Dual Storage EEPROM Lifetime Extension in Image Forming Apparatus
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing image forming apparatuses face challenges with EEPROM rewriting limitations, leading to shortened lifetimes and increased replacement frequencies, as the printing quantity exceeds the EEPROM's rewriting capacity, necessitating large-capacity EEPROMs or frequent replacements, especially during recycling.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a dual storage system where the control unit and toner-containing unit each have non-volatile storage units, with the toner-containing unit handling primary counting and transferring data to the control unit when toner is low, ensuring data continuity during toner replacement and reducing rewriting frequency on the control unit's EEPROM.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the printing quantity is counted only by the EEPROM of the control board, then the count information is maintained centrally, but the rewriting frequency increases and the EEPROM lifetime becomes shorter
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the counting function into two segments: the first storage unit (on control board) and the second storage unit (on toner container). The second storage unit handles frequent counting operations for the current toner, while the first storage unit maintains the cumulative total. This segmentation allows the second storage unit to be replaced with each toner, effectively resetting its rewriting counter and extending the overall system's counting capability beyond the limitations of a single EEPROM.
2Reliability
If a large capacity EEPROM is used to reduce rewriting frequency, then the rewriting rotation frequency decreases, but the device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the counting function from the control board's EEPROM and relocates it to the toner container's EEPROM (second storage unit). This extraction allows the counting operation to be performed locally at the toner level, with only periodic transfers to the control board. The second storage unit uses a small capacity EEPROM that is replaced with each toner, avoiding the need for a large capacity EEPROM on the control board.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the control board is replaced during recycling, then the MFP can be renewed, but the EEPROM lifetime ends and replacement is required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by making the second storage unit (on toner container) replaceable independently of the control board. Each toner container has its own EEPROM that is replaced when the toner is replaced, creating a localized counting system that does not depend on the control board's EEPROM lifetime. This allows the control board to be reused during MFP recycling without EEPROM replacement issues.
4Reliability
If averaging effect is applied to all addresses, then the rewriting is distributed, but the effect cannot be obtained when rewriting number is the same for all addresses
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a dynamic counting system where the second storage unit (toner container EEPROM) is periodically replaced, effectively resetting its rewriting counter. This dynamic replacement strategy creates an averaging effect over time, as each new toner brings a fresh EEPROM with zero rewriting count. The system adapts to usage patterns by allowing different toners to accumulate different rewriting counts before replacement, achieving load distribution without requiring uniform rewriting across all addresses.
Data Source
AI summary
An image forming apparatus includes a control unit that controls each component, a first storage unit that is a non-volatile and rewritable storage unit mounted on the control unit, a toner containing unit that contains toner to be used for an image forming, a second storage unit that is a non-volatile and rewritable storage unit mounted on the toner containing unit, and a detecting unit that detects an amount of the toner remained in the toner containing unit. The control unit stores count information into the second storage unit, the count information is copied from the second storage unit to the first storage unit, when the detecting unit detects that the amount of the toner remained in the toner containing unit is not enough, and the count information is kept on being stored into the first storage unit, until the toner containing unit is replaced with a new one.