JP6544459B2 - Ink jet recording device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an inkjet recording apparatus in which a conveyance unit and a maintenance unit are driven by one motor.

  Conventionally, a conveyance unit for conveying a sheet, a recording unit for recording an image on a sheet conveyed by the conveyance unit, a maintenance unit for maintaining the recording unit, a motor for driving the conveyance unit and the maintenance unit, and driving of the motor There is known an inkjet recording apparatus provided with a switching unit that switches whether to transmit a force to a maintenance unit. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an inkjet recording apparatus configured to transmit driving force of a motor to the maintenance unit by moving the recording unit to a position facing the maintenance unit. On the other hand, the driving force of the motor is constantly transmitted to the transport unit.

Unexamined-Japanese-Patent No. 2014-010244

  According to the inkjet recording apparatus described in Patent Document 1, the sheet can be conveyed to the conveyance unit regardless of whether the driving force of the motor is transmitted to the maintenance unit. Further, the load torque applied to the motor tends to increase as the number of drive targets of the motor increases. That is, the load torque applied to the motor changes depending on whether the driving force is transmitted to the maintenance unit. Therefore, when the transmission state of the driving force to the maintenance unit is switched during the recording process, the load torque may fluctuate, which may cause a conveyance error in the subsequent conveyance process.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is an inkjet recording apparatus in which the occurrence of a transport error caused by a change in the transmission state of the driving force to the maintenance unit during recording processing is suppressed. To provide.

(1) The inkjet recording apparatus according to the present invention comprises: a transport unit that transports a sheet in a transport direction; a carriage that moves in a main scanning direction that intersects the transport direction; and the carriage; A recording head for discharging, a cap facing the recording head in an outer area deviated from the sheet passing area to one end side in the main scanning direction, a maintenance unit for maintaining the nozzle, the transport unit, The control device may include a motor that drives the maintenance unit, a switching unit that switches whether to transmit the driving force of the motor to the maintenance unit, and a control unit. The switching unit in contact with the carriage moving in the outer region is a first region in which the driving force of the motor is not transmitted to the maintenance unit, and a region on the one end side from the first region, A second area in which the driving force of the motor is transmitted to the maintenance section, and an area on the one end side from the second area, the third area being able to return to the first area by reaching the area And moveable. The cap faces the recording head in a state in which the switching portion of the second area and the carriage are in contact with each other. The control unit executes recording processing including a plurality of unit operations for causing the conveyance unit to convey the sheet by the predetermined line feed width in the conveyance direction and causing the recording head to eject the ink to the sheet. The idle discharge process for bringing the carriage into contact with the switching portion in the second region and causing the recording head to discharge ink in an idle manner during the plurality of unit operations, and the switching portion reaching the third region And the return processing for moving the carriage to the position where

  According to the above configuration, by performing the idle discharge process and the return process as a set, the subsequent recording process is performed with the switching unit positioned in the first area. As a result, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of transport error caused by the switching of the transmission state of the driving force to the maintenance unit during the recording process. In addition, by performing the idle discharge process during the recording process, the deterioration of the image recording quality is also suppressed.

(2) Preferably, the maintenance unit has a moving mechanism that moves the cap closer to the recording head as the carriage moves away from the passage area toward the one end. Then, the control unit executes the idle discharge process after the execution of the return process.

  According to the above configuration, the recording head and the cap come closest to each other in the return process. On the other hand, the amount of ink in the cap also increases as the number of times of execution of the idle discharge process increases. Therefore, there is a possibility that the ink in the cap adheres to the recording head in the return process. Therefore, by executing the idle discharge process after the return process as described above, the ink attached to the recording head in the return process is removed.

(3) Preferably, the control unit moves the carriage at a first speed in the passage area, and moves the carriage at a second speed slower than the first speed in the outer area.

  As described above, by moving the carriage at a low speed on one end side in the main scanning direction that can abut the maintenance portion, it is possible to suppress the meniscus formed on the nozzle of the recording head from being broken.

(4) Preferably, during the recording process, the control unit executes the idle discharge process and the return process in response to the threshold time having elapsed and one of the plurality of unit operations being completed.

(5) Preferably, the inkjet recording apparatus includes a tray capable of supporting a plurality of stacked sheets, and a feeding unit that feeds the sheets supported by the tray to the transport unit. The switching unit transmits the driving force of the motor to the feeding unit and the conveying unit by positioning the switching unit in the first region, and does not transmit the driving force to the maintenance unit, and the switching unit performs the switching unit. By being located in the second region, the driving force of the motor is transmitted to the transport unit and the maintenance unit and not transmitted to the feeding unit. Then, the control unit executes a feeding process for feeding the sheet to the feeding unit prior to the recording process.

(6) Preferably, the ink jet recording apparatus feeds a first tray and a second tray capable of supporting a plurality of stacked sheets, and a sheet supported by the first tray to the conveyance section. A feeding unit and a second feeding unit that feeds a sheet supported by the second tray to the conveyance unit. The switching unit transmits the driving force of the motor to the first feeding unit and the conveyance unit by positioning the switching unit in the first region, and to the second feeding unit and the maintenance unit. By not being transmitted, the drive of the motor is transmitted to the second feeding portion and the conveying portion by positioning the switching portion in the fourth portion between the first portion and the second portion, and The driving force of the motor is transmitted to the conveyance unit and the maintenance unit by positioning the switching unit in the second area without transmitting the first feeding unit and the maintenance unit to the first feeding unit and the first feeding. It does not transmit to the unit and the second feeding unit. The control unit supplies the first sheet to the second feeding unit in response to the acquisition of a recording instruction for recording an image on the first sheet and the second sheet supported by the second tray. The switching unit performs the feeding process for feeding and the recording process for recording the image on the first sheet, and the switching process is performed in the process of the recording process for the first sheet. The moving process for moving the carriage from the first area to the fourth area is performed prior to the feeding process for the second sheet.

  According to the present invention, by performing the idle discharge process and the return process as a set, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of the transport error caused by the switching of the transmission state of the driving force to the maintenance unit during the recording process. The device can be obtained.

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of the multifunction machine 10. FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing the internal structure of the printer unit 11. 3A is a plan view of the carriage 23 and the guide rails 43 and 44, and FIG. 3B is a perspective view showing the internal structure of the printer unit 11. As shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the maintenance mechanism 70, in which (A) shows a state in which the cap 71 is located at the uncap position, and (B) shows a state in which the cap 71 is located at the cap position. FIG. 5 is a schematic view of the maintenance mechanism 70. As shown in FIG. FIG. 6 is a schematic view of the port switching mechanism 90 viewed from the bottom, in which (A) shows a Bk suction state, (B) shows a Co suction state, and (C) shows an unlock state. FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the switching mechanism 170, in which (A) shows the switching lever 176 in the first position, (B) shows the switching lever 176 in the fourth position, and (C) shows The state in which the switching lever 176 is positioned at the second position, and (D) shows the state in which the switching lever 176 is positioned at the third position. FIG. 8 is a block diagram of the printer unit 11. FIG. 9 is a flowchart of the image recording process.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described. The embodiments described below are merely examples of the present invention, and it goes without saying that the embodiments of the present invention can be appropriately modified without departing from the scope of the present invention. Further, in the following description, the progress from the starting point to the end point of the arrow is expressed as the direction, and the traffic on the line connecting the starting point and the end point of the arrow is expressed as the direction. Furthermore, the vertical direction 7 is defined on the basis of the state where the multifunction machine 10 is installed so as to be usable (the state of FIG. 1), and the front-rear direction 8 is defined with the side provided with the opening 13 as the near side (front). The left and right direction 9 is defined by viewing the multifunction device 10 from the front side (front).

[Overall configuration of MFP 10]
The multifunction machine 10 is formed substantially in a rectangular parallelepiped as shown in FIG. The multifunction device 10 has a printer unit 11 that records an image on a sheet 12 (an example of a sheet, see FIG. 2) in the lower part by an inkjet recording method, and an operation unit 17. As illustrated in FIG. 2, the printer unit 11 includes a first feeding unit 15, a second feeding unit 34, a feeding tray 20 (an example of a first tray), and a versatile tray 31 (a second tray). An example), a discharge tray 21, a conveyance roller portion 54, a recording portion 24, a discharge roller portion 55, and a platen 42. The multifunction machine 10 also has various functions such as a facsimile function and a print function. The multifunction peripheral 10 is an example of an inkjet recording apparatus. Further, the conveyance roller unit 54 and the discharge roller unit 55 constitute an example of a conveyance unit.

[Feed tray 20, discharge tray 21, multipurpose tray 31]
The feed tray 20 is inserted and removed by the user in the front-rear direction 8 through an opening 13 formed in the front surface of the printer unit 11 as shown in FIG. The feed tray 20 can support a plurality of stacked sheets 12. The discharge tray 21 is disposed above the feed tray 20. The discharge tray 21 supports the sheet 12 discharged by the discharge roller unit 55 through an opening 13 formed on the front surface. The multipurpose tray 31 is configured to be inclined obliquely upward from the back of the printer unit 11 to the rear, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The multipurpose tray 31 supports a plurality of stacked sheets 12.

[First Feed Unit 15, Second Feed Unit 34]
As shown in FIG. 2, the first feeding unit 15 includes a first feeding roller 25, a feeding arm 26, and a shaft 27. The first feeding roller 25 is rotatably supported on the leading end side of the feeding arm 26. The first feed roller 25 rotates in a direction (that is, forward rotation) in which the sheet 12 supported by the feed tray 20 is transported in the transport direction 16 by the reverse rotation of the transport motor 102 (an example of the motor, see FIG. 8). Do. The feed arm 26 is rotatably supported by a shaft 27 supported by the frame of the printer unit 11. The feeding arm 26 is rotationally urged toward the feeding tray 20 by its own weight or an elastic force by a spring or the like. The second feeding unit 34 causes the uppermost sheet 12 stacked on the multipurpose tray 31 to reach the conveyance roller unit 54 through the conveyance path 65. The second feeding roller 35, the feeding arm 36, and the shaft 37, which constitute the second feeding unit 34, are substantially the same as the components of the first feeding unit 15, and thus the description thereof will not be repeated. .

[Transporting path 65]
As shown in FIG. 2, the conveyance path 65 points to a space formed by the outer guide member 18 and the inner guide member 19 which are partially opposed to each other at a predetermined interval in the printer unit 11. The conveyance path 65 is a path extending from the rear end portion of the feeding tray 20 to the rear side of the printer unit 11. The conveyance path 65 is a path that extends upward from below on the rear side of the printer unit 11 and makes a U-turn, and passes through the recording unit 24 to the discharge tray 21. Note that the transport direction 16 of the sheet 12 in the transport path 65 is indicated by a dashed dotted arrow in FIG.

[Conveying roller unit 54]
The conveyance roller unit 54 is disposed upstream of the recording unit 24 in the conveyance direction 16 as shown in FIG. The conveyance roller unit 54 has a conveyance roller 60 and a pinch roller 61 facing each other. The conveyance roller 60 is driven by the conveyance motor 102. The pinch roller 61 rotates with the rotation of the conveyance roller 60. The sheet 12 is nipped by the transport roller 60 and the pinch roller 61 which rotate forward by the forward rotation of the transport motor 102, and is transported in the transport direction 16.

[Discharge roller unit 55]
The discharge roller unit 55 is disposed downstream of the recording unit 24 in the conveyance direction 16 as shown in FIG. The discharge roller portion 55 has a discharge roller 62 and a spur 63 opposed to each other. The discharge roller 62 is driven by the conveyance motor 102. The spur 63 rotates along with the rotation of the discharge roller 62. The sheet 12 is nipped by the discharge roller 62 and the spur 63 rotated forward by the normal rotation of the conveyance motor 102 and conveyed in the conveyance direction 16.

[Platen 42]
The platen 42 is disposed between the transport roller portion 54 and the discharge roller portion 55 in the transport direction 16 as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3A. The platen 42 is disposed to face the recording unit 24 in the vertical direction 7, and supports the sheet 12 conveyed by the conveyance roller unit 54 from the lower side.

[Recording unit 24]
The recording unit 24 is disposed between the conveyance roller unit 54 and the discharge roller unit 55 in the conveyance direction 16 as illustrated in FIG. 2. Further, the recording unit 24 is disposed to face the platen 42 in the vertical direction 7. The recording unit 24 includes a carriage 23, a recording head 39, and an encoder sensor 38A. Further, as shown in FIG. 3A, the ink tube 32 and the flexible flat cable 33 are extended from the carriage 23. The ink tube 32 supplies the ink of the ink cartridge mounted in the cartridge mounting portion to the recording head 39. The flexible flat cable 33 connects the control substrate on which the control unit 130 is mounted to the recording head 39.

  The carriage 23 is supported by guide rails 43 and 44 extended in the left-right direction 9 at positions separated in the front-rear direction 8 as shown in FIG. 3A. The guide rails 43 and 44 are supported by the frame of the printer unit 11 as shown in FIG. 3 (B). The carriage 23 is connected to a known belt mechanism provided on the guide rail 44. The belt mechanism is driven by a carriage motor 103 (see FIG. 8). That is, the carriage 23 connected to the belt mechanism which is moved circumferentially by the drive of the carriage motor 103 can reciprocate in the main scanning direction along the left-right direction 9.

  The recording head 39 is mounted on the carriage 23 as shown in FIG. A plurality of nozzles 40 are formed on the lower surface of the recording head 39. The recording head 39 discharges the ink from the nozzle 40 as a minute ink droplet. In the process of moving the carriage 23, the recording head 39 discharges an ink droplet toward the sheet 12 supported by the platen 42. Thus, the image is recorded on the sheet 12.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3A, the guide rail 44 is provided with a strip-like encoder strip 38B extending in the left-right direction 9. The encoder sensor 38A is mounted on the carriage 23. The encoder sensor 38A and the encoder strip 38B are provided at opposing positions in the vertical direction 7, respectively. In the process of moving the carriage 23, the encoder sensor 38A reads the encoder strip 38B to generate a pulse signal, and outputs the generated pulse signal to the control unit 130. The encoder sensor 38A and the encoder strip 38B constitute a carriage sensor 38 shown in FIG.

[Operation part 17]
The operation unit 17 is an input interface that receives an input of an instruction to the MFP 10 from the user. The operation unit 17 may have, for example, a plurality of push buttons. The operation unit 17 may be a so-called touch panel having a display screen and a touch sensor superimposed on the display screen, as shown in FIG. 1, for example.

[Maintenance mechanism 70]
The multifunction machine 10 further includes a maintenance mechanism 70 (an example of a maintenance unit) shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. As shown in FIG. 3A, the maintenance mechanism 70 is on the right side (hereinafter referred to as “passing area”) through which the sheet 12 conveyed by the conveying roller unit 54 and the discharge roller unit 55 passes. It is arrange | positioned at the outer side area | region which deviated to one example of one end side. The passage area is an area where the recording head 39 and the sheet 12 on the platen 42 can face each other.

  The maintenance mechanism 70 includes a cap 71, a lift-up mechanism 73 (an example of a moving mechanism), a contact lever 76, a pump 77 (see FIGS. 5 and 8), and a port switching mechanism 90. The maintenance mechanism 70 performs a purge operation for suctioning ink or air in the nozzle 40 and foreign matter attached to the nozzle surface (hereinafter, these are collectively referred to as “ink etc.”). The ink and the like suctioned and removed by the maintenance mechanism 70 are stored in the drainage tank 110 (see FIGS. 3B and 5).

  The cap 71 is made of rubber. The cap 71 is provided to face the carriage 23 located in the outer region. The cap 71 also faces the recording head 39 of the carriage 23 in contact with the switching lever 176 (described later) at the second and third positions shown in FIG. 7B. The cap 71 is configured to be movable between a cap position covering the nozzle surface (refers to “the surface on which the nozzle 40 of the recording head 39 is formed”) and an uncap position separated from the nozzle surface.

  The inside of the cap 71 is divided into a Bk cap and a Co cap. The Bk cap covers an area where a nozzle for ejecting black ink is formed, and forms a sealed space between the area. The Co cap covers an area where the nozzles for ejecting color ink are formed, and forms a sealed space between the area. The Bk cap is connected to a Bk port 95 described later, and the Co cap is connected to a Co port 96 described later.

  The pump 77 is, for example, a rotary type tube pump. The pump 77 forms a flow of fluid (ink, air or the like) from the suction port 77A to the discharge port 77B shown in FIG. 5 by the reverse rotation of the transport motor 102. On the other hand, the forward driving force of the transport motor 102 is not transmitted to the pump 77. A port switching mechanism 90 is connected to the tip of the tube 91A extended from the suction port 77A. Also, a cap 71 is connected to the tip of the tube 91B extended from the port switching mechanism 90. That is, the cap 71 and the suction port 77A communicate with each other through the tubes 91A and 91B and the port switching mechanism 90. On the other hand, the drainage tank 110 is attached to the tip of the tube 91C extended from the discharge port 77B.

  The lift up mechanism 73 comprises a link 74, as shown in FIG. The link 74 is rotated in conjunction with the movement of the carriage 23 to move the holder 75 between the position of FIG. 4A and the position of FIG. 4B. The holder 75 holds a cap 71 and a contact lever 76 projecting vertically upward. The contact lever 76 extends to the movement range of the carriage 23.

  The carriage 23 moving to the right presses the contact lever 76 to move it to the right. The holder 75 holding the contact lever 76 is lifted in conjunction with the rightward movement of the contact lever 76, and moves the cap 71 to the cap position. On the other hand, the carriage 23 moved leftward is separated from the contact lever 76. The contact lever 76 separated by the carriage 23 moves to the left. Then, the holder 75 descends in conjunction with the leftward movement of the contact lever 76 to move the cap 71 to the uncapping position. That is, the lift-up mechanism 73 moves the cap 71 closer to the recording head 39 as the carriage 23 moves farther to the right from the passage area.

[Port switching mechanism 90]
The port switching mechanism 90 switches the communication state between the cap 71 and the pump 77. As shown in FIG. 6, the port switching mechanism 90 includes a cylinder 99 with a bottomed cylindrical body and a cylindrical rotating body 92 disposed inside the cylinder 99. In the cylinder 99, an intake port 93, a Bk port 95, a Co port 96, and an air port 97, 98 are formed. Specifically, port switching mechanism 90 has a Bk suction state shown in FIG. 6A, a Co suction state shown in FIG. 6B, and an unlock state shown in FIG. 6C. It is switchable.

  The intake port 93 is formed on the bottom wall of the cylinder 99. The other four ports 95 to 98 are formed at predetermined intervals in the circumferential direction on the side wall of the cylinder 99. The Bk port 95 is in communication with the internal space of the Bk cap via the tube 91B. The Co port 96 is in communication with the internal space of the Co cap via the tube 91B. The atmospheric ports 97, 98 are open to the atmosphere. One end of the tube 91A is connected to the intake port 93, and the other end is connected to the suction port 77A of the pump 77.

  The rotating body 92 is rotated inside the cylinder 99 by forward rotation of the transport motor 102 (in this embodiment, it rotates in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 6). When the rotating body 92 rotates inside the cylinder 99, the communication states of the ports 93, 95 to 98 formed in the cylinder 99 change alternately. On the other hand, the reverse driving force of the transport motor 102 is not transmitted to the rotating body 92. The Bk suction state shown in FIG. 6A is a state in which the intake port 93 communicates with the Bk port 95. The Co suction state shown in FIG. 6B is a state in which the intake port 93 is in communication with the Co port 96. The unlocked state shown in FIG. 6C is a state in which the intake port 93 is not in communication with any of the Bk port 95, the Co port 96, and the air ports 97 and 98.

  Further, the maintenance mechanism 70 includes a lock portion that fixes the carriage 23 at a position facing the cap 71. The lock portion has a lock pin movable in the vertical direction 7 as the rotating body 92 rotates. The lock pin is configured to be movable between the lock position and the unlock position. The lock pin raised from the unlock position to the lock position enters a recess provided in the carriage 23 and restricts the movement of the carriage 23 in the left-right direction 9. On the other hand, the lock pin lowered from the lock position to the unlock position separates from the carriage 23 and allows the carriage 23 to move in the left-right direction 9.

  When the pump 77 is driven in the Bk suction state shown in FIG. 6A, the ink etc. in the Bk cap is discharged to the drainage tank 110 through the tubes 91A to 91C, the port switching mechanism 90, and the pump 77. Further, when the pump 77 is driven in the Co suction state shown in FIG. 6B, the ink etc. in the Co cap is drained to the drainage tank 110 through the tubes 91A to 91C, the port switching mechanism 90, and the pump 77. Furthermore, the unlocking state shown in FIG. 6C is a state in which the aforementioned lock pin is disposed at the unlocking position.

[Drive force transmission mechanism 104]
The driving force transmission mechanism 104 shown in FIG. 8 transmits the driving force of the conveyance motor 102 to the first feed roller 25, the second feed roller 35, the conveyance roller 60, the discharge roller 62, and the maintenance mechanism 70. The driving force transmission mechanism 104 is configured by combining all or part of a gear, a pulley, an endless annular belt, a planetary gear mechanism (pendulum gear mechanism), a one-way clutch, and the like. The driving force transmission mechanism 104 also includes a switching mechanism 170 (an example of a switching unit) that switches the transmission destination of the driving force of the conveyance motor 102.

[Switching mechanism 170]
The switching mechanism 170 switches whether to transmit the driving force of the conveyance motor 102 transmitted through the conveyance roller 60 to each of the first feeding roller 25, the second feeding roller 35, and the maintenance mechanism 70. As shown in FIG. 3A, the switching mechanism 170 is provided on the right side of the platen 42 (i.e., at an outer position deviated to the right from the passing area). As shown in FIG. 7, the switching mechanism 170 includes a switching gear 171, three receiving gears 172A, 172B, 172D, a holding portion 173, a pressing member 175, a switching lever 176, and a guiding portion 177. .

  The switching gear 171 is rotatable about the support shaft 174 and movable along the axial direction (i.e., the left-right direction 9) of the support shaft 174. The support shaft 174 is held by the maintenance mechanism 70. The driving force of the conveyance motor 102 is transmitted to the switching gear 171 through the conveyance roller 60. The receiving gears 172A, 172B, 172D are coaxially rotatable along the left-right direction 9 below the support shaft 174, and are configured to be able to mesh with the switching gear 171. That is, the switching gear 171 meshes with one of the receiving gears 172A, 172B, 172D by moving in the left-right direction 9. The receiving gear 172A is a gear for transmitting the driving force of the conveyance motor 102 to the first feeding roller 25. The receiving gear 172B is a gear for transmitting the driving force of the conveyance motor 102 to the second feeding roller 35. The receiving gear 172D is a gear for transmitting the driving force of the transport motor 102 to the maintenance mechanism 70.

  The pressing member 175 is disposed on the right side of the switching gear 171 and is inserted through the support shaft 174 so as to be slidable in the left-right direction 9. The switching lever 176 protrudes upward from the pressing member 175 and extends to the movement path of the carriage 23 through the holding portion 173. The switching gear 171 is biased to the right by the first spring, and the pressing member 175 is biased to the left by the second spring. Further, the biasing force of the second spring is larger than the biasing force of the first spring. As a result, the switching gear 171 and the pressing member 175 shown in FIG. 7 are biased leftward.

  When the switching lever 176 is held by the holder 173 at the first position shown in FIG. 7A, the switching gear 171 meshes with the receiving gear 172A. The switching lever 176 in contact with the carriage 23 moving to the right moves the pressing member 175 to the right. At this time, the switching gear 171 moves to the right with the movement of the pressing member 175 by the biasing force of the first spring. When the switching lever 176 is held at the fourth position shown in FIG. 7B by the holding portion 173, the switching gear 171 meshes with the receiving gear 172B.

  Further, when the switching lever 176 is at the second position shown in FIG. 7C, the switching gear 171 meshes with the receiving gear 172D. Further, the switching lever 176 moved to the third position shown in FIG. 7D by the carriage 23 and separated from the carriage 23 is moved to the first position shown in FIG. 7A by the biasing force of the second spring. To return. Since the switching lever 176 moving from the third position to the first position is guided by the guide portion 177, the holding portion 173 does not prevent the return to the first position.

  Also, when the switching gear 171 is in mesh with the receiving gear 172D, the first spring has a natural length. Therefore, the switching gear 171 does not move to the right from the meshing position with the receiving gear 172D shown in FIG. 7 (C). That is, when the switching lever 176 is disposed at the second position and the third position, the switching gear 171 and the pressing member 175 are separated. Further, the switching gear 171 is pressed by the pressing member 175 which returns from the third position to the first position together with the switching lever 176, and moves to the meshing position with the receiving gear 172A shown in FIG. 7A.

  In a state in which the switching gear 171 is in mesh with the receiving gear 172A, the driving force transmission mechanism 104 transmits the driving force of the conveyance motor 102 to the first feeding roller 25 and to the second feeding roller 35 and the maintenance mechanism 70. Do not communicate. In a state in which the switching gear 171 is in mesh with the receiving gear 172B, the driving force transmission mechanism 104 transmits the driving force of the conveyance motor 102 to the second feeding roller 35, and to the first feeding roller 25 and the maintenance mechanism 70. Do not communicate. In a state in which the switching gear 171 is in mesh with the receiving gear 172D, the driving force transmission mechanism 104 transmits the driving force of the conveyance motor 102 to the maintenance mechanism 70 and to the first feeding roller 25 and the second feeding roller 35. Do not communicate.

  In addition, the driving force transmission mechanism 104 does not transmit the forward rotation driving force of the conveyance motor 102 to the first feeding roller 25 and the second feeding roller 35, and the first feeding roller 25 and the 2) The feed roller 35 is rotated forward. Further, the driving force transmission mechanism 104 rotates the rotating body 92 by forward rotation of the transport motor 102 and drives the pump 77 by reverse rotation of the transport motor 102. These components are a one-way clutch, a pendulum gear mechanism, or the like provided in the transmission path of the driving force between the conveyance motor 102, the first feed roller 25, the second feed roller 35, the rotating body 92, and the pump 77. It can be realized by an electromagnetic clutch mechanism or the like. Furthermore, the discharge roller 62 is connected to the conveyance roller 60 via a belt or the like. That is, regardless of the state of the switching mechanism 170, the conveyance roller 60 and the discharge roller 62 in the present embodiment rotate forward by the normal rotation of the conveyance motor 102.

  The first position, the second position, the third position, and the fourth position described above correspond to the first region, the second region, the third region, and the fourth region having a predetermined width in the left-right direction 9 in the outer region. included. The first region is the region closest to the passage region, the fourth region is the region further from the passage region than the first region, and the second region is the region further from the passage region than the first region and the fourth region. The three areas are the first area, the fourth area, and an area farther from the passing area than the second area. The transmission state of the driving force when the switching lever 176 is disposed at an arbitrary position in the first region is the same as that when the switching lever 176 is positioned at the first position. The relationship between the second to fourth positions and the second to fourth regions is the same.

  The contact lever 76 of the maintenance mechanism 70 and the switching lever 176 of the switching mechanism 170 are both pressed and moved by the carriage 23 positioned to the right of the passage area. When the switching lever 176 is positioned at the first position shown in FIG. 7A (in other words, when the carriage 23 is separated from the switching lever 176 and the contact lever 76), the contact lever 76 is shown. 4 (A) is placed. The cap 71 at this time is located at the uncapping position. Further, the carriage 23 in contact with the switching lever 176 in the third position shown in FIG. 7D moves the contact lever 76 to the position shown in FIG. 4B. The cap 71 at this time is located at the cap position. Furthermore, the carriage 23 in contact with the switching lever 176 in the second position shown in FIG. 7C moves the contact lever 76 to a position between FIG. 4A and FIG. 4B. The cap 71 at this time is located at the uncapping position.

[Control unit 130]
As shown in FIG. 8, the control unit 130 includes a CPU 131, a ROM 132, a RAM 133, an EEPROM 134, and an ASIC 135, which are connected by an internal bus 137. The ROM 132 stores programs for the CPU 131 to control various operations. The RAM 133 is used as a storage area for temporarily recording data, signals and the like used when the CPU 131 executes the program, or a work area for data processing. The EEPROM 134 stores settings and flags that should be held even after the power is turned off.

  The conveyance motor 102 and the carriage motor 103 are connected to the ASIC 135. The ASIC 135 generates drive signals for rotating the respective motors, and controls the respective motors based on the drive signals. Each motor rotates forward or reverse according to the drive signal from the ASIC 135. For example, the control unit 130 controls the drive of the conveyance motor 102 to drive each roller or the maintenance mechanism 70. The control unit 130 also controls the recording head 39 to eject ink from the nozzles 40.

  Further, a carriage sensor 38 is connected to the ASIC 135. The control unit 130 detects the position of the carriage 23 based on the pulse signal output from the carriage sensor 38. In addition, the control unit 130 acquires various instructions from the user through the operation unit 17.

  Further, the control unit 130 controls the drive of the carriage motor 103 to move the carriage 23 back and forth. Specifically, the control unit 130 moves the carriage 23 at the first speed in the passage area. On the other hand, the control unit 130 moves the carriage 23 at a second speed that is lower than the first speed in an outer area (more specifically, an area that abuts on the contact lever 76 or the switching lever 176) deviated to the right from the passing area. Move Thereby, it is possible to suppress the meniscus of the ink droplet formed on the nozzle 40 of the recording head 39 from being broken.

[Image recording process]
The image recording process in the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. The image recording process is executed by the CPU 131 of the control unit 130. The following processing may be executed by the CPU 131 reading and executing a program stored in the ROM 132 or may be realized by a hardware circuit mounted on the control unit 130. The image recording process will be described focusing on the rotation of the first feed roller 25, the second feed roller 35, the conveyance roller 60, and the discharge roller 62, the movement of the carriage 23, or the driving of the maintenance mechanism 70. These operations are realized by driving the transport motor 102 and the carriage motor 103 as described above.

  The control unit 130 executes the image recording process shown in FIG. 9 in response to the acquisition of the recording instruction from the user. Although the acquisition destination of the recording instruction is not particularly limited, for example, it may be acquired through the operation unit 17 provided in the multifunction machine 10 or may be acquired from an external device through the communication network. The control unit 130 controls the operation of each roller and the recording unit 24 in accordance with the acquired recording instruction, and executes the image recording on the sheet 12. The recording instruction includes image data indicating an image to be recorded on the sheet 12 and feeding source information indicating a feeding source of the sheet 12 (in the present embodiment, the feeding tray 20 or the multipurpose tray 31). . Further, in the present embodiment, the cap 71 covers the recording head 39 while waiting for acquisition of the recording instruction. That is, the carriage 23 is disposed at a position in contact with the switching lever 176 at the third position. The port switching mechanism 90 at this time is in the unlocked state shown in FIG. 6 (C).

  First, the control unit 130 separates the carriage 23 from the switching lever 176. Thereby, the switching lever 176 returns to the first position. When the sheet feeding source information indicates the sheet feeding tray 20, the control unit 130 rotates the first sheet feeding roller 25 forward (S11). On the other hand, when the feed source information indicates the multipurpose tray 31, the control unit 130 moves the carriage 23 to the right until the switching lever 176 reaches the fourth position. Then, the control unit 130 causes the second feeding roller 35 to rotate forward. The sheets 12 supported by the trays 20 and 31 reach the transport roller unit 54 by the feed rollers 25 and 35 that rotate forward. The process of step S11 is an example of the feeding process.

  Next, the control unit 130 causes the sheet 12 to be conveyed to the conveyance roller 60 and the discharge roller 62 (hereinafter referred to as “conveyance unit”) by a predetermined line feed width of the conveyance direction 16 and conveyed by the predetermined line feed width. A recording process for causing the recording unit 24 to record an image on the sheet 12 is executed (S12). Step S12 is an example of a unit operation, and is repeatedly executed until image recording on the sheet 12 is completed (S13: Yes).

  In addition, the control unit 130 completes the one unit operation (S12) (S13: No) and the lever time (S14: Yes) in response to the passage of the threshold time from the idle discharge process performed immediately before (S14: A return process is performed (S15). The lever return process (an example of the return process) is a process of moving the carriage 23 to a position where the switching lever 176 reaches the third position. The control unit 130 measures an elapsed time from the end of the idle discharge process every time the idle discharge process described later is executed. The idle discharge process may also be performed while step S11 is performed after the control unit 130 acquires the recording instruction.

  Next, the control unit 130 executes the idle discharge process for causing the recording head 39 to discharge the ink toward the cap 71 (S16). At the time of execution of step S16, the switching lever 176 is in contact with the carriage 23 and disposed at the third position. Then, the control unit 130 moves the carriage 23 leftward until the switching lever 176 reaches the second position. At this time, the cap 71 descends in conjunction with the contact lever 76 moving to the left along with the movement of the carriage 23 to the left, and is positioned at the uncapping position. Then, the control unit 130 causes the recording head 39 to discharge the ink toward the cap 71 in an idle manner. Thus, the ink is discharged from the recording head 39 to the cap 71.

  Next, the control unit 130 executes the recording process again (S12). At this time, the switching lever 176 returns to the first position as the carriage 23 moves to the passing area (that is, the carriage 23 separates from the switching lever 176). On the other hand, in response to the fact that the threshold time has not elapsed from the idle discharge process performed immediately before (S14: No), the control unit 130 does not perform the process of steps S15 and S16, and performs the process of step S12. Transition. As long as the image recording on the sheet 12 is not completed (S13: No), the control unit 130 repeatedly executes the processing of steps S12 to S16.

  Then, in response to the completion of the image recording on the sheet 12 (S13: Yes), the control unit 130 executes a discharge process of discharging the sheet 12 to the discharge tray 21 (S17). Specifically, the control unit 130 causes the conveyance unit to rotate forward until the rear end of the sheet 12 (which indicates “the end on the upstream side of the conveyance direction 16”) passes the discharge roller unit 55. Then, the control unit 130 repeatedly executes the processing of steps S11 to S20 as long as all the image recording included in the recording instruction is not completed (S18: No).

  When a recording instruction to record an image on a plurality of pages is acquired, the process for discharging the first sheet 12 (an example of the first sheet) is performed, and the second sheet 12 (second Before an example sheet is executed, the processes of steps S19 and S20 may be performed. Specifically, the control unit 130 indicates that the paper feed source information indicates the multipurpose tray 31 and that the lever return processing (S15) is performed in the process of recording the image on the first page sheet 12. (S19: Yes), the lever movement process is executed (S20).

  The lever movement process (an example of the movement process) is a process of moving the switching lever 176 from the first position to the fourth position. That is, the control unit 130 moves the carriage 23 to the right until the switching lever 176 reaches the fourth position. On the other hand, the control unit 130 indicates that the lever return processing is not executed in the process of recording the image on the sheet 12 of the first page indicating the sheet feed source information (S19: No). Then, the process proceeds to step S11 without executing the process of step S20.

  Then, in response to completion of all the image recordings included in the recording instruction (S18: No), the control unit 130 executes the idle suction process (S21). The idle suction process is a process of discharging the ink stored in the cap 71 to the drainage tank 110 by driving the pump 77. First, the control unit 130 moves the carriage 23 to the right until the switching lever 176 reaches the second position or the third position.

  Next, the control unit 130 switches the switching mechanism 170 in the unlocked state to the Bk suction state, and drives the pump 77. Next, the control unit 130 switches the switching mechanism 170 in the Bk suction state to the Co suction state, and drives the pump 77. By driving the pump 77, the ink and the like in the Bk cap and the Co cap are discharged to the drainage tank 110 through the tubes 91A to 91C, the port switching mechanism 90, and the pump 77. Then, the control unit 130 switches the switching mechanism 170 to the unlocked state, and ends the idle suction process.

[Operation and effect of this embodiment]
As in the above embodiment, by performing the idle discharge process and the lever return process as a set, the subsequent recording process is executed in a state in which the switching gear 171 is engaged with the receiving gear 172A. As a result, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of the transport error caused by the switching of the transmission state of the driving force to the maintenance mechanism 70 during the recording process. In addition, by performing the idle discharge process periodically during the recording process, the deterioration of the image recording quality is also suppressed.

  In the lever return processing, the recording head 39 and the cap 71 come closest to each other. On the other hand, the amount of ink in the cap 71 also increases as the number of times the idle discharge process is performed increases. Therefore, the ink in the cap 71 may adhere to the recording head 39 in the lever return process. Therefore, it is preferable to execute the lever return process prior to the idle discharge process. However, the order of execution of the idle discharge process and the lever return process is not limited to the above example. That is, the execution order of steps S15 and S16 may be reversed.

  Further, by performing the idle discharge process and the lever return process as a set, it is not necessary to execute the lever return process when the feed process is performed. The position of the carriage 23 in the idle return process (i.e., the position of the carriage 23 in the lever return process) (i.e., as compared to the position of the carriage 23 in the feed process (an arbitrary position in the passing area)). Close to the 3rd position). Therefore, for example, it is possible to suppress a decrease in throughput when recording an image on a plurality of sheets of paper 12.

  Further, according to the above embodiment, when recording an image on a plurality of sheets 12 supported by the multipurpose tray 31, the lever movement process is executed in the process of recording the image on the sheet 12 of the first page. Depending on the situation, the lever movement process is executed prior to the feeding process of the sheet 12 of the second page. Thus, the sheet 12 of the second page can be reliably fed from the multipurpose tray 31. When the sheet supply source information indicates the multipurpose tray 31, the control unit 130 may execute the lever moving process prior to the next recording process after the idle discharge process and the lever return process.

  Also, according to the above embodiment, the idle suction process is performed after all image recording is completed. The empty suction process may be performed after the discharge process for the Nth (N is a natural number) sheet 12 and before the feed process for the (N + 1) th sheet 12.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Multifunction machine 15 ... 1st feeding part 20 ... Feeding tray 23 ... Carriage 31 ... Multipurpose tray 34 ... 2nd feeding part 39 ... Recording head 40 ... Nozzles 54 ... Transport roller sections 55 ... Discharge roller sections 70 ... Maintenance mechanisms 71 ... Caps 73 ... Lift up mechanisms 102 ... Transport motors 130 ... Control sections 170 · · · ..Switching mechanism

Claims (5)

A transport unit that transports the sheet in the transport direction;
A platen positioned downstream of the transport direction with respect to the transport unit;
A carriage that moves in the main scanning direction, an opposing area facing the platen, and an outer area positioned outside the platen in the main scanning direction intersecting the transport direction;
A recording head mounted on the carriage and having a nozzle for discharging ink;
A cap having a suction port and facing the recording head when the carriage is located in the outer area;
A pump connected to the suction port of the cap;
A motor for driving the transport unit and the pump;
It is a switching part which contacts when the carriage moves to the outer region, and whether the driving force of the motor is transmitted to the pump by moving in a state where the carriage contacts the switching part. A switching unit to switch,
And a control unit,
The switching unit in contact with the carriage moving to the outer region is
A first region in which the driving force of the motor is not transmitted to the pump;
A second region which is further from the first region than the first region in the main scanning direction and in which the driving force of the motor is transmitted to the pump;
It is movable in an area away from the platen from the second area in the main scanning direction, and is movable to a third area that can return to the first area by reaching the area.
The control unit
Based on the acquired recording instruction, recording processing including a plurality of unit operations for causing the conveyance unit to convey the sheet by the predetermined line feed width in the conveyance direction and causing the recording head to eject the ink to the sheet is executed. ,
Among the multiple unit operations,
A discharge process of moving the carriage to the outer area and discharging ink from the recording head to the cap;
Performing a return process of moving the carriage to a position where the switching unit reaches the third area;
Furthermore, in response to completion of all the recording processing included in the recording instruction, the switching unit is moved to the second area, the motor is driven to move the pump, and the storage is performed in the cap. An inkjet recording apparatus that performs suction processing for discharging ink. The control unit
Moving the carriage at a first speed within the facing area;
The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the carriage is moved at a second speed that is lower than the first speed in the outer region. The above-mentioned control part, during the above-mentioned recording processing, the idle discharge processing and the above-mentioned return which make the ink discharge from the recording head to the above-mentioned cap idlely , when the threshold time has elapsed and one of the plurality of unit operations is finished. The inkjet recording device according to claim 1, wherein the processing is performed. The inkjet recording apparatus is
A tray capable of supporting a plurality of stacked sheets;
And a feeding unit for feeding the sheet supported by the tray to the conveyance unit.
The switching unit is
When the switching unit is positioned in the first region, the driving force of the motor is transmitted to the feeding unit and the transporting unit and not transmitted to the pump.
When the switching unit is positioned in the second region, the driving force of the motor is transmitted to the transport unit and the pump and not transmitted to the feeding unit.
The inkjet recording apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the control unit executes a feeding process for feeding the sheet to the feeding unit prior to the recording process. The inkjet recording apparatus is
First and second trays capable of supporting a plurality of stacked sheets;
A first feeding unit that feeds the sheet supported by the first tray to the conveyance unit;
And a second feeding unit for feeding the sheet supported by the second tray to the conveyance unit.
The switching unit is
When the switching unit is positioned in the first region, the driving force of the motor is transmitted to the first feeding unit and the conveying unit and not transmitted to the second feeding unit and the pump.
By positioning the switching unit in a fourth region between the first region and the second region, the driving force of the motor is transmitted to the second feeding portion and the conveyance portion, and the first feeding is performed. Not transmitted to the pump and the pump,
When the switching unit is positioned in the second region, the driving force of the motor is transmitted to the transport unit and the pump, and is not transmitted to the first feeding unit and the second feeding unit.
The control unit receives the recording instruction to record the image on the first sheet and the second sheet supported by the second tray.
Feeding processing for feeding the first sheet to the second feeding unit;
Performing the recording process of recording an image on the first sheet;
The moving process for moving the switching unit from the first area to the fourth area to the carriage in response to the return process being performed in the process of the recording process for the first sheet is the second sheet The ink jet recording apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, which is performed prior to the feeding process for.

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