Electrophotography – Diagnostics – Service mode
Reexamination Certificate
1999-11-01
2001-02-06
Braun, Fred L (Department: 2852)
Electrophotography
Diagnostics
Service mode
C399S081000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06185379
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a method for operating a high-performance printer or a copier, whereby a plurality of monitoring units sense malfunctions of the high-performance printer or of the copier.
2. Description of the Related Art
A high-performance printer, for example, prints single sheets or web-shaped sheet material at high speed, for example more than 50 pages DIN A4 per minute. In order to assure this high printing speed and the further-processing of the sheet material, a plurality of complex units and control modules are required. Given outage of a single module, operation of the high-performance printer can be so highly disrupted that printing must be stopped. In order to be able to immediately recognize malfunctions, a plurality of monitoring units senses error conditions. One such monitoring unit can, for example, be a simple path switch that recognizes the opened condition of a device. These monitoring units, however, also include complex detector devices that, for example, determine the wear of a unit.
A great number of error conditions, for example more than 300 different error conditions, are possible due to the complexity of the high-performance printer or copier system. In order to eliminate the error conditions, an operator analyzes the error that has occurred and attempts to eliminate the error, for example by replacing parts or undertaking new settings for the high-performance printer. In the prior art, it is standard that the operator is informed about the error condition on a display. The operator can then call a menu at the control panel unit, i.e. the menu being a compilation of texts in a list which the operator references to receive assistance for eliminating the individual errors.
Given the occurance of relatively serious errors, the operator must have a high degree of training and very good knowledge about the high-performance printer in order to be able to eliminate the error, for example given errors in the transfer printing unit that require the replacement of parts and the re-setting of the transfer printing unit. In order to be able to undertake the measures for eliminating errors, a highly qualified maintenance technician is often called, this person being given technical instructions for eliminating the error by a technical handbook or maintenance handbook. This technical handbook is indispensable because specific technical specifications of specific high-performance printers are described therein. Since a highly qualified maintenance technician, however, is not always immediately available and, on the other hand, idle high-performance printer results in economic loss, less trained operators often attempt to eliminate the error. Practice has shown that such attempts to fix the problem frequently leads to greater damage. Further, practice has shown that the technical handbook is not always immediately available and attempts to elimninate the errors are initiated without consulting the handbook. Such a procedure also often leads to greater damage.
European Patent Document EP-A-0 429 056 describes a method for operating a copier, whereby a plurality of monitoring units sense error conditions of the copier. These error conditions are communicated to a central control via a long-distance data transmission in the form of signals, this central control outputting these error conditions at a control panel unit having a display. Error conditions can be classified such that, dependent on the seriousness, these error conditions are allocated to a first error class and to at least one second error class. In conjunction with the error conditions and the error classes, an operator can fetch further information with an input into the control panel unit. The information also contain instructions for error handling.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the invention is to provide a method for the operation of a high-performance printer or of a copier which provides clear and comprehensive assistance for an operator in case of error. This and other objects and advantages of the invention are provided by a method for operating a high performance printer or copier including acquiring the error conditions of a number of monitoring units of the high performance printer or copier, displaying the error conditions on a display unit of a control panel which serves to input the operating instructions and for displaying the operating conditions, dividing the error conditions into a first class and at least one further error class by a control upon the difficulty of error elimination, given occurrence of an error condition of the first error class or the further error class, calling for information by actuating an input to the control panel and displaying on the display unit the instructions for handling that error and displaying the existence of error condition of the further class on the display of the control panel and requiring an access authorization procedure to be performed to access specific information regarding error handling of an error condition of the further error class.
The invention offers a method for operating a high-performance printer or copier, whereby a multitude of monitoring units sense error statuses of the high-performance printer or copier, a control panel unit that serves for the input of operating instructions and for displaying the operating conditions displays these error conditions on a display, the error conditions are divided by a controller into a first error class and into at least one further error class depending on the seriousness of the error elimination, information is called by actuating an input at the control panel unit given the occurrence of an error condition of the first and of the further class and are displayed on the display, the information containing instructions for error-handling, and whereby the presence of an error condition of the further class is displayed on the display of the control panel unit. In one exemplary embodiment, access to the specific information for error handling of error conditions of the further error class ensues via an access authorization procedure.
The invention is based on the consideration that error conditions that can be eliminated with relatively simple measures should be distinguished from error conditions that require serious counter-measures in order to authorize the suitable operating personnel with the error-handling task. Accordingly, the invention provides that the error conditions be divided by a controller into a first error class and into at least one further error class dependent on the seriousness of the error elimination. For error conditions that require technically involved and relatively difficult error-handling measures, only an operator, for example a technician trained with specific courses, should be permitted to undertake the error-handling when this operator has a specific access authorization and successfully passes an access authorization procedure. Only such a qualified operator is informed of further information about the suitable error handling on the basis of a menu mode. In the case of error conditions that belong to the first error class, any operator responsible for the high-performance printer is given assistance via the display unit of the control panel unit and, according, implements the error-handling measures.
It has been shown in practice that an operator of is not overtaxed by the measures of the invention and confusion due to the multitude of technical information and the multitude of error conditions does not occur. Due to the display of clear information about an error condition of the further class, an operator having the appropriate to the technical capabilities can be called and, as a result thereof, a minimization of damage is also achieved. Overall, faster error-handling occurs due to the method of the invention and the down times for the high-performance printer are reduced.
According to a development of the invention, video data are kept on hand in a memory, these being capa
Lay Heinrich
Scheidig Karola
Warbus Volker
Braun Fred L
Oce Printing Systems GmbH
Schiff & Hardin & Waite
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