Image Eigenvalue Comparison for Page Misplacement Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing image forming apparatuses struggle to automatically detect page missing and misplacement when outputting multiple sets of pages, especially with variable images, leading to inefficient manual confirmation processes and potential client trust issues in mass printing scenarios.
Innovation Solution
An image forming apparatus that calculates and compares image eigenvalues, excluding a part of the image, to determine normal image formation across sets, using a control unit and storage for processing and comparison, enabling set-by-set or page-by-page verification.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If manual confirmation of page missing and misplacement is performed after output, then detection accuracy is improved, but operation time and labor cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual visual inspection with an automated image processing system that calculates eigenvalues from image data. The control unit automatically compares eigenvalues between consecutive output units to detect page missing and misplacement, substituting human operators with computational algorithms that process images digitally.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs self-verification by automatically comparing its own output images against reference eigenvalues. The image forming apparatus independently detects its own formatting errors without external intervention, enabling autonomous quality control that eliminates the need for separate manual confirmation steps.
2Reliability
If complete image comparison is performed for each set, then detection reliability is improved, but processing complexity increases when variable images are present
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the essential verification element (eigenvalue) from the complete image data. By calculating eigenvalues that represent key image characteristics and comparing only these extracted values rather than entire images, the system maintains detection reliability while significantly reducing processing complexity, especially when variable images like stamps or headers differ between sets.
Solution Approach 2:
The system transforms image data from pixel-level detail to eigenvalue parameters that capture essential formatting characteristics. This parameter transformation enables reliable detection of page missing and misplacement by comparing condensed numerical representations rather than raw image data, simplifying the comparison process while maintaining accuracy.
3Productivity
If automated detection is implemented, then productivity is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The control unit performs multiple functions: it manages image formation, calculates eigenvalues from image data, stores reference values, and detects formatting errors. By integrating these diverse functions into a single control unit rather than requiring separate dedicated systems, the patent achieves automated detection that improves productivity while minimizing the increase in overall system complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
An image forming apparatus for outputting a plurality of sets of output units, the output unit composed of a plurality of pages with a determined order being one set, includes an image forming unit for successively forming images corresponding to the respective pages on sheets, a control unit for performing an arithmetic processing of an image eigenvalue for each output unit, a first storage storing the result of the arithmetic processing performed for one specific set of output unit, and a second storage storing the result of the arithmetic processing performed for the nth set of output unit, wherein the control unit determines whether or not the images are normally formed on the sheets for the nth set of output unit based on a comparison result between the result of the arithmetic processing stored in the first storage and that of the arithmetic processing stored in the second storage.