Image forming apparatus, control method for image forming apparatus, and control program for image forming apparatus

Abstract

To allow replacement of a toner bottle even in the event of breakdown of a front cover open and close detection section, and reduce downtime of an image forming apparatus.SOLUTION: An image forming apparatus has: a bottle cover that is provided on an insertion port of a toner bottle storage section; a lock mechanism for the bottle cover; a front cover that is provided on a front face of an apparatus body in an openable and closable manner, and prevents the bottle cover from opening in a closed state; a front cover opening / closing detection section that detects an opened / closed state of the front cover; a power supply stopping section that stops supply of power to an image forming section when the front cover is opened; a power detection unit that detects whether or not the power is supplied to the image forming section; a lock mechanism that locks the movement of the bottle cover in the closed state; and a drive control section that releases a lock state of the bottle cover by the lock mechanism when the front cover opening / closing detection section detects the closed state of the front cover even though the power detection section detects the stoppage of the supply of power to the image forming section.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, a control method for an image forming apparatus, and a control program for an image forming apparatus. [Background technology]

[0002] In an image forming apparatus, if a bottle cover provided on the front of a toner bottle storage section is locked by a locking mechanism but an open / closed detector for the bottle cover indicates an open state, a method is known in which the locking mechanism is unlocked to allow replacement of the toner bottle (see, for example, Patent Document 1).Also, if the open / closed detector for the bottle cover does not indicate an open state after the bottle cover is opened by the opening mechanism, a method is known in which an abnormality in the opening mechanism is detected and the occurrence of the abnormality is displayed on an operation panel (see, for example, Patent Document 2). Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0003] For example, an image forming device may have a front cover that is openably attached to the front of the device body in a position that blocks the opening of the bottle cover, and a front cover open / close detector that detects the open / close state of the front cover. In this type of image forming device, when the front cover open / close detector indicates the open state, the bottle cover locking mechanism releases the lock to open the bottle cover, allowing the toner bottle to be replaced.

[0004] However, if the front cover open / close detector fails and cannot detect the open state of the front cover, the bottle cover locking mechanism is not released, preventing the bottle cover from opening, and the toner bottle from being replaced. In this case, the toner bottle cannot be replaced until the front cover open / close detector is repaired and the bottle cover can be opened again, resulting in downtime for the image forming apparatus.

[0005] In view of the above-mentioned problems, an object of the present invention is to enable replacement of a toner bottle even when a front cover open / close detector breaks down, thereby reducing downtime of an image forming apparatus. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above technical problems, one embodiment of the image forming apparatus of the present invention is characterized in that it comprises: an image forming unit provided within an apparatus main body and forms an image; a toner bottle storage unit that removably stores a toner bottle filled with toner used to form an image by the image forming unit; a bottle cover that is openably and closably provided at an insertion opening of the toner bottle storage unit; a locking mechanism that locks the movement of the bottle cover in a closed state in a position that covers the insertion opening; a bottle cover open / close detection unit that detects the open / close state of the bottle cover; a front cover that is openably and closably provided on the front of the apparatus main body and prevents the bottle cover from opening when it is in a closed state; a front cover open / close detection unit that detects the open / close state of the front cover; a power supply stopping unit that stops the supply of power to the image forming unit when the front cover is open; a power detection unit that detects whether power is being supplied to the image forming unit; and a drive control unit that releases the lock state of the bottle cover by the locking mechanism when the detection state of the front cover open / close detection unit indicates that the front cover is closed even though the power detection unit has detected the stop of the supply of power to the image forming unit. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] Even if the front cover open / close detector breaks down, the toner bottle can be replaced, thereby reducing downtime of the image forming apparatus. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective side view showing an example of the overall configuration of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 2] 2 is an external view showing an example of the external appearance of the image forming apparatus of FIG. 1 as seen from the front. [Figure 3]3 is a block diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of an operation control unit in FIG. 2. [Figure 4] 2 is a partial perspective view showing an example of a bottle cover provided in the toner bottle storage section of FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 5] 3 is a partial perspective view showing a state in which a toner bottle is stored in each of the four toner bottle storage units in FIG. 2. FIG. [Figure 6] 5A and 5B are diagrams showing the bottle cover in a locked state and an unlocked state by the latch and hook of FIG. 4. [Figure 7] 3 is an electrical connection diagram showing an example in which the state inside the imaging unit in FIG. 2 is monitored by a voltage monitoring unit. [Figure 8] 8A and 8B are diagrams illustrating examples of detection states of an interlock switch, a front cover opening / closing sensor, and a side cover opening / closing sensor detected by a voltage monitoring unit in FIG. 7 when the front cover opening / closing sensor is normal and when it is faulty. [Figure 9] 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an operation when the toner bottle is empty. [Figure 10] 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an operation for making it possible to replace a toner bottle even when a front cover open / close sensor has malfunctioned. [Figure 11] 11 is a flowchart illustrating a continuation of FIG. 10. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Hereinafter, embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings. In each drawing, the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals, and duplicated explanations may be omitted. In the following, the voltage lines through which voltages are transmitted will be designated by the same reference numerals as the voltage names.

[0010] (Overall configuration of image forming apparatus) 1 is a perspective side view showing an example of the overall configuration of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. Image forming apparatus 100 is, for example, a digital multi-function printer (MFP) having multiple functions such as a copy function, a print function, a scanner function, and a facsimile function.

[0011] Image forming apparatus 100 can switch between operation modes that respectively realize copy function, print function, scanner function, facsimile function, etc., using an application switching key or the like on an operation panel (not shown). When the copy function is selected, image forming apparatus 100 enters copy mode, when the print function is selected, it enters print mode, when the scanner function is selected, it enters scanner mode, and when the facsimile function is selected, it enters facsimile mode.

[0012] Furthermore, the internal state of the image forming apparatus 100 switches to a normal mode, an energy saving mode (power saving mode), etc., depending on the state of the internal circuit. For example, the normal mode includes an operating mode (operating state) and a standby mode (standby state).

[0013] For example, the operating mode includes a copy mode or a print mode in which images or text data are printed on paper media. The print mode includes an operation in facsimile mode in which received data is printed on paper media. The operating mode also includes a scanner mode in which an original document is scanned or a transmission / reception operation in facsimile mode. The state of the internal circuitry is switched by the user of image forming apparatus 100 operating the operation panel or by control within image forming apparatus 100.

[0014] The image forming apparatus 100 includes an ADF (Automatic Document Feeder) 110, an image reading unit 120, and an image forming unit 140 including an imaging unit 130 provided within the apparatus body. Note that, for ease of understanding, FIG. 1 illustrates the image forming unit 140 in a see-through state. The image forming unit 140 includes a manual feed roller 1, a tandem imaging device 3, a paper feed unit 4, and multiple paper feed cassettes 4a. The image forming unit 140 also includes registration rollers 5, an optical writing device 6, a fixing device 7, a reversing mechanism 8, a secondary transfer belt 9, an intermediate transfer belt 10, a transfer unit 11, a paper output tray 12, and an image processing unit 14. Note that the image processing unit 14 may be provided in a location within the image forming apparatus 100 other than the imaging unit 130.

[0015] The ADF 110 automatically transports a document placed on a mounting table to a position where the image is read. The image reading unit 120 is, for example, a scanner having an image sensor, and reads the image of the document transported to the reading position by the ADF 110. The image processing unit 14 processes the image data of the document read by the image reading unit 120. The image forming unit 140 has a function of printing an image on recording paper by electrophotography based on the image data of the document read by the image reading unit 120 and processed by the image processing unit 14.

[0016] The manual feed roller 1 has a function of feeding recording paper set by the user into the imaging unit 130. The paper feed unit 4 has a function of feeding recording paper from one of a plurality of paper feed cassettes 4a in which recording paper is set. The registration roller 5 transports the recording paper fed from the manual feed roller 1 or the paper feed unit 4 to the secondary transfer belt 9.

[0017] The optical writing device 6 converts image data read by the image reading unit 120 and processed by the image processing unit 14 into optical information. The image creating device 3 includes four photosensitive drums (Y, M, C, K) corresponding to the four colors of toner: yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K), as well as a charger, developer, transfer unit, cleaning unit, static eliminator, etc., provided around each photosensitive drum.

[0018] Each charger charges the outer circumferential surface of the corresponding photosensitive drum. The optical writing device 6 exposes the charged photosensitive drum to light based on the image data for each color read by the image reading unit 120, and writes an electrostatic latent image onto each photosensitive drum. Each developing device develops the latent image written on the corresponding photosensitive drum with toner, thereby forming a toner image corresponding to the image data for each color on the corresponding photosensitive drum.

[0019] The toner images formed on each photosensitive drum are transferred by a primary transfer roller onto an intermediate transfer belt 10, which is driven to rotate clockwise in the direction shown in Fig. 1. The full-color toner image transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 10 moves to a transfer section 11 as the intermediate transfer belt 10 moves, and is transferred to a recording sheet positioned on the secondary transfer belt 9 at the transfer section 11.

[0020] The recording paper onto which the toner image has been transferred is transported to the fixing device 7 as the secondary transfer belt 9 moves. The fixing device 7 fixes the toner image on the recording paper to the recording paper. The recording paper onto which the toner image has been fixed is then ejected onto the paper ejection tray, completing the process of printing a color image onto the recording paper. In double-sided printing, in which images are printed on both sides of the recording paper, the recording paper is turned over by the reversing mechanism 8, and the inverted recording paper is sent onto the secondary transfer belt 9.

[0021] (Front view of the image forming device) 2 is an external view showing an example of the external appearance of the image forming apparatus 100 seen from the front in FIG. 1. In addition to the elements shown in FIG. 1, the image forming apparatus 100 has an operation unit 150, a front cover 160, a side cover 165, a locking mechanism 300, a drive mechanism 400, and an operation control unit 500 that controls the overall operation of the image forming apparatus 100.

[0022] Front cover 160 is provided on the front of image forming apparatus 100 so as to be openable and closable in order to replace internal parts of image forming apparatus 100 or to remove paper when a paper jam occurs. Side cover 165 is provided on the side of image forming apparatus 100 (the right side in the example of FIG. 2) so as to be openable and closable in order to replace parts or remove paper.

[0023] The locking mechanism 300 and the driving mechanism 400 are disposed separately within the imaging unit 130, but are collectively shown as a rectangle in Fig. 2. The operation control unit 500 is actually provided within the main body of the image forming apparatus 100, for example, in the form of a control board.

[0024] The operation unit 150 has an operation panel 152 that accepts various inputs in response to user operations and displays various information. For example, the information displayed on the operation panel 152 may include information indicating the operation for which the input was accepted, information indicating the operating state of the image forming apparatus 100, information indicating the setting state of the image forming apparatus 100, various alarms, etc. The various alarms displayed on the operation panel 152 may include, when the image forming apparatus 100 has estimated the location of a failure, a display of failure information indicating the estimated location of the failure, or, when the image forming apparatus 100 has detected an abnormality in the internal mechanism, a display of a service call urging the user to request repairs from a service center for the image forming apparatus 100.

[0025] For example, operation panel 152 may include a liquid crystal display (LCD) or an organic electroluminescence (EL) display device having a touch panel function. Furthermore, operation panel 152 may have hardware keys and the like in addition to a display device having a touch panel function.

[0026] The imaging unit 130 has a toner bottle storage section 132 that stores toner bottles 131Y, 131M, 131C, and 131K filled with, for example, yellow, magenta, cyan, and black toner, respectively. Hereinafter, when the toner bottles 131Y, 131M, 131C, and 131K are not to be distinguished from one another, they are also referred to as toner bottles 131.

[0027] The imaging unit 130 also has a bottle cover 200 that is openably attached to the insertion opening 132a (FIG. 4) of the toner bottle 131 in each toner bottle storage section 132, and a bottle cover open / close sensor 210 that detects the open / close state of the bottle cover 200. The bottle cover open / close sensor 210 is an example of a bottle cover open / close detection section.

[0028] The locking mechanism 300 locks the bottle cover 200 in a position covering the insertion opening 132a (FIG. 4) of the toner bottle 131. The driving mechanism 400 releases the bottle cover 200 from the locked state by the locking mechanism 300, and sets the bottle cover 200 in an open state. An example of the locking mechanism 300 is shown in FIG. 4. An example of the toner bottle 131 is shown in FIG. 5. An example of the operation of the locking mechanism 300 and the driving mechanism 400 is shown in FIG. 6.

[0029] 2, the bottle cover 200 attached to the front of the toner bottle storage section 132 for the toner bottles 131Y, 131C, and 131M is shown closed and locked by the locking mechanism 300. Note that in FIG. 2, the bottle cover 200 is shown so that the toner bottle storage section 132 can be seen through it, so that the storage state of the toner bottles 131Y, 131C, and 131M can be seen.

[0030] Bottle cover 200 attached to the front of toner bottle storage section 132 of toner bottle 131K is shown in an open state after being unlocked by locking mechanism 300. In this state, toner bottle 131K can be inserted into and removed from toner bottle storage section 132 in the front-to-rear direction of image forming apparatus 100. In other words, toner bottle 131 can be replaced with bottle cover 200 open.

[0031] The front cover 160 is attached to the front of the imaging unit 130 and can be opened and closed by a user, etc. Fig. 1 shows the front cover 160 in an open state, exposing the bottle cover 200. A front cover open / close sensor 162 is attached to the front cover 160 to detect whether the front cover 160 is open or closed. The front cover open / close sensor 162 is an example of a front cover open / close detection unit.

[0032] The side cover 165 is attached to the side of the imaging unit 130 and can be opened and closed by a user, etc. A side cover open / close sensor 166 is attached to the side cover 165 to detect whether the side cover 165 is open or closed. The side cover open / close sensor 166 is an example of a side cover open / close detection unit.

[0033] In addition, a protrusion 163 is attached to the front cover 160 at a position corresponding to an interlock switch 170 attached to the front surface of the image forming apparatus 100, and the protrusion 163 presses the interlock switch 170 when the front cover 160 is closed.

[0034] When the front cover 160 is closed and the protrusion 163 is pressing the interlock switch 170, the interlock switch 170 is in a closed state, and power is supplied to the components in the imaging unit 130 that operate by receiving power. On the other hand, when the front cover 160 is opened and the protrusion 163 is no longer pressing the interlock switch 170, the interlock switch 170 is in an open state, and the power supply to the components in the imaging unit 130 is cut off. The interlock switch 170 ensures the safety of the user who operates the front cover 160. The operation of the interlock switch 170 is shown in FIG. 7. The interlock switch 170 is an example of a power supply stopping unit that stops the power supply to the image forming unit 140 when the front cover 160 is open.

[0035] When the front cover 160 is open, the bottle cover 200 is opened by being released from the locked state by the locking mechanism 300, and the bottle cover open / close sensor 210 detects the open state of the bottle cover 200. On the other hand, when the front cover 160 is closed, the movement of the bottle cover 200 is restricted by the front cover 160, and the bottle cover 200 is prevented from opening. Therefore, when the front cover 160 is closed, the bottle cover 200 will not open even if the locking state is released by the locking mechanism 300, and the bottle cover open / close sensor 210 detects the closed state of the bottle cover 200.

[0036] In addition, an interlock switch 180 (Figure 7) is also attached to a position corresponding to a side cover 165 provided on the side of the image forming apparatus 100, which cuts off the power supply to the components in the imaging unit 130 when the side cover 165 is opened.

[0037] The operation control unit 500 is realized by, for example, a control board (not shown) on which a controller such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) is mounted. For example, the operation control unit 500 controls the copy operation of the image forming apparatus 100 based on an operation received on the operation panel 152. The operation control unit 500 may also control the image forming apparatus 100 based on an instruction received from an external device such as a PC. Note that the operation control unit 500 may have a device such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) or an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) instead of a CPU.

[0038] In addition, the operation control unit 500 detects the open / closed state of each bottle cover 200 based on information received from each bottle cover open / close sensor 210, and detects the open / closed state of the front cover 160 based on information received from the front cover open / close sensor 162.

[0039] (Hardware configuration of the operation control unit) Fig. 3 is a block diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the operation control unit 500 of Fig. 2. The operation control unit 500 has a CPU 510, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 520, and a RAM (Random Access Memory) 530. The operation control unit 500 also has an input interface unit 540, an output interface unit 550, an input / output interface unit 560, and a communication interface unit 570.

[0040] For example, the CPU 510, ROM 520, RAM 530, input interface unit 540, output interface unit 550, input / output interface unit 560, and communication interface unit 570 are interconnected via a bus BUS.

[0041] The CPU 510 executes various programs such as an OS (Operating System) and applications. The ROM 520 holds basic programs and various parameters that enable the various programs to be executed by the CPU 510. The RAM 530 stores the various programs executed by the CPU 510 and data used by the programs. For example, the various programs may include an image processing program that performs image processing on an original image read by the image reading unit 120 and a fault location estimation program that estimates fault locations in various components mounted on the image forming apparatus 100.

[0042] An input device 610 such as operation panel 152 is connected to input interface unit 540. An output device 620 such as a display unit of operation panel 152 is connected to output interface unit 550. An input / output device 630 such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) and a recording medium (not shown) is connected to input / output interface unit 560.

[0043] When various programs such as an image processing program or a fault location estimation program are stored in the recording medium, the programs are transferred from the recording medium to the RAM 530 or the like via the input / output interface unit 560. The communication interface unit 570 can connect the operation control unit 500 to a network or the like, and can communicate with, for example, a service center for the image forming apparatus 100.

[0044] (Bottle cover attachment structure) 4 is a partial perspective view showing an example of bottle cover 200 provided in toner bottle storage section 132 of FIG. 1. For example, frame section 134, to which bottle cover 200 is attached, is fixed to the front surface of toner bottle storage section 132. Frame section 134 has a through-hole that allows toner bottle 131 to be inserted and removed at a position facing insertion opening 132a of toner bottle 131 (FIG. 2) in toner bottle storage section 132. Also, frame section 134 is provided with latch 310 and bottle cover open / close sensor 210, which are included in locking mechanism 300. Although not particularly limited, latch 310 and bottle cover open / close sensor 210 are provided at diagonal positions of rectangular frame section 134, sandwiching insertion opening 132a therebetween.

[0045] The bottle cover 200 is positioned to cover the insertion opening 132a when closed, and is rotatably fixed to the frame 134 by a shaft member 220. The bottle cover 200 has a hook 202 that protrudes from the tip end on the side opposite the shaft member 220. The hook 202 is provided in a position where it can engage with a latch 310 when the bottle cover 200 is in a closed state where it is in a position covering the insertion opening 132a. The latch 310 and hook 202 are an example of a locking mechanism that locks the bottle cover 200 in the closed state. The detailed shapes and engagement method of the latch 310 and hook 202 are described in FIG. 6.

[0046] For example, if the toner remaining sensor detects that there is toner in the toner bottle 131, the bottle cover 200 is fixed in the closed state by the engagement between the latch 310 and the hook 202. In this case, even if the user tries to open the front cover 160 and remove the toner bottle 131, he or she cannot do so.

[0047] On the other hand, when the toner remaining amount sensor detects that the toner in toner bottle 131 has run out, a screen prompting the user to replace toner bottle 131 is displayed on operation panel 152. The user sees the screen, presses the confirmation button on operation panel 152, and opens front cover 160 to replace toner bottle 131.

[0048] When the front cover open / close sensor 162 detects that the front cover 160 is open, the locked state of the bottle cover 200 is released and the bottle cover 200 is opened by gravity. The bottle cover open / close sensor 210 detects that the bottle cover 200 has been opened. Then, the toner bottle 131 stored in the position corresponding to the opened bottle cover 200 can be removed and replaced with a new toner bottle 131.

[0049] If the front cover open / close sensor 162 is out of order, the bottle cover 200 will not be released from its locked state even if the front cover 160 is opened. Therefore, the user will not be able to remove the empty toner bottle 131 from the toner bottle storage unit 132 and will not be able to perform printing until the front cover open / close sensor 162 is replaced.

[0050] (Toner bottle stored) Fig. 5 is a partial perspective view showing a state in which a toner bottle 131 is stored in each of the four toner bottle storage sections 132 in Fig. 2. Although the bottle cover 200 is omitted in Fig. 5, it corresponds to a state in which the bottle cover 200 is opened by releasing the locking mechanism of the bottle cover 200. When toner is filled into the image forming apparatus 100, the toner bottle 131 (131Y, 131M, 131C or 131K) is stored in the toner bottle storage section 132 along the direction of the arrow.

[0051] Although not particularly limited, toner bottle 131 has an approximately cylindrical shape, and when stored in toner bottle storage section 132, it is rotatably fitted into cap receiving section 135 located at the back of toner bottle storage section 132.

[0052] When the tip of toner bottle 131 is fitted into cap receiving portion 135, toner bottle 131 is connected to the toner tank via a toner supply device (not shown) located further back than cap receiving portion 135. Then, the toner filled in toner bottle 131 is appropriately stored in the toner tank.

[0053] For example, toner bottle 131 fitted into cap receiving portion 135 is rotated by bottle drive motor 133 (Y, M, C, K). A spiral groove is formed on the inner circumferential surface of toner bottle 131, and as toner bottle 131 rotates, the toner in toner bottle 131 is sent along the groove to the toner tank side.

[0054] (Bottle cover locking mechanism) Figure 6 is a diagram showing the locked and unlocked states of the bottle cover 200 by the latch 310 and hook 202 of Figure 4. The locking mechanism 300 shown in Figure 2 has the latch 310, a shaft member 320, a torsion coil spring 330, a link 340, and a coil spring 350. The drive mechanism 400 shown in Figure 2 has a solenoid 410, a control line 420, and a bottle cover control unit 430. The solenoid 410 functions as an unlocking unit that puts the bottle cover 200 in an open state where it does not cover the insertion opening 132a (Figure 4).

[0055] Latch 310 has an L-shape and is rotatably supported by a shaft member 320 provided at the bend of the L. A torsion coil spring 330 is arranged around shaft member 320 to press one end of L-shaped latch 310 in direction A, which is toward bottle cover 200.

[0056] One end of the latch 310 is provided with a recess 312 having a shape corresponding to the shape of the hook 202 of the bottle cover 200. When the hook 202 is engaged with the recess 312 of the latch 310, the movement of the hook 202 relative to the frame 134 is restricted, and the bottle cover 200 is maintained in a closed state.

[0057] The inside of the other end of latch 310 comes into contact with the inside of one end of link 340, which has a U-shape with an acute corner. The other end of link 340 is connected to rod 412 of solenoid 410. A coil spring 350 is attached to link 340, which presses link 340 in direction B toward latch 310. Solenoid 410 is connected to bottle cover control unit 430 via control line 420 and is driven by bottle cover control unit 430.

[0058] 6, when the solenoid 410 is not driven by the bottle cover control unit 430, the rod 412 is free to move. At this time, the latch 310 rotates in direction A due to the bending stress of the torsion coil spring 330, and the hook 202 is engaged by the recess 312. The link 340 moves in direction B in accordance with the rotation of the latch 310 due to the pressing force of the coil spring 350, while maintaining contact with the end of the latch 310. Then, the bottle cover 200 is locked to the frame 134 in a state where it covers the insertion opening 132a (FIG. 4) of the toner bottle 131.

[0059] In state (b) of FIG. 6 , when the solenoid 410 is driven by the bottle cover control unit 430, it pulls the rod 412 in direction C. This causes the link 340 to move in direction C, pressing the other end of the latch 310 in direction C, causing the latch 310 to rotate in direction D against the bending stress of the torsion coil spring 330. Then, the hook 202 is released from engagement with the recess 312, and the bottle cover 200 is released from lock by the frame part 134. The bottle cover 200 has a structure in which, when unlocked by the frame part 134, the hook 202 rotates in a direction away from the frame part 134 due to gravity or the like. Therefore, after state (b), the bottle cover 200 is automatically opened.

[0060] After the bottle cover 200 is opened, the bottle cover control unit 430 stops driving the solenoid 410. As a result, the link 340 and the latch 310 return to the positions shown in state (a). Furthermore, when the toner bottle 131 is replaced and the bottle cover 200 is closed by the user, one end of the latch 310 is pressed by the hook 202. The latch 310 rotates in direction D of state (b) against the bending stress of the torsion coil spring 330 until the recess 312 engages with the hook 202. Then, as shown in state (a) in FIG. 6, the bottle cover 200 is locked to the frame portion 134 again.

[0061] (Various voltages monitored by the voltage monitoring unit) 7 is an electrical connection diagram showing an example in which the state inside the imaging unit 130 of FIG. 2 is monitored by the voltage monitoring unit 512. An interlock switch 170 linked to the front cover 160 and an interlock switch 180 linked to the side cover 165 are arranged in series between the actuator power supply and the input of the power supply detection unit 138. The actuator power supply is generated from a commercial power supply by a power supply device mounted on the image forming apparatus 100. When both interlock switches 170 and 180 are closed, voltage V1 of the actuator power supply (e.g., 24 V DC) is transmitted to the input of the power supply detection unit 138 as voltage V2. When one or both of the interlock switches 170 and 180 are open, voltage V1 is not transmitted to the input of the power supply detection unit 138, and voltage V2 becomes, for example, 0 V.

[0062] When voltage V2 is equal to voltage V1, power supply detection unit 138 detects that actuator power is being supplied to imaging unit 130, and sets voltage V3 to, for example, a high level. When voltage V2 is 0 V, power supply detection unit 138 detects that actuator power is not being supplied to imaging unit 130, and sets voltage V3 to, for example, a low level.

[0063] High voltage generation unit 136 uses voltage V2 to generate multiple types of high voltages with absolute values ​​higher than voltage V2. For example, the high voltages are used for charging the photosensitive drum and transferring toner to intermediate transfer belt 10. Drive unit 137 drives bottle drive motor 133, solenoid 410, and the rotation of the photosensitive drum, as well as various rollers and gears.

[0064] The front cover open / close sensor 162 has a resistor R1 and a switch SW1 connected in series via a voltage line V4 between a sensor power supply and a ground line. While the front cover open / close sensor 162 is detecting the closed state of the front cover 160 with the switch SW1, it sets the voltage V4 to a low level (0 V), and while the front cover open / close sensor 162 is detecting the open state of the front cover 160 with the switch SW1, it sets the voltage V4 to a high level, which is a DC voltage of the sensor power supply. The sensor power supply is generated from a commercial power supply by a power supply device installed in the image forming apparatus 100.

[0065] The side cover open / close sensor 166 has a resistor R2 and a switch SW2 connected in series via a voltage line V5 between the sensor power supply and the ground line. The side cover open / close sensor 166 sets the voltage V5 to a low level (0 V) while the switch SW2 is detecting the closed state of the side cover 165. The side cover open / close sensor 166 sets the voltage V5 to a high level, which is the voltage of the sensor power supply, while the switch SW2 is detecting the open state of the side cover 165.

[0066] For example, the voltage monitoring unit 512 is realized by the CPU 510 or the like mounted on the operation control unit 500 in Fig. 2. When the voltage V3 is at a high level, for example, the voltage monitoring unit 512 determines that the front cover 160 and the side cover are both closed and that the actuator power is being supplied to the high voltage generating unit 136 and the driving unit 137.

[0067] When voltage V3 is at a low level, for example, voltage monitoring unit 512 determines that either or both of front cover 160 and side cover are open, and that the supply of actuator power to high voltage generating unit 136 and driving unit 137 is cut off. When voltage monitoring unit 512 detects that voltage V3 is at a low level, operation control unit 500 may display on operation panel 152 information indicating that either or both of front cover 160 and side cover are open.

[0068] Furthermore, when voltage V4 is at a low level, voltage monitoring unit 512 detects that front cover 160 is closed, and when voltage V4 is at a high level, voltage monitoring unit 512 detects that front cover 160 is open. When voltage V5 is at a low level, voltage monitoring unit 512 detects that side cover 165 is closed, and when voltage V5 is at a high level, voltage monitoring unit 512 detects that side cover 165 is open.

[0069] 4. In this case, similar to the front cover open / close sensor 162, each bottle cover open / close sensor 210 has a resistor and a switch connected in series via a voltage line between the sensor power supply and the ground line. When the voltage of the voltage line is at a low level, the voltage monitoring unit 512 detects that the bottle cover 200 is closed, and when the voltage V4 is at a high level, the voltage monitoring unit 512 detects that the bottle cover 200 is open.

[0070] The front cover open / close sensor 162, the side cover open / close sensor 166, and the bottle cover open / close sensor 210 in Fig. 4 are connected to a power supply system separate from that of the interlock switches 170 and 180. Therefore, the detection results of the states of the front cover open / close sensor 162, the side cover open / close sensor 166, and the bottle cover open / close sensor 210 are independent of the detection results of the states of the interlock switches 170 and 180.

[0071] (Normal and malfunctioning of the front cover open / close sensor) 8 is a diagram showing an example of the detection states of the interlock switches 170, 180, the front cover open / close sensor 162, and the side cover open / close sensor 166 detected by the voltage monitoring unit 512 in Fig. 7 when the front cover open / close sensor 162 is normal and when it has failed. It is assumed that the interlock switches 170, 180 and the side cover open / close sensor 166 are operating normally.

[0072] 8, when the front cover open / close sensor 162 fails, for example, the front cover open / close sensor 162 outputs a voltage V4 indicating a state opposite to the normal state. That is, when the front cover 160 is actually closed, the front cover open / close sensor 162 outputs a high-level voltage V4 indicating an open state, and when the front cover 160 is actually open, the front cover open / close sensor 162 outputs a low-level voltage V4 indicating a closed state.

[0073] The voltage monitoring unit 512 detects a high level voltage V3 when the interlock switches 170, 180 are both closed, regardless of whether the front cover open / close sensor 162 is normal or malfunctioning (states (1), (1)'). The voltage monitoring unit 512 detects a low level voltage V3 when one or both of the interlock switches 170, 180 are open, regardless of whether the front cover open / close sensor 162 is normal or malfunctioning (states (2) to (4), (2)' to (4)').

[0074] Regardless of whether the front cover opening / closing sensor 162 is normal or malfunctioning, the voltage monitoring unit 512 detects a low level voltage V5 when the side cover opening / closing sensor 166 detects that the side cover 165 is closed (states (1), (2), (1)', (2)'). Regardless of whether the front cover opening / closing sensor 162 is normal or malfunctioning, the voltage monitoring unit 512 detects a high level voltage V5 when the side cover opening / closing sensor 166 detects that the side cover 165 is open (states (3), (4), (3)', (4)').

[0075] When the front cover opening / closing sensor 162 is normal, the voltage monitoring unit 512 detects a low level voltage V4 when the front cover opening / closing sensor 162 detects that the front cover 160 is closed (states (1) and (3)). When the front cover opening / closing sensor 162 is normal, the voltage monitoring unit 512 detects a high level voltage V5 when the front cover opening / closing sensor 162 detects that the front cover 160 is open (states (2) and (4)).

[0076] On the other hand, when the front cover opening / closing sensor 162 malfunctions, the voltage monitoring unit 512 detects a high level H voltage V4 when the front cover opening / closing sensor 162 detects an open state (false state) of the front cover 160 even though the front cover 160 is closed (states (1)' and (3)'). When the front cover opening / closing sensor 162 malfunctions, the voltage monitoring unit 512 detects a low level L voltage V4 when the front cover opening / closing sensor 162 detects a closed state (false state) of the front cover 160 even though the front cover 160 is open (states (2)' and (4)').

[0077] The combination of levels H, H, L of voltages V3, V4, and V5 in state (1)' is not one of the combinations that occur when front cover open / close sensor 162 is normal. Therefore, by detecting the combination of levels H, H, L of voltages V3, V4, and V5, voltage monitoring unit 512 can detect a malfunction of front cover open / close sensor 162. Furthermore, the combination of levels L, L, L of voltages V3, V4, and V5 in state (2)' is not one of the combinations that occur when front cover open / close sensor 162 is normal. Therefore, by detecting the combination of levels L, L, L of voltages V3, V4, and V5, voltage monitoring unit 512 can detect a malfunction of front cover open / close sensor 162.

[0078] The problem of not being able to replace toner bottle 131 due to a malfunction of front cover open / close sensor 162 occurs when front cover open / close sensor 162 is unable to detect the open state when front cover 160 is opened, and is therefore unable to unlock bottle cover 200. Therefore, even when front cover open / close sensor 162 is unable to detect that front cover 160 has been opened due to a malfunction, if bottle cover 200 can be unlocked, toner bottle 131 can be replaced, and downtime of image forming apparatus 100 can be reduced.

[0079] Note that the combination of levels L, H, H of voltages V3, V4, V5 in state (3)' is the same as the combination of levels of voltages V3, V4, V5 in state (4) when front cover open / close sensor 162 is normal, so voltage monitoring unit 512 cannot detect a failure of front cover open / close sensor 162 in state (3)'. Similarly, the combination of levels L, L, H of voltages V3, V4, V5 in state (4)' is the same as the combination of levels of voltages V3, V4, V5 in state (3) when front cover open / close sensor 162 is normal, so voltage monitoring unit 512 cannot detect a failure of front cover open / close sensor 162 in state (4)'.

[0080] (Flowchart showing malfunctions when the front cover open / close sensor fails) FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation when the toner in the toner bottle 131 is empty. The flowchart shown in FIG. 9 shows the control flow in states (1), (2), (1)', and (2)' in FIG. 8. For example, the CPU 510 in FIG. 3 may execute a control program to repeatedly perform the processing shown in the flowchart in FIG. 9 at a predetermined interval. For example, FIG. 9 shows an example of a control method for the image forming apparatus 100 or a control program for the image forming apparatus 100. In the following, for ease of understanding, the operation for one of the toner bottles 131 is shown.

[0081] 9 is started when the toner remaining amount sensor detects that toner bottle 131 is empty. When the toner is empty, for example, CPU 510 displays a screen on operation panel 152 prompting the user to replace toner bottle 131. The user of image forming apparatus 100 looks at the screen display and opens front cover 160.

[0082] First, an operation will be described when front cover open / close sensor 162 is not malfunctioning. In step S101, CPU 510 determines whether side cover 165 has been detected as open by side cover open / close sensor 166. If side cover 165 is detected as open, CPU 510 ends the processing shown in FIG. 9 to perform processing for when side cover 165 is opened. For example, if the user opens side cover 165 by mistake, thinking it is front cover 160, CPU 510 displays a screen on operation panel 152 to prompt the user to close side cover 165 and then open front cover 160, as processing for when side cover 165 is opened. If side cover 165 is detected as closed, CPU 510 performs step S102.

[0083] In step S102, CPU 510 determines whether or not the open state of front cover 160 is detected by front cover open / close sensor 162. If the open state of front cover 160 is detected, CPU 510 performs step S103, and if the closed state of front cover 160 is detected, CPU 510 performs step S104.

[0084] In step S103, CPU 510 causes bottle cover control unit 430 to drive solenoid 410 to unlock bottle cover 200, thereby completing the operation shown in Fig. 9. By unlocking bottle cover 200, bottle cover 200 opens, allowing toner bottle 131 that has run out of toner to be replaced.

[0085] On the other hand, in step S104, because the front cover 160 is not open, even if the bottle cover 200 is unlocked, the bottle cover 200 is restricted by the front cover 160 and will not open, so the CPU 510 maintains the lock of the bottle cover 200 and ends the operation shown in Fig. 9. After that, if the user opens the front cover 160, the CPU 510 goes through steps S101 (NO) and S102 (YES) and then unlocks the bottle cover 200 in step S103.

[0086] Next, an operation when the front cover open / close sensor 162 has failed will be described. The failed front cover open / close sensor 162 detects the closed state when the front cover 160 is open, and detects the open state when the front cover 160 is closed. Even if the user has opened the front cover 160, the CPU 510 determines in step S102 that the front cover 160 is closed. Therefore, the CPU 510 performs step S104 and keeps the bottle cover 200 locked. Even if the user opens the front cover 160, the bottle cover 200 does not open, and the user is therefore unable to replace the toner bottle 131.

[0087] When the front cover 160 is closed, the CPU 510 determines in step S102 that the front cover 160 is in the open state, even though the front cover 160 is not open. Therefore, the CPU 510 executes step S103 and unlocks the bottle cover 200. However, when the front cover 160 is closed, even if the bottle cover 200 is unlocked, the bottle cover 200 is restricted in movement by the front cover 160 and does not open, so there is no problem.

[0088] (Flowchart for resolving problems when the front cover open / close sensor is broken) 10 and 11 are flowcharts showing an example of an operation for making it possible to replace the toner bottle 131 even when the front cover open / close sensor 162 has failed. For example, the CPU 510 in FIG. 3 may execute a control program to repeatedly perform the processing shown in the flowcharts in FIG. 10 and 11 at a predetermined interval. For example, FIG. 10 and 11 show an example of a control method for the image forming apparatus 100 or a control program for the image forming apparatus 100. Note that the processing shown in FIG. 10 and 11 can also detect some failures other than a failure of the front cover open / close sensor 162.

[0089] For example, CPU 510 in Fig. 3 executes a control program to repeatedly perform the processes shown in the flowcharts in Fig. 10 and Fig. 11 at a predetermined interval. For example, the control program includes a failure location estimation program that estimates the failure location of various components mounted on image forming apparatus 100. For ease of understanding, the following description will focus on the operation for one of toner bottles 131. The flow shown in Fig. 10 and Fig. 11 starts when a toner remaining sensor detects that toner bottle 131 is empty.

[0090] First, in step S201, the CPU 510 determines whether one or both of the interlock switches 170 and 180 are in the open state based on the voltage V3 from the power supply detection unit 138. If one or both of the interlock switches 170 and 180 are in the open state, the CPU 510 performs step S202, and if both of the interlock switches 170 and 180 are in the closed state, the CPU 510 performs step S206.

[0091] In step S202, CPU 510 determines whether or not the open state of front cover 160 is detected by front cover open / close sensor 162. If the open state of front cover 160 is detected, CPU 510 performs step S203, and if the closed state of front cover 160 is detected, CPU 510 performs step S211 in FIG.

[0092] For example, if a failure of the front cover opening / closing sensor 162 causes a closed state to be detected when the front cover 160 is open, step S203 is performed even if the front cover 160 is open. Similarly, if a failure of the front cover opening / closing sensor 162 causes an open state to be detected when the front cover 160 is closed, step S211 is performed even if the front cover 160 is closed.

[0093] In step 203, the CPU 510 unlocks the bottle cover 200 by driving the solenoid 410 using the bottle cover control unit 430. Next, in step 204, the CPU 510 determines whether or not the bottle cover open / close sensor 210 has detected that the bottle cover 200 is open. If the CPU 510 detects that the bottle cover 200 is open, the bottle cover 200 is open, and therefore the processing shown in Figures 10 and 11 ends. The flow up to step S204 (YES) corresponds to, for example, any of states (2), (4), and (3)' in Figure 8.

[0094] On the other hand, if the closed state of the bottle cover 200 is detected, the CPU 510 performs step S205. In step 205, the CPU 510 infers a malfunction of the bottle cover open / close sensor 210 or a malfunction of the locking mechanism of the bottle cover 200, and ends the processing shown in Figures 10 and 11. The flow up to step S205 corresponds to, for example, state (3)' in Figure 8.

[0095] If the open state of the front cover 160 is detected when the front cover 160 is closed due to a malfunction of the front cover open / close sensor 162, the CPU 510 proceeds from step S202 (YES) to step S203 to unlock the bottle cover 200. However, if the front cover 160 is closed, even if the bottle cover 200 is unlocked, the bottle cover 200 will not open because its movement is restricted by the front cover 160, so there is no problem.

[0096] In step S206, CPU 510 performs the same process as step S202, and if it detects that front cover 160 is in an open state, it performs step S207, and if it detects that front cover 160 is in a closed state, it ends the processes shown in Figures 10 and 11. The flow up to step S206 (NO) corresponds to, for example, state (1) in Figure 8.

[0097] In step S207, CPU 510 detects a failure in image forming apparatus 100, although it cannot identify the location of the failure, and ends the processing shown in Figures 10 and 11. The flow up to step S207 corresponds to, for example, state (1)' in Figure 8.

[0098] 11, the CPU 510 unlocks the bottle cover 200 by driving the solenoid 410 using the bottle cover control unit 430. Next, in step 212, the CPU 510 determines whether or not the open state of the bottle cover 200 is detected by the bottle cover open / close sensor 210. If the open state of the bottle cover 200 is detected, the CPU 510 performs step S213, and if the closed state of the bottle cover 200 is detected, the CPU 510 performs step S216.

[0099] It should be noted that the closed state of the front cover 160 may be detected when the front cover 160 is open due to a malfunction of the front cover open / close sensor 162. In this case, the CPU 510 unlocks the bottle cover 200 in step S211, which is transitioned from step S202 (NO), and detects the open state of the bottle cover 200 in step S212.

[0100] Therefore, even if the closed state of front cover 160 is detected due to a failure of front cover open / close sensor 162, bottle cover 200 is unlocked to open bottle cover 200, making it possible to replace toner bottle 131 that has run out of toner. CPU 510 is an example of a drive control unit that unlocks bottle cover 200 to open bottle cover 200 when the detection state of front cover open / close sensor 162 indicates that front cover 160 is closed, even though the detection state of power detection unit 138 indicates that the supply of power to image forming unit 140 has been stopped.

[0101] Furthermore, when the open state of the bottle cover 200 is detected in step S212, the CPU 510 can determine that the closed state of the front cover 160 in step S202 is false, or that the open state of the bottle cover 200 in step S212 is false.

[0102] In step S213, CPU 510 determines whether or not the open state of side cover 165 is detected by side cover open / close sensor 166. If the open state of side cover 165 is detected, CPU 510 carries out step S214, and if the closed state of side cover 165 is detected, CPU 510 carries out step S215.

[0103] In step 214, CPU 510 detects failures at multiple locations in image forming apparatus 100 and ends the processing shown in Figures 10 and 11. In step 215, CPU 510 detects a failure in front cover open / close sensor 162 and ends the processing shown in Figures 10 and 11.

[0104] Suppose that even though at least one of the interlock switches 170 and 180 is detected to be open in step S201, the front cover 160 is detected to be closed in step S202 and the side cover 165 is detected to be closed in step S213. Since the side cover open / close sensor 166 is not malfunctioning, the closed state of the side cover 165 is correct.

[0105] Therefore, CPU 510 finds that interlock switch 170 is in the open state and interlock switch 180 is in the closed state, and can determine that the closed state of front cover 160 is false, thereby detecting a failure of front cover open / close sensor 162. The flow up to step S215 corresponds to, for example, state (2)' in FIG. 8.

[0106] In step S216, CPU 510 determines whether or not side cover 165 has been detected as open by side cover open / close sensor 166. If side cover 165 has been detected as open, CPU 510 ends the processing shown in Figures 10 and 11, and if side cover 165 has been detected as closed, CPU 510 performs step S217. The flow up to step S216 (YES) corresponds to, for example, states (3) and (4)' in Figure 8.

[0107] In step 217, CPU 510 detects failures at multiple locations in image forming apparatus 100 and terminates the processing shown in Figures 10 and 11. Note that the flow shown by the dashed line path is a route that cannot be followed unless multiple failures occur, and since the occurrence rate is very low, it may be excluded from consideration.

[0108] 10 and 11, a malfunction of the front cover open / close sensor 162 can be detected in step S215, which allows the toner bottle 131 to be replaced while providing information identifying the malfunctioning location to a service person for the image forming apparatus 100. This reduces the time required to repair the front cover open / close sensor 162. Furthermore, if another malfunctioning location is detected, even if the malfunctioning location cannot be identified, it becomes possible to provide the service person with the malfunction information. As a result, the downtime of the image forming apparatus 100 can be reduced.

[0109] 10 and steps S214, S215, and S217 in FIG. 11, if the CPU 510 can estimate the fault location, it may display fault information indicating the estimated fault location or locations on the operation panel 152. Alternatively, the CPU 510 may transmit the fault information indicating the estimated fault location or locations to a service center for the image forming apparatus 100 via the communication interface unit 570 in FIG. 3. This reduces the time required for a service technician to analyze the fault, and reduces the downtime of the image forming apparatus 100 when repairing the fault location. The operation panel 152 and the communication interface unit 570 are examples of an output unit that outputs various information.

[0110] As described above, in this embodiment, if the detection state of front cover open / close sensor 162 indicates that front cover 160 is closed, even though power supply detection unit 138 has detected a stoppage of power supply to image forming unit 140, CPU 510 releases the lock state of bottle cover 200 by lock mechanism 300. This makes it possible to replace toner bottle 131 even if front cover open / close sensor 162 fails, thereby reducing downtime of image forming apparatus 100.

[0111] Furthermore, after releasing the locked state of the bottle cover 200, if the CPU 510 can estimate the location of the failure based on the detection state of the bottle cover open / close sensor 210, it outputs failure information indicating the estimated location of the failure to the operation panel 152 or the communication interface unit 570. This makes it possible to shorten the time it takes for a service technician or the like to analyze the failure, and to reduce the downtime of the image forming apparatus 100 when repairing the location of the failure.

[0112] Although the present invention has been described above based on the embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the requirements shown in the above embodiments. These requirements can be changed without departing from the spirit of the present invention, and can be appropriately determined depending on the application form. [Explanation of symbols]

[0113] 3 Imaging device 4 Paper feed unit 4a Paper cassette 5 Registration roller 6 Optical writing device 7 Fixing device 8 Reversal mechanism 9 Secondary transfer belt 10 Intermediate transfer belt 11 Transfer section 12 Output tray 14 Image processing section 100 Image forming device 110 ADF 120 Image reading unit 130 Imaging unit 131 (131Y, 131M, 131C, 131K) Toner Bottle 132 Toner bottle storage section 132a insertion port 133 Bottle drive motor 134 Frame 135 Cap holder 136 High voltage generation unit 137 Drive Unit 138 Power supply detection unit 140 Image forming unit 150 Operation section 152 Operation Panel 160 Front cover 162 Front cover open / close sensor 163 Protrusion 165 Side cover 166 Side cover open / close sensor 170, 180 Interlock switch 200 Bottle Cover 202 Hook 210 Bottle cover open / close sensor 220 Shaft member 300 Locking mechanism 310 Latch 312 recess 320 Shaft member 340 Links 400 Drive Mechanism 410 Solenoid 412 Rod 420 Control Line 430 Bottle cover control unit 500 Motion control section 512 Voltage monitoring unit 510 CPU 520 ROM 530 RAM 540 Input Interface Unit 550 Output interface section 560 Input / Output Interface Section 570 Communication Interface Unit 610 Input Device 620 Output Device 630 I / O device [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0114] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2023-106595 [Patent Document 2] Patent Publication No. 2021-6851

Claims

1. an image forming unit provided in the device body and forming an image; a toner bottle storage unit that removably stores a toner bottle filled with toner used in forming an image by the image forming unit; a bottle cover provided in an openable and closable manner at an insertion opening of the toner bottle storage section; a locking mechanism that locks the movement of the bottle cover in a closed state where the bottle cover is in a position that covers the insertion opening; a bottle cover open / close detection unit that detects the open / close state of the bottle cover; a front cover that is openably and closably provided on the front surface of the device body and that prevents the bottle cover from opening when the device body is closed; a front cover open / close detector that detects the open / close state of the front cover; a power supply stopping unit that stops the supply of power to the image forming unit when the front cover is open; a power supply detection unit that detects whether or not the power is being supplied to the image forming unit; a drive control unit that releases the bottle cover from the locked state by the lock mechanism when the detection state of the front cover open / close detection unit indicates that the front cover is closed even though the power detection unit detects that the power supply to the image forming unit has been stopped. An image forming apparatus comprising:

2. An output unit that outputs various information, After releasing the locked state of the bottle cover, if the drive control unit can estimate a fault location based on the detection state of the bottle cover open / close detection unit, it outputs fault information indicating the estimated fault location to the output unit.

2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

3. a side cover provided on a side surface of the device body in an openable and closable manner; a side cover open / close detection unit that detects the open / close state of the side cover, the power supply stopping unit stops the supply of power to the image forming unit when one or both of the front cover and the side cover are open; After releasing the locked state of the bottle cover, if the drive control unit can estimate a fault location based on the detection state of the side cover opening / closing detection unit in addition to the detection state of the bottle cover opening / closing detection unit, it outputs fault information indicating the estimated fault location to the output unit.

3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein:

4. a toner bottle storage section that stores toner bottles in an insertable and removable manner, the toner bottle cover being openably and closably attached to an insertion opening of the toner bottle storage section; a bottle cover open / close detection section that detects the open / closed state of the bottle cover; and a front cover that is openably and closably attached to a front surface of the device body and that prevents the bottle cover from opening when the bottle cover is in the closed state, the method comprising: a front cover open / close detector included in the image forming apparatus detects whether the front cover is open or closed; a power supply stopping unit included in the image forming apparatus that stops the supply of power to the image forming unit when the front cover is open; a power supply detection unit included in the image forming apparatus detects whether or not the power supply is being supplied to the image forming unit; A drive control unit of the image forming apparatus releases the locking state of the bottle cover by the locking mechanism when the detection state of the front cover open / close detection unit indicates that the front cover is closed even though the power detection unit detects that the power supply to the image forming unit has been stopped. A control method for an image forming apparatus, comprising:

5. a toner bottle storage section that stores toner bottles in an insertable manner and filled with toner used in forming images by the image forming section; a bottle cover that is openably and closably provided at an insertion opening of the toner bottle storage section; a locking mechanism that locks the movement of the bottle cover in a closed state in a position that covers the insertion opening; a bottle cover open / close detection section that detects the open / close state of the bottle cover; and a front cover that is openably and closably provided at a front surface of the device body and that prevents the bottle cover from opening when in the closed state, a front cover open / close detection unit of the image forming apparatus to detect an open / close state of the front cover; a power supply stopping unit of the image forming apparatus that stops the supply of power to the image forming unit when the front cover is open; a power supply detection unit of the image forming apparatus that detects whether or not the power supply is being supplied to the image forming unit; a drive control unit of the image forming apparatus that releases the locking state of the bottle cover by the locking mechanism when the detection state of the front cover open / close detection unit indicates that the front cover is closed even though the power detection unit detects that the power supply to the image forming unit has been stopped; A program for an image forming apparatus, comprising:

Images