Image forming apparatus, cartridge and image forming method
AssigneeSamsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
InventorCheol-min Jeon
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An image forming apparatus includes an image forming unit to receive an image forming agent from a cartridge having a state indicating element to form an image, a state setting unit to open the state indicating element, and a controller to determine a usage amount of the image forming agent used to form the image by recognizing identification information of the cartridge, and to control the state setting unit to open the state indicating element of the cartridge if the usage amount of the image forming agent is equal to or greater than a preset value.
Claims20
An image forming apparatus, comprising:
- an image forming unit to form an image and to receive an image forming agent from a cartridge having a state indicating element;
- a state setting unit to open the state indicating element;
- and
- a controller to determine a usage amount of the image forming agent to be used to form the image by recognizing identification information of the cartridge, and to control the state setting unit to open the state indicating element of the cartridge if the determined usage amount of the image forming agent is substantially equal to or greater than a preset value.
A cartridge, comprising:
- an accommodator to store an image forming agent therein to be supplied to an image forming apparatus to form an image;
- and
- a state indicating element to be opened by the image forming apparatus if a usage amount of the image forming agent required to form an image which is determined by identification information of the cartridge is substantially equal to or greater than a preset value.
An image forming method, comprising:
- recognizing identification information of a cartridge and determining a usage amount of an image forming agent required to form an image;
- determining whether the usage amount of the image forming agent is substantially equal to or greater than a preset value;
- and
- opening a state indicating element included in the cartridge if the usage amount is substantially equal to or greater than the preset value.
An image forming apparatus, comprising:
- a replaceable printing cartridge having identification information and a selectable disable element;
- and
- a controller to form an image if the selectable disable element is not disabled and an amount of image forming agent stored within the cartridge is determined to be sufficient to form the image such that the sufficiency of the amount of the image forming agent is based on the identification information of the cartridge.
A non-transitory computer readable recording medium having encoded thereon computer instructions that when executed by a computer perform a method to control an image forming apparatus, comprising:
- recognizing identification information of a cartridge and determining a usage amount of an image forming agent required to form an image;
- determining whether the usage amount of the image forming agent is substantially equal to or greater than a preset value;
- and
- opening a state indicating element included in the cartridge if the usage amount is substantially equal to or greater than the preset value.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.