An apparatus is configured to obtain operating information related to an operation amount of an image forming apparatus through the communication circuit, obtain another operating information related to another operation amount of another image forming apparatus located in a same installation location at which the image forming apparatus is located, determine, based on the operating information and the another operating information, a replacement timing for replacing a consumable component used in the image forming apparatus, and output the replacement timing.

An apparatus includes a photoconductor, an exposure device, a developing device, a toner concentration sensor, a supply motor, and a processor. The exposure device exposes the photoconductor based on image data. The developing device forms a toner image on the photoconductor with toner supplied from a toner cartridge. The toner concentration sensor detects a toner concentration in the developing device. The supply motor supplies the toner from the toner cartridge to the developing device based on the toner concentration. The processor detects a toner container supply abnormality based on a toner supply rate and a print rate of the image data, the toner supply rate being calculated based on a pixel count value that is an integrated value of pixel values of the image data and a supply motor count value that is an integrated value of drive times of the supply motor.

An image forming apparatus includes: a hardware processor that: estimates a remaining amount of toner in a cartridge; registers a required replacement time corresponding to a time required by an operator to replace the cartridge; calculates a toner consumption speed when an image is printed, on the basis of data of the image to be printed and a printing speed when the image is printed; predicts a first timing at which the cartridge reaches a toner runout state during printing of the image, on the basis of the remaining amount of toner and the toner consumption speed; and makes notification for prompting the operator to replace the cartridge at a second timing before the first timing by the required replacement time.

An image forming apparatus that, in a case where it is determined that a scaling ratio of the inputted image data does not exceed a predetermined threshold, executes processing for scaling the inputted image and then executes first detection processing that detects an amount of applied toner using image data after scaling, and in a case where it is determined that the scaling ratio of the inputted image data exceeds the predetermined threshold, executes second detection processing that detects the amount of applied toner using the inputted image data prior to scaling and then executes scaling processing after executing the second detection processing.

In an image forming apparatus a toner cartridge includes a toner memory storing toner identification information. The toner cartridge is detachably attachable to a drum cartridge. The drum cartridge includes a drum memory storing drum identification information. The drum cartridge is detachably attached to the main-body casing. A controller performs a request process to request execution of a density correction process to correct a density of developer, in a case where a toner identification information determination process determines that the toner identification information stored in the toner memory does not match the toner identification information which is stored in the main-body memory in a toner identification information storing process or a drum identification information determination process determines that the drum identification information stored in the drum memory does not match the drum identification information which is stored in the main-body memory in the drum identification information storing process.

An image forming apparatus includes a controller configured to execute a discharging operation for discharging a toner from a developing device onto an image bearing member in a region corresponding to an interval between a recording material and a subsequent recording material in a continuous image forming job. The controller executes the discharging operation on the basis of integral information based on a relationship of a predetermined deterioration threshold with a value correlating with an amount of toner consumption. The controller changes the relationship based on a detected temperature upon toner consumption, and the controller changes the relationship so that when a temperature obtained on the basis of detected information is not less than a predetermined temperature, execution of the discharging operation is promoted more than when the obtained temperature is less than a predetermined temperature.

An image forming apparatus includes an electrophotographic process assembly, a processor, and a memory. The electrophotographic process assembly is configured to transfer a toner image formed on a photoconductive body rotating around an axis extending in a main scanning direction onto a sheet conveyed in a sub-scanning direction orthogonal to the main scanning direction. The processor and memory are configured to store a print amount in a plurality of divided sections corresponding to the main scanning direction, acquire the print amount from a monitoring section in one or more monitoring target groupings corresponding to a predetermined section included in the plurality of divided sections, calculate an integrated print amount in the monitoring section, and output information relating to the monitoring target grouping corresponding to the integrated print amount in the monitoring section.

An example operation method of an image forming apparatus includes determining a state of a toner refill operation of injecting toner from a toner reload kit (TRK) into a cartridge in the image forming apparatus, based on completion of injecting toner from the TRK into the cartridge, controlling the TRK to store information indicating a toner refill completion in a memory of the TRK and updating information of an amount of remaining toner of the cartridge based on an amount of the toner injected into the cartridge from the TRK.

An image forming apparatus having a hardware configuration for counting the amount of toner used for an image to be printed for each color component uses a conversion coefficient used for processing for converting a pixel value in image data expressing the image into a signal value indicating the amount of toner to convert the pixel value into the signal value. The image forming apparatus outputs information indicating whether or not a high-density image portion is included in an image based on the signal value obtained by performing the conversion.

The location of a printing device is determined. Environmental conditions in which the printing device operated when printing a print job are determined based on the determined location. An environmental adjustment factor for the printing device is determined based on the determined environmental conditions. A predicted print material usage of the printing device in printing the print job is adjusted based on the determined environmental adjustment factor.