JP2000062213A - Driving method for ink-jet recording apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent a pigment ink from remaining in the maintenance operation by successively executing a step of closely contacting a cap with the nozzle surface with the communication with a washing tank blocked, a step of wiping the nozzle surface by a wiping means, or the like. SOLUTION: With each cap 116 capped by contacting with the nozzle surface, the ink inside the nozzle is vacuumed by drive of a pump 120. Since a washing liquid pipe path 158a is pressed and closed by one end 162a of a lever at this point, even if the inside of a space 118 has a negative pressure, a washing liquid cannot enter into the space 118. According to drive of the pump 120 again, the space 118 in the cap has a negative pressure so that the washing liquid enters into the space 118 and a pipe path member 136 of the pump. Accordingly, the inside of the pipe member can be washed entirely from the nozzle surface, the inside of the cap 116, to a waste liquid storage part 122. Thereafter, the liquid adhered on each nozzle surface can be wiped off by relatively moving the nozzle surface and the operating surface of a wiping member while contacting with each other.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a non-impact type printer, and more particularly to a method of operating an inkjet recording apparatus using a quick-drying pigment ink.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Non-impact printers are used in various fields because they produce little noise when printing characters and images and are capable of color printing. Among them, inkjet printers that perform printing by ejecting ink droplets onto a non-printing material from a large number of nozzles provided in the print head, especially on-demand inkjet printers that use piezoelectric elements in the print head, print on plain paper. Since it is possible to reduce the size of the printer body and it is easy to reduce the size of the printer body, it is becoming popular as an output device such as a personal computer or a word processor. Generally, in ink jet printers, the drying of ink in the nozzles of the print head, the disturbance of the meniscus, and the extra ink attached around the nozzle openings on the nozzle surface of the print head make the ejection control of ink droplets unstable and cause printing. It is a major factor that deteriorates the quality. Therefore, many conventional inkjet printers are equipped with a maintenance device for eliminating such a print quality deterioration factor that may occur during non-use of the printer, for example, and are configured to recover the print quality before the start of the next printing operation. It is adopted. As this type of maintenance device, a capping device that blocks a large number of nozzle openings provided on the nozzle surface of the print head when the printer is not in use to prevent ink drying near the nozzle openings, and a nozzle surface that is made of rubber or other blade There is known a wiping device for wiping with a nozzle, a suction device for sucking and removing ink thickened in the nozzle, bubbles and dust trapped in the nozzle with a pump through a cap made of rubber or the like. Also, as shown in Japanese Patent No. 2665469, a basic sequence for recovering print quality using them is performed in the order of capping, ink suction from a print head, cap opening, and ink discharge in the cap. However, generally, in addition to that, wiping for wiping the nozzle surface with a blade such as rubber is performed.

By the way, in conventional ink jet printers, dye inks using dyes as colorants are generally used. However, depending on the application field of the inkjet printer (for example, passbook printer), the light resistance and water resistance of the ink printed on the non-printing material may be required. In such a case, a pigment is used as a colorant. The quick-drying pigment ink used will be required. However, when moisture in the pigment ink evaporates and the viscosity increases, it becomes more difficult to redisperse the dye ink and it becomes difficult to remove the dye ink. When the recovery operation is performed in the conventional sequence, the ink adhered to the wiping material itself, the ink on the nozzle surface wiped off by wiping, or the ink remaining in the cap of the suction device or the suction pump channel Ink, etc. thickens and gradually accumulates, which not only makes ejection unstable but also causes clogging of nozzles, caps and pump flow paths, reducing not only print quality but also operation reliability of the entire machine. I will let you.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to prevent pigment ink from remaining on a wiping material, a nozzle surface, a cap of a suction device, or a pump passage in a maintenance operation for recovering print quality. , Thickening of ink
An object of the present invention is to solve various problems caused by accumulation and to provide a reliable inkjet recording device.

[0005]

In order to solve the above problems, a maintenance operation method including an ink suction operation of an ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention includes a print head that performs printing by ejecting pigment ink, and a printing head. A cap for capping the nozzle surface of the head, a suction means connected to the cap for sucking by reducing the pressure in the cap, and a cleaning liquid tank for storing the cleaning liquid introduced into the cap. In an inkjet recording apparatus having: a wiping unit for wiping the nozzle surface, a first step of bringing the cap into close contact with the nozzle surface in a state where communication with the cleaning liquid tank is blocked; The ink is sucked from the print head by operating the suction unit while the communication with the cleaning liquid tank is cut off. And a third step of communicating the inside of the cap with the cleaning liquid tank in a state where the cap is in close contact with the nozzle surface, and a third step in which the cap is in close contact with the nozzle surface and within the cap. The fourth step of introducing the cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid tank into the cap by activating the suction means in the state of communicating with the cleaning liquid tank, and the cleaning liquid in the cap while the cap is in close contact with the nozzle surface. The fifth step of stopping the operation of the suction means in a filled state and waiting for a predetermined time, the sixth step of separating the cap from the nozzle surface, and the seventh step of moving the carriage and wiping the nozzle surface with the wiping means. And including, the first
Therefore, the seventh step is performed in this order.

[0006]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to the drawings, FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing main components of an ink jet recording apparatus 10 equipped with a maintenance system according to an embodiment of the present invention in a partially transparent view, and FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a maintenance system of the recording device 10. FIG.

The ink jet recording apparatus 10 is capable of reciprocating in a predetermined direction (usually a horizontal direction with respect to a printer installation reference plane) in a machine frame 14 including an openable / closable housing 12 and a machine base (not shown). The print head 16 installed, the ink supply means 18 for supplying ink to the print head 16, and the machine frame 14
A print area P facing the print head 16 within the non-print material M
And a maintenance means 22 having a plurality of functional stations dispersedly arranged in both end regions of the reciprocating movement range R of the print head 16 in the machine body frame 14. The print head 16 is fixed to the carriage 24, and is supported by the guide bar 26 extending in the horizontal direction in the carriage 24 body frame 14 so as to be slidable in the axial direction. When printing, the print head 16
Is reciprocated in the same horizontal direction along the guide bar 26 by a drive mechanism (not shown).

As shown schematically in FIG. 3, the print head 16
Is a plurality of nozzles 28 for ejecting ink droplets, a nozzle surface 30 where the nozzles 28 are open, and the nozzles 28.
An actuator 32 including a piezoelectric element that ejects ink droplets from the nozzles, and an internal pressure adjusting device or damper 34 that stabilizes the meniscus of the ink that has entered each nozzle 28 are provided. In the illustrated embodiment, the printhead 16 comprises three independent subheads 36, each of which is provided with a plurality of nozzles 28, nozzle faces 30 and actuators 32. 1 and 3, a flexible circuit board 38 for applying a drive voltage to the actuator 32 is shown.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the ink supply means 18 includes an ink storage section 40 installed at a position separated from the print head 16 in the machine body frame 14, the print head 16 and the ink storage section 40. Ink supply line 4 for connecting
2 is provided, and quick-drying pigment ink is supplied to the print head 16 in the printing operation. In the illustrated embodiment, the ink supply line 42 is formed from a tube having sufficient flexibility so as not to interfere with the reciprocal movement of the print head 12.

Further, in the illustrated embodiment, the ink supply means 1
8 includes three independent ink storage units 40, and three independent ink supply conduits 42 that connect each ink storage unit and each sub head 36 of the print head 16 (FIG. 2). Therefore, the inkjet recording device 10 can be used as a color printer. Further, in the embodiment, the three ink storage units 40 are detachably mounted at predetermined positions on the machine body frame 14 and are the cartridge type ink tanks 4.
Formed within 4.

The material feeding means 20 installed below the reciprocating range R of the print head 16 includes a fixed plate 4 on the upper stage.
6 and a lower movable plate 48, a material holding portion 50 for holding a non-printing material M such as a printing paper or a passbook inserted between the plates 46, 48, and a fixed plate 46.
A correction mechanism 52 that is installed above the fixed plate and that corrects the feed direction of the non-printing material M held by the material holding unit 50, and is installed above the fixed plate in the material feed direction of the correction mechanism 52
The non-printing material M held by the material holding unit 50 is printed in the printing area P.
Feeding mechanism 5 that feeds the paper to the print area P and discharges it from the print area P
4 and.

The printing area P constitutes the feeding mechanism 54.
It is formed between a pair of feed rollers 56. Print head 16
Is reciprocally moved along the guide bar 26 above the printing region P to scan the non-printing material M fed to the printing region P, and eject ink droplets from the plurality of nozzles 28. Characters and images are formed on the printing material M.

The plurality of functional stations constituting the maintenance means 22 cap the plurality of nozzles 28 which are opened in the nozzle surface 30 of the print head 16 when the printer is not used, and prevent the ink in the nozzles 28 from drying. And an ejection station 60 for ejecting from the nozzle 28 ink that thickens in unused nozzles during printing, and the print head 16 when the printer is not in use.
And a cleaning station 62 for sucking and removing the ink thickened in the nozzle 28, cleaning the nozzle surface 30, and wiping the nozzle surface 30. In the embodiment, the capping station 58, the ejection station 58, and the ejection station 60 are installed at one end (right side in the drawing) of the reciprocating range R of the print head, and the cleaning station 62 is the other end of the reciprocating range R of the print head. It is installed in the area (left side in the figure).

The distributed positions of the various functional stations make effective use of the idle space in the machine frame 14 of the ink jet recording apparatus 10. That is,
Generally, in an inkjet recording apparatus, printing is performed on a non-printing material while the print head reciprocates in a predetermined direction, so the reciprocating range of the print head is set to be wider than the size of the material feeding means facing the print head. . as a result,
An idle space is inevitably formed around the material feeding means.
In the ink jet recording apparatus 10, the above-mentioned various function stations that realize a multifunctional maintenance system are dispersedly arranged in such an idle space to effectively prevent the enlargement of the machine body size. .
Further, the inkjet recording apparatus 10 having the multifunctional maintenance system can safely use the quick-drying pigment ink, and thus can be suitably used as an industrial printer such as a passbook printer. The print quality recovery means using this maintenance system will be described below.

The purifying station 62 is provided with a suction device 110 for positively sucking and removing ink thickened while the printer is not used, air bubbles, dust, and the like caught during printing from the outside of the nozzle 28, and the periphery of the opening of each nozzle 28. Cleaning device 112 for cleaning the nozzle surface 30 where ink has leaked to the nozzle surface 3
Wiping device 1 for wiping off ink and cleaning liquid adhering to 0
And 14 are provided. The suction device 110 of the purification station 62 has the other end of the reciprocating range R (the left end in the figure).
The print head 16 is located at a position where it can face the print head 16, and is arranged in the machine body frame 14 so as to be movable toward and away from the print head 16. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the suction device 110 includes three caps 116 that individually cover the nozzle surface 30 of each sub-head 36 when approaching the print head 16, and each nozzle surface 30 and each cap 116. Is connected to each space 118 defined between
A pump 120 that creates a negative pressure in the spaces 118 during operation
And a waste liquid storage section 122 that is connected to the pump 120 and stores the ink sucked and removed from each nozzle 28. Further, the suction device 110 includes a main body 126 that directs the three caps 116, a drive mechanism 128 that moves the main body 126 toward and away from the print head 16, and a detection mechanism 130 that detects the operating position of the drive mechanism 128. With.

Each of the three caps 116 is made of an elastic material such as rubber that can be in close contact with the nozzle surface 30, and is independent of each other and is elastically connected to the main body 126 by a biasing means such as a spring 132. It is fixedly supported by the body 134. The spring 132 biases the cap 116 toward the nozzle surface 30 via the cap support member 134.
The cap support member 134 is provided at the position where the opening peripheral lip of the cap 116 projects from the top surface of the main body 126, and
It is locked to the body 126 against the bias of 32 (FIG. 5).

The pump 120 is a triple pump. The three caps 116 and the pump 120 are fluidly connected to each other by three independent pipe line members 136, and the pump 120 and waste liquid storage are connected. The portion 122 and the portion 122 are fluidly connected to each other by three independent pipe line members 138. Therefore, the pump 120 is
When the caps 26 are brought close to the print head 16 and the respective caps 116 are brought into close contact with the nozzle surfaces 30 of the respective sub heads 36, the operation is performed so that the spaces 118 defined between the respective nozzle surfaces 30 and the respective caps 116 are formed. Use negative pressure. Thereby, the pump 120 sucks and removes a predetermined amount of ink from each nozzle 28, and sends the removed ink to the waste liquid storage section 122. In addition,
The three conduit members 138 that connect the pump 120 and the waste liquid reservoir 122 can also be integrated into a single conduit member 138 ′ as shown in FIG.

The main body 126 is elastically connected to the machine body frame 14 via a biasing means such as a spring 140.
0 is biased toward the print head 16.
The drive mechanism 128 includes a drive source 142 such as an electric motor and the main body 1.
The first cam 144 disposed inside the main body 126 with the cam surface in contact with the wall surface of the drive shaft 26, and the output shaft 142 of the drive source 142.
a gear train 146 for transmitting torque from a to the shaft 144a of the first cam 144. The first cam 144 is the drive source 1
It is rotated in the direction of arrow B in the figure by driving 42, and the main body 126 is moved in the direction away from the print head 16 against the bias of the spring 140 in accordance with the rotation angle. In the illustrated embodiment, in the main body 126, each cap 116 causes the nozzle surface 3 of each sub head 36 while the first cam 144 makes one rotation.
0 between the fully closed position covering 0 and the fully open position opening 1
It is designed to perform a reciprocating lifting operation. The main body 1
In order to stably raise and lower 26 in a predetermined direction, a main body guide means (not shown) is preferably provided. Body 126
Is in the fully closed position, each cap 116 has a spring 14
The springs 132 can absorb the relative error in the distance between the main body 126 and each nozzle surface 30 while closely contacting the nozzle surface 30 of each sub head 36 under the bias of 0. Therefore, the total biasing force of the spring 132 is
It is set smaller than the biasing force of zero.

The detection mechanism 130 includes the shaft 1 of the first cam 144.
The gear 146a is fixed to the gear 44a, and the sensor 152 for detecting the origin of rotation of the gear 146a. The detection mechanism 130 includes the shaft 1 of the first cam 144 of the drive mechanism 128.
The origin position of 44a is defined, and one rotation from the origin position of the shaft 144a is detected.

Cleaning device 112 of purification station 62
Is the nozzle surface 30 of each sub head 36 of the print head 16.
A cleaning liquid storage unit 154 connected to each space 118 defined between the space 116 and each cap 116 of the suction device 110, and a valve member 156 installed between the space 118 and the cleaning liquid storage unit 154. . As shown in FIG. 5, each cap 116 of the suction device 110 includes a conduit portion 158 that defines a cleaning liquid conduit 158 a that communicates with the space 118. The cleaning liquid storage unit 154 is fluidly connected to the conduit members 158 of the caps 116 via the wall of the main body 126 of the suction device 110 by three independent conduit members 160. In addition, the three conduit members 160
Is a single conduit member 1 on the way as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4.
It can also be aggregated into 60 '. The valve member 156 is composed of a lever 162 swingably installed in the main body 126 of the suction device 110. The lever 162 is urged by an urging means (not shown) such as a torsion spring to an initial position where one end 162 a of the lever 162 abuts on the conduit portion 158 of each cap 116. One end 162a of the lever 162 at the initial position
Is the conduit portion 1 of each cap 116 under the bias of the biasing means.
58 is squeezed to close the cleaning liquid conduit 158a. When the lever 162 is swung in the direction of the arrow C in the figure against the bias of the biasing means, one end 162a of the lever 162 moves the cap 1 into each cap 1.
16 from the pipe line portion 158 to remove the cleaning liquid pipe line 158a.
Open. Such a swinging motion of the lever is performed by the suction device 1
By the drive mechanism 128 of 10, the main body 1 of the suction device 110
It is triggered in conjunction with the lifting and lowering operation of 24. That is, the third cam 164 is attached to the shaft 144a of the first cam 144 of the suction device 110 adjacent to the first cam 144. Third
The cam 164 rotates in the direction of the arrow B in the drawing by the drive of the drive source 142 of the drive mechanism 128, and depending on the rotation angle,
The other end 162b of the lever 162 is pressed by the cam surface. As a result, the lever 162 swings in the direction of the arrow C in the drawing against the bias of the biasing means, and the one end 162a of the lever 162 is disengaged from the conduit portion 158 of each cap 116.

The cleaning device 112 operates as follows. The suction device 110 causes the nozzles 28 to operate by operating the pump 120.
When the ink is sucked and removed from the valve member 1, the lever 162 is moved to the initial position so that one end 162a of the lever 162 is moved to the valve member 1.
As indicated by 56, the pipe portion of each cap 116 is squeezed under the urging of the urging means to close the cleaning liquid pipe 158a. Therefore, even if the pressure in the space 118 is negative, the cleaning liquid does not enter the space 118, so that only the ink is sucked from the print head 16. In the case of performing the cleaning work with the cleaning liquid, when the shaft 144a is rotated by a predetermined angle after the completion of the ink suction / removal work, the lever 162 is moved to the third position while keeping the caps 116 in close contact with the nozzle surfaces 30. The cam 164 swings by being pressed. Thereby, one end 162a of the lever 162
, But is separated from the pipe line portion 158 of each cap 116 to open the cleaning liquid pipe line 158a. Pump 120 in that state
Is operated to release the cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid storage unit 154 to the space 118 via the conduit member 160 and the conduit portion 158, and the nozzle surface 30 and the pump conduit member 136 are cleaned by the cleaning liquid. The cleaning liquid after cleaning is sucked by the pump 120 via the conduit member 136,
It is sent to the waste liquid storage section 122 via 38.

In the illustrated embodiment, the waste liquid storage portion 122 and the cleaning liquid storage portion 154 are contained in a cartridge type ink tank 44 which is detachably mounted at a predetermined position of the machine frame 14 together with the three ink storage portions 40. Formed (FIG. 2). In addition, the conduit member 160 of the cleaning device 112 and the conduit member 158 of each cap 116 of the suction device 110.
Forms a cleaning liquid conduit independent from each ink supply conduit 42 of the ink supply means 18. As can be understood from the above description, the suction device 110 and the cleaning device 112 are functionally and structurally related to each other. Therefore, these two devices can be combined and regarded as a cleaning device having a suction function or a suction device having a cleaning function.

Wiping device 11 of cleaning station 62
4 is disposed adjacent to the suction device 110, and is installed in the machine body frame 14 so as to be movable in a direction approaching and separating from the print head 16 located at the other end (left end in the figure) of the reciprocating range R. In the illustrated embodiment, the wiping device 114 includes a casing 166 fixedly connected to the main body 126 of the suction device 110, and moves up and down as the suction device 110 moves up and down. As shown in FIG. 6, the wiping device 114
Is an endless tape-like wiping material 1 that can come into contact with the nozzle surface 30 of each sub head 36 when approaching the print head 16.
68, and a wiping material 168 every time the wiping operation is completed
Of the working surface 168 that contacts the nozzle surface 30 by feeding
and a feeding mechanism 170 for updating a. Feeding mechanism 1
Reference numeral 70 denotes a pair of feeding rollers 172 for nipping the wiping material 168 and feeding it in a predetermined direction, and one feeding roller 172.
And a gear 174 fixed to the shaft. The wiping device 114 further includes a working surface portion 168a of the wiping material 168.
A tension roller group 176 for applying a tension to the movable wiping member 168, a movable supporting member 178 slidably supporting the back surface of the operating surface portion 168a of the wiping material 168, and the operating surface portion 168a of the wiping material 168 outside the window 166a of the casing 166. And a pair of springs 180 for urging the movable carrying member 178 in the direction of projecting the movable carrying member 178.

The feeding mechanism 170 of the wiping device 114 is
It is selectively connected to the driving source 142 of the suction device 110.
More specifically, the drive mechanism 128 of the suction device 110 includes an operating gear 182 that swings according to the rotation direction of the output shaft 142a of the drive source 142 in the middle of the gear train 146. Therefore, when the common drive source 142 performs the raising / lowering operation of the suction device 110 and the wiping device 114 with respect to the print head 16 and the opening / closing operation of the valve member 156 of the cleaning device 112, the operating gear 182 moves in the gear train 146. It functions normally, and the output shaft 142a of the drive source 142 moves from the first cam 1
The torque is transmitted to the shaft 144 a of 44. Then, when the output shaft 142a of the drive source 142 is reversely rotated at a desired time,
The operating gear 182 swings in the direction of arrow D in FIG.
Leave from 46. Next, the operating gear 182 is coaxially
It meshes with a power transmission gear 184 provided with individual gears, and transmits the torque of the drive source 142 to the gear 174 of the feeding mechanism 170 of the wiping device 114 via the power transmission gear 184. As a result, the feeding mechanism 170 includes the pair of feeding rollers 1
72 rotates in the direction of arrow E in FIG.
Is fed for a predetermined length, and the working surface portion 168 after wiping
Update a.

FIG. 7 shows the raising / lowering operation of the suction device body 126 by the driving mechanism 128 of the suction device 110, the opening / closing operation of the valve member 156 of the cleaning device 112, and the raising / lowering operation of the working surface portion 168a of the wiping material 168 of the wiping device 114. Indicates the timing. The horizontal axis represents the first cam 14 of the drive mechanism 128.
The rotation angle from the origin position of the No. 4 shaft 144a is shown. As shown, the main body 126 of the suction device 110, that is, each cap 116 is in the fully open position farthest from each nozzle 30 of the print head 16, and the valve member 156 of the cleaning device 112 closes the cleaning liquid conduit 158a. And the casing 166 of the wiping device 114, that is, the wiping material 168, is at the lowermost position farthest from each nozzle surface 30 of the print head 16, and is defined as the origin position (point 0) of the shaft 114a. When not in use, the suction device 110 waits at this origin position (point 0).

First, the carriage 24 is moved to a position where each nozzle surface 30 of the print head 16 faces each cap 116 of the suction device 110 in response to a print quality recovery operation execution command from the host. Therefore, by rotating the shaft 144a from the origin position (point 0) to point 1 by driving the driving source 142, each cap 116 moves in a direction approaching each nozzle surface 30 and abuts on the nozzle surface 30 ( Fully closed position) Capped.

Then, in this state, the pump 120 is operated to suck and remove the ink in the nozzle 28. At this point, the cleaning liquid conduit 158 a is located at one end 162 of the lever 162.
Since it is squeezed and closed by a, the cleaning liquid does not enter the space 118 even if the space 118 has a negative pressure. In the suction method at this time, preferably, the pump 120 is operated to suck the ink to make the internal space 118 of the cap a negative pressure, and then the operation of the pump 120 is stopped, and a predetermined time is waited. As a result, the negative pressure in the space 118 in the cap returns to near atmospheric pressure as the ink flows out from the head,
When the cap is released, the meniscus formed in the nozzle is moved by the rapid pressure change, and air bubbles are generated in the print head 16.
You can prevent getting caught in. Further, when the valve member 156 is opened in the subsequent process, it is possible to prevent the cleaning liquid from suddenly entering the space 118 in the cap and foaming and mixing in the nozzle 28.

Next, the shaft 144 is driven by the drive source 142.
By rotating a from point 1 to point 2, the valve member 156 moves to the fully open position and the cleaning liquid conduit 15
Open 8a. At this point, the cap 116 is still in contact with the nozzle surface 30 (the fully closed position) and is capped, so by operating the pump 120 again here, the internal space 118 of the cap becomes a negative pressure, and the cleaning liquid contains the space 118. The liquid is introduced into the inside and the pipe line member 136 of the pump, whereby the nozzle surface 30, the cap 116, and all the pipe line members 136 to 138 reaching the waste liquid storage portion 122 are cleaned. What is important here is that the cleaning process with the cleaning liquid is always executed when the ink suction operation is performed. By washing away the pigment ink not only on the nozzle surface 30 but also in the cap 116 and all of the conduit members 136 to 138 reaching the waste liquid reservoir 122 with the cleaning liquid, the pigment ink remains and accumulates in these conduits. As a result, the problem of blocking the conduit can be solved, and as a result, the reliability of the suction device 110 can be significantly improved.

Further, after the cleaning liquid is sucked, the operation of the pump 120 is stopped while the cleaning liquid is full, and the operation waits for a predetermined time. This waiting time is for redispersing the thickened pigment ink and making it easy to remove. By providing this waiting time, not only the pigment ink adhered on the nozzle surface 30 by the immediately previous ink suction but also By redispersing the pigment ink that has adhered and increased in viscosity during printing and storage until then, it becomes easier to remove it in the subsequent wiping step. At the same time, the internal space 118 of the cap, which has become a negative pressure due to the suction of the cleaning liquid, returns to near atmospheric pressure as the cleaning liquid flows in during standby, so that the meniscus formed in the nozzle 28 at the time of opening the cap is changed by a rapid pressure change. It can be prevented that the air bubbles are moved and trapped in the print head 16.

After that, the shaft 14 is driven by the driving source 142.
By rotating 4a from point 2 to point 3, the valve member 156 returns to the fully closed position, following which
The main body 126 of the suction device 110, that is, each cap moves in a direction away from each nozzle surface 30. On the other hand, at approximately the same time as each cap 116 begins to move away from each nozzle face 30, the wiping material 168 begins to approach each nozzle face 30. After each cap 116 reaches the fully open position,
The wiping material 168 reaches the upper end position in contact with each nozzle surface 30. Then, in this state, by moving the carriage onto the wiping material 168 of the wiping device 114, the nozzle surface 30 and the working surface portion 168a of the wiping material 168 relatively move while making contact with each other,
The liquid adhering to each nozzle surface is wiped off.

The pigment ink adhering to the wiping material 168 thickens and causes deterioration of the wiping property, which not only lowers the durability of the wiping material but also re-adheres the thickening ink to the nozzle surface 30 to improve printing reliability. Will also deteriorate,
In the operating method of the present invention, the wiped nozzle surface 30 is
Since it is the surface state after being cleaned with the cleaning liquid in the previous step, the ink itself is not attached, and only the cleaning liquid itself or the mixed liquid of the cleaning liquid and the ink is attached. The nozzle surface 30 in such a state is wiped off with the material 16
8 wipes the wiping material 168 to a very small amount of pigment ink, and the pigment ink is wiped off by the wiping material 1
No more accumulation and thickening in 68. As a result, not only the durability of the wiping material 168 is improved, but also deterioration of the wiping property can be suppressed and the reliability of print quality can be maintained.

After the wiping of the nozzle surface 30 is completed, the shaft 144a is rotated from the point 3 to the origin position (point 0), which means that the shaft 144a has just made one revolution from the origin position. The surface portion 168a returns to the lower end position, and all the states of the caps 116 and the valve member 156 of the cleaning device 112 also return to the initial state.

Finally, by rotating the output shaft 142a of the drive source 142 in the reverse direction, the wiping material 168 is fed by a predetermined length, and the working surface portion 168a wiped with the cleaning liquid and the mixed solution of the cleaning liquid and the ink is renewed. Wait until the next print quality recovery operation.

[0034]

According to the operating method of the present invention, the pigment ink remains and accumulates on the nozzle surface, the cap, the conduit member from the cap to the waste liquid storage portion, and the nozzle surface wiping material. It is possible to greatly improve the reliability of the suction device.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing main components of an inkjet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention in a partially transparent view.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a maintenance system of the inkjet recording apparatus of FIG.

3 is a schematic perspective view of a print head of the inkjet recording apparatus of FIG.

4 is a schematic perspective view of a suction device and a cleaning device of the inkjet recording apparatus of FIG.

5 is a partial cross-sectional view schematically showing the suction device and the cleaning device of FIG.

FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view of a wiping device of the inkjet recording apparatus of FIG.

7 is a diagram showing operation timings of the suction device, the cleaning device, and the wiping device of the inkjet recording apparatus of FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 Inkjet recording device 12 housing 14 Airframe frame 16 print head 18 Ink supply means 22 Maintenance means 24 carriage 28 nozzles 30 nozzle surface 36 sub head 40 ink storage 42 ink supply line 44 ink tank 58 capping station 60 discharge stations 62 Purification station 110 suction device 112 Cleaning device 114 Wiping device 116 cap 120 pumps 122 Waste liquid storage section 142 Drive source 144 First Cam 152 sensor 154 Cleaning solution storage 156 valve member 162 lever 164 Third Cam 166 casing 168 wipe material 172 Feed roller 176 Tension roller group 178 Movable carrier member

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A print head for printing by ejecting pigment ink, a cap for capping a nozzle surface of the print head, and a cap connected to the cap to reduce the pressure in the cap for suction. In the maintenance operation method of the inkjet recording apparatus, which comprises a suction means for performing the cleaning, a cleaning liquid tank for storing the cleaning liquid introduced into the cap, and a wiping means for wiping the nozzle surface, the cleaning liquid tank is A first step of bringing the cap into close contact with the nozzle surface in a state in which communication is blocked; and a state in which the cap is in close contact with the nozzle surface and in a state in which communication with the cleaning liquid tank is blocked, The second step of operating the suction means to suck the ink from the print head, and the cap is brought into close contact with the nozzle surface. A third step of communicating the inside of the cap with the cleaning liquid tank, a state where the cap is in close contact with the nozzle surface, and a state where the inside of the cap and the cleaning liquid tank are in communication with each other. A fourth step of operating the suction means to introduce the cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid tank into the cap, and a state in which the cap is in close contact with the nozzle surface and the cap is filled with the cleaning liquid. Then, a fifth step of stopping the operation of the suction means and waiting for a predetermined time, a sixth step of separating the cap from the nozzle surface, and a seventh step of moving the carriage and wiping the nozzle surface with the wiping means.
And the first to seventh steps are performed in this order. 2. The method of operating an ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein after the second step, the operation of the suction means is stopped and a predetermined time is waited.