JP2001071513A - Ink jet recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To stably record with high reliability by a method wherein a following property of a tip section of a wiper blade to a recessed section is achieved even when a prescribed region including an ejection nozzle at an ejection nozzle face of a recording head is a recessed section, wriggling of the wiper blade is prevented even when the contact angle is set to be small and the contact angle for wiping the recessed section is maintained in an adequate value. SOLUTION: A prescribed region including an ejection nozzle 52 at an ejection nozzle face 51 of a recording head 51 is recessed relative to other portion to form a recessed section 28. A rib-shaped section 29 having a height roughly equal to the depth of the recessed section 28 is provided to a part of a tip rubbing section of a wiper blade 20 that goes into the recessed section 28.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an ink jet recording apparatus for performing recording by discharging ink from a recording means onto a recording material.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A recording device having functions such as a printer, a copying machine, and a facsimile, or a recording device used as an output device such as a composite electronic device including a computer or a word processor, or a workstation, is based on paper based on the recording information. An image (including characters and symbols) is recorded on a recording material (recording medium) such as a cloth, a plastic sheet, and an OHP sheet. The recording apparatus can be classified into an ink jet type, a wire dot type, a thermal type, a laser beam type and the like according to a recording method.

In a serial type recording apparatus which performs recording while performing main scanning in a direction intersecting a conveying direction (paper feeding direction, sub-scanning direction) of the recording material, the serial type recording device is mounted on a carriage which moves along the recording material. An image is recorded (main scanning) by a recording unit (recording head), a predetermined amount of paper is fed (pitch conveyance as sub-scanning) after one line of recording is completed, and then the recording material is stopped again. On the other hand, by repeating the operation of recording (main scanning) the image of the next row, the recording of the entire recording material is performed. On the other hand, in a line type recording apparatus that performs recording only in the sub-scanning direction of the recording material, the recording material is set at a predetermined recording position, and recording is performed for one line at a time. Is repeated, and the recording of the next line is collectively performed, thereby recording the entire recording material.

Among them, an ink jet type recording apparatus (ink jet recording apparatus) performs recording by discharging ink from a recording means (recording head) to a recording material, so that the recording means can be easily made compact. High-definition images can be recorded at high speed, and can be recorded on plain paper without requiring special processing, running costs are low, and the non-impact method reduces noise,
In addition, there is an advantage that it is easy to record a color image using various types of inks (for example, color inks).

As an energy generating element for generating energy used for discharging ink from a discharge port of an ink jet recording head, an element using an electromechanical transducer such as a piezo element, or heating by irradiating an electromagnetic wave such as a laser. Then, an ink droplet is ejected by the heat generation function, or a liquid is heated by an electrothermal converter having a heat generating resistor. Among them, an ink jet type recording means (recording head) that discharges ink as droplets using thermal energy can perform high-resolution recording because discharge ports can be arranged at high density. In particular, among them, a recording head using an electrothermal transducer element as an energy generating element can be easily miniaturized, and IC technology and micro-machining technology, which are remarkable in recent advances in technology in the field of semiconductors and remarkable improvement in reliability. This is advantageous because the advantages of the above can be fully utilized, high-density mounting is easy, and the manufacturing cost is low.

There are various requirements for the material of the recording material. In recent years, developments have been made to meet these requirements, and paper (including thin paper and processed paper) which is a general recording material has been developed.
In addition to paper and resin thin plates (OHP, etc.), recording devices using cloth, leather, nonwoven fabric, metal, or the like as a recording material have come to be used.

[0007] In general, the ink-jet recording apparatus includes:
A recording head that ejects ink to perform recording on a recording material,
Carriage driving means for driving a carriage on which a recording head is mounted, conveying means for conveying (paper feeding) a recording material, recovery means for recovering and maintaining the ejection performance of the recording head, and the conveying means and the recovery means , And control means for controlling the transport means and the recovery means.

[0008] The recovery means may cause ink ejection failure (including non-ejection) due to drying of the ink in the ejection port when not in use, obstruction of the ejection port by adhesion of dust, or mixing of bubbles into the ejection port. And a device (recovery device) for preventing the occurrence of the error, and is disposed at a predetermined position outside the recording area. This recovery means is generally a wiping means for wiping and removing ink droplets attached to the ejection port surface, a capping means for closing the ejection port to prevent drying of the ejection port or to protect the periphery of the ejection port, It comprises negative pressure generating means for generating an absorbing force for sucking ink from the ejection ports while the ejection ports are closed by capping means.

The wiping means therein generally supports a wiper blade made of a rubber-like elastic material in a plate shape having a fixed base at a position where the wiper blade interferes with a discharge port surface of a moving recording head. The discharge port surface is wiped and cleaned by rubbing the tip of the blade against the discharge port surface using the movement (relative movement) of the recording head. In the wiping operation, there are a case where the recording head is moved while the wiper blade is stopped as described above, and a case where the recording head is stopped and the wiper blade is moved oppositely. .

According to the wiping operation described above, by fixing one end of the wiper blade and appropriately overlapping the discharge port surface, the wiper blade is bent and the tip portion has an appropriate contact angle with the discharge port surface. By rubbing with the contact pressure, foreign substances such as ink adhered to the surface of the ejection port surface can be wiped off. In general, the contact angle is preferably about 20 to 50 degrees. If the angle is smaller than this, the wiper blade tends to slip through, and if the angle is larger than this, the wiper blade chatters. (Vibration phenomenon) is likely to occur. However, these are also related to the contact pressure,
If the contact pressure is low, the slip-through easily occurs, and if the contact pressure is high, the discharge port surface may be damaged.

In the case where the discharge port surface is rubbed with the wiper blade, that is, when the entire wiping area is not a flat surface but a surface having irregularities, the wiping member (wiper blade) and the discharge port surface are used. Since the contact angle with the contact varies depending on the location, wiping failure is likely to occur. To cope with this, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No.
No. 134998 proposes that the tip of the wiper blade has an arc-shaped cross section.

[0012]

However, in the case where the wiping area of the discharge port surface is not a flat surface but is formed with an uneven surface, a single wiper blade is required to widely wipe the discharge port surface. However, it is necessary to reduce the contact angle so that the tip of the wiper blade easily conforms to the unevenness of the discharge port surface. Therefore, the wiper blade is likely to slip through, the wiping performance is likely to be reduced, and it may be difficult to secure sufficient wiping performance.

On the other hand, according to the configuration disclosed in the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-134998, in which the tip of the wiper blade has an arc-shaped cross section, an arc-shaped portion is added to the tip. Even when the angle between the blade body and the discharge port surface is made small and shallow (to lie down), the contact angle at the tip can be kept constant. But,
In such a configuration, the rigidity in the thickness direction of the wiper blade is greater than that of a normal plate shape, and thus there is a problem that the followability to the unevenness of the discharge port surface is deteriorated.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of such technical problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a tip of the wiper blade even when a discharge port surface having a concave portion is wiped with a single wiper blade. The wiping can be ensured by following the inside of the concave portion, and even when the contact angle is set small, the wiper blade is prevented from slipping through and the contact angle for wiping the area including the discharge port is maintained at an appropriate value. An object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet recording apparatus capable of maintaining performance.

[0015]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ink jet recording apparatus for performing recording by discharging ink from a recording means onto a recording material.
A concave portion is formed by depressing a predetermined range including the discharge port of the recording means surface from another portion by one step, and rubbing with the discharge port surface of the recording means to wipe off the discharge port surface; The present invention is characterized in that a rib-shaped portion protruding in the thickness direction is provided within a range in which the tip rubbing portion of the wiper blade comes into contact with the concave portion.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the above configuration, the rib-shaped portion of the wiper blade has a shape that becomes gradually lower at both end portions, and the height of the rib-shaped portion of the wiper blade is A configuration substantially the same as or lower than the depth of the concave portion of the discharge port surface, a configuration in which the cross section of the rib-shaped portion of the wiper blade is substantially arc-shaped, or
The cross section of the rib-shaped portion of the wiper blade has a substantially triangular cross section, thereby achieving the above object more efficiently.

According to the present invention, the wiper blade is made of HNBR, the wiper blade is made of ether-based urethane, and the rubber hardness of the wiper blade is set to be equal to the hardness of the wiper blade. JIS
A configuration formed with a hardness of 50 to 60 degrees, or
The rubber hardness of the wiper blade is 70 in JIS hardness.
The above-mentioned object can be achieved more efficiently by adopting a structure having an angle of 80 degrees.

The invention according to claims 10 to 12 is characterized in that, in addition to the above configuration, the contact angle of a portion other than the rib-shaped portion of the wiper blade is 20 degrees or less, and the depth of the concave portion on the discharge port surface is The above-mentioned object is achieved more efficiently by a configuration of 0.1 to 0.2 mm or a configuration in which the wiper blade wipes both the concave portion and the other portion of the discharge port surface with one sheet. Is what you do.

[0019]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing the configuration of an embodiment of an ink jet recording apparatus to which the present invention is applied. In FIG. 1, for clarity, an electric board for processing a recording signal, driving and controlling a recording unit, various driving sources (motors), and the like, an exterior, and the like are omitted. . In FIG. 1, a recording means (recording head) 1 is mounted on a carriage 2, and the carriage 2 has two guide rails 3, 4 installed on the apparatus main body.
Along the main scanning direction so as to reciprocate in the main scanning direction.

A carriage motor 5 for moving the carriage 2 is mounted at one end of the apparatus main body, and an idle pulley 6 is disposed at the other end. A timing belt 8 parallel to the guide rails 3 and 4 is stretched between the motor pulley 7 of the carriage motor 5 and the idle pulley 6, and a part of the timing belt 8 is connected to the carriage 2. I have. The timing belt 8 is given a predetermined tension by a tension spring 9 provided on the idle pulley 6.

In this way, the carriage 2 is reciprocated by the forward and reverse rotations of the carriage motor 5, and the position of the carriage 2, that is, the position of the recording head (recording means) 1 is determined by the amount of rotation of the carriage motor 5.
Is configured to be controlled. Then, recording is performed by selectively discharging ink toward the recording material 10 from the discharge port of the recording head 1 while the carriage 2 is moving. The recording means (recording head) 1 of this embodiment is
It is composed of a replaceable ink cartridge in which an ink tank for supplying the discharged ink is integrated.

In FIG. 1, the ejection port surface 5 of the recording head 1 is shown.
1 (FIG. 3), a platen 11 having a length substantially covering the width of the recording material 10 is provided on the guide rail 3,
4 are provided in parallel. The platen 11 holds the recording material 10 at a correct recording position at the recording position,
It has functions such as preventing deformation of the recording material 10 and appropriately maintaining the gap between the recording material 10 and the ejection port surface 51. The guide rail 3 is located at a position on the upstream side of the sheet passing (upstream side in the transport direction) depending on the recording position of the platen 11.
The transport roller 12 is disposed in parallel with the transport roller 4. A pinch roller 13 for applying a conveying force to the supplied recording material 10 is pressed against the conveying roller 12. The recording material 10 recorded while passing through the recording section facing the recording head 1 is moved out of the apparatus main body by a discharge roller 15 driven in synchronization with the transport roller 12 and a spur (not shown) pressed against the discharge roller 15. Is discharged.

The recording means (recording head) 1 is an ink jet recording head that selectively discharges ink from a plurality of discharge ports to perform recording by applying energy according to a recording signal (image information). The recording head 1 is an ink jet recording means for discharging ink using thermal energy, and includes an electrothermal converter for generating thermal energy. Further, the recording head 1 is capable of growing bubbles due to film boiling caused by thermal energy applied by the electrothermal transducer,
The ink is ejected from the ejection port by utilizing the pressure change caused by the contraction, and recording is performed. The electrothermal transducer is provided corresponding to each of the ejection ports, and discharges ink from the corresponding ejection port by applying a pulse voltage to the corresponding electrothermal transducer in accordance with a recording signal.

FIG. 5 is a partial perspective view schematically showing the structure of an ink ejection section (one ejection port array) of the recording means (recording head) 1. In FIG. 5, a recording material (recording medium such as recording paper) 10 and a predetermined gap (for example, about 0.3 to 2..
A plurality of discharge ports 52 are formed at a predetermined pitch on a discharge port surface 51 facing at an interval of about 0 mm.
An electrothermal converter (heating resistor, etc.) 55 for generating ink ejection energy is provided along the wall surface of each liquid passage 54 that communicates with the discharge ports 52.

In this embodiment, the recording head 1 is mounted on the carriage section 2 in such a manner that the ejection openings 52 are arranged in a direction crossing the main scanning movement direction (moving direction of the carriage section 2). ing. In this way, the corresponding electrothermal transducer 55 is driven (pulse voltage is applied) based on the image signal or the ejection signal to cause the ink in the liquid passage 54 to boil, and the pressure generated at that time causes the ink from the ejection port 52 to pass through the ejection port 52. A recording unit (recording head) 1 for discharging droplets is configured.

In FIG. 1, a recovery device 16 for recovering and maintaining the ink discharge performance of the recording head 1 is provided at a position outside the recording area on the right side of the platen 11. The recovery device 16 is provided with a cap 17 for covering the ejection port surface 51 (FIG. 3) of the recording head 1. The recovery device 16 generates a negative pressure in the cap 17 by a suction pump or the like with the discharge port surface 51 sealed, and sucks out thickened ink, bubbles, dust, and the like in the discharge port of the recording head 1 together with the ink. Thus, the ink ejection performance of the recording head 1 is recovered and maintained. The cap 17 is movable in a direction in which the cap 17 comes into close contact with and separates from the discharge port surface 51. It is also used to prevent ink drying and dust entry.

At the position on the recording area side of the cap 17, that is, between the cap 17 and the platen 11, the discharge port surface 51 is wiped and cleaned by using the movement of the recording head 1 (carriage 2). A wiper blade 20 for wiping is provided. The wiper blade 20 is held by a holder 21 that can move forward and backward with respect to the recording head 1, and is set at a position where wiping can be performed by moving the holder 21 forward.

FIG. 2 shows a recovery apparatus (including a wiping mechanism) according to an embodiment of the ink jet recording apparatus to which the present invention is applied.
And FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the wiping mechanism in FIG. 2 as viewed from below. 2 and 3, a carriage 2 on which a recording head 1 is mounted is guided and held along a guide rail 3 so as to be able to reciprocate in a recording direction (arrow A direction) and a reversing direction (arrow C direction). The position of the carriage 2 indicated by a solid line in FIG. 2 is a recovery position in the non-recording position, and a recovery operation such as capping or suction recovery of the recording head 1 is performed at this recovery position (usually the same as the home position).

Next, the suction recovery operation of the recording head 1 will be described. When the recording head 1 is at the recovery position shown by the solid line, the cap holder 22 is moved in the direction of the arrow E by a driving means (not shown) so that the rubber-like elastic material cap 17 held by the cap holder 22 is ejected. The discharge port 52 is sealed (capped) by being in close contact with the surface 51. By operating the suction pump 23 in this capping state, a negative pressure is generated in the cap 17 via the tube 24 to perform suction recovery (ink suction from the discharge port 52). The ink drawn out from the discharge port 552 by this suction is guided to the waste ink processing member 26 via the tube 25. When this suction operation is completed,
By moving the cap holder 22 in the direction of arrow F, the cap 17 is separated from the discharge port surface 51, and the suction recovery operation ends.

When the suction recovery operation is completed, when the cap 17 separates from the ejection port surface 51, the attached ink 27 may be left on the ejection port surface 51, and the attached ink 27 which is likely to cause this ejection failure. Is removed (wiping and cleaning) of the discharge port surface 51 in order to remove the water. In addition, as the ink adhering to the ejection port surface 51, a case where small droplets (also referred to as mist) when the ink is ejected floats in the air and directly adheres, or a minute ink bounced off from the recording material during the recording operation Droplets may adhere. Further, during the printing operation, foreign matter such as dust and paper dust flying in the air may adhere to the ejection port surface 51.

Even if the same ink is adhered, the ink adhered after the recovery from the suction is the ink immediately after being drawn out from the discharge port 52, has a low viscosity, and can be easily wiped (wiping). The tolerance for the contact angle and contact pressure of the blade 20 is high, and if the wiper blade 20 is brought into contact, the wiper blade 20 can be easily wiped off.
In addition, the problem of the adhered ink after the recovery from the suction is that the ink droplets drop from the ejection port surface 51 into the apparatus or adhere to the recording material 10 due to the large rise of the ink droplets. The requirements for performance (wiping performance) are not severe.

On the other hand, in the case of ink mist or ink rebound, wiping is performed because the ink is easy to dry and has a high viscosity because the droplets are small and it takes some time from wiping to adhering. Is not easy. Further, if the ink adheres very close to the ejection opening, the ink to be ejected is connected to the attached ink, and the ejection direction is disturbed to bend, or the ejection itself is hindered, which is a serious problem directly related to the recording performance. Therefore, a high and strict wiping performance is required especially in a range including the discharge port 52 or a portion very close to the range.

The discharge port surface 51 is connected to the wiper blade 2
In the case of wiping at 0, first, the carriage 2 is moved to a position (normally a home position) indicated by a solid line in FIG. 2 in the non-recording area, and then the moving direction of the carriage 2 is reversed, and an arrow A in FIG. Move in the direction. At this time, the wiper blade 20 is advanced in advance in the direction of arrow G together with the holder 21 by a driving unit (not shown) and set at a position where the wiper blade 20 rubs against the discharge port surface 51. Therefore, when the carriage 2 moves in the direction of the arrow A, the wiper blade 20 rubs the ejection port surface 51 of the recording head 1 and wipes off the attached matter 27 such as ink droplets from the ejection port surface 51. When the wiping is completed, the wiper blade 20 is retracted in the direction of the arrow H, and set to the retreat position.
This wiping operation itself is basically the same as wiping after suction recovery and wiping during recording.

Therefore, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, a predetermined range including the discharge port 52 of the discharge port surface 51 of the recording head (recording means) 1 is depressed by one step from other portions to form a concave portion (concave surface). 28, and the discharge port surface 5
A rib-shaped portion (rib portion) 29 protruding in the thickness direction is provided within a range of contacting the concave portion 28 of the tip rubbing portion of the wiper blade 20 for wiping and cleaning the discharge port surface by rubbing with the surface 1. Is provided. The wiper blade 20 is configured to wipe both the concave portion 28 of the discharge port surface 51 and other portions (regions that are not concave portions) with one sheet.

Further, in order to wipe the entire discharge port surface 51 in which the concave portion (concave surface) 28 is formed with one wiper blade 20, the contact angle of the wiper blade 20 with respect to the discharge port surface 51 is set small. ing. That is, by increasing the overlap (overlapping margin, blade penetration amount) between the tip position of the wiper blade 20 and the position of the discharge port surface 51, the wiper blade 20 can move the discharge port surface 51.
It is set to deform according to the irregularities of At this time, even if the contact angle of the entire wiper blade 20 with respect to the discharge port surface 51 is small, the recess 28 (that is, the discharge port 5
2), the wiper blade 20
The rib-shaped portion (rib portion) 29 formed so as to protrude in the thickness direction at the front end rubbing portion is configured to increase the actual wiping contact angle.

The ejection port surface 51 of the recording head 1 is
2 is the concave portion (concave surface) 28. In the illustrated example, the front and rear portions of the concave portion 28 are formed by surfaces (curved surfaces or flat surfaces) 28A and 28B inclined in opposite directions. The cross-sectional shape of the rib-shaped portion (rib portion) 29 formed on the tip rubbing portion (contact portion with the discharge port surface 51) of the wiper blade 20 has a substantially arc shape or a substantially triangular shape. I have. The range of the substantially arc-shaped or substantially triangular shape is selected to be slightly smaller than the width of the concave portion (concave surface) 28, and both end portions of the rib-shaped portion (rib portion) 29 have a height (rib height) within the range of the concave portion 28. ) Is formed to be gradually lower.

As a specific size, the depth of the concave portion 28 of the discharge port surface 51 is selected to be about 0.1 to 0.2 mm (for example, about 0.15 mm). Regarding the shape and size of the wiper blade 20, the free length is about 4.0 m.
m, the width is about 20 mm, the thickness is about 0.5 mm, and the rib height of the rib-shaped portion 29 is about 0.15 mm. In addition, the height of the rib portion 29 and the depth of the concave portion 28 shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 are illustrated with their relative dimensions being emphasized more than they actually are for easy understanding. Further, as a material of the wiper blade 20, for example, an ether urethane rubber is adopted, and its rubber hardness is JI.
The hardness is selected to be 70 to 80 degrees (for example, about 75 degrees).

The width of the wiper blade 20 is selected to be slightly smaller than the entire width of the discharge port surface 51. This is a setting of how much of the entire area of the discharge port surface 51 is to be wiped, and is determined by the configuration of the machine and the state of the head. That is, it is not always necessary to wipe the entire discharge port surface 51. In many cases, in order to wipe off the residual ink (adhered ink) immediately after the recovery from the suction, the area where the cap 17 comes into contact is often set to be wiped off. However, if there is a portion of the ejection port surface 51 that is not wiped, it is necessary to sufficiently confirm that ink adhesion to that portion does not pose a problem until the use of the recording head 1 is completed.

Next, a series of wiping operations of the embodiment described above will be described with reference to FIGS. When the recording head 1 moves in the direction of arrow A, first, the wiper blade 20
Is in contact with the side surface (edge) of the recording head 1. When the recording head 1 continues to move, the wiper blade 20 is pushed down by the side surface of the recording head 1 and elastically deforms.
The rib-shaped portion 29 comes into contact with the discharge port surface 51. At this time, the wiper blade 20 is also deformed in the width direction, and the tip corner portions 20a, 29a, and 20b also contact the discharge port surface 51. When the recording head 1 continues to move, the tip contact portion of the wiper blade 20 first wipes the non-dented portion 51a of the discharge port surface 51.

When the recording head 1 is further moved, the contact portion of the tip end of the wiper blade 20 reaches a concave portion (concave surface) 28 which is a concave portion of the discharge port surface 51. When the recording head 1 continues to move in the direction of arrow A, the rib-shaped portion (rib portion) 29 of the wiper blade 20 is
Get inside. Therefore, the contact angle with respect to the discharge port surface 51 becomes small at the tip corner portions 20a and 20b for wiping the flat portion 51a.
In the tip portion 29a for wiping, the rib-shaped portion 2
9, the contact angle with respect to the discharge port surface 51 is maintained in an appropriate range.

FIG. 4 shows a tip portion 29a of the rib-shaped portion 29.
FIG. 5 is a partial side view schematically showing a state when the concave portion (concave surface) 28 of the discharge port surface 51 is wiped. In FIG. 4, θ ₁ indicates a contact angle for wiping the flat portion (area other than the concave portion 28) of the discharge port surface 51, and θ ₂ indicates a contact angle for wiping the concave portion (concave surface) 28 of the discharge port surface 51. When the recording head 1 continues to move further in the direction of arrow A, the tip contact portion of the wiper blade 20 is
After the wiping is finished, the state returns to the state in which it comes into contact with the flat portion 51a of the discharge port surface 51 again. This flat part 51a
Is the same as the initial wiping operation on the flat portion 51a.

At the time of wiping the concave portion 28, in order to make the tip portion of the wiper blade 20 surely contact the concave portion 28 having a depth of about 0.15 mm, the angle of the main body portion of the wiper blade 20 with respect to the discharge port surface 51 is required. The smaller the (contact angle), the better, and it is necessary to set the angle to 20 degrees or less, which is desirable for wiping performance. However, since the tip portion 29 of the wiper blade 20 in contact with the concave portion 28 including the discharge port 52 is provided with a rib having an arc-shaped cross section or a triangular cross section, the actual contact angle is maintained at an appropriate angle θ ₂ , It is not necessary to set a particularly small angle.

In the portion of the discharge port surface 51 other than the concave portion 28,
Although the contact angle remains small (θ ₁ ), the attached ink after recovery can be sufficiently wiped off. Further, in the flat portion (the portion other than the concave portion 28) 51a, there is a possibility that the ink mist adhering during the printing may not be completely wiped out, but since the flat portion 51a is a portion sufficiently separated from the ejection port 52, the printing is performed. Has no effect and does not substantially matter.

FIG. 6 is a partial perspective view showing a case where the concave portion (concave surface) 28 provided on the discharge port surface 51 of the recording head 1 is formed with a flat step. In the wiper blade 20 described with reference to FIGS.
This is effective not only when it is not provided gently on an oblique surface as shown in FIG. 6, but also when it is configured with a flat step as shown in FIG. 6, and the same operation and effect can be obtained. .

FIG. 7 is a partial perspective view showing another embodiment of the wiper blade of the ink jet recording apparatus to which the present invention is applied. In the wiper blade 20 of FIG. 7, the rib-shaped portion 29 provided in the tip rubbing portion is formed of a rib having an arc-shaped cross section instead of a triangular shape. When such an arc-shaped rib portion 29 is provided, the blade length of the wiper blade 20 in a range where the rib portion 29 is provided is increased by the radius of the arc so that the arc-shaped tip 29 contacts the discharge port surface 51. It is preferable that the portion 29a be configured so as to be continuous (connected) to the contact portions (tip corner portions) 20a and 20b of the flat portion (portion without ribs). By providing such an arc-shaped rib portion (rib-shaped portion) 29, when the tip portion of the wiper blade 20 follows and performs wiping, the actual overlap amount depends on the depth of the concave portion (concave surface) 28. This can prevent the contact angle of the wiper blade 20 from changing.

According to the embodiment described above, in an ink jet recording apparatus for performing recording by discharging ink from a recording means to a recording material, a predetermined range including the discharge port 52 of the discharge port surface 51 of the recording means 1 is defined. A concave portion 28 is formed by being depressed one step from the other portion, and the concave portion 28 of the tip rubbing portion of the wiper blade 20 for rubbing against the discharge port surface 51 of the recording means 1 and wiping and cleaning the discharge port surface. The rib-shaped portion 29 protruding in the thickness direction is provided within a range in which the wiper blade 20 has a concave portion 28. Of the wiper blade 20 can be prevented from slipping through even when the contact angle is set small. An ink jet recording apparatus is provided which can maintain the wiping performance by maintaining contact angle wiping the appropriate value.

In the above configuration, the depth of the concave portion 28 of the discharge port surface 51 is in the range of about 0.1 to 0.2 mm, and the height of the rib-shaped portion 29 of the wiper blade 20 is It is preferable that the depth of the concave portion 28 is substantially equal to or lower than the depth of the concave portion 51. Further, it is preferable that a contact angle of a portion other than the rib-shaped portion 29 of the wiper blade 20 is about 20 degrees or less. Further, the material of the wiper blade may be, for example, HNBR other than the above-mentioned ether urethane, and the rubber hardness of the HNBR is preferably about 50 to 60 degrees in JIS hardness.

In the above embodiment, a serial recording method in which recording is performed while the recording head 1 is relatively moved with respect to the recording material 10 has been described as an example. It can be applied to various inkjet recording apparatuses regardless of the type of recording method, such as a line recording method that records only sub-scanning using a line type recording head with a length that covers the unit. It can be achieved.

Also, the present invention provides an ink jet recording apparatus for recording using one recording head, a color recording apparatus for recording with inks of different colors, or a gradation recording apparatus for recording with the same color and different density. Furthermore, the present invention can be similarly applied to an ink jet recording apparatus that performs recording using a plurality of different inks, such as a recording apparatus in which these are combined, and can achieve the same effect. Further, the present invention provides a recording head having a configuration using a replaceable inkjet cartridge in which the recording head and the ink tank are integrated, a configuration in which the recording head and the ink tank are separated, and the space therebetween is connected by an ink supply tube or the like. The present invention can be similarly applied to any arrangement of the ink tank and the ink tank, and the same effect can be obtained.

The present invention can be applied to a case where the ink jet recording apparatus uses a recording means using an electromechanical transducer such as a piezo element, and the same effects can be obtained. .

[0051]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the present invention (claim 1), in an ink jet recording apparatus which performs recording by discharging ink from a recording means to a recording material, the discharge port of the recording means A predetermined range including the discharge port of the surface is recessed by one step from the other portion to form a concave portion, and the tip of a wiper blade for wiping and cleaning the discharge port surface by rubbing against the discharge port surface of the recording means. Since the rib-shaped portion protruding in the thickness direction is provided within a range in contact with the concave portion of the portion, even when wiping the discharge port surface having the concave portion with one wiper blade, the tip portion of the wiper blade It is possible to secure the followability to the inside of the concave portion, prevent the wiper blade from slipping through even when the contact angle is set small, and set the contact angle for wiping the area including the discharge port appropriately. An ink jet recording apparatus is provided which can maintain the wiping performance by maintaining the.

According to the second to fifth aspects of the present invention, in addition to the above-described configuration, the rib-shaped portion of the wiper blade has a shape that becomes gradually lower at both ends, and the height of the rib-shaped portion of the wiper blade is increased. The cross-section of the rib-shaped portion of the wiper blade is substantially arc-shaped, or the cross-section of the rib-shaped portion of the wiper blade is substantially triangular. With the configuration having the shape, the above-mentioned effect can be more efficiently achieved.

According to the present invention, the wiper blade is made of HNBR, the wiper blade is made of ether urethane, and the rubber of the wiper blade is hardened. Saha is JI
Since the configuration is such that the hardness is 50 to 60 degrees in S hardness or the configuration is such that the rubber hardness of the wiper blade is 70 to 80 degrees in JIS hardness, the above effect can be achieved more efficiently. .

According to the tenth to twelfth aspects of the present invention, in addition to the above configuration, the wiper blade has a contact angle other than a rib-shaped portion of 20 degrees or less, and a depth of the concave portion of the discharge port surface. The configuration is 0.1-0.2 mm,
Alternatively, since the wiper blade is configured to wipe both the concave portion and the other portion of the discharge port surface with a single wiper blade, the above-described effect can be achieved more efficiently.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing a configuration of an embodiment of an ink jet recording apparatus to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway front view showing the configuration and operation of a recovery device according to an embodiment of the ink jet recording apparatus to which the present invention has been applied.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the wiping mechanism in FIG. 2 as viewed from below.

FIG. 4 is a partial side view schematically showing a state in which a tip of a wiper blade in FIG. 3 wipes a concave portion of a discharge port surface.

FIG. 5 is a partial perspective view schematically illustrating a structure of an ink ejection unit of the recording unit in FIG.

FIG. 6 is a partial perspective view showing a case where a concave portion provided on a discharge port surface of a recording unit is formed with a planar step.

FIG. 7 is a partial perspective view showing another embodiment of the wiper blade of the ink jet recording apparatus to which the present invention is applied.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Recording means (recording head) 2 Carriage 3 Guide rail 5 Carriage motor 8 Timing belt 10 Recording material 11 Platen 12 Conveyance roller 16 Recovery device 17 Cap 20 Wiper blade 21 Holder 22 Cap holder 23 Suction pump 26 Waste ink processing member 27 Adhesion Foreign matter such as ink 28 Concave part (concave part) 29 Rib-shaped part (rib part) 51 Discharge port surface 52 Discharge port 55 Electrothermal converter

Claims (14)

[Claims] In an ink jet recording apparatus for performing recording by discharging ink from a recording means to a recording material, a predetermined area including a discharge port on a discharge port surface of the recording means is recessed by one step from another part to form a concave part. A rib-shaped portion formed and projected in the thickness direction within a range of contacting the concave portion of the tip rubbing portion of the wiper blade for wiping and cleaning the discharge port surface by rubbing against the discharge port surface of the recording means. An ink jet recording apparatus comprising: 2. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the rib-shaped portion of the wiper blade has a shape that becomes gradually lower at both end portions. 3. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a height of a rib-shaped portion of the wiper blade is substantially equal to or lower than a depth of a concave portion of the discharge port surface. 4. A cross section of a rib-shaped portion of the wiper blade is substantially arc-shaped.
The inkjet recording device according to any one of the above. 5. A cross section of a rib-shaped portion of the wiper blade is substantially triangular.
3. The inkjet recording apparatus according to any one of 3. 6. The wiper blade is made of HNB.
The inkjet recording apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein R is R. 7. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a material of said wiper blade is ether-based urethane. 8. The rubber hardness of the wiper blade is J
The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the inkjet recording apparatus is formed at an IS hardness of 50 to 60 degrees. 9. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the hardness of the rubber of the wiper blade is 70 to 80 degrees in JIS hardness. 10. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a contact angle of a portion other than the rib-shaped portion of the wiper blade is 20 degrees or less. 11. The discharge port surface according to claim 1, wherein the depth of the concave portion is 0.1 to 0.2 mm.
11. The ink jet recording apparatus according to any one of items 10. 12. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein one wiper blade wipes both the concave portion and the other portion of the discharge port surface. 13. The ink jet recording device according to claim 1, wherein the recording device is an ink jet recording device including an electrothermal converter that generates thermal energy used for discharging ink. The inkjet recording apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims. 14. An ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 13, wherein said recording means discharges the ink from a discharge port using film boiling generated in the ink by thermal energy generated by the electrothermal transducer. .