Image Forming Apparatus Tray Priority Logic
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional image forming apparatuses enter a sleep mode when the designated sheet size and type are not available, leading to repetitive user input and degraded operability.
Innovation Solution
An image forming apparatus with a correspondence storing unit, priority setting unit, sheet feed control unit, and setting change unit that prioritizes tray or sheet type, allowing for seamless image formation even when the designated sheet is not available, by searching and feeding sheets from appropriate trays and adjusting image forming settings accordingly.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If the apparatus enters sleep mode when designated sheet is not available, then energy saving is improved, but operability deteriorates due to repetitive user input requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The apparatus automatically selects and feeds sheets from alternative trays when the designated tray is empty, without requiring user intervention. The sheet feed control unit autonomously searches for available sheets and adjusts feeding operations accordingly, enabling the system to serve itself rather than waiting for user input.
Solution Approach 2:
The correspondence storing unit maintains information about which trays hold which sheet types, and the sheet feed control unit uses this feedback to make intelligent decisions about sheet selection. When the designated tray is empty, the system queries the stored correspondence to identify alternative trays with available sheets and switches accordingly.
2Ease of operation
If the apparatus automatically selects tray based on sheet kind, then ease of operation is improved, but device complexity increases due to additional control logic
Solution Approach 1:
The correspondence storing unit pre-stores the mapping between trays and sheet kinds before the sheet feeding operation begins. This preliminary organization of information allows the sheet feed control unit to quickly retrieve and process tray selection information without complex real-time analysis, reducing the actual control logic needed during operation.
Data Source
AI summary
An image forming apparatus including: an image forming unit; plural trays; a sheet feed unit that feeds a sheet held in one of the trays; a correspondence storing unit that stores correspondence between trays and kinds of sheets; a priority setting unit that sets priority to a designation of the tray or to a designation of the kind; a sheet feed control unit that feeds the sheet from one of the trays when the priority is given to the designation of the tray and the one of the trays is designated, and searches one of the trays that holds the sheet of the designated kind based on the correspondence to feed the sheet from the searched tray when the priority is given to the designation of the kind and the kind of the sheet is designated; and a setting change unit that changes a setting of the image forming unit correspondingly to the kind of sheet.