JP2002316407A - Method of recording image and image recording material - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To readily achieve high quality of a recorded image when a recording material is wound in a roll and the recording material is drawn therefrom to record an image. SOLUTION: The recording material 70 is shipped in a condition that it is shaped to be long and is wound around an outer periphery of a core 72A. The recording material 70 is wound around the core 72A by determining the radius (r) of the roll such that a ratio of r/w of the radius (r) of the roll and the width (w) of the recording material is not less than 0.65 and a ratio of r0 /r of the radius (r0 ) of the core 72A and the radius (r) of the roll is not greater than 0.5. As a result, even when a force bending the core 72A with respect to the axis thereof is applied to the roll of the recording material 70 during the shipping or storing of the recording material 70, it is possible to prevent the curling tendency of the recording material 70 due to deformation of the core 72A so that it is possible to readily maintain the plain property of the recording material 70 in the recording of an image.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to an image recording method and an image recording material, and records an image on the image recording material by adhering recording droplets ejected from an ejection port of a recording head to the image recording material. The present invention relates to an image recording method and an image recording material applicable to the image recording method.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In parallel with the spread of high quality, quick and low cost color images in the production of color images using silver halide color light-sensitive materials, digitization of images has led to electrostatic transfer methods, Various full-color image forming methods such as a sublimation heat transfer method and an ink jet method are rapidly spreading. A color image forming method using a silver halide color light-sensitive material is excellent in image quality such as color reproducibility, image sharpness, image recording density, and glossiness, and is also excellent in image durability and the like. This is one of the goals of the development of the inkjet method.

In the ink-jet method, full-color printing is relatively easy by selecting the type (color) of ink to be ejected from a recording head based on color image data obtained by digitizing a color original image. Therefore, there is an advantage that noise during image recording is relatively low. However, the ink used in the ink jet method contains a relatively large amount of water or solvent, and it is necessary to absorb or remove water or solvent from the ink attached to the recording material, and continuously eject fine droplets. Measures are also required to prevent sharpness deterioration due to beading or bleeding at the time. In addition, the ink jet method is different from the image forming method using a silver salt color photosensitive material in that an image is formed by attaching an ink containing a dissolved or dispersed dye, so that protection of the image and improvement of durability are particularly improved. Required.

In the ink jet system, as a substrate of a recording support, general paper or a sheet material provided with a water-resistant resin layer on paper is used, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 59-2268.
A printing sheet or the like described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 3 is used. Further, a resin film, for example, a transparent film such as polyester or cellulose acetate described in JP-A-59-222381, a film filled with a white pigment, or synthetic paper may be used. Further, a transparent or opaque substrate described in JP-A No. 11-5362, which has an ink-absorbing paper or a porous resin film, may be integrated with a layer provided on the surface thereof. Is used as a support for generating oxygen barrier properties by heat treatment.

On the surface of the substrate, see JP-A-59-22238.
No. 1, JP-A-59-22683, JP-A-8-2
No. 090, No. 9-104163, No. 11
JP-A-5-362, JP-A-2000-43368, JP-A-2000-43369 and the like are provided with an ink receiving layer, and an image protective layer and the like are provided thereon. In the ink receiving layer, JP-A-7-237348 and JP-A-9-237348 are used.
As described in JP-A-104163, JP-A-9-156206, JP-A-11-5362 and the like, a hydrophilic binder which easily permeates ink and a porous adsorbent which easily permeates and adsorbs ink are provided. The image protective layer is described in JP-A-59-215885, JP-A-59-1037.
No. 82, etc., for example, JP-A-62-59076 and JP-A-62-56184.
And the like, particularly, a laminate coating described in JP-A-1-291990 can be provided by polymer dissolution coating or extrusion. Also, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-237
No. 348, No. 8-2090, No. 2000-
As described in JP-A-43368 and JP-A-2000-43369, there is also known a method in which a porous polymer layer is used, and a protective layer is provided by performing a heat treatment after image formation. JP 2000
JP-A-225695 and the like describe a method in which droplets for protecting a formed image are attached by discharging the droplets by inkjet. The method of providing an image protection layer after image formation complicates the image recording process and is not preferable in terms of cost.

It is also known that in an image recording apparatus for recording an image by an ink jet system, a long recording material wound in advance in a roll shape is loaded, and the recording material is pulled out from the roll and used for image recording. (For example, JP-A-5-16474, JP-A-5-16476, JP-A-7-25532, JP-A-7-101606, JP-A-8-33344, and JP-A-11-1175.
No. 0, 2000-190481, etc.).
Further, it is also known that a recording material which is closely adhered to a base material via an adhesive or an adhesive layer and loaded in a roll shape is loaded, and after image recording, the recording material is separated or cut and separated (for example, see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 5-205). Nos. 169749, 7-47670, 7-251983, 8-13270
No. 0).

[0007]

It is important to reduce the size of a recording apparatus in image recording as well as to improve the processing capability (the number of recorded images per unit time), as well as to improve the recording capacity regardless of the recording method. As described above, the use of a long recording material wound in a roll shape in advance and drawing out the recording material from the roll during image recording, as described above, is not limited to the ink jet method, but is extremely useful for downsizing the apparatus. It is effective for However, in a case where the recording material is wound in a roll in advance in the image recording of the ink jet system, there are the following problems.

That is, the flatness of a recording material when recording an image greatly affects the image quality of the recorded image. However, in image recording using a silver halide color photosensitive material, recording of each image (exposure of a latent image) is performed. Since the recording is completed instantaneously, it is sufficient to secure the flatness of the recording material for a very short time (when immersing in a processing solution and performing processing such as color development, even if the flatness of the recording material is low, the effect is low). Not receive). On the other hand, in the image recording of the ink jet system, since it takes time to record each image, it is necessary to maintain a state in which the flatness of the recording material is maintained for a relatively long time. The required level of degree is originally high.

The recording material is transported after production and stored until it is used for image recording. Since various forces are applied to the recording material during transportation and storage, the recording material is wound into a roll during production. When the recording material is transported or stored, a force applied to the roll of the recording material may cause deformation such as the core being curved with respect to the axis. When the core is deformed, a force is continuously applied to the recording material by the deformed core even when no external force is applied to the recording material roll, and the recording material is generated by being wound in a roll shape. In addition to the curl habit (also referred to as a curl habit), a deformation habit (also referred to as a curl habit), which is a factor that hinders the flatness of the recording material during image recording, is formed. In order to maintain the flatness of the recording material having such a deformation habit for a relatively long time during image recording, a complicated mechanism is required.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned facts, and when an image recording material is pulled out from a roll of the image recording material and an image is recorded, image recording which can easily realize high image quality of the recorded image can be realized. It is an object to obtain a method and an image recording material suitable for the image recording method.

[0011]

The inventor of the present invention conducted the following experiment to confirm the effect of an external force applied to a roll of an image recording material formed by winding a long image recording material into a roll. Was done.

That is, in an environment of a temperature of 25 ° C. and a relative humidity of 65%, a long image recording material is wound around the outer periphery of a winding core which is supported so as to be substantially horizontal. A number of rolls having different roll radii r (see FIG. 1A) were prepared. Then, in an environment of a temperature of 45 ° C. and a relative humidity of 70%, as shown in FIG. 1 (A), each roll was allowed to stand for approximately 7 days with an external force (downward load) applied substantially at the center in the axial direction. As shown in FIG. 1B, the image recording material is pulled out from the roll, cut into several tens to several hundred pieces of the image recording material in units of a certain length, and each piece is conveyed to convey a jam or the like. Observation was made as to whether or not an error occurred, and the frequency of occurrence of a transport error was measured for each roll.

Among a large number of rolls produced, the frequency of occurrence of a transport error was measured for a plurality of rolls having the same width w of the image recording material (w = 12 cm) and different roll radii r (percentage). Are shown in Table 1 below. In addition, the radius (radius of the core) r ₀ of the hollow portion formed at the center of the roll by winding the image recording material around the outer periphery of the core is 2 cm for each roll.

[0014]

[Table 1]

From the experimental results shown in Table 1, the transport error rate tends to increase as the radius r of the roll of the image recording material decreases. (r = 7.8 cm), the transport error rate sharply increased. Table 2 below shows the results of measuring the frequency of occurrence of transport errors for a plurality of rolls having the same radius r (r = 18 cm) and different widths w of the image recording material. Note that the radius r ₀ of the hollow portion at the center of the roll caused by the core is 2 cm for each roll as described above.

[0016]

[Table 2]

From the experimental results in Table 2, the transport error rate tends to increase as the width w of the image recording material increases. In particular, when the width w of the image recording material is a certain value (in the example of Table 2, the width w is smaller). (w = 27.7 cm), the transport error rate sharply increased.

It is apparent that the transport error in the above experiment is mainly caused by the curl of the image recording material (see FIG. 1B) due to the deformation of the roll of the image recording material (curvature with respect to the axis of the roll). It is empirically known that the frequency of occurrence of transport errors increases as the curl habit increases. Then, the flatness of the image recording material decreases as the curl becomes stronger, so that the image quality of the image recorded on the image recording material also decreases.

Based on the experimental results shown in Tables 1 and 2, the inventor of the present invention determined that the radius r of the roll was smaller than the width w of the image recording material (the length of the roll of the image recording material along the axial direction). It has been conceived that increasing the size is effective in preventing the roll from being deformed when an external force is applied to the roll of the image recording material, and the width of the image recording material for each roll shown in Tables 1 and 2 shows the experimental results. The ratio r / w of the radius r to w was determined (see the portion surrounded by a thick line in Tables 1 and 2).

As a result, as clearly indicated by the thick broken line in Tables 1 and 2, in the experimental results shown in Tables 1 and 2, the transport error rate greatly changed with r / w = 0.65 as a boundary. If the roll of the image recording material is prepared so that r / w is 0.65 or more, the deformation of the roll of the image recording material when an external force is applied (ie, the strength of the curl of the image recording material) Has been found that can be controlled to such an extent that the conveyance of the image recording material and the image quality of the recorded image are not significantly affected.

The width w of the image recording material is constant (w = 2
4 cm) and the radius r of the roll is constant (r = 18 cm) (that is, r / w = 0.75), a plurality of rolls differing only in the radius r _{0 of the} winding core are prepared, and the same experiment as above is performed. Table 3 shows the results of measuring the frequency of occurrence of transport errors.

[0022]

[Table 3]

[0023] From 3 experimental result tables tend to increase with the radius r ₀ of the winding transfer error rate core increases, especially winding radius r ₀ is a certain value of the core (radius in the example of Table 3 (r ₀ = 8 cm), the transport error rate sharply increased.

From the experimental results shown in Table 3, the inventor of the present application has found that increasing the radius r of the roll in comparison with the radius r _{0 of the} winding core can be achieved when the roll of the image recording material is subjected to an external force. Of each roll whose experimental results are shown in Table 3, the ratio r ₀ / r of the radius r ₀ of the roll core to the radius r of the roll was determined (in Table 3, the bold line indicates a bold line). (See box enclosed). As a result, as clearly indicated by the thick dashed line in Table 3, the transport error rate greatly changes at the boundary of r ₀ /r=0.5, and image recording is performed so that r ₀ / r becomes 0.5 or less. If a roll of material is created, the deformation of the roll of the image recording material (the strength of the curl of the image recording material) when an external force is applied does not significantly affect the conveyance of the image recording material or the image quality of the recorded image. The knowledge that it can be suppressed to the extent was obtained.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image recording method, comprising ejecting recording droplets from an ejection port of a recording head, and attaching the recording droplets to the image recording material. An image recording method for recording an image, wherein the image recording material has a long shape, and the image recording material is wound around an outer periphery of the core in a roll shape, so that a width w of the image recording material is reduced. Ratio r / of radius r of roll
A roll of an image recording material is prepared in which w is 0.65 or more and a ratio r ₀ / r of the radius r ₀ of the winding core to the radius r is 0.5 or less, and the roll is set at a predetermined position. An image recording material is drawn from a roll set at a predetermined position and used for image recording.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, a long image recording material is wound around an outer periphery of a core in the form of a roll, and the ratio r / w of the radius r of the roll to the width w of the image recording material is 0.65.
As described above, the ratio r ₀ / of the radius r ₀ of the winding core to the radius r
Since the roll of the image recording material having r of 0.5 or less is prepared, as apparent from the experimental results described above, the deformation of the roll of the image recording material when an external force is applied to the roll of the image recording material ( That is, the degree of curl of the image recording material can be suppressed to such an extent that the conveyance of the image recording material and the image quality of the recorded image are not significantly affected. Therefore, according to the first aspect of the invention, when the image recording material is pulled out from the roll of the image recording material and the image is recorded, the quality of the recorded image can be easily increased (without providing a special mechanism).
Can be realized.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, since r / w is 0.65 or more and r ₀ / r is 0.5 or less, the width of the image recording material is smaller than the width w of the image recording material. Even when the image is continuously recorded on the image recording material as the length becomes longer, the frequency of loading and replacing the roll of the image recording material decreases, and the number of recorded images per unit time increases. Effect can also be obtained.

[0028] According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, while continuously recording images on the image recording material, it is monitored whether or not an event which causes an obstacle in image recording has occurred. When it is determined that the event has occurred, a process for removing the fault or the event is performed.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the events that may hinder image recording include, for example, malfunctions of the recording head (specifically, clogging of the ejection openings of the recording head and recording droplets from the ejection openings of the recording head). (A decrease in the discharge amount or other events), and a decrease in the free space of a storage unit for storing image information representing an image to be recorded on the image recording material. An acquisition unit for acquiring original image information representing an original image to be recorded on the image recording material, and image processing on the original image information acquired by the acquisition unit to record on the image recording material. Generate image information representing the image,
Image processing means for outputting the generated image information to the recording head, and in the aspect in which the image recording obstruction events include, for example, malfunction of the acquisition means, acquisition of defective original image information by the acquisition means, There is a malfunction of image processing by the image processing means.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, even when the above-described event occurs while the image is continuously recorded on the image recording material, the event is detected, and the failure of the image recording is removed. Or since the obstructive event itself is removed, a large number of images of inappropriate image quality are recorded after the occurrence of the event, or image recording is stopped for a long time due to the occurrence of the event. Can be prevented beforehand, and high-speed image recording and an improvement in the yield of an appropriate image can be realized.

According to the first or second aspect of the present invention, for example, as described in the third aspect, the image recording material drawn from the roll of the image recording material may be wound in a roll shape. It is preferable to heat the surface opposite to the surface on which the recording droplet receiving layer is formed by curving the image recording material in the direction opposite to the curving direction.

Since the recording material pulled out from the roll of the image recording material is wound in a roll shape, even if the roll is not deformed, the curl tends to return to the roll state. Is attached. On the other hand, as described above, the image recording material is curved in a direction opposite to the curving direction of the image recording material in a state of being wound in a roll shape, and the surface on which the recording droplet receiving layer is formed is formed. By heating the opposite surface, the above-described curl can be removed, and the flatness of the image recording material during image recording can be further improved.

When the roll of the image recording material is deformed such that the winding core is curved with respect to the axis of the roll,
A large force is locally applied to the image recording material, for example, a particularly large force is applied to a central portion in the width direction. (This force is generated by contacting the image recording material by being wound in a roll shape. This acts as a force to relatively slide and move the front and back surfaces of the image recording material), which may cause damage to the image recording material such as peeling of the recording droplet receiving layer from the support.

Therefore, an image recording material according to the invention of claim 4 is an image recording material that can be used in the image recording method of any one of claims 1 to 3, and has a flat support. A recording droplet receiving layer formed on one surface of the body is covered with an image protection layer containing at least one material of resin latex, inorganic pigment particles, and a lubricant; and At least, a backcoat layer containing at least one material of a resin latex, an inorganic pigment particle, and a lubricant is formed on a surface opposite to a surface on which the recording droplet receiving layer is formed. It is characterized by satisfying one of them.

As described above, at least the steps of covering the recording droplet receiving layer with the image protective layer and forming the back coat layer on the surface opposite to the side on which the recording droplet receiving layer is formed. By satisfying one of them (preferably, at least three layers including a recording droplet receiving layer, an image protective layer and an overcoat layer are formed on the support as described in claim 5), Even if a large force is locally applied to the image recording material due to the deformation of the roll, it is necessary to prevent damage to the image recording material such as peeling of the recording droplet receiving layer from the support. Can be.

According to the fourth or fifth aspect of the present invention, at least one of the recording droplet receiving layer and the image protective layer has a minimum film forming temperature (MF) as described in the sixth aspect.
T) preferably has a porous structure using a thermoplastic resin latex having a temperature of 50 ° C. or higher. In this case, after the image is recorded by attaching the recording droplets to the image recording material, at least one of heating and pressurizing is performed on the image recording material, so that the resin layer (the recording droplet receiving layer and the image protection layer) is formed. Is formed.

When an image protective layer or a back coat layer is provided on an image recording material, a recording droplet receiving layer is formed when a large force is locally applied to the image recording material in a state of being wound in a roll. However, there is a disadvantage that the back surface opposite to the bent surface is likely to be adhered, and the rate of occurrence of transport errors may increase. This disadvantage can be reduced by, for example, forming an image protective layer or a back coat layer as described in claim 4. Further, by adopting the structure described in claim 6, the glossiness and the robustness of the recorded image (image protection) are further improved.

Further, an image is recorded on the image recording material by adhering recording droplets ejected from the ejection openings of the recording head to the image recording material according to any one of claims 4 to 6. In this case, as described in claim 7, the surface of the image recording material on which the recording droplet receiving layer is formed is pressed after the recording liquid droplets are adhered to the image recording material, so that the surface is pressed. Preferably, it is smoothed. Thereby, the smoothness and glossiness of the image recording surface of the image recording material (the surface on the side where the recording droplet receiving layer is formed) can be improved.

[0039]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 2 shows a schematic configuration of an image recording system 10 to which the present invention is applied. The image recording system 10 includes a film scanner 12 as an input device for inputting image data, is provided with an image processing device 18 for processing image data input from the input device, and has been processed by the image processing device 18. As an output device that outputs an image represented by image data,
An inkjet printer 20 that records an image by an inkjet recording method is provided.

The film scanner 12 is used for the photographic film 3
8 (for example, a negative film or a reversal film) and other film images recorded on a photographic material (hereinafter simply referred to as photographic film) (a negative image or a positive image visualized by subjecting a subject to image processing and development processing) And outputs image data obtained by the reading. Light emitted from the LED light source 30 and reduced in unevenness in the light amount by the light diffusion box 34 is transmitted to the photographic film 38 set in the film carrier 36. The light that has been irradiated and transmitted through the photographic film 38 is formed into an image on a light receiving surface of an area CCD sensor 42 (or a line CCD sensor) via a lens 40.

The film carrier 36 intermittently transports the photographic film 38 so that the film images are sequentially positioned on the optical axis (reading position) of the light emitted from the LED light source 30. The LED light source 30 includes a number of LEDs that emit R light,
A large number of LEDs for emitting G light, a large number of LEDs for emitting B light, and a large number of LEDs for emitting IR light are arranged at a constant and high density on the entire surface of a substrate (not shown). When one image is located at the reading position, it is driven by a driver (not shown) so as to sequentially emit R, G, and B lights.

Thus, the film images recorded on the photographic film 38 are sequentially read by the CCD sensor 42, and R, G, B, and IR signals corresponding to the film image are output from the CCD sensor 42. The signal output from the CCD sensor 42 is converted into digital image data by the A / D converter 43 and input to the image processing device 18. The film scanner 12 is provided with a scanner control unit 28, and the operation of each unit of the film scanner 12 is controlled by the scanner control unit 28.
The reading of each film image may be performed a plurality of times (for example, a pre-scan for reading a film image at a relatively low resolution and a fine scan for reading a film image at a relatively high resolution).

As an input device according to the present embodiment,
The reflection type scanner for reading a reflection original (for example, color paper on which an image is recorded) and outputting image data obtained by the reading is the film scanner 12 described above.
And may be provided separately. As the reflection type scanner, there is a scanner provided with an automatic supply mechanism for sequentially and automatically supplying a plurality of reflection originals to a reading unit of the scanner so that a plurality of reflection originals can be read automatically and continuously. Preferably, it is used.

The film scanner 12 is an image processing device 18
Is connected to the pre-processing unit 44, and the pre-processing unit 44 converts the image data input from the film scanner 12
For example, predetermined preprocessing such as dark correction, density conversion, shading correction, and defective pixel correction is performed. The pre-processing unit 44 is connected to the image processing unit 48 via the image memory 46, and the image data that has undergone the pre-processing in the pre-processing unit 44 is temporarily stored in the image memory 46 and then read out by the image processing unit 48. As a result, it is input to the image processing unit 48. The image processing unit 48 automatically determines, based on the image data read from the image memory 46, the processing conditions for various types of image processing on the image data by calculation (setup calculation).

The image processing performed by the image processing section 48 includes, for example, gray balance adjustment, density adjustment, gradation control, hypertone processing for compressing the gradation of the ultra-low frequency luminance component of the image, and granular processing. Hyper sharpness processing that emphasizes sharpness while suppressing noise, IR
Image processing for improving the image quality of an output image, such as a defective portion repairing process for correcting a defective portion of image data caused by a flaw on a photographic film, the attachment of a foreign substance, or the like based on the above data.

The image processing section 48 performs various image processes on the image data read from the image memory 46 in accordance with the processing conditions determined by the setup operation.
The image processing unit 48 is connected to the image data storage unit 54 of the inkjet printer 20, and the image data that has undergone various image processing is transferred to the image data storage unit 54 as recording image data and is temporarily stored therein.

On the other hand, a printer control unit 56 is connected to the image data storage unit 54 of the ink jet printer 20. The printer control unit 56 includes the scanner control unit 28 of the film scanner 12 and the image processing unit 48 of the image processing device 18.
It is connected to the. In addition, a recording head 60 (details will be described later) is connected to the printer control unit 56 via a driver 58, and a recording material transporting unit 62, a heating / drying unit 64, and an image reading unit 66 are connected thereto. I have.

As shown in FIG. 3, the housing 20A of the ink jet printer 20 has a substantially box shape.
A magazine 72 for accommodating the recording material 70 is set at one end. The recording material 70 is formed into a long shape, and is shipped in a state of being wound in a roll around the outer periphery of the core 72A.
After being transported / stored in a rolled state and loaded in the magazine 72 when used for image recording, the magazine 72 is set in the housing 20A so as to be positioned at a predetermined position (the position shown in FIG. 3). ) Is set.

It is preferable that the recording material 70 is wound so that the surface on which the ink receiving layer (recording liquid drop receiving layer) is formed is on the inside. (See FIG. 4), but may be reversed.
When a roll of the recording material 70 is loaded, the magazine 72 rotatably supports the roll of the recording material 70. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the recording material 70 includes a roller 73 disposed below a roll of the recording material 70 and urged upward by a coil spring 71A, and a leaf spring 71B disposed above the recording material 70. The mechanism can be realized by a mechanism for holding the roll 70. Alternatively, for example, a mechanism that supports the core 72A when the roll of the recording material 70 is loaded may be employed.

When the recording material 70 is transported and stored in a rolled state, various forces are applied to the recording material 70, so that deformation such as the core 72A being curved with respect to the axis is generated. A force is continuously applied to the recording material 70 by the generated and deformed winding core 72A, and there is a possibility that a deformation habit may be formed as a factor that hinders the flatness of the recording material 70 during image recording.

For this reason, in the present embodiment, when the recording material 70 is wound into a roll around the core 72A, the value of the ratio r / w of the radius r of the roll to the width w of the recording material 70 is 0. 0.65 or more, preferably 0.75 or more, more preferably 0.95 or more, particularly preferably 2 or more (see also FIG. 4), and the radius r _{0 of the} core relative to the radius r of the roll.
The value of the ratio r ₀ / r is 0.5 or less, more preferably 0.
The recording material 70 is wound with the radius r of the roll determined so as to satisfy the condition of 45 or less at the same time, thereby producing a roll of the recording material 70.

The width w of the recording material 70 is determined according to the size of the image recorded on the recording material 70, but is preferably about 8 cm to about 30 c in the width of a normal photographic print format.
m, for example, about 8.9 cm;
7cm, 17.6cm, about 20cm or 25cm
Approximately 30cm width of normal photo print format
It can be set arbitrarily up to. On the other hand, the length of the recording material 70 is 10 m or more, preferably 50 m, 100 m or more.
m or 180 m. The recording material has a thickness of 10 μm to 300 μm, preferably 15 μm.
２５０250 μm.

The long recording material 70 is wound into a roll around the outer periphery of the winding core 72A so as to satisfy the above-mentioned conditions to form a roll of the recording material 70. Even if a force or the like for bending the core 72A with respect to the axis is applied to the roll of the recording material 70, it is possible to prevent the recording material 70 from being curled due to the deformation of the core 72A. Even when the inkjet printer 20 records an image on the recording material 70 over a relatively long time, the flatness of the recording material 70 can be easily maintained.

In this embodiment, in order to satisfy the conditions of r / w ≧ 0.65 and r ₀ /r≦0.5, the radius r of the roll of the recording material 70 inevitably increases. As a result, the pressure applied to the front and back surfaces of the recording material 70 wound in a roll shape increases, and when the recording material 70 is pulled out from the roll, each layer formed on the support of the recording material 70 There is a risk of damage.

By reducing the value of r ₀ / r,
The radius r of the core is smaller than the radius r of the roll of the recording material 70.
Since ₀ is reduced, by a recording material 70 which is located in particular a winding core 72A vicinity is bent with a small radius of curvature, the get a strong bending habit (curl), the moment when drawn from the roll, small curvature When the recording material 70 is changed from a curved state to a flat state, the distortion force applied to the ink receiving layer and the like formed on the support of the recording material 70 is increased, and there is a risk that the ink receiving layer may crack.

Further, by increasing the value of r / w, the width w of the recording material 70 becomes smaller than the radius r of the roll of the recording material 70, so that the recording material 70 drawn from the roll and conveyed is conveyed. , The tensile force per unit area acting on the recording material 70 becomes relatively high, and it becomes difficult to maintain the dimensional stability of the ink receiving layer and other layers formed on the support of the recording material 70. There is also a tendency for damage to occur due to contact.

In the present embodiment, in consideration of solving the above problem, a recording material 70 (image recording material according to the present invention) as described below is used.

That is, as the support used for the recording material 70, either transparent or opaque base material can be used.
For example, high-quality paper, art paper, resin-coated paper, paper such as baryta paper, and polyethylene terephthalate, triacetate, polycarbonate, polyacrylate, and a copolymer thereof, and the like, particularly a support used for a silver salt color photosensitive material are advantageous. It is. It is also possible to improve the water resistance and air resistance by applying a thermoplastic resin to a paper or a porous resin film having ink absorbency and performing post-treatment. In order to obtain a recorded matter having a quality equivalent to that of a silver halide color light-sensitive material, it is preferable to use a support having high whiteness, smoothness, and storability such as current baryta paper and WP paper. The smoothness is preferably 20 seconds or more according to the method described in Surface Beck Smoothness JIS-P-8119, and the tensile strength is JIS-P.
The weight is preferably 2 kg to 30 kg according to the method described in -8113.

The ink receiving layer is a layer having a function of absorbing ink ejected by the ink jet with little bleeding, adsorbing and fixing a dye, and holding an image. To enhance water absorption, adsorb and fix dyes for image formation on specific layers, and obtain images with little bleeding and beading, provide a water-absorbing layer mainly on the side closer to the support, and adsorb the dyes It is preferable to form a multilayer structure by providing a plurality of layers for fixing. A surfactant is mainly used for an inorganic pigment that adsorbs a dye and a binder that has high ink permeability and does not hinder dye adsorption. Further, it is preferable to use a thermoplastic resin latex for protecting an image. Further, it has a porous structure to maintain ink permeability.

As inorganic pigments for adsorbing dyes, silica,
Known materials such as calcium carbonate, calcium sulfate, diatomaceous earth, calcium silicate, colloidal silica, alumina, pseudoboehmite, colloidal alumina, and alumina hydrate are used. Particularly, alumina hydrate, silica, colloidal silica and the like are preferable. It is configured as a void in the layer.

The alumina hydrate can be produced by a known method such as hydrolysis of aluminum alkoxide and hydrolysis of sodium aluminate. The shape is not particularly limited, such as cilia, needle, plate, and spindle, and the presence or absence of orientation is not limited.

As the alumina hydrate used in the present invention, those commercially available or those processed from their raw materials can be used. It is more preferable to use a material having high coatability, glossiness, and dye fixability, and having no coating or the like at the time of film formation and having good coatability. Commercially available products include, for example, AS-2 and AS manufactured by Catalyst Kasei Co., Ltd.
-3, 520 manufactured by Nissan Chemical Industries, Ltd., and the like.

Some of these alumina hydrates have a fine particle size of usually 1 μm or less, and have excellent dispersibility. Therefore, the recording material 70 should have very good smoothness and gloss. Can be.

The amount of the inorganic pigment, particularly alumina hydrate, applied to the substrate is 10 g / m ^{2 in} order to impart dye fixability.
More preferably, the coating amount when the substrate has no ink absorption is more preferably 30 to 50 g / m ² , and the coating amount when the substrate has ink absorption is 20 to 40 g. / M ² is more preferable.

The method of coating and drying is not particularly limited, but it is also possible to subject the alumina hydrate and the binder to a baking treatment, if necessary. By performing such a baking treatment, the crosslinking strength of the binder is increased, the mechanical strength of the ink receiving layer is improved, and the surface gloss of the alumina hydrate layer is improved.

The binder for binding the inorganic pigment can be freely selected from water-soluble polymers. For example, polyvinyl alcohol or a modified product thereof, starch or a modified product thereof, gelatin or a modified product thereof, casein or a modified product thereof, gum arabic, carboxymethylcellulose, hydroxyethylcellulose, cellulose derivatives such as hydroxypropylmethylcellulose, SBR latex, NBR latex, methyl Preferred are conjugated diene-based copolymer latex such as methacrylate-butadiene copolymer, functional group-modified polymer latex, vinyl-based copolymer latex such as ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, polyvinylpyrrolidone, acrylate copolymer and the like. . These binders can be used alone or in combination of two or more.

The mixing ratio of the inorganic pigment, particularly the alumina hydrate and the binder is preferably 1: 1 to 30: 1 by weight.
More preferably, the weight ratio is in the range of 5: 1 to 25: 1. The amount of the binder is selected within a range that does not cause cracking or powder dropping.

Further, as an inorganic pigment, silica or colloidal silica is used in a porous structure similarly to alumina.
As the binder, for example, cation-modified polyvinyl alcohol or a copolymer thereof can be used in addition to the binder described in JP-A-61-10483.

The image protective layer is provided on the ink receiving layer,
Protection of the physical strength of the ink receiving layer, improvement of image durability and weather resistance, and in combination with the back coat layer, transportability and damage due to adhesion of the ink receiving layer when the recording material is wound into a roll To prevent

As the image protective layer, a layer composed of an ink-permeable binder containing inorganic pigment particles or resin latex can be provided on the ink-receiving layer containing a porous inorganic pigment. The amount of the resin latex used is an amount that does not impair the ink permeability, and is preferably monodisperse, and is preferably larger than the thickness of the image protective layer. For example, it can be used by selecting from the materials described in JP-A-11-32080.

The recording material 70 may be provided with an image protective layer described below.

The image protective layer forms a porous resin using a thermoplastic resin latex, and the particle distribution of the latex is particularly important. The average particle size of the resin latex is 0.1
μm to 10 μm, preferably 0.3 μm to 5 μm, more preferably 0.3 μm to 3 μm. A monodisperse distribution is preferred, and a latex of uniform particles such that 90% or more of the particles fall within a range of ± 2/3 of the average particle diameter is preferred. In particular, it is preferable that fine particles do not enter. The thermoplastic resin latex has a porous structure, and preferably has a particle solid content of about 10 to 60% by weight. After forming an image without impairing ink permeability, a solid content to be a transparent resin film by heat treatment is selected. Good to do. A plurality of thermoplastic resin latexes having different MFTs (minimum film forming temperatures) and high compatibility can also be used.

The thermoplastic resin used in the present invention is preferably a resin having a property of making it nonporous by heat treatment, forming a film, and protecting an image, particularly a resin containing a component having high ultraviolet absorption.

For example, vinyl chloride, vinylidene chloride,
Styrene-based, acrylic-based, urethane-based, polyester-based, or ethylene-based material, or vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate-based, vinyl chloride-acryl-based, vinyl chloride-vinylidene chloride-based, vinylidene chloride-acrylic-based, SBR
And NBR latexes, and latexes of two or more copolymers thereof, for example, latexes such as SBR / NBR mixtures and vinyl chloride-acryl / vinyl acetate mixtures.

Further, the light resistance is high, and the content of the component containing a conjugated double bond component is preferably 50% or less. As a method for making the porous layer containing the thermoplastic resin particles nonporous, heat treatment is preferable, and by performing such treatment, the weather resistance such as water resistance and light resistance becomes good, and gloss is imparted to the image. And the printed matter can be stored for a long time.

The heating temperature at this time is preferably equal to or higher than the flow temperature of the thermoplastic resin particles, and more preferably the minimum film forming temperature (M
FT) or more, and it depends on the type of the thermoplastic resin, but is preferably 50 ° C. or more in consideration of the surface properties after film formation, and more preferably in the range of about 60 ° C. to 180 ° C. The minimum film forming temperature is a temperature at which the used image protective layer is formed and becomes substantially transparent, and also depends on the processing time.

For the image protective layer, silica sol or the like is used in an amount of 10 to 30.
% By weight. This has the effect of enhancing adhesion to the ink receiving layer, preventing beading and the like, and improving image sharpness.

To optimize the adhesion to the ink receiving layer, improve the sharpness of the image, and maintain the physical strength of the image protective layer, a hydrophilic binder used in the ink receiving layer, for example, polyvinyl alcohol, is used. It is preferable to add it to the protective layer.

An overcoat layer containing a material selected from inorganic pigment particles or a resin latex and a lubricant is preferably provided on the image protective layer.
The thickness of the overcoat layer is preferably from 0.2 μm to 2 μm. When the layer is sufficiently thin, the advantageous properties such as the transportability of the inorganic pigment particles or the resin latex in the image protective layer can be utilized together with the effect of the image protective layer.

The coating liquid for forming the ink receiving layer and the image protective layer may optionally contain a dispersant, a thickener, a pH adjuster,
It is also possible to add a lubricant, a fluidity modifier, a surfactant, an antifoaming agent, a waterproofing agent, a fluorescent brightener, an ultraviolet absorber, an antioxidant, and the like.

The back coat layer is provided on the back side of the side having the ink receiving layer. By providing a back coat layer,
By improving the transportability of the recording material in the image recording process, and substantially protecting the ink receiving layer and simplifying the function of the image protective layer, abnormal events in the image recording process can be reduced. The binder is a hydrophilic binder having high adhesion after surface treatment of the support or undercoating thereof, such as gelatin or a modified product thereof, casein or a modified product thereof, polyvinyl alcohol or a modified product thereof, polyvinylpyrrolidone, polyethylene oxide, and polyacryl. Derivatives such as acid, polyacrylamide, carboxymethylcellulose, hydroxyethylcellulose, hydroxypropylmethylcellulose and the like can be used alone or in combination of two or more. In order to increase the adhesiveness and physical strength of the back coat layer, it is preferable to use a curing agent for the binder. For example, boric acid or a salt thereof is preferable for polyvinyl alcohol or a copolymer thereof, or another polymer. A known curing agent such as an epoxy compound is used for gelatin or a modified product thereof.

In order to improve the transportability of the recording material, a matting agent, that is, a dispersion of resin latex or inorganic pigment particles having a particle size sufficiently larger than the film thickness is used. The average particle size is larger than the dry film thickness and 0.5 μm to
30 μm, preferably 0.5 μm to 10 μm, and a monodispersed material is preferred. The amount is preferably such that about 10 to 30 projections are provided per 1 mm ^{2 of} surface.

In order to improve the adhesion of the recording material in the form of a roll, a lubricant such as a silicone oil-based or fluorine-based surfactant is used as a dispersion or a surfactant.
In particular, it is good to use together with a matting agent.

The thickness of the back coat layer is 0.2 μm to 10 μm.
μm, preferably about 0.2 μm to 5 μm.

On the other hand, the ink jet printer 20 is provided with a draw-out transport motor (not shown). When the magazine 72 is set in the housing 20 </ b> A, the pull-out transport motor includes a roll of the recording material 70 contained in the magazine 72, and a pair of pull-out rollers 74 disposed near the recording material outlet of the magazine 72. Then, a rotational force is applied to the recording material 70 via a speed reduction mechanism (not shown) to rotate the roll of the recording material 70. Thus, the recording material 70 is pulled out of the magazine 72.

Recording material 7 pulled out of magazine 72
0 is conveyed toward the other end of the housing 20A by the conveying roller pairs 76, 78, 80, 82, 84, 86, 88 arranged downstream of the recording material 70 in the drawing direction. The transport roller pair 76 is driven to rotate by the driving force of the pull-out transport motor,
The conveying roller pairs 78, 80, 82, 84, 86, 88 are driven to rotate by the driving force of a synchronous conveying motor (not shown).

A not-shown loop forming mechanism is provided between the pair of conveying rollers 76 and 78, and a loop of the recording material 70 is formed between the pair of conveying rollers 76 and 78 by the loop forming mechanism. In the vicinity of the loop forming position, loop sensors 90 each composed of a pair of a light emitting element and a light receiving element opposed to each other with the loop forming position interposed therebetween are provided at two different height positions. Motor for pull-out transport, motor for synchronous transport, loop forming mechanism, pull-out roller pair 74, and transport roller pair 76, 78, 80, 82, 84, 86,
Reference numeral 88 denotes the recording material transport unit 62.

After the loop of the recording material 70 is once formed by the loop forming mechanism, the printer control unit 56 determines that the loop sensor 90 located above does not detect the loop of the recording material 70 (e.g. When the emitted light is received by the light receiving element without being blocked by the recording material 70), the pull-out motor is driven to rotate the roll of the recording material 70, the pull-out roller pair 74, and the conveying roller pair 76. Thus, when the pulling out of the recording material 70 from the magazine 72 is started and the loop sensor 90 located below detects the loop of the recording material 70 (the light emitted from the light emitting element is When the light is not received by the light receiving element due to being blocked by the lowermost part), the drive of the draw-out transport motor is stopped and the recording from the magazine 72 is performed. It repeated stopping the withdrawal of charge 70. On the downstream side of the loop, the printer control unit 56 drives a synchronous conveyance motor so that the recording material 70 is conveyed in synchronization with image recording on the recording material 70 by the recording head 60, and the conveying roller pair 78, 80, 82, 8
0, 82, 84, 86 and 88 are driven to rotate.

The recording material 7 pulled out of the loop
Reference numeral 0 denotes a state in which the recording material 70 is sandwiched by the pair of conveying rollers 78 in a state in which the recording material 70 is curved in a direction opposite to the curving direction of the recording material 70 in a state of being wound in a roll near the disposition position of the pair of conveying rollers 78. The recording material 7 of the pair of conveying rollers 78 is
A heater is built in the roller 78A that comes into contact with the surface opposite to the surface on which the 0 ink receiving layer is formed. The heater incorporated in the roller 78A is a
By 2, electricity is supplied while the conveying roller pair 78 is holding the recording material 70, and the recording material 70 is heated. As a result, the curl of the recording material 70 that is going to bend in the bending direction in the state of being wound in a roll shape is corrected.

A recording head 60 is disposed above the pair of transport rollers 80 and 82, and a lower portion of the recording material 70 is supported below the recording head 70 by supporting the lower portion of the recording material 70 when the recording head 60 records an image. Platen 92 to improve degree
Is arranged. The recording head 60 is movable along the width direction of the recording material 70, and the driving force of a scanning motor (not shown) is transmitted to the recording head 70 so that the recording material 70 is moved.
Is reciprocated along the width direction. The driving of the scanning motor is also controlled by the printer control unit 56.

Although not shown, the recording head 60
A plurality of nozzle rows composed of a number of nozzles arranged along the longitudinal direction of the recording material 70 are arranged in a plurality of rows along the width direction of the recording material 70. A plurality of ink chambers are respectively formed inside,
A plurality of main tanks 104 (see FIG. 5), each of which communicates with one of the plurality of ink chambers, are attached to the recording head 60, respectively. Inks of different colors (for example, C, M, Y, BK) are stored in a plurality of main tanks.
The ink is supplied to each nozzle row via the ink chamber. Thereby, inks of different colors are ejected from each nozzle for each nozzle row.

As shown in FIG. 5, in the present embodiment, a plurality of hollow supply pipes 106 for supplying ink to the recording head 60 are provided corresponding to each color, and one end of each supply pipe 106 is provided with a plurality of main pipes. The other end of each supply pipe 106 is connected to any one of the tanks 104 and the main tank 1
A plurality of sub-tanks 10 provided for each color as in
8, and supply pumps 110 for supplying ink from the sub tank 108 to the main tank 104 are provided in the intermediate portion.

Since the main tank 104 attached to the recording head 60 moves integrally with the recording head 60, the storage capacity of ink is limited due to the weight and size, but the sub tank 108 is separate from the recording head 60. In the present embodiment, the storage capacity is much larger than that of the main tank 104 because the weight and size of the body are less restricted. Thus, without performing the operations of replenishment of ink to the sub tank 108, at least 30000cm image printing area 30% ²
It is possible to output the above.

On the other hand, as a discharge method for discharging ink from the nozzles, an arbitrary method can be adopted from various known discharge methods. For example, a typical method is a piezoelectric element provided in an ink chamber. Applying a pulse voltage to the piezoelectric element to deform the piezoelectric element changes the ink liquid pressure in the ink chamber, and uses the change in the ink liquid pressure to eject ink droplets from nozzles. A thermal method in which ink is heated by a heating element and ink droplets are ejected from nozzles by bubbles generated in the ink chamber by the heating can be adopted. As shown in FIG. 5, in order to eliminate clogging of the nozzle orifices of the recording head 60, a pump 112 that generates a negative pressure to suction ink in all the ink chambers inside the recording head 60 is also provided. Installed.

The printer controller 56 determines, based on the recording image data read from the image data storage 54, that the image represented by the recording image data is a color component (for example, C, C).
The driving timing of each nozzle of the recording head 60 (for example, the energization timing of a piezoelectric element or a heater provided corresponding to each nozzle) so that recording is performed on the recording material 70 in dot units for each of M, Y, and BK). ) Is generated, the generated image signal is output to the driver 58, and the scanning motor is driven so that the recording head 60 moves along the width direction of the recording material 70 at a predetermined moving speed.

The driver 58 selectively drives each nozzle at a timing corresponding to the image signal based on the image signal input from the printer control unit 56 (for example, selectively energizes the piezoelectric element or heater of each nozzle). B) generating an ejection signal and supplying the generated ejection signal to the recording head 60. Accordingly, ink droplets ejected from each nozzle of the recording head 60 at a timing corresponding to the image signal adhere to the recording material 70, and the main scanning is performed by the movement of the recording head 60, and the sub-scanning is performed by the conveyance of the recording material 70. Is performed, a color image is recorded on the recording material 70 in units of the same number of dot rows as the number of nozzles constituting each nozzle row provided in the recording head 60.

Further, between the conveying roller pairs 82 and 84,
The ink (specifically, the solvent contained in the ink) is dried by supplying hot air to the recording material 70 on which an image is recorded by the attachment of the ink droplets ejected from the recording head 60, and the outermost layer is transparent. A heating / drying unit 64 for performing heating for providing a polymer film is provided. The transparent polymer film is for improving the water resistance and durability of an image and maintaining high image quality for a long period of time. Here, “transparent” means a state in which an image formed on the recording material can be observed through the polymer film. The material of the transparent polymer film is not particularly limited, and various polymer materials can be used. That is, it may be a water-soluble polymer such as gelatin or polyvinyl alcohol, or a hydrophobic polymer such as polymethyl methacrylate.

As a method of forming a transparent polymer film,
(1) A method of pasting a transparent polymer film prepared in advance, (2) A method of applying a polymer solution, (3) After forming an image, apply a liquid coating agent on the surface, and solidify it with ultraviolet light or infrared light and clear it. (4) A thermoplastic resin porous layer is provided in advance on the uppermost layer, and after forming an image, the resin porous layer is densified by heating (if necessary, pressing). A method of forming a transparent resin film, and (5) a method of applying a latex-like polymer (may be applied to the entire surface by an ink-jet method), and heating and melting to form a transparent resin film. In the present embodiment, the method (4) is employed in terms of simplicity and the like, and the heating / drying unit 64 performs heating, but other methods may be employed.

Further, of the pair of transport rollers 86 arranged downstream of the pair of transport rollers 84, the roller 86A that comes into contact with the surface of the recording material 70 on which the ink receiving layer is formed is also indicated by a broken line in FIG. As described above, it is possible to move in a direction approaching and separating from the other opposing roller, and is urged in a direction approaching the other roller by urging means such as a spring (not shown). As a result, the recording material 70 nipped between the transport roller pair 84 is moved by the roller 86A.
As a result, the surface on the ink receiving layer side is pressurized, so that the surface on the ink receiving layer side is smoothed, and any distortion that hinders flatness is also removed.

A three-line CCD sensor (an area sensor may be used) 98 for reading a color image (output image) recorded on the recording material 70 is disposed above the space between the pair of conveying rollers 86 and 88. Below the platen 9, which supports the lower portion of the recording material 70 when reading an image by the CCD sensor 98, thereby improving the flatness of the recording material 70.
9 are arranged. The CCD sensor 98 is an image reading unit 6
6, and an image signal output from the CCD sensor 98 is supplied to an image reading unit 66, which includes an amplifier, an A / D converter, and a correction unit that performs correction such as darkness correction (all of which are shown in the drawing). (Omitted), and is input to the printer control unit 56 as output image data representing an output image.

A cutter 100 for cutting the long recording material 70 in units of individual images is provided on the downstream side of the pair of conveying rollers 82. In addition, it is preferable to provide a suction dust removing mechanism for removing chips by the cutter 100 near the cutter 100. The recording material 70 cut for each image by the cutter 100 is discharged onto a tray 102 provided outside the housing 20A.

Next, the operation of the present embodiment will be described. As described above, in the present embodiment, when the recording material 70 is wound into a roll around the core 72A, the recording material 70
The value of the ratio r / w of the radius r of the roll to the width w of the roll is 0.6
5 or more, and the radius r of the winding core with respect to the radius r of the roll
_The recording material 70 is wound with the radius r of the roll determined so that the value of the ratio r ₀ / r of ₀ becomes 0.5 or less at the same time. Even when various forces are applied during transportation and storage of the recording material 70 after shipment, deformation of the winding core 72A such as bending with respect to the axis can be prevented. It is possible to prevent a strong curl from being formed.

The recording material 70 pulled out of the magazine 72 and passing through the loop portion is conveyed to the transport roller pair in a state where the recording material 70 is curved in a direction opposite to the direction in which the recording material 70 is wound in a roll shape. 78 and
The surface opposite to the surface on which the ink receiving layer is formed is heated by the rollers 78A of the transport roller pair 78. This also corrects the curl of the recording material 70 that tends to bend in the bending direction in a state where the recording material 70 is wound in a roll shape, so that the platen 92 supports the lower side of the recording material 70 with a simple structure. Accordingly, when an image is recorded on the recording material 70 by the recording head 60, the recording material 70 can be maintained in a state where a high flatness is maintained for a relatively long time, and the recorded image on the recording material 70 can be maintained. Can easily achieve high image quality. In addition, conveyance errors of the recording material 70 are reduced.

Next, the processing capability maintenance processing performed by the printer control unit 56 of the ink jet printer 20 will be described. In the processing capacity maintaining process by the printer control unit 56, while a large number of images are continuously recorded on the recording material 70, (1) clogging of the ejection port of the recording head 60, (2) ) Each of the following events: a decrease in the ejection amount of ink droplets from the recording head 60; (3) a defect in the output image due to other causes; Monitors whether or not an error has occurred. Note that these events correspond to the events that cause an obstacle in image recording according to claim 2.

For the events (1) to (3), the image reading unit 66
The presence or absence of occurrence is monitored using the output image data input from. Specifically, the printer control unit 56 performs part or all of the output image output by performing image recording on the recording material 70 with the ink jet printer 20 (preferably, it may be every one to several frames). Is read by the image reading unit 66 to obtain output image data.

The recording image data input from the image processing device 18 to the inkjet printer 20 and stored in the image data storage unit 54 is stored in the image data storage unit until the image quality of the corresponding output image is determined to be appropriate. It is stored in the unit 54. Therefore, the printer control unit 56 first compares one of the output image data and the recording image data with the resolution of the other image data in order to compare the acquired output image data with the recording image data. Image processing such as resolution conversion and density conversion for matching the screen average density with the other image data is performed.

In order to avoid a decrease in the accuracy of determination in the processing described later due to a slight shift in the pixel position, and to shorten the processing time, each of the output image data and the recording image data has the same and lower resolution. May be converted.

Next, the output image data having undergone the above-described image processing and the recording image data are compared with each other for the density of each color component on a pixel-by-pixel basis. It is determined whether or not there is a pixel that is different by a predetermined value or more that has been set. When the density difference of each color component of each pixel from the recording image data is less than a predetermined value, the image quality of the output image is an appropriate image quality substantially matching the image represented by the recording image data, and the event (1) Since it can be determined that the steps (3) to (3) do not occur, the processing for the corresponding output image is terminated, and the corresponding recording image data is deleted from the image data storage unit 54.

On the other hand, when there is a pixel whose density difference between the recording image data and each color component is equal to or larger than a predetermined value, the number and distribution of similar pixels on the image are determined. For example, if the number of pixels whose density difference between each color component and the recording image data is equal to or greater than a predetermined value is very small and the distribution is not concentrated at a specific location on the image, the change in the image quality that can be visually recognized Has not occurred, and it can be determined that events (1) to (3) have not occurred. Therefore, the processing for the corresponding output image is terminated, and the corresponding recording image data is stored in the image data storage unit 54.
Erase from

When only a part of the output image is read, the output image is read with respect to the recording image data corresponding to the image for which the image reading unit 66 did not read the output image. Of the images, for example, for the images closest to the front side and the rear side in the recording order on the recording material, when it is determined that each of the events (1) to (3) has not occurred, the recording image is recorded from the image data storage unit 54. The data may be deleted.

If the number of pixels whose density difference between the recording image data and each color component is equal to or greater than a predetermined value is equal to or greater than a predetermined number, events (1) to (3) have occurred. It is determined that there is a possibility that the corresponding image data for recording is deleted from the image data storage unit 54, and the pixels whose density difference between the image data for recording and each color component is equal to or more than a predetermined value are determined as the recording material. It is determined whether or not they are continuous along a direction corresponding to the width direction of 70.

In the recording head 60 according to the present embodiment, clogging occurred in the discharge port of a specific nozzle, and the specific color ink was not discharged from the discharge port, or the discharge amount of the specific color ink became small. In this case, on the output image, the missing portion of the specific color appears as a streak-like continuous defect along the width direction of the recording material 70. The recording head 6
0 is performed by transporting the recording material 70 in the longitudinal direction while reciprocating the recording head 60 in the width direction of the recording material 70. Appear periodically along the direction corresponding to.

When a clogging occurs in the discharge port of a specific nozzle of the recording head 60, a similar defective portion appears in a plurality of output images. For this reason, when the above-mentioned defective portion is detected, it is determined whether or not the above-mentioned defective portion exists in each of a plurality of output images recorded at times close to each other. When each of the parts is detected, it is determined whether or not the appearance periods of the defective parts are the same. Thereby, the accuracy of the determination of the clogging of the discharge port can be further improved.

When the above condition is satisfied, the printer control unit 56 determines that the event (1), that is, the clogging of the discharge port of the specific nozzle of the recording head 60 has occurred, and the image recording by the recording head 60 is performed. By temporarily suspending the operation and operating the pump 112, the clogging of the discharge port is eliminated. If clogging occurs in the ejection openings of a large number of nozzles at the same time, some or all of the output image may be lost, or the image may not be recorded at all.
In such a case, since the above condition is satisfied, similarly, a process for eliminating clogging of the ejection openings of the recording head 60 is performed. Further, the output image in which the above-described defective portion is detected is discarded as an abnormal image, and after it is determined that the clogging of the ejection port has been resolved, the image is recorded using the recording image data stored in the image data storage unit 54. Record again.

In order to operate the pump 112, it is necessary to temporarily stop image recording as described above. For this reason, if the density change (decrease in the ejection amount of ink droplets) due to the clogging of the ejection port is relatively small and the nozzle having the clogging of the ejection port can be identified, the pump 11
2 instead of operating only the ejection signal for driving a specific nozzle having a clogged ejection port,
The density may be changed so as to compensate for the density change due to the clogging of the discharge port.

Also, the number of pixels whose density difference between the recording image data and each color component is equal to or more than a predetermined value is equal to or more than a predetermined number, and the density difference between each color component and the recording image data is equal to or more than a predetermined value. If the pixels are distributed almost uniformly throughout the output image,
That is, if the color of the image has changed overall, the printer control unit 56 determines that the event (2), that is, a decrease in the ejection amount of the ink droplets from the recording head 60 has occurred for the specific color, and performs recording. The image recording by the head 60 is temporarily stopped, and the supply pump 110 is operated so that the ink of the specific color is supplied from the sub tank 108 to the main tank 10.
Supply to 4.

Thus, if the drop in the amount of ink droplets being generated is caused by insufficient supply of ink to the recording head 60, the drop in the discharge amount is eliminated by operating the supply pump 110 as described above. can do. The output image that meets the above conditions is discarded as an abnormal image, and after it is determined that the ink supply shortage has been resolved, the image is recorded using the recording image data stored in the image data storage unit 54. Again.

Even when the ejection amount of ink droplets from the recording head 60 is reduced, the same change in tint (a pixel whose density difference of a specific color component is equal to or more than a predetermined value) is applied to a plurality of output images.
(A predetermined number or more exist substantially uniformly throughout the output image). For this reason, even when the above-mentioned image quality deterioration is detected,
If it is determined whether or not the above-described color change has occurred for a plurality of output images recorded at a time close to each other, the accuracy of the determination of the decrease in the ejection amount of the ink droplets from the recording head 60 can be improved. It can be further improved.

Further, the decrease in the ejection amount of the ink droplets from the recording head 60 can occur due to causes other than the insufficient supply of the ink. Therefore, even if the supply pump 110 is operated, the decrease in the ejection amount may not be solved. In such a case, instead of operating the supply pump 110, only the ejection signal for driving each nozzle that ejects the ink of the specific color in which the ejection amount of the ink droplet has been reduced is output. (Decrease in density) may be changed to compensate for this.

If the discharge amount of the ink droplets from the recording head 60 is extremely reduced and the discharge amount is not reduced even if the supply pump 110 is operated, it is considered that the cause of the supply pump 110 Failure or sub tank 108
It is conceivable that the entire amount of the ink stored in the storage unit is consumed. In such a case, even if the ejection signal is changed, it is difficult to eliminate the decrease in the ejection amount. Therefore, the alarm is activated to call the operator. As a result, it is possible to prevent the number of processed sheets per unit time from decreasing due to the state where the ejection amount is extremely reduced, that is, the state where the image cannot be normally recorded.

If a specific output image is detected to have the same image quality deterioration as described above, such as a defective portion or a change in tint, the other output images are not detected if the same image quality deterioration has not occurred. The image quality change caused by the temporary image quality suddenly occurred, for example, data corruption occurred for some reason when the image data for recording was transferred, or the power supply voltage fluctuated temporarily during image recording. It can be determined that it is a decrease. For this reason, in the above case, the printer control unit 56 determines that the defect of the output image has occurred due to the event (3), that is, other causes, and only the specific output image for which the image quality deterioration is detected is detected. The image is recorded again using the same recording image data. As a result, in most cases, an output image having appropriate image quality can be obtained.

Regarding the decrease in the free space of the image data storage unit 54 in the event (4), the occurrence of the occurrence is monitored by constantly monitoring the free space of the image data storage unit 54. Specifically, the printer control unit 56 stores the free space of the image data storage unit 54, and stores and stores the recording image data output from the image processing device 18 in the image data storage unit 54. Then, the stored free space is reduced by the data amount of the recording image data to be stored. If it is determined that the image quality of the output image is appropriate and the corresponding recording image data is deleted from the image data storage unit 54, the stored free space is reduced by the data amount of the deleted recording image data. Increase by minutes.

Each time the stored free space is updated, it is determined whether or not the updated free space has become equal to or less than a predetermined value. When the determination is denied, no processing is performed, but for example, image recording is temporarily stopped for the operation of the pump 112 due to, for example, the above-described clogging of the ejection port of the recording head 60, and In the case where it is necessary to re-record an image having a defective portion in the output image, the free space of the image data storage unit 54 simply decreases until the re-recording of the image is completed. Therefore, there is a high possibility that the determination is affirmed. If the determination is affirmative, the image processing apparatus 18 is requested to temporarily stop outputting the recording image data.

As a result, the image data storage unit 54 becomes full while the image data for recording input from the image processing device 18 is being stored in the image data storage unit 54, for example. It is possible to prevent inconveniences such as the inability to perform image recording in the ink jet printer 20 and the interruption of the processing in the image processing device 18 due to the interruption of the communication sequence for transfer in the middle. be able to.

In the case where an image is recorded on the recording material 70 by using the image data sequentially output from the film scanner 12 by continuously reading the film image by the film scanner 12, as described above, Instead of requesting the image processing device 18 to stop outputting recording image data, the film scanner 12 may be requested to temporarily stop reading a film image.

Further, regarding the total consumption of the recording material 70 in the event (5), for example, it is determined whether the load applied to the motor for driving the draw-out and conveyance motor has become a predetermined value or less, or whether the drive for the draw-out and conveyance motor has been driven. However, the occurrence of the occurrence is monitored by determining whether or not the state in which the upper loop sensor 90 does not detect the recording material 70 has continued for a predetermined time or more. If it is determined that the entire amount of the recording material 70 stored in the magazine 72 has been consumed, an alarm is activated to call the operator. As a result, it is possible to prevent a situation where the magazine 72 is not replaced, that is, a state where an image cannot be recorded continues, and the number of processed sheets per unit time is reduced.

Next, the image processing section 48 of the image processing apparatus 18
A brief description will be given of the processing capacity maintenance processing performed by the CPU. In the processing capability maintaining process by the image processing unit 48, in a state where the inkjet printer 20 continuously records a large number of images on the recording material 70, in parallel with the image recording,
It monitors whether (6) a failure of the film scanner 12 or (7) an event of reading error of the photographic film 38 by the film scanner 12 has occurred. Note that these events also correspond to the events that cause obstacles to image recording according to claim 2.

When an error occurs in communication with a specific input device, the image processing section 48 executes the operation of the film scanner 12.
Then, it is determined that event (6), that is, a failure has occurred. Further, the image processing unit 48 causes the film scanner 12 to perform an event (7) if the image data input from the film scanner 12 has an abnormality such as an extremely high or low density of all pixels. That is, it is determined that a reading error has occurred.

If it is determined that the above-mentioned event (6) or event (7) has occurred, an alarm is activated to call the operator. As a result, it is possible to prevent the number of processed sheets per unit time from being reduced due to the continuation of the state where the above-described event occurs, that is, the state where images cannot be recorded.

In the above description, as an algorithm for monitoring the occurrence of the events (1) to (3), an example in which the output image data is compared with the recording image data and the plurality of output image data are mutually compared has been described. However, this algorithm is only an example, comparing output image data with recording image data,
Only one of the mutual comparisons of a plurality of output image data may be performed.

As image data used for comparison with output image data, image data input from the film scanner 12 or predetermined image processing (for example, LUT (look-up) Table) may be used, and image data obtained by performing simple image processing such as matrix operation or the like may be used. In particular, loss of part or all of the output image due to clogging of the ejection openings of the nozzles of the recording head 60 can be accurately detected using the above image data.

When the original image is a film image recorded on a 135-size photographic film 38, whether the recording format of the film image as the original image is a 135-size standard format or a panorama-size format is determined as follows.
The detection can be easily performed by using the above image data. For this reason, by comparing the output image data with the above-mentioned image data, the recording format is erroneously detected as the 135-size standard format even though the recording format of the film image is the panorama-size format, for example. It is possible to detect the occurrence of a malfunction of the image processing by the image processing device 18 such as the image processing for the image processing.

Further, FIG. 3 shows an example in which the recording material 70 cut for each image is discharged onto a single tray 102. However, the present invention is not limited to this. A storage unit comprising a tray or a box for storing the recording material is provided separately from the tray 102,
A first guide mechanism for selectively guiding the recording material cut for each image to the tray 102 or the storage unit is provided, and an output image determined as a normal image is discharged to the tray 102 and determined as an abnormal image. The operation of the first guide mechanism may be controlled so that the output image is stored in the storage unit. As a result, there is no need to extract an output image determined as an abnormal image from the output images discharged to the tray 102, and the output image can be easily discarded.

In addition to providing a plurality of trays 102,
A second guide mechanism for selectively guiding an output image determined as a normal image to any of the plurality of trays 102 is provided.
It is preferable to control the second guide mechanism ejected to the tray 2 because the operation of classifying the output images ejected to the tray 102 for each case becomes unnecessary.

Further, in the above description, the recording material 70 cut for each image by the cutter 100 is discharged to the tray 102 provided outside the housing 20A, but the length of each image recorded on the recording material 70 is reduced. In the case where the recording material 70 is large and the cut individual recording material 70 cannot be stored in the tray 102, for example, as shown in FIG. Case 2
0A, and may be discharged to the tray 120. In the example of FIG. 6, on the downstream side of the cutter 100,
Buffer roller pair 122, transport roller pairs 124, 126, 1
28, 130, 132, and 134 are arranged in order (note that the transport roller pair 130 has a built-in heater and has a function of correcting a curl) similarly to the transport roller pair 78. The recording material 70 cut for each image by 100 is conveyed by the above-mentioned roller pair and guided to the tray 120. Alternatively, the recording material 70 may be wound up again in a roll shape and stored without being cut for each image.

Further, in the above description, an example is described in which the pumps 112 for sucking ink in all the ink chambers inside the recording head 60 by generating a negative pressure are provided. However, it is necessary to provide a pump for each ink chamber. A pump is provided for each ink chamber group when all the ink chambers are grouped into an ink chamber group including a plurality of ink chambers, or an ink chamber for introducing a negative pressure generated by a single pump. Or, by providing a switching mechanism that can switch the ink chamber group, the individual ink chamber or the ink chamber group as a unit, it is possible to selectively suction the ink in the ink chamber by the individual ink chamber or the ink chamber group, When it is detected that the clogging of the discharge port of the nozzle has occurred, the nozzle in which the clogging of the discharge port has occurred is determined, and the ink chamber corresponding to the nozzle or the corresponding That the ink chamber groups including ink chambers only, may be made to eliminate the clogging of the nozzle orifice by causing sucking ink in the ink chamber.

As the above-mentioned cleaning means, instead of a mechanism for sucking ink in the ink chamber, "flushing" for driving a nozzle to eject ink or "wiping" for wiping unnecessary ink attached to the nozzle surface A mechanism for eliminating the clogging of the discharge port of the nozzle may be adopted.

[0138]

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described. It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the numerical values described in the following examples.

[First Embodiment] Preparation of image recording material according to the present invention 1.1 Preparation of support and undercoat layer As a support, a support (thickness of about 100) of a polyethylene double-sided laminated paper usually used for the production of color photographic paper
μm). After subjecting the surface to a corona discharge treatment, an undercoat layer having a film thickness of about 0.2 μm is used by using a solution obtained by adding 0.3% of an epoxy hardener to a 5% by weight aqueous gelatin solution containing sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate. Was provided.

1.2 Preparation of Ink Receiving Layer A paper support (thickness: about 1) laminated on both sides with polyethylene
00 μm) After performing corona discharge treatment on the front side, a gelatin undercoat layer containing sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate was provided, and a coating dispersion was prepared by the following method to form a porous inorganic pigment layer on this base material. did.

The crystal thickness in the (020) plane direction was 80 μm, which was synthesized by the hydrolytic glue method of aluminum isoproxide.
Boehmite sol 1 with primary aggregated particle diameter of 1.5 μm to 4 μm
To 100 parts by weight, 11 parts by weight of polyvinyl alcohol (both in terms of solid content) and water were added to form a coating liquid.
A coating film of 0 μm was obtained. The coating film thus formed was a transparent porous film having a pore size of the alumina hydrate porous layer of 50 μm.

1.3 Preparation of Image Protective Layer (1) Synthesis of acrylonitrile / vinylidene chloride / acrylic acid (mass ratio 15/79/6): sample P-1 for preparing protective layer In a 400 ml eggplant-shaped flask 230 g of distilled water, (2) 0.8 g of Triton-770, (3) 1
2.34 g of acrylonitrile, (4) 4.93 g of acrylic acid, (5) 64.96 g of vinylidene chloride,
(6) 0.204 g of potassium metabisulfite and (7) 0.102 g of potassium persulfate were sequentially added.
The flask was sealed and placed on a shaker at 30 ° C. for 18 hours. The polymerization mixture was freed of volatile residual monomers (Tg 46 ° C.) at room temperature under reduced pressure for 15 minutes.

For the protective layer preparation samples P-2 and P-3, the particle size and distribution of the latex obtained by changing the amount of the emulsifier Triton-770 and the shaking speed were measured using Microtrac UPA (Nikkiso Co., Ltd.). Manufactured by the company), and those suitable for the purpose were selected.

The sample P-1 for producing a protective layer had an average particle size of 0.1.
At 8 μm, it had a monodisperse distribution in which 90% or more of the particles were in the diameter range of 0.5 μm to 1.1 μm.

(2) Application of Image Protective Layer A coating liquid containing a thermoplastic resin latex (R1) was applied and dried at about 52 ° C. so as to have a thickness of about 5 μm to form a porous latex layer.

1.4 Coating of overcoat layer 0.3% by weight in 5% by weight aqueous solution of alkali-treated gelatin
A considerable amount of a hardening agent alum was added, and about 20% by weight of a fine particle silica (particle diameter: 0.05 μm to 0.15 μ
m) were mixed, and an overcoat layer having a thickness of about 0.3 μm was applied to obtain Sample No. 1. In addition, a sample without the protective layer and the overcoat layer was set as a comparative sample a.

For sample No. 1, the width w was about 12.7 cm, the radius r of the roll was about 12 cm, and the radius r _{0 of the} winding core was about 3.7 c.
m. Therefore, the roll of sample No. 1 had r / w = about 0.95 and r ₀ / r = about 0.31.

[0148] 2. Image Recording An image was recorded using the inkjet printer 20 shown in FIG. The lid of the magazine 72 is opened, and the sample wound in a roll shape is loaded into the magazine 72 such that the leading end drawn from the roll of the sample is sandwiched by the pair of transport rollers 74, and the lid is closed. The sample is automatically transported through the loop sensor 90 to the position where the transport roller pair 78 having the curl correction function is provided.

The image data used for image recording includes color negative film super manufactured by Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd.
The color negative image obtained by using the ia400 was read by the film scanner 12 and subjected to various types of image processing in the image processing device 18, and the image data stored in the image data storage unit 54 of the inkjet printer 20 was used.

When the image recording is started, the sample is conveyed to the position where the recording head 60 is disposed, and sequentially passes over the platen 92. Inks of different colors (C, M, Y, BK) are ejected from the nozzles of the recording head 60 based on the image data stored in the image data storage unit 54, and the ejected ink adheres to the sample. By doing so, an image is recorded on the sample. The sample on which the image is recorded is conveyed to the heating / drying unit 64 by the conveying roller pair 82 and heat-treated at about 120 to 140 ° C., and then the image surface is pressed by the conveying roller pair 86 to smooth the image surface. Is done. The sample whose image surface has been smoothed is conveyed onto a platen 99, where the image is read by a CCD sensor 98, cut by the cutter 100 for each image, and accumulated on a tray 102.

The same image was continuously recorded on 100 sheets, and its transportability and the occurrence of an abnormality were tested.

[0152] 3. Results (1) In sample No. 1, an L-size image could be continuously and almost smoothly recorded while supplying ink. In Comparative Sample a, an abnormality was detected on the 60th sheet, and image recording was interrupted. However, the obtained image recording print was inferior to the image quality obtained by the sample No. 1, but was usable.

(2) As a comparative example, a printer BJF-8
When I try to record an image using 70 (manufactured by Canon Inc.), it cannot be recorded. Of course, continuous recording is not possible.
The same applies to the printer PM-900C (manufactured by Epson Corporation).

[Second Embodiment] The sample described in the first embodiment
Sample No. 2 was obtained by providing a back coat layer on the back surface without providing an overcoat layer on No. 1.

1. Coating of back coat layer As in the first embodiment, a polyethylene double-sided laminated paper was used as a support, and after a corona discharge treatment was performed, an epoxy hardener was added to a 5% by weight aqueous solution of gelatin containing sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate. 3% by weight, about 3% by weight of modified polystyrene monodisperse distribution particles having an average particle diameter of about 5 μm, and 0.1% of a fluorine-containing acrylic resin-based aqueous emulsion (manufactured by Asahi Glass) were added and stirred. A back coat layer having a thickness of about 5 μm was provided. The sample was wound around a roll having the same dimensions as Sample No. 1 to continuously record images.

[0156] 2. Results In the same manner as in Sample No. 1, Sample No. 2 was able to continuously and smoothly record an image while supplying ink.

[Third Embodiment] 1. Preparation of recording material using silica as adsorbent for ink receiving layer 1.1 Support A support obtained in the same manner as in the first embodiment is used.

1.2 Preparation of Ink Receiving Layer On the undercoating layer, a receiving layer having a thickness of about 30 μm was formed using a coating solution having the following composition.

(1) Preparation of Silica Dispersion Solution Silica obtained by a gas phase method (450 l of an 18% aqueous solution having an average primary particle diameter of about 0.01 μm), 16% by weight of cationic polymer A, 5% by weight of n-propanol % Of an aqueous solution containing 1% by weight of boric acid and borax to a mixed solution of an aqueous solution containing 2% by weight of ethanol and 2% by weight of ethanol, and vigorously stirred to obtain a silica dispersion (JP-A-11-32108).
No. 0).

(2) Preparation of Fluorescent Whitening Agent Dispersion A solution obtained by adding 4 kg of saponin and 2 kg of cationic polymer A to an aqueous solution of 3% acid-treated gelatin was added to an oil-soluble fluorescent whitening agent (manufactured by Ciba Geigy KK) UVITEX. -OB6
00 g and 12 kg of diisodecyl phthalate are heated, dissolved, emulsified and dispersed in 25 l of ethyl acetate to make 140 l.

(3) Preparation of Coating Solution for Ink Receiving Layer Silica Dispersion Solution (described above) 610 ml Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA203 manufactured by Kuraray Co., Ltd.) 10% aqueous solution 5 ml Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA235 manufactured by Kuraray Co., Ltd.) 5% aqueous solution 250 ml Fluorescence Brightener dispersion liquid (described above) 25 ml Ethanol 6 ml These are mixed and stirred, and water is added to make 1 liter.

(4) The above coating solution was applied to the support to obtain an ink receiving layer having a dry film thickness of about 30 μm. This is designated as Comparative Sample b.

[0163]

Embedded image

1.3 Preparation of Recording Material According to the Present Invention An overcoat layer was provided on the ink receiving layer of the image recording material coated with the ink receiving layer.

Resin latex P-2 Composition P-2 Acrylnitrile / vinylidene chloride / acrylic acid mass ratio 39/69/2 (Tg 79 ° C.) Resin latex (average particle diameter 1.2 μm monodisperse distribution)
Is dispersed in a mixed aqueous solution of polyvinyl alcohol and boric acid and borax at a mass ratio of 1: 1.
Was provided, and Sample No. 3 was obtained.

2. Result The sample No. 3 and the comparative sample b were used as rolls having the same dimensions as those described in the first embodiment, and
And an L-size image was continuously recorded. Sample N
In o.3, the image could be recorded almost smoothly, and the quality of the recorded image was also substantially good. The comparative sample b was slightly inferior in glossiness to the screen as compared with the sample No. 3, but was of a quality that could be used practically.

Further, the back coat layer described in the second embodiment was provided on Sample No. 3 to obtain Sample No. 4. Sample No. 4 was excellent in transportability, and the glossiness of the screen was also improved as compared with Comparative Sample b. Sample No. 5 in which the overcoat layer and the back coat layer were provided in addition to Sample No. 3 had the most stable image quality and a good quality image was obtained.

[Fourth Embodiment] As in the first embodiment,
Sample No. 1 was wound into a roll having a roll radius r of about 7.6 cm, and the roll was loaded and recorded continuously.
In this case, r / w = about 0.63, r ₀ / r = about 0.49
Met. As compared with the case where the roll radius r is set to about 12 cm, the rotation speed of the roll is faster, and the time until the entire amount of the recording material set in the printer 20 is consumed is reduced to about half. The work efficiency was significantly reduced. Image damage was also observed.

Samples No. 2 and No. 3 were wound into rolls each having a roll radius of about 7.6 cm and recorded continuously. Compared to using a roll with a radius of about 12 cm,
In the same manner as described above, the working efficiency in continuously recording images was significantly reduced, and in particular, image damage was observed in Sample No. 3.

[Fifth Embodiment] For samples No. 1 to No. 3 and comparative samples a and b, the roll radius r was about 10 cm (r / w).
= About 0.79, r ₀ /r=0.37), r = about 8.5c
m (r / w = about 0.67, r ₀ / r = about 0.44) dimensions, and r = about 6cm (r / w = about 0.47, r ₀ / r = about 0.62) Rolls were created. After storing for 10 days in an environment at a temperature of 40 ° C. and a relative humidity of 60% while supporting the winding core on both sides, images are continuously recorded using the inkjet printer 20 shown in FIG. The image quality was tested.

As a result, the time required until the entire amount of the recording material set in the ink jet printer 20 is consumed when images are continuously recorded becomes shorter as the roll radius r becomes smaller, and in particular, the roll radius r is about 6 cm. It has been found that the roll is inefficient because the recording material frequently needs to be additionally loaded when images are continuously recorded.

Regarding the transportability, when the sample No. 2 was in good condition and the sample Nos. 1 and 3 were rolls having a roll radius r of about 6 cm, the surface at the center of the roll in the width direction was scratched. Admitted. Comparative samples a and b have a roll radius r of about 8.5c.
Although it is practically possible even in the case of m, slight friction scratch marks were observed on the image surface. When the roll radius r was about 6 cm, unevenness and damage due to adhesion of the ink receiving layer and the like were observed on the image surface, and the image could not be used. Also, the roll radius r
When the roll radius r was about 6 cm, the curl tendency in the width direction was surprisingly observed at the center in the width direction.

[Sixth Embodiment] Images were recorded on Sample Nos. 1 to 3 and Comparative Samples a and b, respectively, and the images were recorded outdoors (under direct sunlight).
The storage stability of the image quality and the weather resistance were tested by observing the change in the image quality of the recorded image after leaving it for 0 days. Sample No.1 ~ No.
3, especially the images recorded on Samples No. 1 and No. 2 were excellent with almost no fading observed. On the other hand, comparative samples a and b
The image quality changed in 4 days, and the fading was particularly remarkable. It was confirmed that providing a layer containing a resin latex, particularly a thermoplastic resin latex, on the ink receiving layer improved the weather resistance.

[0174]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, a long image recording material is wound around an outer periphery of a core in a roll shape, whereby the radius of the roll with respect to the width w of the image recording material is obtained. A roll of an image recording material is prepared in which the ratio r / w of r is 0.65 or more and the ratio r ₀ / r of the radius r ₀ of the winding core to the radius r is 0.5 or less. Since the recording material is pulled out and used for image recording, when the image recording material is pulled out from the roll of the image recording material and the image is recorded, an excellent effect that a high quality of the recorded image can be easily realized can be realized. Have.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, while recording an image on a recording material, it is monitored whether or not an event that causes an image recording to occur has occurred. When it is determined that the error has occurred, the processing for removing the obstacle or the event is performed, so that in addition to the above-described effects, it is possible to realize a higher capability of the image recording apparatus and an improvement in the yield of an appropriate image. Having.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect, the image recording material is curved in a direction opposite to a direction in which the image recording material is wound in a roll shape. In addition, since the surface opposite to the surface on which the recording droplet receiving layer is formed is heated, in addition to the above effects, there is an effect that the flatness of the image recording material during image recording can be further improved. .

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recording liquid formed on one surface of a flat support by using an image recording material usable in the image recording method according to any one of the first to third aspects. At least one of: the droplet receiving layer is covered with the image protective layer, and the back coat layer is formed on the surface of the support opposite to the recording droplet receiving layer forming side. Therefore, even when a large force is locally applied to the image recording material due to deformation of the roll of the image recording material, damage to the image recording material such as peeling of the recording droplet receiving layer from the support occurs. That is, there is an effect that it can be prevented.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the fourth or fifth aspect of the present invention, at least one of the recording droplet receiving layer and the image protective layer is formed of a thermoplastic resin latex having a minimum film forming temperature of 50 ° C. or more. Since the porous structure using
In addition to the above effects, there is an effect that the glossiness and the robustness of the recorded image (image protection) are improved.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, when an image is recorded by attaching a recording droplet to the image recording material according to any one of the fourth to sixth aspects, the recording droplet is applied to the image recording material. After the deposition, the surface of the image recording material on the side where the recording droplet receiving layer is formed is smoothed by pressing, thereby improving the smoothness and glossiness of the image recording surface of the image recording material. Has the effect of being able to

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram for explaining an experiment performed by the present inventor.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of an image recording system according to the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram of an inkjet printer.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a recording material in a state of being wound in a roll shape around the outer periphery of a winding core.

FIG. 5 is a diagram schematically showing a mechanism for supplying ink to a recording head.

FIG. 6 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating another configuration example of the inkjet printer.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 10 image recording system 20 inkjet printer 60 recording head 92 platen 70 recording material 72 magazine 72A core 78 transport roller pair 86 transport roller pair

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page F term (reference) 2C056 EA04 EA13 EA14 EB13 EB27 EB40 EB41 EB44 EC26 EC57 EC64 EC67 FC06 HA30 HA45 HA46 HA47 HA58 2C060 BA03 BC03 BC04 BC12 BC15 BC84 BC99 2H086 BA02 BA05 BA13 BA33 BA36

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. An image recording method for recording an image on an image recording material by ejecting recording droplets from an ejection port of a recording head and attaching the recording droplets to an image recording material, wherein the image recording is performed. The material is long, and the ratio r / w of the radius r of the roll to the width w of the image recording material is 0.65 or more by winding the image recording material in a roll shape around the core. A roll of an image recording material having a ratio r ₀ / r of the radius r ₀ of the winding core to the radius r of 0.5 or less was prepared, the roll was set at a predetermined position, and the roll was set at a predetermined position. An image recording method, wherein an image recording material is drawn from a roll and used for image recording. 2. While continuously recording an image on the image recording material, it is monitored whether or not an event that causes an obstacle in image recording has occurred, and when it is determined that the event has occurred, 2. The image recording method according to claim 1, wherein a process for removing a failure or an event is performed. 3. An image recording material drawn out of a roll of image recording material is curved in a direction opposite to a direction in which the image recording material is wound in a roll, and a recording droplet receiving layer is formed. 3. The image recording method according to claim 1, wherein a surface opposite to the surface on which the image is formed is heated. 4. An image recording material usable in the image recording method according to claim 1, wherein the recording liquid droplet receiving layer is formed on one surface of a flat support. Is covered with an image protection layer containing at least one material of resin latex, inorganic pigment particles and lubricant, and a side of the support on which the recording droplet receiving layer is formed. A back coat layer containing at least one material of a resin latex, inorganic pigment particles and a lubricant is formed on a surface opposite to the above, wherein at least one of the following is satisfied: . 5. The recording liquid drop receiving layer on the support,
The image recording material according to claim 4, wherein at least three layers including the image protective layer and the overcoat layer are formed. 6. At least one of the recording droplet receiving layer and the image protective layer has a minimum film formation temperature (MFT) of 50 ° C.
6. The image recording material according to claim 4, wherein said image recording material has a porous structure using said thermoplastic resin latex. 7. An image is recorded on the image recording material by attaching recording droplets ejected from an ejection port of a recording head to the image recording material according to any one of claims 4 to 6. An image recording method, wherein the surface of the image recording material on which the recording droplet receiving layer is formed is pressed after the recording droplets are attached to the image recording material, thereby smoothing the surface. An image recording method.