JP2003237110A - Ink jet recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the interior of a recorder from being stained with ink drops rendered misty even when a recording medium is printed without leaving any margin at the edge part. <P>SOLUTION: An ink jet recording head 12 ejects an ink drop from a nozzle opening by generating a pressure variation in the ink in a pressure chamber communicating with the nozzle opening by means of a pressure generating element provided in correspondence with the pressure chamber. A carriage mechanism has a carriage 1 for mounting the recording head 12 and carries the recording head 12 in the head scanning direction along with the carriage 1. A static electricity charged member 30 is mounted on a plane parallel with the head scanning direction. The carriage 1 is provided with a static electricity generating member 31 which touches the static electricity charged member 30 at the time of moving integrally with the carriage 1 thus generating static electricity. <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 ink jet recording apparatus for ejecting ink droplets from a plurality of nozzle openings formed in an ink jet recording head toward a recording medium for recording.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Ink jet recording apparatuses have been used for many types of printing, including color printing, because of their relatively low noise during printing and the ability to form small dots with high density.

Such an ink jet recording apparatus is
Generally, an inkjet type recording head mounted on a carriage and reciprocating in a width direction (head scanning direction) of a recording medium such as recording paper, and a recording medium is moved in a direction (medium feeding direction) orthogonal to the head scanning direction. And a feed means, and further arranged facing the recording head,
A platen is provided that supports the recording medium conveyed by the medium feeding mechanism from the back surface and defines the position of the recording medium with respect to the recording head.

In this ink jet recording apparatus, printing is performed by ejecting ink droplets from a recording head onto a recording medium in accordance with print data. Then, by making the recording head mounted on the carriage capable of ejecting ink of each color of black, yellow, cyan, and magenta, not only the text printing by the black ink but also the ejection ratio of each ink can be performed. By changing it, full color printing is possible.

By using this ink jet recording apparatus,
When printing is performed on the entire surface of the recording medium (so-called four-sided marginless printing) without leaving a margin at the edge of the recording medium, the size of the recording medium should be adjusted in consideration of the margin for misalignment of the recording medium and the carriage. Printing is performed on a slightly wider area than the above.

That is, in order to perform printing without leaving margins on the left and right side edges (edges extending in the medium feeding direction) of the recording medium, the scanning range of the recording head during printing is set to the recording medium side. It is possible to set up to a position outside the edge.

Further, when printing is performed without leaving a margin on the front and rear edges (edges extending in the head scanning direction) of the recording medium, the printing medium is more likely than the leading edge of the recording medium at the start of printing. The area up to the front side is designated as the print target area, and the area up to the rear side of the trailing edge of the recording medium is designated as the print target area when the printing of the recording medium is completed.

The ink droplets ejected toward the area outside the recording medium are absorbed by an absorbing member (sponge, bell eater, etc.) arranged on the back side of the recording medium facing the recording head. There is.

[0009]

However, the absorbing member is arranged on the back side of the recording medium, and the distance from the nozzle opening to the absorbing member is longer than the distance from the nozzle opening to the recording medium. For this reason, when the ink droplets are ejected toward the area separated from the recording medium, the ink droplets ejected from the nozzle openings may be decelerated due to air resistance and may not reach the absorbing member and become a mist. there were. In particular,
If the volume (weight) of the ink droplet is reduced in order to improve the image quality, the degree of deceleration due to air resistance is increased, and the ink droplet easily becomes a mist.

The misted ink droplets float inside the recording apparatus and stain the inside of the apparatus. As a result, for example, ink droplets adhering to the electric circuit may cause electric leakage to cause a malfunction, or the linear scale provided in the apparatus for optically detecting the position of the recording head may be contaminated with ink droplets. There is a possibility that a problem such as malfunction may occur. There is also a problem that ink droplets are deposited on the ink cartridge and the user's hand is soiled at the time of replacement, or ink droplets are attached to the transport mechanism of the recording medium to stain the recording medium.

The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned circumstances, and an object thereof is to perform printing without leaving a margin on the edge of a recording medium.
An object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet recording apparatus capable of preventing the inside of the apparatus from being contaminated due to misted ink droplets.

[0012]

In order to solve the above problems, the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention uses an ink in the pressure chamber by a pressure generating element provided corresponding to the pressure chamber communicating with the nozzle opening. An ink jet recording head that causes pressure fluctuations in the nozzle to eject ink droplets from the nozzle opening; and a carriage mechanism that has a carriage on which the recording head is mounted and that scans the recording head together with the carriage in the head scanning direction. An electrostatic charging member disposed on a surface parallel to the head scanning direction, and an electrostatic generating member provided on the carriage and contacting the electrostatic charging member to generate static electricity when moving integrally with the carriage. And are provided.

Further, it is preferable that a case for accommodating the recording head and the carriage mechanism is further provided, and the electrostatic charging member is provided on an inner surface of the case.

Further, preferably, there is further provided a wiper member which is provided on the carriage and which contacts the electrostatic charging member and wipes ink from the electrostatic charging member when moving integrally with the carriage.

Further, preferably, there is further provided an absorbing member which is provided on the carriage and which contacts the electrostatic charging member and absorbs ink from the electrostatic charging member when moving integrally with the carriage.

Also, preferably, the electrostatic charging member comprises a plastic sheet.

Also, preferably, the static electricity generating member has a brush.

[0018]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION An ink jet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

In the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present embodiment, the pressure generating element provided corresponding to the pressure chamber communicating with the nozzle opening causes a pressure variation in the ink in the pressure chamber to eject an ink droplet from the nozzle opening. An inkjet recording head is provided. As the pressure generating element, for example, a piezoelectric vibrator can be used.

1 and 2 are perspective views showing a schematic structure of the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present embodiment.
FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of the platen of the ink jet recording apparatus and its surroundings. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 is a carriage, and the carriage 1 is guided by a carriage shaft 4 which is a guide member via a timing belt 3 driven by a carriage motor 2 and a platen 5.
Is configured to reciprocate in the axial direction (head scanning direction). The platen 5 supports the recording paper 6 (a kind of recording medium) from the back surface thereof and defines the position of the recording paper 6 with respect to the recording head 12.

The carriage 1, the carriage motor 2, the timing belt 3 and the carriage shaft 4 constitute a carriage mechanism for scanning the ink jet recording head 12 together with the carriage 1 in the head scanning direction.

The ink jet recording head 12 is mounted on the side of the carriage 1 facing the recording paper 6. An ink cartridge 7 that supplies ink to the recording head 12 is removably attached to the carriage 1.

A cap member 13 is arranged at a home position (right side in FIG. 1) which is a non-printing area of the ink jet recording apparatus. The cap member 13 has a recording head 12 mounted on the carriage 1 at the home position. When the recording head 12 is moved to, the recording head 12 is pressed against the nozzle forming surface to form a closed space between the nozzle forming surface and the nozzle forming surface. Further, below the cap member 13, a pump unit 10 for applying a negative pressure to the closed space formed by the cap member 13 is arranged.

In the vicinity of the printing area side of the cap member 13, a wiping means 11 provided with an elastic plate such as rubber is arranged so as to be able to move forward and backward with respect to the movement locus of the recording head 12, for example, in the carriage. When the nozzle 1 reciprocates toward the cap member 13 side, the nozzle forming surface of the recording head 12 can be wiped if necessary.

As shown in FIG. 2, the carriage 1 having the recording head 12 is housed in a case 20 composed of a cover 21 and a housing 22.

The ink jet recording apparatus according to the present embodiment further includes a medium feeding mechanism for intermittently conveying the recording paper 6 to be printed (recorded) by the recording head 12 in the medium feeding direction orthogonal to the head scanning direction. Is equipped with.

As shown in FIG. 3, the medium feeding mechanism ejects the printed recording paper 6 and the paper feed rollers 14a and 14b arranged to face each other in order to sandwich the recording paper 6 and feed it onto the platen 5. To this end, the sheet discharge rollers 15a and 15b are provided so as to face each other. The paper feed roller 14a and the paper discharge roller 15a are driven rollers, and the paper feed roller 14b and the paper discharge roller 15b are drive rollers.

As can be seen from FIG. 3, the platen 5 has a plurality of ink receiving vertical openings 5c, 5d, 5e, 5f extending in a direction parallel to the sheet feeding direction (medium feeding direction) F, and the sheet feeding direction F.
A plurality of ink receiving lateral openings 5a and 5b extending in the head scanning direction orthogonal to the are formed.

A plurality of vertical ink receiving openings 5c, 5d, 5
e and 5f, the pair of ink receiving openings 5c are arranged so that the left and right ends of the A3 size recording paper 6 pass directly above, respectively, and the pair of ink receiving openings 5d are formed on the B4 size recording paper 6. The left and right ends are arranged so as to pass right above, and the pair of ink receiving openings 5e are arranged so that the left and right ends of the recording paper 6 of A4 size pass right above. The openings 5f are arranged so that the left and right ends of the B5 size recording paper 6 pass right above.

A plurality of ink receiving lateral openings 5a, 5b are also provided.
Is a paper feed side ink receiving opening 5a arranged on the paper feed side.
And a paper ejection side ink receiving opening 5b arranged on the paper ejection side
Consists of.

These ink receiving openings 5a, 5b, 5
The recording head 12 is provided on each of c, 5d, 5e, and 5f.
An absorbing member 16 that absorbs the ink ejected from is disposed. The absorbing member 16 can be formed of sponge, bell eater, or the like.

Next, with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, the electrostatic charging member and the static electricity generating member of the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present embodiment will be explained.

As shown in FIG. 4, a plurality of plate-shaped electrostatic charging members 30 made of a material that is easily charged with static electricity are provided inside the case 20, and these electrostatic charging members 30 are heads. It is arranged on a plane parallel to the scanning direction. Specifically, the electrostatic charging member 30 is provided on the inner surface of each of the top plate and the front wall of the housing 22 and the wall surface of the vertical wall that is erected on the back side of the recording head 1. The electrostatic charging member 30 can be formed of a plastic sheet made of acrylic, polyester, vinyl chloride, or the like.

Further, the carriage 1 has a brush-shaped static electricity generating member 3 formed of a material which easily releases static electricity.
A plurality of 1 are provided. The static electricity generating member 31 can be formed of rayon, nylon, wool, or hair. The static electricity generating member 31 is rubbed against the static electricity charging member 30 when moving integrally with the carriage 1.

Further, as shown in FIG. 5, wiper members 32 made of a rubber plate or the like are provided on the carriage 1 on both sides of the static electricity generating member 31 in the bed scanning direction. When the wiper member 32 moves integrally with the carriage 1, it can contact the electrostatic charging member 30 and wipe the ink from the electrostatic charging member 30. The wiper member 32 moves to both ends inside the device together with the carriage 1, and the ink wiped by the wiper member 32 flows down at both ends inside the device.

Further, on both sides of the static electricity generating member 31 in the bed scanning direction, each ink absorbing member 33 made of sponge or the like is provided between the static electricity generating member 31 and each wiper member 32. Ink absorbing member 33
Can contact the electrostatic charging member 30 when moving integrally with the carriage 1 and absorb ink from the electrostatic charging member 30. As a result, the ink that has not been wiped off by the wiper member 32 can be absorbed and removed by the ink absorbing member 33.

According to the present embodiment having the above-mentioned structure, the static electricity generating member 31 is rubbed against the static electricity charging member 30 when the carriage 1 moves in the head scanning direction, and the static electricity generated thereby is static electricity charging member. Thirty
To be charged. The ink droplets that become mist and float inside the case 20 are attracted by the electrostatic attraction force of the electrostatic charging member 30 and are captured by the surface of the electrostatic charging member 30. Therefore, even if ink droplets become mist when printing is performed without leaving a margin on the edge of the recording paper 6, the inside of the apparatus is not polluted and a problem does not occur.

Further, in this embodiment, the surface of the electrostatic charging member 30 is cleaned by the wiper 32 and the ink absorbing member 33 when the carriage 1 moves in the head scanning direction, so that the electrostatic charging member 30 is exposed to ink. It is possible to prevent it from becoming dirty and difficult to be charged.

[0039]

As described above, according to the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention, the ink droplets that are misted and float inside the case are attracted by the electrostatic attraction of the electrostatic charging member and electrostatically charged. Since it is captured on the surface of the member, even when ink droplets become mist when printing without leaving a margin on the edge of the recording medium,
The inside of the device will not be contaminated and cause a problem.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of an inkjet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is another perspective view showing a schematic configuration of an ink jet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of a platen of the inkjet recording apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 and its surroundings.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of a carriage and its periphery of the ink jet recording apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

5 is an enlarged view showing a carriage of the ink jet recording apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 carriage 5 Platen 6 Recording paper (recording medium) 12 Inkjet recording head 20 cases 21 cover 22 housing 30 Electrostatic charging member 31 Static electricity generation member 32 Wiper member 33 Ink absorbing member

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. An ink jet recording head for causing a pressure fluctuation in ink in the pressure chamber to eject an ink droplet from the nozzle opening by a pressure generating element provided corresponding to the pressure chamber communicating with the nozzle opening. A carriage mechanism that has a carriage on which the recording head is mounted, scans the recording head together with the carriage in a head scanning direction, an electrostatic charging member disposed on a surface parallel to the head scanning direction, An ink jet recording apparatus, comprising: a static electricity generating member that is provided on a carriage and that generates static electricity by contacting the static electricity charging member when moving integrally with the carriage. 2. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a case for accommodating the recording head and the carriage mechanism, wherein the electrostatic charging member is provided on an inner surface of the case. 3. A wiper member which is provided on the carriage and which wipes ink from the electrostatic charging member by contacting the electrostatic charging member when moving integrally with the carriage. 2. The inkjet recording device according to 2. 4. An absorption member provided on the carriage, further comprising an absorbing member that comes into contact with the electrostatic charging member and absorbs ink from the electrostatic charging member when moving integrally with the carriage. 4. The ink jet recording apparatus according to any one of 3 above. 5. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the electrostatic charging member has a plastic sheet. 6. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the static electricity generating member has a brush.