JPH03234656A - Ink jet recording device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To make favorable recording possible by a method wherein the title recording device has a capping device to cover a discharge port of an ink jet recording head, which is provided under a recording position by the ink jet recording head, and an ink tank to store ink. CONSTITUTION:By operating an ink pump 76 under a condition in which a cap 41 is joined to a recording head 86, ink is circulated from an ink cartridge 86 to the direction shown by arrow E, and a pipe line including the recording head is filled with ink. A recording paper 1 on which recording has been done by the recording head 38 is guided in the horizontal direction on the top of the recording head 38, and then lowered and stored in a discharge stacker 40. The passage in which recording papers are guided in the horizontal direction is located at a border where a main body is opened. Therefore, even when paper jamming generates, removal of paper is easy, and in addition, capping can be done without damaging the head surface at the time of paper jamming. Also, even if ink leakage generates at the time of capping, recording papers are not stained.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Field of Application] The present invention relates to an inkjet recording apparatus equipped with an inkjet recording head.

[Prior Art] Recording devices such as printers, copiers, and facsimiles print transferred images onto a recording sheet such as paper or a thin plastic plate by driving an energy generator in a recording head based on information. It is configured to record images consisting of dot patterns.

Among the above-mentioned printing apparatuses, inkjet printing apparatuses are capable of high-speed printing because they generate very little noise during printing and can easily have multiple high-density ejection ports. In addition, it has recently attracted attention because of its ease of color reproduction of color images.

Among these, methods that use thermal energy to eject and fly ink droplets (such as the bubble jet method) are capable of achieving the highest density of all recording methods because they can form flow channels using thin film technology, and are thus capable of achieving high speeds. It can be said that it is suitable for recording.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] Incidentally, in an inkjet recording device, ink evaporates or dries from the ink ejection ports, ink leaks from the ejection ports, dirt adheres to the ejection port surface, etc., and the ink tank leaks from the recording head. Due to the generation of bubbles in the ink supply path of the ink supplied to the printer, ink ejection failure may occur and the quality of the recorded image may deteriorate.

Therefore, in order to resolve this ejection failure, during printing operation or during non-printing, ink may be ejected dry from all ejection ports 1 of the print head, or for example, ink may be ejected dry from all ejection ports 1 of the print head, or a full ejection port with ejection ports provided over the entire recording width of the recording paper may be used. Since the line type recording head has a plurality of ink supply ports, it is necessary to perform a recovery operation of the recording head by causing ink to flow in one direction from one to the other.

When performing a recovery operation when this recording head (inkjet head) is not in use, it is necessary to seal the ejection orifice forming surface, and for this purpose it is also necessary to provide a capping means.

As described above, in addition to the print head, an inkjet printing apparatus has a supply system (ink tank, pump, pipe, etc.) for supplying ink to the print head, and a recovery system (for normalizing the ejection state of the print head). Naturally, units such as wiping means, cap, etc. are arranged near the periphery of the recording sheet path.

For this reason, if there is a trouble in conveying the paper due to a complicated recording sheet path or deviation, trouble may also occur in the peripheral recovery system. On the other hand, there is a technical problem in that ink leakage from parts constituting the ink supply system may stain the recording sheet and the recording sheet path.

An object of the present invention is to provide an inkjet recording apparatus that can solve these problems and achieve extremely good recording.

[Means to solve the problem]

As a result of studies to achieve this objective, the inventors found that
It has been found that suitable results can be obtained by devising the arrangement of each component.

The present invention has been made based on this knowledge, and in an inkjet recording apparatus that records on a recording medium by discharging ink onto the recording medium, the present invention includes an inkjet recording head that discharges ink, and an inkjet recording head that discharges ink to record on the recording medium. Provided below the recording position by the inkjet recording head,
The apparatus is characterized in that it includes a capping means for covering the ejection openings of the inkjet recording head, and an ink tank for storing ink to be supplied to the inkjet recording head.

According to this, the portion with ink is located at the lowest position, reducing the risk of ink leakage due to tilting of the device. In addition, the part with ink and the part without ink are separated, making it easy to separate units within the device, simplifying design, simplifying structure, improving assembly, making ink easier, and improving functionality. Effects such as ensuring stability can be obtained. Furthermore, since a sufficient water head difference can be obtained between the ink tank and the recording head, the rate of pressure change that contributes to ink supply is reduced, making it possible to perform good recording.

[Example] Hereinafter, the present invention will be specifically explained based on Examples.

FIG. 1(A) is a central cross-sectional view of an embodiment of a facsimile apparatus that characteristically represents the present invention. FIG. 1(B) is a plan view of the upper crosspiece, and FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing the open state. The facsimile apparatus of this embodiment is roughly divided into an original transport system A, an optical system B, a power supply section C1, an electric circuit board D, a recording paper transport system E, a decal system F, a supply system G, and a recovery system H. . Here, the document conveying system A and the optical system B constitute a document reading section for setting and taking a document image. As a basic operation of the apparatus from the fax, when the document 2 is set during transmission or copying, the document transport system A transfers the document 2 to a Tl (not shown) in order to read the document image of the document 2.
A roller row (roller R1) driven by fAII11 means.
・Sequentially convey by R2, R3, R4). Then, the document line information of the document reading line (main scanning line) position corrected during transportation is transferred to optical system B (lamp L and mirror M1M).
2) through the reflected optical path and the line C by the condensing lens Le.
It reaches the CD 100, is converted into an electrical signal, and the original information is read. During reception or copying, the recording paper conveyance system E sequentially conveys the recording paper 1 wound into a roll along the path shown in the figure by a row of rollers driven by a drive means (not shown), and rolls the recording paper 1 along the route as shown in FIG. Ink is ejected from the ejection openings of the recording head 38 onto the recording paper recording line, and recording is performed.

Ink is ejected from the ejection openings of the recording head 38 using thermal energy. This thermal energy is generated by an electrothermal transducer included in the recording head 38. In addition, power supply part C is normal, general A
C It uses human power to convert all necessary voltages and currents within the device and supplies them to each part. The electric circuit, centered on the electric circuit board, controls the functional operation of each part of this device, centered on the microcomputer system, and also controls the connection and release of the transmission line and the input and output of image information signals. Let's do it. The supply system G supplies ink to the recording head, and the recovery system H performs cleaning and capping of the ejection opening surface necessary for the head.

As shown in FIG. 1(B), the roll recording paper 1 is located almost at the center of the apparatus, and on the left side, the document conveyance system A, the optical system B, and the power supply section C are arranged vertically in line. ing. Also, on the right side, in order from the top, there are recording heads 38. Recording head recovery system H, ink supply system G equipped with ink tank 86
is located. Since the recording head 38°, the recording head recovery system H, and the ink supply system G including the ink tank 786 are arranged in this order from the top, in this embodiment, even if the apparatus is tilted, the recording head 38 The ratio of pressure change from the ink tank 86 to the orifice surface of the ink tank 86 is reduced (the pressure for each ejection port becomes uniform), and good recording is possible. This is because the distance between the orifice surface of the recording head and the ink tank can be increased even though the apparatus has been made smaller.

The various configurations and operations will be explained below.

First, the operation of transporting recording paper will be explained step by step. A roll of recording paper 1 is loaded, and this recording paper 1 passes through a decurling system F for correcting curling, and is sandwiched between a driving conveyance roller 7 and a driven roller (platen roller) 8 that comes into contact with the conveyance roller 7. transported. The conveying roller 7 is driven by a driving means (not shown), and uses a stepping motor as a driving source, for example.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the relationship of parts in the longitudinal direction around the slave t-roller 8 (platen roller). First platen side plate 1 fixed to or integrally formed with recording frame 19
3a and 342 platen side plates 13b support the driven roller 8 with play, with the shaft passing through an opening 13c larger than the shaft diameter. Further, E-rings 29 and 30 are attached to both ends of the shaft portion of the driven roller 8 to prevent removal. Furthermore, bearings 10a and 10b are disposed on both shaft portions, the coaxiality of the inner diameter and outer diameter being accurately defined, and the bearings 10a and 10b are fitted to the core of the driven roller 8 and are rotatable. On the other hand, as shown in the figure, the first platen side plate 13a and the second platen side plate 13b are slidably disposed with platen pressing shafts 12a and 12b fitted on their inner surfaces, respectively. And spring lla
, llb, the platen pressing shafts 12a, 1
One end of 2b is the bearing 10a, 10b of the driven roller 8.
It is configured to apply a contact pressing force to.

Now, returning to FIG. 1, the recording head 38 is in the recording position, and at this time, the driven roller 8 exerts a pressing force against the conveying roller 7 and the bearing 10a against the recording head 38. and 10b, they are brought into contact and positioned in two directions. That is, the direction of the pressing force of the platen pressing shafts 12a, 12b on the driven roller 8 is as described above.
10b is set in a direction in which it abuts against the recording head 38. At the same time, the flexible thin plate recording guide 14 rotates the recording head 38 about the head shaft 36 to come to the recording position.

In this way, the sheet path is aligned with the recording line position, and the recording head 38 discharges ink at the recording line position from the discharge opening during recording.

Next, the recording paper 1 is guided by the first curvature guide 15 and the first paper ejection guide 20, and the roller rows 17a to 17g and the roller row 18a contact the first paper ejection roller 21 and the paper ejection roller 21. It is guided and conveyed while being sandwiched between ~18g.

Note that the first paper ejection roller 21 receives driving force from the same drive system as the transport roller 7, and the peripheral speed of the first paper ejection roller 21 is slightly smaller than the peripheral speed of the transport roller 7. It is set to be as fast as possible.

Here, FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the relationship of parts in the longitudinal direction around the first paper ejection roller 21. As shown in FIG. Rollers 17a to 17g and rollers 18a to 18g are arranged alternately with first curvature guides 15a to 15f, and are rotatably supported by shafts 31 and 32, respectively, and both ends of the shafts are fixed with E rings or the like. There is. Further, the shaft 32 has both ends, a first paper discharge roller receiving side 9a and a second paper discharge roller receiving side 19 fixed to or integrally formed with the recording frame 19.
b, and in the horizontal direction it is regulated by being passed through a vertical hole that fits with the diameter of the shaft 32, and furthermore, both sides are regulated by E-rings (
(not shown). The figure shows 16 representative
Springs 16a to 16f, shown only at a, create a compressive force between the recording chassis 19 and the first curvature guides 15a to 15f (see FIG. 1).
18g comes into contact with the paper discharge roller 21 with a pressing force. As a result, when the recording paper 1 is pinched, a conveying force is generated. Then, the recording paper 1 passes between the two blades 22a and 22b of the cutter 22 that cuts the recording paper for each received page, is further guided by the upper paper discharge guide 23 and the rear paper discharge guide 24, and then is guided to the second paper discharge roller. 25, and the rollers 27a to 27g and rollers 28a to 28g that abut the rollers 25 and 25, and are guided and conveyed.

Further, the second paper ejection roller 25 receives a driving force from a drive system, and its circumferential speed is set to be slightly faster than the circumferential speed of the 341 paper ejection roller 21. Here, similarly to the area around the first paper ejection roller 21 described above, the rollers 27a to 27g and the rollers 28a to 28g are connected to the second curvature guides 26a to 26f.
They are arranged alternately and are rotatably supported by shafts 33 and 34, respectively. The shaft 34 is prevented from being pulled out at both ends with E-rings, etc., and the shaft 33 is fitted with the diameter of the shaft 33 in the horizontal direction of the paper discharge roller receiving sides 19C and 19d, which are fixed to or integrally formed with the recording frame 19 at both ends. It is passed through a vertical hole and is regulated.
Secure both ends with E-rings, etc. to prevent removal. Spring 35a-35f
Accordingly, the recording chassis 19 and the second curvature guide 26a
A compressive force is generated between ~26f (see Figure 1), and the roller 27
a to 27g and rollers 28a to 28g come into contact with the second paper discharge roller 25 with pressing force, and when the recording paper 1 is nipped, a conveying force is generated. The recording paper on which recording has been completed in this manner is discharged, and is cut page by page by a cutter, further subjected to the conveying force of the discharge roller 39, and its leading edge is smoothly received and held by the stacker 40. . As a result, the operator can take out the recording paper held in the stacker 40.

The recording paper conveyance system is configured and operates as described above. Here, the state shown in FIG. 1 represents the time of recording, and the recording frame 19 can be opened and closed with the hinge 19e of the recording frame 19 as the axis center when replacing the recording paper or in the event of trouble in conveying the recording paper. That is, as shown in FIG. 2, it can be opened just at the recording paper transport path, and each component is connected to the recording frame 19 on the upper side and the main body frame 6 on the lower side.
It is designed to belong to the 3rd side. This recording frame 1
9 and its associated components are shown in FIG. 5.

In this way, in this embodiment, the recording heads 38 .
A recording head recovery system H and an ink supply system G are arranged.

Then, the recording paper 1 on which recording was performed by the recording head 38
is guided in the horizontal direction above the recording head 38 and then lowered and stored in the discharge stacker 40. The path for guiding the recording paper in the horizontal direction is in contact with the opening of the main body. Therefore, according to this embodiment, even if a paper jam occurs, it is easy to remove it, and even if a paper jam occurs, capping can be performed without damaging the head surface. Furthermore, even if ink leaks during capping, the recording paper will not be soiled.

Next, positioning of the driven roller 8 (platen roller 8) will be explained.

First, FIG. 6 shows the state of parts around the driven roller 8 when the main body of the apparatus is in a standby state. The recording guide 14 is arranged so as not to come into contact with the driven roller 8 when no external force is applied. Therefore, in the standby state, the recording paper 1 contacts the outer periphery of the driven roller 8 at a smaller angle than in the printing state. At this time, the position of the driven roller 8 is such that the outer periphery of the driven roller 8 is pressed by the platen pressing shafts 12a, 12b and comes into contact with the conveyance roller 7, and the core metal of the driven roller 8 is provided on the platen side plates 13a, 13b. A through hole 1 that is 0.1 mm to several mm larger than the outer circumference of the core metal
It is determined by contacting 3c. The conveying roller 7 and the driven roller 8 both have a core made of a rigid iron ring and a roller made of a flexible material such as rubber arranged around the outer periphery.

Next, Fig. 7 shows a state in which the recording head 38 is rotating clockwise around the head shaft 36 in order for this device to enter the recording state from the standby state. It is something. First, when the head 38 rotates as described above by driving the motor KM, the protrusions 38c come into contact with the tip of the recording guide 14 in multiple stages on the recording surface of the head 38.
The recording guide 14 begins to be elastically deformed. head 3 here
The protrusions 38c provided on the recording surface of No. 8 become higher toward the corners. Therefore, the recording guide 14 and the recording head 38 are elastically deformed apart from each other by the height of the protrusion (δ in the figure).

The reason why the projections 38c become higher toward the corners is to facilitate the removal of ink during a wiping operation of the recording surface of the head, which will be described later.

When the recording head 38 further rotates clockwise and moves to the recording state shown in FIG. 1, both ends of the recording surface of the recording head 38 come into contact with the bearings 10a and 10b. This determines the distance between the recording surface of the recording head 38 and the platen roller (driven roller) 8. In this embodiment, the outer circumference of the bearings 10a, 10b is larger than the outer circumference of the driven roller 8. The amount is set to be a fraction of a millimeter smaller than the height δ of the protrusion of the recording head 38. This ensures that the guide 14 comes into contact with the outer periphery of the platen roller 8 and conveys the recording paper. It can be performed. During recording, the conveyance roller 7 rotates clockwise, and its external force causes the platen roller 8 to rotate counterclockwise, and the recording head 38
move in the direction. Therefore, with the above-described configuration, the platen roller 8 comes into contact with the guide 14 through the recording paper. Therefore, the springs lla and ttb described above are not necessarily necessary, and the platen roller 8 can be brought into contact with its own weight alone.

Next, the configuration of peripheral parts of the recording head 38 will be explained using the perspective view of FIG. 8. The recording head 38 includes a head main body part 38f including a heat generating part, an electric component part, and a glass ink liquid chamber part, a front filter 38d1, a rear filter 38e, and a head front plate 3 disposed on the outside of the head main body.
8c. In addition, the front 38d of the filter and the back 38e of the filter include a front 38d1 of the head ink connection portion and a rear 38e of the head ink connection portion, respectively.
The ink supply tube 71 and the ink supply tube are screwed into the ink supply tube 71 with a sealing member (not shown) interposed therebetween, so that the ink supply tubes are tightly sealed and connected.

Reference numeral 38a is a two-dot chain line in an imaginary figure that connects the straight lines in which the nozzles are lined up and the center lines of the nozzles.
Multiple 8's are lined up. Although it will be referred to as a nozzle 38a hereinafter, it actually has a hole several tens of microns in diameter, and the hole is connected to the ink supply tubes 71, 7'2. Here, the opposite ends of the ink supply tubes 71 and 72 are a supply pipe joint front 84 and a supply pipe joint rear 84, which will be described later.
5. Now, the surface on which the nozzle 38 is opened is denoted by 38b in the figure, and will be called the orifice surface. Here, the head front plate 38g is formed of metal or a molded member, and the space between the orifice surface 38b and the head front plate 38g is filled with silicone rubber or the like and is completely sealed. The filters 38d and 38e are for preventing dust in the ink from entering the nozzle portion. 37a and 3.7b are the front and rear parts of the head arm, and are made of engineered material, plastic, sintered metal, die-cast metal, etc., which are rigid and resistant to thermal deformation at high temperatures, and are screwed onto the BJ head 38, respectively. It is fixedly installed by etc.

The front head arm 37a and the rear head arm 37b are fixed to the head shaft 36 by screws, and because of the above-mentioned configuration, the head shaft 36 and the BJ head 3 are fixed.
8 is fixedly installed. The head shaft 36 is rotatably supported by the main body frame 56 via a bearing (not shown), and the head shaft 36 is connected to a drive system composed of gears, belts KB, etc., and roughly connected to a stepping motor KM. is connected to.

Next, the configuration of peripheral parts of the cap 41 will be explained using the perspective view of FIG. 9. Although the shape of the cap 41 will be described in detail later, the cap 41 is made of a flexible material such as silicone rubber that is resistant to mechanical creep and has a high permeability to gases such as water vapor. 42 is a cap keel made of a rigid material such as aluminum or stainless steel, and as shown in the cross-sectional view of FIG. 10, short shafts 46 a, 46 b, 46 c, 46
d, 46 e to the cap keel 42 by screwing.
It is fixedly installed in

The short shafts 46a to 46e are preferably made of a rust-resistant and rigid material such as stainless steel. In this embodiment, the short axis 46 a
% e is screwed, but it may be joined by press fitting, adhesive, etc. Also, the cap keel 42 and the short shaft 4
6a to 6e may be integrally formed by molding or the like.

Here, in forming the cap 41, as described above, first the cap keel 42 and the short shafts 46a to 46e are combined, and the combined cap keel 42 and the short shafts 46a to 46e are combined.
The cap 41 is integrally formed with the cap keel 42 by embedding the cap 46e in an open mold and injecting or sandwiching silicone rubber, which is a raw material for the cap 41. Here, it goes without saying that the shape of the mold described above matches the external shape of the cap 41. Now, 60 is a recovery frame made of a rust-resistant and rigid material such as stainless steel, and the four sides are bent (60a to 60d) to increase the rigidity of the recovery frame. The recovery frame 60 includes a short shaft 46a.
Short shaft bearings 61 a, 61 b, 6 receiving ~46e
1c, 61d, and 61e are fixed with screws (not shown) or the like. Note that the frame 60 of the bearings 61a to 61e
The method of joining may be welding or adhesion. Further, as described later, the short axis 46a is long and the short axis 46b is long.
-c-d is fitted into a so-called stupid hole, and the short shaft 46e is fitted in position. In other words, the outer diameters of each of the short shafts 46a to 46e are the same, and the inner diameter portion 61e of the short shaft bearing 61e and the outer diameter of the short shaft 46e are made to fit just right. The short shaft bearings 61a to 61e are made of polyacetal resin with good sliding properties.

In contrast to the short shaft bearing 61e, the short shaft bearing 61a has an elongated hole 6 extending in the longitudinal direction of the cap 41 as shown in FIG.
1al is formed. The elongated hole portion 61a1 is formed so that its widthwise dimension fits with the short shaft 46a. The diameters of the holes 61b+, 61C+, and 61d+ opened in the short shaft bearings 61b, 61c, and 61d are the same as those of the short shaft 4.
It is made larger in the range of 0.1 mm to 1 mm than the external shape of 6b to 46d. Next, compression springs 47a to 47e are screwed to the outside of the short shafts 46a to 46e, respectively, with short shaft stops 56a to 56e sandwiched between them from the back side of the recovery frame 60, as shown in the figure.

As a result of being screwed, the compression springs 47a to 47e are in a compressed state with the cap keel and the short shaft bearings 61a to 61e being sandwiched. The movement of the cap 41 at this time will be described in detail later.

Next, 50 and 52 are the front of the first wiper and the second wiper, which are made of a flexible material such as rubber with good abrasion resistance, and are the tips of the first wiper 50 and the second wiper 52, respectively. The straightness of the straight portions 50a and 52a is strictly controlled to ensure that there are no edges or dirt. Further, the first wiper 50 is attached to the first wiper stay 49, and the second wiper 52 is attached to the second wiper stay 5.
1 with screws (not shown). The first wiper stay 49 and the '1JI2 wiper stay 52 are both made of rust-resistant metal such as stainless steel or the like.

Furthermore, the first wiper stay 49 and the second wiper stay 51 are screwed to the recovery frame 60 as shown in FIG. 9.

At this time, the protrusion 41a of the cap 41, which will be described later, and the wiper tips 50a and 52a are arranged so that their parallelism is accurate. Further, the wiper tip 50 of the protrusion 41a1
a.52a and the wiper stay 49 of the recovery frame 60
・51 is installed on the surface, cam gear front 59a, cam gear rear 5
The two-dot dashed line α in FIG. 9, which is an imaginary line connecting the center lines of the respective boss portions 59a1 and 59bl of 9b, is also arranged so that the parallelism is accurate as will be described later. Also the 9th
As shown in the figure, the height of the tip 50a of the second wiper is higher than the height of the tip 50a of the first wiper with respect to the recovery frame 60.
The height of 2a relative to the recovery frame 60 is configured to be higher.

For this configuration, the heights of the above-mentioned flexible parts such as rubber of the first wiper 50 and the second wiper rear 52 may be changed, or the heights of the first wiper stay 49 and the second wiper stay 51 may be changed.
The height of the rigid part may be changed. Next, reference numeral 54 denotes a recovery frame bearing, and a recovery frame shaft 55 shown in FIG. 1 (center sectional view) is fitted into the long portion 54a of the recovery frame bearing 54 in the lateral direction thereof. Although the recovery frame shaft 55 is fixed to the main body frame 63 here, the recovery frame shaft 55 may be rotatably supported by the main body frame roller 3. The material of the recovery frame bearing 54 is sliding. It is made of polyacetal resin with good dynamic performance and is fixed to the recovery frame 60 with screws.At this time, the recovery frame bearing 54
The fixed position with respect to the recovery frame 60 is indicated by the arrow β in FIG.
In this direction, the center of the elongated hole 54a in the depth direction is located at the center of the recovery frame 60. Here, the center of the hole 61C of the short shaft bearing 61c is also shown in the figure, and is located at the center of the recovery frame 60 in the direction of the arrow β. Furthermore, the center of the hole 61b of the short shaft bearing 61b,
The center of the hole 61d of the short shaft bearing 61d is located symmetrically in the direction of arrow β with 61C0 as the center. Furthermore, the center of the elongated hole 61a1 of the short shaft bearing 61a in the arrow β direction and the center of the hole 61e of the short shaft bearing 61e are similarly located at the hole 61c,
It is located symmetrically in the direction of arrow β with . Now, the distance between the center of the hole 61a1 and the center of the hole 61bm, the hole 61
The distance between the center of b and the center of the hole 61C1, the hole 61c
, the distance between the center of the hole 61d and the center of the hole 61d, and the distance between the center of the hole 61dl and the center of the hole 61e are desirably equal. It is arranged across both side plates of the main body frame 63. The recovery frame shaft 62 is rotatably supported around a bearing (not shown) disposed on the main body frame 63. Furthermore, idler gears 57a and 57b are fixed to this recovery frame shaft 62 so as to be located inside both main body frames 63 and outside of a cap guide front 48a and a cap guide rear 48b, which will be described later. The means for fixing the idler gears 57a and 57b to the recovery frame shaft 62 are as follows:
Due to the installation of the recovery frame shaft 62 into the main body frame 63, a parallel pin or a spring pin (both not shown) is required.
and is secured by an E-shaped retaining ring. Furthermore, the recovery frame shaft 62 has a main body frame 63 as shown in the figure.
An outer idler gear 58 is fixed to the recovery frame shaft 62 with a D-cut portion formed at the end of the recovery frame shaft 62 as a rotation stopper. Next, cam gears 59a and 59b are arranged to mesh with the idler gears 57a and 57b. The cam gears 59a and 59b are located outside the cap guides 48a and 48b and inside the main body frame 63, and are rotatably supported around cam gear shafts 70a and 70b fixed to the main body frame 63. There is.

Here, the gears 57a, 57b, 59a and 59b are modules and have the same number of teeth. Furthermore, gear 58 and gear 5
7a, 57b, 59a, and 59b have the same number of teeth. Here, the gear 58 is connected to a stepping motor CM.

The cam gear 59 has the above-mentioned number of teeth.
When a and 59b rotate once, by connecting gears that rotate exactly once, the rotation angle and rotation position of the gears can be detected by a microswitch slit type sensor (not shown), etc., and the cam gear This is to detect the positions of the boss portion 59aI of the cam gear 59a and the boss portion 59b1 of the cam gear 59b. Therefore, the cam gears 59a and 59
If there is a gear, timing boolean, etc. in the drive system that rotates once in synchronization with one rotation of the gear 57a, etc., if the position of the gear, timing boolean, etc. is detected, the gears 57a, 57a, etc. It is not necessary to make the number of teeth of 57b, 59a, and 59b the same. The recovery frame 60 also includes a cap guide 4.
8a and 48b are fixed. This cap guide 4
The material of 8a and 48b is made of polyacetal resin with good sliding performance. And cap guide 48a・
48b is the boss portion 59al of the cam gears 59a-59b.
, 59b1 and grooves 48a, , 48b that fit in the widthwise direction.
, are formed and fit together as shown in FIG. Here, the boss portions 59a, . . . and the boss portion 59b are disposed at positions exactly facing each other.

Due to the above-mentioned configuration, when the outer idler gear 58 rotates, the recovery frame 60 swings about the recovery frame shaft 55 in the direction of arrow A shown in FIG. 10 (center sectional view). will be carried out.

Now, the area around the recovery frame 60 has the above-mentioned special component configuration. Therefore, in Figure 'tS9, the recovery frame 60 is positioned by the plane formed by the two-dot chain line α and the recovery frame axis 55. Here, the two-dot chain line α
and the head shaft 36 are arranged so that their parallelism is accurate. Although the recovery frame 60 is positioned by the plane formed by the double-dashed chain line α and the recovery frame axis 55,
The recovery frame 60 is not fixed by the above-mentioned components, but has a degree of freedom in the direction indicated by the arrow θ and the direction indicated by the curved arrow γ in FIG.

Next, the first cap guide 48a and the second cap guide 4
The arrangement position of 8b on the recovery frame 60 in the direction of arrow θ in the figure will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

First cap guide 48a, second cap guide 48b
U-shaped half-hole portions 48a and 4Bb are formed in both of the holes, and the intervals between the U-shaped holes are formed with high accuracy. The spacing between the 0-shaped holes 48aI and 48b+ is indicated by an arrow in the figure. and the U-shaped hole portion 48a,
・The protrusion 41 of the cap 41 is located in the center of the interval 48b.
The first cap guide 48a and the second cap guide 48b are disposed on the recovery frame 60 so that the width in the width direction a (indicated by an arrow in the figure) is centered at the center.

Next, the first rad arm 3 fa% second rad arm 37
There are circular protrusions 37a and 37b1 on the front side of the head arm, 37a1 on the front side of the head arm, and 37a on the rear side of the head arm, respectively.
7b. Then, the circular protrusion 37
The arrangement positions of a, 37b are configured such that the ink outlet of the nozzle portion 38a is located at the center of the circular protrusion. Further, the circular protrusion 37al
, 37bl is just the diameter of the cap guide 48a.
, 48b, and is formed to fit into the space between the U-shaped cutout portions.

Now, because of the above-mentioned configuration, when the capping recovery frame 60 is raised by the rotation of the cam gears 59a and 59b, the cap guides 48a-48
Attach the head arm 3 to the U half-hole portions 48a and 48b of b.
The circular projections 37a1 and 37b1 of the caps 7a and 37b are guided, respectively, and the nozzle portion 38a and the projection 41a of the cap 41 are exactly opposite to each other.

Here, in this embodiment, the recovery frame 80 can be displaced in the θ direction and the γ direction shown by the arrows (FIG. 9) due to the above-described configuration. Therefore, in this embodiment, the U half-hole portions 48a, 48b and the projections 37a, 37b1 are
Even if there is a slight positional shift when fitting, the protrusion 37a137b1 will fit into the U half-hole portion 48al/48b+
As long as the slope 48c is touched, the slope 48c
The recovery frame 80 can be displaced in the horizontal direction while being guided by the holes 48a, 48b, and the holes 48a, 48b, so that the two can be reliably fitted.

A cap 41 and a head front plate 38, which will be described further below.
Positioning with c will also inevitably be performed. Furthermore, even if the recovery frame 60 approaches the nozzle orifice surface 38b with an inclination, the protrusion 41a and the nozzle part 38a approach while maintaining the opposing positional relationship.

Next, cap 41. Cap keel 42. Valve 43, valve cover 44. The shape and operation of the waste ink tube 45 are
This will be explained using FIGS. 0 to 15.

FIG. 10 shows the state immediately after the head 38 and the cap 41 come into contact, FIG. 11 shows the state where the head 38 and the cap 41 are separated, and FIG. 12 shows the state when the cap 41 has moved toward the head 38. In FIG. 13, the protrusion 41a presses and seals the nozzle 38a, and the spring 4
7 is a diagram showing a state in which the cap 41 is elastically deformed; FIG. 14 is a diagram showing a state in which the cap 41 is separated from the head 38;
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a standby state. Also, in each figure, (
A) is a side view viewed from the side plate direction, (B) is a cross-sectional view in the transverse direction, and (C) is a cross-sectional view in the longitudinal direction. However, in Figure 11 (
A) is a similar side view, and (B) is a longitudinal sectional view.

First, in Fig. 10, Fig. 10(A), Fig. 10(B)
), to (C) is a diagram showing the state at the moment when the cap 41 contacts the head front plate 38C. The cap 41 has not yet been deformed. In FIG. 10(B),
The cross-sectional shape of the cap 41 will be explained in detail. The side portions of the cap 41 are formed with an inclination such that the distance between the side portions increases as the distance increases upward as shown in FIG. 1O(B).

The slanted side surface section is connected to the curved section 8 in the figure, and the thickness of section a is thinner than the other parts as shown in the figure. In this embodiment, part a has a curved shape that changes smoothly, but it may also have an etch shape that changes suddenly. In the case of an edge shape, the wall thickness of the edge portion is reduced. Similarly 341
In FIG. 0(C), the cross-sectional shape of the cap 41 in the width direction is also formed to open outward as it goes upward in the drawing.

In the lateral cross-sectional shape of the cap 41, the wall thickness of the cap 41 that contacts the head front plate 38c is the same as that of the contact portion with the head front plate 38C in the longitudinal cross-sectional shape of the cap 41 shown in FIG. 10(B). It is made thicker. This is because, in the present embodiment described above, the cap 41 is accurately positioned with respect to the head 38 in the transverse direction, but not accurately positioned in the longitudinal direction. If the positioning is done accurately with respect to the head 38, it is not necessary to configure it as in this embodiment.Now, returning to FIG. 10(C), the cap 41
The shape of the side surface portion is connected to a smoothly changing curved portion similar to that shown in FIG. 10(B), and the wall thickness of portion b is thinner. In addition, in this embodiment, FIG. 10 (B
) and FIG. 10(C), the thickness changes smoothly so that it becomes thinner as it goes downward in the figure. Now, number 10
Returning to Figure (B), a protrusion 41a that is integrally formed with the cap 41 is disposed in the sealed space of the cap 41. The protrusion 41a is disposed at such a position that the apex of the rounded portion 41c of the protrusion 41a is located opposite the nozzle portion 38a. The length of the protrusion 41a in the longitudinal direction is longer at both ends than the entire length of the nozzle portion 38a. Next, cap 41
A through hole 41b is opened in the cap 41, and the through hole 41b of the cap 41 is connected to the through hole 41 opened in the cap keel 42.
It also communicates with b. A valve 4 is provided in the through hole 41b.
3 are arranged. Even if no pressure is applied to the valve 43, since the valve 43 is formed of a flexible member, a sealed state from the atmosphere can be created. Here, the reason why the valve 43 is able to function as a valve is that the cap keel 42 is formed of a rigid member as described above, and the valve 43 is made of a rigid member.
This is because the flatness of the contact surface of the cap keel 42 with the cap keel 42 is made with high precision.

Next, there is a valve cover 44 around the valve 43.
A cap keel 42 and a valve cover 44 are sealed and fixed around the valve keel 42 . Further, the valve cover 44 is connected in a sealed manner to a waste ink tube 45. cap 4
1 starts approaching the recording head 38 from the state shown in FIG. 10 by rotating the cam gears 59a and 59b in FIG. 10(A) in the direction of arrow d in the figure.

As the cam gears 59a and 59b move, the side surface of the cap 41 moves in the direction of arrow C in FIGS. 10(B) and 10(C) while maintaining contact with the head front plate 38C. start. This movement is because the side surface of the cap 41 is formed to open as it goes upward. Now, the reason why the cap 41 moves in the direction of arrow C is not only due to the shape of the cap 41 as described above, but also because the pressure in the sealed space of the cap 41 increases due to the volume reduction in the sealed space of the cap 41. It's also because we start. As the pressure within the sealed space of the cap 41 increases, the valve 4
3 begins to open, and the atmosphere in the sealed space and waste ink (not shown) begin to flow from the valve 43 toward the waste ink tube 45.

FIG. 12 shows the state when the cam gears 59a and 59b are further rotated in the direction of arrow d.

In FIG. 12(B), the side surface of the cap 41 comes into contact with a rising portion at the edge of the head front plate 38c, and movement in the direction of arrow C in FIG. 10 is stopped. As described above, the side surface portion of the cap 41 in the short direction shown in FIG. 12(C) is thicker than the side surface portion in the longitudinal direction. In this embodiment, as described above, the wall thickness of the side surface of the cap 41 in FIG. 12(C) is changed; If the wall thickness of the front plate 38C is made as thin as the wall thickness of the side surface in the longitudinal direction, the front plate 38C will come into contact with the rising edge of the edge, and the same function as that of this embodiment can be realized.

Now, in FIG. 12(B), the side surface of the key 41 touches the edge of the head front plate 38c, and then
The part shown in section is subjected to bending stress.

It deforms as shown in the figure. The thick portion of the side surface of the cap 41, including the surface that comes into contact with the head front plate 38c, receives a buckling load, and the portion a is bent and deformed, so that it does not buckle. The above contents are
Similar deformation of the side surface of the cap 41 occurs, including the deformation of portion b in FIG. 12(C). Here, in FIG. 12(C), the compression spring 47a
has not yet begun to undergo deformation.

In FIG. 12(B), the pressure in the sealed space created by the cap 41 becomes higher than the pressure in the state shown in FIG. 10, and the valve 43 is opened and the cap 41
The atmosphere in the sealed space 1 and the aforementioned waste ink are sent to the waste ink tube 45.

When the cam gears 59a and 59b further rotate in the direction of arrow d, the cap 41 further approaches the head 38, and the protrusion 41a of the cap 40 comes into contact with the nozzle 38a. At this point, the cap 40 is hardly deformed except for the protrusion 41a. When the cam gears 59a and 59b further rotate in the direction of arrow d,
The compression spring 47a begins to deform, and the reaction force of the compression spring 47a is applied to the nozzle portion 38a of the protrusion 41a of the cap 41.
It acts as a pressing force on the Note that from FIG. 10 to FIG. 15, only the compression spring 47a is shown in the figures, but the other compression springs 47b, 47c, 47d, 47
The spring e also moves in the same way as the compression spring 47a. Here, the time during which the protrusion 41a presses the nozzle 38a is approximately several seconds required for circulating the ink liquid within the head 38. At this time, the pump operates to circulate the ink liquid.

Now, as described above, FIG. 13 shows a state in which the compression spring 47a is deformed and the boss portions 59a1 and 59b of the cam gears 59a and 59b are located at the uppermost position. In FIG. 13, there is almost no change in the volume of the sealed space formed by the cap 41, and the valve 43 is only in a state of sealing off the atmosphere.
The pressure within the closed space and the atmospheric pressure are in equilibrium. 1st
The state of each part when the cam gears 59a and 59b rotate in the direction of arrow e from the state shown in FIG. 3 is shown below.

Here, the rotation direction of the cam gears 59a and 59b is determined by the boss portion 5.
9a1 and 59b1 are required to move from the top to the bottom or from the bottom to the top in the drawings. For example, in FIG. 13, the cam gears 59a and 5
Even if 9b rotates in the opposite direction to the direction of arrow e, the operations described below occur in the same way. In FIG. 14, cap 4
The volume of the sealed space 1 increases again, the inside of the sealed space becomes a negative pressure state with respect to the atmosphere, and the valve 43 becomes closed as shown in the figure. Therefore, cap 4
1, the recording head 38
Ink is discharged from the nozzle portion 38a, and the ink is discharged from the nozzle portion 8a.
The ink in a will be refreshed.

Finally, FIG. 15 shows the cap 41 in a standby state, when the apparatus shown in this embodiment is not performing any recording, recovery, etc.
It shows the status of peripheral parts including. In this figure, the cam gear has stopped rotating. Figure 15 (
In B), the pressure in the sealed space of the cap 41 and the atmospheric pressure are in equilibrium. At this time, the valve 43
Although no external force is acting to open or close the valve 43, the shape of the valve 43 causes the cap 4 to close.
The water vapor in the sealed space of No. 1 is no longer released to the atmosphere.

Next, the ink supply and recovery system will be described. This unit consists of an ink tank, an ink tube, a pump, etc., and has the functions of holding ink, supplying ink normally to the recording head, and preventing clogging of nozzles when air bubbles form in the conduit. If it occurs, it has a function to remove it.

FIG. 16 is a conceptual diagram illustrating the present invention in detail. In FIG. 16, 38 is a recording head, 76 is an ink pump, 86 is an ink cartridge having an ink tank and a waste ink absorber, and 87 is an air opening called a breather.

Initial supply of ink to the recording head 38 is performed as follows. In other words, the state in which the cap 41 is brought into close contact with the recording head (first
As shown in FIG. 3, the ink pump 76 is operated with the protrusion 41a inside the cap 41 in close contact with the nozzle part 38a of the recording head 38, and the ink is circulated from the ink cartridge 86 in the direction shown by the arrow E. Fill the inside of the pipes, including the inside of the recording head, with ink. At this time, the cap 41
Some ink also flows out, but this is returned to the ink cartridge 86 through the waste ink tube 45 and collected in the built-in waste ink absorber 96.

When the initial supply of ink is completed, the recording head 38 becomes ready for ejection, but since the ink pump used in this embodiment is a type of bomb that does not block the flow path when stopped, the ink supply during ejection is as follows. Head ink connection part front and rear 38d, 38
This is done from both e.

When the amount of ink decreases due to ejection, the same amount of air as the amount of decrease must enter the tank, and the breather 87 serves as an air opening for this purpose. This breather 8
7 is equipped with check valves that open in both directions when there is a very small pressure difference inside the tank, and will open even if there is a slight negative or positive pressure inside the tank, effectively functioning as an air hole. It suppresses the intrusion and evaporation of dust.

Reference numeral 92 denotes an ink-out detection section, which detects the absence of ink in the tank 94, and the detection is performed as follows. That is, since the float chamber 90 is exposed to the atmosphere through a breather 87 that is common to the ink tank 94, the liquid level inside the float chamber 90 and the floating float 89 are at the same water level 91a as the ink liquid level 91 in the uncrank 94. shows. Therefore, a sensor 88 that detects the interruption of the light beam is arranged at a suitable location in the lower part of the float chamber 90, and as the ink liquid level 91 decreases, that is, the water level 91a of the detection section decreases, the float 89
decreases and blocks the light beam from the sensor 88, thereby detecting the absence of ink.

Next, the recovery operation will be described. The recovery operation is an operation to remove air bubbles and clogging that prevent normal ejection, and is performed in conjunction with the recovery system according to the recovery sequence described later, but the recovery operation is exactly the same as the initial supply of ink. . In other words, the ink pump 76 is operated with the cap 41 in close contact with the recording head 38 (this state is shown in FIG. 13), the ink is circulated along the path shown by arrow A, and air bubbles are drawn into the ink tank. Collect it and let it escape from the breather. In addition, the protrusion 41a inside the cap 41 and the nozzle 38a
Clogging in the nozzle can be removed by releasing the contact state and driving the pump. At this time, pressurized ink also flows into the float chamber 90, but the ink does not enter the breather 87 because the float 89 rises and comes into close contact with the upper surface of the float chamber 90, blocking the flow path to the breather 87. do not have.

FIG. 17 shows a supply recovery system embodying the configuration of this embodiment,
It is a perspective view of a component. In this FIG. 17, 73 is a base of this unit, and an ink cartridge 8, which will be described later.
Reference numeral 74 is a member called a joint plate, which is formed by fixing various flow path connecting portions, respectively.The joint plate 74 has a cartridge guide 78 for positioning the ink cartridge 86; When installing the ink cartridge 86, draw out the ink,
Cartridge joints 79a, 79b, and 79c connect pipe lines for venting to the atmosphere, and the waste ink generated during the recovery operation is passed through the waste ink tube 45 to the waste ink absorber provided inside the ink cartridge 86. body 9
6, an air joint 80 for connecting a breather that vents to the atmosphere with an air tube 83, and an air joint 80 for connecting the waste ink to the 11th ink to the recording head. The first ink supply tube 71,72 is connected to the second ink supply tube 71,72. Second supply pipe joints 84, 85 and an ink pump 76 driven by a pump motor 77 are coupled. The seven ink joints connected to the ink tank 94 housed in the ink cartridge 86 in this way supply ink during recording to the first ink supply section 79a and the second ink supply section 79.
A first ink supply port 95a and a second ink supply port 95 which have a corresponding relationship with the ink tank 94 side are centrally provided with three functions: b and an atmosphere communication connection part 79c.
(b) It has a configuration in which it is connected to the atmosphere communication port 95c at once.

Therefore, the atmosphere communication part to the ink tank is achieved by a joint, so the ink tank is made of hard tffl resin material that can store a large amount of ink without using an ink tank format using an ink bag. I was able to take it.

Further, a first ink supply port 95a, a second ink supply port 9
5b, the first ink supply section 79C, and the second ink supply section 79
b, and during printing, ink is supplied from both supply areas, and during initial ink filling and recovery operations, the ink passes from the ink tank through the printing head via a bomb and circulates back to the ink tank. Configure routes.

In other words, as mentioned above, the tank, the supply path, and the atmosphere communication part are directly jointed, so although the ink tank is made of hard resin, functions such as sub-tanks that were conventionally necessary for stable supply are omitted. It became possible. In this example, these members are individually fixed to the joint plate 74, but they may be integrally formed with the joint plate.

Furthermore, the joint plate 74 has a flow path groove 7 that becomes an ink flow path.
A flow path plate 75 provided with the ink flow path 5a is combined, and most of the piping and connections of the ink flow path are configured in this portion.

That is, by fixing the joint part 79 attached to the joint plate 74 connected to the ink tank 94, it is possible to create a configuration in which the ink path 75a does not need to move in that part. It becomes.

For this purpose, the flow path plate with the flow path formed thereon is connected to the joint plate 79.
By simply bonding it to the back surface of the ink tank 94, a part of the ink path from the ink tank 94 to the recording head can be formed.

On the other hand, as will be described later, the ink tank 94 disposed within the ink cartridge 86 is housed with a degree of freedom within the housings 93a and 93b that constitute the cartridge 86.

By storing the ink tank side with a degree of freedom, it is possible to easily ensure the engagement state of the mounting part when mounting the cartridge to the fixed joint part 79, and the mounting of the cartridge can be ensured. The quality can be ensured.

By forming the flow path by joining the joint plate 74 and the flow path plate 75 in this manner, the ink path from the ink tank can be configured without complicated routing.

As shown in FIG. 18, the ink cartridge 86 includes an ink tank 94 made of resin with good liquid contact properties, and
A waste ink absorber 96 made of a water-absorbing material with excellent ink absorption and retention properties, such as felt or a porous material, is housed in common housings 93a and 93b made of a material with good impact resistance. be. The joint part 95 is used to supply ink and release to the atmosphere.
This is done by connecting the cartridge 79 on the joint plate 74 side via the joint plate 74 side. Ink cartridge 8 like this
The entire device 6 is configured to be removable from a base 73 on the device side.

Figure 19(a) shows the structure of this part in more detail.
, (b). Fig. 19(a) is a side cross-section of the ink cartridge showing the main part of the ink cartridge body 86, and Fig. 19(b) shows a part of the joint part 95 when connected to the cartridge joint part of the supply system. It is shown cut. When removing the ink cartridge 86,
To prevent ink from leaking, the joint portion 95 has a built-in metal ball 99 that is pressed against the joint opening 95a by a spring 98, and when the ink cartridge is removed from the apparatus, the metal ball 99 comes into close contact with the seal rubber 101. The structure is such that the opening 95a of the joint portion is sealed.

In addition, this figure 19 (a), (b) and the second figure showing the front cross section.
As shown in FIG. 0, the ink tank 94 has an inclined bottom surface. That is, the joint portion 95 is provided with an inclined surface 94a that collects the flow of ink from the rear, and an inclined surface 94b that collects the flow of ink from the side of the ink tank 94 to the joint portion 95. The ink is introduced into the outlet tube 1 which is bent so that it opens at the deepest part.
00 and is sent to the supply system. By forming the inclined surfaces 94a and 94b at the bottom of the ink tank in this way, all the ink can be collected near the outlet tube 100, making it possible to use the ink without wasting it. Furthermore, even if the device is installed with a slight inclination, ink can be taken out without wasting it. With such a configuration, the aforementioned waste ink absorber 96 is housed in a substantially U-shape in the area within the resulting casing.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the joint portion 95 has three channels,
In other words, there are two ink supply paths and one atmosphere release path.
The ink tank 94 needs to be connected by an appropriate amount within the housings 93a and 93b, as shown in FIG. 20, in order to securely connect these parts. It is held with a gap 97 in between.

In particular, when connecting multiple joints, not only the degree of freedom in the vertical and horizontal directions, but also the degree of freedom in the rotational direction is required. In this example, in order to obtain the degree of freedom in the rotational direction of the joint portion 95 with respect to the central axis, the ink tank 94 is constructed using a gap 97a provided at both ends of the ink tank 94 and a flexible felt-like waste ink absorber 96. By supporting it, it is held rotatable by a certain amount. This makes it possible to perform a reliable connection without positional deviation. Furthermore, in this case, the ink tank 94 may be damaged due to vibration or impact.
In order to prevent the waste ink absorber 96 from moving and causing abnormal noises and damaging the housing, and to make effective use of space, the central part of the waste ink absorber 96 is removed as shown in Figure 18. The deepest part of the ink tank 94 is fitted into this part and held by the remaining outer periphery, so that the flexibility of the waste ink absorber 96 absorbs the shock, and the structure is such that the degree of freedom can be maintained. In this way, the waste ink absorber is fitted into the deepest part of the ink tank 94 and held at the outer periphery,
Moreover, since it is made of a soft material such as felt, the ink tank can be protected from external impact, and the ink tank can be prevented from shaking as described above.

Next, the recovery sequence will be described. In this operation, the recovery system and supply system work together to remove air bubbles and clogging in the flow path.
This is an operation necessary to maintain normal records. FIG. 22 shows a flowchart of this operation, and FIG. 23 shows a schematic diagram of the operation. In FIG. 23, for ease of explanation, a unit consisting of a recording head 38, a head arm, etc. is shown as a head unit 65, a cap 4, a wiper 50, and so on.
52 and a recovery frame 60 and the like will be referred to as a cap unit 64. The head unit 65 is the head shaft 3
6, the cap unit 64 is connected to the recovery frame axis 5
Each can be rotated around 5. The recovery operation procedure will be explained below.

In the normal standby state, as described above, the relationship between the recording head 38 and the cap 41 is maintained in a sealed state as shown in FIG. 15, where the periphery of the cap is slightly bent. The recovery operation begins with the cam gear 5 as shown in FIG.
9a and 59b rotate to press the protrusion 41a inside the cap 41 against the nozzle 38a at the tip of the recording head (the position of the cap unit at this time is called the pressing position) (S22-1). Next, in this state, the ink pump 76
to circulate the ink in the supply path (S22-2),
Remove bubbles from the pipeline. The reason why the protrusion 41a is pressed against the nozzle 38a is to prevent part of the ink from being circulated due to the pressure of the ink pump and flowing out from the nozzle, resulting in wasted waste ink.

Next, the cap unit 64 is lowered as shown at the center opening F in FIG. 23(a) (this state is called the retracted position) (S
22-3), and the head unit 65 as shown in FIG. 3(b).
The center opening G and the cap unit 64 rotate as shown in the center opening H in FIG. 23(b) to reach the wiping start position (S
22-4).

Thereafter, the head unit 65 rotates in the direction of the arrow (■) as shown in FIG. 23(C), and the wiper 50 is installed on the cap unit 64. ,． 52, an operation is performed to wipe off ink droplets, dust, etc. from the ejection port forming surface 38b of the recording head (S22-5).

FIG. 23(C) The center opening I is the ejection opening forming surface 3 of the recording head.
8b is shown passing through the first wiper, but in this example, there are two wipers, so
When the second wiper has finished removing the wiper, the cap unit 64 moves back to the retracted position as shown in the center opening J of FIG. 23(d), and the head unit 65 returns to its original position (S22-7). Finally, the cap unit 64 rises and returns to the normal standby state as shown in FIG.
S22-8) The recovery operation ends.

Cleaning in this embodiment will be additionally explained. As described above, the print head used in this embodiment is a so-called full line type in which ejection ports are formed over the entire print width of the print medium. However, when the ejection orifice forming surface becomes extremely long, cleaning the ejection orifice surface once using one blade is not enough to clean the ejection orifice surface. This is due to the fact that it is difficult to make the pressing force on the discharge port surface of the spray uniform over the entire width due to the length.

Therefore, in this example, the plates 50, 52 and two blades are used to sequentially clean the discharge port surface, thereby ensuring cleaning reliability.

Particularly during cleaning, it is important that the two blades independently contact the ejection orifice forming surface of the recording head to perform cleaning, thereby achieving a so-called two-ring cleaning effect. By sequentially arranging two blades in this way, the cleaning time is shorter than when performing two leaning operations with one blade. Further, in this example, the blade 50 that first contacts the recording head and the blade 52 that contacts the recording head subsequently have different sizes. This is because the length is set so that the tip of the blade comes into contact with the ejection port surface during the movement path of the print head in order for the print head to rotate around the head shaft 36. It is. Therefore, by driving the cap unit together with the rotating operation of the recording head, cleaning can be performed even if the lengths of the blades 50 and 52 are the same or have the same feed length relationship as in this example. can.

For cleaning with blades, it is not necessary to use two blades as described above, but more than two blades may be used, or in this example, both blades 50.5
Although the same material is used in both cases, the same material or different materials having different properties may be used to enhance the cleaning effect.

Next, FIG. 24 shows the sequence at the start of printing.

The start of recording is performed as follows. First step 52
4-1, a print start signal is input to the print head which is in a standby state where the ejection port formation surface of the print head is simply covered by a cap, as shown in FIG. Then, as shown in step 524-2, the recording head and the cap are separated from each other as shown in FIG. 11, that is, the cap unit is retreated to the retracted position.

Subsequently, while maintaining the state shown in FIG. 11, sporadic to several hundred preliminary ejections are performed from all nozzles of the recording head, as shown in step 324-3.

This makes it possible to make the ejection state of the recording head uniform across all nozzles.

After the preliminary ejection is completed, the cap unit and head unit are moved, and as shown in step 324-4, the wiping operation start state shown in FIG. 23(a) is established. Thereafter, as shown in step 524-5, a series of wiping operations are performed as shown in FIGS. Furthermore, move the RAD unit to record and maintain that state. Thereafter, the recording signals are sequentially applied manually to achieve the desired recording.

Finally, the recovery operation performed by circulating ink will be described in more detail. This embodiment has an air bubble sensor 103 shown in FIG. 16, which makes it possible to detect air bubbles present in the supply tube. Therefore, two types of recovery operations are possible: automatic recovery that is performed at predetermined intervals, and temporary recovery that is performed when bubble sensor 103 accidentally detects bubbles. The latter can be realized by having the bubble sensor 103, which makes it possible to reduce the accidental non-discharge that has occurred up to now and improve the reliability of the device. especially,
Considerable extra circulation time or number of cycles should be set to ensure that all bubbles are removed, regardless of the amount of bubbles or their location. was. However, in this embodiment, the recording head is concerned. Bubble sensors 103a and 103b are provided both upstream and downstream in the ink flow direction during circulation.

Therefore, if both air bubble sensors do not detect air bubbles, the recovery operation is immediately stopped. In particular, if the signal from the air bubble sensor 103b installed on the downstream side of the ink flow direction during circulation detects the removal (absence) of air bubbles, after some time has elapsed (the air bubbles are discharged from the position of the sensor to the tank). Since the ink pump is stopped after the ink pump stops, there is no need to take extra circulation time as in the conventional method, and as a result, the recovery sequence can be completed in a short time. Moreover, since the recovery is stopped after bubble removal is detected, the reliability of bubble removal is increased.

As a result, it is possible to reduce the amount of ink that was previously consumed by recovery, and it is also possible to avoid running out of ink when receiving FAXs and non-receiving conditions during the recovery operation.

In this embodiment, a recording head having a supply pipe at both ends and performing a recovery operation by circulation is used, but the present invention is applied to a recording head having a single supply pipe and recovering by suction from the front of the nozzle. It goes without saying that it is okay to do so. It is also possible to reduce costs by integrally forming the bubble sensor in the structure of the head.

The present invention provides excellent effects particularly in bubble jet recording heads and recording apparatuses among ink jet recording systems.

As for typical configurations and principles thereof, it is preferable to use the basic principles disclosed in, for example, US Pat. No. 4,723,129 and US Pat. No. 4,740,796. This method can be applied to both the so-called on-demand type and continuous type, but especially in the case of the on-demand type, it is necessary to arrange the liquid (ink) in accordance with the sheet and liquid path that hold it. By applying at least one drive signal that corresponds to recorded information and causes a rapid temperature rise exceeding nucleate boiling to the electrothermal transducer, the electrothermal transducer generates thermal energy, and the recording head This is effective because it causes film boiling on the heat acting surface of the liquid (ink), resulting in the formation of bubbles in the liquid (ink) in one-to-one correspondence with this drive signal. The growth and contraction of the bubble causes liquid (ink) to be ejected through the ejection opening to form at least three droplets. It is more preferable to use a pulsed drive signal as this drive signal, because the growth and contraction of bubbles can be carried out immediately and appropriately, and the liquid (ink) can be ejected with particularly excellent responsiveness. This pulse-shaped drive! As the II+ signal, U.S. Pat. No. 4,463,359, U.S. Pat.
Something like the one described in the specification is running. Further, if the conditions described in US Pat. No. 4,313,124 concerning the temperature increase rate of the heat acting surface are adopted, even more excellent recording can be achieved.

The configuration of the recording head includes, in addition to the combined configuration of ejection ports, liquid paths, and electrothermal converters (straight liquid flow path or right-angled liquid flow path) as disclosed in the above-mentioned specifications, a heat acting section. US Pat. No. 4,558,333 and US Pat. No. 4,459,600 disclose a configuration in which the
The present invention also includes a configuration using the specification of the above specification.

In addition, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 123670 of 1981 discloses a configuration in which a common slit is used as a discharge part of a plurality of electrothermal converters, and an opening that absorbs pressure waves of thermal energy is disclosed. The present invention is also effective as a configuration based on Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 138461 of 1982, which discloses a configuration corresponding to the discharge section.

Furthermore, as a full-line type recording head having a length corresponding to the width of the maximum recording medium that can be recorded by the recording apparatus, the length can be increased by combining multiple recording heads as disclosed in the above-mentioned specification. Either a configuration that satisfies the above requirements or a configuration as a single recording head formed integrally may be used, but the present invention can more effectively exhibit the above-mentioned effects.

In addition, a replaceable chip-type recording head that is attached to the device body enables electrical connection to the device body and ink supply from the device body, or a chip-type recording head that is installed integrally with the recording head itself. The present invention is also effective when a cartridge type recording head is used.

Further, it is preferable to add recovery means, preliminary auxiliary means, etc. for the recording head, which are provided as a configuration of the recording apparatus of the present invention, because the effects of the present invention can be further stabilized. Specifically, these include preheating means for the recording head using a caving means, a cleaning means, a pressurizing or suction means, an electrothermal transducer or another heating element, or a combination thereof. It is also effective to perform a preliminary ejection mode in which ejection is performed separately from printing in order to perform stable printing.

Furthermore, the recording mode of the recording device is not limited to a recording mode in which only the mainstream color such as black is used; the recording head may be configured integrally or in combination with a plurality of recording heads; Although the present invention has been described based on the embodiment shown in FIG. Depending on the configuration, the idea of the invention is not concerned. For example, the idea of the present invention can be realized even if the ejection opening of the print head is configured to face upward during printing.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide an inkjet recording device in which a portion of the ink tank is located at the lowest position, thereby reducing the risk of ink leakage due to tilting of the device.

Furthermore, since a sufficient water head difference can be obtained between the ink tank and the recording head, it is possible to provide an inkjet recording apparatus that can reduce the rate of pressure change that contributes to ink supply and perform good recording.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

1(A) is a side sectional view of a facsimile machine to which an embodiment of the present invention is applied; FIG. 1(B) is a first-view plan view thereof; FIG. 2 is a side sectional view showing the open state; Figure 3 is a perspective view of the vicinity of the platen roller, Figure 4 is a perspective view of the paper ejection roller, Figure 5 is a perspective view of the recording frame, Figures 6 and 7 are side views of the vicinity of the recording head, and Figure 8 is a perspective view of the vicinity of the recording head. Figure 9 is a perspective view of the recording head; Figure 9 is a perspective view of the vicinity of the cap; Figures 10 (A), (B), and (C) are diagrams showing the state immediately after the head and cap come into contact; Figure 11 (A)・
(B) is a diagram showing the state in which the head and the cap are separated from each other, Figure 12 (A), (B), and (C) are diagrams showing the state in which the cap is moving toward the head, and Figure 13. (A)
(B) and (C) are diagrams showing the state in which the protrusion presses and seals the nozzle, and the spring is elastically deformed. Figure 15 (A) showing the state in which
・(B) and (C) are diagrams showing a standby state; FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram schematically showing an example of a configuration of an ink supply path of an inkjet recording apparatus according to the present invention; FIG. FIG. 18 is an exploded perspective view showing an example of the structure of an ink cartridge installed in the inkjet recording device according to the present invention. , FIGS. 19(a) and 19(b) are a partially cutaway side view of an example of the configuration of an ink cartridge, and a partially enlarged cross-sectional view showing a state of engagement with the ink supply means. FIG. 20 is a partially cutaway front sectional view of an example of an ink cartridge configuration; FIG. 21 is a schematic diagram showing a top surface of an example of an ink cartridge configuration; A flowchart showing an example of a recovery sequence applicable to the inkjet recording apparatus according to the invention, FIGS. 23(a), (b), (c), and (d) are schematic side views showing the recovery operation in order. , FIG. 24 is a flowchart showing an example of the sequence from the standby state to the recording state. 1...Recording paper 2...Document 7...Conveyance roller 14...Recording guide 22...Cutter 38...Recording throat 41...Cap 50.52...Wiper 60...・Recovery frame 86... Ink cartridge refill lza must 12a must be t'

Claims (5)

[Claims] (1) In an inkjet recording device that records on a recording medium by discharging ink onto the recording medium, an inkjet recording head that discharges ink is provided below the recording position of the inkjet recording head in order to record on the recording medium. An inkjet recording apparatus comprising: a capping means for covering an ejection port of the inkjet recording head; and an ink tank for storing ink to be supplied to the inkjet recording head. (2) The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the inkjet recording head is capable of rotating downward and engaging with the capping means. (3) The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the inkjet recording head is a full-line type in which ejection ports are formed over the entire width of the recording area of the recording medium. (4) Claim (1) characterized in that the inkjet recording head ejects ink using thermal energy, and includes an electrothermal converter for generating the thermal energy. The inkjet recording device described in . (5) The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the inkjet recording apparatus is a facsimile machine having a document reading section.