Waste Toner Ratio Control for Reproducible Process Black
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Solution Overview
Problem
The reproducibility of black images using waste toner varies due to the unconsidered ratio of yellow, magenta, and cyan toners mixed with black toner, leading to inconsistent printing quality.
Innovation Solution
An image forming apparatus with a waste toner collection and developing unit that adjusts the ratio of waste toners of different colors to ensure a predetermined condition is met before using waste toner as process black, allowing for improved reproducibility by controlling the ratio of waste toners through a control unit.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If waste toner is reused as process black without considering the ratio of different colored toners, then toner consumption is reduced and productivity is improved, but the reproducibility of black images deteriorates due to inconsistent printing quality
Solution Approach 1:
The system monitors and adjusts the composition ratio of waste toners (yellow, magenta, cyan, black) before reuse. When the ratio of non-black toners exceeds a predetermined threshold, the system prevents reuse or adjusts the toner mixture to maintain consistent black image quality. This parameter control ensures that reused toner maintains reliable printing performance while maximizing reuse efficiency.
2Device complexity
If waste toner is reused without ratio control, then device complexity is reduced and ease of operation is improved, but manufacturing precision of black images deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system incorporates a control unit that continuously monitors the composition ratio of waste toners and provides feedback to determine whether reuse is appropriate. The control unit compares the measured ratio against predetermined thresholds and automatically makes decisions about toner reuse or disposal, maintaining precision without requiring complex manual intervention.
3Reliability
If the ratio of waste toners is controlled to ensure reproducibility, then the reproducibility of black images is improved, but the device complexity increases due to ratio monitoring and control mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The control unit performs multiple functions: it monitors toner ratios, determines reuse eligibility, and controls the toner supply mechanism. By integrating these functions into a single multi-functional control system, the patent achieves reliable black image reproduction without proportionally increasing overall device complexity.
Data Source
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AI summary
An image forming apparatus includes plural image holding bodies that are provided for respective colors of toners and hold toner images having the respective colors, an intermediate transfer body onto which the toner images having the respective colors held by the plural image holding bodies are transferred, a waste toner collection unit that collects toners remaining on the intermediate transfer body as a waste toner in a case where the toner images having the respective colors transferred onto the intermediate transfer body are transferred onto a recording material, a waste toner developing unit that uses the waste toner collected by the waste toner collection unit to develop a toner image on an image holding body of the plural image holding bodies or the other image holding body of the plural image holding bodies, and a control unit that performs a control to cause the waste toner developing unit to develop the toner image in a case where a predetermined condition about a ratio of a waste toner having each color to the waste toner stored in the waste toner collection unit is satisfied.