Commonized PCB Connector Visual Marking for Printer Assembly
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Solution Overview
Problem
The challenge in manufacturing a commonized printed circuit board for both monochrome and color printers is the risk of incorrect connector connections, leading to operational failures due to differences in connector counts and potential pin bending, which complicates maintenance and assembly processes.
Innovation Solution
A printed circuit board design with distinctively marked connectors, where a first connector is common to both printer types and a second connector is specific to color printers, uses silk screen printing to differentiate between them, ensuring correct cable connections and preventing errors during assembly and maintenance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a commonized printed circuit board is manufactured for both monochrome and color printers, then the manufacturing cost of printed circuit boards is reduced, but the risk of incorrect connector connections increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies visual marking (silk screen printing) on the printed circuit board to differentiate between connectors for monochrome printers and connectors for color printers. This visual differentiation method uses color or pattern changes to guide operators during assembly, preventing incorrect connector connections while maintaining the commonized PCB design that reduces manufacturing costs.
2Ease of manufacture
If a commonized printed circuit board is mounted in a monochrome printer, then the printer can be manufactured with lower cost, but the complexity of assembly and maintenance processes increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses visual markings (silk screen printing) on the printed circuit board to indicate which connectors are for monochrome printers and which are for color printers. This visual guidance system simplifies the assembly process by clearly indicating the correct connector configuration, reducing the complexity of assembly and maintenance operations despite the presence of multiple connector types on the commonized PCB.
3Ease of manufacture
If connectors are not visually differentiated on a commonized printed circuit board, then the manufacturing process is simpler, but the likelihood of operational failure due to incorrect connections increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements silk screen printing to create visual markings on the printed circuit board that differentiate between connectors for different printer types. This adds a minimal manufacturing step while significantly improving reliability by preventing incorrect connector connections that would cause operational failure.
Data Source
AI summary
A monochrome image forming apparatus includes an image forming unit that forms a black image, a motor that drives the image forming unit, a control circuit that controls the motor, a first connector to which the motor is connected via a control line, a second connector to which a control target is not connected, and a substrate on which the control circuit, the first connector, and the second connector are arranged. A predetermined mark is formed on the substrate through silk screen printing. A distance between the predetermined mark and the second connector is shorter than a distance between the predetermined mark and the first connector. If the substrate is disposed in a multi-color image forming apparatus configured to form a color image, a control target for the multi-color image forming apparatus is connected to the second connector.