Decentered Operation Panel Human Sensor Detection Range Adjustment
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Image forming apparatuses with decentered operation units and human sensors face detection failures when users are partially outside the device's width range, leading to incomplete power restoration from energy save mode to normal operation mode.
Innovation Solution
The image forming apparatus includes a human sensor with a adjustable detection range and direction, and a controller that adjusts the detection sensitivity to ensure user detection even when the user is partially outside the device's width range, by mechanically changing the detection direction and sensitivity based on the operation panel's position.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the operation unit is decentered from the center line and disposed closer to the front face, then the operation unit is more accessible to users, but the user detection reliability deteriorates when users are partially outside the width range
Solution Approach 1:
The human sensor's detection range is made dynamically adjustable based on the operation panel's position. The control unit changes the detection range parameters (such as horizontal angle and vertical angle) according to the detected operation panel location, allowing the detection system to adapt dynamically to different operational configurations and maintain reliability regardless of user position.
Solution Approach 2:
The detection range parameters of the human sensor are changed based on the operation panel position. When the operation panel is decentered or positioned closer to the front face, the detection range is adjusted accordingly (e.g., expanding horizontal coverage to the left or right, adjusting vertical angles) to ensure users interacting with the decentered panel remain within the detection zone.
2Measurement precision
If the human sensor detection range is limited to the device width range, then the detection precision is improved, but the user detection completeness deteriorates when users are partially outside the width range
Solution Approach 1:
The detection range is adjusted to provide different coverage in different spatial zones based on the operation panel position. When the panel is decentered, the detection range is expanded preferentially in the direction needed to cover users interacting with that specific panel location, creating non-uniform but optimized detection coverage rather than a fixed symmetric range.
3Reliability
If the detection range is expanded to cover users outside the width range, then the user detection completeness is improved, but the detection precision deteriorates due to increased detection area
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the detection range parameters based on real-time detection of the operation panel position and calculated user positions. This dynamic adjustment ensures the detection range is expanded only as much as necessary to cover users interacting with the decentered panel, avoiding excessive expansion that would compromise precision.
Data Source
AI summary
An image forming apparatus includes: an operation unit that is decentered from a center line between a right part and a left part of the image forming apparatus rightwards or leftwards and that is disposed closer to a rear face or a front face of the image forming apparatus; a human sensor that detects a user intending to use the image forming apparatus; and a controller that performs control of operation of the image forming apparatus by using a detection result of the human sensor, the human sensor having a detection range set to detect the user, the user being detectable even when the user is present at least partially outside a width range of the image forming apparatus.