# US 8,465,120 B2 · Electronic device > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 8,465,120 B2 - Document ID: US8465120B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 13/073,759 - Filed: 2011-03-28 - Published: 2011-12-22 - Granted: 2013-06-18 - Earliest claimed: 2010-06-17 - Assignees: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha - Applicants: Taketo Numata - Inventors: Taketo Numata - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US8465120B2 ## CPC - B41J 11/006: {Means for preventing paper jams or for facilitating their removal} - B41J 2/16508: {connected with the printer frame} - B41J: TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS ## Abstract An electronic device, including a carriage conveyance mechanism, a sheet conveyance mechanism, and a controller including: a failure detecting portion configured to detect a carriage conveyance failure; a position detecting portion configured to detect a carriage position of on a carriage conveyance path; a conveyance start position storage portion configured to store a conveyance start position of the carriage; a failure occurrence position identifying portion configured to identify a failure occurrence position; an outer-edge position identifying portion configured to identify a position of an outer edge of a sheet passing area which is an area in the carriage conveyance path; and a jam judging portion configured to judge that the detected conveyance failure is due to a sheet jam where the outer-edge position is present between the conveyance start position stored by the conveyance start position storage portion and the failure occurrence position identified by the failure occurrence position identifying portion. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An electronic device, comprising: a carriage conveyance mechanism configured to convey a carriage in a main scanning direction; a sheet conveyance mechanism configured to convey a sheet in a sub scanning direction that intersects the main scanning direction; and a controller configured to control operations of the electronic device and including: a failure detecting portion configured to detect a conveyance failure of the carriage; a position detecting portion configured to detect a position of the carriage on a carriage conveyance path through which the carriage is conveyed by the carriage conveyance mechanism; a conveyance start position storage portion configured to store, on the basis of a result of detection by the position detecting portion, a conveyance start position of the carriage at a time when the carriage conveyance mechanism starts to convey the carriage at a standstill in the main scanning direction; a failure occurrence position identifying portion configured to identify, on the basis of a result of detection by the position detecting portion, a failure occurrence position that is a position of the carriage at a time when the failure detecting portion detects the conveyance failure; an outer-edge position identifying portion configured to identify a position of an outer edge of a sheet passing area which is an area in the carriage conveyance path and which faces an area in which the sheet conveyed by the sheet conveyance mechanism in the sub scanning direction passes; and a jam judging portion configured to judge whether or not the conveyance failure detected by the failure detecting portion is due to a jam of the sheet, wherein the jam judging portion is configured to judge that the conveyance failure detected by the failure detecting portion is due to the jam where the outer-edge position identified by the outer-edge position identifying portion is present between the conveyance start position stored by the conveyance start position storage portion and the failure occurrence position identified by the failure occurrence position identifying portion. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the jam judging portion is configured to judge that the conveyance failure detected by the failure detecting portion is not due to the jam where the outer-edge position is not present between the conveyance start position and the failure occurrence position. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the outer-edge position identifying portion is configured to identify, as the position of the outer edge of the sheet passing area, a position of an upstream-side one of two outer edges of the sheet passing area in a carriage conveyance direction in which the carriage is conveyed by the carriage conveyance mechanism, and wherein the jam judging portion is configured to judge that the conveyance failure detected by the failure detecting portion is due to the jam where the position of the upstream-side one of the two outer edges identified by the outer-edge position identifying portion is present between the conveyance start position and the failure occurrence position. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the outer-edge position identifying portion is configured to obtain size information of the sheet conveyed by the sheet conveyance mechanism and to identify the position of the outer edge of the sheet passing area on the basis of the size information. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the carriage is equipped with a media sensor capable of detecting an outer edge of the sheet, and wherein the outer-edge position identifying portion is configured to identify the position of the outer edge of the sheet passing area on the basis of a detection signal by the media sensor. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the carriage conveyance mechanism is configured to convey the carriage in the main scanning direction by a drive force of a motor, wherein the controller further includes a carriage control portion configured to control the carriage conveyance mechanism to convey the carriage in the main scanning direction according to a feedback control in which one of a drive voltage and a drive current to be inputted to the motor is determined on the basis of a deviation between: one of an actual speed and an actual position of the carriage in the main scanning direction; and a corresponding one of a target speed and a target position and in which the one of the actual speed and the actual position is conformed to the corresponding one of the target speed and the target position, and wherein the failure detecting portion is configured to detect the conveyance failure where one of: (a) the deviation; and (b) one of the drive voltage and the drive current exceeds a threshold. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The electronic device according to claim 6, wherein the threshold is determined for each of local points on the carriage conveyance path, and wherein the threshold for each of the local points within the sheet passing area on the carriage conveyance path is smaller than the threshold for each of the local points outside the sheet passing area. ### Claim 8 (depends on 6) The electronic device according to claim 6, wherein the threshold is determined for each of local points on the carriage conveyance path, and wherein the threshold for a local point corresponding to the outer edge of the sheet passing area on the carriage conveyance path is smaller than the threshold for each of the other local points. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the failure detecting portion is configured to detect the conveyance failure of the carriage where, when the carriage conveyance mechanism conveys the carriage from the conveyance start position, the carriage is retreated in a direction opposite to a carriage conveyance direction in which the carriage is conveyed by the carriage conveyance mechanism. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the electronic device is an image forming device in which a recording unit configured to eject ink droplets to the sheet is mounted on the carriage, and wherein the controller further comprises an image forming portion configured to control the carriage conveyance mechanism to reciprocate the carriage in the main scanning direction, to control the sheet conveyance mechanism to convey the sheet in the sub scanning direction, and to control the recording unit to eject the ink droplets during a movement of the carriage in the main scanning direction, when an image forming command is inputted, so as to realize an image forming operation in which an image designated by the image forming command is formed on the sheet. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The electronic device according to claim 10, wherein the controller further includes: an image-formation suspending portion configured to suspend an image forming operation by the image forming portion where the conveyance failure is detected by the failure detecting portion; and a failure handling portion configured to control the carriage conveyance mechanism to convey the carriage in an opposite direction which is opposite to a prescribed direction at the time of occurrence of the conveyance failure where the failure detecting portion detects the conveyance failure and the jam judging portion judges that the conveyance failure is due to the jam. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The electronic device according to claim 11, further comprising: a capping mechanism which is disposed at one of opposite ends of the carriage conveyance path and which is configured to cap a nozzle portion of the recording unit from which the ink droplets are ejected; and a flushing mechanism which is disposed at the other of the opposite ends of the carriage conveyance path and which is configured to accumulate the ink droplets ejected by a flushing operation of the recording unit, wherein the failure handling portion is configured to control the carriage conveyance mechanism to convey the carriage in the opposite direction such that the recording unit is disposed at one of the capping mechanism and the flushing mechanism.