identifier is (Gid1, id6), the sub-data identifiers (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id3), (Gid1, id4), and (Gid1, id5) that do not meet the preset group sequence identifier rules will be identified as abnormal identifiers. Alternatively, if the received sub-data identifiers are (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id3), (Gid1, id4), and (Gid1, id6), the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id5) that does not meet the preset group sequence identifier rules will be identified as an abnormal identifier.

[0230] Furthermore, for a group of sub-data group identifiers with group sequence number identifier Gid1, including (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id3), (Gid1, id4), and (Gid1, id5), the preset intra-group sequence number identifier rule stipulates that the intra-group sequence number identifiers in a group of sub-data group identifiers include id1, id2, id3, id4, and id5. For example, if the sub-data identifiers received by the information processing device are (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id4), (Gid1, id1), and (Gid1, id5), then the missing intra-group sequence number identifier is determined to be id3, and the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id3) is determined to be an abnormal identifier. If the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id3) is d3, then the consumption increment sub-data d3 can be determined to be abnormal sub-data.

[0231] In another embodiment of this disclosure, the sub-data identifier corresponding to the preset identifier that is different from the in-group sequence identifier corresponding to the sub-data group identifier in the preset identifier set is determined as an abnormal identifier. The preset identifier set includes a preset number of preset identifiers.

[0232] For example, when a sub-data identifier includes both a group sequence number identifier and an intra-group sequence number identifier, if the preset identifier set is {id1, id2, id3, id4, id5}, which contains five preset identifiers, the corresponding intra-group sequence number identifiers are determined to be id1, id2, id3, id4, and id5 based on this preset identifier set. For a sub-data group identifier with group sequence number identifier Gid1, if the received sub-data identifiers are (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id4), (Gid1, id1), and (Gid1, id5), then it is determined that id3 is not in the preset identifier set. The sub-data identifier (Gid1, id3) corresponding to the preset identifier id3, which is different from the intra-group sequence number identifier of the sub-data group identifier, is determined to be an abnormal identifier; that is, (Gid1, id3) is an abnormal identifier. It can be understood that if the information processing device receives a sub-data group identifier whose corresponding intra-group sequence number identifier is not in the preset identifier set, then the corresponding sub-data identifier can be determined to be an abnormal identifier.

[0233] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id3) is determined as an abnormal identifier. If the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id3) is d3, the consumption increment sub-data d3 can be determined as an abnormal sub-data.

[0234] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing device determines the cumulative incremental consumption data of consumable materials corresponding to a printing task based on the incremental consumption data. Specifically, after determining, as above, whether the indicator of incremental consumption data is normal or abnormal, and / or the sub-data identifier corresponding to the incremental consumption data is normal or abnormal, the information processing device determines the cumulative incremental consumption data of consumable materials corresponding to the printing task based on one or more incremental consumption data that are normal sub-data, or based on one or more incremental consumption data corresponding to the sub-data identifier that are normal identifiers. Specifically, the cumulative incremental consumption data can be determined by accumulating the consumption amounts indicated by the aforementioned incremental consumption data.

[0235] In one embodiment of this disclosure, in the process of determining the cumulative consumption increment data by accumulation, the information processing device may perform accumulation processing as soon as it receives a consumption increment sub-data that meets the accumulation conditions, or the information processing device may perform accumulation processing on all consumption increment sub-data that meet the accumulation conditions after the printing task is completed.

[0236] In another embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing device may perform accumulation processing after receiving each set of consumption increment sub-data that meets the accumulation conditions.

[0237] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the consumption increment status data can also be determined in other ways. Specifically, the consumption increment status data includes anomaly indication information indicating that the consumption increment sub-data is abnormal sub-data. The anomaly indication information corresponds to the sub-data identifier of the consumption increment sub-data that is not added to the cumulative consumption increment data. In other words, the anomaly indication information can be determined based on the sub-data identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that is not added to the cumulative consumption increment data. In this case, the consumption increment sub-data that is not added to the cumulative consumption increment data may be the consumption increment sub-data that the information processing device determines as abnormal sub-data based on one or more of the judgment conditions mentioned above, such as the consumption amount indicated by the consumption increment sub-data, the sub-data identifier, and the reception time of the consumption information.

[0238] Alternatively, consumption increment sub-data that is not added to the cumulative consumption increment data may also be consumption increment sub-data that, although satisfying one or more of the judgment conditions mentioned above based on consumption amount indicated by consumption increment sub-data, sub-data identifier, and reception time of consumption information, is not added to the cumulative consumption increment data by the information processing device. For example, under certain communication conditions, communication between the image forming apparatus and the information processing device may be unreliable. In order to improve the reliability of data synchronization, the information processing device may, based on the communication conditions with the image forming apparatus, consider the current communication unreliable, and therefore consider the consumption increment sub-data received under such communication conditions to be unreliable, and thus not add it to the cumulative consumption increment data.

[0239] In step S503, the consumption increment status data is sent to the image forming apparatus.

[0240] In one embodiment of this disclosure, after the information processing device obtains the consumption increment status data of the consumable material corresponding to the printing task, it can send the consumption increment status data to the image forming device.

[0241] In one embodiment of this disclosure, after the information processing device determines the cumulative consumption increment data of the consumable material corresponding to the printing task, it sends the cumulative consumption increment data to the image forming device.

[0242] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing device sends cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data to the image forming device, which is then used by the image forming device to generate consumable status information. This facilitates the image processing device in determining that the information processing device or the consumable corresponding to the information processing device does not meet expectations, and also facilitates the information processing device in correcting synchronization data. The consumable status information includes one or more of normal information, abnormal information, or consumption correction data. Normal information indicates that the information processing device or the consumable corresponding to the information processing device meets expectations; abnormal information indicates that the information processing device or the consumable corresponding to the information processing device does not meet expectations; and consumption correction data is determined based on consumption increment sub-data as abnormal sub-data, and / or based on consumption increment sub-data corresponding to a sub-data identifier that serves as an abnormal identifier.

[0243] In some embodiments of this disclosure, after the information processing device determines the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data, it can directly feed back the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data to the image forming apparatus; or it can feed back the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data to the image forming apparatus in response to the instruction of the image forming apparatus.

[0244] In some embodiments of this disclosure, the information processing device determines the number of abnormal data based on the consumption increment state data and sends the number of abnormal data to the image forming device. The number of abnormal data is determined based on abnormal identifiers and / or abnormal sub-data. Specifically, after the information processing device determines the consumption increment state data, it can calculate the corresponding number of abnormal data. For example, the number of abnormal data can be obtained by counting the number of sub-data identifiers that serve as abnormal identifiers; this number of abnormal data can represent the number of abnormal identifiers. Alternatively, the number of abnormal data can be obtained by counting the number of consumption increment sub-data that serve as abnormal sub-data; this number of abnormal data can represent the number of abnormal sub-data. In one embodiment, if both the number of abnormal identifiers and the number of abnormal identifiers are calculated, either one can be arbitrarily selected as the number of abnormal data.

[0245] The number of abnormal data points is used by the image forming apparatus to determine whether the proportion of abnormal data exceeds a predetermined threshold. Specifically, after the information processing device sends the number of abnormal data points to the image forming apparatus, the image forming apparatus can determine the proportion of abnormal data. This proportion can be determined based on the number of abnormal data points and the total amount of incremental consumption sub-data sent by the image forming apparatus during the entire printing job, or based on the number of abnormal data points and the total amount of sub-data identifiers sent by the image forming apparatus during the entire printing job. Then, the image forming apparatus can determine whether the proportion of abnormal data exceeds the predetermined threshold, and further determine whether the information processing device or the consumables corresponding to the information processing device meet expectations.

[0246] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the communication method applied to an information processing device further includes acquiring consumption correction data; and generating corrected cumulative consumption increment data based on the consumption correction data and cumulative consumption increment data. Specifically, the consumption correction data may be determined based on consumption increment sub-data that serves as anomaly sub-data, and / or based on consumption increment sub-data corresponding to a sub-data identifier that serves as anomaly identifier.

[0247] Specifically, in one embodiment of this disclosure, the consumption correction data may be correction data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that is an anomaly sub-data, and / or correction data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that is an anomaly identifier sub-data. That is, the consumption correction data consists of at least one correction data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data. For example, taking the consumption correction data as the correction data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that is an anomaly identifier sub-data, when the information processing device feeds back the sub-data identifier that is an anomaly identifier to the image forming device, the image forming device can feed back the corresponding consumption increment sub-data correction data to the information processing device based on the aforementioned sub-data identifier, that is, feed back the consumption correction data. It is understood that the consumption correction data fed back to the information processing device can be one or more.

[0248] In another embodiment of this disclosure, the consumption correction data may also be obtained by accumulating the correction data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that serves as the abnormal sub-data, or by accumulating the correction data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that serves as the abnormal identifier. That is, the consumption correction data is a sum of correction data corresponding to all consumption increment sub-data indicating abnormalities, and the correction data of the aforementioned consumption increment sub-data is the consumption amount corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data. For example, taking the consumption correction data as an example of accumulating the correction data of the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that serves as the abnormal identifier, when the information processing device feeds back the sub-data identifier that serves as the abnormal identifier to the image forming device, the image forming device can determine the correction data of the corresponding consumption increment sub-data based on the aforementioned sub-data identifier, accumulate all the correction data to obtain the consumption correction data, and then feed back the consumption correction data to the information processing device.

[0249] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the consumption increment status data sent by the information processing device to the image forming device may include consumption increment sub-data as an anomaly sub-data and its sub-data identifier. In another embodiment of this disclosure, the consumption increment status data sent by the information processing device to the image forming device may simply be a sub-data identifier as an anomaly identifier. Based on this, the image forming device can obtain corresponding consumption correction data so that the information processing device can correct the accumulated consumption increment data.

[0250] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the consumption increment status data sent by the information processing device to the image forming device may include consumption increment sub-data as normal sub-data and its sub-data identifier. Based on this, the image forming device can determine consumption increment sub-data as abnormal sub-data and its sub-data identifier based on the aforementioned consumption increment sub-data. In another embodiment of this disclosure, the consumption increment status data sent by the information processing device to the image forming device may simply be a sub-data identifier as a normal identifier. Based on this, the image forming device can determine a sub-data identifier as an abnormal identifier based on the aforementioned sub-data identifier. Further, the image forming device can obtain corresponding consumption correction data so that the information processing device can correct the accumulated consumption increment data.

[0251] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the information processing device does not verify the received data during the printing process, but corrects the data after the printing task is completed to ensure the accuracy of the synchronized data of the information processing device. Unlike the method of receiving and verifying data during the printing process, the embodiment of this disclosure can greatly reduce the amount of data that needs to be verified, and can reduce communication overhead to a certain extent.

[0252] Above, refer to Figure 5A communication method applied to an information processing apparatus according to embodiments of the present disclosure is described. According to the communication method applied to an information processing apparatus according to embodiments of the present disclosure, based on a print job completion instruction, the consumption increment status data of the consumable material corresponding to the print job is obtained. It can determine whether the consumption increment status data is normal, enabling the image forming apparatus to judge whether the information processing apparatus or the corresponding consumable material meets expectations. This facilitates the user's understanding of the consumable material's status information. Furthermore, it enables timely and reliable synchronization of consumable material consumption information between the image forming apparatus and the information processing apparatus, which is beneficial for improving the stability of the printing operation.

[0253] It is necessary to understand that Figure 5 The relevant embodiments and beneficial effects of the communication method applied to an information processing device according to the embodiments of this disclosure can be referred to. Figure 4 Embodiments and beneficial effects of a communication method applied to an information processing apparatus according to embodiments of the present disclosure are described.

[0254] Figure 6 This is a flowchart illustrating a communication method applied to an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Specifically, the communication method includes the following steps.

[0255] In step S601, the consumption increment data is sent to the information processing device.

[0256] In embodiments of this disclosure, the consumption increment data is used to indicate the consumption information of consumable materials corresponding to the image forming apparatus performing a printing task. The consumption information may be one or more of the following: number of pages printed, printing time, developer consumption (e.g., toner weight in grams; or toner dots in thousands), and the rotation distance of the photosensitive drum.

[0257] It should be understood that a print job according to embodiments of the present disclosure may include one or more print jobs. For example, when a print job includes multiple print jobs, the image forming apparatus may shut down the print engine after all print jobs are completed, or trigger the start and stop of the print engine once each print job is completed.

[0258] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the incremental consumption data includes at least one incremental consumption sub-data; or the incremental consumption data includes at least one set of incremental consumption sub-data groups, wherein a set of incremental consumption sub-data groups includes a predetermined number of incremental consumption sub-data.

[0259] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the incremental consumption data includes at least one incremental consumption sub-data and a corresponding sub-data identifier; or the incremental consumption data includes at least one group of incremental consumption sub-data and a corresponding sub-data group identifier, wherein a group of incremental consumption sub-data includes a predetermined number of incremental consumption sub-data, the sub-data group identifier includes a predetermined number of sub-data identifiers, the sub-data identifier includes an intra-group sequence number identifier, or the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and an intra-group sequence number identifier. In this embodiment, the image forming apparatus may transmit at least one incremental consumption sub-data and a corresponding sub-data identifier; or it may transmit at least one group of incremental consumption sub-data and a corresponding sub-data group identifier. Specifically, the image forming apparatus may sequentially transmit each incremental consumption sub-data and its corresponding sub-data identifier within the incremental consumption sub-data group.

[0260] In embodiments of this disclosure, the consumption increment sub-data can be used to indicate one or more of the following: consumption information corresponding to a predetermined number of printed pages (e.g., 10 pages), consumption information corresponding to a predetermined printing time (e.g., 60 seconds), consumption information corresponding to a predetermined amount of developer (e.g., toner weight in grams; or toner dots in thousands of dots), and consumption information corresponding to a predetermined photosensitive drum rotation distance (e.g., 4000 mm).

[0261] It is important to understand that there are several different ways to send incremental data, which will be discussed in more detail below.

[0262] In one embodiment of this disclosure, when the consumed incremental data includes at least one consumed incremental sub-data and a corresponding sub-data identifier, the image forming apparatus may send the consumed incremental sub-data and the sub-data identifier to the information processing apparatus; or, when the consumed incremental data includes at least one group of consumed incremental sub-data and a corresponding sub-data group identifier, the image forming apparatus may send the consumed incremental sub-data group and the corresponding sub-data group identifier, that is, the information processing apparatus receives a predetermined number of consumed incremental sub-data and a predetermined number of sub-data identifiers.

[0263] In another embodiment of this disclosure, when the consumption increment data includes at least one consumption increment sub-data, the image forming apparatus can send the consumption increment sub-data to the information processing apparatus. The information processing apparatus can receive the consumption increment sub-data and count the acquired at least one consumption increment sub-data, and determine the sub-data identifier corresponding to the at least one consumption increment sub-data based on the counting result. Alternatively, the information processing apparatus can also time the acquired at least one consumption increment sub-data and determine the sub-data identifier corresponding to the at least one consumption increment sub-data based on the timing result.

[0264] In another embodiment of this disclosure, when the incremental consumption data includes at least one set of incremental consumption sub-data, the image forming apparatus can send the incremental consumption sub-data set to the information processing apparatus. The information processing apparatus can receive the incremental consumption sub-data set and count the incremental consumption sub-data in the at least one set of incremental consumption sub-data sets, and determine the sub-data set identifier corresponding to the at least one set of incremental consumption sub-data sets based on the counting results. Alternatively, the information processing apparatus can also time the incremental consumption sub-data in the at least one set of incremental consumption sub-data sets, and determine the sub-data set identifier corresponding to the at least one set of incremental consumption sub-data sets based on the timing results.

[0265] In practical applications, image forming apparatuses can employ multiple different statistical methods to obtain varying consumption increment data for the same consumable to meet the business needs of different scenarios. For example, if the consumable is toner, in scenario 1, the image forming apparatus calculates toner consumption increment data 1; in scenario 2, it calculates toner consumption increment data 2. Both data are then sent to a processing unit, which may include an information processing unit. This unit can directly use consumption increment data 2 for business processing in scenario 2, or it can determine consumption increment data 2 based on consumption increment data 1 (consumption increment data 1 being one implementation of associated data with consumption increment data 2), and then use consumption increment data 2 for business processing in scenario 2.

[0266] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the consumption increment sub-data sent by the image forming apparatus can be determined based on the consumption information of consumable materials corresponding to a preset task quantity in the printing job. As mentioned above, the preset task quantity can be, for example, one or more of the following: a predetermined number of pages to print (e.g., 10 pages), a predetermined printing time (e.g., 60 seconds), a predetermined developer consumption (e.g., toner weight in grams; or toner dots in thousands of dots), and a predetermined photosensitive drum rotation distance. That is, the consumption increment sub-data can at least indicate the amount of consumable material consumed. The consumption increment sub-data includes the consumption increment sub-data of consumable materials in the printing job that is equal to or less than the preset task quantity. Specifically, if the preset task quantity is a predetermined number of pages to print (e.g., 10 pages), then the consumption increment sub-data can be the consumption amount of consumable materials corresponding to 10 pages, or the consumption amount of consumable materials corresponding to less than 10 pages.

[0267] In the embodiments of this disclosure, during the process of consuming material information synchronously between the image forming apparatus and the information processing apparatus, the image forming apparatus sends consumption increment sub-data to the information processing apparatus. The following will further describe different methods by which the image forming apparatus sends consumption increment sub-data.

[0268] Sending Method 1: Sending data one by one while consuming incremental sub-data

[0269] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus sends a consumption increment sub-data every time it performs a preset number of printing tasks.

[0270] Furthermore, the consumption increment data includes at least one consumption increment sub-data and a corresponding sub-data identifier. Taking the consumption increment data including two consumption increment sub-data and corresponding sub-data identifiers as an example, see Table 1, which shows the information of the consumption increment sub-data and sub-data identifiers included in the consumption increment data of one embodiment.

[0271] In Table 1, id1 and id2 are sub-data identifiers, and d1 and d2 are consumption increment sub-data, used to indicate the consumption amount of consumable materials. id1 is the sub-data identifier corresponding to d1, and id2 is the sub-data identifier corresponding to d2. In one embodiment of this disclosure, the aforementioned sub-data identifiers and corresponding consumption increment sub-data can be included in a single write instruction and sent to the information processing device. Specifically, the image forming apparatus sends consumption increment data to the information processing device. Specifically, the image forming apparatus can send two write instructions to the information processing device, each containing one consumption increment sub-data and a corresponding sub-data identifier. The information processing device can obtain the write instructions from the image forming apparatus and then determine the consumption increment sub-data and the corresponding sub-data identifier based on the write instructions.

[0272] More specifically, the timing of when the image forming apparatus sends a consumption increment sub-data can be configured according to specific business needs. In one embodiment of this disclosure, the preset task quantity includes one preset sub-task quantity or a combination of multiple preset sub-task quantities. For example, if the preset task quantity is 10 pages, and the image forming apparatus needs to perform a total of 20 pages of printing, the image forming apparatus sends a consumption increment sub-data to the information processing device every 10 pages of printing. After completing the 20-page printing task, the image forming apparatus has cumulatively sent two consumption increment sub-data to the information processing device. As another example, if the preset task quantity is 10 pages and the printing time is 30 seconds, the image forming apparatus first performs the 10-page printing task, then sends the first consumption increment sub-data to the information processing device. After printing the remaining pages for 30 seconds, it sends the second consumption increment sub-data to the information processing device, and so on, until the entire printing task is completed.

[0273] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus can configure a strategy for sending incremental sub-data based on the total workload of the printing task. For example, if the total workload of the printing task is greater than or equal to a preset total workload threshold (e.g., a preset total workload threshold of 100 pages), the incremental sub-data can be sent once at a first preset sub-task interval (e.g., a preset sub-task interval of 10 pages, or a preset sub-task interval of 30 seconds). If the total workload of the printing task is less than the preset total workload threshold (e.g., a preset total workload threshold of 100 pages), the incremental sub-data can be sent once at a second preset sub-task interval (e.g., a preset sub-task interval of 5 pages, or a preset sub-task interval of 15 seconds).

[0274] In embodiments of this disclosure, the consumption increment sub-data includes: consumption increment sub-data of consumable materials in a printing task that is equal to or less than a preset task quantity. In one embodiment of this disclosure, if the total task quantity of a printing task is greater than or equal to a preset task quantity, for example, for a total task quantity of 105 pages, if the preset task quantity is set to 10 pages, the consumption increment data may include multiple consumption increment sub-data, and the information processing device can acquire the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the preset task quantity. For example, the consumption increment sub-data may refer to consumption increment sub-data d1, d2, ..., d10 of consumable materials equal to the preset task quantity, wherein each of the above consumption increment sub-data indicates the consumption amount of consumable materials corresponding to 10 pages. In addition, the consumption increment sub-data may also refer to consumption increment sub-data d11 of consumable materials corresponding to a printing task with a less than preset task quantity, wherein the consumption increment sub-data d11 indicates the consumption amount of consumable materials corresponding to 5 pages. Thus, the consumption increment sub-data d1, d2, ..., d11 indicate the consumption increment of consumable materials corresponding to a total of 105 pages. In another embodiment of this disclosure, if the total number of printing tasks is less than the preset number of tasks, for example, for a total number of 8 pages to be printed, if the preset number of tasks is set to 10 pages, the consumption increment data may include a consumption increment sub-data. In this case, the consumption increment sub-data refers to the consumption increment sub-data d1 of the consumable material corresponding to the printing task with a total number of printing tasks less than the preset number of tasks. Thus, the consumption increment sub-data d1 indicates the consumption amount of consumable material corresponding to a total of 8 pages.

[0275] Furthermore, if a printing task includes multiple print jobs and each print job has a small workload, the print jobs can be merged to meet the preset workload before sending the consumption increment sub-data. For example, taking the consumption increment sub-data sent every 10 pages as an example, print job 1 has a workload of 3 pages, print job 2 has a workload of 3 pages, and print job 3 has a workload of 5 pages; when print job 3 is executed, the preset workload of 10 pages is met, and a consumption increment sub-data (i.e., the consumption increment sub-data of consumable materials equal to the preset workload) is sent. When print job 3 is completed, the remaining consumption increment sub-data (i.e., the consumption increment sub-data of consumable materials less than the preset workload) is sent to synchronize the information to the information processing device.

[0276] In one embodiment of this disclosure, if a printing task includes multiple print jobs and each print job has a small workload, incremental consumption sub-data corresponding to each print job can be sent separately. For example, incremental consumption sub-data can be sent every 10 pages. For instance, if each print job is less than a preset workload, assuming print job 1 has 8 pages, print job 2 has 5 pages, and print job 3 has 4 pages, then executing print job 1, print job 2, and print job 3 can trigger incremental consumption sub-data (i.e., incremental consumption sub-data for materials less than the preset workload) once each. For example, if some print jobs have a workload greater than or equal to a preset task quantity, while others have a workload less than the preset task quantity, assuming print job 1 has a workload of 15, print job 2 has a workload of 10, and print job 3 has a workload of 4, then when executing print job 1, the image forming device can synchronize the consumption increment sub-data (including the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to pages 1-10 and 11-15) to the information processing device twice. When executing print job 2, the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to pages 10 of print job 2 can be directly synchronized to the information processing device. When executing print job 3, the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to pages 4 of print job 3 can be directly synchronized to the information processing device. In the above embodiment, determining the triggering time of consumption increment sub-data according to a single print job and a preset task quantity allows for more timely synchronization of consumption increment sub-data, further improving the reliability of synchronizing consumption information between the image forming device and the information processing device, and reducing the possibility of the information processing device failing to synchronize the latest consumption information in a timely manner due to abnormal factors such as power outages.

[0277] Alternatively, in one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus can configure the timing of sending a consumption increment sub-data based on the execution time of the print job. For example, at predetermined print time intervals (e.g., a predetermined print time of 60 seconds), a consumption increment sub-data of the actual print volume for the corresponding time period is sent to the information processing apparatus. Furthermore, if the print job includes multiple print jobs and the print time of each print job is less than the predetermined print time, the multiple print jobs can be merged, and the consumption increment sub-data can be sent only after the actual print time meets the predetermined print time.

[0278] In another embodiment of this disclosure, if a print job includes multiple print jobs and the printing time of some print jobs is less than the predetermined printing time, then the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the aforementioned partial print jobs can be sent separately. Specific sending examples can be found in the description of sending according to the predetermined number of pages printed, and will not be repeated here.

[0279] Similarly, in one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus can configure the timing of sending a consumption increment sub-data according to the developer consumption amount or the rotation distance of the photosensitive drum corresponding to the printing task.

[0280] It is important to note that regardless of whether the timing of sending a consumption increment sub-data is configured based on the predetermined number of pages to be printed, the predetermined printing time, the predetermined developer consumption, and / or the predetermined drum rotation distance, the consumption information of the consumable materials indicated by the consumption increment sub-data itself can be characterized in the same way. For example, when sending consumption increment sub-data according to the predetermined number of pages to be printed, the specific consumption information can be characterized by the page number information. The consumption information of the consumable materials indicated by the consumption increment sub-data itself can also be characterized in different ways. For example, when sending consumption increment sub-data according to the predetermined printing time, the specific consumption information can be characterized by the page number information; similarly, when sending consumption increment sub-data according to the predetermined number of pages to be printed, the specific consumption information can be characterized by the developer consumption. It is easy to understand that the combination of the timing of sending consumption increment sub-data and the method of representing the consumption information indicated by the consumption increment sub-data itself is not limited to the above, but includes any combination of the two.

[0281] Sending Method 2: Packet Sending Consuming Incremental Sub-Data

[0282] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus sends a set of consumption increment sub-data groups after performing multiple preset number of print jobs. During the sending of a set of consumption increment sub-data groups, the image forming apparatus may send a corresponding sub-data group identifier. A set of consumption increment sub-data groups includes a predetermined number of consumption increment sub-data items, and the sub-data group identifier includes a predetermined number of sub-data identifiers. The sub-data identifiers include either an intra-group sequence number identifier or both an intra-group sequence number identifier and an intra-group sequence number identifier. In other words, the image forming apparatus groups the consumption increment sub-data sent to the information processing device. As described above in the first method of sending consumption increment sub-data, the image forming apparatus may include the consumption increment sub-data and the sub-data identifier in a single write instruction and send it to the information processing device. It should be understood that, during the process of sending a set of consumption increment sub-data groups, the image forming apparatus can send multiple consumption increment sub-datas one by one to the information processing device in the manner described in the first method of sending consumption increment sub-data. Similarly, the sub-data identifier can be sent to the information processing device along with the consumption increment sub-data. When the image forming apparatus has finished sending a predetermined number of consumption increment sub-datas in a set of consumption increment sub-data groups and a predetermined number of sub-data identifiers in a set of sub-data group identifiers, the information processing device can obtain the corresponding set of consumption increment sub-data groups and sub-data group identifiers.

[0283] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the sub-data identifier includes an intra-group sequence identifier. For example, if every 3 consumption increment sub-data items and the corresponding 3 sub-data identifiers are grouped together, then the consumption increment sub-data group includes 3 consumption increment sub-data items, and the sub-data group identifier includes 3 sub-data identifiers. For example, see Table 2, which shows the consumption increment data information of one embodiment. The consumption increment data includes two groups of consumption increment sub-data groups and the corresponding sub-data group identifiers.

[0284] In Table 2, the sub-data group identifiers corresponding to the first group (Group1) can include sub-data identifiers id1, id2, and id3. id1, id2, and id3 can also be understood as the intra-group sequence number identifiers corresponding to the first group of sub-data group identifiers. The consumption increment sub-data group corresponding to the first group can include consumption increment sub-data d1, d2, and d3. The sub-data group identifiers corresponding to the second group (Group2) can include sub-data identifiers id4, id5, and id6. id4, id5, and id6 can also be understood as the intra-group sequence number identifiers corresponding to the second group of sub-data group identifiers. The consumption increment sub-data group corresponding to the second group can include consumption increment sub-data d4, d5, and d6.

[0285] In another embodiment of this disclosure, the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence identifier and an intra-group sequence identifier. For example, if every 5 consumption increment sub-data items and the corresponding 5 sub-data identifiers are grouped together, then the consumption increment sub-data group includes 5 consumption increment sub-data items, and the sub-data group identifier includes 5 sub-data identifiers. For example, see Table 3, which shows the consumption increment data information of an embodiment, which includes two groups of consumption increment sub-data groups and the corresponding sub-data group identifiers.

[0286] In Table 3, the group sequence identifier is an identifier that indicates the sub-data identifier in a group of sub-data group identifiers relative to the sub-data identifiers in other groups, such as Gid1 and Gid2. The intra-group sequence identifier is an identifier that indicates the sub-data identifier within a group relative to other sub-data identifiers, such as id1, id2, id3, id4, and id5. The intra-group sequence identifier is associated with the corresponding group sequence identifier. Specifically, the sub-data group identifiers corresponding to the first group (Group1) may include sub-data identifiers (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id3), (Gid1, id4), and (Gid1, id5), and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data groups may include consumption increment sub-data d1, d2, d3, d4, and d5; the sub-data group identifiers corresponding to the second group (Group2) may include sub-data identifiers (Gid2, id1), (Gid2, id2), (Gid2, id3), (Gid2, id4), and (Gid2, id5), and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data groups may include consumption increment sub-data d6, d7, d8, d9, and d10. In one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus can send the consumption increment sub-data and the corresponding sub-data identifier in each group of consumption increment sub-data to the information processing apparatus. For example, the image forming apparatus can send the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id1) and the consumption increment sub-data d1 together to the information processing apparatus. Specifically, the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id1) and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data d1 can be included in a write instruction and sent to the information processing apparatus. It should be understood that the sub-data identifiers in a group of sub-data group identifiers can be sent in the order of the group's sequence number identifiers. For example, the first group of sub-data group identifiers can be sent in the order of (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id3), (Gid1, id4), and (Gid1, id5). Alternatively, the sub-data identifiers in a group of sub-data group identifiers may not be sent in the order of the group's sequence identifiers, but may be sent in any random order, such as (Gid1, id2), (Gid1, id4), (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id5), (Gid1, id3).

[0287] In another embodiment of this disclosure, the sub-data identifiers in a set of sub-data group identifiers may also be sent in a specific order, such as (Gid1, id1), (Gid1, id3), (Gid1, id5), (Gid1, id7), (Gid1, id9).

[0288] It should be understood that the sending order of each sub-data identifier in the sub-data group identifier can be set according to actual needs, and this disclosure embodiment does not make specific limitations.

[0289] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the image forming apparatus sequentially sends corresponding consumption increment sub-data according to the consumption information of consumable materials updated during the execution of the printing task. This can synchronize the consumption increment data to the information processing device, thereby realizing timely and reliable synchronization of consumable material consumption information between the image forming apparatus and the information processing device.

[0290] More specifically, in one embodiment of this disclosure, the sub-data identifier and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data can be included in a single write instruction, following a sending strategy of sending one write instruction every 10 pages, with 5 instructions sent per group. If the total print job is less than 50 pages, 5 instructions are still sent. For example, if the total print job is 40 pages, the insufficient portion (i.e., the 5th instruction) of the consumption increment sub-data can be filled with 0, and the sub-data identifier will also be sent together. Specifically, when the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and a group intra-sequence number identifier, the 5th write instruction can include the sub-data identifier (Gid1, id5) and the corresponding consumption increment sub-data d5, where Gid1 is the group sequence number identifier, id5 is the group intra-sequence number identifier, and d5 indicates a consumption of 0. Similarly, if the total print job is 45 pages, the corresponding consumption increment sub-data d5 indicates a consumption of 5 pages. In the above embodiments, it can be guaranteed that a group of consumption increment sub-data includes a predetermined number of consumption increment sub-data entries. During the execution of a printing task, the image forming apparatus can send consumption increment sub-data and corresponding sub-data identifiers to the information processing apparatus one by one. For example, when the total printing task is 140 pages, following the rule of sending one write instruction (including sub-data identifier and consumption increment sub-data) every 10 pages, with 5 instructions sent in each group, the first group can send the write instructions corresponding to pages 1-50. For example, the 5 write instructions sent sequentially in the first group can include (Gid1, id2, d2), (Gid1, id4, d4), (Gid1, id1, d1), (Gid1, id5, d5), and (Gid1, id3, d3), where d2, d4, d1, d5, and d3 correspond to the consumption of pages 1-10, 11-20, 21-30, 31-40, and 41-50, respectively. Similarly, the second group... Write commands corresponding to pages 51-100 can be sent. For example, the second group of 5 sequentially sent write commands may include (Gid2, id3, d3), (Gid2, id4, d4), (Gid2, id1, d1), (Gid2, id5, d5), and (Gid2, id2, d2). The third group can send write commands corresponding to pages 101-140. For example, the third group of 5 sequentially sent write commands may include (Gid3, id1, d1), (Gid3, id4, d4), (Gid3, id3, d3), (Gid3, id5, d5), and (Gid3, id2, d2). The fifth write command in the third group contains the consumption increment sub-data d2, indicating a consumption of 0 pages. It should be noted that in the example shown in this embodiment, the sub-data identifiers in a group of sub-data identifiers can be sent out of order, and the order of sending the consumption increment sub-data follows the order of the actual consumption of consumable materials in the printing task.

[0291] In one embodiment of this disclosure, similar to the embodiment described above which sends one write instruction every 10 pages, the image forming apparatus may also send the corresponding write instructions according to a sending strategy of sending one write instruction every 10 seconds and sending 5 instructions per group. In this way, during the execution of the printing task, the consumed incremental sub-data and the corresponding sub-data identifier can be sent to the information processing apparatus one by one. Specific embodiments can be referred to the above embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0292] In step S602, the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of consumable materials are acquired from the information processing device. The cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of consumable materials are determined by the information processing device based on the consumption increment data.

[0293] As referred above Figure 4 and Figure 5 The process by which the information processing device generates cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of consumable materials is described, and its repeated description will be omitted here.

[0294] In step S603, consumable status information is generated based on cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data.

[0295] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the consumable status information includes one or more of normal information, abnormal information, or consumption correction data. Specifically, normal information indicates that the information processing device or the consumable corresponding to the information processing device is as expected; abnormal information indicates that the information processing device or the consumable corresponding to the information processing device is not as expected; and consumption correction data is determined based on consumption increment sub-data as abnormal sub-data, and / or based on consumption increment sub-data corresponding to a sub-data identifier as an abnormal identifier.

[0296] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the consumption correction data may be correction data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that is an anomaly sub-data, and / or correction data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that is an anomaly identifier sub-data. That is, the consumption correction data consists of at least one correction data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data. For example, taking the consumption correction data as the correction data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that is an anomaly identifier sub-data, when the information processing device feeds back the sub-data identifier that is an anomaly identifier to the image forming device, the image forming device can feed back the corresponding consumption increment sub-data correction data to the information processing device based on the aforementioned sub-data identifier, that is, feed back the consumption correction data. It is understood that the consumption correction data fed back to the information processing device can be one or more.

[0297] In another embodiment of this disclosure, the consumption correction data may also be obtained by accumulating the correction data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that serves as the abnormal sub-data, or by accumulating the correction data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that serves as the abnormal identifier. That is, the consumption correction data is a sum of correction data corresponding to all consumption increment sub-data indicating abnormalities, and the correction data of the aforementioned consumption increment sub-data is the consumption amount corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data. For example, taking the consumption correction data as an example of accumulating the correction data of the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that serves as the abnormal identifier, when the information processing device feeds back the sub-data identifier that serves as the abnormal identifier to the image forming device, the image forming device can determine the correction data of the corresponding consumption increment sub-data based on the aforementioned sub-data identifier, accumulate all the correction data to obtain the consumption correction data, and then feed back the consumption correction data to the information processing device.

[0298] In one embodiment of this disclosure, if the proportion of abnormal data is determined to be greater than a predetermined threshold based on the consumption increment status data, anomaly information is generated, wherein the proportion of abnormal data is determined based on the number of abnormal sub-data and / or abnormal identifiers. For example, the image forming apparatus determines whether the total amount of consumption increment sub-data provided by the information processing device as abnormal sub-data is greater than a predetermined threshold (e.g., 30%) of the total amount of consumption increment sub-data sent during the entire printing task. Alternatively, the image forming apparatus determines whether the total amount of abnormal identifiers provided by the information processing device is greater than a predetermined threshold (e.g., 30%) of the total amount of sub-data identifiers sent during the entire printing task. If the total amount of consumption increment sub-data or the total amount of abnormal identifiers as abnormal sub-data is greater than the threshold, it is determined that there is an anomaly in the communication link or an anomaly in the information processing device, that is, it is determined that the information processing device or the consumables corresponding to the information processing device do not meet expectations, thereby generating anomaly information. In some embodiments of this disclosure, the number of abnormal sub-data or abnormal identifiers can be directly fed back by the information processing device or calculated by the image forming apparatus. For example, the information processing device can count the total amount of consumed incremental sub-data (i.e., the number of abnormal sub-data) that serves as abnormal sub-data and feed it back to the image forming device. It can also count the total amount of abnormal identifiers (i.e., the number of abnormal identifiers) and feed it back to the image forming device. Based on this, the image forming device can quickly determine the proportion of abnormal data. Alternatively, after receiving consumed incremental sub-data and / or sub-data identifiers that serve as abnormal identifiers from the information processing device, the image forming device can count the number of abnormal sub-data and / or the number of abnormal identifiers.

[0299] Furthermore, if the proportion of abnormal data is determined to be no greater than a predetermined threshold based on the consumption increment status data, the cumulative consumption increment data and local consumption increment sub-data are used to determine whether the cumulative consumption increment data is erroneous. In this case, the local consumption increment sub-data corresponds to the consumption increment sub-data that is abnormal sub-data and / or the consumption increment sub-data that corresponds to the sub-data identifier that is an abnormal identifier. It can be understood that the local consumption increment sub-data is normal sub-data stored locally by the image forming apparatus.

[0300] Specifically, the local consumption increment sub-data and the received cumulative consumption increment data are added together. The result is compared with the local cumulative value of correct consumption increment data. If the two are different or the difference exceeds a predetermined range (e.g., 5%), indicating an error in the cumulative consumption increment data based on the cumulative consumption increment data and the local consumption increment sub-data, then it is determined that there is an anomaly in the communication link or the information processing device. In other words, the information processing device or its corresponding consumables does not meet expectations. For example, when the image forming apparatus receives a sub-data identifier sent by the information processing device as an anomaly identifier, it can determine the corresponding local consumption increment sub-data stored locally. Then, these local consumption increment sub-data and the received cumulative consumption increment data are added together and compared with the local cumulative value of correct consumption increment data to determine whether the information processing device or its corresponding consumables meets expectations.

[0301] Conversely, if the two are the same or the difference between them is within a predetermined range (e.g., 5%), that is, when the cumulative consumption increment data and the local consumption increment sub-data indicate that the cumulative consumption increment data is correct, then it is determined that the information processing device or the consumables corresponding to the information processing device meet expectations. Further, the local consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that is an anomaly sub-data and / or the sub-data identifier that is an anomaly identifier is used as consumption correction data. Alternatively, the local consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that is an anomaly sub-data and / or the sub-data identifier that is an anomaly identifier is accumulated, and then the accumulated data is used as consumption correction data.

[0302] In other embodiments of this disclosure, the method for determining whether the accumulated consumption increment data is incorrect may also be to subtract the received accumulated consumption increment data from the accumulated value of the correct consumption increment data locally in the image forming apparatus, compare the result of the subtraction with the accumulated value of the corresponding local consumption increment sub-data, and if the two are different or the difference between them exceeds a predetermined range, then the accumulated consumption increment data is indicated to be incorrect based on the accumulated consumption increment data and the local consumption increment sub-data.

[0303] In step S604, consumption correction data is sent to the information processing device.

[0304] As referred above Figure 4 and Figure 5 In the described embodiment, the information processing device generates corrected cumulative consumption increment data based on consumption correction data and cumulative consumption increment data. For example, the corrected cumulative consumption increment data can be obtained by summing the consumption correction data and the cumulative consumption increment data.

[0305] In step S605, the corrected cumulative consumption increment data or the verification information of the corrected cumulative consumption increment data is obtained from the information processing device.

[0306] In embodiments of this disclosure, after obtaining the corrected cumulative consumption increment data, the information processing device may feed back the corrected cumulative consumption increment data to the image forming apparatus. Alternatively, the information processing device may obtain corresponding verification information based on the corrected cumulative consumption increment data and then feed back the verification information to the image forming apparatus. It should be understood that after obtaining the corrected cumulative consumption increment data or the verification information of the corrected cumulative consumption increment data, the information processing device may directly feed back the information to the image forming apparatus, or feed back the information to the image forming apparatus in response to an instruction from the image forming apparatus.

[0307] In some embodiments of this disclosure, the image processing device can regenerate consumable status information based on the corrected cumulative consumption increment data. For example, if the information processing device provides corrected cumulative consumption increment data, the image processing device can determine whether the corrected cumulative consumption increment data is correct, thereby generating corresponding consumable status information. When the image processing device determines that the corrected cumulative consumption increment data is correct, it can generate corresponding normal information; when the image processing device determines that the corrected cumulative consumption increment data is incorrect, it can generate corresponding abnormal information. Alternatively, if the information processing device provides verification information corresponding to the corrected cumulative consumption increment data, the image processing device can determine whether the verification information is correct, thereby generating corresponding consumable status information. When the image processing device determines that the verification information is correct, it can generate corresponding normal information; when the image processing device determines that the verification information is incorrect, it can generate corresponding abnormal information.

[0308] In some embodiments of this disclosure, if the proportion of abnormal data reported by the information processing device exceeds a predetermined threshold, it can be determined that the information processing device or the consumables corresponding to the information processing device are not performing as expected. Alternatively, if an error is indicated in the cumulative consumption increment data and local consumption increment sub-data, it can be determined that the information processing device or the consumables corresponding to the information processing device are not performing as expected. Alternatively, if the information processing device reports an error in the corrected cumulative consumption increment data or the verification information corresponding to the corrected cumulative consumption increment data, it can be determined that the information processing device or the consumables corresponding to the information processing device are not performing as expected.

[0309] Above, refer to Figure 6 A communication method applied to an image forming apparatus according to embodiments of the present disclosure is described. According to the communication method applied to an image forming apparatus according to embodiments of the present disclosure, by sending consumption increment data to an information processing device, and obtaining cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of consumable materials generated based on the consumption increment data, and generating consumable status information, it is possible to timely and reliably determine whether the information processing device or the corresponding consumable material meets expectations, facilitating the user's understanding of the consumable status information, and achieving timely and reliable synchronization of consumable material consumption information between the image forming apparatus and the information processing device, which is beneficial to improving the stability of printing operations.

[0310] The following will refer to further Figure 7 The communication flow of an image forming system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is described. Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram illustrating a communication method of an image forming system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 7 The communication method shown is, for example, from the reference Figures 1 to 2B The image forming apparatus 100 and consumable chips 210 and 220 in the described image forming system interact with each other.

[0311] In step S1, the image forming apparatus (e.g., image forming apparatus 100) sends a "job start" flag to the information processing apparatus (e.g., consumable chips 210, 220) to notify the information processing apparatus to start executing the printing task.

[0312] It is important to understand that, as mentioned above... Figures 4 to 6 The same applies to the specific description of the print job; therefore, repeated descriptions will be omitted here.

[0313] In step S2, the image forming apparatus acquires consumption increment data for the printing task. In embodiments of this disclosure, the consumption increment data is used to indicate the consumption information of consumable materials corresponding to the image forming apparatus performing the printing task.

[0314] It is important to understand that, as mentioned above... Figures 4 to 6 The same applies to the specific description of the consumption of incremental data, and its repeated description will be omitted here.

[0315] In step S3, the image forming apparatus sends the consumption increment data acquired in step S2 to the information processing apparatus.

[0316] It is important to understand that, as mentioned above... Figures 4 to 6 The specific description of the method for sending incremental data also applies here, and its repeated description will be omitted here.

[0317] In step S4, the information processing device determines the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumable materials corresponding to the printing task based on the consumption increment data.

[0318] It is important to understand that, as mentioned above... Figure 4 The same detailed description of the process for determining the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumable materials corresponding to the printing task applies here as well, and its repeated description will be omitted here.

[0319] The above steps S1 to S4 are repeated until the print job is completed.

[0320] In step S5, the image forming apparatus sends a "job end" flag to notify the information processing apparatus that the printing task has been completed.

[0321] It is important to understand that, as mentioned above... Figures 4 to 6 The same applies to the specific description of the print job; therefore, repeated descriptions will be omitted here.

[0322] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the completion of the current printing task can be determined based on the "jobend" flag in the print job end command sent by the image forming apparatus.

[0323] In step S6, the information processing device determines the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumable materials corresponding to the printing task.

[0324] Specifically, in one embodiment of this disclosure, unlike step S4 which determines the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumable materials corresponding to the printing task during the execution of the printing task, step S6 determines the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumable materials corresponding to the printing task for the last time after the printing task is completed. It should be understood that after step S6, the cumulative consumption increment data and / or all consumption increment status data of the consumable materials corresponding to this printing task can be determined.

[0325] It is important to understand that, as mentioned above... Figure 4 and Figure 5 The same applies to the detailed description of the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumable materials corresponding to the last confirmed print job, and their repeated description will be omitted here.

[0326] In step S7, the information processing device sends the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data obtained in step S6 to the image forming device.

[0327] Specifically, in one embodiment of this disclosure, the data sent by the information processing apparatus to the image forming apparatus may include only consumption increment state data, or may include both cumulative consumption increment data and consumption increment state data.

[0328] It is important to understand that, as mentioned above... Figure 4 and Figure 5 The same applies to the specific description of sending cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data, and their repeated description will be omitted here.

[0329] In step S8, the image forming apparatus generates consumable status information based on the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data.

[0330] It is important to understand that, as mentioned above... Figure 6 The same applies to the specific description of the generated consumable status information, and its repeated description will be omitted here.

[0331] In step S9, the image forming apparatus sends consumption correction data to the information processing apparatus.

[0332] It is important to understand that, as mentioned above... Figure 6 The same applies to the specific description of the consumption correction data, and its repeated description will be omitted here.

[0333] In step S10, the information processing device generates corrected cumulative consumption increment data based on the consumption correction data and the cumulative consumption increment data.

[0334] In step S11, the information processing device sends the corrected cumulative consumption increment data to the image forming device.

[0335] It is important to understand that, as mentioned above... Figure 4 and Figure 5 The same applies to the detailed description of the corrected cumulative consumption increment data, and its repeated description will be omitted here.

[0336] In step S12, the image processing device regenerates the consumable status information based on the corrected cumulative consumption increment data. The method for generating the consumable status information in step S12 is the same as in step S8, and its repeated description is omitted here.

[0337] Figure 8 This is a block diagram illustrating an information processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0338] like Figure 8 As shown, the information processing apparatus 800 according to an embodiment of this disclosure includes an information acquisition module 801, an information processing module 802, and an information transmission module 803. The information processing apparatus 800 corresponds to a consumable; for example, the information processing apparatus 800 is disposed on the consumable, while the consumable is detachably mounted on the image forming apparatus. Schematically, the information processing apparatus 800 may be entirely disposed inside the consumable chip, or it may be a third-party device entirely disposed outside the consumable chip, or it may be partially disposed inside and partially disposed outside the consumable chip. Alternatively, the information processing apparatus 800 may be the consumable chip itself.

[0339] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the information acquisition module 801 is used to acquire consumption increment data, which is used to indicate the consumption information of consumable materials corresponding to the image forming apparatus performing the printing task.

[0340] The information processing module 802 is used to determine the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumable materials corresponding to the printing task based on the consumption increment data.

[0341] The information sending module 803 is used to send cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data to the image forming apparatus.

[0342] As previously referred to Figures 4 to 7The incremental consumption data includes at least one incremental consumption sub-data and a corresponding sub-data identifier; or the incremental consumption data includes at least one group of incremental consumption sub-data and a corresponding sub-data group identifier. A group of incremental consumption sub-data includes a predetermined number of incremental consumption sub-data, and the sub-data group identifier includes a predetermined number of sub-data identifiers. The sub-data identifier includes an intra-group sequence number identifier, or an intra-group sequence number identifier and an intra-group sequence number identifier.

[0343] The consumption increment sub-data includes: the consumption increment sub-data of materials in the printing task that is equal to or less than the preset task quantity.

[0344] The consumption increment sub-data is used to indicate one or more of the following: consumption information corresponding to a predetermined number of printed pages, consumption information corresponding to a predetermined printing time, consumption information corresponding to a predetermined amount of developer consumed, and consumption information corresponding to a predetermined distance the photosensitive drum rotates.

[0345] Specifically, the information acquisition module 801 is further configured to: acquire consumption increment data from the image forming apparatus; or, acquire at least one consumption increment sub-data from the image forming apparatus and determine a sub-data identifier corresponding to the at least one consumption increment sub-data; or, acquire at least one set of consumption increment sub-data from the image forming apparatus and determine a sub-data group identifier corresponding to the at least one set of consumption increment sub-data.

[0346] The information acquisition module 801 is further configured to: count at least one acquired consumption increment sub-data, and determine a sub-data identifier corresponding to the at least one consumption increment sub-data based on the counting result; or, time the at least one acquired consumption increment sub-data, and determine a sub-data identifier corresponding to the at least one consumption increment sub-data based on the timing result; or; count the consumption increment sub-data in at least one acquired set of consumption increment sub-data groups, and determine a sub-data group identifier corresponding to the at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups based on the counting result; or, time the consumption increment sub-data in at least one set of acquired consumption increment sub-data groups, and determine a sub-data group identifier corresponding to the at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups based on the timing result.

[0347] Specifically, the information processing module 802 is used to determine the consumption increment status data based on one or more of the consumption amount indicated by the consumption increment sub-data, the sub-data identifier, and the reception time of the consumption increment data. The consumption increment status data is used to indicate whether the consumption increment sub-data is normal or abnormal, and / or whether the sub-data identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data is a normal identifier or an abnormal identifier.

[0348] The consumption increment status data includes anomaly indication information for indicating that the consumption increment sub-data is an abnormal sub-data. The anomaly indication information corresponds to the sub-data identifier of the consumption increment sub-data that has not been added to the cumulative consumption increment data.

[0349] The information processing module 802 is also used to: determine the abnormal indication information based on the sub-data identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that has not been added to the cumulative consumption increment data.

[0350] The information processing module 802 is also used to: determine the cumulative consumption increment data based on the consumption increment sub-data as normal sub-data, or based on the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the sub-data identifier as a normal identifier.

[0351] The information acquisition module 801 is also used to: acquire consumption correction data; the information processing module 802 is also used to generate corrected cumulative consumption increment data based on the consumption correction data and the cumulative consumption increment data.

[0352] The information processing module 802 is also used to: determine that the consumption increment sub-data is abnormal sub-data and / or the sub-data identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data is an abnormal identifier when the consumption amount indicated by the consumption increment sub-data is not within the predetermined consumption amount range.

[0353] The information processing module 802 is further configured to: when multiple sub-data identifiers are in a discontinuous state, determine that the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the missing sub-data identifier relative to the continuous state is abnormal sub-data, and / or the missing sub-data identifier is an abnormal identifier; and / or when the sub-data identifier included in the last received consumption increment data is different from the last sub-data identifier included in the print job end instruction sent by the image forming apparatus, determine that the missing sub-data identifier is an abnormal identifier, and / or the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the missing sub-data identifier is abnormal sub-data, wherein the missing sub-data identifier includes the last sub-data identifier, or the last sub-data identifier and the missing sub-data identifier between the last sub-data identifier and the sub-data identifier included in the last received consumption increment data.

[0354] When the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and an intra-group sequence number identifier, the information processing module 802 is further configured to: determine, in the case that the group sequence number identifiers corresponding to multiple sub-data group identifiers are in a non-continuous state, that the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the missing group sequence number identifier relative to the continuous state is abnormal sub-data, and / or that the sub-data identifier corresponding to the missing group sequence number identifier is abnormal identifier; and / or determine, in the case that the group sequence number identifier of the last received sub-data identifier is different from the last group sequence number identifier included in the print job end instruction sent by the image forming apparatus, that the sub-data identifier corresponding to the missing group sequence number identifier is abnormal identifier, and / or that the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the missing group sequence number identifier is abnormal sub-data, wherein the missing group sequence number identifier includes the last group sequence number identifier, or the last group sequence number identifier and the missing group sequence number identifier between the last group sequence number identifier and the group sequence number identifier of the last received sub-data identifier.

[0355] The information processing module 802 is also used to: identify sub-data identifiers in the sub-data group identifiers that do not meet the preset intra-group sequence number identifier rules as abnormal identifiers; or, identify the sub-data identifiers corresponding to preset identifiers in the preset identifier set that are different from the intra-group sequence number identifiers corresponding to the sub-data group identifiers as abnormal identifiers, wherein the preset identifier set includes a preset number of preset identifiers.

[0356] The information processing module 802 is also used to: determine that the corresponding consumption increment sub-data is abnormal sub-data and / or the corresponding sub-data identifier is an abnormal identifier if no consumption increment data is received within a predetermined receiving time range.

[0357] The information processing module 802 is also used to determine the number of abnormal data based on the consumption increment status data, wherein the number of abnormal data is determined based on the abnormal identifier and / or abnormal sub-data.

[0358] The information sending module 803 is also used to send the number of abnormal data to the image forming apparatus.

[0359] It should be understood that the information acquisition module 801, information processing module 802, and information sending module 803 in the information processing device 800 can be implemented using software or hardware.

[0360] In one possible implementation, at least one of the information acquisition module 801, information processing module 802, and information transmission module 803 can be an external module electrically connected to the consumable chip, while the other units are built into the chip control unit of the consumable chip. That is, the aforementioned consumable includes the consumable chip and the external module electrically connected to it. Specifically, the chip control unit can be a circuit unit of a device such as a microcontroller unit (MCU), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or a digital signal processor (DSP).

[0361] Specifically, the information acquisition module 801, the information processing module 802, and the information transmission module 803 can be circuit units including devices such as FPGA, MCU, and DSP. The information transmission module 803 can also implement its function by building a specific waveform generator circuit. The information acquisition module 801 and the information processing module 802 can also implement their corresponding functions by building a digital logic calculator. This application does not further limit the specific implementation form of each unit.

[0362] In one possible implementation, the information acquisition module 801, the information processing module 802, and the information sending module 803 are all included in the consumable chip.

[0363] In one possible implementation, the information acquisition module 801, the information processing module 802, and the information sending module 803 are included in the chip control unit of the consumable chip.

[0364] In one possible implementation, the information acquisition module 801, the information processing module 802, and the information sending module 803 are other modules that are different from the consumable chip and are set on the consumable. This application does not limit this.

[0365] In one possible implementation, the information acquisition module 801, information processing module 802, and information sending module 803 are respectively disposed on two or more different consumable chips that can communicate with each other. Preferably, the information acquisition module 801 and the information sending module 803 are disposed on the first consumable chip, and the information processing module 802 is disposed on the second consumable chip. After the information acquisition module 801 of the first consumable chip acquires the consumption increment data of the image forming apparatus, it forwards the consumption increment data to the second consumable chip. The information processing module 802 of the second consumable chip determines the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumable material corresponding to the printing task based on the consumption increment data, and sends the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data to the first consumable chip. The information sending module 803 of the first consumable chip outputs the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data to the image forming apparatus. Of course, those skilled in the art can also dispose of the information acquisition module 801, information processing module 802, and information sending module 803 on different consumable chips in other ways, and this application does not limit this.

[0366] It should be noted that the more specific processing performed by the information acquisition module 801, the information processing module 802, and the information sending module 803 refers to... Figure 4 , Figure 5 and Figure 7 As shown, repeated descriptions are omitted here.

[0367] This application provides an image forming apparatus capable of executing the communication method described above. The image forming apparatus may include a controller configured to execute some or all of the methods described in the communication method embodiments. It should be noted that the specific details involved in this application's embodiments can be found in the descriptions of the above embodiments, and for the sake of brevity, they will not be repeated here.

[0368] This application also provides an image forming apparatus according to another embodiment. For example... Figure 9 As shown, the image forming apparatus 900 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a transmitting module 901, an acquiring module 902, and a processing module 903.

[0369] The sending module 901 is used to send consumption increment data to the information processing device, the consumption increment data being used to indicate the consumption information of consumable materials corresponding to the printing task performed by the image forming device.

[0370] The acquisition module 902 is used to acquire the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of consumable materials from the information processing device.

[0371] The processing module 903 is used to generate consumable status information based on the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data. The cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumable materials are determined by the information processing device based on the consumption increment data.

[0372] The transmitting module 901, acquiring module 902, and processing module 903 in the image forming apparatus 900 can be implemented using software or hardware.

[0373] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the sending module 901, the acquiring module 902, and the processing module 903 may be disposed in the control chip of the image forming apparatus.

[0374] In one possible implementation, at least one of the sending module 901, the acquiring module 902, and the processing module 903 can be an external module electrically connected to the control chip, while the other units are built into the control chip. That is, the image forming apparatus 900 includes a control chip and external modules electrically connected to the control chip. Specifically, the control chip can be a circuit unit of a device such as a microcontroller unit (MCU), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or a digital signal processor (DSP).

[0375] Specifically, the transmitting module 901, the acquiring module 902, and the processing module 903 can be circuit units including devices such as FPGA, MCU, and DSP. The transmitting module 901 can also implement its function by building a specific waveform generator circuit. The acquiring module 902 and the processing module 903 can also implement their corresponding functions by building a digital logic calculator. This application does not further limit the specific implementation form of each unit.

[0376] In one possible implementation, the sending module 901, the acquiring module 902, and the processing module 903 are all included in the control chip of the image forming apparatus.

[0377] In one possible implementation, the sending module 901, the acquiring module 902, and the processing module 903 are contained in the chip control unit of the control chip of the image forming apparatus.

[0378] In one possible implementation, the sending module 901, the acquiring module 902, and the processing module 903 are other modules different from the control chip that are set on the image forming apparatus, and this application does not limit them.

[0379] In one possible implementation, the sending module 901, the acquiring module 902, and the processing module 903 are respectively disposed on two or more different control chips that can communicate with each other. Preferably, the sending module 901 and the acquiring module 902 are disposed on a first control chip, and the processing module 903 is disposed on a second control chip. The sending module 901 of the first control chip sends consumption increment data to the information processing device. After the acquiring module 902 of the first control chip acquires the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumable materials from the information processing device, it forwards the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data to the second consumable chip. The processing module 903 of the second consumable chip generates consumable status information based on the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data. Of course, those skilled in the art can also dispose of the sending module 901, the acquiring module 902, and the processing module 903 on different control chips in other ways, and this application does not limit this.

[0380] For more detailed processing instructions performed by the sending module 901, the receiving module 902, and the processing module 903, please refer to [link / reference]. Figure 6 and Figure 7 As shown, repeated descriptions are omitted here.

[0381] Embodiments of this disclosure also provide a consumable.

[0382] Figure 10 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the structure of a consumable according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 10 As shown, the consumable 1000 includes a housing 2000; a developer container 2002 located inside the housing for containing developer; and the information processing device 2001 described in the above embodiments.

[0383] Figure 11 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the structure of another consumable according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. For example... Figure 11 As shown, this consumable 1100 is in Figure 10 The illustrated embodiment also includes a developer delivery unit 2003 for delivering developer.

[0384] Figure 12 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the structure of another consumable according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. For example... Figure 12 As shown, this consumable 1200 is in Figure 11 The embodiment shown also includes a photosensitive drum 2004 and a charging roller 2005 for charging the photosensitive drum 2004.

[0385] Figure 13 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the structure of another consumable according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. For example... Figure 13As shown, the consumable 1300 includes a photosensitive drum 2004; a charging roller 2005 for charging the photosensitive drum 2004; and the information processing device 2001 described in the above embodiments.

[0386] Figure 14 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the structure of another consumable according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. For example... Figure 14 As shown, the consumable 1400 includes a memory 1401; and a processor 1402 coupled to the memory 1401, the processor 1402 being configured to execute the communication method described above based on instructions stored in the memory 1401.

[0387] It should be pointed out that, Figures 10 to 14 The specific details of the information processing device and communication method in the illustrated embodiments can be found in the description of the above embodiments, and will not be repeated here for the sake of brevity.

[0388] Figure 15 This is a schematic diagram illustrating a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 15 As shown, the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium 1500 is used to store computer-readable instructions 1501, which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform the communication method described above.

[0389] Figure 16 This is a schematic diagram illustrating a computer program product according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 16 As shown, the computer program product 1600 includes a computer program 1601, which, when executed by a processor, implements the communication method described above.

[0390] The communication method, information processing apparatus, image forming apparatus, consumables, non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, and computer program product according to embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above with reference to the accompanying drawings. By having the information processing apparatus determine and feed back the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumables corresponding to the printing task to the image forming apparatus based on the consumption increment data, the consumption information of the consumables between the image forming apparatus and the information processing apparatus is synchronized in a timely and reliable manner. This enables the image forming apparatus to determine whether the information processing apparatus or the corresponding consumables meet expectations, facilitates the user's understanding of the status information of the consumables, and helps improve the stability of the printing operation.

[0391] The basic principles of this disclosure have been described above with reference to specific embodiments. However, it should be noted that the advantages, benefits, and effects mentioned in this disclosure are merely examples and not limitations, and should not be considered as essential features of each embodiment of this disclosure. Furthermore, the specific details disclosed above are for illustrative and facilitative purposes only, and are not limitations. These details do not limit the scope of this disclosure to the necessity of employing the aforementioned specific details for implementation.

[0392] The block diagrams of devices, apparatuses, devices, and systems disclosed herein are merely illustrative examples and are not intended to require or imply that they must be connected, arranged, or configured in the manner shown in the block diagrams. As those skilled in the art will recognize, these devices, apparatuses, devices, and systems can be connected, arranged, and configured in any manner. Words such as “comprising,” “including,” “having,” etc., are open-ended terms meaning “including but not limited to,” and are used interchangeably with them. The terms “or” and “and” as used herein refer to the terms “and / or,” and are used interchangeably with them unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The term “such as” as used herein refers to the phrase “such as but not limited to,” and is used interchangeably with it.

[0393] Additionally, as used herein, the "or" used in a list of items beginning with "at least one" indicates a separate list, such that a list of, for example, "at least one of A, B, or C" means A or B or C, or AB or AC or BC, or ABC (i.e., A and B and C). Furthermore, the word "exemplary" does not imply that the described example is preferred or better than other examples.

[0394] It should also be noted that in the systems and methods of this disclosure, the components or steps can be decomposed and / or recombined. These decompositions and / or recombinations should be considered as equivalent solutions to this disclosure.

[0395] Various changes, substitutions, and modifications can be made to the technology described herein without departing from the teachings defined by the appended claims. Furthermore, the scope of the claims of this disclosure is not limited to the specific aspects of the processes, machines, manufactures, events, means, methods, and actions described above. Currently existing or later-developed processes, machines, manufactures, events, means, methods, or actions that perform substantially the same function or achieve substantially the same result as the corresponding aspects described herein can be utilized. Therefore, the appended claims include such processes, machines, manufactures, events, means, methods, or actions within their scope.

[0396] The above description of the disclosed aspects is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use this disclosure. Various modifications to these aspects will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects without departing from the scope of this disclosure. Therefore, this disclosure is not intended to be limited to the aspects shown herein, but rather to be carried out within the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

[0397] The above description has been given for purposes of illustration and description. Furthermore, this description is not intended to limit the embodiments of this disclosure to the forms disclosed herein. Although numerous exemplary aspects and embodiments have been discussed above, those skilled in the art will recognize certain variations, modifications, alterations, additions, and sub-combinations therein.

Claims

1. A communication method applied to an information processing device, characterized in that, The method includes: Acquire consumption increment data, which is used to indicate the consumption information of consumable materials corresponding to the image forming apparatus performing the printing task; Based on the consumption increment data, determine the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumable materials corresponding to the printing task; The cumulative consumption increment data and / or the consumption increment status data are sent to the image forming apparatus.

2. A communication method applied to an information processing device, characterized in that, The method includes: Receive the print job completion command; Based on the print task completion instruction, the consumption increment status data of the consumable materials corresponding to the print task is obtained. The consumption increment status data is determined based on the consumption increment data and is used to indicate whether the consumption increment data is normal or abnormal, and / or the identifier corresponding to the consumption increment data is a normal identifier or an abnormal identifier. The consumption increment data is used to indicate the consumption information of the consumable materials corresponding to the print task performed by the image forming apparatus. The consumption increment status data is sent to the image forming apparatus.

3. The communication method as described in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The incremental consumption data includes at least one incremental consumption sub-data and a corresponding sub-data identifier; or the incremental consumption data includes at least one group of incremental consumption sub-data and a corresponding sub-data group identifier, wherein the group of incremental consumption sub-data includes a predetermined number of incremental consumption sub-data, the sub-data group identifier includes a predetermined number of sub-data identifiers, and the sub-data identifier includes an intra-group sequence number identifier, or an intra-group sequence number identifier and an intra-group sequence number identifier.

4. The communication method as described in claim 3, characterized in that, The methods for obtaining the consumption increment data include: Obtain consumption increment data from the image forming apparatus; or, Acquire at least one consumption increment sub-data from the image forming apparatus. Determine the sub-data identifier corresponding to at least one consumption increment sub-data; or, At least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups is acquired from the image forming apparatus. Determine the sub-data group identifiers corresponding to at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups.

5. The communication method as described in claim 4, characterized in that, The step of determining the sub-data identifier corresponding to at least one consumption increment sub-data includes: Count the at least one consumption increment sub-data obtained, and determine the sub-data identifier corresponding to each at least one consumption increment sub-data based on the counting results; or, Timing is performed on at least one consumption increment sub-data, and sub-data identifiers corresponding to at least one consumption increment sub-data are determined based on the timing results; The step of determining the sub-data group identifiers corresponding to at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups includes: Count the consumption increment sub-data in at least one set of acquired consumption increment sub-data groups, and determine the sub-data group identifier corresponding to each of the at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups based on the counting results; or, Timing is performed on the consumption increment sub-data in at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups, and the sub-data group identifier corresponding to the at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups is determined based on the timing results.

6. The communication method as described in claim 3, characterized in that, The consumption increment sub-data includes: The incremental data of material consumption in the printing task is equal to or less than the preset task quantity.

7. The communication method as described in claim 3, characterized in that, The methods for determining the consumption increment status data include: Based on one or more of the consumption amount indicated by the consumption increment sub-data, the sub-data identifier, and the reception time of the consumption increment data, the consumption increment status data is determined. The consumption increment status data is used to indicate whether the consumption increment sub-data is normal or abnormal, and / or whether the sub-data identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data is a normal identifier or an abnormal identifier.

8. The communication method as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The method further includes: Based on the consumption increment data, determine the cumulative consumption increment data of the consumable materials corresponding to the printing task; The cumulative consumption increment data is sent to the image forming apparatus.

9. The communication method as described in claim 3, characterized in that, The consumption increment status data includes an anomaly indication information for indicating that the consumption increment sub-data is an abnormal sub-data. The anomaly indication information corresponds to the sub-data identifier of the consumption increment sub-data that has not been added to the cumulative consumption increment data.

10. The communication method as described in claim 9, characterized in that, The method for determining the consumption increment status data also includes: The anomaly indication information is determined based on the sub-data identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that has not been added to the cumulative consumption increment data.

11. The communication method as described in claim 3, characterized in that, When determining cumulative consumption increment data based on the consumption increment data, the methods for determining the cumulative consumption increment data include: The cumulative consumption increment data is determined based on the consumption increment sub-data as normal sub-data, or based on the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the sub-data identifier as a normal identifier.

12. The communication method as described in claim 1 or 8, characterized in that, The method further includes: Get consumption correction data; Based on the consumption correction data and the cumulative consumption increment data, corrected cumulative consumption increment data is generated.

13. The communication method as described in claim 7, characterized in that, The process of determining the consumption increment status data based on one or more of the consumption amount indicated by the consumption increment sub-data, the sub-data identifier, and the reception time of the consumption increment data includes: If the consumption amount indicated by the consumption increment sub-data is not within the predetermined consumption range, the consumption increment sub-data is determined to be the abnormal sub-data, and / or the sub-data identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data is the abnormal identifier.

14. The communication method as described in claim 7, characterized in that, The process of determining the consumption increment status data based on one or more of the consumption amount indicated by the consumption increment sub-data, the sub-data identifier, and the reception time of the consumption increment data includes: In the case where multiple sub-data identifiers are in a non-continuous state, the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the sub-data identifier missing relative to the continuous state is determined to be the abnormal sub-data, and / or the missing sub-data identifier is determined to be the abnormal identifier; and / or If the sub-data identifier included in the last received consumption increment data is different from the last sub-data identifier included in the print job end instruction sent by the image forming apparatus, the missing sub-data identifier is determined to be the abnormal identifier, and / or the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the missing sub-data identifier is the abnormal sub-data. The missing sub-data identifier includes the last sub-data identifier, or the last sub-data identifier and the missing sub-data identifier between the last sub-data identifier and the sub-data identifier included in the last received consumption increment data.

15. The communication method as described in claim 7, characterized in that, When the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and a group-internal sequence number identifier, determining the consumption increment status data based on one or more of the consumption amount indicated by the consumption increment sub-data, the sub-data identifier, and the reception time of the consumption increment data includes: When the group sequence identifiers corresponding to multiple sub-data group identifiers are in a non-continuous state, the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the missing group sequence identifier relative to the continuous state is determined to be the abnormal sub-data, and / or the sub-data identifier corresponding to the missing group sequence identifier is determined to be an abnormal identifier; and / or If the group sequence number identifier of the last received sub-data identifier is different from the last group sequence number identifier included in the print job end instruction sent by the image forming apparatus, the sub-data identifier corresponding to the missing group sequence number identifier is determined to be an abnormal identifier, and / or the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the missing group sequence number identifier is the abnormal sub-data. The missing group sequence identifier includes the last group sequence identifier, or the missing group sequence identifier between the last group sequence identifier and the group sequence identifier of the last received sub-data identifier.

16. The communication method as described in claim 7, characterized in that, The process of determining the consumption increment status data based on one or more of the consumption amount indicated by the consumption increment sub-data, the sub-data identifier, and the reception time of the consumption increment data includes: Sub-data identifiers that do not meet the preset group sequence identifier rules are identified as the abnormal identifiers; or... The sub-data identifiers corresponding to the preset identifiers in the preset identifier set that are different from the in-group sequence identifiers corresponding to the sub-data group identifiers are determined as the abnormal identifiers. The preset identifier set includes a preset number of preset identifiers.

17. The communication method as described in claim 7, characterized in that, The process of determining the consumption increment status data based on one or more of the consumption amount indicated by the consumption increment sub-data, the sub-data identifier, and the reception time of the consumption increment data includes: If the consumption increment data is not received within the predetermined receiving time range, the corresponding consumption increment sub-data is determined to be abnormal sub-data, and / or the corresponding sub-data identifier is the abnormal identifier.

18. The communication method as described in claim 3, characterized in that, The method further includes: The number of abnormal data is determined based on the consumption increment status data, wherein the number of abnormal data is determined based on anomaly identifiers and / or anomaly sub-data. The number of abnormal data is sent to the image forming apparatus.

19. The communication method as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The method further includes: Receive the print job completion command; Based on the print task end instruction, the consumption increment status data of the consumable materials corresponding to the print task is obtained. The consumption increment status data is determined according to the consumption increment data and is used to indicate whether the consumption increment data is normal or abnormal, and / or the identifier corresponding to the consumption increment data is a normal identifier or an abnormal identifier.

20. An information processing device, characterized in that, The device includes: The information acquisition module is used to acquire consumption increment data, which is used to indicate the consumption information of consumable materials corresponding to the image forming apparatus performing the printing task; The information processing module is used to determine, based on the consumption increment data, the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumable materials corresponding to the printing task; The information sending module is used to send the cumulative consumption increment data and / or the consumption increment status data to the image forming apparatus.

21. The information processing apparatus as described in claim 20, characterized in that, The incremental consumption data includes at least one incremental consumption sub-data and a corresponding sub-data identifier; or the incremental consumption data includes at least one group of incremental consumption sub-data and a corresponding sub-data group identifier, wherein the group of incremental consumption sub-data includes a predetermined number of incremental consumption sub-data, the sub-data group identifier includes a predetermined number of sub-data identifiers, and the sub-data identifier includes an intra-group sequence number identifier, or an intra-group sequence number identifier and an intra-group sequence number identifier.

22. The information processing apparatus as claimed in claim 21, characterized in that, The information acquisition module is used for: Obtain consumption increment data from the image forming apparatus; or, Acquire at least one consumption increment sub-data from the image forming apparatus. Determine the sub-data identifier corresponding to at least one consumption increment sub-data; or, At least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups is acquired from the image forming apparatus. Determine the sub-data group identifiers corresponding to at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups.

23. The information processing apparatus as described in claim 22, characterized in that, The information acquisition module is also used for: Count the at least one consumption increment sub-data obtained, and determine the sub-data identifier corresponding to each at least one consumption increment sub-data based on the counting results; or, Timing is performed on at least one acquired consumption increment sub-data, and sub-data identifiers corresponding to each of the at least one consumption increment sub-data are determined based on the timing results; or; Count the consumption increment sub-data in at least one set of acquired consumption increment sub-data groups, and determine the sub-data group identifier corresponding to each of the at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups based on the counting results; or, Timing is performed on the consumption increment sub-data in at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups, and the sub-data group identifier corresponding to the at least one set of consumption increment sub-data groups is determined based on the timing results.

24. The information processing apparatus as claimed in claim 21, characterized in that, The consumption increment sub-data includes: The incremental data of material consumption in the printing task is equal to or less than the preset task quantity.

25. The information processing apparatus as claimed in claim 21, characterized in that, The information processing module is used to determine the consumption increment status data based on one or more of the consumption amount indicated by the consumption increment sub-data, the sub-data identifier, and the reception time of the consumption increment data. The consumption increment status data is used to indicate whether the consumption increment sub-data is normal or abnormal, and / or whether the sub-data identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data is a normal identifier or an abnormal identifier.

26. The information processing apparatus as claimed in claim 21, characterized in that, The consumption increment status data includes an anomaly indication information for indicating that the consumption increment sub-data is an abnormal sub-data. The anomaly indication information corresponds to the sub-data identifier of the consumption increment sub-data that has not been added to the cumulative consumption increment data.

27. The information processing apparatus as claimed in claim 26, characterized in that, The information processing module is also used for: The anomaly indication information is determined based on the sub-data identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data that has not been added to the cumulative consumption increment data.

28. The information processing apparatus as claimed in claim 21, characterized in that, The information processing module is also used for: The cumulative consumption increment data is determined based on the consumption increment sub-data as normal sub-data, or based on the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the sub-data identifier as a normal identifier.

29. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 20 to 28, characterized in that, The information acquisition module is also used to acquire consumption correction data; The information processing module is also used to generate corrected cumulative consumption increment data based on the consumption correction data and the cumulative consumption increment data.

30. The information processing apparatus as described in claim 25, characterized in that, The information processing module is also used for: If the consumption amount indicated by the consumption increment sub-data is not within the predetermined consumption range, the consumption increment sub-data is determined to be the abnormal sub-data, and / or the sub-data identifier corresponding to the consumption increment sub-data is the abnormal identifier.

31. The information processing apparatus as described in claim 25, characterized in that, The information processing module is also used for: In the case where multiple sub-data identifiers are in a non-continuous state, the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the sub-data identifier missing relative to the continuous state is determined to be the abnormal sub-data, and / or the missing sub-data identifier is determined to be the abnormal identifier; and / or If the sub-data identifier included in the last received consumption increment data is different from the last sub-data identifier included in the print job end instruction sent by the image forming apparatus, the missing sub-data identifier is determined to be the abnormal identifier, and / or the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the missing sub-data identifier is the abnormal sub-data. The missing sub-data identifier includes the last sub-data identifier, or the last sub-data identifier and the missing sub-data identifier between the last sub-data identifier and the sub-data identifier included in the last received consumption increment data.

32. The information processing apparatus as described in claim 25, characterized in that, When the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier and a group intra-sequence number identifier, the information processing module is further configured to: When the group sequence identifiers corresponding to multiple sub-data group identifiers are in a non-continuous state, the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the missing group sequence identifier relative to the continuous state is determined to be the abnormal sub-data, and / or the sub-data identifier corresponding to the missing group sequence identifier is determined to be an abnormal identifier; and / or If the group sequence number identifier of the last received sub-data identifier is different from the last group sequence number identifier included in the print job end instruction sent by the image forming apparatus, the sub-data identifier corresponding to the missing group sequence number identifier is determined to be an abnormal identifier, and / or the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the missing group sequence number identifier is the abnormal sub-data. The missing group sequence identifier includes the last group sequence identifier, or the missing group sequence identifier between the last group sequence identifier and the group sequence identifier of the last received sub-data identifier.

33. The information processing apparatus as described in claim 25, characterized in that, The information processing module is also used for: Sub-data identifiers that do not meet the preset group sequence identifier rules are identified as the abnormal identifiers; or... The sub-data identifiers corresponding to the preset identifiers in the preset identifier set that are different from the in-group sequence identifiers corresponding to the sub-data group identifiers are determined as the abnormal identifiers. The preset identifier set includes a preset number of preset identifiers.

34. The information processing apparatus as described in claim 25, characterized in that, The information processing module is also used for: If the consumption increment data is not received within the predetermined receiving time range, the corresponding consumption increment sub-data is determined to be abnormal sub-data, and / or the corresponding sub-data identifier is the abnormal identifier.

35. The information processing apparatus as described in claim 25, characterized in that, The information processing module is further configured to determine the number of abnormal data based on the consumption increment status data, wherein the number of abnormal data is determined based on anomaly identifiers and / or abnormal sub-data. The information sending module is also used to send the number of abnormal data to the image forming apparatus.

36. The information processing apparatus as described in claim 20, characterized in that, The information acquisition module is also used to receive a printing task end instruction; and based on the printing task end instruction, to acquire the consumption increment status data of the consumable materials corresponding to the printing task, wherein the consumption increment status data is determined according to the consumption increment data and is used to indicate whether the consumption increment data is normal data or abnormal data, and / or the identifier corresponding to the consumption increment data is a normal identifier or an abnormal identifier.

37. A consumable, characterized in that, include: case; A developer container, located inside the housing, is used to contain the developer; as well as The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 20 to 36.

38. The consumable as described in claim 37, characterized in that, The consumables also include: Developer delivery element for delivering the developer, and / or A photosensitive drum; a charging roller for charging the photosensitive drum.

39. A consumable, characterized in that, The consumables include: Photosensitive drum; A charging roller for charging the photosensitive drum; and The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 20 to 36.

40. A communication method applied to an image forming apparatus, characterized in that, The method includes: The information processing device sends consumption increment data, which is used to instruct the image forming device to perform the consumption information of consumable materials corresponding to the printing task; Acquire the cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumable material from the information processing device; Based on the cumulative consumption increment data and / or the consumption increment status data, consumable status information is generated. The cumulative consumption increment data and / or consumption increment status data of the consumable materials are determined by the information processing device based on the consumption increment data.

41. The communication method as described in claim 40, characterized in that, The incremental consumption data includes at least one incremental consumption sub-data and a corresponding sub-data identifier; or the incremental consumption data includes at least one group of incremental consumption sub-data and a corresponding sub-data group identifier, wherein the group of incremental consumption sub-data includes a predetermined number of incremental consumption sub-data, the sub-data group identifier includes a predetermined number of sub-data identifiers, and the sub-data identifier includes a group sequence number identifier, or a group sequence number identifier and a group sequence number identifier; the incremental consumption status data is used to indicate whether the incremental consumption sub-data is normal or abnormal, and / or whether the sub-data identifier corresponding to the incremental consumption sub-data is a normal identifier or an abnormal identifier.

42. The communication method as described in claim 40 or 41, characterized in that, The consumable status information includes one or more of the following: normal information, abnormal information, or consumption correction data. Wherein, the normal information is used to indicate that the information processing device or the consumables corresponding to the information processing device meet expectations, the abnormal information is used to indicate that the information processing device or the consumables corresponding to the information processing device do not meet expectations, and the consumption correction data is determined based on the consumption increment sub-data as abnormal sub-data, and / or based on the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the sub-data identifier as an abnormal identifier.

43. The communication method as described in claim 42, characterized in that, The step of generating consumable status information based on the cumulative consumption increment data and / or the consumption increment status data includes: If the proportion of abnormal data is determined to be greater than a predetermined threshold based on the consumption increment status data, the abnormal information is generated, wherein the proportion of abnormal data is determined based on the number of abnormal sub-data and / or abnormal identifiers; or, If, based on the consumption increment status data, the proportion of abnormal data is determined to be no greater than a predetermined threshold, then... When the accumulated consumption increment data and local consumption increment sub-data indicate an error in the accumulated consumption increment data, the exception information is generated. The local consumption increment sub-data corresponds to the consumption increment sub-data that serves as the exception sub-data and / or the consumption increment sub-data corresponding to the sub-data identifier that serves as the exception identifier, or... When the cumulative consumption increment data and the local consumption increment sub-data indicate that the cumulative consumption increment data is correct, the consumption correction data is generated.

44. The communication method as described in claim 42, characterized in that, The method further includes: Send the consumption correction data to the information processing device; Obtain corrected cumulative consumption increment data or verification information of the corrected cumulative consumption increment data from the information processing device, wherein the corrected cumulative consumption increment data is generated based on the consumption correction data and the cumulative consumption increment data.

45. The communication method as described in claim 41, characterized in that, The consumption increment sub-data includes: The incremental data of material consumption in the printing task is equal to or less than the preset task quantity.

46. ​​An image forming apparatus, characterized in that, The image forming apparatus includes a processor configured to perform the communication method according to any one of claims 40 to 45.

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