Electrophotography – Diagnostics – Consumable
Reexamination Certificate
2000-06-22
2002-04-02
Braun, Fred L. (Department: 2852)
Electrophotography
Diagnostics
Consumable
C399S029000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06366744
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to image forming systems and methods of forming an image.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Document preparation has become increasingly sophisticated in recent years. Conventional image forming devices, such as laser printers, ink jet printers, facsimile devices, etc., have continued to evolve to provide advances including increased throughput, improved imaging, and increased efficiencies.
Conventional printer configurations are typically coupled with a host computer system, or alternatively, with numerous host computer systems via a network. The host computer system(s) is configured to interface with the appropriate printer. The host computer system may be arranged to download a print job to the printer via an associated connection. Some conventional printers are configured to parse the incoming data, to rasterize the data, and to print an image corresponding to the data.
Such conventional arrangements provide a driver, such as a page description language (PDL) driver, within the host computer system. Exemplary page description languages include PCL and Postscript. The associated printer includes a parser which is configured to operate in conjunction with the appropriate page description language driver of the host computer system. The attached printer may have plural page description language parsers for use with multiple drivers.
Following processing within the appropriate page description language parser, the received data is rasterized and applied to the print engine of the printer. Thereafter, imaging of the data upon media is usually performed.
In typical conventional configurations, a printer is coupled with numerous host systems to provide printing functions for such host systems. The host systems may be coupled with a remotely located printer via a network. Such printers are subject to numerous print jobs from numerous hosts. During extensive printing, consumables, such as toner, media, etc. may be exhausted without notification to one or more host. Numerous print jobs are subsequently held without printing if any one such consumable becomes expended. Frustration and lost time often results if a believed already printed job is in fact spooled and not printed.
Therefore, there exists a need to provide improved image forming devices and improved methods.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention provides image forming systems and methods of forming an image. According to one aspect, an image forming system comprises: an image engine configured to use a consumable to produce an image; a consumable monitoring device configured to provide a current amount of the consumable; a memory device configured to store historical information regarding the consumable; and a processor configured to provide a requirement amount of the consumable for an image job to be imaged, to statistically modify at least one of the requirement amount and the current amount using the historical information, and to analyze the requirement amount with respect to the current amount after the modification to determine the probability that the image job will be successfully imaged.
Another aspect provides a method of forming an image comprising: providing a current amount of a consumable; storing historical information regarding the consumable; providing a requirement amount of the consumable to produce an image job to be imaged; modifying at least one of the current amount and the requirement amount using the historical information; analyzing the requirement amount of the consumable with respect to the current amount of the consumable after the modifying; and forming the image corresponding to the image job using the consumable after the analyzing.
Another aspect provides an image forming system comprising: a print engine configured to print an image using toner; a consumable monitoring device configured to provide a current amount of the toner; a memory device configured to store historical information regarding usage of the consumable to print previous print jobs; and a processor configured to provide a requirement amount of the toner for a print job to be imaged, to statistically modify at the requirement amount of the toner and the current amount of the toner using the historical information, and to analyze the requirement amount with respect to the current amount after the modification to determine the probability that the image job will be successfully imaged, wherein the processor is configured to statistically modify the requirement amount using historical information comprising a ratio of estimations of the number of pixels within previous image jobs and the actual number of pixels within the previous image jobs.
Other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon review of the following detailed description, claims, and drawings.
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Baumunk Mary B
Boockholdt Darius
Haines Robert E.
Harper Mark A.
Phillips Quintin T.
Braun Fred L.
Hewlett--Packard Company
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