Printer Maintenance Guide with Moving Image Display

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Solution Overview

Problem

Novices and unfamiliar users face difficulties in performing printer maintenance tasks due to the lack of a comprehensive guide, leading to anxiety about the correctness of their actions and the smooth execution of maintenance procedures, especially when errors occur or routine maintenance is required.

Innovation Solution

A printer maintenance guide device and method that displays the entire maintenance process using moving images, including a guide stop button, rewind functionality, audio guidance, language support, and a human sensor to pause images when no operator is present, allowing users to grasp the entire process before starting work.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If a step-by-step guide is displayed after each work is performed, then the guide can be provided in a structured manner, but novice users cannot grasp the entire process and feel anxious about the correctness of their actions

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveease of understanding maintenance processVSAvoidloss of overall process information
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

The patent displays the entire maintenance guide as a sequence of still images before the user performs any work, allowing users to grasp the complete process in advance. This preliminary presentation of all steps enables users to understand the full maintenance procedure before starting, eliminating anxiety about missing information or performing incorrect actions.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

2Ease of operation

If pictures and moving images are used to display the guide, then visual information can be provided, but users cannot review previous steps or pause to understand at their own pace

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveease of reviewing maintenance stepsVSAvoidcomplexity of guide control mechanism
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent employs a slide show mechanism with still images that can be sequentially displayed, paused, and reviewed. Users can control the display pace using operation buttons, allowing them to pause between steps, review previous images, and proceed at their own understanding speed. This dynamic control transforms static information into an interactive learning experience.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

3Loss of information

If the entire maintenance process is displayed at once, then users can grasp the complete procedure, but the guide becomes too lengthy and overwhelming for novice users

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecompleteness of maintenance informationVSAvoidease of processing information
Core Design Contradiction:
Loss of informationVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The maintenance guide is divided into multiple still images, each representing a discrete step or piece of information. These segmented images are presented in a sequential slide show format, allowing users to process information in manageable portions while maintaining awareness of the complete process through navigation controls that enable review of all steps.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Data Source

PatentEP3088199B1Printer with maintenance guide and method thereof
Publication Date: 2019.10.02 SATO HLDG CORP
  • EP3088199B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3088199B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3088199B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

A printer maintenance guide device includes a guide command button for commanding a maintenance guide for a maintenance work, and a moving image memory storing moving images for successively and continuously displaying a whole process of the maintenance guide from start to end at once on a display unit by the operation of the guide command button.