Carriage Jam Detection in Image Forming Apparatus
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional electronic devices, such as image forming apparatuses, face challenges in accurately determining whether conveyance failures are due to jamming, leading to excessive and inappropriate measures being taken, which can result in user dissatisfaction and potential damage to the recording unit.
Innovation Solution
An electronic device equipped with a carriage conveyance unit, sheet conveyance unit, failure detection unit, and jam determination unit, which includes a motor for conveying the carriage and sheet, and a position detection unit to determine if a conveyance failure is caused by jamming based on the carriage's position during failure detection.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If cautious measures are taken to protect against conveyance failure due to jamming, then the recording unit is protected from damage, but the conveyance control is suspended unnecessarily even when the failure is not due to jamming
Solution Approach 1:
The system changes the parameter of failure determination by introducing position information as an additional criterion. Instead of treating all conveyance failures uniformly, the system now considers the carriage position at the time of failure to differentiate between jamming and non-jamming causes, enabling selective continuation or suspension of conveyance control
Solution Approach 2:
The failure determination process is segmented into two distinct pathways: one for jamming failures (where conveyance control is suspended) and one for non-jamming failures (where conveyance control may continue). This segmentation is achieved by evaluating the carriage position to categorize the failure type, allowing differentiated handling of different failure scenarios
2Reliability
If conveyance control is suspended for all conveyance failures, then potential damage to the recording unit is prevented, but user satisfaction decreases due to excessive measures
Solution Approach 1:
The system introduces position information as a new parameter to refine the failure determination logic. By evaluating whether the carriage is within a specific range relative to the sheet at the time of failure, the system can distinguish between genuine jamming incidents and other failure types, thereby avoiding excessive suspension of conveyance control and improving user experience
3Device complexity
If the cause of conveyance failure is determined without position information, then the determination process is simple, but the accuracy of determining whether jamming occurred is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary acquisition of carriage position information before the failure determination is made. By having the position detection unit continuously monitor and store position data, the system ensures that accurate position information is readily available when a conveyance failure occurs, enabling precise jamming detection without complicating the overall determination process
Data Source
AI summary
An electronic device includes a carriage conveyance unit, a sheet conveyance unit, a failure detection unit, a position detection unit, and a jam determination unit. The carriage conveyance unit includes a motor and conveys a carriage in a main scanning direction by a driving force of the motor. The sheet conveyance unit conveys a sheet in a sub-scanning direction which crosses the main scanning direction in which the carriage is conveyed. The failure detection unit detects a conveyance failure of the carriage. The position detection unit detects a position of the carriage in the main scanning direction. The jam determination unit determines whether or not the conveyance failure is due to jamming caused by interference between the carriage and the sheet, based on the position of the carriage detected by the position detection unit at a time when the conveyance failure is detected by the failure detection unit.