Duplex Printing Page Alignment via Blank Page Insertion

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Solution Overview

Problem

Printing of digital files with multiple consecutive blank pages removed can lead to wasteful printing and degraded legibility when facing pages do not face each other during duplex printing.

Innovation Solution

An image forming apparatus that inserts an unprinted page between unremoved pages if there is an odd number of removed blank pages, ensuring that facing pages remain aligned during duplex printing.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If all blank pages are restored during duplex printing, then the original document structure is preserved, but wasteful printing occurs

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedocument structure preservationVSAvoidpaper waste

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the blank pages into groups based on their position and counts them. By dividing the document into sections with consecutive blank pages, the system can apply different restoration strategies to different segments, restoring only those segments with odd-numbered blank page counts while eliminating waste from even-numbered segments.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent applies local quality by treating different groups of blank pages differently based on their specific characteristics (odd vs even counts). Instead of uniformly restoring all blank pages, the system selectively restores only those in groups with odd counts, making the restoration decision local to each blank page group rather than global.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

2Loss of substance

If multiple consecutive blank pages are removed to reduce printing waste, then paper usage is minimized, but facing pages may not align properly during duplex printing

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvepaper usage reductionVSAvoidpage alignment accuracy

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of substanceVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The patent performs preliminary action by counting and categorizing blank pages into groups before the actual printing process. By analyzing the document structure in advance and identifying which groups have odd-numbered blank page counts, the system prepares a restoration plan that ensures proper page alignment will be achieved during duplex printing.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces dynamics by making the blank page restoration decision variable rather than fixed. The restoration behavior dynamically adapts based on the count of consecutive blank pages in each group, restoring pages when the count is odd and skipping restoration when the count is even, thereby maintaining alignment precision only where necessary.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

Data Source

PatentUS20240040055A1Image forming apparatus, non-transitory computer readable medium, and image forming method

Publication Date: 2024.02.01 FUJIFILM BUSINESS INNOVATION CORP

AI summary

An image forming apparatus includes a processor configured to: insert an unprinted page between unremoved pages in order to perform duplex printing, if a number of removed blank pages between the unremoved pages is an odd number of one or three or more on a digital file that has the blank pages removed when a document formed on duplex pages is read.