JP2017177332A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a printer which prevents breakage of a head due to freezing of liquid.SOLUTION: An ink jet printer 10 as a printer of this invention includes: a head 20 which discharges liquid; a temperature sensor 24 as a temperature acquisition unit which acquires temperature information; a determination unit 50 which determines whether or not th liquid in the head 20 freezes on the basis of information of the liquid and the temperature information when receiving a command of power OFF; and a control unit 18 which executes a liquid discharge mode for discharging the liquid from the head 20 when the determination unit 50 determines the liquid to freeze.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

  The present invention relates to a printing apparatus.

2. Related Art Ink jet printers that draw an image on paper by ejecting ink are well known.
In Patent Document 1, a return pump is provided between the print head and the ink tank, and when the apparatus is transported, the ink in the print head is returned to the ink tank by the return pump to eliminate the ink in the print head, thereby transporting the apparatus. An ink jet printer that prevents ink leakage at the time is disclosed.

JP-A-11-91124

  However, in the ink jet printer of Patent Document 1, measures are taken against ink leakage during transportation of the apparatus, but there is a problem that measures are not taken against damage to the head due to freezing of moisture contained in ink in a cold region. was there.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is to solve at least a part of the problems described above, and the invention can be implemented as the following forms or application examples.

  Application Example 1 A printing apparatus according to this application example is based on the liquid information and the temperature information when receiving a liquid discharge head, a temperature acquisition unit that acquires temperature information, and a power-off instruction. A determination unit that determines whether or not the liquid in the head is frozen, and a control unit that executes a liquid discharge mode for discharging the liquid from the head when the determination unit determines that the liquid is frozen. It is characterized by providing.

According to this application example, it is determined whether or not the liquid in the head is frozen based on the liquid information and the temperature information, and when the determination unit determines that the liquid is frozen, the liquid discharge that discharges the liquid from the head Since the mode is executed, the liquid is discharged from the head, and the head can be prevented from being damaged due to the freezing of the liquid.
Accordingly, it is possible to obtain a printing apparatus in which the head is not damaged due to the freezing of the liquid even in a cold region.

  Application Example 2 In the printing apparatus according to the application example described above, the determination unit acquires a history of the temperature information, and the liquid in the head is detected when the temperature in the history is lower than the liquid freezing temperature. It is preferable to determine that it is frozen.

  According to this application example, it is determined that the liquid in the head is frozen when the temperature in the temperature information history is lower than the liquid freezing temperature, so that the head is prevented from being damaged by executing the liquid discharge mode. Can do.

  Application Example 3 In the printing apparatus according to the application example, when the determination unit determines that the liquid is frozen, the display unit can input whether to execute the liquid discharge mode. It is preferable to perform display.

  According to this application example, by displaying on the display unit whether or not to execute the liquid discharge mode, the liquid may not freeze unless the printing apparatus is used frequently and left for a long period of time. Therefore, the execution of the liquid discharge mode can be canceled.

  Application Example 4 In the printing apparatus according to the application example described above, the printer may further include a cap, and the control unit may turn off the power in a state where the cap is not in contact with the head according to the power-off period. preferable.

  According to this application example, the cap and the head are not in contact with each other for a long time because the cap and the head are not in contact by turning off the power in a state where the cap is not in contact with the head according to the power-off period. Since the generated cap and the head do not adhere to each other, the head can be prevented from being damaged due to the cap and the head adhering to each other.

  Application Example 5 In the printing apparatus according to the application example, it is preferable that the control unit performs control so that the head discharges the liquid in a direction in which the liquid is discharged.

  According to this application example, by discharging the liquid in the head in the discharge direction, it is possible to easily discharge the liquid, and it is possible to prevent damage to the head due to freezing of the liquid.

  Application Example 6 In the printing apparatus according to the application example described above, it is preferable that the control unit controls the head to discharge the liquid in a direction opposite to a direction in which the liquid is discharged.

  According to this application example, it is possible to prevent damage to the head due to freezing of the liquid by sucking the liquid in the head and discharging the liquid in the head in the direction opposite to the direction in which the liquid is discharged.

1 is a perspective view illustrating a schematic configuration of a printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a head cleaning mechanism. The perspective view which shows schematic structure of a cap. The block diagram for performing liquid discharge mode. The flowchart of liquid discharge mode. The display figure of liquid discharge mode. The display figure of liquid discharge mode.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In each figure shown below, the size and ratio of each component may be described differently from the actual component in order to make each component large enough to be recognized on the drawing. is there.

First, an ink jet printer is taken as an example of a printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention and will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of an inkjet printer 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
As shown in FIG. 1, the inkjet printer 10 includes a frame 11, and a platen 12 is disposed by the frame 11. On the platen 12, the recording paper P is fed by a paper feeding mechanism (not shown). The inkjet printer 10 includes a carriage 13, and the carriage 13 is supported so as to be movable in the longitudinal direction of the platen 12 via a guide member 14, and is reciprocated by a carriage motor 15 via a timing belt 16. It has become.

  The carriage 13 has an ink jet head 20 at a lower portion thereof, and the head 20 is configured to eject ink as a liquid onto the recording paper P.

Specifically, the head 20 has a nozzle (nozzle opening) for ejecting ink, and the nozzle is formed on a nozzle plate 21 (nozzle opening forming surface) (see FIG. 2).
The head 20 includes a temperature sensor 24 (see FIG. 2) as a temperature acquisition unit that measures the temperature of the head 20 in order to prevent the ink in the nozzles from freezing and damaging the head 20 in a cold region. Has been placed.

  An ink cartridge 17 that contains ink is detachably mounted on the carriage 13, and ink is supplied from the ink cartridge 17 to the head 20.

  That is, while the carriage 13 moves along the platen 12, ink is ejected from the head 20 onto the recording paper P based on the print data, and printing or the like is performed.

  Further, in the frame 11 of FIG. 1, the recording paper P is disposed, and a printing area T in which printing or the like is performed on the recording paper P is formed. A home position H, which is a non-printing area, is also formed on the right side of the printing area T in the drawing. The carriage 13 is configured to move between the printing region T and the home position H by moving along the platen 12. Note that the recording paper P on which printing or the like has been performed is fed in a direction intersecting with the direction in which the carriage 13 moves along the platen 12 from the printing region T side when the paper feed motor 19 is driven to rotate.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a head cleaning mechanism 30 is disposed at the home position H. The head cleaning mechanism 30 includes a cap 40 and a tube pump 33 (an example of a pump unit). The cap 40 can be moved up and down by a known lifting means (not shown).

  The frame 11 controls the movement of the carriage 13, the head 20 that ejects ink, the paper feed motor 19 that moves the recording paper P, the head cleaning mechanism 30 that cleans the head 20, and a liquid discharge mode that will be described later. A control unit 18 is arranged.

Next, the head cleaning mechanism 30 will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration of the head cleaning mechanism 30.
The cap 40 is configured to abut against or separate from the nozzle plate 21 by moving up and down along the arrow Y direction in FIG.

  Specifically, when the cap 40 abuts against the nozzle plate 21 so as to cover the nozzles of the head 20, the inside of the cap 40 becomes a substantially closed space in relation to the nozzle plate 21. This state is a state where the cap 40 is capping the head 20. The cap 40 includes a substantially box-shaped cap holder 42 whose upper surface is open and a cap portion 41 made of an elastic member. Here, when the cap 40 comes into contact with the nozzle plate 21, the cap portion 41 comes into close contact with the nozzle plate 21. In this state, evaporation of ink in the nozzle is suppressed. The cap portion 41 is formed by two-color molding on the upper portion of the cap holder 42. On the other hand, when the cap 40 is separated from the nozzle plate 21, the inside of the cap 40 is in an open state.

  2 shows a configuration example in which the cap portion 41 of the cap 40 abuts the nozzle plate 21. However, the cap 40 is in close contact with the head 20 so as to surround the nozzle to form a closed space. As long as the nozzle is arranged in the closed space, any configuration may be used. Therefore, the cap 40 may be configured to be in close contact with a portion other than the nozzle plate 21 in the head 20, for example, the side surface of the head 20.

  In the present embodiment, a tube pump 33 that sucks ink or the like in the cap 40 is connected to the cap 40, and the ink or the like in the cap 40 is sucked by driving the tube pump 33. At this time, in order to increase the negative pressure by the tube pump 33, the cap portion 41 needs to be in close contact with the nozzle plate 21 of the head 20.

  The tube pump 33 is connected to a waste ink tank 34 that stores ink adhering to the nozzle plate 21 sucked by the tube pump 33. Therefore, the ink discharged from the head 20 is stored in the waste ink tank 34 via the tube pump 33.

  An ink absorbing material 43 that absorbs the ink discharged from the nozzles of the head 20 is disposed in the cap 40. The ink absorbing material 43 is fixed by a pressing spring 44 as shown in FIG.

Next, the cap 40 will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of the cap 40.
As shown in FIG. 3, the cap 40 has a substantially square cap portion 41 formed on the top of the cap holder 42. When the head 20 is capped, the cap portion 41 surrounds the nozzles of the head 20. Close contact with the plate 21. This prevents the nozzle from touching the outside air. However, since the discharge port of the tube pump 33 connected to the cap 40 is actually opened, the cap 40 does not completely seal the nozzle. This is because the ink meniscus of the nozzle is not broken when there is a pressure fluctuation in the cap 40 due to a temperature change or the like, thereby preventing a discharge failure. In order to suppress evaporation from the discharge port, as shown in FIG. 2, the connecting portion of the cap holder 42 and the tube of the tube pump 33 is sufficiently thin, and the connecting portion is covered with the ink absorbing material 43. ing. In such a state, the cap holder 42 has the most influence on the ink evaporation.

Next, a liquid discharge mode for preventing the head 20 from being damaged by freezing of ink in the head 20 in a cold district or the like, which the inkjet printer 10 of the present embodiment has, will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 4 is a block diagram for executing the liquid discharge mode. FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the liquid discharge mode. 6 and 7 are display diagrams of the liquid discharge mode.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the control unit 18 for executing the liquid discharge mode inputs a temperature sensor 24 as a temperature acquisition unit for acquiring temperature information of the head 20 and whether to execute the liquid discharge mode. Is connected to the display unit 54 capable of. The control unit 18 includes a determination unit 50 that determines whether or not the ink in the head 20 is frozen, and a storage unit 52 that stores ink information and temperature information.

  When the determination unit 50 determines from the temperature information of the head 20 acquired by the temperature sensor 24 that the ink in the head 20 is frozen, the control unit 18 executes a liquid discharge mode in which the ink is discharged from the head 20.

  As shown in FIG. 5, in the liquid discharge mode flowchart, first, in Step 1, the temperature information of the head 20 is acquired by the temperature sensor 24 at a desired time interval in the power-on state of the inkjet printer 10, and stored in the storage unit 52. Remember.

  Next, in Step 2, when receiving a power-off instruction, the determination unit 50 stores the ink freezing temperature as the liquid freezing temperature, which is the ink information stored in the storage unit 52, and the acquired temperature information of the head 20. Based on the above, it is determined whether or not the ink in the head 20 is frozen. More specifically, the determination unit 50 acquires the history of the temperature information from the storage unit 52. If the temperature in the history is lower than the ink freezing temperature, the determination unit 50 determines that the ink is frozen and proceeds to Step 3. If the temperature in the history does not fall below the ink freezing temperature, it is determined that the ink will not freeze, the liquid discharge mode is terminated, and the power of the inkjet printer 10 is turned off.

  In Step 3, since the freezing temperature is different for each ink color, the ink that is likely to freeze is specified. Here, as shown in FIG. 6, the control unit 18 displays ink that may be frozen, and sends a display capable of inputting whether or not to execute the liquid discharge mode to the display unit 54. Can be displayed. Also, if the use frequency of the ink jet printer 10 is high, the ink may not freeze unless it is left for a long period of time. Therefore, an input as to whether or not to cancel the automatic execution of the liquid discharge mode as shown in FIG. It is also possible to send a display capable of being sent to the display unit 54 and display it on the display unit 54.

  Next, at Step 4, a signal is sent from the control unit 18 to the head cleaning mechanism 30, and ink is sucked from the head 20 by the tube pump 33 and discharged. That is, the ink in the head 20 is discharged in the direction of discharging. Therefore, since there is no ink in the head 20, damage to the head 20 due to freezing of ink can be prevented.

  In this embodiment, the ink in the head 20 is discharged in the direction of discharging, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a suction pump is provided between the head 20 and the ink cartridge 17 so that the head 20 The ink in the head 20 may be discharged in the direction opposite to the direction of ejecting ink. In this method, the same effect can be obtained.

In Step 5, a signal is sent from the control unit 18 to the head cleaning mechanism 30, and the cap 40 is moved downward along the direction of arrow Y in FIG. 2 to separate the head 20 and the cap 40 from each other. Thereafter, the power of the inkjet printer 10 is turned off.
Here, since the head 20 and the cap 40 are not in contact with each other, it is possible to prevent the head from being damaged by the head 20 and the cap 40 being fixed.

  Note that if the use frequency of the inkjet printer 10 is high, the head 20 and the cap 40 do not adhere unless they are left for a long period of time, so that Step 5 may not be executed.

As described above, according to the inkjet printer 10 as the printing apparatus according to the present embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
Based on the ink information and the temperature information, it is determined whether or not the ink in the head 20 is frozen. When the determination unit 50 determines that the ink is frozen, the liquid discharge mode for discharging the ink from the head 20 is executed. Therefore, the ink is discharged from the head 20 and the head 20 can be prevented from being damaged due to the freezing of the ink.
Accordingly, it is possible to obtain the ink jet printer 10 in which the head 20 is not damaged by freezing even in a cold region.

  Further, since the determination unit 50 determines that the ink in the head 20 is frozen when the temperature in the temperature information history falls below the ink freezing temperature, the head 20 is prevented from being damaged by executing the liquid discharge mode. be able to.

  Further, by displaying on the display unit 54 whether or not to execute the liquid discharge mode, if the use frequency of the ink jet printer 10 is high, the ink may not freeze unless left for a long period of time. The execution of the discharge mode can also be canceled.

  Further, the cap 40 and the head 20 are not in contact with each other for a long time because the cap 40 and the head 20 are not in contact by turning off the power in a state where the cap 40 is not in contact with the head 20 according to the power-off period. Since the cap 40 and the head 20 are not fixed to each other, the head 20 can be prevented from being damaged by the cap 40 and the head 20 being fixed.

  Further, by discharging the ink in the head 20 in the direction of discharging, the ink can be easily discharged, and damage to the head 20 due to freezing of the ink can be prevented.

  Further, by sucking the ink in the head 20 and discharging the ink in the head in the direction opposite to the direction in which the ink is ejected, damage to the head due to freezing of the ink can be prevented.

  As described above, the configuration of each part of the present invention can be replaced with any configuration that exhibits the same function as that of the above-described embodiment, and any configuration can be added. Moreover, you may make it this invention combine arbitrary structures of each embodiment mentioned above.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Inkjet printer as a printing apparatus, 11 ... Frame, 12 ... Platen, 13 ... Carriage, 14 ... Guide member, 15 ... Carriage motor, 16 ... Timing belt, 17 ... Ink cartridge, 18 ... Control part, 19 ... Paper feed Motor, 20 ... head, 21 ... nozzle plate, 24 ... temperature sensor as temperature acquisition unit, 30 ... head cleaning mechanism, 33 ... tube pump, 34 ... waste ink tank, 40 ... cap, 41 ... cap part, 42 ... cap Holder: 43 ... Ink absorber, 44 ... Pressing spring, 50 ... Determination unit, 52 ... Storage unit, 54 ... Display unit, H ... Home position, P ... Recording paper, T ... Printing area.

Claims (6)

A head for discharging liquid;
A temperature acquisition unit for acquiring temperature information;
A determination unit that determines whether or not the liquid in the head is frozen based on the information on the liquid and the temperature information when receiving an instruction to turn off the power;
And a control unit that executes a liquid discharge mode for discharging the liquid from the head when the determination unit determines that the liquid is frozen.   2. The determination unit according to claim 1, wherein the determination unit acquires a history of the temperature information, and determines that the liquid in the head is frozen when a temperature in the history is lower than a liquid freezing temperature. Printing device. When the determination unit determines that the liquid is frozen, the control unit,
The printing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a display is performed on a display unit capable of inputting whether or not to execute the liquid discharge mode. Further having a cap,
In accordance with the power-off period, the control unit
The printing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the power is turned off in a state where the cap does not contact the head.   The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the head to discharge the liquid in a direction in which the liquid is discharged.   The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the head to discharge the liquid in a direction opposite to a direction in which the liquid is discharged.

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