JP2009132107A - Inkjet recording apparatus and control program - Google Patents

Abstract

An ink jet recording apparatus and a control program capable of appropriately grasping a platen replacement time or a cleaning time.
When performing borderless printing on a recording sheet, the amount of ink that protrudes from the leading edge of the recording sheet in the recording sheet conveyance direction and is ejected onto the platen is calculated and integrated in a process of S7, and In S8, the amount of ink that protrudes from the rear edge and is ejected onto the platen is calculated and integrated, so that the platen replacement time or the cleaning time is properly grasped.
[Selection] Figure 8

Description

  The present invention relates to an ink jet recording apparatus and a control program.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there is known an ink jet recording apparatus that forms an image on a recording sheet by ejecting ink toward the recording sheet from a recording head mounted on a carriage that reciprocates in a main scanning direction at a position facing the recording sheet. Yes.

  In recent years, the ink jet recording apparatus has a function of recording an image on a recording sheet like photographic printing. Such a function is performed without providing a margin on the edge of the recording paper, and is called “marginless recording”.

  When borderless recording is performed, the recording head ejects ink beyond the edge of the recording paper to the outside of the recording paper. For example, in borderless recording at the leading and trailing edges of the recording paper in the conveyance direction, the recording paper is positioned relative to the recording head so that some of the nozzles formed in the recording head are positioned outside the edge of the recording paper. Ink is discharged from a part of the nozzles onto a platen disposed below the recording paper. Therefore, there is a problem that ink droplets detached from the recording paper adhere to the platen and the platen becomes dirty.

  Therefore, in the following Patent Document 1, a groove 24 extending to the outside of both end edges of the recording medium P is formed in the platen 7 disposed facing the recording head 3, and the recording medium P of the recording medium P is formed in the groove 24. An ink jet recording apparatus capable of borderless recording equipped with an ink absorber 23 for collecting ink ejected to the outside is described.

Further, in Patent Document 2 below, ink jet recording in which an ink absorber 5203 that absorbs waste ink discharged from a recording head at the time of preliminary discharge is built in the platen 5200 and the platen 5200 is removable from the apparatus main body. An apparatus is described.
Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2005-262712 (paragraph “0023”, FIG. 5 etc.) JP-A-7-17087 (paragraph “0033”, FIG. 2 etc.)

  However, in the ink jet recording apparatus described in Patent Documents 1 and 2 described above, whether the ink absorber is replaced or the platen 5200 is replaced, the replacement time is left to the discretion of the exchanger. Depending on the situation, the replacement time may be early or late, and there is a problem that an appropriate replacement time cannot be grasped.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is to provide an ink jet recording apparatus and a control program capable of appropriately grasping a platen replacement time or a cleaning time.

  In order to achieve this object, an ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1 supports the recording medium from a recording head that discharges ink toward the recording medium and a surface opposite to the surface facing the recording head. A platen, including size information indicating information about the size of the recording medium, and ejecting ink from the recording head to an area larger than the size of the recording medium indicated by the size information to the recording medium An acquisition unit that acquires an execution command for borderless recording for recording an image, and when the execution command is acquired by the acquisition unit, creates recording data for performing the marginless recording on a recording medium indicated by the size information And an accumulator for accumulating the amount of ink ejected from the recording medium and ejected onto the plantain based on the recording data created by the creating means. It is equipped with a door.

  The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 2 is the ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the ink jet recording apparatus is disposed at a predetermined position spaced apart from the recording head upstream in the conveyance direction of the recording medium by a predetermined distance. Detecting means for detecting the timing at which the leading edge of the recording medium being conveyed reaches the predetermined position and the timing at which the trailing edge of the recording medium passes through the predetermined position, and the integrating means comprises: Based on the timing at which the leading edge of the recording medium detected by the detecting means reaches the predetermined position, the amount of ink that protrudes from the leading edge of the recording medium and is ejected onto the plantain is integrated and detected by the detecting means The trailing edge of the recording medium protrudes from the trailing edge of the recording medium based on the timing when the trailing edge of the recording medium passes the predetermined position Accumulating the amount of ink ejected onto Ten.

  An ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 3 is the ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the recording head is mounted at a position facing the recording medium and reciprocally moves in the main scanning direction, and the carriage. A width detecting means for detecting the width of the recording medium in the main scanning direction, and a prohibiting means for prohibiting ink from being ejected out of the width of the recording medium based on a detection result of the width detecting means. And.

  An ink jet recording apparatus according to a fourth aspect of the invention is the ink jet recording apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, further comprising a non-volatile storage unit that stores an ink amount integrated by the integration unit.

  To achieve this object, a control program according to claim 5 includes a recording head that ejects ink toward a recording medium, and a platen that supports the recording medium from a surface opposite to the surface facing the recording head. Including the size information indicating the size of the recording medium, and ejecting ink from the recording head to an area larger than the size of the recording medium indicated by the size information. An acquisition step for acquiring an execution command for marginless recording for recording an image on a recording medium, and for acquiring marginless recording on the recording medium indicated by the size information when the execution command is acquired in the acquisition step A creation step for creating recording data, and the planten projecting from the recording medium based on the recording data created in the creation step. And a cumulative step of accumulating the amount of ink to be ejected.

  According to the ink jet recording apparatus of claim 1, recording is performed by ejecting ink from the recording head to an area larger than the size of the recording medium indicated by the size information, including size information indicating information regarding the size of the recording medium. Recording data for borderless recording on the recording medium indicated by the size information included in the execution command acquired by the acquisition means when the acquisition means acquires the execution instruction of borderless recording for recording an image on the medium Is created by the creating means. Based on the recording data for borderless recording created by the creating means, the amount of ink that protrudes from the recording medium and is ejected onto the plantain is accumulated by the accumulating means. Therefore, there is an effect that the amount of ink ejected onto the plantain can be found from the accumulated ink amount, and the platen replacement time or the cleaning time can be appropriately grasped based on the ink amount.

  According to the ink jet recording apparatus of the second aspect, in addition to the effect produced by the ink jet recording apparatus of the first aspect, the amount of ink that protrudes from the front end of the recording medium and is ejected onto the plantain is determined by the recording head to the recording medium. Is integrated based on the timing at which it is detected that the leading edge of the recording medium has reached the predetermined position by the detection means disposed at a predetermined position that is separated by a predetermined interval on the upstream side in the transport direction. The amount of ink that protrudes from the rear end of the recording medium and is ejected onto the plantain is integrated based on the timing at which the detection means detects that the rear end of the recording medium has passed the predetermined position. The Accordingly, the actual position of the recording medium in the conveyance direction of the recording medium with respect to the recording head can be accurately grasped, and the amount of ink that protrudes from the leading edge and the trailing edge of the recording medium and is ejected onto the platen can be accurately grasped. Accordingly, there is an effect that it is possible to more appropriately grasp the platen replacement time or the cleaning time.

  According to the ink jet recording apparatus of the third aspect, in addition to the effect exhibited by the ink jet recording apparatus according to the first or second aspect, the width of the recording medium in the main scanning direction is mounted on the carriage that reciprocates in the main scanning direction. It is detected by the width detecting means. Then, based on the detection result, the prohibiting unit prohibits the ink from being ejected beyond the width of the recording medium. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the platen from being unnecessarily soiled and to replace the platen based on the ink amount as long as the amount of ink ejected from the leading and trailing ends in the recording medium conveyance direction is integrated. Or, there is an effect that the cleaning time can be properly grasped.

  According to the ink jet recording apparatus of the fourth aspect, in addition to the effect produced by the ink jet recording apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, the ink amount integrated by the integrating means is stored in the non-volatile storage means. Therefore, for example, a judge who determines whether or not it is necessary to replace or clean the platen can check the ink amount stored in the storage means to replace or clean the platen. There is an effect that it is possible to objectively and appropriately determine whether or not it is necessary to do so.

  According to the control program of claim 5, the recording medium includes size information indicating information about the size of the recording medium, and ejects ink from the recording head to an area larger than the size of the recording medium indicated by the size information. When an execution command for borderless recording for recording an image is acquired by the acquisition step, recording data for borderless recording is recorded on the recording medium indicated by the size information included in the execution command acquired in the acquisition step. Created by the creation step. Then, based on the recording data for performing borderless recording created in the creating step, the amount of ink that protrudes from the recording medium and is ejected onto the plantain is accumulated in the integrating step. Therefore, there is an effect that the amount of ink ejected onto the plantain can be found from the accumulated ink amount, and the platen replacement time or the cleaning time can be appropriately grasped based on the ink amount.

  FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a multifunction machine 10 according to an embodiment of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention. The multi-function device 10 is a multi-function device (MFD) having a printer unit 11 at the bottom and a scanner unit 12 at the top, and has a printer function, a scanner function, a copy function, and a facsimile function. . The printer unit 11 of the multifunction machine 10 corresponds to the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention. In the multi function device 10, functions other than the printer function are arbitrary and may be omitted. That is, the present invention may be implemented as a single-function printer that does not have the scanner unit 12 and does not have a scanner function or a copy function.

  The multi-function device 10 is connected to a personal computer (not shown), and based on print data including image data and document data transmitted from the personal computer, images and documents are recorded on a recording sheet as an example of a recording medium. To be recorded. However, the usage mode of the multifunction device 10 is not limited to such a mode, and the multifunction device 10 is connected to an external device such as a digital camera, and image data output from the digital camera is recorded on a recording sheet or a memory. Various storage media such as a card can be loaded in the multi-function peripheral 10 and image data stored in the storage medium can be recorded on a recording sheet. Note that the configuration of the multifunction machine 10 disclosed in this specification is an example of the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention, and the configuration can be appropriately changed without departing from the gist of the present invention. is there.

  The printer unit 11 has an opening 13 formed in the front, and a paper feed tray 14 and a paper discharge tray 15 are provided in two upper and lower stages so that a part of the opening 13 is exposed. The paper feed tray 14 is for storing recording paper. The recording paper stored in the paper feed tray 14 is fed into the printer unit 11 and is discharged to the paper discharge tray 15 after a desired image is recorded.

  An operation panel 20 is provided on the upper front portion of the multifunction machine 10. The operation panel 20 includes various operation buttons and a liquid crystal display unit for operating the printer unit 11 and the scanner unit 12. The multifunction device 10 operates based on an operation instruction from the operation panel 20. When the multifunction device 10 is connected to a personal computer, the multifunction device 10 operates based on an instruction transmitted from the personal computer via a printer driver or a scanner driver. Further, a slot portion 21 is provided on the front surface of the multifunction machine 10. Various small memory cards which are storage media are loaded in the slot portion 21. Based on the input from the operation panel 20, the image data recorded in the small memory card loaded in the slot unit 21 is read, and information on the image data is displayed on the liquid crystal display unit, or an arbitrary image is displayed. The data is recorded on the recording paper by the printer unit 11.

  FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a main configuration of the printer unit 11. The printer unit 11 is mainly provided with a paper feed tray 14, a paper feed roller 25 installed above the paper feed tray 14, and an upright position from the back of the paper feed tray 14. A recording medium that is provided on the downstream side of the conveyance guide body 50 and between the conveyance roller 60 and the paper discharge roller 62 so as to be reciprocally movable. A head 39 and a platen 42 arranged to face the ink ejection surface of the recording head 39 are provided.

  The paper feed tray 14 is formed in a substantially box shape with an open upper surface, and recording paper is stacked and stored therein. A support portion 14a for supporting a paper discharge tray 15 (not shown in FIG. 1) (see FIG. 1) is formed on the side wall of the paper feed tray 14, and the paper discharge tray 15 slides on the support portion 14a. Supported as possible.

  The paper feed roller 25 rotates in contact with the recording paper loaded on the paper feed tray 14 and feeds the recording paper to the transport roller 60 via a transport path formed in the transport guide body 50. To do. The paper feed roller 25 is rotatably supported at one end of the arm 51. The arm 51 is supported in a pendulum-like manner so as to be pivotable with respect to the shaft 52, and the angle formed by the arm 51 and the recording sheet is variable according to the amount of recording paper stacked on the paper feed tray 14. Is configured to do. In addition, a plurality of gears (not shown) are arranged in a straight line inside the arm 51, and the paper feed roller 25 rotates through the gears.

  The transport guide body 50 forms a transport path for transporting the recording paper fed from the paper feed roller 25 to the transport roller 60 in a U-shape. A driven roller (not shown) that rotates following the conveying roller 60 is disposed opposite to the conveying roller 60, and the recording paper conveyed via the conveying path is conveyed between the conveying roller 60 and the driven roller. And conveyed between the recording head 39 and the platen 42.

  The recording head 39 forms an image by ejecting ink droplets, and is mounted on the carriage 38 and configured to reciprocate in the main scanning direction. Ink of each color of cyan (C), magenta (M), yellow (Y), and black (Bk) is supplied to the recording head 39 from an ink cartridge (not shown) that is detachably installed in the multifunction machine 10. The

  The carriage 38 is provided with a media sensor 27 (see FIG. 7) that detects the presence or absence of a recording sheet on the platen 42. The media sensor 27 includes a light source and a light receiving element, and light emitted from the light source is applied to the recording paper conveyed on the platen 42, while the recording paper is not conveyed up to the platen 42. Is irradiated to the platen 42. Then, the light irradiated on the recording paper or the platen 42 is reflected, and the light receiving element receives the reflected light, and outputs according to the amount of light received. This makes it possible to detect whether a recording sheet is present at a predetermined position in the main scanning direction facing the media sensor 27.

  The platen 42 is disposed below the recording head 39 and supports the recording paper conveyed from the conveying roller 60 from the side opposite to the recording head 39. The recording head 39 supplied with ink ejects ink to the platen 42 as fine ink droplets while reciprocating, and forms an image on the recording paper conveyed on the platen 42. A maintenance unit 48 provided with a purge mechanism, a waste ink tray and the like is disposed at a position adjacent to the platen 42 in the main scanning direction. These maintenance units 48 perform maintenance such as removal of air bubbles and mixed color ink in the recording head 39.

  A discharge roller 62 that is disposed with the platen 42 sandwiched between the conveyance rollers 60 is opposed to a driven roller (not shown) that rotates following the discharge roller 62. And the platen 42, a recorded recording sheet conveyed between the sheet discharge roller 60 and the driven roller is discharged to the sheet discharge tray 15 (see FIG. 1).

  FIG. 3A is an enlarged perspective view showing the upper surface of the platen 42 shown in FIG. 2 in an enlarged manner. FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view of the platen 42 taken along the line IIIb-IIIb in FIG. 3A. Note that the direction of the arrow H in FIG. 3A indicates the conveyance direction of the recording paper.

  The platen 42 is disposed to face the recording head 39 and supports the recording paper to be conveyed. The platen 42 mainly includes the frame 41, the movable rib 46, and a drive mechanism 58 (see FIG. 5).

  The frame 41 forms a skeleton of the platen 42 and is configured in a hollow box shape. For example, it is made of a synthetic resin or a steel plate and is fixed to the multifunction machine 10. On the upper surface of the frame 41, a plurality of slits 49 extending in the transport direction are formed in parallel. A part of the movable rib 46 provided in the hollow box-shaped frame 41 protrudes from the slit 49. The movable rib 46 reciprocates in the conveyance direction in the frame 41 of the platen 42 in the conveyance direction and in the opposite direction, and supports the recording sheet by a portion protruding from the slit 49 to convey the recording sheet.

  As shown in FIG. 3B, on the inner surface of the side wall of the frame 41, a first ink absorber 47a is installed on the upstream side in the transport direction, and a second ink absorber 47b is installed on the downstream side. The first and second ink absorbers 47 a and 47 b are for absorbing ink concentrated on the end portions 46 a and 46 b of the movable rib 46 and removing the ink from the movable rib 46. The first and second ink absorbers 47a and 47b can be made of, for example, a material capable of absorbing ink such as sponge and foam.

  Next, the movable rib 46 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a state in which the upper cover of the frame 41 of the platen 42 is removed. FIG. 5 is an enlarged perspective view of the rib 53 shown in part A of FIG. The movable rib 46 is provided with a rib base 52 formed in a box shape, and a rib 53 protruding from the rib base 52.

  The rib base 52 is a base for standing a plurality of ribs 53, and is connected to a drive mechanism 58 described later through a long hole 54 formed in the bottom plate 41a of the frame 41. It is slidably supported in the opposite direction.

  A plurality of ribs 53 are arranged in parallel on the upper surface of the rib base 52 at predetermined intervals along the main scanning direction. The rib 53 is formed in a mountain shape, and a groove 53 a extending from the top toward the upstream side in the transport direction H and a groove 53 b extending from the top toward the downstream side in the transport direction H are formed. The ink discharged from the recording head 39 flows down the grooves 53a and 53b and concentrates on the end portions 46a and 46b of the movable rib.

  Then, the rib base 52 is slid in the transport direction H and the opposite direction by the drive mechanism 58, and the end portions 46a and 46b of the movable rib 46 are brought into contact with the first and second ink absorbers 47a and 47b. The ink concentrated on the portions 46 a and 46 b can be absorbed by the first and second ink absorbers 47 a and 47 b, and the ink can be removed from the movable rib 46.

  Note that the arrangement pitch of the ribs 53 corresponds to the pitch of the slits 49 (see FIG. 3) formed on the upper surface of the frame 41, and the top portions of the ribs 53 protrude from the slits 49 to form recording paper. Is supported from the opposite side of the recording head 39.

  Next, the drive mechanism 58 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the platen 42 as seen from the back side (the side opposite to the recording head 39). The drive mechanism 58 is for sliding the movable rib 46 in the transport direction and in the opposite direction, and is provided with a transmission mechanism 511, a rotating plate 512, and a connecting bar 513.

  The transmission mechanism 511 is disposed adjacent to one end side of the movable rib 46, and includes a plurality of roller groups that transmit a rotational force from the paper discharge roller 62 to the rotating plate 512. Further, the transmission mechanism 511 is provided with a carriage lever (not shown) that blocks the rotational force transmitted from the paper discharge roller 62 to the rotating plate 512 when the movable rib 46 is in an initial position described later. When the movable rib 46 is in the initial position, no rotational force is transmitted from the paper discharge roller 62 to the rotating plate 512 by the carriage lever, and the carriage 38 collides with the carriage lever, so that the paper discharge roller 62 The rotational force is allowed to be transmitted to the rotating plate 512.

  The rotating plate 512 is formed in a disk shape and is rotatably supported by a rotating shaft 514 (see FIG. 4). The rotating plate 512 is formed with a cam groove 515 that is eccentric with respect to the rotating shaft 514.

  The connecting bar 513 connects the rotating plate 512 and the movable rib 46. One end of the connecting bar 513 is connected to the cam groove 515 of the rotating plate 512 via an engaging pin (not shown), and the other end is connected to the movable rib 46 via an engaging pin (not shown) penetrating the long hole 54. (Rib base 53). In addition, the connection bar 513 is rotatably connected at one end and the other end sandwiching the rotation shaft 516 around the rotation shaft 516. Therefore, when the rotating plate 512 rotates, the connecting bar 513 swings in an arc shape around the rotating shaft 516 as the rotating plate 512 rotates, and the movable rib 46 moves on the frame 41 in the conveying direction H. And move in the opposite direction.

  FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the control unit 64 of the multifunction machine 10. The control unit 64 controls the overall operation of the multifunction machine 10 including not only the printer unit 11 but also the scanner unit 12. However, since the scanner unit 12 is not the main configuration of the present invention, detailed description thereof is omitted. As shown in the figure, the control unit 64 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 65, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 66, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 67, and an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable and Programmable ROM 68 main ROM 68). And is connected to an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) 70 via a bus 69.

  The ROM 66 stores a program for controlling various operations of the multifunction machine 10. For example, a printing process control program 66a that executes the printing process shown in FIG. 8 and a cleaning program 66b that executes the cleaning process shown in FIG. 12 are stored. The RAM 67 is used as a storage area or a work area for temporarily recording various data used when the CPU 65 executes the program, and is provided with a platen dot counter 67a. The platen dot counter 67 a is a counter that accumulates the amount of ink ejected onto the platen 42.

  The EEPROM 68 stores settings and flags that should be retained even after the power is turned off. The EEPROM 68 is provided with a protrusion amount 68a, a first reciprocation number counter 68b, and a second reciprocation number counter 68c. The protrusion amount memory 68a is a memory that stores the total value of the amount of ink ejected onto the platen 42 so far based on the integrated value of the platen dot count 67a. The cleaning process for cleaning the platen 42 is automatically executed when the value stored in the protrusion amount memory exceeds a predetermined threshold value. The first reciprocation counter 68b counts the number of collisions between the end 46a of the movable rib 46 and the first ink absorber 47a in the cleaning process, and the second reciprocation counter 68c The number of collisions between the end 46b and the first ink absorber 47b is counted.

  The ASIC 70 generates a phase excitation signal and the like for energizing the LF (conveyance) motor 71 in accordance with a command from the CPU 65, applies the signal to the drive circuit 72 of the LF motor 71, and drives the drive signal via the drive circuit 72. The LF motor 71 is rotated by energizing the LF motor 71.

  The drive circuit 72 drives the LF motor 71 connected to the paper feed roller 25, the transport roller 60, the paper discharge roller 62, etc., and receives the output signal from the ASIC 70 to rotate the LF motor 71. Form an electrical signal. The LF motor 71 rotates in response to the electric signal, and the rotational force of the LF motor 71 is supplied to the paper feed roller 25, the transport roller 60, and the paper discharge roller 62 via a known drive mechanism including a gear, a drive shaft, and the like. Communicated.

  The ASIC 70 generates a phase excitation signal and the like for energizing a CR (carriage) motor 73 in accordance with a command from the CPU 65, applies the signal to the drive circuit 74 of the CR motor 73, and drives the drive signal via the drive circuit 74. Is applied to the CR motor 73 to control the rotation of the CR motor 73.

  The drive circuit 74 drives the CR motor 73 connected to the carriage 38 and receives an output signal from the ASIC 70 to form an electrical signal for rotating the CR motor 73. Upon receipt of the electrical signal, the CR motor 73 rotates, and the rotational force of the CR motor 73 is transmitted to the carriage 38, whereby the carriage 38 is reciprocated.

  The drive circuit 75 selectively ejects ink from the recording head 39 to the recording paper at a predetermined timing. The drive circuit 75 receives an output signal generated by the ASIC 70 based on a drive control procedure output from the CPU 65. The recording head 39 is driven and controlled.

  The ASIC 70 includes a scanner unit 12, an operation panel 20 for instructing operation of the multifunction device 10, a slot unit 21 into which various small memory cards are inserted, an external device such as a personal computer, and data via a parallel cable or a USB cable. Are connected to a parallel interface 78, a USB interface 79, a registration sensor 26, and the like. Further, an NCU (Network Control Unit) 80 and a modem (MODEM) 81 for realizing the facsimile function are connected.

  The registration sensor 26 is installed between the paper feed roller 25 and the transport roller 60, and outputs an “ON” signal when the leading edge of the recording paper fed from the paper feed roller 25 is detected. When “OFF” is detected, an “OFF” signal is output.

  Next, the printing process will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the printing process. This printing process is executed as a printer function installed in the multifunction device 10, for example, a process executed based on a print command output from a personal computer connected to the multifunction device 1. .

  In this process, first, when a print command is output from a personal computer, an initial process is performed. In this initial process, various settings, flags, and the like are initialized, and the output print command is stored. This print command includes a print type (for example, normal printing, borderless printing in which printing paper is not provided with a margin), size information indicating the size of the recording paper, recording paper type, and resolution. , Number of copies, layout, etc. are included. When the initial process is completed, printing of the first page is started (S1).

  First, it is determined whether the print type instructed by the print command is borderless printing (S2). If it is not borderless printing (S2: No), the first page is printed without executing the processing described later. (S3) This process is terminated.

  On the other hand, if it is an instruction to perform borderless printing (S2: Yes), the recording data for ejecting ink is generated in a range exceeding the instructed recording paper, and the paper feed roller 25 is driven to record the recording paper. Is conveyed toward the recording head 39. Then, it is determined whether the fed recording paper has reached the installation position of the registration sensor 26, that is, whether the registration sensor 26 is ON (S4), and the process of S4 is repeated until it is turned ON (S4: No). ).

  When the registration sensor 26 is turned on (S4: Yes), it is assumed that the recording paper has reached the registration sensor installation position, and the CR motor 73 is driven so that the carriage 38 collides with the carriage lever. The LF motor 71 is driven so that the movable rib 46 is moved to the first position where 47a and the end 46a of the movable rib 46 are in contact with each other. When the movable rib 46 reaches the first position, the recording sheet is conveyed onto the movable rib 46 from the conveyance roller 60 via the installation position of the registration sensor 26.

  When the recording paper is conveyed to a position facing the carriage 38, the carriage 38 is reciprocated in the main scanning direction, and the media sensor 27 mounted on the carriage 38 causes the width (position) of the recording paper in the main scanning direction. Is detected (S5). Then, ink droplets are ejected from the recording head 39 to the leading edge (the edge on the downstream side in the transport direction) of the recording paper within the range of the width (position) in the main scanning direction of the recording paper detected in S5. Then, an image is printed on the leading edge of the recording paper (S6).

  That is, in the present embodiment, in the process of S5, the width (position) of the recording paper in the main scanning direction is detected, and control is performed so that ink is not ejected beyond the width of the recording paper in the main scanning direction. Unnecessary contamination of the platen 42 can be prevented.

  On the other hand, when printing an image on the leading edge of the recording paper, ink is ejected from the leading edge of the recording paper to the downstream side in the transport direction. The amount of ink depends on the resolution and the size of the ink droplets. The calculation result is added to the platen dot counter 67a (S7). For example, the ink amount is calculated and integrated as 11 pl if the resolution instructed by the print command is 1200 × 2400 dpi and the size of the ink droplet is large, 4 pl if the size is medium, and 2 pl if the size is small. Accordingly, it is possible to accurately grasp the amount of ink ejected from the leading edge of the recording sheet to the downstream side in the transport direction.

  The processes of S6 and S7 are repeated until the printing of the leading edge of the recording paper is completed (S8: No). When the printing of the leading edge of the recording paper is completed (S8: Yes), the recording paper is continuously printed. The intermediate printing is executed (S9). During this time, the movable rib 46 follows the conveyance of the recording paper, and the LF motor 71 moves so that the movable rib 46 moves to a second position where the second ink absorber 47b and the end portion 46b of the movable rib 46 contact each other. Drive. When the movable rib 46 reaches the second position, the LF motor 71 is driven so that the movable rib 46 moves to the initial position again.

  The processing so far will be described with reference to FIGS. 9, 10, and 11. FIG. 9 and 10 are diagrams schematically showing the operation of the movable rib 46 and the recording head 39 in the printing process. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the recording paper P to be printed without borders. In FIG. 11, the main scanning direction in which the carriage 38 reciprocates in the left-right direction in the drawing, the direction from the lower side to the upper side in the drawing in the sub-scanning direction, which is the conveyance direction of the recording paper P, and the downstream side in the conveyance direction of the recording paper P. The leading edge of the recording paper P, the upstream trailing edge S2 of the recording paper P, the area R1 protruding from the leading edge S1 of the recording paper P, and the ink discharging from the trailing edge S2 of the recording paper P. The region to be processed is shown as R2.

  As shown in FIG. 9A, in the initial state (the state before the execution of borderless printing is instructed), the movable rib 46 is located at the initial position that is the center position of the movable range of the movable rib 46. . In this state, the movement of the movable rib 46 in the direction opposite to the conveyance direction H is restricted by the carriage lever. Therefore, when execution of borderless printing is instructed and the leading edge portion of the recording sheet is detected by the registration sensor 26, the carriage 38 is caused to collide with the carriage lever and the restriction is released.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 9B, the LF motor 71 is driven, and the movable rib 46 positioned at the initial position is brought into contact with the first ink absorber 47a and the end 46a of the movable rib 46. Move to. Then, the leading end of the recording sheet P conveyed by the conveying roller 60 is supported by the movable rib 46, and after the position (width) of the recording sheet P in the main scanning direction is detected, the recording head is directed toward the leading end of the recording sheet P. Ink is ejected from 39.

  In this case, as shown in FIG. 11, ink is also ejected to a region R1 (on the rib 53 of the movable rib 46) downstream of the leading edge S1 of the recording paper P, and the amount of ink ejected to this region R1. Is calculated and added to the platen dot counter 67a.

  After that, as shown in FIG. 9C, the LF motor 71 is driven to move the movable rib 46 from the first position to absorb the second ink so as to follow the recording paper P conveyed by the conveying roller 60. Ink is ejected from the recording head 39 to the intermediate portion of the recording paper P while being moved to the second position where the body 47b and the end portion 46b of the movable rib 46 contact each other.

  When the movable rib 46 moves to the second position, the ink flowing down along the groove 53b and concentrating on the end 46b of the movable rib 46 while the movable rib 46 is moving becomes the second ink absorber. Absorbed by 47b.

  Then, after the movable rib 46 is stopped at the second position for a predetermined time, as shown in FIG. 10A, the LF motor 71 is driven to move the movable rib 46 located at the second position to the initial position. Let In addition, by stopping the movable rib 46 at the second position for a predetermined time, it is possible to secure a time for absorbing the ink concentrated on the end portion 46b of the movable rib 46 by the second ink absorber 47b.

  Again, returning to FIG. In S9, when printing of the intermediate portion of the recording paper P is completed and the movable rib 46 is moved again to the initial position, it is next determined whether or not the registration sensor 26 is OFF (S10). That is, it is determined whether the trailing end on the upstream side in the conveyance direction of the recording sheet has passed the registration sensor installation position. And if it is not OFF (S10: No), the process of S10 will be repeated, and if it is OFF (S10: Yes), S11-S13 will be performed similarly to S6-S8 mentioned above.

  S11 to S13 are processes for calculating and integrating the amount of ink ejected from the rear edge to the upstream side in the transport direction while printing an image on the rear edge of the recording paper. Accordingly, as described above, when the registration sensor 26 is turned off (S10: Yes), the CR motor 73 is driven so that the carriage 38 collides with the carriage lever, assuming that the recording paper has passed the registration sensor installation position. At the same time, the LF motor 71 is driven so that the movable rib 46 moves to the first position where the first ink absorber 47a and the end 46a of the movable rib 46 contact each other. When the movable rib 46 reaches the first position, the recording sheet is conveyed onto the movable rib 46 from the conveyance roller 60 via the installation position of the registration sensor 26.

  Then, ink droplets are ejected from the recording head 39 to the trailing edge of the recording paper, and an image is printed on the trailing edge of the recording paper (S11). In this case as well, as described above, the amount of ink ejected from the trailing edge of the recording sheet to the upstream side in the transport direction is calculated, and the calculation result is added to the platen dot counter 67a (S12). Thereby, the total amount of the ink amount ejected from the leading edge of the recording paper to the downstream side in the transport direction and the ink amount ejected from the trailing edge of the recording paper to the upstream side in the transport direction, that is, When printing the first page, the amount of ink ejected onto the platen 42 can be accurately grasped.

  The processes of S11 and S12 are repeated until printing of the trailing edge of the recording sheet is completed (S13: No). When printing of the trailing edge of the recording sheet is completed (S13: Yes), the platen dot counter 67a The value is stored in the protrusion amount memory 68a (S14). During this time, the movable rib 46 follows the conveyance of the recording paper, and the LF motor 71 moves so that the movable rib 46 moves to a second position where the second ink absorber 47b and the end portion 46b of the movable rib 46 contact each other. Drive. When the movable rib 46 reaches the second position, the LF motor 71 is driven so that the movable rib 46 moves to the initial position again. Thus, this process is completed.

  The processing so far will be described with reference to FIGS. 9, 10, and 11. FIG. As shown in FIG. 10A, the movable rib 46 is in the initial position until the registration sensor 26 is turned off. When the registration sensor 26 is turned off, that is, when the trailing edge of the recording paper P has passed the registration sensor installation position, the carriage 38 collides with the carriage lever, and the movable rib 46 moves in the direction opposite to the conveyance direction H. Release moving.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 10B, the LF motor 71 is driven to move the movable rib 46 located at the initial position to the first position. Then, the rear end of the recording paper P conveyed by the conveyance roller 60 is supported by the movable rib 46. When the trailing edge of the recording paper P is supported by the movable rib 46, ink droplets are ejected from the recording head 39 to the trailing edge of the recording paper P.

  In this case, as shown in FIG. 11, ink is also ejected to the region R2 upstream of the trailing edge S2 of the recording paper P (on the rib 53 of the movable rib 46), and the ink ejected to this region R2. The amount is calculated and added to the platen dot counter 67a.

  After that, as shown in FIG. 10C, the LF motor 71 is driven again, and the movable rib 46 is moved from the first position so as to follow the recording sheet P conveyed by the conveying roller 60. 2 Move the ink absorber 47b to the second position where the end 46b of the movable rib 46 comes into contact. Then, after a predetermined time, the LF motor 71 is driven again to move the movable rib 46 located at the second position to the initial position.

  Note that the ink that adheres to the groove 53a formed in the rib 53 of the movable rib 46 and concentrates on the end 46a of the movable rib 46 along the groove 53a is the next recording paper (see FIG. When borderless printing is performed for the unillustrated), as shown in FIG. 9B, the movable rib 46 moves to the first position, and is absorbed by the first ink absorber 47a during this period.

  Next, the cleaning process will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing the cleaning process. FIG. 13 is a diagram schematically showing the operation of the movable rib 46 in the cleaning process. The cleaning process is a process for removing (cleaning) the ink adhering to the movable rib 46, and is executed every predetermined time according to the cleaning program 66b.

  In this process, first, it is determined whether or not the value stored in the protrusion amount memory 68a is greater than or equal to a predetermined threshold (S1201). If it is not equal to or greater than the threshold value (S1201: No), this process is terminated, the cleaning process is performed wastefully, and deterioration of the first and second ink absorbers 47a and 47b is suppressed.

  On the other hand, if the value stored in the protrusion amount memory 68a is equal to or greater than the threshold (S1201: Yes), the first and second round-trip counters 68a and 68b are initialized (S1202). Then, after driving the CR motor 73 to cause the carriage 38 to collide with the carriage lever, the movable rib 46 moves to the first position where the first ink absorber 47a and the end 46a of the movable rib 46 come into contact with each other. Next, the LF motor 71 is driven (S1203).

  In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 13A, after the borderless printing is performed, the movable rib 46 is positioned at the initial position. When it is located, the movement of the movable rib 46 in the direction opposite to the conveyance direction H is restricted by the carriage lever. Therefore, the carriage 38 is caused to collide with the carriage lever and the restriction is released.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 13B, the movable rib 46 moves to the first position where the first ink absorber 47a and the end portion 46a of the movable rib 46 come into contact with each other. As described above, a predetermined pulse is output to the LF motor 71.

  Returning to FIG. 12, the description will be continued. When the movable rib 46 reaches the first position, it is determined whether or not a predetermined time has elapsed (S1204). Thereby, the time for the first ink absorber 47a to absorb the ink concentrated on the end 46a of the movable rib 46 can be secured.

  Next, after adding “1” to the first round-trip number counter 68a (S1205), it is determined whether the first round-trip number counter 68a is equal to or greater than a threshold (S1206). As a result, if it is determined that it is not equal to or greater than the threshold value (S1206: No), the LF motor 71 reciprocally moves the movable rib 46 between the first position and a third position that is a predetermined distance away from the first position. A predetermined pulse is output to (S1207). Thereafter, the processing from S1204 is repeated again. That is, the process of S1207 is repeated until the first round-trip number counter 68a becomes equal to or greater than the threshold (S1206: Yes).

  In this way, in the processing of S1207, as shown in FIG. 13B, the movable rib 46 located at the first position is moved to the third position that is a predetermined distance away from the first position in the transport direction H (one point). After that, the movable rib 46 is moved again to the first position, and after a predetermined time has elapsed, the same reciprocating movement is controlled again. This is repeated several times.

  By this reciprocating movement, even if the movable rib 46 is vibrated and there is ink staying on the groove 53a, the staying ink flows down along the groove 53a to the end 46a of the movable rib 46. The ink can be concentrated, and the ink can be absorbed by the first ink absorber 47a.

  On the other hand, in the process of S1206, when it is determined that the first reciprocation number counter 68a is equal to or greater than the threshold (S1206: Yes), the movable rib is positioned at the second position where the second ink absorber 47b and the movable rib 46 come into contact. A predetermined pulse is output to the LF motor 71 so that 46 moves (S1208). That is, the movable rib 46 (see the solid line) located at the first position in FIG. 13B is moved to the second position in FIG. 13C (see the solid line).

  Then, when the movable rib 46 reaches the second position, it is determined whether or not a predetermined time has elapsed (S1209). Thereby, the time for the second ink absorber 47b to absorb the ink concentrated on the other end portion 46b of the movable rib 46 can be secured.

  Next, after adding “1” to the second round-trip number counter 68b (S1120), it is determined whether the second round-trip number counter 68b is equal to or greater than a threshold (S1211). As a result, if it is determined that it is not equal to or greater than the threshold value (S1211: No), the LF motor 71 reciprocally moves the movable rib 46 between the second position and a fourth position that is a predetermined distance away from the second position. A predetermined pulse is output to (S1212). Thereafter, the processing from S1204 is repeated again. That is, the process of S1212 is repeated until the second round-trip number counter 68b becomes equal to or greater than the threshold (S1211: Yes).

  Thus, in the process of S1212, as shown in FIG. 13C, the movable rib 46 positioned at the second position is moved to the fourth position away from the second position by a predetermined distance in the direction opposite to the transport direction H. Then, the movable rib 46 is moved again to the second position, and when a predetermined time has elapsed, the same reciprocating movement is controlled again. This is repeated several times.

  By this reciprocating movement, even if the movable rib 46 is vibrated and there is ink staying on the groove 53b, the staying ink flows down along the groove 53b to the end 46b of the movable rib 46. The ink can be concentrated, and the ink can be absorbed by the second ink absorber 47b.

  If it is determined in step S1211 that the second reciprocation counter 68b is equal to or greater than the threshold value (S1211: Yes), the LF motor 71 is set so that the movable rib 46 located at the second position moves to the initial position. A predetermined pulse is output to (S1213), and this process ends. That is, the movable rib 46 (see the solid line) located at the second position in FIG. 12C is moved to the initial position in FIG.

  As described above, the clean process according to the present embodiment is a process that is executed when the value stored in the protrusion amount memory 68a is equal to or greater than the threshold (S1201: Yes). The protrusion amount memory 68a stores the total value of the accurate ink amounts that have been ejected on the platen 42 so far. Based on this value, it is determined whether or not the cleaning process is to be executed. The cleaning process can be executed at an appropriate time.

  The present invention has been described above based on the embodiments. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications and changes can be easily made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Can be inferred.

  In the present embodiment, the case where the recording paper is supported by the movable rib 46 has been described. However, even if the recording paper is supported by a known fixed platen, the amount of ink ejected from the recording paper is calculated. The known fixed platen replacement time and cleaning time may be grasped based on the integrated value.

  In the present embodiment, the case where the cleaning process is automatically executed when the amount of ink stored in the protrusion amount memory 68a is higher than a predetermined threshold value has been described. You may comprise so that the message which requests | requires replacement | exchange may be alert | reported to a user.

  In this embodiment, the width of the recording paper in the main scanning direction is detected and the ink is ejected so that the ink does not protrude from the width of the recording paper. However, the ink protrudes from the width of the recording paper. In the case of ejection, naturally, the ink amount of the ejected ink may be calculated and integrated.

  In this embodiment, the registration sensor 26 detects the position in the conveyance direction of the recording paper. However, the position in the conveyance direction of the recording paper is detected using the media sensor 27. Also good. Since the registration sensor 26 is installed on the upstream side in the conveyance direction with the conveyance roller 60 sandwiched between the registration sensor 39 and the registration sensor 26 to the recording head 39, a jam occurs on the recording paper, and the registration sensor 26 There is a possibility that the recording paper is not conveyed to the position facing the recording head 39 according to the detection result of 26. On the other hand, since the media sensor 27 is mounted on the carriage 39, there is no possibility of this.

1 is an external perspective view of a multifunction peripheral according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a perspective view which shows the main structures of a printer part. (A) is an enlarged perspective view showing the upper surface of the platen in an enlarged manner. (B) is sectional drawing of the platen in the IIIb-IIIb sectional line shown to (a). It is a perspective view which shows the state which removed the upper side cover of the flame | frame of a platen. It is an expansion perspective view of a movable rib. It is the perspective view which looked at the platen from the lower part. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a control unit of the multifunction machine. It is a flowchart which shows a movable rib control process. It is a figure which shows typically the operation | movement of the movable rib in a movable rib control process. It is a figure which shows typically the operation | movement of the movable rib in a movable rib control process. It is a figure which shows the recording paper printed without a border. It is a flowchart which shows a cleaning process. It is a figure which shows typically operation | movement of the movable rib in a cleaning process.

Explanation of symbols

10 MFP (inkjet recording device)
26 Registration sensor (detection means)
27 Media sensor (width detection means)
38 Carriage 39 Recording head 42 Platen 66a Print processing control program (creating means, prohibiting means, control program)
67a Platen dot counter (integrating means)
68a Overflow amount memory (storage means)
S1 acquisition means S5 width detection means S4, S10 detection means S7, S12 integration means S14 storage means

Claims (5)

In an inkjet recording apparatus comprising: a recording head that discharges ink toward a recording medium; and a platen that supports the recording medium from a surface opposite to the surface facing the recording head.
Execution command for borderless recording that includes size information indicating information relating to the size of the recording medium, and ejects ink from the recording head to an area larger than the size of the recording medium indicated by the size information to record an image on the recording medium Obtaining means for obtaining
Creating means for creating recording data for performing the borderless recording on the recording medium indicated by the size information when the execution instruction is obtained by the obtaining means;
An ink jet recording apparatus comprising: an integrating unit that integrates an amount of ink that protrudes from the recording medium and is ejected onto the plantain based on recording data created by the creating unit. A timing at which a leading end of a recording medium which is arranged at a predetermined distance away from the recording head on the upstream side in the conveying direction of the recording medium and is conveyed toward the recording head reaches the predetermined position; Detecting means for detecting a timing at which a rear end of the recording medium passes through the predetermined position;
The integrating means integrates the amount of ink ejected from the leading edge of the recording medium and ejected onto the plantain based on the timing at which the leading edge of the recording medium detected by the detecting means reaches the predetermined position. And integrating the amount of ink ejected from the rear end of the recording medium based on the timing at which the rear end of the recording medium detected by the detecting means passes through the predetermined position. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein A carriage mounted on the recording head at a position facing the recording medium and reciprocating in the main scanning direction;
Width detecting means mounted on the carriage for detecting the width of the recording medium in the main scanning direction;
The inkjet recording according to claim 1, further comprising: a prohibiting unit that prohibits ink from being ejected outside the width of the recording medium based on a detection result of the width detecting unit. apparatus.   The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a non-volatile storage unit that stores an ink amount integrated by the integration unit. In a control program for controlling an ink jet recording apparatus comprising a recording head that discharges ink toward a recording medium and a platen that supports the recording medium from a surface opposite to the surface facing the recording head,
Execution command for borderless recording that includes size information indicating information relating to the size of the recording medium, and ejects ink from the recording head to an area larger than the size of the recording medium indicated by the size information to record an image on the recording medium An acquisition step to acquire,
A creation step for creating recording data for performing borderless recording on the recording medium indicated by the size information when the execution command is obtained in the obtaining step;
A control program comprising: an integration step of integrating the amount of ink that protrudes from the recording medium and is ejected onto the plantain based on the recording data created in the creation step.

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