Communication between an image forming device and a replaceable supply item

• US 10,530,959 B2
• Filed: 04/12/2018
• Issued: 01/07/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 04/12/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lexmark International Incorporated (Ninestar Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Lexmark International Incorporated (Ninestar Corporation)
• Inventors: Foley, Nathan Wayne, Williams, Jennifer Topmiller, Woods, Gregory Scott, Moore, Jr., Jimmy Daniel
• Primary Examiner(s): Mamo, Elias
• Application Number:
  US15/951,586
• Publication Number:
  US 20190320084A1
• Time in Patent Office: 635 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/0863 provided with identifying means or means for storing process- or use parameters, e.g. an electronic memory
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/0865 Arrangements for supplying new developer
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 21/1882 details of the communication with memory, e.g. wireless communication, protocols
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/4282 on a serial bus, e.g. I2C bus, SPI bus on daisy chain buses G06F13/4247
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/121 Facilitating exception or error detection and recovery, e.g. fault, media or consumables depleted
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/2346 according to a detected condition or state of the reproducing device, e.g. temperature or ink quantity
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32587 Controller

Abstract

A toner container installable in an image forming device having a controller according to one example embodiment includes a housing having a reservoir for storing toner. A chip is positioned on the housing and configured to receive a first write command from the controller of the image forming device. The chip is further configured to determine whether a transmission cycle bit of the first write command matches a transmission cycle bit of a second write command received by the chip from the controller of the image forming device previous to the first write command. The chip is further configured to resend to the controller of the image forming device a response to the second write command if the transmission cycle bit of the first write command matches the transmission cycle bit of the second write command.

Claims

1. A method of electrical communication between a slave node of an I2C communication bus positioned on a replaceable supply item installed in an image forming device and a controller of the image forming device as a master node of the I2C communication bus, comprising:

receiving a first write command by the slave node on the replaceable supply item from the controller of the image forming device;

comparing by the slave node on the replaceable supply item a value of a transmission cycle bit contained in a header of the first write command with a value of a transmission cycle bit contained in a header of a second write command received by the slave node on the replaceable supply item from the controller of the image forming device previous to the first write command;

if the value of the transmission cycle bit contained in the header of the first write command is equal to the value of the transmission cycle bit contained in the header of the second write command, sending by the slave node on the replaceable supply item to the controller of the image forming device a response to the second write command without executing the first write command;

if the value of the transmission cycle bit contained in the header of the first write command is equal to the value of the transmission cycle bit contained in the header of the second write command, comparing by the slave node on the replaceable supply item a value of a command ID of the first write command with a value of a command ID of the second write command; and

if the value of the command ID of the first write command is equal to the value of the command ID of the second write command, performing said sending by the slave node on the replaceable supply item to the controller of the image forming device the response to the second write command without executing the first command.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising if the value of the command ID of the first write command is not equal to the value of the command ID of the second write command, sending by the slave node on the replaceable supply item an error message to the controller of the image forming device.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein comparing by the slave node on the replaceable supply item the value of the command ID of the first write command with the value of the command ID of the second write command includes determining by the slave node on the replaceable supply item whether the value of the command ID of the first write command indicates that the first write command is a request from the controller of the image forming device for the slave node on the replaceable supply item to send a response to a most recent write command received by the slave node on the replaceable supply item from the controller of the image forming device prior to the slave node on the replaceable supply item indicating a busy condition to the controller of the image forming device.