JP3876734B2 - Print sheet discrimination apparatus, printing apparatus, computer program, computer system, and print sheet discrimination method - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a printing sheet discrimination apparatus, a printing apparatus, a computer program, a computer system, and a printing sheet discrimination method.
[0002]
[Background]
In order to print a high-quality image by a printing apparatus such as an ink jet printer, it is necessary to perform printing according to the type of the storage sheet that is the printing medium. For this reason, there is provided a printing apparatus including a determination device that determines the type of a print sheet set in the printing apparatus. This discriminating device has a light emitting unit and a light receiving unit, and discriminates the type of the print sheet according to the amount of diffuse component of the reflected light emitted from the light emitting unit toward the print sheet.
[0003]
Further, since the image quality is affected not only by the type of print sheet but also by its thickness, a printing apparatus having a thickness discriminating apparatus for discriminating the thickness of the print sheet has been developed recently. This thickness discriminating apparatus is considered to convey a print sheet on ribs provided at a predetermined interval and detect a difference in thickness of the print sheet as a difference in deflection. Specifically, the printed sheet placed on the rib is bent and scanned by a predetermined distance while irradiating light from the light emitting part, and the light receiving part receives the light quantity of the regular reflection component of the reflected light. To do. At this time, since the reflection direction of the regular reflected light changes due to the deflection of the print sheet, the amount of light received by the light receiving unit varies. By storing the light quantity fluctuation and counting the number of waves generated during a predetermined scanning distance from the waveform of the light quantity fluctuation, the deflection state of the print sheet is recognized, and when the number of waves is small, that is, the deflection is small. In this case, it is determined that the printed sheet is thick, and when the number of waves is large, the printed sheet is thin.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, the thickness discriminating apparatus as described above does not measure the thickness of the print sheet, but utilizes the fact that the rigidity of the print sheet varies depending on the thickness. However, since the rigidity of the printing sheet is influenced not only by the thickness but also by the material, the environment in which it is used, etc., there are cases where the thickness cannot be accurately discriminated by the thickness discriminating apparatus.
[0005]
In addition, it is necessary to scan the light emitting unit and the light receiving unit by a predetermined distance and store the light amount, and further, the stored light amount data is analyzed and determined, so that it takes time to determine the thickness and is complicated. A processing circuit or the like is required, and there is a problem in that the product cost may increase.
[0006]
The present invention has been made in view of such a problem, and the object of the present invention is to determine a print sheet type and thickness with a simple configuration, a printing apparatus including the determination device, The object is to realize a computer program for realizing a function to be discriminated by the discriminating apparatus, a computer system having a printing apparatus provided with the discriminating apparatus, and a printing sheet discriminating method.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The main present invention is a light emitting unit that emits light toward a printing sheet, a regular reflection light receiving unit that mainly receives a regular reflection component of light reflected by the printing sheet, and a diffuse reflection component of the reflected light. In the printing sheet discriminating apparatus including the diffuse reflection light receiving unit, the type of the print sheet is determined based on the regular reflection light amount received by the regular reflection light receiving unit and the diffuse reflection light amount received by the diffuse reflection light receiving unit. Broad And When the type of the print sheet is specified according to the classification based on the regular reflection light amount and the diffuse reflection light amount, the type of the print sheet is determined as the specific print sheet, and based on the regular reflection light amount and the diffuse reflection light amount. If the type of print sheet is not specified, For each type of the printed sheet, the thickness of the printed sheet is determined based on the amount of regular reflected light received by the regular reflection light receiving unit, When the type of the print sheet is specified by determining the thickness of the print sheet based on the amount of specular reflection, the type of print sheet is determined as the specific print sheet, and the thickness of the print sheet is determined by determining the thickness of the print sheet. If the type of print sheet is not specified, after determining the thickness of the print sheet, Based on the amount of specular light received by the specular reflection light receiving unit and the amount of diffuse reflection light received by the diffuse reflection light receiving unit, the type of print sheet is selected. Subdivision do it Determine the type of print sheet It is a printing sheet discrimination device characterized by that
Other features of the present invention will become apparent from the accompanying drawings and the following description.
[0008]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
=== Summary of disclosure ===
At least the following matters will be made clear by the description of the detailed description of the invention in this specification.
[0009]
A light emitting unit that emits light toward the print sheet; a specular reflection light receiving unit that mainly receives a specular reflection component of the reflected light of the print sheet; and a diffuse reflection light reception that receives a diffuse reflection component of the reflected light. A print sheet discriminating apparatus comprising: a specular reflection light amount received by the specular reflection light receiving unit and a diffuse reflection light amount received by the diffuse reflection light receiving unit; After determining the thickness of the printing sheet based on the specular reflection light amount received by the specular reflection light receiving unit for each type of the determined print sheet, the specular reflection light amount received by the specular reflection light receiving unit. And a print sheet discriminating apparatus that discriminates the type of the print sheet based on the diffuse reflection light amount received by the diffuse reflection light receiving unit.
According to such a discriminating device, it is possible to discriminate the type and thickness of the print sheet with a simple configuration including a light emitting unit and two light receiving units.
[0010]
Furthermore, it is preferable that the determination of the type of the print sheet and the determination of the thickness are performed in a state where the light emitting unit and the two light receiving units are held at predetermined positions with respect to the print sheet.
According to such a discriminating device, the type and thickness of the print sheet can be discriminated and discriminated in a short time only by receiving and emitting light at a predetermined position without moving the print sheet discriminating device. Therefore, the circuit configuration for this is also simplified, and the cost can be reduced.
[0011]
Furthermore, a type determination threshold value corresponding to the type of the print sheet may be provided, and the mat type sheet, the glossy type sheet, or the OHP sheet may be determined based on the type determination threshold value.
According to such a discriminating device, it is possible to clearly discriminate the print sheet from the mat type sheet, the glossy type sheet, and the OHP sheet by the type discrimination threshold. Here, the mat-type sheet refers to a printing sheet having low surface smoothness and fine irregularities on the surface, and includes plain paper. The glossy sheet refers to a printed sheet that has a smooth surface by applying a predetermined treatment to the surface and has a glossy surface. An OHP sheet refers to a film made of a polymer material having permeability. These recording sheets become an OHP sheet, a glossy sheet, and a mat-type sheet when arranged in order from the one having a large number of regular reflection components of the reflected light when irradiated with light.
[0012]
Further, it is desirable that the specular reflection light receiving unit is provided at a position for receiving a specular reflection component reflected on a print sheet having a predetermined thickness.
According to such a discriminating device, the regular reflection component of the reflected light from the print sheet having a predetermined thickness is reliably received, and the regular reflection component of the reflected light from the print sheet having other thickness is received. Since it becomes difficult, the thickness can be clearly determined.
[0013]
Furthermore, it is desirable to have a thickness determination threshold corresponding to the thickness of the print sheet, and to determine the thickness based on the thickness determination threshold.
According to such a discriminating apparatus, it is possible to clearly discriminate the thickness of the print sheet by the thickness discriminating threshold.
[0014]
Further, it is preferable that the type of the print sheet is determined based on a ratio between the regular reflection light amount and the diffuse reflection light amount.
According to such a discriminating apparatus, the ratio between the regular reflection light quantity and the diffuse reflection light quantity is used, so that even if the light quantity of the light emitting section fluctuates, a print sheet discrimination apparatus that is not easily affected by the light quantity fluctuation is realized It becomes possible to do.
[0015]
In addition, after determining the thickness of the print sheet having the second type determination threshold corresponding to the type of the print sheet and determined to be a mat-type sheet by the determination of the type of the print sheet, the second type It is desirable to discriminate between matte paper and plain paper based on the discrimination threshold.
According to such a discrimination device, it is possible to clearly discriminate between matte paper and plain paper by the second type discrimination threshold.
[0016]
The specular reflection light receiving unit is provided at a position for receiving the specular reflection component reflected on the print sheet having a predetermined thickness, and is a position for receiving the specular reflection component reflected on the print sheet having the predetermined thickness. When the regular reflection light quantity of the regular reflection light receiving unit provided in the light source is smaller than the thickness determination threshold value, the emission intensity of the light emitting unit may be optimized before the type determination based on the second type determination threshold value. desirable.
According to such a discriminating device, by optimizing the light emission intensity of the light emitting unit, the amount of specular reflection light received can be increased and the dynamic range can be increased, so that matte paper and plain paper can be more accurately separated. Can be determined.
[0017]
A light emitting unit that emits light toward the print sheet; a specular reflection light receiving unit that mainly receives a specular reflection component of the reflected light of the print sheet; and a diffuse reflection light reception that receives a diffuse reflection component of the reflected light. A print sheet discriminating apparatus comprising: a specular reflection light amount received by the specular reflection light receiving unit and a diffuse reflection light amount received by the diffuse reflection light receiving unit; After determining the thickness of the printing sheet based on the specular reflection light amount received by the specular reflection light receiving unit for each type of the determined print sheet, the specular reflection light amount received by the specular reflection light receiving unit. And the type of the printed sheet is determined based on the amount of diffusely reflected light received by the diffused reflection light receiving unit, and the type of the printed sheet and the thickness are determined by the light emitting unit and the two light receiving units. The printing system A type determination threshold value corresponding to the type of the print sheet, and based on the type determination threshold value, any one of a mat-type sheet, a glossy-type sheet, and an OHP sheet is executed. The specular reflection light receiving unit is provided at a position for receiving a specular reflection component reflected on a print sheet having a predetermined thickness, and has a thickness determination threshold corresponding to the thickness of the print sheet. The thickness is determined based on the thickness determination threshold, and the type of the print sheet is determined by a ratio between the regular reflection light amount and the diffuse reflection light amount, and the second corresponding to the print sheet type is determined. After determining the thickness of the print sheet determined as the mat-type sheet by determining the type of the print sheet, the mat sheet or the plain paper is determined based on the second type determination threshold. Any of The specular reflection light receiving unit is provided at a position for receiving the specular reflection component reflected on the print sheet having a predetermined thickness, and receives the specular reflection component reflected on the print sheet having the predetermined thickness. When the regular reflection light amount of the regular reflection light receiving unit provided at the position where the light is reflected is smaller than the thickness determination threshold, the light emission intensity of the light emitting unit is optimized before the type determination based on the second type determination threshold. This is a printing sheet discriminating apparatus.
According to such a discriminating apparatus, it is possible to clearly discriminate thick mat paper, thin mat paper, thick plain paper, thin plain paper, thick glossy paper, thin glossy paper, and OHP paper.
[0018]
A light emitting unit that emits light toward the print sheet; a specular reflection light receiving unit that mainly receives a specular reflection component of the reflected light of the print sheet; and a diffuse reflection light reception that receives a diffuse reflection component of the reflected light. A printing sheet comprising a printing sheet discriminating device comprising: a specular reflection light quantity received by the regular reflection light receiving section and a diffuse reflection light quantity received by the diffuse reflection light receiving section; And determining the thickness of the print sheet based on the amount of specular light received by the regular reflection light receiving unit for each type of the identified print sheet, and then receiving the light by the regular reflection light receiving unit. In addition, it is possible to realize a printing apparatus that determines the type of print sheet based on the regular reflection light amount and the diffuse reflection light amount received by the diffuse reflection light receiving unit.
[0019]
A light emitting unit that emits light toward the print sheet; a specular reflection light receiving unit that mainly receives a specular reflection component of the reflected light of the print sheet; and a diffuse reflection light reception that receives a diffuse reflection component of the reflected light. A printing sheet discriminating apparatus comprising a portion and a specular reflection light amount received by the specular reflection light receiving unit and a diffuse reflection light amount received by the diffuse reflection light receiving unit, the type of the print sheet is determined, After determining the thickness of the print sheet based on the amount of specular light received by the regular reflection light receiving unit for each type of the determined print sheet, the regular reflection received by the regular reflection light receiving unit. A computer program for realizing a function of discriminating the type of print sheet based on the light amount and the diffuse reflection light amount received by the diffuse reflection light receiving unit can also be realized.
[0020]
Further, the computer main body, a light emitting unit connected to the computer main body and emitting light toward the print sheet, a specular reflection light receiving unit that mainly receives a specular reflection component of the light reflected by the print sheet, and In a computer system including a printing apparatus having a printing sheet discriminating apparatus including a diffuse reflection light receiving unit that receives a diffuse reflection component of reflected light,
Determine the type of print sheet based on the amount of regular reflection received by the regular reflection light receiving unit and the amount of diffuse reflection received by the diffuse reflection light receiving unit,
After determining the thickness of the print sheet based on the amount of specular reflection received by the specular reflection light receiving unit for each type of the determined print sheet,
It is also possible to realize a computer system that determines the type of print sheet based on the amount of specular light received by the specular reflection light receiving unit and the amount of diffuse reflection light received by the diffuse reflection light receiving unit. .
[0021]
Further, a light emitting unit that emits light toward the printing sheet, a regular reflection light receiving unit that mainly receives a regular reflection component of light reflected by the printing sheet, and a diffuse reflection light reception that receives a diffuse reflection component of the reflected light. In a printing sheet discrimination method using a printing sheet discrimination device comprising: a regular reflection light amount received by the regular reflection light receiving unit and a diffuse reflection light amount received by the diffuse reflection light reception unit A step of determining a type of the print sheet, a step of determining a thickness of the print sheet based on the amount of specular light received by the specular reflection light receiving unit for each type of the determined print sheet, A step of discriminating the type of the print sheet based on the amount of regular reflection received by the reflection light receiving unit and the amount of diffuse reflection received by the diffuse reflection light receiving unit. A sheet of discrimination method.
According to such a determination method, it is possible to determine the type and thickness of the print sheet with a simple configuration including the light emitting unit and the two light receiving units.
[0022]
=== General Configuration of Printing Apparatus ===
First, a schematic external configuration of the printing apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a printing apparatus according to the present embodiment.
FIG. 1 shows a color printer CP as an example of a printing apparatus. The color printer CP includes a printer main body 10 as a printing apparatus main body and a roll paper unit 24 that is detachably attached to the printer main body 10.
[0023]
The color printer CP is a printer capable of outputting a color image. For example, four color inks of cyan (C), magenta (M), yellow (Y), and black (K) are used for roll paper and the like. This is an ink jet printer that forms an image by forming dots by discharging onto a substrate to be printed. In addition to the above four colors, light cyan (light cyan, LC), light magenta (light magenta, LM), and dark yellow (dark yellow, DY) may be used as the color ink.
[0024]
As shown in FIG. 1, the color printer CP has a structure for discharging a printing medium such as printing paper supplied from the back side from the front side. An operation panel 11 and a paper discharge unit 12 are provided on the front side of the printer body 10. And a paper feed unit 13 on the back. Various operation buttons 111 and a display lamp 112 are provided on the operation panel 11. The paper discharge unit 12 includes a paper discharge tray 121 that closes the paper discharge port when not in use. The paper feed unit 13 includes a paper feed holder 131 that holds cut paper (not shown) and roll paper unit holders 20 and 21 that hold the roll paper unit 24. In the paper feed holder 131, sheet members having various printable materials and surface states, such as matte paper, plain paper, glossy paper, and OHP sheets, and print sheets having various thicknesses are used as print sheets. It can be set and fed. Even in the roll paper unit 24, sheet members having various printable materials and surface states and sheet members having various thicknesses are wound around the core material and supplied from the paper feeding unit 13. .
[0025]
=== Internal Configuration of Color Printer CP ===
Next, the internal configuration of the color printer CP will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an internal configuration of the color printer CP according to the present embodiment.
[0026]
As shown in the figure, the color printer CP has a mechanism for ejecting ink and forming dots by driving print heads IH1 to IH4 mounted on the carriage 28, and the carriage 28 is moved in the axial direction of the platen 42 by a carriage motor 30. It has a mechanism for reciprocating, a mechanism for transporting the printing roll paper 32 supplied from the roll paper unit 24 by the paper feed motor 31, and a control circuit 50.
[0027]
The mechanism for reciprocating the carriage 28 in the axial direction of the platen 42 is installed in parallel with the axis of the platen 42 and is driven endlessly between the slide shaft 44 slidably holding the carriage 28 and the carriage motor 30. A pulley 46 and the like for stretching the belt 45 are included.
[0028]
A mechanism for transporting the printing roll paper 32 supplied from the roll paper unit 24 includes a platen 42, a paper feed motor 31 that rotates the platen 42, a paper feed auxiliary roller (not shown), and rotation of the paper feed motor 31. 42 and a gear mechanism 48 for transmitting to the paper feed auxiliary roller, and an encoder 47 for detecting the rotation angle of the platen 42. Further, a contact 101 is provided on the printer main body 10 so as to face the contact 201 provided on the roll paper unit holder 20.
[0029]
When a print command signal is input from the operation panel 11 of the printer or a connected personal computer, the control circuit 50 appropriately controls the movement of the paper feed motor 31, the carriage motor 30, and the print heads IH1 to IH4. The roll paper 32 for printing of the roll paper unit 24 held by the roll paper unit holders 20 and 21 of the color printer CP is set so as to be sandwiched between the platen 42 and the paper feed auxiliary roller, and the rotation angle of the platen 42 is set. In response, a predetermined amount is sent.
[0030]
The carriage 28 is fixed with print heads IH1 to IH4 having a large number of nozzles and a cartridge mounting portion 18 provided integrally with the print heads IH1 to IH4. The ink cartridge INC1 and the ink cartridge are attached to the cartridge mounting portion 18. INC2 is attached. The ink cartridge INC2 contains black (K) ink, and the ink cartridge INC1 contains other inks, that is, three color inks of cyan (C), magenta (M), and yellow (Y). As described above, light cyan (LC), light magenta (LM), and dark yellow (DY) ink can also be accommodated. Further, on the side portion of the carriage 28 in the main scanning direction, a print sheet discriminating device is configured, and a reflection type optical sensor 29 described later is mounted.
[0031]
=== Internal Structure of Control Circuit 50 ===
Next, the internal configuration of the control circuit 50 of the color printer CP will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an internal configuration of the control circuit 50 of the color printer CP according to the present embodiment.
[0032]
As shown in FIG. 3, a control circuit 50 includes a buffer memory 51 that receives a signal supplied from a computer 90, an image buffer 52 that stores print data, and a system that controls the operation of the entire color printer CP. A controller 54, a main memory 56, and an EEPROM 58 are provided. The system controller 54 further includes a main scanning driving circuit 61 for driving the carriage motor 30, a sub-scanning driving circuit 62 for driving the paper feed motor 31, a head driving circuit 63 for driving the print heads IH1 to IH4, and a reflection. A reflection type optical sensor control circuit 65 for controlling the light emitting unit 38, the regular reflection light receiving unit 40, and the diffuse reflection light receiving unit 41 of the mold optical sensor 29 is connected. The reflection type optical sensor control circuit 65 includes an electric signal measurement unit 66 for measuring an electric signal converted from the reflected light received by the regular reflection light receiving unit 40 and the diffuse reflection light receiving unit 41. Further, the reflection type optical sensor control circuit 65 includes a light emission control unit 64 that can control the intensity of light emitted from the light emitting unit 38 based on the amount of light received by the regular reflection light receiving unit 40.
[0033]
The print data transferred from the computer 90 is temporarily stored in the buffer memory 51. In the color printer CP, the system controller 54 reads necessary information from the print data from the buffer memory 51, and based on this information, the main controller 54, the sub-scan driver 62, and the head driver 63 are instructed. Send a control signal.
[0034]
The image buffer 52 stores print data of a plurality of color components received by the buffer memory 51. The head drive circuit 63 reads the print data of each color component from the image buffer 52 in accordance with a control signal from the system controller 54, and drives the nozzle array of each color provided in the print heads IH1 to IH4 accordingly.
[0035]
=== Configuration Example of Reflective Optical Sensor ===
FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram for explaining an example of the reflective optical sensor 29. The reflective optical sensor 29 is attached to the carriage 28, and includes a light emitting unit 38 made of, for example, a light emitting diode, and a regular reflection light receiving unit 40 and a diffuse reflection light receiving unit 41 made of, for example, a phototransistor.
[0036]
The light emitted from the light emitting unit 38 is set to emit light at a predetermined angle with respect to, for example, the printing paper P as a printing sheet, and the regular reflection light receiving unit 40 is irradiated to the printing paper P. It is disposed at a position where the regular reflection component of the reflected light is mainly incident. Here, when a thick glossy paper is set as the printing paper P, the specular reflection component is set on the reflection light path so as to enter the specular reflection light receiving unit 40. The diffuse reflection light receiving unit 41 is disposed vertically above the intermediate position between the light emitting unit 38 and the regular reflection light receiving unit 40, that is, the irradiation position of the printing paper P. The light emitting unit 38 and the regular reflection light receiving unit 40 and the diffuse reflection light receiving unit 41 are arranged side by side in the sub-scanning direction. The incident light received by the regular reflection light receiving unit 40 and the diffuse reflection light receiving unit 41 is converted into an electric signal, and the magnitude of the electric signal is obtained as an output value of the light receiving sensor corresponding to the amount of the received reflected light. Is measured.
[0037]
In the above description, as shown in the figure, the light emitting unit 38, the specular reflection light receiving unit 40, and the diffuse reflection light receiving unit 41 are integrated into the reflection type optical sensor 29. Each device may be configured as a separate device such as a device.
[0038]
In the above, in order to obtain the amount of reflected light received, the magnitude of the electrical signal is measured after converting the reflected light into an electrical signal. However, the present invention is not limited to this. It is only necessary that the output value of the light receiving sensor corresponding to the amount of reflected light can be measured.
[0039]
==== Principle of Discrimination by Reflective Optical Sensor ===
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a reflection state of light emitted from the light emitting unit 38 of the reflective optical sensor 29.
[0040]
FIG. 5A shows a case where a mat-type printing sheet having a rough surface such as matte paper or plain paper is irradiated with light. Light with high directivity emitted from the light emitting unit 38 diffuses when irradiated to mat paper or the like, and the amount of reflected light incident on the regular reflection light receiving unit 40 installed on the reflected light path is significantly larger than the irradiated light. Reduced to At this time, a considerable amount of the diffused reflected light is received by the diffuse reflection light receiving unit 41 installed vertically above the irradiation position.
[0041]
On the other hand, in the case of a glossy printing sheet having a high surface smoothness such as glossy paper or OHP sheet, as shown in FIG. 5 (b), the light emission is opposite to the case of the mat type printing sheet. Most of the light emitted from the portion 38 is specularly reflected by the print sheet and incident on the specular reflection light receiving portion 40, and a slight amount of diffused light is incident on the diffuse reflection light receiving portion 41. In particular, in the case of an OHP sheet, the diffuse reflection component is extremely small, and the amount of light incident on the diffuse reflection light receiving unit 41 is almost zero. FIG. 6 shows the output of the diffuse reflection light receiving unit 41 for four types of printing sheets, matte paper, plain paper, glossy paper, and OHP sheets. The vertical axis represents the ratio of the output of the diffuse reflection light receiving unit 41 to the output of the regular reflection light receiving unit 40, and the horizontal axis represents the distance between the reflective optical sensor 29 and the print sheet. As shown in the figure, by arranging the reflective optical sensor 29 so that the distance between the reflective optical sensor 29 and the print sheet is, for example, point L in the figure, and by setting the thresholds as A, B, and C, It is possible to discriminate four types of printing sheets.
[0042]
Since the regular reflection light receiving unit 40 of the present embodiment is installed on the reflection light path on which the regular reflection light of the thick glossy paper is incident, when the thick glossy printing sheet is set, the received light amount is When a thin glossy printing sheet is set, the amount of received light is greatly reduced because it is out of the regular reflection optical path of the printing sheet. Therefore, the thickness determination threshold value for discriminating between the thick print sheet and the thin print sheet is determined by the amount of light received by the regular reflection light receiving unit 40 and the light reflected by the thick print sheet, and the thin print sheet. The reflected light is set between the amount of received light received by the regular reflection light receiving unit 40. In the present embodiment, it is assumed that the thickness determination threshold value of the mat type printing sheet is D and the thickness determination threshold value of the glossy printing sheet is E.
[0043]
=== Determination Operation by Print Sheet Discrimination Device ===
Next, with reference to FIG. 7, a print sheet discrimination operation using the color printer CP according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a method for determining a print sheet.
[0044]
The print sheet is discriminated immediately after paper feeding in a series of printing operations by the color printer CP. When the system controller 54 of the color printer CP receives a print command signal from the computer 90 by the user's operation, the main scanning drive circuit 61 drives the carriage motor 30 to move the carriage 28 to a predetermined position, and The paper feed motor 31 is driven by the scanning drive circuit 62, the printing roll paper 32 is fed, conveyed to a predetermined position, and stopped. At this time, the carriage 28 moves to a non-printing area, that is, a position outside the upper side of the printing roll paper 32 to be fed, and the reflection type optical sensor 29 provided on the side of the carriage 28 is conveyed to the platen. It moves so as to be positioned above the printing roll paper 32 placed on the paper 42. On the other hand, the leading end of the printing roll paper 32 stops after passing through the position irradiated with light from the light emitting unit 38 of the reflective optical sensor 29, and the printing roll paper 32 is placed on the platen 42. become.
[0045]
When the printing roll paper 32 is placed on the platen 42, light is emitted from the light emitting unit 38 by the control circuit 50. The diffuse component of the light reflected by the printing roll paper 32 is received by the diffuse reflection light receiving unit 41. The control circuit 50 detects the amount of received light Q1 of the diffuse reflection light receiving unit 41 and the amount of received light Q2 of the regular reflection light receiving unit 40, and the ratio Q1 / Q2 of the received light amount and the first type discrimination threshold B shown in FIG. Are compared (S101). At this time, if the ratio Q1 / Q2 of the received light amount is larger than the type determination threshold B, it is determined as a mat-type print sheet, and the ratio Q1 / Q2 of the received light amount is more than the type determination threshold B. If it is smaller, it is determined as a glossy print sheet (S102). Further, for a print sheet determined to be a glossy print sheet, it is compared with the type determination threshold C shown in FIG. 6 (S114), and the ratio Q1 / Q2 of the amount of received light is smaller than the type determination threshold C and is extremely 0. If it is detected that the sheet is close to, it is determined as an OHP sheet (S119).
[0046]
Among print sheets that are determined to be glossy print sheets, a print sheet that has a ratio Q1 / Q2 of the received light amount greater than the type determination threshold C has a light reception amount Q2 of the regular reflection light receiving unit 40 and the thickness determination threshold E. Comparison is made (S115). As a result of the comparison, if the light reception amount Q2 is larger than the thickness determination threshold value E, it is determined as a thick glossy print sheet as described above (S117), and the light reception amount Q2 is greater than the thickness determination threshold value E. If it is smaller, it is determined as a thin glossy printing sheet (S118).
[0047]
Further, the ratio Q1 / Q2 between the received light amount Q1 of the diffuse reflection light receiving unit 41 and the received light amount Q2 of the regular reflection light receiving unit 40 is larger than the type determination threshold B, and when it is determined as a mat-type printing sheet (S102). The received light amount Q2 of the regular reflection light receiving unit 40 is compared with the thickness determination threshold D (S103). As a result of the comparison, if the received light amount Q2 is larger than the thickness determination threshold D, it is determined as a thick mat-type printed sheet, and if the received light amount Q2 is smaller than the thickness determination threshold D, it is thin. A mat-type printing sheet is determined (S104).
[0048]
If it is discriminated as a thick mat-type printing sheet, the received light quantity ratio Q1 / Q2 is compared with the second type discrimination threshold A (S105). At this time, when the ratio Q1 / Q2 of the received light amount is larger than the type determination threshold A, it is determined that the mat paper is thick (S107), and the received light amount ratio Q1 / Q from the type determination threshold A. If Q2 is smaller, it is determined as thick plain paper (S108).
[0049]
On the other hand, if it is determined that the sheet is a thin mat type printing sheet, the light emission amount of the light emitting unit 38 is adjusted (S109). This is because, in the case of a thin print sheet, the distance between the print sheet to be discriminated and the reflective optical sensor 29 is increased, so that the light quantity is reduced and the SN ratio is lowered, and the light quantity difference between mat paper and plain paper is reduced. This is to prevent ambiguity. For this reason, based on the output of the regular reflection light receiving unit 40, the light emission control unit 64 adjusts the output of the light emitting unit 38 so that a regular reflection light amount equivalent to the regular reflection light amount of the thick mat-type printing sheet can be obtained.
[0050]
After adjusting the output of the light emitting unit 38, the ratio Q1 / Q2 of the amount of received light is compared with the second type discrimination threshold A (S110). At this time, when the ratio Q1 / Q2 of the received light amount is larger than the type determination threshold A, it is determined that the sheet is thin mat paper (S112), and the received light amount ratio Q1 / Q from the type determination threshold A. If Q2 is smaller, it is determined as thin plain paper (S113).
[0051]
According to the color printer CP provided with the printing sheet discriminating apparatus of the present embodiment, mat paper, plain paper, and glossy paper are obtained by a simple configuration of the light emitting unit 38, the regular reflection light receiving unit 40, and the diffuse reflection light receiving unit 41. In addition to determining the type of OHP sheet, it is also possible to determine the thickness. Thereby, it is possible to perform printing according to the type and thickness of the print sheet, and it is possible to print a higher quality image.
[0052]
In this embodiment, the determination position of the print sheet is described as one place. However, the determination position is changed by moving the carriage 28 or transporting the printing roll paper 32, and the determination is made at a plurality of positions. It is possible to improve the discrimination accuracy.
[0053]
=== Other Embodiments ===
As described above, the printing apparatus and the like according to the present invention have been described based on one embodiment. However, the above-described embodiment is intended to facilitate understanding of the present invention and is intended to limit the present invention. is not. The present invention can be changed and improved without departing from the gist thereof, and the present invention includes the equivalents thereof.
[0054]
A printer having a printer main body according to the above-described embodiment and a printing unit detachably attached to the printer main body, a computer main body, a display device such as a CRT, an input device such as a mouse and a keyboard, a flexible drive device, and A computer system provided with a CD-ROM drive device can also be realized, and the computer system realized in this way is an overall system superior to the conventional system.
[0055]
A printer having the printer body according to the above-described embodiment and a print unit detachably attached to the printer body includes a computer body, a display device, an input device, a flexible disk drive device, and a CD-ROM drive device. A part of each function or mechanism may be provided. For example, the printer includes an image processing unit that performs image processing, a display unit that performs various displays, and a recording medium attachment / detachment unit for attaching / detaching a recording medium that records image data captured by a digital camera or the like. Also good.
[0056]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention, a printing sheet discriminating apparatus that discriminates the type and thickness of a printing sheet with a simple configuration, a printing apparatus provided with the discriminating apparatus, a computer program that realizes a function of discriminating the discriminating apparatus, and the discriminating apparatus It is possible to realize a computer system having a printing apparatus including the above and a printing sheet discrimination method.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a color printer CP according to an exemplary embodiment.
FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an internal configuration of a color printer CP according to the present embodiment.
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an internal configuration of a control circuit 50 of the color printer CP according to the present embodiment.
FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram for explaining an example of a reflective optical sensor 29;
FIG. 5 is a conceptual diagram showing a difference in reflected light depending on a print sheet.
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the difference in the amount of light received by the reflective optical sensor 29 for each type of print sheet.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a determination method by a print sheet determination apparatus.
[Explanation of symbols]
10 Printer body
11 Operation panel
111 Operation buttons
112 Indicator lamp
12 Paper discharge unit
121 Output tray
13 Paper feeder
131 Paper feed holder
18 Cartridge mounting part
20, 21 Roll paper unit holder
201 contacts
202 transceiver
24 roll paper unit
28 Carriage
29 Reflective optical sensor
30 Carriage motor
31 Paper feed motor
32 Roll paper for printing
33 Memory element
38 Light emitting part
40 Regular reflection light receiving part
41 Diffuse reflection light receiving part
42 Platen
44 Sliding shaft
45 Drive belt
46 pulley
47 Encoder
48 Gear mechanism
50 Control circuit
51 Buffer memory
52 Image buffer
54 System Controller
56 Main memory
58 EEPROM
61 Main scan drive circuit
62 Sub-scanning drive unit
63 Head drive circuit
64 Light emission controller
65 Reflective optical sensor control circuit
66 Electrical signal measurement unit
CP color printer
INC1, INC2 ink cartridge
IH1, IH2, IH3, IH4 print head

Claims (13)

A light emitting unit that emits light toward the print sheet; a specular reflection light receiving unit that mainly receives a regular reflection component of light reflected by the print sheet; and a diffuse reflection light reception unit that receives a diffuse reflection component of the reflected light; In a printing sheet discriminating apparatus comprising:
The types of print sheets are roughly classified based on the regular reflection light quantity received by the regular reflection light receiving unit and the diffuse reflection light quantity received by the diffuse reflection light reception unit, and based on the regular reflection light quantity and the diffuse reflection light quantity. When the type of the print sheet is specified by broad classification, the type of the print sheet is determined as the specific print sheet,
When the type of the print sheet is not specified based on the regular reflection light amount and the diffuse reflection light amount, the regular reflection light amount received by the regular reflection light receiving unit is determined for each type of the print sheet. A print sheet thickness is determined based on the print sheet thickness, and the print sheet type is determined by determining the print sheet thickness based on the specular reflection light amount. ,
When the type of the printing sheet is not specified by the determination of the thickness of the printing sheet, after determining the thickness of the printing sheet, the amount of specular reflection received by the specular reflection light receiving unit and the diffuse reflection light receiving unit A printing sheet discriminating apparatus, wherein the type of printing sheet is subdivided and the type of printing sheet is determined based on the amount of diffusely reflected light received. In the printing sheet discriminating apparatus according to claim 1,
The print sheet type is roughly classified, the thickness is determined, and the print sheet type is subdivided in a state where the light emitting unit and the two light receiving units are held at predetermined positions with respect to the print sheet. An apparatus for discriminating a printed sheet. In the printing sheet discriminating apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,
A printing sheet discrimination apparatus having a type discrimination threshold corresponding to the type of the print sheet, and roughly classified into a mat-type sheet, a glossy-type sheet, and an OHP sheet based on the type discrimination threshold. In the printing sheet discriminating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The said regular reflection light-receiving part is provided in the position which light-receives the regular reflection component reflected on the printing sheet of predetermined thickness, The discrimination apparatus of the printing sheet characterized by the above-mentioned. In the printing sheet discriminating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
An apparatus for discriminating a print sheet, comprising a thickness discrimination threshold corresponding to the thickness of the print sheet, and discriminating the thickness based on the thickness discrimination threshold. In the printing sheet discriminating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The printing sheet discriminating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the type of printing sheet is largely or subdivided based on a ratio between the regular reflection light amount and the diffuse reflection light amount. In the printing sheet discriminating apparatus according to any one of claims 3 to 6,
A second type determination threshold value corresponding to the type of the printing sheet, the printing sheet is judged matte sheet by roughly classified type of the print sheet, after determining the thickness, the second type identification An apparatus for discriminating a print sheet, which is subdivided into either matte paper or plain paper based on a threshold value. In the printing sheet discrimination apparatus according to claim 7,
The specular reflection light receiving unit is provided at a position for receiving the specular reflection component reflected by the printing sheet having a predetermined thickness, and is provided at a position for receiving the specular reflection component reflected by the printing sheet having the predetermined thickness. When the regular reflection light quantity of the specular reflection light receiving unit is smaller than the thickness determination threshold value, the light emission intensity of the light emitting unit is optimized before the subdivision based on the second type determination threshold value. Print sheet discrimination device. (1) A light emitting unit that emits light toward the printing sheet, a regular reflection light receiving unit that mainly receives a regular reflection component of light reflected by the printing sheet, and a diffuse reflection that receives a diffuse reflection component of the reflected light. In a printing sheet discriminating device comprising a light receiving unit,
The types of print sheets are roughly classified based on the regular reflection light quantity received by the regular reflection light receiving unit and the diffuse reflection light quantity received by the diffuse reflection light reception unit, and based on the regular reflection light quantity and the diffuse reflection light quantity. When the type of the print sheet is specified by broad classification, the type of the print sheet is determined as the specific print sheet,
When the type of the print sheet is not specified based on the regular reflection light amount and the diffuse reflection light amount, the regular reflection light amount received by the regular reflection light receiving unit is determined for each type of the print sheet. A print sheet thickness is determined based on the print sheet thickness, and the print sheet type is determined by determining the print sheet thickness based on the specular reflection light amount. ,
When the type of the printing sheet is not specified by the determination of the thickness of the printing sheet, after determining the thickness of the printing sheet, the amount of specular reflection received by the specular reflection light receiving unit and the diffuse reflection light receiving unit Based on the amount of diffusely reflected light received, the print sheet type is subdivided to determine the print sheet type,
(2) The classification of the type of the printing sheet, the determination of the thickness, and the classification of the type of the printing sheet are the states in which the light emitting unit and the two light receiving units are held at predetermined positions with respect to the printing sheet. Run with
(3) It has a type determination threshold corresponding to the type of the print sheet, and is roughly classified into one of a mat-based sheet, a glossy sheet, and an OHP sheet based on the type determination threshold.
(4) The specular reflection light receiving unit is provided at a position for receiving a specular reflection component reflected on a print sheet having a predetermined thickness,
(5) having a thickness determination threshold corresponding to the thickness of the printed sheet, and determining the thickness based on the thickness determination threshold;
(6) The type and subdivision of the type of the print sheet are determined by a ratio between the regular reflection light amount and the diffuse reflection light amount,
(7) said a second type discrimination thresholds corresponding to the type of printing sheet, the printing sheet is judged matte sheet by roughly classified type of the print sheet, after determining the thickness, second Subdivided into either matte paper or plain paper based on the type discrimination threshold
(8) The specular reflection light receiving unit is provided at a position for receiving the specular reflection component reflected on the print sheet having a predetermined thickness, and receives the specular reflection component reflected on the print sheet having the predetermined thickness. If the regular reflection light quantity of the regular reflection light receiving unit provided at the position is smaller than the thickness determination threshold value, the light emission intensity of the light emission unit should be optimized before the subdivision based on the second type determination threshold value. A printing sheet discrimination device. A light emitting unit that emits light toward the print sheet; a specular reflection light receiving unit that mainly receives a regular reflection component of light reflected by the print sheet; and a diffuse reflection light reception unit that receives a diffuse reflection component of the reflected light; In a printing apparatus having a printing sheet discriminating apparatus comprising:
The types of print sheets are roughly classified based on the regular reflection light quantity received by the regular reflection light receiving unit and the diffuse reflection light quantity received by the diffuse reflection light reception unit, and based on the regular reflection light quantity and the diffuse reflection light quantity. When the type of the print sheet is specified by broad classification, the type of the print sheet is determined as the specific print sheet,
When the type of the print sheet is not specified based on the regular reflection light amount and the diffuse reflection light amount, the regular reflection light amount received by the regular reflection light receiving unit is determined for each type of the print sheet. A print sheet thickness is determined based on the print sheet thickness, and the print sheet type is determined by determining the print sheet thickness based on the specular reflection light amount. ,
When the type of the printing sheet is not specified by the determination of the thickness of the printing sheet, after determining the thickness of the printing sheet, the amount of specular reflection received by the specular reflection light receiving unit and the diffuse reflection light receiving unit A printing apparatus, wherein the type of print sheet is determined by subdividing the type of print sheet based on the amount of diffusely reflected light received. A light emitting unit that emits light toward the print sheet; a specular reflection light receiving unit that mainly receives a regular reflection component of light reflected by the print sheet; and a diffuse reflection light reception unit that receives a diffuse reflection component of the reflected light; In the printing sheet discrimination device equipped with
Based on the specular reflection light amount received by the regular reflection light receiving unit and the diffuse reflection light amount received by the diffuse reflection light receiving unit, the types of print sheets are roughly classified , and based on the regular reflection light amount and the diffuse reflection light amount. When the type of the print sheet is specified by broad classification, a function for determining the type of the print sheet as the specific print sheet;
When the type of the print sheet is not specified based on the regular reflection light amount and the diffuse reflection light amount, the regular reflection light amount received by the regular reflection light receiving unit is determined for each type of the print sheet. The print sheet thickness is determined based on the print sheet thickness, and the print sheet type is determined by determining the print sheet thickness based on the specular reflection light amount, and the print sheet type is determined as the specific print sheet. Function and
When the type of the printing sheet is not specified by the determination of the thickness of the printing sheet, after the thickness of the printing sheet is determined, the regular reflection light amount received by the regular reflection light receiving unit and the diffuse reflection light receiving unit A computer program for realizing a function of determining the type of a print sheet by subdividing the type of the print sheet on the basis of the amount of diffusely reflected light received at. A computer main body, a light emitting unit that is connected to the computer main body and emits light toward a print sheet, a specular reflection light receiving unit that mainly receives a specular reflection component of light reflected by the print sheet, and the reflected light In a computer system comprising a printing apparatus having a printing sheet discriminating device comprising a diffuse reflection light receiving part for receiving a diffuse reflection component of
The types of print sheets are roughly classified based on the regular reflection light quantity received by the regular reflection light receiving unit and the diffuse reflection light quantity received by the diffuse reflection light reception unit, and based on the regular reflection light quantity and the diffuse reflection light quantity. When the type of the print sheet is specified by broad classification, the type of the print sheet is determined as the specific print sheet,
When the type of the print sheet is not specified based on the regular reflection light amount and the diffuse reflection light amount, the regular reflection light amount received by the regular reflection light receiving unit is determined for each type of the print sheet. A print sheet thickness is determined based on the print sheet thickness, and the print sheet type is determined by determining the print sheet thickness based on the specular reflection light amount. ,
When the type of the printing sheet is not specified by the determination of the thickness of the printing sheet, after determining the thickness of the printing sheet, the amount of specular reflection received by the specular reflection light receiving unit and the diffuse reflection light receiving unit A computer system characterized in that, based on the amount of diffusely reflected light received, the type of print sheet is subdivided to determine the type of print sheet . A light emitting unit that emits light toward the print sheet; a specular reflection light receiving unit that mainly receives a regular reflection component of light reflected by the print sheet; and a diffuse reflection light reception unit that receives a diffuse reflection component of the reflected light; In a printing sheet discrimination method using a printing sheet discrimination device comprising:
The types of print sheets are roughly classified based on the regular reflection light quantity received by the regular reflection light receiving unit and the diffuse reflection light quantity received by the diffuse reflection light reception unit, and based on the regular reflection light quantity and the diffuse reflection light quantity. When the type of the print sheet is specified by roughly classification, a step of determining the type of the print sheet as the specific print sheet;
When the type of the print sheet is not specified based on the regular reflection light amount and the diffuse reflection light amount, the regular reflection light amount received by the regular reflection light receiving unit is determined for each type of the print sheet. A print sheet thickness is determined based on the print sheet thickness, and when the print sheet type is specified by determining the print sheet thickness based on the specular reflection light amount, the print sheet type is determined as the specific print sheet. Steps,
When the type of the printing sheet is not specified by the determination of the thickness of the printing sheet, after determining the thickness of the printing sheet, the amount of specular reflection received by the specular reflection light receiving unit and the diffuse reflection light receiving unit Determining the type of the print sheet by subdividing the type of the print sheet based on the amount of diffusely reflected light received in step,
A method of discriminating a printed sheet, comprising:

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