Image forming apparatus and image forming method

• US 10,416,936 B1
• Filed: 07/06/2018
• Issued: 09/17/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/06/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toshiba Tec Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toshiba Tec Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Miyoshi, Nobuyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): McLean, Neil R
• Application Number:
  US16/029,039
• Time in Patent Office: 438 Days
• Field of Search: 358 114
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1221 with regard to power consumption
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1229 Printer resources management or printer maintenance, e.g. device status, power levels
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1231 Device related settings, e.g. IP address, Name, Identification
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1292 Mobile client, e.g. wireless printing
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/27 for locating or positioning the transmitter
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/318 Received signal strength
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/023 using mutual or relative location information between multiple location based services [LBS] targets or of distance thresholds
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0203 in the radio access network or backbone network of wireless communication networks
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

An image forming apparatus includes a state control unit, a position information acquisition unit, and a power control determination unit. The state control unit controls the image forming apparatus in at least a normal state and a power saving state. The position information acquisition unit determines position information of a mobile terminal, based on a signal strength in wireless communication that is performed between the mobile terminal and a radio device disposed at a predetermined position. The power control determination unit determines whether or not to change a control state from the power saving state to the normal state, based on the position information of the mobile terminal that issues a printing instruction. The state control unit changes the control state from the power saving state to the normal state, according to a determination result of the power control determination unit.

Claims

1. An image forming apparatus comprising:

a processor configured to;

control the image forming apparatus in any one of a plurality of apparatus states including at least a normal state, which is a printable state, and a power saving state, which is an unprintable state and in which power consumption is lower than power consumption in the normal state;

determine position information of a mobile terminal which is carried by a user, based on a signal strength in wireless communication that is performed between the mobile terminal and at least one radio device which is disposed at a predetermined position; and

determine whether or not to change a control state from the power saving state to the normal state, based on the position information of the mobile terminal that is carried by the user who issues a printing instruction, in the mobile terminal,

wherein the processor is configured to change the control state from the power saving state to the normal state, according to a determination result of the processor,

wherein the at least one radio device includes a plurality of radio devices, and

wherein the predetermined positions of the radio devices include a first position and a second position that is closer to the image forming apparatus than the first position,

wherein the processor is configured to acquire position information of the mobile terminal, based on a first signal strength which is a signal strength in wireless communication that is performed between the radio device at the first position and the mobile terminal, and based on a second signal strength which is a signal strength in wireless communication that is performed between the radio device at the second position and the mobile terminal.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the predetermined position where the at least one radio device is disposed is a position of the image forming apparatus or a position close to the image forming apparatus.

3. The apparatus according to claim 2,

wherein the processor is configured to change the control state from the power saving state to the normal state when the signal strength in the position information exceeds a threshold value.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the processor is configured to acquire the position information by assigning a higher priority to the second signal strength than the first signal strength.

5. The apparatus according to claim 4,

wherein the processor is configured to change the control state from the power saving state to the normal state when the signal strength which is in the position information and has the priority exceeds a threshold value.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to set priorities to the plurality of radio devices with higher priority set for a radio device as a distance from the radio device to the image forming apparatus becomes smaller,

the processor is configured to determine the position information based on a signal strength with priority for each of the plurality of radio devices, the signal strength with priority for each of the plurality of radio devices being based on the set priority and the signal strength.

7. The apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the processor is configured to change the control state from the power saving state to the normal state when the signal strength with priority for one of the plurality of radio devices exceeds a threshold value.

8. The apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the processor is configured to determine the signal strength with priority based on multiplying the set priority and the signal strength for each of the plurality of radio devices.

9. The apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the processor is configured to determine the signal strength with priority based on adding the set priority and the signal strength for each of the plurality of radio devices.

10. An image forming apparatus comprising:

a processor configured to;

control the image forming apparatus in any one of a plurality of apparatus states including at least a normal state, which is a printable state, and a power saving state, which is an unprintable state and in which power consumption is lower than power consumption in the normal state;

determine position information of a mobile terminal which is carried by a user, based on a signal strength in wireless communication that is performed between the mobile terminal and at least one radio device which is disposed at a predetermined position; and

determine whether or not to change a control state from the power saving state to the normal state, based on the position information of the mobile terminal that is carried by the user who issues a printing instruction, in the mobile terminal,

wherein the processor is configured to change the control state from the power saving state to the normal state, according to a determination result of the processor,

wherein at least three radio devices are disposed at different positions, and

wherein the processor is configured to acquire information on a position in a real space of the mobile terminal as position information, based on positions where the respective radio devices are disposed and a signal strength between the respective radio devices and the mobile terminal.

11. The apparatus according to claim 10,

wherein the processor is configured to change the control state from the power saving state to the normal state when a distance between a position in the real space and a position of the image forming apparatus becomes smaller than a threshold value.

12. An image forming method comprising:

acquiring position information of a mobile terminal which is carried by a user, based on a signal strength in wireless communication that is performed between the mobile terminal and at least one radio device which is disposed at a predetermined position;

determining whether or not to change a control state from a power saving state to a normal state, among a plurality of apparatus states including at least the normal state which is a printable state and the power saving state, based on position information of the mobile terminal that is carried by a user who issues a printing instruction, in the mobile terminal;

changing the control state of an image forming apparatus from the power saving state to the normal state according to a determination result,

wherein the predetermined position where the at least one radio device is disposed is a position of the image forming apparatus or a position close to the image forming apparatus,

wherein the at least one radio device includes a plurality of radio devices, and

wherein the predetermined positions of the radio devices include a first position and a second position that is closer to the image forming apparatus than the first position; and

acquiring the position information of the mobile terminal based on a first signal strength which is a signal strength in wireless communication that is performed between the radio device at the first position and the mobile terminal, and based on a second signal strength which is a signal strength in wireless communication that is performed between the radio device at the second position and the mobile terminal.

13. The method according to claim 12, further comprising:

changing the control state from the power saving state to the normal state when the signal strength in the position information exceeds a threshold value.

14. The method according to claim 12,

wherein the position information is acquired by assigning a higher priority to the second signal strength than the first signal strength.

15. The method according to claim 14, further comprising:

changing the control state from the power saving state to the normal state when the signal strength which is in the position information and has the priority exceeds a threshold value.