# US 12,191,786 B2 · Motor control apparatus and image forming apparatus having plurality of activation modes > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,191,786 B2 - Document ID: US12191786B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 18/146,650 - Filed: 2022-12-27 - Published: 2023-07-27 - Granted: 2025-01-07 - Earliest claimed: 2022-01-26 - Assignees: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha - Applicants: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha - Inventors: Masatoshi Itoh - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12191786B2 ## CPC - G03G 15/5004: {Power supply control, e.g. power-saving mode, automatic power turn-off} - H02P 23/20: Controlling the acceleration or deceleration - G03G 15/2039: {with means for controlling the fixing temperature} - G03G 15/80: {Details relating to power supplies, circuits boards, electrical connections} - H02P 23/0027: {using different modes of control depending on a parameter, e.g. the speed} - G03G 15/1615: {relating to the driving mechanism for the intermediate support, e.g. gears, couplings, belt tensioning} - G03G 15/5008: {Driving control for rotary photosensitive medium, e.g. speed control, stop position control} - G03G 15/6529: {Transporting (G03G15/6555 takes precedence)} - G03G: ELECTROGRAPHY; ELECTROPHOTOGRAPHY; MAGNETOGRAPHY - H02P: CONTROL OR REGULATION OF ELECTRIC MOTORS, ELECTRIC GENERATORS OR DYNAMO-ELECTRIC CONVERTERS; CONTROLLING TRANSFORMERS, REACTORS OR CHOKE COILS ## Abstract A motor control apparatus includes: a motor configured to drive a load; and a control unit configured to control the motor. The control unit is configured to, when activating the motor, determine whether a predetermined condition for determining that fluctuation in magnitude of the load occurs is satisfied, activate the motor in a first mode when the predetermined condition is satisfied, and activate the motor in a second mode when the predetermined condition is not satisfied, and the first mode is a mode in which an increase in rotation speed of the motor is gentler than an increase in rotation speed of the motor in the second mode. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A motor control apparatus comprising: a motor configured to drive a load; and a control unit configured to control the motor, wherein the control unit is configured to, when activating the motor, determine whether a predetermined condition for determining that fluctuation in magnitude of the load occurs is satisfied, activate the motor in a first mode when the predetermined condition is satisfied, and activate the motor in a second mode when the predetermined condition is not satisfied, and the first mode is a mode in which an increase in rotation speed of the motor is gentler than an increase in rotation speed of the motor in the second mode. ### Claim 2 A motor control apparatus comprising: a motor configured to drive a load; and a control unit configured to control the motor, the motor control apparatus configured to activate the motor in a first mode or a second mode, wherein load torque of the motor in the second mode is greater than load torque of the motor in the first mode, and the first mode is a mode in which an increase in rotation speed of the motor is gentler than an increase in rotation speed of the motor in the second mode. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The motor control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit is further configured such that, in a case where the motor is activated in the first mode, the motor is accelerated with first acceleration by first control until a rotation speed of the motor reaches a predetermined value, and when the rotation speed of the motor becomes the predetermined value, control of the motor is switched from the first control to second control after acceleration of the motor is stopped or after the acceleration of the motor is changed to second acceleration lower than the first acceleration. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The motor control apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the control unit is further configured to, after switching the control of the motor from the first control to the second control, re-accelerate the motor until the rotation speed of the motor reaches a target value. ### Claim 5 (depends on 3) The motor control apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the second control is applicable to a case where the rotation speed of the motor is equal to or higher than a threshold, and the predetermined value is equal to or higher than the threshold. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The motor control apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the control unit is further configured such that, in a case where the motor is activated in the second mode, the motor is accelerated by the first control with third acceleration higher than the first acceleration, and when the rotation speed of the motor becomes equal to or higher than the threshold, the control of the motor is switched from the first control to the second control. ### Claim 7 (depends on 3) The motor control apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the second control is control based on an induced voltage generated in the motor, and the first control is control not based on an induced voltage generated in the motor. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The motor control apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the first control is forced commutation control. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The motor control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined condition, when the motor is activated, is satisfied in a case where a stop time of the motor until the activation of the motor is greater than a predetermined time. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The motor control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined condition is satisfied in a case of an initial activation of the motor after the load of the motor is replaced. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The motor control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the motor is a sensorless motor not including a sensor that detects a rotation position of a rotor. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The motor control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the load includes at least one of a photoreceptor of an image forming apparatus, a developing roller that forms a toner image on the photoreceptor by developing an electrostatic latent image formed on the photoreceptor, an intermediate transfer belt to which the toner image formed on the photoreceptor is transferred, a roller that fixes, to a sheet, the toner image transferred from the intermediate transfer belt to the sheet, and a roller that conveys the sheet. ### Claim 13 An image forming apparatus comprising: a rotation member configured to convey a sheet along a conveyance path; an image forming unit configured to form an image on the sheet conveyed through the conveyance path; a motor configured to drive the rotation member or the image forming unit; and a control unit configured to, when activating the motor, determine whether a predetermined condition for determining that fluctuation in magnitude of a load of the motor occurs is satisfied, activate the motor in a first mode when the predetermined condition is satisfied, and activate the motor in a second mode when the predetermined condition is not satisfied, wherein the first mode is a mode in which an increase in rotation speed of the motor is gentler than an increase in rotation speed of the motor in the second mode. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The image forming apparatus according to claim 13 further comprising: a fixing unit configured to fix the image on the sheet on which the image is formed by the image forming unit, wherein the motor drives the image forming unit, and the control unit is further configured to, upon receiving a print job, start temperature control of the fixing unit, activate the motor in the second mode at a first timing after starting the temperature control in a case where the predetermined condition is not satisfied when the print job is received, and activate the motor in the first mode at a second timing before the first timing in a case where the predetermined condition is satisfied when the print job is received. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The image forming apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the second timing is a timing to start the temperature control of the fixing unit. ### Claim 16 (depends on 14) The image forming apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the control unit, when receiving the print job, determines a state of the fixing unit, and activates the motor in the first mode at the second timing in a case where the predetermined condition is satisfied and a state of the fixing unit is a first state. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The image forming apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the control unit is further configured to, when receiving the print job, activate the motor in the first mode at a third timing later than the second timing in a case where the predetermined condition is satisfied and the fixing unit is in a second state different from the first state. ### Claim 18 (depends on 17) The image forming apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the fixing unit in the first state is in a state of being lower in temperature than the fixing unit in the second state. ### Claim 19 (depends on 14) The image forming apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the first timing is a timing at which temperature of the fixing unit becomes a predetermined temperature.