JP2003165206A - Ink jet imaging apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an ink jet imaging apparatus in which a drive circuit can be protected against breakage at the time of fixing/removing an ink head without using an electrical control means and possibility of failure is eliminated while reducing the cost. <P>SOLUTION: An ink jet imaging apparatus comprises a carriage 11 and an ink head 3 being mounted removably on the carriage 11. A drive circuit operating from a high voltage power supply and a low voltage power supply and a connector having a plurality of contacts 10 are provided on the ink head 3 side whereas a connector 32 having a plurality of contacts 40a, 40b, 40s and 40g is provided on the carriage 11 side. When the ink head 3 is mounted on the carriage 11, corresponding contacts of both connectors 32 are connected to each other. The contact 40a for a high voltage power supply line is connected last by mounting operation at the time of mounting the ink head 3, and the contact 40a for the high voltage power supply line is disconnected at first by dismounting operation at the time of dismounting the ink head 3. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an inkjet image forming apparatus such as an inkjet printer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As an ink jet type image forming apparatus of this type, there is known one in which a replaceable ink head is detachably mounted on a carriage which moves in a main scanning direction. In such an image forming apparatus, normally,
A drive circuit that operates by a high-voltage power supply and a low-voltage power supply is provided on the ink head side. By mounting the ink head on the carriage, the carriage side connector and the ink head side connector are connected, and the ink head side drive circuit Is connected to the high-voltage power line and the low-voltage power line, but in order to prevent damage to the drive circuit of the ink head, when turning on the power, turn on the low-voltage power and then turn on the high-voltage power. When shutting off, a sequence of shutting off the high voltage power source and then the low voltage power source is essential. Therefore, conventionally, the high-voltage power source and the low-voltage power source have been made independent to control the timing of turning on and off the power source.

However, if the high-voltage power source and the low-voltage power source are independent as described above, the cost of the power source increases. In order to reduce the power supply cost, it is sufficient to prepare only the high-voltage power supply and obtain the low-voltage power supply from the high-voltage power supply. However, even with this configuration, the high-voltage power supply cannot be turned on / off, so the high-voltage power supply cannot be controlled. The transistor inserted in the line controls the supply of high voltage power to the drive circuit.

However, in this case, since it is necessary to control ON / OFF of the high voltage power source using the transistor,
After all, the cost will increase.

Therefore, in order to reduce the cost, a capacitor is inserted in the high-voltage power supply line on the ink head side, for example, as described in JP-A-11-221922, and when the power is turned on, the capacitor in the high-voltage power supply line is turned on. Control so that the capacitor of the low voltage power line is charged before charging, and when the power supply is turned off, the capacitor of the high voltage power line is discharged before the capacitor of the low voltage power line is discharged. Is proposed.

[0006]

However, in the above case,
Electrical control means is required, which increases the cost by that amount and may cause malfunction due to electrical failure.

An object of the present invention is to solve the above problems and prevent the drive circuit from being destroyed when the ink head is attached or detached without using an electric control means, and the cost can be reduced. Another object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet image forming apparatus which is free from the risk of failure.

[0008]

An ink jet image forming apparatus according to the present invention comprises a carriage and an ink head detachably attached to the carriage, and a high voltage power source and a low voltage power source are provided on the ink head side. Is provided with a drive circuit that is operated by, and a connector having a high-voltage power line contact, a low-voltage power line contact, a signal line contact, and a ground line contact, and the carriage side has a high-voltage power line contact and a low-voltage power line contact. An ink jet which is provided with a connector having a contact point, a signal line contact point and a ground line contact point, and the corresponding contact points of both connectors are connected by mounting the ink head at a predetermined position of the carriage. Type image forming apparatus, when the ink head is mounted, the mounting operation of both connectors Among the points, the contact for the high-voltage power supply line is connected last, and when the ink head is separated, the contact for the high-voltage power supply line is first contacted and separated among the contacts of both connectors by the separating operation. To do.

According to the ink jet image forming apparatus of the present invention, the contact for the high voltage power supply line is connected last when the ink head is mounted, and the contact for the high voltage power supply line is first contacted and separated when the ink head is detached. Can be prevented from being destroyed. Further, since the above-mentioned operation is performed by the mounting operation and the detaching operation of the ink head, the electric control means unlike the conventional one is not required. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the drive circuit from being destroyed when the ink head is attached or detached without using an electric control unit, and the electric control unit is not required, so that the cost can be reduced. Moreover, there is no risk of malfunction due to a failure, and the order of connecting and disconnecting the contacts can be reliably regulated.

In the ink jet image forming apparatus of the present invention, for example, when the ink head is mounted, the ground line contact of the contacts of both connectors is first connected by the mounting operation, and when the ink head is separated, the separation operation is performed. Of the two connectors, the contact for the ground line is designed to be finally separated and contacted.

According to this, when the ink head is mounted,
The contact for the ground line is connected first, and when the ink head is detached, the contact for the ground line is detached last, so when the ink head is replaced by the charged user's hand,
The charge can be surely released to the ground line, and the ink head can be protected from electrostatic breakdown.

In the ink jet type image forming apparatus of the present invention, for example, the contact on the carriage side is a connector pin which is provided in the connector so as to be movable back and forth and biased in the advancing direction. The connector on the carriage side performs a certain operation, the connector pin is connected to the contact on the ink head side, and when the ink head is detached, the detachment operation causes the connector on the carriage side to perform a certain operation and the connector pin It is designed to separate from the contact on the side.

The connector pin is biased in the advancing direction by an elastic member such as a spring.

According to this, in the connector on the carriage side, since the connector pin which can move back and forth is biased in the advancing direction, it can be surely connected to the contact on the carriage side. Then, when the ink head is attached or detached, the connector on the carriage side performs a certain operation,
Since the contacts are connected to and separated from the contacts on the ink head side, there is no malfunction and the order of connection and separation of the contacts can be reliably regulated.

In the above-mentioned ink jet type image forming apparatus, for example, the constant movement of the connector on the carriage side when the ink head is mounted is accompanied by movement in the direction in which the connector pin advances and approaches the contact on the ink head side. Rotation is included, and the certain operation of the connector on the carriage side when the ink head is detached includes movement and rotation in the direction in which the connector pin is retracted and away from the contact on the ink head side. .

According to this, since the rotation is included in a certain operation when the ink head is attached and detached, the order of connecting and disconnecting the connector on the carriage side can be easily and surely regulated. it can.

In the above-mentioned ink jet type image forming apparatus, for example, the amount of advance of the connector pin for the high voltage power source line of the connector on the carriage side in the natural state is the smallest.

That is, among the connector pins of the connector on the carriage side, the amount of advance of the connector pin for the high voltage power supply line in the natural state is smaller than that of the other connector pins.

According to this, in the connector on the carriage side, the amount of advancement of the connector pin for the high-voltage power supply line in the natural state is the smallest, so that when the ink head is mounted, the connector pin for the high-voltage power supply line is placed last on the ink head side. It is possible to easily and surely realize the operation of connecting the contact to the contact, and when the ink head is disengaged, the high-voltage power line connector pin is first contacted and disengaged from the contact on the ink head side.

In the above-mentioned ink jet image forming apparatus, for example, the connector pin for the high-voltage power supply line of the connector on the carriage side is arranged at a position farthest from the center of rotation of the above-mentioned constant operation.

According to this, since the connector pin for the high-voltage power supply line is arranged at the position farthest from the center of rotation of the above-described constant operation in the connector on the carriage side, the high-voltage power supply line connector pin is mounted when the ink head is mounted. It is possible to easily and reliably realize the operation of finally connecting the connector pin to the contact on the ink head side, and when disconnecting the ink head, connecting and disconnecting the connector pin for the high-voltage power line first from the contact on the ink head side. it can.

In the above-mentioned ink jet type image forming apparatus, for example, the amount of advance of the ground line connector pin of the connector on the carriage side in the natural state is the largest.

That is, among the connector pins of the connector on the carriage side, the amount of advance of the ground line connector pin in the natural state is larger than that of the other connector pins.

According to this, in the connector on the carriage side, the amount of advance of the ground line connector pin of the connector on the carriage side in the natural state is the largest. The operation of connecting to the contact on the head side and finally separating and connecting the ground line connector pin from the contact on the ink head side when the ink head is detached can be easily and surely realized.

In the above-mentioned ink jet type image forming apparatus, for example, the ground line connector pin of the connector on the carriage side is arranged at a position closest to the center of rotation of the above-described certain operation.

According to this, in the connector on the carriage side, the ground line connector pin is arranged at the position closest to the center of rotation of the above-mentioned constant operation, so that the ground line connector pin is mounted when the ink head is mounted. The operation of first connecting to the contact on the ink head side and finally separating and contacting the ground line connector pin from the contact on the ink head side when the ink head is detached can be easily and surely realized.

In the above-mentioned ink jet type image forming apparatus, for example, the moving direction of the ink head at the time of inserting / removing the ink head to / from the carriage and the advancing / retreating direction of the connector pin are substantially orthogonal to each other.

According to this, it is possible to prevent the contact on the carriage side and the contact on the ink head side from being accidentally brought into contact with each other when the ink head is inserted or removed.

[0029]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments in which the present invention is applied to an ink jet printer will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a carriage (1) of an ink jet printer and two replaceable ink heads (2) and (3) which are detachably attached to the carriage (1), and FIGS. 2 to 4 show the carriage (1). ) Indicates each part. In the following description, the left side of FIG. 2 is the front, the right side is the rear, and the left and right when viewed from the front to the back, that is, the left and right in FIGS. 3 and 4 are the left and right.

One ink head (2) mounted on the left side of the carriage (1) is a black ink head, and the other ink head (3) mounted on the right side of the carriage (2) is a color ink head. The black ink head (2) has a black ink cartridge (5) housed in a case (4), and the color ink head (3) has magenta (M), yellow (Y) and Cyan (C) three color ink cartridges (6m) (6y) (6c) are stored. The color ink cartridges are collectively referred to by the reference numeral (6).

The case (4) of the color ink head (3) is in the shape of a box with its upper part and front part open. Case (4)
The left side wall is the ink head positioning plate (4a), and a rectangular positioning protrusion (7) protruding downward from the bottom wall is integrally formed at the lower edge of the plate (4a).
Further, a connector overhanging portion (8) overhanging rearward is integrally formed at the rear edge of the plate (4a), and a connector (9) is provided under the right side surface of the overhanging portion (8). ing. As shown in FIG. 5, the connector (9) has eight contacts (pad terminals), that is, a high-voltage power line contact (10a), a low-voltage power line contact (10b), a ground line contact (10g) and 5
One signal line contact (10s) is formed. The contacts are collectively designated by reference numeral (10).

The case (4) of the black ink head (2) is symmetrical with respect to the case (4) of the color ink head (3) except for its dimensions, and the parts corresponding to each other are designated by the same reference numerals. ing.

The carriage (1) consists of a main body (11) and a fixed lever.
The main body (11) is composed of a bottom wall (13) having a large opening, a rear wall (14), a partition wall (15) at the middle portion in the left-right direction, and a front surface of the bottom wall (13). The left and right parts of the rear wall (14) are connected to the upper and left end parts of the rear wall (14). Near the boundary between the bottom wall (13) and the rear wall (14) of the carriage body (11),
Guide hole that penetrates the body (11) in the left-right direction (main scanning direction)
(41) is formed. Although not shown, the carriage
(1) can move along a guide shaft extending in the left-right direction, which is passed through the guide hole (41). The carriage (1) is fixed to a part of a timing belt driven by an appropriate driving means such as a motor. As a result, the carriage (1) moves along the guide shaft, and printing is performed on a recording medium such as recording paper.

A vertical pin (17) is fixed to the front part of the partition wall (15), and a plate-like part (18) is integrally provided on the front side of the pin (17). Also, on the lower part of the front surface of the plate-shaped part (18),
(19) is provided integrally.

A rotary shaft (20) extending in the left-right direction is provided on the upper part of the rear wall (14), and the shaft (20) corresponding to the partition wall (15) is provided.
The base end of the fixed lever (12) is fixed to the middle part of the. The fixed lever (12) extends forward from the shaft (20), and the middle part of the locking lever (21) is attached to the part near the free end of the fixed lever (12) so that it can rotate about the horizontal axis. Has been. As will be described later, the fixed lever (12)
(2) With the state where (3) is fixed (state shown in Fig. 2), lock lever (2
1) extends downward and forward from the rotating shaft,
The part extending forward is the operation part (21a). Also,
An engaging hook (21b) is integrally formed at the tip of the downward extending portion. The locking lever (21) is a compression coil spring.
It is biased counterclockwise as seen from the right side by (22).
A pressing member (24) biased by a compression coil spring (23) is provided in the middle of the fixed lever (12).

When the fixing lever (12) is rotated downward by hand, the inclined surface of the hook (21b) of the locking lever (21) is moved to the main body (11).
Hit the inclined surface of the hook (19), and the locking lever (21) rotates clockwise as viewed from the right against the biasing force of the spring (22),
The hook (21b) climbs over the hook (19) and the locking lever (21)
Is rotated counterclockwise when viewed from the right side by the urging force of the spring (22), the hooks (21a) (19) are engaged with each other, and the fixing lever (12) causes the main body ( Locked in 11).

The left side of the partition wall (15) of the carriage body (11) is the mounting portion for the black ink head (2), and the right side is the mounting portion for the color ink head (3). Since the mounting portion of the black ink head (2) and the mounting portion of the color ink head (3) have a bilaterally symmetrical configuration except for the dimensions, hereinafter, the mounting portion of the color ink head (3) and the main body ( The mounting and dismounting operation of the color ink head (3) with respect to 11) will be described. In addition, in the mounting portion of the black ink head (2), the same reference numeral is given to the portion corresponding to the mounting portion of the color ink head (3).

A lateral positioning protrusion (25) is integrally formed on the lower portion of the right side surface of the pin (17). Further, the horizontal positioning projections (26) are integrally formed on the upper and lower portions of the rear portion of the right side surface of the partition wall (15). The right side portion of the plate-shaped portion (18) projects to the right of the pin (17) to form a front-rear direction positioning wall portion (18a). A vertical positioning protrusion (27) is integrally formed on the lower front side of the right side surface of the partition wall (15). The upward horizontal surface of the protrusion (27) serves as a vertical positioning surface. A vertical and front-rear direction positioning protrusion (28) is integrally formed on the lower rear portion of the right side surface of the partition wall (15). This protrusion (2
8) The upward horizontal surface is the vertical positioning surface, and the forward vertical surface is the front-back positioning surface.

A base end portion of the front end of the pressing lever (29) is attached to a front portion of the right end portion of the bottom wall (13) so as to be rotatable about a vertical axis. The pressing lever (29) extends obliquely upward and rearward from the rotating shaft portion, and its free end (rear end) engages with the cam (30) formed on the rotating shaft (20). There is. When the free end of the fixed lever (12) is rotated upward, the shaft (20) rotates clockwise when viewed from the right side, and the free end of the pressing lever (29) moves to the right side, that is, the partition wall (15). ) Away from you. On the contrary, when the free end of the fixing lever (12) is rotated downward, the shaft (20) rotates counterclockwise as viewed from the right side, and the free end of the pressing lever (29) moves toward the partition wall (1
Moved to the left side approaching 5).

A plate-shaped connector holder (31) is arranged in front of the rear wall (14) below the rotary shaft (20). The connector (32) is fixed to the lower left end of the front surface of the holder (31). An upper protrusion (31a) is integrally formed at the middle of the upper end of the holder (31), and a lower protrusion (31b) is integrally formed at the middle of the lower end. Two horizontal plate-shaped left and right holder guides (33) and (34) are integrally provided on the front surface of the rear wall (14) immediately below the shaft (20),
A guide slit (35) extending in the left-right direction is formed in the bottom wall (13) below these. Lower protrusion of holder (31)
(31b) is fitted in the slit (35), and the upper protrusion (31
a) protrudes upward from between the two guides (33) (34), and the upper edges of the holder (31) before and after the protrusion (31a) are the guides (33) (34).
It is designed to be guided by the lower surface of the. Holder (3
An opening (36) is formed in the lower right part of (1), and the rear wall (14)
A plate-shaped spring receiver (37) integrally formed with the base plate protrudes forward through the opening (36). A compression coil spring (38) for urging the connector (37) and the holder (31) to the left is provided between the right side surface of the connector (32) and the spring receiver (37). , Upward protrusion (31a) of the holder (31)
Is in contact with a cam (39) formed on the shaft (20).

When the free end of the fixed lever (12) is rotated upward and the rotary shaft (20) is rotated clockwise as viewed from the right side,
By the action of the cam (39), the holder (31) rotates about the lower longitudinal axis against the biasing force of the spring (38),
Move to the right and away from the partition (15). Conversely, when the free end of the fixed lever (12) is rotated downwards and the shaft (20) rotates counterclockwise when viewed from the right side, the biasing force of the spring (38) and the action of the cam (39). As a result, the holder (31) moves to the left while rotating around the lower longitudinal axis, and approaches the partition wall (15).

As shown in FIG. 5, on the left side surface of the connector (30), eight connector pins (contacts) corresponding to the contacts (10) on the ink head (3) side, that is, connector pins for the high-voltage power supply line are provided. (40a), low-voltage power line connector pin (40
b), a ground line connector pin (40g) and five signal line connector pins (40s) are provided. The connector pins are collectively referred to by the reference numeral (40). Each connector pin (40)
Is attached to the connector (30) so as to extend in the left-right direction, that is, in the direction of approaching and separating from the partition wall (15), and to move back and forth in the same direction, and is advanced by an elastic member such as a spring (not shown). Direction, that is, to the left. Although illustration is omitted, the case (4) of the ink head (3) is provided with a drive circuit connected to the connector pin (40).

The contact point (10) on the ink head (3) side and the connector pin (40) on the carriage (1) side have two rows in the front and rear and four rows in the top and bottom.
The steps are formed at a constant pitch. The positions of the four front contact points (10) are displaced upward from the positions of the four rear contact points by half the vertical pitch. The high-voltage power line contact (10a) and the connector pin (40a) are arranged on the uppermost front side and are located on the uppermost side of all the contacts (10) and the connector (40). Ground line contact (10
g) and the connector pin (40g) are arranged at the lowermost stage on the rear side and at the lowermost side. The low-voltage power line contact (10b) and the connector pin (40b) are arranged at the lowermost stage on the front side and are arranged second from the bottom. The high-voltage power line connector pin (40a) is farthest from the center of rotation of the operation of the connector holder (31) due to the rotation of the fixed lever (19), and the ground line connector pin (40g) is the farthest position. It is in a close position. In addition, the amount of expansion in the natural state is almost the same for the low voltage power line connector pin (40b) and the signal line connector pin (40s), and the largest for the high voltage power line connector pin (40a). Pin (40
g) is the smallest.

When inserting the ink head (3) into the carriage main body (11) or when removing the ink head (3) from the carriage main body (11), the fixing lever (12) is unlocked and is moved upward. Rotate. As a result, the pressing lever (29) pivots to the right (outside) to move away from the partition wall (15), and the connector holder (31) moves to the right side to move away from the partition wall (15). It will be in a state like.

When mounting the ink head (3), first, the fixing lever (12) is unlocked as described above, and the ink head () is placed on the right side of the partition wall (12) of the carriage body (11). 3) from above, and then the fixing lever (1
Turn 2) downward to lock it.

When the ink head (3) is inserted into the carriage body (11), the positioning plate (4a) of the case (4) is located behind the positioning wall portion (18a) of the plate-shaped portion (18). When fitted, the positioning protrusion (7) is located at the front and rear positioning protrusions.
The lower edge of the plate (4a) in front of and behind the positioning protrusion (7) rides on the protrusion (27) (28) so that the ink head Rough positioning is performed in the vertical and longitudinal directions of (3).

When the fixing lever (12) is rotated downward while the ink head (3) is inserted in the carriage body (11) as described above, the pressing member (24) causes the plate of the ink head (3) to move. Hit the corner on the upper front side of (4a), and further fix the lever.
By rotating the (12) downward, the lower edge of the plate (4a) is pressed against the upper surfaces of the front and rear projections (27) and (28) by the urging force of the spring (22), and the ink head (3 ) Is positioned in the vertical direction, the rear edge of the protrusion (7) is pressed against the front surface of the rear protrusion (28), and the ink head (3) is positioned in the front-rear direction. Further, when the fixing lever (12) is rotated downward, at the same time, the pressing lever (29) is rotated to the left side and pushes the ink head (3) to the left side, whereby the plate of the ink head (3) is The (4a) is pressed against the projection (25) of the pin (17) and the projection (26) of the partition wall (15) to position the ink head (3) in the left-right direction. Then, the fixed lever (1
When 2) is locked to the carriage body (11), the ink head (3) is positioned at a predetermined position in the up / down, front / rear and left / right directions and fixed at that position. FIG. 4 shows a state in which the ink head (3) is mounted on the carriage (1) in this way.

When the ink head (3) is inserted into the right side portion of the partition wall (15) of the carriage body (11) and the fixing lever (12) is rotated downward, the above-mentioned ink head (3) Simultaneously with the positioning and fixing of the connector holder, as shown in FIG. 6, the connector holder (31) rotates and moves to the left, so that the connector pin (40) on the carriage (1) side moves to the ink head (3) side. Connected to the corresponding contact (10) of the. At this time,
The ground line connector pin (40g) with the largest amount of expansion in the natural state is located on the lowest side closest to the rotation center of the connector holder (31), and the connector pin for the high-voltage power supply line with the smallest amount of expansion ( Since 40a) is on the uppermost side farthest from the rotation center of the connector holder (31), as shown in FIG. 6 (a), the connector pin (40) is first separated from the contact (10). As shown in Figure (b), the ground line connector pin (40g) is connected to the ground line contact (10g), and then, as shown in Figure (c), low voltage power line connector pin (40b). ) And signal line connector pin (40s) are low voltage power line contact (10b) and signal line contact (10s)
, And finally, as shown in FIG. 3D, the high-voltage power line connector pin (40a) is connected to the high-voltage power line contact (10a).

When detaching the ink head (3), first, the fixed lever locked to the carriage body (11).
The ink head (3) is taken out from the carriage body (11) by unlocking the (12) and rotating it upward.

Unlock the fixing lever (12),
When it is rotated upward, the pressing member (24) will move to the ink head (3).
Away from, the binding force in the vertical direction and the front-back direction disappears. At the same time, the pressing lever (29) pivots to the right and separates from the ink head (3), and the restraining force in the left-right direction is also lost. Further, when the fixing lever (12) rotates upward, the connector holder (31) rotates and moves to the right, and the connector pin (40) on the carriage (1) side moves to the ink head (3) side. Move away from the corresponding contact (10). At this time, as shown in FIG. 6 (d), from the state in which all connector pins (40) are connected to the contacts (10), first, as shown in FIG. Connector pin (40a) separates from the contact (10a), and then, as shown in the same figure (b), signal line connector pin (40s) and low voltage power line connector pin (40b)
Are separated from the contacts (10s) and (10b), and finally, as shown in the figure (a), the connector pin (40a) for the high-voltage power line is connected to the contacts (10a).
Get away from.

As a result, the ink head (3) is brought into a free state, which can be taken out upward from the carriage body (11).

For mounting and dismounting the black ink head (2),
The same operation is performed at the same time when the color ink head (3) is attached and detached. Even when replacing either one of the two ink heads (2) (3), by unlocking the fixing lever (12), both ink heads (2) (3) with respect to the carriage (1) can be replaced. Once the positioning is released and after replacement, lock the fixing lever (12) so that both ink heads (2) and (3) will re-carriage (1).
Positioned with respect to.

In the above ink jet printer, the ink heads (2) and (3) are inserted and taken out (up and down direction),
Since the forward / backward direction (left-right direction) of the connector pin (40) on the carriage (1) side is almost perpendicular to each other, the ink head
It is possible to prevent the connector pin (40) and the contact (10) on the ink head (2) (3) side from accidentally coming into contact with each other when the (2) and (3) are inserted and removed.

Further, the load can be applied to the two ink heads (2) and (3) at the same time by one lever (12) to perform positioning. For positioning in the up-down direction and the front-rear direction, the positioning plates (4a) of the two ink heads (2) and (3) are arranged close to each other with the partition wall (15) at the center, so that the load is applied evenly. be able to. For lateral positioning, use the cam (3
(0) is symmetrically provided on the rotating shaft (20), so that the pressing levers (29) arranged on both sides of the carriage (1) in the left-right direction.
Thus, the two ink heads (2) and (3) can be pressed with equal force. Further, even when either one of the two ink heads (2) and (3) is replaced, the fixing lever (12) is unlocked and pivoted upward so that both ink heads (2) (3) are rotated. ) Is once released and then repositioned, so that the carriage (1) is not distorted and the relative positions of the ink heads (2) and (3) are not displaced as in the conventional case.
Furthermore, one lever (12) can be used for two ink heads (2) (3).
Since it can be positioned, compared to the conventional positioning with separate levers, not only is the operation easier, but there is no variation in the amount of load applied to the ink heads (2) (3). Accurate positioning and lever (12)
The carriage (1) can be downsized by using only one.

Carriage (1) and ink heads (2) (3)
The configuration and the like are not limited to those in the above-described embodiment, and can be changed as appropriate.

The present invention can also be applied to an ink jet type image forming apparatus other than the ink jet printer.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a carriage and an ink head of an inkjet printer showing an embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a partially cutaway right side view of the carriage portion of FIG. 1. FIG.

FIG. 3 is a partially cutaway front view showing a part of the carriage of FIG.

4 is a partially cutaway front view corresponding to FIG. 3 showing a state different from FIG.

FIG. 5 is a right side view showing an arrangement of contacts of a connector on an ink head side and an arrangement of connector pins of a connector on a carriage side.

FIG. 6 is a front view sequentially showing the operation of the carriage-side connector when the ink head is attached.

[Explanation of symbols]

(1) Carriage (2) (3) Ink head (9) Connector (10a) High voltage power line contact (10b) Low voltage power line contact (10g) Ground line contact (10s) Signal line contact (32) Connector (40a) Connector pin for high voltage power line (40b) Connector pin for low voltage power line (40g) Ground line connector pin (40s) Connector pin for signal line

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Norito Nakajima             22-22 Nagaikecho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka             Inside the company (72) Inventor Satoshi Murakami             22-22 Nagaikecho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka             Inside the company (72) Inventor Yasuhiro Inoue             22-22 Nagaikecho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka             Inside the company (72) Inventor Takehiro Kato             22-22 Nagaikecho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka             Inside the company F-term (reference) 2C056 EA24 FA10 HA08 HA09 HA37                 2C061 AQ05 BB08 CG01 CG13

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. A drive circuit provided with a carriage and an ink head detachably mounted on the carriage, the drive circuit being operated by a high-voltage power source and a low-voltage power source on the ink head side, a high-voltage power line contact, and a low-voltage power line contact. A connector having a signal line contact and a ground line contact is provided, and a connector having a high voltage power line contact, a low voltage power line contact, a signal line contact and a ground line contact is provided on the carriage side. In an inkjet image forming apparatus in which the corresponding contact points of both connectors are connected by mounting the ink head at a predetermined position on the carriage, when the ink head is mounted, the mounting operation of both connectors is performed. Of the contacts, the contact for the high voltage power line is connected last,
An inkjet image forming apparatus characterized in that, when an ink head is detached, a contact for a high-voltage power supply line is first contacted and detached among contacts of both connectors by a detaching operation. 2. When mounting the ink head, the mounting operation causes
Of the contacts of both connectors, the ground line contact is first connected, and when the ink head is detached, the detachment operation causes the ground line contact of both connectors to be finally detached. The inkjet image forming apparatus according to claim 1. 3. A carriage-side contact is a connector pin that is provided in a connector so as to be able to move forward and backward and is urged in an advancing direction. When the ink head is mounted, the carriage-side connector performs a certain operation by the mounting operation. The connector pin is connected to the contact on the ink head side, and when the ink head is detached, the detachment operation causes the connector on the carriage side to perform a certain operation so that the connector pin comes in contact with and separates from the contact on the ink head side. Claim 1 characterized in that
Alternatively, the inkjet image forming apparatus 2 is provided. 4. The constant operation of the connector on the carriage side when the ink head is mounted includes movement and rotation in the direction in which the connector pin advances and approaches the contact on the ink head side. 4. The constant operation of the connector on the carriage side at the time of disengagement includes movement and rotation in a direction in which the connector pin is retracted and away from the contact on the ink head side. Inkjet image forming apparatus. 5. The ink jet image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the amount of extension of the connector pin for the high voltage power supply line of the connector on the carriage side in the natural state is the smallest. 6. The high-voltage power supply line connector pin of the connector on the carriage side is arranged at a position farthest from the center of rotation of the constant operation.
Alternatively, the inkjet image forming apparatus of item 5. 7. The ink jet image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the ground line connector pin of the carriage side connector has the largest amount of advance in the natural state. 8. The ground line connector pin of the carriage-side connector is arranged at a position closest to the center of rotation of the fixed operation. Inkjet image forming apparatus. 9. An ink head is inserted into a carriage,
9. The ink jet image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein a moving direction of the ink head and a moving direction of the connector pin at the time of taking out operation are substantially orthogonal to each other.