Image forming apparatus

Abstract

To facilitate obtaining an effect from using a genuine toner cartridge when genuine and non-genuine toner cartridges are mounted in a dual container.SOLUTION: An image forming apparatus 1 comprises: an image forming unit 12; toner containers 17Bk, 17Y, 17C, 17M; toner supply units 50; an information communication unit 51 that performs communication with RFIDs of toner cartridges Tc; and a control unit 100 that, on the basis of information from the RFIDs acquired by the information communication unit 51, determines whether the plurality of toner cartridges Tc mounted in the toner containers 17Bk, 17Y, 17C, 17M are a genuine product or a non-genuine product. When both genuine and non-genuine toner cartridges Tc are mounted in the toner container, the control unit 100 causes the toner supply unit 50 to supply toner to the image forming unit 12 from the genuine toner cartridge Tc preferentially over the non-genuine toner cartridge Tc.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus that gives priority to the use of genuine toner cartridges. [Background technology]

[0002] In image forming devices, toner used for image formation is generally installed in a container in the form of a toner cartridge. Technology relating to image forming devices including such containers is disclosed, for example, in Patent Document 1. The technology disclosed in Patent Document 1 is a technology that reads toner cartridge information relating to a single container of an image forming device, and recognizes whether the toner cartridge is a genuine product (manufactured by the same company) or a non-genuine product (manufactured by another company) based on the read toner cartridge information. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2021-196538 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Also, an image forming device has been proposed that allows multiple toner cartridges to be mounted using a dual container to prevent continuous printing from stopping due to toner exhaustion. In such an image forming device, both genuine and non-genuine toner cartridges may be mounted in the dual container. Here, when forming an image using toner from a genuine toner cartridge, it is possible to expect effects such as ensuring image quality, reducing problems during image formation operations, and ensuring accuracy when detecting the amount of toner used, but these effects cannot be expected when using a non-genuine toner cartridge.

[0005] The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and aims to make it easier to obtain the benefits of using a genuine toner cartridge when a genuine toner cartridge and a non-genuine toner cartridge are installed in a dual container. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] An image forming apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention comprises an image forming unit that forms an image on a recording medium, a dual container in which a plurality of toner cartridges are mounted, a toner supply unit that supplies toner from the plurality of toner cartridges mounted in the dual container to the image forming unit, an information communication unit that communicates information with a storage medium attached to the toner cartridge when the toner cartridge is mounted in the dual container, and a control unit that determines whether the plurality of toner cartridges mounted in the dual container are genuine or non-genuine based on information obtained from the storage medium by the information communication unit through the communication, and when both the genuine and non-genuine toner cartridges are mounted in the dual container, the control unit causes the toner supply unit to supply toner from the genuine toner cartridge to the image forming unit in priority to the non-genuine toner cartridge. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the present invention, when a genuine toner cartridge and a non-genuine toner cartridge are attached to a dual container, it is possible to easily obtain the effects of using the genuine toner cartridge. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic front cross-sectional view showing a structure of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 2] 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an image forming apparatus; [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a container to be mounted on the image forming apparatus. [Figure 4] 10 is a flowchart showing a process performed when a toner cartridge Tc is attached to a toner container. [Diagram 5] 10 is a flowchart showing a process performed based on a genuine product count value and a non-genuine product count value. [Figure 6] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a display screen displayed on a display unit. [Figure 7] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a display screen displayed on a display unit. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] Hereinafter, an electronic device and an image forming device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 is a schematic partial cross-sectional front view showing the structure of an image forming device as an electronic device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The image forming device 1 is a multifunction device having multiple functions such as a copy function, a printer function, a scanner function, and a facsimile function, and is configured to include an operation unit 47, a document feed unit 6, and an image reading unit 5 in a device main body 11.

[0010] The operation unit 47 accepts instructions from an operator regarding various operations and processes that can be performed by the image forming apparatus 1, such as instructions to perform an image forming operation or an original reading operation, and is provided with a display unit 473 that displays operation guidance, etc. to the operator.

[0011] The image forming section 12 is composed of an image forming unit 12Bk for black (Bk), an image forming unit 12Y for yellow (Y), an image forming unit 12C for cyan (C), and an image forming unit 12M for magenta (M), and these image forming units 12Bk, 12Y, 12C, and 12M are equipped with drum-shaped photoconductors 121Bk, 121Y, 121C, and 121M, respectively, and the photoconductors 121Bk, 121Y, 121C, and 121M are configured to rotate counterclockwise in the figure.

[0012] Toner containers 17Bk, 17Y, 17C, and 17M house toner cartridges for black, yellow, cyan, and magenta, respectively, and are provided above and away from photoconductors 121Bk, 121Y, 121C, and 121M, with intermediate transfer belt 125 sandwiched between them.

[0013] A plurality of toner cartridges filled with toner of each color are removably attached to the toner containers 17Bk, 17Y, 17C, and 17M, respectively. The toner containers 17Bk, 17Y, 17C, and 17M are so-called dual containers. For example, a plurality of toner cartridges filled with black toner are attached to the toner container 17Bk, and the same is true for toner cartridges of other colors. In this embodiment, a configuration in which two toner cartridges are attached to each toner container will be described as an example.

[0014] In each toner cartridge, toner is supplied from one of the two installed toner cartridges to the developing device for the corresponding color, and when the toner in that toner cartridge runs out, toner is supplied from the other toner cartridge to the developing device for the corresponding color.

[0015] The transfer unit 120 includes an intermediate transfer belt 125 onto whose outer circumferential surface a toner image is transferred, a drive roller 125 a , a driven roller 125 b , and a primary transfer roller 126 .

[0016] The intermediate transfer belt 125 is stretched between a drive roller 125a and a driven roller 125b, and is driven by the drive roller 125a while in contact with the peripheral surfaces of the photoconductors 121Bk, 121Y, 121C, and 121M, and runs endlessly in synchronization with the photoconductors 121Bk, 121Y, 121C, and 121M.

[0017] A description will be given of a case where color printing is performed by the image forming apparatus 1. The periphery of the photoconductors 121Bk, 121Y, 121C, and 121M is uniformly charged (charging process), the surfaces of the charged photoconductors 121Bk, 121Y, 121C, and 121M are irradiated with laser light based on image data to form latent images (exposure process), the latent images are visualized with toner (developing process), and the toner image formed by the visualization is transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 125 by the primary transfer roller 126.

[0018] The toner images of each color (black, yellow, cyan, magenta) transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 125 are superimposed on the intermediate transfer belt 125 by adjusting the transfer timing, to form a color toner image.

[0019] The secondary transfer roller 210 transfers the color toner image formed on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 125 to the paper P transported along the transport path 190 from the paper feed unit 14 at a nip portion N between the secondary transfer roller 210 and the drive roller 125a, which sandwiches the intermediate transfer belt 125. Note that what has been explained so far is the case of color printing, and in the case of monochrome printing, the yellow, cyan, and magenta photoconductors 121Y, 121C, and 121M are not used, and only the black photoconductor 121Bk is used.

[0020] The fixing unit 13 fixes the toner image onto the paper P by thermocompression, and the paper P on which the color image has been formed and subjected to the fixing process is discharged onto a discharge tray 151.

[0021] Next, a description will be given of the main internal configuration of the image forming apparatus 1. Fig. 2 is a functional block diagram showing the main internal configuration of the image forming apparatus 1 according to this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 2, the image forming apparatus 1 includes an image reading section 5, an image forming section 12, a display section 473, an operation section 47, a network communication section 25, a storage section 27, and a control unit 10. Furthermore, the image forming apparatus 1 includes a toner supply section 50 and an information communication section 51.

[0022] The display unit 473 is composed of a liquid crystal display (LCD) or an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display.

[0023] The operation unit 47 includes physical keys such as a numeric keypad, a decision key, a start key, etc. In response to the operation of each key, an instruction corresponding to the corresponding key is input to the operation unit 47.

[0024] A touch panel is arranged on the screen of the display unit 473. The touch panel is a so-called resistive film type or capacitive type touch panel, which detects a contact (touch) of a user's finger or the like on the touch panel together with the contact position, and outputs a detection signal indicating the coordinates of the contact position to the control unit 100 of the control unit 10, which will be described later, or the like.

[0025] The network communication unit 25 is a communication interface, and transmits and receives data to and from external terminal devices via a network (such as the Internet or an intranet).

[0026] The storage unit 27 is a large-capacity storage device such as a solid state drive (SSD) or a hard disk drive (HDD), and stores various application programs and various data.

[0027] The control unit 10 is composed of a processor, a RAM (Random Access Memory), a ROM (Read Only Memory), etc. The processor is, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), or an MPU (Micro Processing Unit), etc. The control unit 10 functions as a control unit 100 by the processor executing a control program stored in the ROM or the storage unit 27.

[0028] The control unit 100 comprehensively controls the image forming apparatus 1. The control unit 10 is connected to the image reading unit 5, the image forming unit 12, the display unit 473, the operation unit 47, the network communication unit 25, the toner supply unit 50, the information communication unit 51, the storage unit 27, etc. The control unit 100 controls the operation of these components and transmits and receives signals or data between these components.

[0029] The control unit 100 serves as a processing unit that executes various processes necessary for image formation by the image forming apparatus 1. The control unit 100 also accepts operation instructions input by a user based on a detection signal output from a touch panel or an operation of a physical key of the operation unit 47. Furthermore, the control unit 100 has a function of controlling the display operation of the display unit 473 and a function of controlling the communication operation of the network communication unit 25.

[0030] The information communication unit 51 is provided at a position facing the RFIDs provided on the toner cartridges attached to the toner containers 17Bk, 17Y, 17C, and 17M, and performs information communication with the RFIDs. The information communication unit 51 includes, for example, a reader / writer that reads information written in a memory in the RFID and writes information to the memory in the RFID. For example, a plurality of information communication units 51 are provided in the image forming apparatus 1, and the information communication units 51 are disposed at positions facing the RFIDs provided on the two toner cartridges attached to each of the toner containers 17Bk, 17Y, 17C, and 17M.

[0031] The toner supply unit 50 supplies toner from a plurality of toner cartridges attached to the toner containers 17Bk, 17Y, 17C, and 17M to the developing devices of the image forming unit 12 for the corresponding colors. The control unit 100 controls the operation of the toner supply unit 50.

[0032] Next, the toner supply unit 50 will be described. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the mechanisms of the toner supply unit 50 and the toner containers 17Bk, 17Y, 17C, and 17M. As shown in FIG. 3, the toner containers 17Bk, 17Y, 17C, and 17M are dual containers in which two toner cartridges Tc are attached. The toner containers 17Bk, 17Y, 17C, and 17M are each provided with a toner supply unit 50. The toner supply unit 50 includes a toner supply transport path that connects the toner cartridge Tc attached to each of the two toner cartridges Tc attached to the toner containers 17Bk, 17Y, 17C, and 17M to the developing device of the image forming unit for the corresponding color located below the toner cartridge Tc.

[0033] Furthermore, each toner supply transport path is provided with a door mechanism for opening and closing the supply path from the toner cartridge Tc to the developing device. The opening and closing operation of the door mechanism is controlled by the control unit 100. When the door mechanism is in an open state, the toner is guided from the toner cartridge Tc to the developing device by dropping, and when the door mechanism is in a closed state, the supply path connecting the toner cartridge Tc to the developing device is blocked, and the toner is not guided from the toner cartridge Tc to the developing device.

[0034] When supplying toner from the toner cartridge Tc, the control unit 100 opens the door mechanism provided in the toner supply transport path of one of the two toner cartridges Tc and closes the door mechanism provided in the other toner supply transport path, thereby supplying toner from only one of the toner cartridges Tc to the developing device. As described above, when the toner filled in the toner cartridge Tc that is supplying toner with the door mechanism in the open state runs out, the control unit 100 closes the door mechanism and opens the door mechanism of the other toner cartridge Tc to start supplying toner from the other toner cartridge Tc.

[0035] When a toner cartridge Tc is attached to the toner container 17Bk, 17Y, 17C, or 17M, the information communication unit 51, which is provided at a position facing the RFID attached to the attached toner cartridge Tc, starts communication with the RFID. That is, the information communication unit 51 starts communication because the RFID comes within the communication range.

[0036] The genuine toner cartridge Tc is attached with an RFID capable of communicating with the information communication unit 51 as described above. However, the non-genuine toner cartridge Tc is not attached with an RFID or is not attached with an RFID capable of accurate communication with the information communication unit 51. Therefore, when the toner cartridge Tc is attached to the toner container, if the toner cartridge Tc is a genuine product, the information communication unit 51 communicates with the RFID attached to the toner cartridge Tc, and the information communication unit 51 reads predetermined unique information (for example, unique ID information of the toner cartridge Tc) and writes predetermined necessary information. When the non-genuine toner cartridge Tc is attached to the toner container, the information communication unit 51 does not perform such communication and does not read the unique information. Therefore, when the information communication unit 51 reads new unique information through the communication and acquires the new unique information from the information communication unit 51, the control unit 100 determines that the toner cartridge Tc attached to the toner container is a genuine product.

[0037] The toner container is also provided with a switch mechanism (mounting detection sensor) that detects that the toner cartridge Tc is mounted, for example, a switch mechanism that is turned on when pressed by the mounted toner cartridge Tc. The switch mechanism is in an off state when there is no pressure. The switch mechanism outputs an on signal to the control unit 100 when in an on state, and outputs an off signal to the control unit 100 when in an off state.

[0038] When a genuine toner cartridge Tc is attached to the toner container, the control unit 100 receives an ON signal from the switch mechanism and also receives the new unique information from the information communication unit 51. Therefore, the control unit 100 determines that a genuine toner cartridge Tc is attached to the toner container at least when the control unit 100 receives the new unique information from the information communication unit 51.

[0039] On the other hand, when a non-genuine toner cartridge Tc is attached to the toner container, the control unit 100 receives an ON signal from the switch mechanism, but the information communication unit 51 cannot perform the above communication and does not receive any information from the information communication unit 51, or even if the information communication unit 51 can perform the above communication, it cannot receive the above unique information from the RFID attached to the non-genuine toner cartridge Tc. Therefore, when the control unit 100 receives an ON signal from the switch mechanism but does not receive new unique information from the information communication unit 51, it determines that a non-genuine toner cartridge Tc is attached to the toner container.

[0040] When the control unit 100 determines that both the genuine and non-genuine toner cartridges Tc are attached to one toner container, it causes the toner supply unit 50 to open the door mechanism provided in the toner supply transport path on the genuine toner cartridge Tc side and close the door mechanism provided in the toner supply transport path on the non-genuine toner cartridge Tc side, so that toner is not supplied from the non-genuine toner cartridge Tc and toner is supplied from the genuine toner cartridge Tc to the developing device of the image forming unit for the corresponding color. In other words, when the control unit 100 determines that both the genuine and non-genuine toner cartridges Tc are attached to one toner container, it causes the toner supply unit 50 to supply toner from the genuine toner cartridge Tc to the developing device of the image forming unit with priority over the non-genuine toner cartridge Tc.

[0041] Therefore, according to this embodiment, when a genuine toner cartridge Tc and a non-genuine toner cartridge Tc are installed in a toner container, the genuine toner cartridge Tc supplies toner to the developing device of the image forming unit 12 in priority over the non-genuine toner cartridge Tc, making it easier to obtain the benefits of using the genuine toner cartridge Tc.

[0042] Next, a process when the toner cartridge Tc is attached to the toner container will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in Fig. 4. This process is performed regardless of whether the toner cartridge Tc is attached to any of the toner containers 17Bk, 17Y, 17C, and 17M.

[0043] When a toner cartridge Tc is attached to any of the toner containers 17Bk, 17Y, 17C, 17M and the control unit 100 receives an on signal from the switch mechanism corresponding to that toner cartridge Tc, the information communication unit 51 determines whether it has received any information from the RFIDs of both of the two toner cartridges Tc attached to that toner container and whether it has received any information from the information communication unit 51 (S101).

[0044] When the control unit 100 determines that some of the above information has been received from both of the two toner cartridges Tc from the information communication unit 51 (YES in S101), it determines whether the above information is new unique information, thereby determining whether the two toner cartridges Tc are genuine or non-genuine (S102).

[0045] Here, when the control unit 100 determines that the information received from the RFID of both of the two toner cartridges Tc is the above-mentioned unique information and that both of the two toner cartridges Tc are genuine products (YES in S102), it counts up the genuine product count value (number of replacements) by "2" (S103).

[0046] Then, the control unit 100 sets the toner cartridge Tc that was first attached to the toner container, of the two toner cartridges Tc, as the toner cartridge Tc that supplies toner to the developing device (S104).

[0047] In addition, when the control unit 100 determines that the information received from the RFID of one of the two toner cartridges Tc is the unique information and that the information received from the other toner cartridge Tc is not the unique information, and determines that one toner cartridge Tc is a genuine product and the other toner cartridge Tc is a non-genuine product (NO in S102, YES in S120), it counts up the genuine product count value by "1" and counts up the non-genuine product count value (number of replacements) by "1" (S121).

[0048] In this case, the control unit 100 controls the toner supply unit 50 to supply toner from the genuine toner cartridge Tc to the developing device of the image forming unit, giving priority to the non-genuine toner cartridge Tc (S122).

[0049] In addition, when the control unit 100 determines that none of the information received from the RFID of either one of the two toner cartridges Tc and the other toner cartridge Tc is the unique information and that both of the two toner cartridges Tc are non-genuine products (NO in S120), it counts up the non-genuine product count value (number of replacements) by "2" (S126).

[0050] Then, the control unit 100 sets the toner cartridge Tc that is attached to the toner container first, of the two toner cartridges Tc, as the toner cartridge Tc that supplies toner to the developing device (S127).

[0051] On the other hand, in S101, when the control unit 100 determines that the information communication unit 51 has not received any information from the RFID of either of the two toner cartridges Tc attached to the toner container and that no information has been received from the information communication unit 51 (NO in S101), it counts up the reading failure count value by "2" (S130).

[0052] In the above process, when a non-genuine toner cartridge Tc is installed in the toner container and an ON signal is output from the switch mechanism, the information communication unit 51 receives some information from the RFID of the non-genuine toner cartridge Tc, but in some cases, the non-genuine toner cartridge Tc does not have an RFID. In that case, the information communication unit 51 cannot communicate with the non-genuine toner cartridge Tc and does not receive any information. Therefore, when the toner cartridge Tc is mounted in the toner container and an ON signal is output from the switch mechanism, (i) when the information communication unit 51 receives the unique information from the two toner cartridges Tc mounted in the toner container and receives the predetermined unique information from the information communication unit 51, the control unit 100 determines that the two toner cartridges Tc mounted in the toner container are genuine products, and (ii) when the unique information is received from one of the two toner cartridges Tc mounted in the toner container and the information communication unit 51 does not receive any information from the other, the control unit 100 determines that one of the two toner cartridges Tc is a genuine product and the other is a non-genuine product. Also, (iii) when the information communication unit 51 does not receive the unique information from either of the two toner cartridges Tc and does not receive any information from the information communication unit 51, the control unit 100 may determine that the two toner cartridges Tc are non-genuine products. In this case, the control unit 100 increments the genuine product count value by "2" in the case of (i), in the case of (ii) increments the genuine product count value by "1" and also increments the non-genuine product count value by "1", and in the case of (iii) increments the non-genuine product count value by "2". Note that in this case, the control unit 100 does not count up the read failure count value.

[0053] Next, a process performed based on the genuine product count value and the non-genuine product count value will be described with reference to Fig. 5, which is a flow chart showing the process performed based on the genuine product count value and the non-genuine product count value.

[0054] As described above, the control unit 100 compares the genuine product count value and the non-genuine product count value each time the genuine product count value and the non-genuine product count value are updated (S10). Here, when the control unit 100 determines that the genuine product count value is greater than the non-genuine product count value (YES in S10), the control unit 100 causes the communication unit 15 to transmit information indicating the genuine product count value and the non-genuine product count value, together with or instead of the information, requesting a discount on the toner fee (toner cartridge purchase fee) to a predetermined external device such as a management server connected to the image forming apparatus 1 via a network (S20). As a result, the management server or the like that receives the information can hold the above value indicating that the genuine product count value is greater than the non-genuine product count value as data, and further, based on the request, can perform processing such as reducing the amount billed to the purchaser for the toner cartridge Tc. Furthermore, the control unit 100 causes the display unit 473 to display a message indicating that the toner fee (toner cartridge purchase fee) will be discounted at the next purchase, as shown in an example in FIG. 6 (S20).

[0055] On the other hand, when the control unit 100 determines that the non-genuine product count value is equal to or greater than the genuine product count value (NO in S10), it causes the display unit 473 to display a message indicating the effects obtained by using a genuine toner cartridge Tc (S30), as shown in the example of Fig. 7. For example, the control unit 100 causes the display unit 473 to display a message indicating that image formation using toner in a genuine toner cartridge Tc can be expected to provide effects such as ensuring image quality, reducing trouble during image formation operations, and ensuring accuracy in detecting the amount of toner used.

[0056] Furthermore, after S20 and S30, the control unit 100 causes the communication unit 15 to transmit information indicating the genuine product count value and the non-genuine product count value to the predetermined external device (S40). As a result, the predetermined external device that receives the information can hold the above values ​​indicating that the genuine non-genuine product count value is the same as or larger than the genuine product count value as data.

[0057] The present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible. For example, in the above embodiment, the image forming apparatus 1 is an image forming apparatus for forming a color image, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the image forming apparatus 1 may be an image forming apparatus for forming a monochrome image. In this case, the image forming apparatus 1 is provided with one dual container for monochrome use, instead of the toner containers for each color, such as the toner containers 17Bk, 17Y, 17C, and 17M.

[0058] Moreover, the configuration and processing shown in the above embodiment with reference to FIGS. 1 to 7 are merely one embodiment of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to these configurations and processing. [Explanation of symbols]

[0059] 1. Image forming device 100 Control section 12 Image forming memory 17Bk, 17Y, 17C, 17M Toner Container 50 Toner supply unit 51 Ministry of Information and Communications 25 Network Communication Department 473 Display section

Claims

1. an image forming unit that forms an image on a recording medium; A dual container in which multiple toner cartridges can be installed; a toner supply unit that supplies toner from the plurality of toner cartridges attached to the dual container to the image forming unit; an information communication unit that communicates information with a storage medium attached to the toner cartridge when the toner cartridge is attached to the dual container; a control unit that determines whether the plurality of toner cartridges attached to the dual container are genuine or non-genuine based on information acquired from the storage medium by the information communication unit through the communication, When both the genuine and non-genuine toner cartridges are attached to the dual container, the control unit controls the toner supply unit to supply toner from the genuine toner cartridge to the image forming unit, giving priority to the non-genuine toner cartridge.

2. Further comprising an external communication unit for communicating with an external device, The control unit is When the toner cartridge is mounted in the dual container, if the information communication unit determines that the mounted toner cartridge is a genuine product based on the information acquired by the communication, it increments a genuine product count value, and if the toner cartridge is determined to be a non-genuine product, it increments a non-genuine product count value; 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a processor for controlling a toner charge for a toner cartridge connected to a network; a communication unit for transmitting information to a network-connected information processing device when the network-connected information processing device receives the information, and the communication unit transmits information to the ... information requesting a discount on the toner charge is transmitted to the network-connected information processing device.

3. Further comprising a display unit, The control unit is When the toner cartridge is mounted in the dual container, if the information communication unit determines that the mounted toner cartridge is a genuine product based on the information acquired by the communication, it increments a genuine product count value, and if the toner cartridge is determined to be a non-genuine product, it increments a non-genuine product count value; 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a display unit that displays a message indicating the effect obtained by using the genuine product when the genuine product count value is compared with the non-genuine product count value and the non-genuine product count value is equal to or greater than the genuine product count value.

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