JPH0371264B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Technical Field to Which the Invention Pertains] The present invention relates to an ink jet recording device equipped with a capping means for cleaning the ink ejection orifice surface of the ink jet device and preventing clogging of the ejection orifices.

[Description of conventional technology]

Among the various recording methods currently known, this is a non-impact recording method that generates almost no noise during recording, and is capable of high-speed recording.
Furthermore, the so-called inkjet recording method is recognized as an extremely useful recording method, which has the advantage of being able to record on plain paper without requiring any special fixing process.

However, with this inkjet recording method, on the other hand, the ejection openings of the inkjet recording device used in this method are extremely small (generally, the aperture is on the order of tens of microns), so they can become clogged when recording is not being performed. In such cases, ink may not be ejected normally and there is a risk of recording failure.

For these reasons, in the inkjet recording method, it is almost essential to provide a means to prevent or remove clogging of the ejection port (due to adhesion of dust or drying of ink). It is thought that there is.

In the past, many proposals have been made as this type of clogging prevention and removal means, but the devices are complicated and large-scale, require a large amount of cleaning liquid, etc., and the clogging removal effect of cleaning is insufficient. However, none of them has yet reached the level where they can be put to practical use.

Furthermore, it has been difficult to apply the conventional method particularly to inkjet recording apparatuses such as multi-array orifice type inkjet recording apparatuses having hundreds to thousands of ink ejection orifices arranged in parallel.

Therefore, in view of the circumstances of such inkjet recording technology, the present invention provides a capping system for preventing clogging that guarantees good recording quality even in the case of an inkjet recording device in which multiple ejection port arrays are installed. The main purpose is to provide an inkjet recording device equipped with the following.

In other words, the main object of the present invention is to provide an inkjet recording device that guarantees stable ink ejection with a simple system and enables high-speed, high-quality inkjet recording.

An inkjet recording device of the present invention which achieves the above object is an inkjet recording device having an inkjet recording means and a cap member covering an ejection orifice area of the inkjet recording means, wherein the inkjet recording means has a plurality of ejection orifice areas. The cap member has a plurality of cap parts corresponding to the ejection port areas of each of the print heads, and each cap part has a space formed between the corresponding ejection port areas. It is characterized by having an inlet for introducing liquid or gas, and a suction port for applying suction force to the space to discharge the liquid or gas from the space.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be explained in detail based on the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic external perspective view showing an example of an ink jet recording apparatus to which the present invention is applied. In FIG. 1, 101 is a recording head unit, and this recording head unit 101 has an inkjet head section 103 as a recording head having a plurality of ejection ports (orifices) arranged in a line as shown by 102 in the figure. It is composed of a drive control section 104 and a wiring section 105, including a head section 103, a drive control section 104, and a wiring section 105.
are connected to each other by bonding wires, flexible printed boards, etc. (not shown), and the wiring portion 10
The head unit 101 is set to be capable of individual printing operation by inputting a recording signal to the head unit 5. 106 is the head unit 101
A plurality of the head units 101 are arranged on both the front and back sides of the print sheet as shown in the figure, and one ejection port is provided in the width of a predetermined printing paper (that is, one line).
02 are arranged in a so-called full line arrangement.
The fixing position of each head unit 101 in the left and right direction is adjusted by a head positioning plate 107 attached to the support plate 106, and the fixing position in the vertical direction is adjusted by a head holding plate 108 with respect to the support plate 106. It is arranged to be detachable.

109 is a matrix flexible printed board for transmitting an output signal from a signal output section (not shown) to the wiring section 105 of each head unit 101 via a cable 110 and a connector 111; Each head unit 101 is pressed into contact with an individual wiring section 105,
It is electrically connected to each wiring section 106. In this way, the printing plate 109 and each wiring section 105 are not bonded to each other and can be freely attached and detached.

Reference numeral 113 denotes a lead terminal attachment plate, which connects a signal output section (not shown) for driving the head unit 101 to another signal line 114 and each head unit 10.
A signal line (not shown) directly connected to the head portion 103 of the head 1 is securely and freely connected by screwing or the like.

115 and 115' are both ink tanks 116
This is an ink supply pipe for supplying ink from the ink to each head section 103. These ink supply tubes are
Two of them are connected to each head section 103, and when ink is ejected, ink is supplied to the head section 103 through two supply pipes 115, 115'. The mechanism allows the ink tank 116 and the head 1 to be connected, one for pressurized feeding and the other for ink recovery.
It is also possible to circulate ink under pressure between the ink and the ink.

The ink tank 116 is attached with a cylinder block 117 containing a pressure pump for operating the valve mechanism, and an air filter block 118 having a vent. A removable cap 119 is attached to prevent the water from scattering.

The ink tank 116 is also provided with an ink replenishment port (not shown), through which the ink tank 116 can be filled.
Ink is replenished from a replenishment tank 120 so that the ink level within the replenishment tank 120 remains approximately constant. This replenishment tank 120 is removably locked to the ink tank 116 by fixing claws 121, 121' provided on the ink tank 116 side, and it is possible to replace the old and new tanks as necessary. ing. The ink tank 116 is fixed on an ink tank base (not shown), and the ink tank 116 is fixed on an ink tank base (not shown).
It is also fixed to the support plate 106 by 22, 122'.

123 is a cover of the head unit 101 that is provided with grooves for fixing the ink supply pipes 115, 115';
This is to prevent the paper from being contaminated by ink or the like or from being damaged by impact during handling.

124 and 124' are positioning pins,
These are fitted into pin holders attached to a paper conveyance system (not shown) to set a predetermined distance and positional relationship between the ejection opening (orifice) 102 of each head section 103 and the recording paper. There is. Further, the positioning pins 124 and 124' are connected to the support plate 106 by respective brackets 125 and 125'.
is permanently installed.

Reference numeral 126 denotes a board for mounting the illustrated inkjet recording apparatus on an unillustrated device main body with the support plate 106 placed thereon. A mechanism and a capping mechanism for the discharge port 102 are provided.

Further, the support plate 106 has its front part supported by support plate guides 127, 127', and its rear part supported by hinge stands 128, 12 attached to the support plate 106.
8', hinge holders 129, 129'
are slidable on two guide shafts 131, 131' via guide shaft collars 130, 130', respectively. The guide shaft 131 is supported by a guide bracket 132 on the substrate 126 (the guide shaft 131' side is not shown).

Here, by advancing or changing the guide shaft collars 130, 130' along the respective guide shafts 131, 131', the support plate 106
The head can also be slid on guides 127, 127' and moved in the direction of the arrow in the figure, and the front end surface of the head can be set at a predetermined position such as a recording position, a capping position, a maintenance position, etc., as will be described later.

Reference numeral 133 denotes a cleaner (capping) head for capping and cleaning the ejection port 102, and a cap portion is provided at a position facing the ejection port area of the recording head.
This cap part has an inlet for introducing air as a gas or a cleaning liquid as a liquid in order to remove dust or solidified ink attached to the ejection port area, etc., and an inlet for discharging the introduced gas or liquid. In order to do this, it has a suction port that applies suction force to the space between the cap part and the discharge port area.

The inlet port and the suction port are each connected to a pressure side tube 1 for sending air as gas at a location not shown.
34, 134' and discharge suction side tubes 135, 135' for discharging, and also communicates with joints 136 and 137. indicates a filter (not shown), which is connected to the pressure side and suction side of the pump, respectively. Note that the cleaner head 133, which also serves as a cap for the entire recording head, is also attached to the support plate 10.
Corresponding to the movement of 6, it is set so that it can take a recording posture, a capping posture, and a maintenance posture.

In addition, the support plate 106 includes 128 hinge stands and 1
Hinge pins 138 and 1 attached to 28'
The discharge port 102 of the support plate 106 with 38' as the pivot
Rotation is when the side rotates in an arc,
This support plate 106 is constructed by joining a stay 141, one end of which is pivoted to a stay angle 140 fixed to the board 126, to the support plate 106 and crimping it to the stay angle 139 with a screw 142. It can be fixed at a desired angle to the surface.

Furthermore, attach the fixing screw 142 to the stay angle 139.
By removing the support plate 106 from the substrate 1
It can also be easily removed from 26.

Incidentally, 143 is tube 134, 134, 13
5,135' is a tube guide for fixing the cable 110 on the board 126, and 144 is a tube guide for fixing the cable 110,
This is a protective case for the signal line 144. This prevents the cable 110 and the signal line 114 from being damaged or cut due to unexpected application of external pressure when the illustrated inkjet recording device is installed in a device body (not illustrated).

FIG. 2 is a schematic external perspective view for explaining the detailed structure of the cleaner head 133 in the example shown in FIG.

In Fig. 2, the cleaner head 133 is composed of a pressurizing chamber 201, a depressurizing chamber 202, and an outer cover 203, and packings 204, 204' are inserted and secured with screws to prevent leakage between each part. It has been combined. In the pressurizing chamber 201, which corresponds to the surface of the cleaner head 133 serving as a cap member, which corresponds to the surface on which the ejection ports of the inkjet recording means are arranged, there are directional plates 205, 20 at positions corresponding to the recording head of the inkjet recording means.
5', and serves as a cap portion for capping the ejection port area of each recording head.
06, and this recess covers the ejection port area of the recording head during capping.

At both ends of each cap section 206, there is an inlet 207 for introducing gas or liquid, and an inlet 207 for applying suction force to the space created between the ejection port area of the recording head and the cap section in order to discharge the introduced gas. A suction port 207 is provided as a discharge port for operation.

The introduction port 207 of each recess 206 is connected to the pressurizing chamber 201.
Pressure fittings 209 and 209' through common grooves in
The pressure side tubes 134, 134' shown in FIG. 1 also communicate with the joint 136.

Similarly, the suction port 208 is connected to the first discharge suction joint 210, 210' via a common groove in the decompression chamber 202, which is a suction path common to the suction path of each cap part.
Discharge suction path side tubes 135, 13 shown in the figure
It communicates with the joint 137 via 5'.

Cleaner head 13 configured as described above
Brackets 211 and 211' are attached to both ends of 3, and these brackets are
The shaft 21 is pivotally attached to each support stand 213 and 213'.
2 and 212'. Also,
The brackets are pivotally attached to supports 213 and 213', respectively, and are rotatable about shafts 212 and 212'. Also, brackets 211, 21
Tension is exerted between coil springs 216, 216' held by hanging pins 214, 214', 215, 215' between the support bases 213, 213'.

Here, the interlocking operation of the cleaner head 133 and the support plate 106 on which an inkjet head unit (not shown) is mounted will be explained using FIGS. 3a, 3b, and 3c.

In FIGS. 3a, b, and c, the hinge stand 128 attached to the support plate 106 is connected to its hinge pin 138.
is locked to the hinge holder 129 by being pivotally supported in the pin receiving groove of the hinge holder 129. Guide shaft collar 13 on hinge holder
0 is inserted, the ring 3 is inserted via the spring 302.
It is locked by 01. At this time, the collar is rotatable within the holder 129. The collar is slidably fitted onto the guide shaft, and this guide shaft 131 is fixed to its bracket 132, and this bracket is further fixed to the substrate 126. There is.

The guide shaft 131 has three ring-shaped grooves 304,
305 and 306 are provided, and these three ring-shaped grooves are communicated by an axial groove 307. A guide pin is attached to the guide shaft collar 130, and this guide pin is connected to the grooves 304, 305, 30.
The guide shaft collar 130 can be fitted into a predetermined groove of No. 6, 307 and moved, and the guide shaft collar 130 can be fixed at any ring-shaped position of the guide shaft 131. That is, the guide pin 30
3 in the axial groove 307, and by fitting the guide pin 303 into one of the grooves 304, 305, and 306, the collar 130 is inserted into the groove 307 of the guide shaft 131. Can be fixed in any of the two groove positions.

First, in the embodiment of FIG. 3a, the guide pin 303
is fitted into a ring-shaped groove 304 at the right end in the figure, thereby fixing the collar 130 at a position on the guide shaft 131 (furthest from the cleaner head 133).
At this time, the hinge holder 129 is pushed to the left in the drawing via the spring 302, and the hinge stand 128 that is locked to the hinge holder 129 and the support plate 106 connected thereto are pushed against the hinge holder 129.
9 and move to the left in the drawing.

In this state, the tip of the support plate 106 is spaced apart from the cleaner head 133 (which abuts the support stand 213 and stands substantially upright). Therefore, the support plate 106 can be removed from the substrate 126,
The support plate 1 is rotated about the hinge pin 138 as a support shaft.
06 can be fixed at a position away from the cleaner head 133 at an angle with respect to the surface of the substrate 126.
03 and cleaner head 133 is easy to perform maintenance work on.

FIG. 3b shows how the guide pin 303 is connected to the guide shaft 131.
It shows the state when it is fitted into the second ring-shaped groove 305 from the upper right. At this time, Fig. 3a
The support plate 106 moves to the left in the drawing in substantially the same manner as in the case of . The support plate 106 is shown in FIG.
Compared to the embodiment shown in FIG.
The head positioning plate 107 located at the tip of the cleaner head 133 comes into contact with the cleaner head 133. In this state, the area where the ejection ports of the head section 103, which is the recording head shown in FIG. The ejection port 102 is completely covered with a concave portion 206 (shown in FIG. 2) that serves as a cap portion for covering the ejection area, and the ejection port 102 is closed during non-printing.
The discharge port can be protected from clogging (shown in FIG. 1) and adhesion of dust. In addition, after introducing air as a gas or cleaning agent as a liquid through the inlet port 207 (shown in Figure 2) of each cap part, the suction port 208 (shown in Figure 2) sucks and discharges the cleaning agent. By doing so, the ejection port surface of each recording head can be protected and cleaned by capping.

FIG. 3C shows a state in which the guide pin 303 is fitted into the third ring-shaped groove 306. The guide pin 303 is inserted into the second ring-shaped groove 305.
When moving the cleaner head 133 from the third ring-shaped groove 306 through the axial groove 307
The end bracket 211 is pushed down to the left in the drawing by a roller 309 pivotally supported by a roller stand 308 attached to the lower part of the support plate 106. In this way, when the guide pin 303 is fitted into the third ring-shaped groove 306, it is fixed in the state shown in FIG. 3C, and the positioning pins 124, 124' shown in FIG. ), the ejection port 102 is set at a predetermined distance from the paper surface, allowing the inkjet head 103 to perform printing operations. Figure 4 a, b, c are Figure 3 b
FIG. 3 is a sectional view for explaining in more detail the positional relationship between the head portion 103 and the cleaner head 133 in the state shown in FIG. Furthermore, Fig. 4a is a partial sectional view of the cleaner head cut in the longitudinal direction, and Fig. 4b is a partial cross-sectional view of the cleaner head cut in the direction of the short side of the cleaner head at the position where the injection port is located. FIG. 4c is a partial sectional view of the cleaner head cut along the short side of the cleaner head at the position where the discharge port is located.

In Figure 4 a, b, c, cleaner head 1
33 is in contact with the positioning plate 107 at the flat portion 401 of the pressurizing chamber 201, and with the ink jet head portion 103 at the convex portion 402 of the pressurizing chamber 201.
Then, the direction plates 205, 205' come into contact with the head positioning plate 107, and the ejection port surface 403 of the head section 103, which is the recording head, is almost sealed and capped in the recess 206, which is a cap section corresponding to the head section. It is becoming a state. Therefore, if the arrangement of the cleaner head 133 and the head section 103 is kept in the state shown in FIG. 3b during non-recording, the ejection ports may become clogged due to volatilization of ink from the ejection ports (not shown) or adhesion of dust. can be prevented.

In addition, even if printing defects occur due to clogging of the ejection port or adhesion of dust, air or cleaning liquid can be introduced to the ejection port surface through the inlet 207, and the introduced air or cleaning liquid can be sucked through the suction port 208. By discharging, clogging and dirt can be easily removed.

In this way, in this embodiment, the ejection opening areas of each of the plurality of recording heads provided in the inkjet recording means are individually covered with the corresponding cap parts of the cap members, and the ejection opening areas of the plurality of recording heads provided in the inkjet recording means are individually covered with the cap parts of the corresponding cap members. By introducing a cleaning liquid for cleaning and suctioning and discharging them individually, it is possible to more effectively prevent and remove clogging of the discharge port and adhesion of dust.

In addition, each introduction port 207 and suction port 208 are connected to the common groove 40 in the pressurization chamber 201 and the decompression chamber 202, respectively.
4, 405, pressure joints 209, 209', and discharge suction joints 210, 210'.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram schematically illustrating one example of a system for pumping and pumping air into the cleaner head 133.

In FIG. 5, 501 is a pump, 502, 50
6 is a three-way valve, 503 is a check valve, 504 is an accumulator, 505, 507 is a pressure switch, 5
08 is a lubricator, 509 is a filter, 51
0,511...519 are pipes.

First, the pump 501 pumps the accumulator 50.
When the pressure in the accumulator 504, which feeds air into the pump 4, reaches a predetermined pressure, the pressure switch 505 is activated, the pump 501 is stopped, and the three-way valve 502 is directed in the direction of communicating the pipes 510 and 511.

When the pressure inside the accumulator 504 reaches a predetermined pressure, the three-way valve 506 opens the pipe 514.
When 516 and 516 are communicated, the accumulator 504
The pressurized air in the pipes 514, 516, the lubricator 508, the pipe 517, the joint 136,
Cleaner head 133 through pressure side tube
sent to. At this time, the pump 501 is operated by the pressure switch 507 attached to the pipe 516 to generate negative pressure, and the cleaner head 133 and
Air is sucked through the suction side tube, joint 137, pipe 518, filter 509, and pipe 519. In other words, the pump 501 is activated when the pressure inside the accumulator 504 is below a predetermined pressure, or when the pressure inside the pipe 516 is above a predetermined pressure, and when the pressure inside the accumulator 504 is above the predetermined pressure. also works. Since the pressure inside the accumulator 504 is above a predetermined pressure, when the pump 501 is activated by the switch 507,
Pressure switch 505 causes pressurized air from pump 501 to be discharged from three-way valve 502 through pipe 511 . When the three-way valve 506 is turned in the direction in which the pipes 515 and 516 communicate, the pressurized air is stopped, the pressurized air between the three-way valve 506 and the lubricator 508 is exhausted through the pipe 515, and the pressure switch 507 stops the pump 501.

Further, if a liquid such as cleaning liquid is placed in the lubricator 508, it is possible to send only pressurized air or to forcefully send the cleaning liquid by adjusting the valve of the lubricator 508.

In the main text of the present invention, detailed explanations of the ink supply system related to the inkjet head section, the drive system of the head, etc. are omitted for convenience.

By using the inkjet recording device according to the present invention as described above, it is possible to simultaneously protect a large number of ink ejection ports from clogging due to drying of ink or adhesion of dust, without requiring multiple auxiliary devices. Stable inkjet recording can be guaranteed.

A cap member is provided to cover the ejection port areas of a plurality of recording heads, so that the ejection port surfaces can be more reliably protected.

Further, since the cap member is provided to cover the ejection opening areas of a plurality of recording heads with a cap portion, it is possible to individually remove dried ink and dust from the ejection opening areas of each recording head. It is possible to more reliably prevent clogging of the discharge port.

Since the inkjet device and its capping member can be easily and precisely aligned, capping for preventing clogging can be performed reliably.

It is possible to obtain various effects such as.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of the inkjet recording apparatus of the present invention, FIG. 2 is an external perspective view showing the detailed structure of the cleaner head, and FIGS.
Figures 4a, b, and c are partial cross-sectional views for explaining one embodiment of the present invention;
The figure is a block diagram schematically showing a cleaning system within an inkjet recording apparatus of the present invention. In the figure, 101 is a recording head unit;
2 is an ejection port, 103 is an ink jet head portion,
104 is a drive control section, 105 is a wiring section, 106 is a support plate, 107 is a head positioning plate, 108 is a head holding plate, 109 is a printed board, 126 is a board, 127 and 127' are support plate guides, and 133 is a cleaner head. , 134, 134', 135,
135' is tube, 136, 137, 209,
209', 210, 210' are joints, 138, 13
8' is a hinge pin, 142 is a screw, 143 is a tube guide, 144 is a protective case, 201 is a pressurization chamber, 202 is a decompression chamber, 203 is an outer cover, 205, 2
05' is a direction plate, 206 is a recess, 207 is an inlet,
208 is a suction port, 403 is a discharge port surface, 404, 4
05 is a common groove, 501 is a pump, 502, 50
3,506 is a valve, 504 is an accumulator, 50
5,507 is a pressure switch, 508 is a lubricator, 509 is a filter, 510, 511, 51
2,513,514,515,516,517,
518 and 519 are pipes.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. An inkjet recording device comprising an inkjet recording means and a cap member covering an ejection orifice area of the inkjet recording means, wherein the inkjet recording means has a plurality of recording heads each having the ejection orifice area. The cap member has a plurality of cap parts corresponding to the ejection port areas of each of the recording heads, and each cap part injects liquid or gas into a space created between the corresponding ejection port area. An inkjet recording device comprising: an inlet for introducing liquid or gas; and a suction port for applying suction force to the space to discharge the liquid or gas from the space. 2. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the suction ports of each of the cap portions have a common suction path within the cap member. 3. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the suction ports of each of the cap portions have a common suction path extending in the longitudinal direction of the cap member within the cap member.