Image forming apparatus, image forming system, and program
AssigneeBrother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorNaoki NISHIKAWA
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An image forming apparatus determines whether an amount of colorant remaining in a container is equal to or greater than a threshold value and controls a print unit to perform a reduced printing operation with a reduced amount of colorant if the amount of the remaining colorant is less than the threshold value is made and to perform the reduced printing operation on one side of a new non-printed sheet instead of performing the reduced printing operation on the opposite side of a one-side printed sheet existing if the amount of the remaining colorant is less than the threshold value.
Claims12
An image forming apparatus comprising:
- a print unit which includes a container containing a colorant and performs a double-side printing operation including an operation of printing images on one side of N non-printed sheets (N≧1) and then printing images on the opposite side of M one-side printed sheets (M≦N) using the colorant;
- a determination unit which determines whether an amount of the colorant remaining in the container is equal to or greater than a threshold value;
- and
- a control unit which causes the print unit to perform a reduced printing operation with a reduced amount of colorant when the determination unit determines that the amount of the remaining colorant is less than the threshold value,
- wherein the control unit performs the reduced printing operation on one side of a new non-printed sheet instead of performing the reduced printing operation on the opposite side of a one-side printed sheet existing at the time that the determination unit determines that the amount of the remaining colorant is less than the threshold value.
An image forming system comprising:
- a conveyance mechanism conveying a non-printed sheet;
- a print unit which includes a container containing a colorant and performs a double-side printing operation including an operation of printing images on one side of N non-printed sheets (N≧1) and then printing images on the opposite side of M one-side printed sheets (M≦N) using the colorant;
- a determination unit which determines whether an amount of the colorant remaining in the container is equal to or greater than a threshold value;
- and
- a control unit which causes the print unit to perform a reduced printing operation with a reduced amount of colorant when the determination unit determines that the amount of the remaining colorant is less than the threshold value,
- wherein the control unit performs the reduced printing operation on one side of a new non-printed sheet instead of performing the reduced printing operation on the opposite side of a one-side printed sheet existing at the time that the determination unit determines that the amount of the remaining colorant is less than the threshold value.
A computer readable recording medium storing a program controlling an image forming apparatus which includes a print unit which includes a container containing a colorant and performs a double-side printing operation including an operation of printing images on one side of N non-printed sheets (N≧1) and then printing images on the opposite side of M one-side printed sheets (M≦N) using the colorant, the program causing the image forming apparatus to perform:
- determining whether an amount of the colorant remaining in the container is equal to or greater than a threshold value;
- and
- causing the print unit to perform a reduced printing operation with a reduced amount of colorant when it is determined that the amount of the remaining colorant is less than the threshold value in such a manner that the reduced printing operation is performed on one side of a new non-printed sheet instead of performing the reduced printing operation on the opposite side of a one-side printed sheet existing at the time that it is determined that the amount of the remaining colorant is less than the threshold value.
An image forming apparatus comprising:
- a print unit which includes a container containing a colorant and performs a double-side printing operation using the colorant, the double-side printing operation including an operation of printing images on a first side of a sheet and then printing images on a second side of the sheet;
- a determination unit which determines whether an amount of the colorant remaining in the container is equal to or greater than a threshold value;
- and
- a control unit which causes the print unit to perform a normal printing operation and a reduced printing operation using an amount of colorant smaller than that of the normal printing operation,
- wherein when the determination unit determines that the amount of the remaining colorant is equal to or greater than the threshold value, the control unit causes the print unit to perform the normal printing operation,
- wherein when the determination unit determines that the amount of the remaining colorant is less than the threshold value, the control unit performs the reduced printing operation on a first side of a new non-printed sheet,
- wherein if the determination unit determines that the amount of the remaining colorant is less than the threshold value, the control unit performs the normal printing operation on the second side of a sheet whose first side is printed in the normal printing operation, and
- wherein if the determination unit determines that the amount of the remaining colorant is less than the threshold value, the control unit performs the reduced printing operation on one side of a second side of the sheet whose first side is printed in the reduced printing operation.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.