JP2002178502A - Ink-jet recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an ink-jet recorder in which a recording head and a driven roller can be adjusted simply and determinedly. SOLUTION: There is provided a means 200 which has both functions of switching a first paper gap and a second paper gap at least larger than the first paper gap by moving the recording head 100, and of adjusting a pressing force to a recording medium by applying or freeing a pressure to the driven roller. Setting the first paper gap and applying the pressure, setting the second paper gap and applying the pressure, and freeing the pressure are carried out in three steps by a single operating lever 201. The switching operation can be executed simply and determinedly, and therefore designing is facilitated and design errors can be reduced.

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 ejecting ink droplets from a recording head to a recording medium while nipping the recording medium between a feed roller and a driven roller and feeding the recording medium.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, one type of an ink jet recording apparatus is described.
One type of ink jet printer is an automatic sheet feeder (automatic continuous paper feeding mechanism) for recording paper, for example, paper.
Alternatively, the paper is supplied by hand and is sandwiched between the paper feed roller and the driven roller. Then, while rotating the paper feed roller and feeding the paper, the ink in the pressure generating chamber of the recording (print) head is pressurized to eject ink droplets from the nozzle openings, thereby printing information on the paper. I have.

[0003] Ink-jet printers having such a configuration are generally capable of printing on so-called plain paper and cardboard, but in order to keep the printing accuracy at that time almost constant, high accuracy is required. The print head is moved and adjusted by the print head moving means so that the distance between the paper surface and the nozzle opening surface of the print head, that is, the paper gap is always substantially constant.

[0004] For example, the thickness of the plain paper including the variation is about 0.6 mm or less, and the print head is moved and adjusted so that the paper gap in this case is about 1.2 mm. Since the thickness of the thick paper including the variation is about 0.7 mm to 1.5 mm, the print head in that case is adjusted to move upward by about 0.9 mm from the position of the plain paper.

[0005]

Recently, information recording disks, such as CD-Rs, on which information can be recorded personally have become widespread. However, it is desired to personally print the label of the information recording disk after recording. Demands are growing. Therefore, if the information recording disk is fixed to a tray made of so-called extra thick paper and supplied to an ink jet printer, the label of the information recording disk can be printed.

In the conventional ink jet printer, the maximum paper thickness that can be handled is assumed to be the thickness of the thick paper. The driven roller is pushed up by the leading end of the paper feed roller, so that the thick paper can be sandwiched between the paper feed roller and the driven roller.

However, the thickness of the extra thick paper for the tray for fixing the information recording disk is about 1.6 mm to 2.5 mm. For this reason, even if the extra thick paper is manually inserted and the driven roller is pressed with the leading end of the extra thick paper, the pressing force F at the leading end of the extra thick paper PPP acts in the direction of rotating the driven roller 1 as shown in FIG. , The driven roller 1 cannot be pushed up by the tip of the extra thick paper PPP,
Cannot be sandwiched between the paper feed roller 2 and the driven roller 1.

Therefore, after the driven roller is separated (released) from the paper feed roller, extra thick paper is manually inserted and inserted between the paper feed roller and the driven roller, and then the driven roller is pressed against the paper feed roller. What is necessary is just to provide the release means of a driven roller. However, in the conventional ink jet printer having the release means of the driven roller, the operation lever of the print head moving means and the operation lever of the release means of the driven roller are separately provided, and the mechanism is complicated and uniquely. Since it is not determined, there is a disadvantage that the design is complicated and a design error easily occurs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned various problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet recording apparatus which can simply and uniquely adjust a recording head and a driven roller. .

[0010]

In order to achieve the above object, an ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1 of the present invention comprises:
In an ink jet recording apparatus having a feed roller and a driven roller for nipping and feeding a recording medium, and a recording head for discharging ink droplets on the recording medium, the recording head is moved to at least a first paper gap, Paper gap switching means for switching between a second paper gap larger than the first paper gap, and applying or releasing pressure to the driven roller;
A pressing force adjusting means for adjusting a pressing force on the recording medium, wherein the setting of the first paper gap and the application of the pressure, the setting of the second paper gap and the application of the pressure, and the release of the pressure The three stages of switching are performed by one operation lever.

Thus, the paper gap switching and the pressing force adjustment can be performed by operating only one operating lever, so that the paper gap switching and the pressing force adjustment can be smoothly performed without mistake. Usability can be improved. In addition, since the functions of paper gap switching and pressing force adjustment are integrated,
The structure of the paper gap switching means / pressing force adjusting means is simplified, design is facilitated, design errors can be reduced, and manufacturing and assembly costs and man-hours can be reduced.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the ink jet type recording apparatus according to the first aspect, a three-stage switching position by the operation lever is provided continuously. Thus, the operation of the operation lever can be performed continuously, so that the print setting can be performed more quickly.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the ink jet recording apparatus according to the second aspect, the operation at the switching position which is continuously provided includes setting the first paper gap and applying the pressure, The second paper gap is set, the pressure is applied, and the pressure is released. Thus, for example, printing of recording paper of normal thickness, printing of thick recording paper, and insertion / removal of recording paper are performed in this order, so that various printings can be performed more quickly.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the ink jet recording apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, the paper gap switching means and the pressing force adjusting means comprise a gear mechanism and a link mechanism. It is characterized by being. Thus, since the paper gap switching means and the pressing force adjusting means can be constituted by members having a relatively simple structure, manufacturing costs can be reduced.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the ink jet recording apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the pressing by the pressing force adjusting means is applied by an elastic member. . This makes it possible to easily and reliably apply and release the pressing force.

[0016]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a configuration example of an ink-jet printer, which is one of the ink-jet recording apparatuses according to an embodiment of the present invention, viewed obliquely from the front, and FIG. It is a perspective view. This ink jet printer includes a recording (print) head 100 in a main body 101, a head driving mechanism (not shown), an automatic sheet feeder (automatic continuous paper feeding mechanism) not shown, and a paper gap switching unit / characteristic part of the present invention. A pressing force adjusting means 200 is provided, and a paper discharge port 10 is provided on the front surface of the main body 101.
2, a paper feed port 1 for manual feed is provided on the rear surface of the main body 101.
03 is provided. Further, a tray 104 for an automatic sheet feeder is disposed above the paper feed port 103 on the rear surface of the main body 101, and an operation lever 2 of the paper gap switching unit / pressing force adjusting unit 200 is provided beside the paper feed port 103.
01 is protruded from the main body 101.

The print head 100 includes, for example, ink cartridges 105 for a total of four colors of yellow, magenta, cyan, and black, and is configured to perform full-color printing. Then, the print head 100
The ink ejection timing and scanning of the head drive mechanism
Controlled by a dedicated controller board or the like built in the main body 101, high-precision ink dot control, halftone processing, and the like are executed.

The recording paper fed to the tray 104 is automatically sent out by an automatic sheet feeder.
The paper is further fed out while being sandwiched between a paper feed roller (not shown) and a driven roller (not shown), and is discharged from the paper discharge port 102. The recording paper manually fed into the paper feed port 103 is similarly nipped and fed by a paper feed roller and a driven roller, and is discharged from the paper discharge port 102.

As the recording paper fed from the tray 104, plain paper, special paper, recommended OHP sheet, glossy paper, glossy film, label sheet, postcard made by government, etc. can be used.
As recording paper fed manually, thick paper such as thick paper and extra thick paper (including a tray for an information recording disk), that is, paper that is difficult to bend, can be used in addition to the above-described papers.

The operation lever 201 slides stepwise in the direction indicated by the arrow a along the slit 110 provided linearly in the main body 101, and the paper gap switching means /
The pressing force adjusting means 200 can be set. Here, the paper gap switching means is used to maintain the printing accuracy at a substantially constant high accuracy regardless of the thickness of the recording paper, so that the distance between the paper surface and the nozzle opening surface of the print head 100, that is, the paper gap, The print head 100 is moved and adjusted so as to be almost always constant.

The pressing force adjusting means applies pressure to the driven roller in order to hold the recording paper between the paper feed roller and the driven roller or to remove the recording paper from between the paper feed roller and the driven roller. Then, the driven roller is pressed against the paper feed roller, or the pressure is released to separate (release) the driven roller from the paper feed roller.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the relationship between the operation lever 201 and the paper gap switching means / pressing force adjusting means 200. As shown in FIG.
Numeral 1 is mechanically connected to the paper gap switching means 200A and the pressing force adjusting means 200B. That is, the stepwise sliding operation of only one operating lever 201 causes the paper gap switching unit 2 to operate.
By operating 00A and the pressing force adjusting means 200B, the print head 100 and the driven roller 202 can be set in a desired state.

FIG. 4 is a side view showing a detailed example of the paper gap switching means / pressing force adjusting means 200. The operation lever 201 is integrally formed so as to protrude from the circumferential portion of the first partially toothed gear 211, and
Can be reciprocated in the direction of arrow a shown in the figure around the shaft 211a. Further, the ratchet teeth 221 of the waveform forming the click mechanism 220 are integrally formed with the first toothless gear 211. The concave portion of the ratchet tooth 221 has
It is formed in accordance with positions A, B, C, and D, which are the turning positions of the operation lever 201. A ratchet 222 constituting the click mechanism 220 is pressed against the ratchet teeth 221 by a coil spring 223.

Thus, when the user turns the operation lever 201 to position it at the position A, the position B, the position C, or the position D, the ratchet 222 fits into the concave portion from the convex portion of the ratchet teeth 221. The user can recognize that the operation lever 201 has been reliably positioned at each position by a good click feeling. That is, if the operation lever 201 and the ratchet teeth 221 are formed separately, the above-mentioned click feeling is generated by the first toothless gear 21.
The transmission is once transmitted via the first shaft 211a, so that the feeling becomes worse, but in this example, the operation lever 201 and the ratchet teeth 2
21 is formed integrally, the above-mentioned click feeling is directly transmitted to give a good feeling, and the operation lever 201 is formed.
Can be recognized by the user that is positioned at each position.

Here, when the operation lever 201 is positioned at the position A, it is a position where a normal recording paper, that is, plain paper, is used, and when the operation lever 201 is positioned at the position B, the thickness is small. This is a position where slightly thick recording paper, that is, a position where thick paper is used, and when it is positioned at the position C, a position where extremely thick recording paper, that is, an extremely thick paper including an information recording disk tray, is used. And when the driven roller 2 is positioned at the position D,
Reference numeral 02 denotes a position separated (released) from the paper feed roller 203.

Operation lever 2 for adjusting paper gap
The positions A, B, and C of No. 01 are relatively close to each other as shown in FIG.
The position D of the operation lever 201 that separates (releases) 2 from the paper feed roller 203 is disposed at a position separated from each of the positions A, B, and C by a predetermined distance. Thus, when operating the operation lever 201, the user can clearly recognize visually or operation feeling whether the paper gap has been adjusted or the driven roller 202 has been separated (released) from the paper feed roller 203. Erroneous operation can be prevented.

The first intermittent gear 211 is
2 and the second intermittent gear 21
2 is provided so as to be able to mesh with the third intermittent gear 213. Further, the fourth intermittent gear 214 coaxially arranged with the second intermittent gear 212 is arranged so as to be able to mesh with the fifth intermittent gear 215.

The shaft 213a of the third intermittent gear 213 is a so-called D-axis in which a part of the peripheral surface is formed as a flat surface. The other end of a driven roller arm 204 on which one end of a driven roller 202 is rotatably mounted is rotatably attached to the D shaft 213a. This driven roller arm 2
A substantially central portion of the coil spring 205 has one end locked to the driven roller 202 and the other end locked to the center of a coil spring 205 that is in contact with the D shaft 213a.

The first and second shafts 215a of the fifth intermittent gear 215 are connected in a substantially L-shape by hinges 231a.
Of the links 231 and 232, the free end of the first link 231 is fitted. The free ends of the second link 232 are connected to the third, fourth and fifth links 233, 234, 234, and 2 connected in a substantially U-shape by hinges 233a and 234a.
35, the third link 233 is connected to the end on the hinge 233a side by the hinge 232a. The free end of the third link 233 is connected to the print head 100 via the eccentric cam 236, and the free end of the fifth link 235 is
The main body 101 is rotatably supported by a shaft.

Here, for example, the second link 232 is disposed on the left side when viewed from the front of the main body 101, and the fourth link 234 is provided.
Is disposed on the right side when viewed from the front of the main body 101, and the second link 232 and the fourth link 234 are connected by a new link mechanism. This allows a margin and improves the degree of freedom in design. However, since the operation of the second link 232 is transmitted to the fourth link 234 via a new link mechanism, there is a possibility that transmission loss may occur due to play between them and transmission may not be possible. is there.

However, the second link 232 and the fourth
The link 234 is connected to the same side of the main body 101, that is, the main body 1
01 are collectively arranged on the left side when viewed from the front of the first link 01, so that the operation of the second link 232 can be directly and reliably transmitted to the fourth link 234, resulting in transmission loss,
It is possible to prevent a situation in which transmission becomes impossible.

Below the first intermittent gear 211, a limit switch 241 for turning on / off the automatic sheet feeder by rotation of the first intermittent gear 211 and a limit switch 242 for turning on / off the printer are provided. . An encoder 243 used for control when printing on recording paper is attached to the paper feed roller 203.

As described above, the paper gap switching means 200A includes the first, second, fourth, and fifth intermittent gears 211,
212, 213, 214, 215 and the first to fifth links 231 to 235.
Are the first to third intermittent gears 211 to 213 and the D-axis 213
a, the driven roller arm 204, and the coil spring 205, and the paper gap switching unit / pressing force adjusting unit 200 is integrated.

An outline of the operation in such a configuration will be described with reference to FIGS. In the state shown in FIG. 4, that is, when the operation lever 201 is positioned at the position A, the driven roller 202 presses the plain paper P sent between the driven roller 202 and the paper feed roller 203 as shown in FIG. , The elastic force of the coil spring 205 pressed by the D-axis 213a is applied. Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the print head 100 has a paper gap ha corresponding to the plain paper P.
It is moved to become.

At this time, since the thickness of the print head 100 including the variation of plain paper is about 0.6 mm or less, the movement of the print head 100 is adjusted so that the paper gap ha is about 1.2 mm. At this time, the limit switches 241 and 242 are both turned on, and the body 101
The lamps 106, 10 shown in FIG.
7 lights up.

Next, when the operating lever 201 is moved from the position A to the position D, the first intermittent gear 2 shown in FIG.
11, the fourth intermittent gear 214 rotates in the illustrated arrow c1 direction together with the second intermittent gear 212 at first, and the fifth intermittent gear 215 further moves in the illustrated arrow d1 direction.
Rotate in the direction. Thereby, each link 231 to 235
Pivots in the direction of the illustrated arrow e1, so that the print head 100 moves in the direction of the illustrated arrow f1, as shown in FIG.
That is, it rises.

Further, during the above operation, as shown in FIG. 4, the third intermittent gear 213 starts to rotate in the direction of the arrow g1 in the drawing, so that the coil spring 205 is placed on the flat portion of the D shaft 213a as shown in FIG. The driven roller 202 is released from the elastic force of the coil spring 205 and
Are separated (released) in the direction of the arrow m1 in FIG. At this time, the limit switches 241 and 242 are both turned off, and the lamps 106 and 107 shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 6, when the operation lever 201 is moved from the position A to the position D, the driven roller 2
02 is released (released) from the paper feed roller 203 in the direction of the arrow m1 in the figure, and the print head 100 rises in the direction of the arrow f1 in the figure, leaving a maximum paper gap. Therefore, in this state, even in the case of extremely thick paper or a tray for an information recording disk, the intervals can be smoothly passed without interfering with the driven roller 202 and the print head 100.

Next, when the operating lever 201 is moved from the position D to the position B, the first intermittent gear 2 shown in FIG.
11, the second intermittent gear 2
12, the fourth intermittent gear 214 rotates in the direction of the arrow c2 shown, and the fifth intermittent gear 215 rotates in the direction of the arrow d2. This causes the links 231 to 235 to pivot in the illustrated arrow e2 direction, so that the print head 100 moves or descends in the illustrated arrow f2 direction as shown in FIG.

At this time, the print head 100 has a thickness of about 0.7 mm to 1.5
mm from the position of the plain paper in FIG.
The movement is adjusted so as to be 2 mm apart. Also,
At the same time, as shown in FIG. 4, the third intermittent gear 213 rotates in the direction shown by arrow g2, and as shown in FIG. 7, the coil spring 205 is pushed by the D-axis 213a. The elastic force of the coil spring 205 pressed by the D-axis 213a is applied so as to press the cardboard PP sent between the paper feed roller 203 and the cardboard while turning in the m2 direction. At this time, limit switch 2
41 is off, the limit switch 242 is on, and the lamp 10 shown in FIG.
6 flashes, and the lamp 107 lights up.

Next, when the operating lever 201 is moved from the position D to the position C, the first intermittent gear 2 shown in FIG.
11, the second intermittent gear 2
12, the fourth intermittent gear 214 rotates in the direction of the arrow c2 shown, and the fifth intermittent gear 215 rotates in the direction of the arrow d2. This causes the links 231 to 235 to pivot in the illustrated arrow e2 direction, so that the print head 100 moves or descends in the illustrated arrow f2 direction, as shown in FIG.

At this time, the print head 100 has a thickness of about 1.6 mm to 2.
Since the distance is 5 mm, the movement is adjusted so as to be about 2.5 mm apart from the position of the plain paper in FIG. At the same time, as shown in FIG. 4, the third intermittent gear 213 rotates in the direction of arrow g2 in the drawing, and as shown in FIG. 8, the coil spring 205 is pushed by the D-axis 213a.
The driven roller 202 is turned in the direction of the arrow m2 in the drawing to rotate the coil spring 20 pressed by the D-axis 213a so as to press the extremely thick paper PPP sent between the paper feed roller 203 and the paper feed roller 203.
An elastic force of 5 is applied. At this time, the limit switch 241 is turned off, the limit switch 242 is turned on, the lamp 106 shown in FIG. 1 disposed on the front surface of the main body 101 blinks, and the lamp 107 lights.

FIG. 9 is a sectional view showing another detailed example of the paper gap switching means / pressing force adjusting means 200. As shown in FIG. Paper gap switching means / pressing force adjusting means 2 shown in FIG.
In 00, the components of the paper gap switching unit / pressing force adjusting unit 200 shown in FIG. 4 are the same, but the component configuration of the pressing force adjusting unit 200B is partially different. In FIG. 9, the operating means 200C and the pressing force adjusting means 2 are shown.
A part of the print head 100 and only the print head 100 are shown, the other part of the operating means 200C and the pressing force adjusting means 200B and the paper gap switching means 200A are omitted, and the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals.

The pressing force adjusting means 200B shown in FIG. 9 includes a fourth partially toothed gear (not shown) having a shaft 213a with a part of the peripheral surface formed as a flat surface, a fifth partially toothed gear (not shown), and a driven roller at one end. 202 is provided with a driven roller arm 204 and a coil spring 205 rotatably mounted. Each component is the same as the pressing force adjusting means 200B shown in FIG. 4, but has a different component configuration in the following points. I have.

That is, the pressing force adjusting means 20 shown in FIG.
0B indicates that the rotation of the shaft 213a causes the coil spring 2
By pressing one end of 05, the other end of the coil spring 205 presses the driven roller 202 mounted on one end of the driven roller arm 204 against the paper feed roller 203. And
Further rotation of the shaft 213a causes the coil spring 20 to rotate.
By releasing the pressing of one end of 5, the pressing of the other end of the coil spring 205 is also released, and the driven roller 202 is separated from the paper feed roller 203.

On the other hand, the pressing force adjusting means 2 shown in FIG.
00B is one end of the coil spring 205
8, and the other end of the coil spring 205 presses the driven roller 202 mounted on one end of the driven roller arm 204 against the paper feed roller 203 by a restoring force. When the other end of the driven roller arm 204 is pushed by the rotation of the shaft 213a, the driven roller 202 is rotated.
Pushes up the other end of the coil spring 205 to move the paper feed roller 2
03.

The operating means 200C includes a first toothless gear 211 having an operating lever 201, a second toothless gear (not shown) and a third toothless gear (not shown). It is the same as the operating means 200C shown. That is, the operation lever 201 is connected to the first toothless gear 21.
1 and is integrally formed so as to protrude from the circumference of the first toothless gear 211, and can reciprocate in the direction of the arrow a in the figure around the shaft 211a of the first partially toothed gear 211. Further, the ratchet teeth 221 of the waveform forming the click mechanism 220 are integrally formed with the first toothless gear 211. The corrugated concave portions of the ratchet teeth 221 are formed in accordance with positions A, B, C, and D, which are the turning positions of the operation lever 201. A ratchet 222 constituting the click mechanism 220 is pressed against the ratchet teeth 221 by a coil spring 223.

Thus, the operating means 200C shown in FIG.
Similarly, when the user turns the operation lever 201 to position it at the position A, the position B, the position C, and the position D, the ratchet 222 fits into the concave portion from the convex portion of the waveform of the ratchet tooth 221. It is possible to recognize that the operation lever 201 has been reliably positioned at each position by a good click feeling.

The positions A, B, and C of the operation lever 201 for adjusting the paper gap are relatively close to each other, but the driven roller 202 is separated from the paper feed roller 203 (release). Operating lever 20
The first position D is disposed at a position separated from each of the positions A, B, and C by a predetermined distance. Thus, when operating the operation lever 201, the user can clearly recognize visually or operation feeling whether the paper gap has been adjusted or the driven roller 202 has been separated (released) from the paper feed roller 203. Erroneous operation can be prevented.

An outline of the operation in such a configuration will be described with reference to FIGS. In the state of FIG. 9, that is, when the operation lever 201 is positioned at the position A, the driven roller 202 pushes the coil spring 20 so as to press the plain paper P sent to the paper feed roller 203.
A restoring force of 5 is applied. The print head 100
Is moved so as to form a paper gap ha corresponding to the plain paper P.

At this time, since the thickness of the print head 100 including the variation of plain paper is about 0.6 mm or less, the movement of the print head 100 is adjusted so that the paper gap ha is about 1.2 mm. At this time, the limit switches 241 and 242 are both turned on, and the body 101
The lamps 106, 10 shown in FIG.
7 lights up.

Next, when the operation lever 201 is moved from the position A to the position D in the state shown in FIG.
Moves in the direction of the arrow f1 in the drawing, that is, rises. Further, during the above operation, the circumference of the D axis 213a pushes down the other end of the driven roller arm 204, so that one end of the driven roller arm 204 is lifted, and the driven roller 202 is moved from the paper feed roller 203 in the direction of arrow m1 in the figure. Are released (released). At this time, the limit switch 24
1 and 242 are both turned off, and the lamps 106 and 107 shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 10, when the operating lever 201 is moved from the position A to the position D, the driven roller 202 is separated (released) from the paper feed roller 203 in the direction of arrow m1 in FIG. 100 rises in the direction of the arrow f1 in the drawing to leave a maximum paper gap. Therefore, in this state, even in the case of extremely thick paper or a tray for an information recording disk, the intervals can be smoothly passed without interfering with the driven roller 202 and the print head 100.

Next, when the operation lever 201 is moved from the position D to the position B in the state shown in FIG. 11, the rotation of the first toothless gear 211 causes the print head 100 to rotate.
Moves in the illustrated arrow f2 direction, that is, descends. At this time, since the print head 100 has a thickness of, for example, about 0.7 mm to 1.5 mm including the variation of the thick paper, the print head 100 is located at a position about 1.2 mm apart from the position of the plain paper in FIG. 9. The movement is adjusted.

At the same time, the other end of the driven roller arm 204 is placed on the flat portion of the D-axis 213a.
Is pressed. At this time, the limit switch 241 is turned off, the limit switch 242 is turned on, the lamp 106 shown in FIG. 1 disposed on the front surface of the main body 101 blinks, and the lamp 107 lights.

Next, when the operation lever 201 is moved from the position D to the position C in the state of FIG. 12, the rotation of the first toothless gear 211 causes the print head 100 to rotate.
Moves in the illustrated arrow f2 direction, that is, descends. At this time, since the print head 100 has a thickness of about 1.6 mm to 2.5 mm including the dispersion of the extremely thick paper, for example,
The movement is adjusted so as to be about 2.5 mm apart from the position of the plain paper in FIG.

Further, similarly to FIG. 11, the other end of the driven roller arm 204 is placed on a flat portion of the D shaft 213a.
One end of the driven roller arm 204 is pushed down by the restoring force of the coil spring 205, but the driven roller 202
Press. At this time, the limit switch 241
Is off, the limit switch 242 is on, and the
The lamp 106 shown in FIG. 1 disposed on the front of the light source 01 flashes, and the lamp 107 lights.

In the ink jet printer of each of the above-described embodiments, the print head 100 is moved to switch the paper gaps having different intervals, and the pressure is applied or released to the driven roller 220 by applying or releasing the pressure. And a pressing force adjusting means 200B for adjusting the pressing force on the recording papers different from each other can be operated by only one operation lever 201.

That is, the operation of one operation lever 201 sets the paper gap at different intervals of the print head 100 by the paper gap switching means 200A and the driven roller 202 by the pressing force adjusting means 200B.
, And the pressure release of the driven roller 202 by the pressing force adjusting means 200B can be smoothly switched in a stepwise manner. Further, since the paper gap switching means / pressing force adjusting means 200 is constituted by a gear mechanism and a link mechanism, it can be constituted by a simple mechanism.

As described above, the present invention has been described with respect to various embodiments. However, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and other embodiments may be included within the scope of the invention described in the claims. It goes without saying that also applies.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, the switching position of the operation lever 201 is determined to be a position A where a recording sheet having a normal thickness, that is, plain paper, is used, and a recording sheet having a slightly thicker thickness, that is, a thick sheet. A position B where the sheet is used, a position C where extremely thick recording paper, that is, an extremely thick sheet including an information recording disk tray is used, and a position D where the driven roller 202 is separated (released) from the paper feed roller 203.
Has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. The position P at which the first paper gap is set and the second paper gap at least larger than the first paper gap are set. And the driven roller 202 is separated from the paper feed roller 203 (release).
The present invention can be applied to a case in which three stages of the position R are continuously provided.

The switching positions connected in sequence are A, B, C,
The present invention is not limited to the order of D, and the present invention can be applied in any order. For example, the switching positions P, Q, R
, The switching position P, Q, R, the switching position R,
In the case of P and Q, the case of the switching positions P, R and Q can be applied. Further, as shown in FIG. 13, a slit 310 provided in the main body 101 of the ink jet printer is formed in a C-shape, and switching positions P and Q are disposed vertically, and one side of each switching position P and Q is provided. A switching position R may be provided. In this case, the separation (release) of the driven roller 202 from the paper feed roller 203 can be switched more quickly.

The driven roller 202 is the paper feed roller 2
Although the configuration is such that the pressing force is released from the paper feed roller 203, the pressing force may be released without releasing (release) from the paper feed roller 203. For example, as shown in FIG. 14A, by disposing the D axis 313a with respect to the coil spring 305 on the side opposite to the arrangement of the D axis 213a with respect to the coil spring 205 in FIG. 3, the pressing force of the driven roller 202 is released. Can be In this case, the driven roller 202 simply contacts the paper feed roller 203 by its own weight. Then, as shown in FIG.
By pressing the coil spring 322 as a rotates, a pressing force can be applied to the driven roller 202.

As the pressing means for the driven roller 202 by the pressing force adjusting means 200B, coil springs 205 and 30 are used.
However, the present invention is not limited to this example, and any elastic member such as rubber can be used. If the D-axis 213a is formed in an acute fan shape, the operation angle of the operation lever 201 can be increased. In addition, although the intermittent gears 214 and 215 are used to reduce the vertical movement distance of the print head 100, when the vertical movement distance of the print head 100 is not limited, a normal gear is used without using the intermittent gear. The mechanism used may be used, in which case the cost of parts can be reduced.

Further, in each of the above-described embodiments, the printer has been described as an example of the ink jet recording apparatus.
The present invention is not limited to this, and any apparatus having a recording medium feeding mechanism, such as a facsimile apparatus and a copying apparatus, is applicable.

[0067]

As described above, according to the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention, the adjustment of the recording head and the driven roller can be performed simply and uniquely with one operating lever. In addition, it is possible to smoothly perform the switching of the paper gap and the adjustment of the pressing force without making a mistake, thereby improving the usability of the user. In addition, since the structure of the paper gap switching unit / pressing force adjusting unit is simplified, design is facilitated, design errors can be reduced, and manufacturing and assembly costs and man-hours can be reduced. .

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a configuration example of an ink jet printer, which is one of the ink jet recording apparatuses according to an embodiment of the present invention, as viewed obliquely from the front.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the ink jet printer of FIG. 1 as viewed obliquely from behind.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a relationship between an operation lever of the ink jet printer of FIG. 1 and a paper gap switching unit / pressing force adjusting unit.

FIG. 4 is a side view showing a detailed example of a paper gap switching unit / pressing force adjusting unit of the ink jet printer of FIG.

FIG. 5 is a side view showing a first operation example of a paper gap switching unit / pressing force adjusting unit of the ink jet printer of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a side view showing a second operation example of the paper gap switching unit / pressing force adjusting unit of the ink jet printer of FIG.

FIG. 7 is a side view showing a third operation example of the paper gap switching unit / pressing force adjusting unit of the ink jet printer of FIG.

FIG. 8 is a side view showing a fourth operation example of the paper gap switching unit / pressing force adjusting unit of the ink jet printer of FIG.

9 is a side view showing a detailed example of a first state of another paper gap switching unit / pressing force adjusting unit of the ink jet printer of FIG. 1. FIG.

10 is a side view showing a detailed example of a second state of another paper gap switching unit / pressing force adjusting unit of the ink jet printer of FIG. 1;

FIG. 11 is a side view showing a detailed example of a third state of another paper gap switching unit / pressing force adjusting unit of the ink jet printer of FIG. 1;

12 is a side view showing a detailed example of a fourth state of another paper gap switching unit / pressing force adjusting unit of the ink jet printer of FIG. 1;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing a modification of the operation lever of the ink jet printer of FIG.

FIG. 14 is a side view showing a modification of the pressing force adjusting means of the ink jet printer of FIG.

FIG. 15 is a diagram for explaining a problem of a conventional ink jet printer.

[Explanation of symbols]

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 100 print head 101 main body 102 paper discharge port 103 paper feed port 104 tray 105 ink cartridge 106 lamp 107 lamp 110 slit 200 paper gap switching means / pressing force adjusting means 200A paper gap switching means 200B pressing force adjusting means 201 operating lever 202 driven roller 203 Paper feed roller 204 Followed roller arm 205 Coil spring 211 First intermittent gear 212 Second intermittent gear 213 Third intermittent gear 214 Fourth intermittent gear 215 Fifth intermittent gear 213a D axis 231 First link 232 Second link 233 Third link 234 4th link 235 5th link 241 Limit switch 242 Limit switch 243 Encoder

Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Masahiro Isono 3-3-5 Yamato, Suwa-shi, Nagano Seiko Epson Corporation (72) Inventor Yoichi Kobayashi 3-3-5, Yamato, Suwa-shi, Nagano Seiko Epson Corporation (72) Inventor Koji Hashiuchi 3-3-5 Yamato, Suwa-shi, Nagano F-term in Seiko Epson Corporation (reference) 2C056 EA24 HA12 HA29 2C059 BB03 BB06 BB13 BB15 BB16 BB17 BB21 BB25 2C064 CC04 CC05 FF49 FF31 DA0 DA19 DB02 LA07 LB03

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. An ink jet recording apparatus comprising: a feed roller and a driven roller for sandwiching and sending a recording medium; and a recording head for ejecting ink droplets on the recording medium. Paper gap switching means for switching between a paper gap and a second paper gap at least larger than the first paper gap; and a pressing force for applying or releasing a pressure to the driven roller and adjusting a pressing force on the recording medium. An operating means for setting the first paper gap and applying the pressure, setting the second paper gap and applying the pressure, and switching the pressure between three stages of release, with one operating lever And an ink jet recording apparatus. 2. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein three switching positions by the operation lever are provided in series. 3. The operation at the switching position which is continuously provided includes setting of the first paper gap and application of the pressure, setting of the second paper gap and application of the pressure, and release of the pressure. 3. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the order is the order. 4. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said paper gap switching means and said pressing force adjusting means are constituted by a gear mechanism and a link mechanism. . 5. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the pressing by the pressing force adjusting means is applied by an elastic member.