Printer Output Discharge Control for Easy Job Separation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing image-forming devices struggle with efficiently separating multiple sheets of paper for different jobs due to mixed output, requiring manual separation by users, which is cumbersome and inefficient.
Innovation Solution
The image-forming device controls the discharge distance of individual pages based on predetermined conditions, such as the presence of paper in the tray or completion of previous jobs, to facilitate automatic separation of sheets for different jobs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If multiple image-forming jobs are processed continuously, then productivity is improved, but the image-forming medium from different jobs mixes in the discharge tray making separation difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies segmentation by creating distinct groups of image-forming medium through different discharge distances. The medium is segmented into multiple groups corresponding to different jobs, with each group discharged to a unique position. This allows users to easily identify and separate medium from different jobs by their physical locations in the discharge tray, resolving the mixing problem while maintaining continuous processing capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a spatial dimension (discharge distance) to differentiate between jobs. Instead of only temporal processing sequence, the system now uses positional information in the discharge tray as an additional dimension for job identification. This dimensional addition transforms the separation task from visual inspection to simple physical retrieval based on location.
2Ease of operation
If discharge distance is controlled to enable separation, then ease of operation is improved, but device complexity increases due to additional control mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the existing discharge control mechanism universal by enabling it to perform both its original function (discharging medium) and a new function (separating medium by job). The same discharge control system is used to achieve multiple objectives: completing the image-forming operation and simultaneously organizing the output for easy separation. This avoids adding dedicated separation hardware and reduces overall system complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs separation automatically as part of the normal discharge process without requiring additional user intervention or separate separation mechanisms. The discharge control unit self-manages the organization of medium by adjusting discharge distances based on job identification, making the separation function self-service and integrated into the existing operational flow.
3Productivity
If all pages of each job are discharged to different positions, then separation efficiency is improved, but loss of time increases due to extended discharge duration
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by differentiating discharge behavior for different portions of the medium based on their job affiliation. Instead of treating all pages uniformly, the system identifies specific pages belonging to different jobs and applies localized discharge distance adjustments only to those pages. This selective approach maintains separation efficiency while minimizing the overall time impact by not extending discharge for every single page.
Data Source
Figure 1A~1B
Figure 1C~2
Figure 3A
AI summary
A control method for forming an image includes receiving a pending image-forming job, and obtaining pending image-forming data and image-forming configuration information in the pending image-forming job, the image-forming configuration information including total page number corresponding to the pending image-forming job; performing image-forming operation on an image-forming medium according to the pending image-forming data and the image-forming configuration information; under satisfied predetermined conditions, controlling a discharge distance of at least one page of the image-forming medium of the pending image-forming data to be different from a discharge distance of other pages of the image-forming medium, or controlling a discharge distance of at least one page of the image-forming medium of the pending image-forming job to be different from a discharge distance of the image-forming medium of a previous image-forming job.