1. A phase detecting apparatus that detects a phase difference between signals, comprising:
a phase comparing section that sequentially delays a second input signal relative to a first input signal, according to a set value, and that compares a phase of the second input signal to a phase of the first input signal each time a relative phase between the input signals changes; and
a delay adjusting section that adjusts in advance a delay amount of a signal in the phase comparing section, wherein the delay adjusting section includes:
a signal generating section that generates a first adjustment signal and a second adjustment signal, which has a period that is shorter than a period of the first adjustment signal by an amount corresponding to the set value, and inputs the first adjustment signal and the second adjustment signal to the phase comparing section as the first input signal and the second input signal, respectively; and
an adjusting section that adjusts a delay amount of the phase in the phase comparing section based on the phase comparison result by the phase comparing section between the first adjustment signal and the second adjustment signal.
2. The phase detecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein
the phase comparing section sequentially delays the second input signal relative to the first input signal by a constant amount, and
the signal generating section generates the second adjustment signal to have a period that is shorter than the period of the first adjustment signal by an amount substantially equal to the constant value.
3. The phase detecting apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the signal generating section includes:
a first oscillator that generates the first adjustment signal;
a second oscillator that generates the second adjustment signal; and
an oscillation control section that causes the first oscillator and the second oscillator to synchronously begin oscillating.
4. The phase detecting apparatus according to claim 3, wherein
the phase comparing section includes n stages of sampling circuits connected in cascade, where n is an integer, the sampling circuits delaying the phase of the second input signal relative to the first input signal by a constant value and performing sampling, and
the adjusting section adjusts the delay amount of the phase of the second input signal relative to the first input signal in each k-th stage sampling circuit, where k=1, 2, . . . , n, based on a sampling result using k-th pulses of the first adjustment signal and the second adjustment signal input to the phase comparing section.
5. The phase detecting apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising a counter that counts a number of pulses of the first adjustment signal and the second adjustment signal output by the first oscillator and the second oscillator, wherein
when the delay amount in the k-th stage sampling circuit is being adjusted, the oscillation control section stops the oscillation of the first oscillator and the second oscillator when the count results for the number of pulses for each of the first adjustment signal and the second adjustment signal reach k and repeats a process for synchronously initiating new oscillation a predetermined number of times, and
the adjusting section adjusts the delay amount in the k-th stage sampling circuit such that sampling results repeatedly acquired for the k-th pulses of the first adjustment signal and the second adjustment signal by the k-th stage sampling circuit become predetermined results.
6. The phase detecting apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising a counter that counts a number of pulses of the first adjustment signal and the second adjustment signal output by the first oscillator and the second oscillator, wherein
the oscillation control section stops the oscillation of the first oscillator and the second oscillator when the count results for the number of pulses for each of the first adjustment signal and the second adjustment signal reach n, and repeats a process for synchronously initiating new oscillation a predetermined number of times, and
the adjusting section adjusts the delay amount in the k-th stage sampling circuit such that sampling results repeatedly acquired for the k-th pulses of the first adjustment signal and the second adjustment signal by each sampling circuit become predetermined results.
7. The phase detecting apparatus according to claim 4, wherein
the first oscillator and the second oscillator generate the first adjustment signal and the second adjustment signal such that a product of a stage number of the sampling circuit and a period difference between the first adjustment signal and the second adjustment signal becomes substantially equal to a period of the first adjustment signal, and synchronize the pulses of the first adjustment signal and the second adjustment signal for each of a plurality of predetermined time periods, and
the adjusting section adjusts the delay amount in each k-th stage sampling circuit such that the sampling results of the k-th pulses of the first adjustment signal and the second adjustment signal acquired by the k-th stage sampling circuit in each of the predetermined time periods become predetermined results.
8. The phase detecting apparatus according to claim 5, wherein
the adjusting section adjusts the delay amount in each sampling circuit such that a ratio of sampling results indicating an H logic value to sampling results indicating an L logic value becomes one to one in the sampling circuit.
9. The phase detecting apparatus according to claim 4, wherein
each sampling circuit includes:
a first transmitting section that transmits the first input signal input thereto to a sampling circuit at a later stage;
a second transmitting section that transmits, with a delay amount relative to the first transmitting section that is equal to a value corresponding to the set value, a second input signal input thereto to a sampling circuit at a later stage; and
a sampling section that samples one of the first input signal transmitted by the first transmitting section and the second input signal transmitted by the second transmitting section using the other of the first input signal and the second input signal, and
the adjusting section adjusts the delay amount of at least one of the first transmitting section and the second transmitting section such that the sampling results of each sampling section become predetermined sampling results.
10. The phase detecting apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising:
a frequency measuring section that measures oscillation frequencies of the first oscillator and the second oscillator; and
an adjusting section that adjusts the oscillation frequencies of the first oscillator and the second oscillator based on the measurement results of the frequency measuring section.
11. A test apparatus that tests a device under test, comprising:
the phase detecting apparatus according to claim 1 that detects a phase difference between a signal output by the device under test and a predetermined reference signal; and
a judging section that judges acceptability of the device under test based on the detection result of the phase detecting apparatus.
12. An adjusting method for adjusting in advance a delay amount of a second input signal using a phase detecting apparatus that sequentially delays the second input signal relative to a first input signal, according to a set value, and that compares a phase of the second input signal to a phase of the first input signal each time a relative phase between the input signals changes, the adjusting method comprising:
generating a first adjustment signal and a second adjustment signal, which has a period that is shorter than a period of the first adjustment signal by an amount corresponding to the set value;
inputting the first adjustment signal and the second adjustment signal to the phase detecting apparatus as the first input signal and the second input signal, respectively; and
adjusting a delay amount of the phase in the phase detecting apparatus based on sampling results by the phase detecting apparatus for the first adjustment signal and the second adjustment signal.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
What is claimed is:
1. A method for determining whether or not a developer container to contain developer is attached to the main body of an apparatus comprising the following steps of:
detecting information of the magnetic permeability of developer in said developer container;
determining whether or not said developer container is attached to said main body of the image forming apparatus in accordance with an output obtained in said step of detection.
2. The method according to claim 1, wherein in said step of determination, whether or not said developer container is attached to said main body of the image forming apparatus is determined in accordance with plural outputs obtained in a designated time in said step of detection.
3. The method according to claim 2, wherein in said step of determination, whether or not said developer container is attached to said main body of the image forming apparatus is determined in accordance with a difference between a first output and a second output obtained in said step of detection.
4. The method according to claim 3, wherein in said step of determination, said developer container is determined to be attached to said main body of the image forming apparatus if the difference is out of a designated range.
5. The method according to claim 3, wherein in said step of determination, said developer container is not determined to be attached to said main body of the image forming apparatus if the difference is within the designated range.
6. The method according to claim 2, wherein in said step of determination, whether or not said developer container is attached to said main body of the image forming apparatus is determined in accordance with the difference between the maximum value and the minimum value of the outputs obtained in said step of detection.
7. The method according to claim 6, wherein in said step of determination, said developer container is determined to be attached to said main body of the image forming apparatus if the difference is out of a designated range.
8. The method according to claim 6, wherein in said step of determination, said developer container is not determined to be attached to said main body of the image forming apparatus if the difference is within the designated range.
9. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of:
indicating the result of determination made in said step of determination on the display of said main body of the image forming apparatus.
10. The method according to claim 2, further comprising the step of:
agitating the developer in said developer container by a specific agitating cycle, said designated time including the specific agitating cycle.
11. The method according to claim 10, wherein in said step of agitation, the agitation is made by use of a magnetic member moving near the detecting portion in said step of detection.
12. The method according to either one of claim 1 to claim 11, wherein the developer is a magnetic developer.
13. An image forming apparatus comprising:
a developer container to contain developer, said developer container being attachable to the main body of an image forming apparatus or detachable therefrom;
detecting means for detecting information of the magnetic permeability of developer in said developer container; and
determining means for determining whether or not said developer container is attached to said main body of the image forming apparatus in accordance with an output obtained in said step of detection.
14. The apparatus to claim 13, wherein said determining means determines whether or not said developer container is attached to said main body of the image forming apparatus in accordance with plural outputs of said detecting means in a designated time.
15. The apparatus according to claim 14, wherein said determining means determines whether or not said developer container is attached to said main body of the image forming apparatus in accordance with a difference between a first output and a second output obtained by said step of detection.
16. The apparatus according to claim 15, wherein said determining means determines that said developer container is attached to said main body of the image forming apparatus if the difference is out of a designated range.
17. The apparatus according to claim 15, wherein said determining means determines that said developer container is not attached to said main body of the image forming apparatus if the difference is within the designated range.
18. The apparatus according to claim 14, wherein said determining means determines whether or not said developer container is attached to said main body of the image forming apparatus in accordance with the difference between the maximum value and the minimum value of the outputs obtained by said detecting means.
19. The apparatus according to claim 18, wherein said determining means determines that said developer container is attached to said main body of the image forming apparatus if the difference is out of a designated range.
20. The apparatus according to claim 18, wherein said determining manes determines that said developer container is not attached to said main body of the image forming apparatus if the difference is within the designated range.
21. The apparatus according to claim 13, further comprising:
displaying means for indicating the result of determination made by said determining means.
22. The apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising:
agitating means for agitating the developer in said developer container by a specific agitating cycle, said designated time including the specific agitating cycle.
23. The apparatus according to claim 22, wherein said agitating means is provided with a magnetic member moving near the detecting portion by said detecting means.
24. The apparatus according to claim 13, wherein said detecting means is provided for said main body of the image forming apparatus.
25. The apparatus according to either one of claim 13 to claim 24, wherein the developer is a magnetic developer.