Title: Memory chip, process cartridge and image forming apparatus
Abstract: An electronic device support member is fitted into and pressingly attached to a cover so that a face on which an electronic device and an antenna are disposed is opposed to the rear face of the cover. A base has a fitting receive portion into which a fitting portion of the cover is to be fitted, on the peripheral edge of the surface opposed to the cover. Two elastic claws are disposed on the peripheral edge of the rear face. A second housing has a recess portion into which a memory chip is to be fitted and secured, in the surface. The recess portion is formed into a circular concave shape, and has two engagement portions for respectively receiving the elastic claws of the memory chip.
Patent Number: 6,898,380 Issued on 05/24/2005 to Takiguchi
| Inventors:
|
Takiguchi; Toshio (Niigata, JP)
|
| Assignee:
|
Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd. (Tokyo, JP)
|
| Appl. No.:
|
628474 |
| Filed:
|
July 29, 2003 |
Foreign Application Priority Data
| Dec 24, 2002[JP] | P2002-371562 |
| Current U.S. Class: |
399/12; 399/111 |
| Intern'l Class: |
G03G 015/00 |
| Field of Search: |
399/12,13,25,27,107,111,119
|
References Cited [Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
| 6697578 | Feb., 2004 | Watanabe et al.
| |
| Foreign Patent Documents |
| 9-213407 | Aug., 1997 | JP.
| |
| 2000/-187415 | Jul., 2000 | JP.
| |
Primary Examiner: Ngo; Hoang
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP
Claims
1. A memory chip which is to be attached to a unit, said memory chip comprising:
an electronic device having a memory function;
a cover which covers said electronic device; and
a securing section which substantially disables said cover to be detached from
said unit from an outside of said unit, wherein said securing section has an elastic
claw, and said elastic claw is engaged with said unit to perform securement.
2. A memory chip according to claim 1, wherein said securing section is easily
securable to and substantially undetachable from a surface of a process cartridge
which is detachably attached to an image forming apparatus main unit, and which
has at least an image carrier.
3. A memory chip according to claim 1, wherein said electronic device has a communication function.
4. A memory chip according to claim 1, wherein a base is secured to an inner
side of said cover, and said elastic claw is disposed on said base.
5. A memory chip according to claim 1, wherein said cover is made of a same material
as a material of said unit.
6. A memory chip according to claim 1, wherein said cover is colored in a same
color as a color of said unit.
7. A memory chip according to claim 1, wherein said unit has a recess portion,
and said cover is fitted into said recess portion to be secured in a depressed manner.
8. A memory chip according to claim 7, wherein when said cover is secured to
said recess portion in a depressed manner, a surface of said cover is at a same
level as a surface of another recess portion of said unit adjacent to said recess portion.
9. A memory chip according to claim 1, wherein said electronic device is supported
by an electronic device support member, and said electronic device support member
is secured to an inner side of said cover.
10. A memory chip according to claim 1, wherein said electronic device support
member has an antenna.
11. A memory chip according to claim 1, wherein said unit is a process cartridge
having at least an image carrier.
12. A process cartridge which is detachably attached to an image forming apparatus
main unit, and which has at least an image carrier, said process cartridge comprising:
a process cartridge main unit; and
a memory chip attached to said process cartridge main unit,
wherein said memory chip comprises: an electronic device having a memory function;
a cover which covers said electronic device; and a securing section which substantially
disables said cover from said process cartridge main unit to be detached from an
outside of said process cartridge, wherein said securing section has an elastic
claw, and said elastic claw is engaged with said process cartridge main unit to
perform securement.
13. An image forming apparatus comprising:
an image forming apparatus main unit; and
a process cartridge which is detachably attached to said image forming apparatus
main unit, and which has at least an image carrier,
wherein said process cartridge comprises a memory chip including an electronic
device having a memory function, a cover which covers said electronic device, and
a securing section which substantially disables said cover to be detached from
said process cartridge from an outside of said process cartridge, wherein said
securing section has an elastic claw, and said elastic claw is engaged with said
process cartridge to perform securement.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a memory chip which is to be attached to a unit,
a process cartridge having such a memory chip, and an image forming apparatus of
the electrophotographic system or the like having such a cartridge.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is known that an electronic device such as a memory in which an IC socket
is
integrated with a connector is mounted on a process cartridge that is to be detachably
attached to, for example, a main unit of an image forming apparatus, in order to
supply information characteristic of the process cartridge to the image forming
apparatus main unit, and to store information supplied from the image forming apparatus
main unit as disclosed in JP-A-9-213407. In the case where an electronic device
such as a memory is to be mounted on a process cartridge, for example, the electronic
device is sometimes modularized so as to be easily assembled. A technique is known
in which a radio communication device is attached to an outer face of a process
cartridge or the like that is to be detachably attached to an image forming apparatus
main unit, and information is transmitted from the cartridge to the image forming
apparatus main unit by means of radio communication as disclosed in JP-A-2000-187415.
An electronic device such as a memory which is mounted on a process cartridge
stores, for example, history information characteristic to the process cartridge.
When the electronic device is configured so as to be easily detached from the cartridge
from the outside, the information stored therein often becomes incorrect as a result
of rewriting of the stored contents or replacement of the electronic device. When
the electronic device is erroneously detached from the process cartridge, the process
cartridge cannot be sometimes further used.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention has been conducted in view of the circumstances. It is an object
of the invention to provide a memory chip which is attachable to and detachable
from an apparatus main unit, and which can store correct information, a process
cartridge having such a memory chip, and an image forming apparatus having such
a process cartridge.
In order to attain the object, a first feature of the invention is in a memory
chip which is to be attached to a unit, wherein the memory chip comprises: an electronic
device having a memory function; a cover which covers the electronic device; and
a securing section which substantially disables the cover to be detached from the
unit from an outside of the unit. Therefore, the memory chip can be prevented from
being detached from the unit from the outside, or from erroneously escaping from
the unit. As a result, correct information such as the history of the apparatus
main unit can be stored.
Preferably, the electronic device has a communication function. Preferably,
the securing section has an elastic claw, and the elastic claw is engaged with
the unit to perform securement. Preferably, a base is secured to an inner side
of the cover, and the elastic claw is disposed on the base. Preferably, the cover
is made of a same material as a material of the unit, and colored in a same color
as a color of the unit. Preferably, the unit has a recess portion, and the cover
is fitted into the recess portion to be secured in a depressed manner. Preferably,
the electronic device is supported by an electronic device support member, and
the electronic device support member is secured to an inner side of the cover.
Preferably, the electronic device support member has an antenna. Preferably, the
unit is a process cartridge having at least an image carrier.
A second feature of the invention is in a process cartridge which is detachably
attached to an image forming apparatus main unit, and which has at least an image
carrier, wherein the process cartridge has a process cartridge main unit, and a
memory chip attached to the process cartridge main unit, and the memory chip comprises:
an electronic device having a memory function; a cover which covers the electronic
device; and a securing section which substantially disables the cover to be detached
from the process cartridge main unit from an outside of the process cartridge.
A third feature of the invention is in an image forming apparatus wherein the
apparatus
has: an image forming apparatus main unit; and a process cartridge which is detachably
attached to the image forming apparatus main unit, and which has at least an image
carrier, and the process cartridge comprises a memory chip, the memory chip including:
an electronic device having a memory function; a cover which covers the electronic
device; and a securing section which substantially disables the cover to be detached
from the process cartridge from an outside of the process cartridge.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a view exemplarily showing the configuration of an image forming apparatus
which is an embodiment of the invention.
FIG. 2 is a view schematically showing a state where a process cartridge of
the embodiment of the invention is attached to a main unit of the image forming apparatus.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the process cartridge of the embodiment
of the invention.
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the circuit configuration of a radio communication
section in the image forming apparatus of the embodiment of the invention.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the circuit configuration of a memory chip of the
embodiment of the invention.
FIG. 6A is a front view showing an appearance of the memory chip of the embodiment
of the invention, and FIG. 6B is a side view showing an appearance of the memory chip.
FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of the memory chip of the embodiment
of the invention.
FIG. 8 is a section view of the memory chip of the embodiment of the invention.
FIG. 9 is an enlarged view showing a state where the memory chip of the embodiment
of the invention is secured to a second housing.
FIG. 10 is an enlarged section view showing the state of FIG. 9.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Now, an embodiment of the invention will be described with reference to the
accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 exemplarily shows the configuration of an image forming apparatus
1
which is an embodiment of the invention. The image forming apparatus
1 includes
an image forming apparatus main unit
2, a control device
3, and a
process cartridge
4.
The process cartridge
4 which will be described later can be attached
to and detached from the image forming apparatus main unit
2 which operates
under the control of the control device
3.
The control device
3 is configured by a control device body
30,
a communication device
32, a record device
34, a display/input device
(UI)
36, and a radio communication section
38. The control device
body
30 includes a memory
300 including a RAM and a writable nonvolatile
memory (both are not shown), and a CPU
302, controls various components
of the image forming apparatus
1, and performs processes such as image formation.
The record device
34 can perform operations of inputting and outputting
programs and data to and from the external of the image forming apparatus
1
via, for example, a recording medium
340. The radio communication section
38 transmits and receives a radio signal to and from a memory chip
42
(see FIGS. 5 to
8) which will be described later.
The process cartridge
4 has a main unit
40 and the memory chip
42, and operates under the control of the control device
3. The memory
chip
42 stores information characteristic of the main unit
40 and
the like, transmits and receives a radio signal to and from the radio communication
section
38, and, when the information is updated, stores the updated information.
The memory chip
42 may be connected so as to directly communicate information
which is produced in the main unit
40, such as that indicative of the remaining
quantity of toner to the main unit
40, or alternatively configured so as
to receive the information via the control device body
30 and the radio
communication section
38.
The main unit
40 corresponds to the unit in the invention, and the image
forming apparatus main unit
2 to the image forming apparatus main unit in
the invention.
FIG. 2 schematically shows a state where the process cartridge
4 is attached
to the image forming apparatus main unit
2. As shown in FIG. 2, the image
forming apparatus main unit
2 includes a sheet supply section
200,
sheet supply rollers
202,
204, registration rollers
206, a
transfer roller
208, fixing rollers
210, and discharging rollers
212.
The process cartridge
4 is placed between the sheet supply section
200
which is disposed in a lower part of the image forming apparatus main unit
2,
and the discharging rollers
212 which is disposed in an upper part of the
main unit. As described above, the process cartridge
4 has the main unit
40 and the memory chip
42. As shown in FIG. 3, the main unit
40
includes a first housing
46 and a second housing
48. The first and
second housings
46 and
48 are secured to each other by securing pins
480. The first housing
46 includes a charging section
50 (FIG.
2), an image carrier
52 such as a photoconductive drum, and a cleaning
blade (not shown). The second housing
48 includes a toner container
54,
a developing roller, and a toner regulation blade (both are not shown), and has
a recess portion
482 in the surface. The recess portion includes a depression
into which the memory chip
42 (see FIG. 9) is to be fitted and secured,
and which is formed into, for example, a circular concave shape. The recess portion
482 is disposed in the surface of the second housing
48 in order
to allow the memory chip
42 to transmit and receive a radio signal to and
from the radio communication section
38, and also to facilitate the work
of securing the memory chip
42.
In practice, the components of the control device
3 are distributedly
placed
in the inside or the surface of the image forming apparatus main unit
2.
For example, the control device body
30 (FIGS. 1 and 2) is placed in the
inside of the image forming apparatus main unit
2, and the display/input
device
36 on the surface of the image forming apparatus main unit
2.
Next, the function of the embodiment will be described.
In the image forming apparatus
1, a sheet housed in the sheet supply section
200 is transported toward the registration rollers
206 by the sheet
supply rollers
202,
204, and then toward the process cartridge
4
by the registration rollers
206. In the process cartridge
4, the
image carrier
52 is charged by the charging section
50, and the image
carrier
52 is irradiated with a laser beam in a pattern which corresponds
to an image signal for performing an image forming process (such as printing) by
a laser unit (not shown) on the basis of a control by the control device body
30.
A toner housed in the toner container
54 adheres to an electrostatic pattern
which is formed on the image carrier
52 by the laser beam. The toner is
then transferred to the sheet by the transfer roller
208. Thereafter, the
transferred toner is thermally fixed to the sheet by the fixing rollers
210.
The sheet is then discharged by the discharging rollers
212 to the outside
of the image forming apparatus
1. The control device
3 transmits
updated information such as the number of printed sheets, to the memory chip
42
via the radio communication section
38. The memory chip
42 stores
the updated information.
Next, with respect to the radio communication section
38 and the memory
chip
42, their circuit configurations and communication between them will
be described.
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the circuit configuration of the radio communication
section
38.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the circuit configuration of the memory chip
42.
As shown in FIG. 4, the radio communication section
38 is configured by
a transmission/reception control section
380, a modulation circuit
382,
a transmission circuit
386, a reception circuit
388, a demodulation
circuit
384, and an antenna
390. In the radio communication section
38, the transmission/reception control section
380 controls the operations
of the components of the radio communication section
38. The transmission/reception
control section
380 supplies data sent from the control device body
30,
to the modulation circuit
382. The transmission/reception control section
380 supplies data which are received by the reception circuit
388
and demodulated by the demodulation circuit
384, to the control device body
30. The modulation circuit
382 demodulates the data supplied from
the transmission/reception control section
380, and supplies the modulated
data to the transmission circuit
386. The transmission circuit
386
outputs radio signals including data to be stored into the memory chip
42
and a clock signal, to the memory chip
42 via the antenna
390.
The reception circuit
388 receives via the antenna
390 the signal
transmitted from the memory chip
42, and supplies the received signal to
the demodulation circuit
384. Based on changes of the signal supplied from
the reception circuit
388, the demodulation circuit
384 demodulates
the data transmitted from the memory chip
42, and supplies the demodulated
data to the transmission/reception control section
380.
As shown in FIG. 5, the memory chip
42 is configured by a memory
420,
a transmission logic circuit
422, a reception logic circuit
424,
a transmission circuit
426, a reception circuit
428, a clock regeneration
circuit
430, a power supply section
432, and an antenna
434.
As described later with reference to FIGS. 6 to
8, the circuits constituting
the memory chip
42 are disposed on an electronic device support member
442,
and the electronic device support member
442 is sealed by a cover
436
and a base
438.
When a radio signal is transmitted from the radio communication section
38
to the memory chip
42, the reception circuit
428, the clock regeneration
circuit
430, and the power supply section
432 receive the radio signal
via the antenna
434. In the memory chip
42, when the radio signal
is received, the power supply section
432 rectifies a current which is generated
by electromagnetic induction due to the radio signal, and supplies to the components
of the memory chip
42, an electric power required for the components to
operate. In the case where the memory chip
42 requires a voltage which is
higher than that generated by the power supply section
432, for example,
the memory chip
42 may be configured so as to receive electric power from
the main unit
40. The electric power may be supplied from the main unit
40 to the memory chip
42 through wires. Alternatively, a coil for
power supply and the like may be disposed in the memory chip
42, and electric
power may be supplied in a non-contact manner from an AC current supplied to the
main unit
40.
When the radio signal is received, the clock regeneration circuit
430
regenerates the clock signal, and supplies the regenerated clock signal to the
circuits constituting the memory chip
42. When the radio signal is received,
the reception circuit
428 supplies signals indicative of data contained
in the radio signal, to the reception logic circuit
424 in synchronization
with the clock signal sent from the clock regeneration circuit
430. The
reception logic circuit
424 demodulates the signal of data and the like
in synchronization with the clock signal sent from the clock regeneration circuit
430, and supplies the demodulated signal to the memory
420.
The memory
420 includes, for example, a writable nonvolatile memory (not
shown). When the signal supplied from the reception logic circuit
424 indicates
writing of data, the data is written (stored) into the memory
420 in synchronization
with the clock signal sent from the clock regeneration circuit
430, and,
when the signal indicates reading of data, data stored in the memory
420
is supplied to the transmission logic circuit
422. The nonvolatile memory
included in the memory
420 may be, for example, an EEPROM or a FeRAM (ferroelectric memory).
The transmission logic circuit
422 modulates the data supplied from the
memory
420 in synchronization with the clock signal sent from the clock
regeneration circuit
430, and supplies the modulated data to the transmission
circuit
426. The transmission circuit
426 transmits the signal which
is supplied from the transmission logic circuit
422 in synchronization with
the clock signal sent from the clock regeneration circuit
430, in the form
of a radio signal to the radio communication section
38 via the antenna
434.
The signal which is to be transmitted and received in the form of a radio signal
may be first encrypted, converted to a radio signal, and then transmitted and received.
For example, an authorized worker is allowed to rewrite the contents of the memory
420 via an apparatus other than the control device body
30 by using
an encrypted radio signal.
Next, the shape and configuration of the memory chip
42 will be described.
FIGS. 6 to
8 show the details of the memory chip
42.
The memory chip
42 is configured by the cover
436, the base
438,
and the electronic device support member
442 which have, for example, a
circular shape. The cover
436 is formed into a circular shape by using,
for example, an ABS resin. A fitting portion
444 which is to be fitted into
the base
438 is disposed on the peripheral edge of the rear face of the
cover. The rear face of the cover
436 is recessed so that the electronic
device support member
442 can be fitted thereinto, and provided with a projection
446 having, for example, a circumferential shape in order to define the
position of the electronic device support member
442. The projection
446
is preferably set to have a height at which, even when the electronic device support
member
442 is pressed against the cover
436, no pressure is applied
to an electronic device
448 that will be described later.
The electronic device support member
442 includes the electronic device
448 which houses the circuits constituting the memory chip
42, and
the antenna
434 such as an antenna coil. The antenna
434 may be formed
on the electronic device support member
442 so as to match the shape of
the antenna
434, as in the case where the antenna is a planar antenna. The
electronic device
448 is requested to be housed in the memory chip
42
while being placed on the electronic device support member
442, and may
have a different configuration depending on the kind and shape of the electronic
device such as the case where the device includes a CPU.
The base
438 has a fitting receive portion
450 into which the fitting
portion
444 of the cover
436 is to be fitted, on the peripheral edge
of the surface opposed to the cover
436. For example, two elastic claws
452 are disposed on the peripheral edge of the rear face so as to be outward
directed. The elastic claws
452 are formed so as to protrude more outward
than the outer periphery of the cover
436.
The electronic device support member
442 is fitted into and pressingly
attached to the cover
436 so that the face on which the electronic device
448 and the antenna
434 are disposed is opposed to the rear face
of the cover
436. Alternatively, the electronic device support member
442
may be secured by bonding the antenna
434 to the rear face of the cover
436 by an adhesive agent. The fitting portion
444 of the cover
436
is fitted into the fitting receive portion
450 of the base
438, thereby
sealing the electronic device support member
442 which is pressingly attached
to the rear face of the cover
436.
Next, the securement of the memory chip
42 will be described in detail.
FIG. 9 is an enlarged view showing a state where the memory chip
42 is
secured to the second housing
48 (see FIG.
3).
FIG. 10 is an enlarged section view showing the state where the memory chip
42 is secured.
As described above, the recess portion
482 is formed into a circular concave
shape, and has, for example, two engagement portions
484 for respectively
receiving the two elastic claws
452 of the memory chip
42. Each of
the engagement portions
484 is configured by, for example, a hole which
is to be engaged with the corresponding one of the elastic claws
452. Although
the elastic claws
452 protrude more outward than the outer periphery of
the cover
436, the memory chip
42 is fittingly inserted into the
recess portion
482 because the elastic claws
452 have elasticity.
When the memory chip
42 is fittingly inserted into the recess portion
482
and the elastic claws
452 are inserted into the engagement portions
484,
the elastic claws are engaged with the rear face of the recess portion
482
by means of elasticity. The memory chip
42 is formed so that the height
is smaller than the depth of the depression of the recess portion
482, and
hence secured in a state where the external shape of the memory chip
42
is fitted and depressed into the recess portion
482.
Namely, the memory chip
42 can be easily secured to the second housing
48 from the outside, and the electronic device support member
442
is placed between the cover
436 and the second housing
48. Moreover,
the memory chip
42 is secured to the recess portion
482 in a depressed
manner, and hence hardly detached from the housing from the outside. The material
and strength of the elastic claws
452 are adjusted so that, when the secured
memory chip
42 is pulled out from the outside, the elastic claws are broken.
In the memory chip
42, the cover
436 and the recess portion
482
are colored in the same color and made of the same material, so that the attachment
position of the memory chip in the process cartridge
4 is inconspicuous.
Therefore, the memory chip
42 is hardly detached in an erroneous manner,
whereby the memory chip can be prevented from being erroneously detached to disable
the use the process cartridge
4. When the memory chip
42 is intentionally
detached from the housing from the outside, one of the components such as the elastic
claws
452 is broken. Therefore, replacement of the nonvolatile memory due
to detachment from the outside can be prevented from occurring, so that the memory
chip can store correct information characteristic of the process cartridge
4
and the image quality of the image forming apparatus
1 can be surely stabilized.
As described above, the first and second housings
46 and
48 are
secured to each other by the securing pins
480, and separated from each
other by removing the securing pins
480. The separated second housing
48
is configured so that the memory chip
42 can be detached from the inside
of the housing without breaking the elastic claws
452. The securing pins
480 are configured so that only an authorized worker is allowed to detach
the pins.
In this way, the elastic claws
452 enable the memory chip
42 to
be easily attached to the second housing
48, and prevent the memory chip
from being detached from the housing from the outside. In the case where the memory
chip
42 becomes unnecessary such as that where the process cartridge
4
is to be discarded, the elastic claws
452 are broken so that the memory
chip
42 can be easily detached from the housing from the outside. Since
the communication with the control device body
30 is realized by radio communication,
the memory chip
42 is attached to the surface side of the process cartridge
4, so that the memory chip can be prevented from being contaminated by a
toner or the like.
The radio communication between the memory chip
42 and the control device
body
30 in the embodiment is a mere example. For example, a hole may be
formed in the base
438, and the communication may be realized by wire communication.
The memory chip
42 may be configured so that the base
438 and the
recess portion
482 are colored in the same color and made of the same material,
the electronic device support member
442 is bonded to the rear face of the
base
438, and the cover
436 is not used.
As described above, according to the invention, a cover of a memory chip is substantially
disabled to be detached from a unit from the outside of the unit, and hence it
is possible to store correct information.
*
