JP2004009530A - Recording device and method for controlling cover opening/closing of recording device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To rapidly and easily perform maintenance while safety is ensured when an error occurs in a recording device provided with an openable/closeable cover for protecting the inside. <P>SOLUTION: When it is detected that the cover under a closed condition during operation is required to open by the error or an indication from a user, descriptions of the error or the indication from the user are judged (S10, S20 and S30). A carriage is moved to an appropriate position for performing a recovery processing in accordance with the result of judgement (S11 and S21). After movement of the carriage is finished, the closed condition of the cover is released (S12 and S22), and the cover is opened to perform a corresponding recovery processing. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a recording apparatus and a cover opening / closing control method for the recording apparatus, and in particular, to a recording apparatus having a cover that is provided to be openable and closable and that exposes the inside of the apparatus when opened, and a cover opening / closing method for the recording apparatus. It relates to a control method.
[0002]
[Prior art]
For example, a printer is well known as a recording device that records desired information such as characters and images on a sheet-shaped recording medium such as paper or film as an information output device in a word processor, a personal computer, a facsimile or the like. .
[0003]
Various methods are known as recording methods for printers. Ink jet methods have recently been used because non-contact recording is possible on recording media such as paper, colorization is easy, and quietness is high. It has attracted special attention, and its configuration includes a serial head that mounts a recording head that ejects ink in accordance with desired recording information and performs recording while scanning back and forth in the direction perpendicular to the feed direction of a recording medium such as paper. It is widely used in general because of its low cost and easy downsizing.
[0004]
On the other hand, as the environment surrounding recording devices such as printers, electronic devices such as personal computers and digital cameras and scanners that are information input devices for these electronic devices have been significantly improved in performance and reduced in price, and are widely used in ordinary households. The printer is becoming widespread, and accordingly, the age group of users who use the printer is also wide ranging from children to elderly people.
[0005]
In such a situation, in order to prevent erroneous operation of the recording apparatus, the recording head is usually located in a place where the user cannot operate when the recording operation is not performed. Those that move to a place where they can be replaced when they are supported have been put to practical use.
[0006]
Further, in order to improve the operability of the recording apparatus, it is common practice to detect various error states occurring in the recording apparatus, notify the user of the error state, and request maintenance. There are various error states in the recording device.For example, in the case of the ink jet system, the ink tank has run out of ink, or the recording head for color recording is replaced with the recording head for monochrome recording. For example, there is a request for head replacement when printing is performed, a state in which the print head is not suitable for printing, a paper jam due to a paper conveyance failure, and the like.
[0007]
In particular, when the recording head or the ink tank needs to be replaced, such as when the ink has run out or when the head is replaced with a different type of head, when the recording head is instructed by a switch or the like, the recording head is mounted. Some are configured to move the carriage to a replaceable position.
[0008]
In addition, in order to facilitate the work of replacing the print head and ink tank, a switch is provided to detect the open / close state of the openable cover that protects the inside of the printing apparatus. There is a configuration in which a carriage on which a recording head is mounted is unconditionally moved to a replaceable position on the assumption that the head is replaced.
[0009]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In such a recording apparatus, for example, in a configuration in which the replacement of the recording head or the ink tank is instructed by a switch or the like, the user has to operate the switch each time, and the replacement operation is troublesome. Occurs.
[0010]
On the other hand, in a configuration in which the carriage is unconditionally moved to a position where the recording head can be replaced when the cover of the recording apparatus is opened, if the cover is opened in a state where the paper conveyance failure occurs, the recording is performed. There is also a problem that the head moves and intersects with the paper, damaging the paper and the recording head, and the subsequent recording may not be performed normally.
[0011]
In addition, considering that the age range of the user of the recording device is wide as described above, the user may not be accustomed to handling such a device, or an infant may operate the device incorrectly at home or the like. Considering the possibility, moving the carriage with the cover opened poses a safety problem.
[0012]
The present invention has been made in view of such a situation, and is provided with an openable / closable cover that protects the inside of the recording device, so that maintenance when an error occurs while ensuring safety can be performed quickly and easily. It is an object of the present invention to provide a recording device that can perform the recording.
[0013]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, a first printing apparatus according to the present invention is a printing apparatus that performs printing by scanning a carriage equipped with a print head on a print medium,
A cover that is provided so as to be openable and closable and that at least partially exposes a moving range of the carriage when opened;
Closing means for holding the cover in a closed state during operation of the recording device;
Detecting means for detecting that an error occurred in the recording device or an instruction from a user has caused the need to open the cover,
Determining means for determining the type of the error or the instruction from the user detected by the detecting means,
Movement control means for moving the carriage to a position corresponding to the type determined by the determination means,
Closing release means for releasing the closing means after the movement of the carriage by the movement control means is completed.
[0014]
That is, when it is detected that the cover, which is in the closed state during operation, needs to be opened due to an error or an instruction from the user, the type of the error or the instruction from the user is determined, and the type of the instruction corresponding to the determination result is determined. After the carriage is moved to an appropriate position for performing the recovery process, the cover is released from the closed state so that the cover can be opened.
[0015]
According to this, if an error or a user's instruction needs to open the cover, before the user can open the cover, the carriage has already moved to an appropriate position for performing the recovery process. Since the operation has been completed, the user can quickly and easily perform maintenance when an error occurs in a safe state.
[0016]
A second recording apparatus of the present invention that achieves the above object is a recording apparatus that performs recording by scanning a carriage on which a recording head is mounted on a recording medium,
A cover that is provided so as to be openable and closable and that at least partially exposes a moving range of the carriage when opened;
Detecting means for detecting that an error occurred in the recording device or an instruction from a user has caused the need to open the cover,
Determining means for determining the type of the error or the instruction from the user detected by the detecting means,
Movement control means for moving the carriage to a position corresponding to the type determined by the determination means,
The movement control means moves the carriage in a time shorter than a time required for opening the cover.
[0017]
That is, when it is detected that the cover that is closed during operation is required to be opened due to an error or an instruction from the user, the type of the error or the instruction from the user is determined, and the cover can be opened. The carriage is moved to a position suitable for performing the recovery process corresponding to the determination result in a time shorter than the time required for the determination.
[0018]
According to this, when an error or a user's instruction requires the cover to be opened, the carriage can perform the recovery process before the user can open the cover and perform the actual recovery process. Since the movement to a new position has already been completed, the user can quickly and easily perform maintenance when an error occurs in a safe state.
[0019]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, a recording apparatus of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings, taking an embodiment using an inkjet recording method as an example.
[0020]
The first embodiment of the recording apparatus of the present invention includes an opening / closing detection unit for detecting opening / closing of the printer cover with respect to opening / closing of the printer cover, and a closing unit for holding the cover in a closed state.
[0021]
First, the configuration of the printing apparatus according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5 and FIG.
[0022]
The recording apparatus according to the present embodiment is roughly classified into an automatic feeding unit 1 for automatically feeding a recording medium S such as paper into the recording apparatus, and a sheet S sent one by one from the automatic feeding unit. And a recording section 4 for performing desired recording on the sheet S conveyed to the conveyance section 2, and a recording section 4 provided to be openable and closable when opened. A printer cover 505 for exposing the inside of the apparatus is provided. Recorded information transmitted from an electronic device such as a host computer (not shown) disposed on the recording unit 4 and detection results of various sensors provided inside the recording apparatus are provided. And a control unit 5 for controlling the printing apparatus based on the print data and inputting various settings and instructions of the printing apparatus, and an ejection recovery processing unit for maintaining or recovering the ink ejection by the print head in a state suitable for printing. With 602 In, and a lower case portion 6 that with a like waste ink tank 609 for receiving the ink discharged from the recording head by the discharge recovery process.
[0023]
The automatic feeding unit 1 has one end supported by a paper receiver 101 made of two elastically stretchable receiving plates and a sliding shaft 102A, and the other end pressed toward a feeding roller 104 by the spring force of a pressing spring 103. The sheet bundle 105 set on the sheet receiver 101 is constituted by a pressure plate 102 and the like that are brought into contact with each other, and is rotated by a feed roller 104 interlocked with a conveyance roller 201 via a gear train and drive switching means (not shown). Are fed one by one to the transport unit 2 (indicated by an arrow A).
[0024]
The automatic feeding unit 1 is provided with a pair of guide members 106 and 107 for guiding the widthwise side end of the sheet S in the width direction, and one of the guide members 107 is a slide (not shown) in a direction indicated by an arrow B. The guide member 106 is movable by a mechanism. The other guide member 106 determines the recording position of the sheet S with respect to the recording apparatus, and also prevents skew during sheet conveyance by a pair of guide members.
[0025]
A gear train (not shown) is provided by a carry motor 207 to guide the sheet S sent out by the feed roller 104 of the automatic feeder 1 to a position facing a nozzle for ejecting ink of the recording head 401. Roller 201, a pinch roller 202, a transmission gear 204 for transmitting a driving force to the discharge roller 203 in conjunction with the transport roller 201, a spur 205 and a platen 206 supported via a coil spring (not shown), etc. It is composed of The platen unit 206 guides the leading end of the sheet S transported by the transport roller 201 and the pinch roller 202 to the sheet discharge roller 203 and the spur 205.
[0026]
The discharge unit 3 includes two trays 301 and 302 so as to be able to expand and contract according to the length of the paper S to be discharged. Reference numeral 303 denotes a stopper provided at the tip of the tray 301, and is configured to prevent the discharged paper S from falling or the like.
[0027]
The recording unit 4 includes a nozzle unit 410 that ejects ink according to the recording information as shown in FIG. 3, a contact unit 401 a for electrically connecting to a control unit 5 described later, an ink tank 405, (In the case of the present embodiment, there is a nozzle unit 410 for discharging yellow, magenta, cyan, and black inks, respectively, so that color printing can be performed), and the printing head 401. And an ink tank 405 for supplying the recording material ink of each color to the recording head 401 via the joining portion 401b of the recording head 401, which is detachably mounted, and can be opened and closed in the arrow direction shown in FIG. A carriage 402 provided with a head cover 412 for fixedly mounting the recording head 401; 2 and guide shafts 403 and 404 for guiding in a direction perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG. 2 (the same direction as the arrow B direction in FIG. 1), and a long film for detecting the position of the carriage 402 and the scanning speed. An encoder scale 407 having a pattern in which light transmitting portions and light shielding portions are alternately arranged at predetermined intervals; a sensor portion 408 provided on the carriage 402 for detecting the pattern of the encoder scale 407; and a carriage for moving and scanning the carriage 402 A motor (a DC motor is used in the present embodiment) 409 and the like.
[0028]
Here, as shown in FIG. 10, the position of the carriage 402 is indicated by a broken line in the figure detected by a home sensor provided on the scanning track of the carriage 402 and configured by a transmission-type photo sensor or the like provided on the carriage. Based on the position of the detection member 411, the pattern formed on the encoder scale 407 and the encoder sensor unit 408 are detected as needed as the carriage 402 scans.
[0029]
The control unit 5 includes a control unit such as a CPU that controls the printing apparatus, which will be described later, and is configured by an operation unit that can perform various settings and instructions regarding printing. The control unit 5 is covered by the inner cover 501 and has an inner cover 501. A control board 502, a panel board 503 provided with operation switches and the like are housed therein, and an operation panel section 504 exposed on the upper surface of the inner cover 501, and can be opened and closed in the direction of arrow C in FIG. It has a printer cover 505 and the like provided.
[0030]
Here, the printer cover 505 is configured to expose the inside of the recording unit 4 and the like of the recording apparatus when opened, and further provided with a locking portion 505a that is locked with the lower case portion 6 described later. ing.
[0031]
The lower case portion 6 is discharged by a power supply unit 601 housed and fixed, and a recovery operation performed by the discharge recovery processing unit 602 shown in FIG. 5 to maintain a good state of ink discharge from the recording head 401. And a drain ink tank 609 for storing ink.
[0032]
The ejection recovery processing unit 602 is provided at a side end inside the printing apparatus so as to face the printing head 401, and is provided so as to be in contact with and cover the nozzle unit 410 of the printing head 401 as shown in FIG. The pump 605 is connected to the cap 603, the cap 603 and the tube 604, and sucks ink from the recording head 401 through the nozzle unit 410, the lever 606 for operating the pump 605, and the ink tank 609 for discharging ink sucked by the pump 605. And a blade 608 for removing ink, paper powder, and the like attached to the surface of the nozzle 410 of the recording head 401.
[0033]
In the case of the present embodiment, the recovery operation by the discharge recovery processing unit 602 is configured to be performed based on an instruction from the user, and is also automatically performed at a predetermined timing such as at fixed time intervals. The configuration is such that a recovery operation is performed. The nozzle portion 410 of the recording head 401 is capped by the cap 603 of the ejection recovery processing unit 602 when the carriage 402 moves to the home position at the right end shown by the broken line in FIG.
[0034]
Next, the control configuration of the recording apparatus will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG.
[0035]
A CPU 506 controls the entire printing apparatus, and includes a timer 507 that manages time for control. A ROM 508 stores a control program of the CPU 506 and the like. A RAM 509 stores a work area when the control of the CPU 506 is executed, and information such as a position and a scanning speed of the carriage 402 by the encoder scale 407 and the sensor unit 408. Reference numeral 510 denotes an EEPROM capable of retaining information even when the power of the recording apparatus is turned off.
[0036]
Reference numeral 511 denotes an ejection heater driver for driving an ejection heater for ejecting ink according to desired recording information or the like of the recording head, and is electrically connected via a contact portion 401 a provided on the recording head 401. Reference numeral 512 denotes a carriage motor driver that drives a carriage motor 409 that scans the carriage 402 via the timing belt 406. Reference numeral 513 denotes a transport motor driver that drives and controls a transport motor 207 that drives the transport roller 201 and the feed roller 104. .
[0037]
The paper feed sensor 514 is a sensor for detecting the paper S fed from the automatic feeding unit 1 and detecting the presence or absence of the paper S in the transport unit 2 together with the paper ejection sensor 515. The paper feed sensor 514 is provided on the downstream side of the feed roller 104 of the automatic supply unit 1 and on the upstream side of the transport roller 201, and the paper discharge sensor 515 is provided on the downstream side of the paper discharge roller 203.
[0038]
Reference numeral 516 denotes a cover sensor as an open / close detecting unit for detecting the open / close state of the printer cover 505. In the case of this embodiment, a transmission type optical sensor is used. Reference numeral 517 denotes a closing means of the printer cover 505. The printer cover 505 is locked to the lower case portion 6 to be held in a closed state, and the printer cover 505 is released by releasing the lock with the lower case portion 6. This is a solenoid that can be deployed in an open state.
[0039]
An interface 518 connects the recording device to an electronic device such as a host computer. The recording device is electrically connected to the host computer and the like via the interface to exchange information.
[0040]
Next, the operation of the printer cover closing means of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8 which partially show the printer cover 505 and the lower case 6 in a sectional view.
[0041]
The closing means includes a solenoid 517 provided on the inner surface side of the lower case, and a protruding piece 517a provided to be able to protrude and retreat from the lower case to the printer cover 505 by energizing the solenoid 517.
[0042]
FIG. 7 shows a case where the solenoid is not energized, and the protruding piece 517a projects into the locking portion 505a of the printer cover 505. In this state, the printer cover 505 is locked by the lower case 6 and opened. There is no state.
[0043]
FIG. 8 shows a case where the solenoid 517 is energized, the protrusion 517a is sucked and retracted, and the printer cover 505 is released from the locked state and can be opened.
[0044]
Hereinafter, the operation of the carriage 402 and the solenoid 517 that is a cover closing unit when an error relating to the printing apparatus is detected in the printing apparatus of the present embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
[0045]
Here, as the error state relating to the printing apparatus, there are a conveyance failure of a printing medium such as paper, a request for replacement of the printing head 401 or the ink tank 405, and an instruction of an ejection recovery processing operation when the printing head 401 has a poor ink ejection. This will be described using an example.
[0046]
Here, the conveyance failure of the paper or the like is a state detected based on the paper feed sensor 514 and the paper discharge sensor 515. For example, the feeding amount of the feeding roller 104 of the automatic feeding unit 1 is determined by the feeding roller. If the paper to be fed is not detected by the paper feed sensor 514 even though the amount exceeds the amount corresponding to the transport roller 201 of the transport unit 2 from the transport unit 104, or the recording is performed by the transport roller 201 after the recording is completed. There is a case where the sheet is not detected by the sheet discharge sensor 515 even though the transport roller 201 is driven to exceed the amount corresponding to the amount to be discharged out of the apparatus.
[0047]
The request to replace the print head 401 or the ink tank 405 means that the user of the printing apparatus determines that the print head has a defect or the like and replaces the print head with a new print head, or the ink stored in the ink tank is exhausted. In some cases, such as when the user of the printing apparatus instructs replacement of the print head 401 or the ink tank 405, or the like.
[0048]
Further, the instruction for the ejection recovery operation of the recording head 401 is issued when a failure or the like occurs in the ink ejection state of the recording head and the recording result is blurred, and the user operates the operation panel 504 or a computer or the like connected to the recording apparatus. This occurs when an ejection recovery operation is instructed from an electronic device or when a predetermined timing to be automatically performed by the printing apparatus comes.
[0049]
Here, the replacement of the recording head or the ink tank and the recovery operation of the recording head are performed when there is no paper in the recording apparatus.
[0050]
First, when these error states are detected by the CPU 506 of the control unit 5, the type of the error state is determined, that is, whether the detected error state is a sheet conveyance failure (step S10). (Step S20) It is determined whether the instruction is a recovery operation instruction (Step S30).
[0051]
If it is determined in step S10 that the error state is a sheet conveyance failure, the carriage 402 is first retracted to the right end (home position) indicated by the broken line in FIG. 10 (step S11). At this time, the carriage 402 is driven at a lower speed than the scanning speed in the printing operation, and is driven at a scanning speed of 200 mm / s or less in the present embodiment. When the carriage 402 is located at the right end, the inside of the printing apparatus is exposed, but the carriage 402 is covered with the lower case 6.
[0052]
Next, the CPU 506 turns on the solenoid 517, which is a cover closing unit, as shown in FIG. 8, and pushes the protruding piece 517a of the solenoid to the locking portion 505a More evacuation (S12). With this operation, the locked state of the printer cover 505 is released, the inside of the recording apparatus can be exposed, and the apparatus stands by until a conveyance failure such as removal of jammed paper in the recording apparatus is taken (step S13). ).
[0053]
Next, when it is confirmed that the printer cover 505 is closed (step S14), the power to the solenoid 517 is turned off as shown in FIG. The protruding piece 517a is projected into the locking portion 505a of the printer cover 505 (S15). After that, the feeding roller 104 of the automatic feeding unit 1 is driven to recover the recording operation (S16), and the processing when the sheet conveyance failure is detected is terminated.
[0054]
If it is determined in step S20 that the replacement of the print head or the ink tank has been requested, the print head 402 and the ink tank 504 are first moved to a replaceable replacement position (step S21). Here, the replacement position is, as shown by a solid line in FIG. 10, when the printer cover 505 is opened and the inside of the printing apparatus is exposed, and the lower case 6 in which the printing head 402 and the ink tank 405 can be replaced. The position is not covered with the operation panel 504.
[0055]
After the carriage 402 is moved to the replacement position, the CPU 506 turns on the solenoid 517 to retract the protruding piece 517a of the solenoid as shown in FIG. 8, and releases the locked state of the printer cover 505 (step S22). ).
[0056]
Then, it is confirmed that the replacement of the recording head 401 or the ink tank 405 has been completed (step S23), and it is confirmed that the printer cover 505 opened for the replacement work has been closed (step S24).
[0057]
After confirming that the printer cover 505 is closed, the power supply to the solenoid 517 is turned off as shown in FIG. 7, and the printer cover 505 is again locked to the lower case 6 (step S25). . Next, the carriage 402 is moved to the home position (step S26), and an ejection recovery operation such as suction of ink from the recording head 401 is performed by the ejection recovery processing unit 602 (step S27), and the ink ejection state after replacement is normal. To end the process.
[0058]
If it is determined in step S30 that the error state is the instruction of the ejection recovery operation, it is first determined whether or not the current position of the carriage 402 is the home position (step S31). It is moved to the position (step S32). Thereafter, the ejection recovery processing unit 602 performs the ejection recovery processing of the recording head 402 (step S33), returns the carriage 402 to the home position again (step S34), and ends the processing in this case.
[0059]
If the detected error state is a recovery operation instruction, the recovery operation is performed after the normal carriage has moved to the home position. Therefore, in step S34, the carriage is not actually moved to the home position. .
[0060]
In the recording apparatus of the present embodiment, the types of error states are not limited to the above-described states, and the processing described above can be suitably applied to other error states. In this case, if the carriage needs to be moved according to the detected error state, the printer cover may be opened after the carriage has been moved.
[0061]
Further, the processing for the above error is not limited to the ink jet type recording apparatus, but can be applied to a thermal transfer type recording apparatus.
[0062]
In the present embodiment, a configuration is provided in which detection means for detecting the open / close state of the printer cover and closing means for opening and closing the printer cover are provided, and the operation of the closing means is controlled while monitoring the detection result of the opening / closing detection means. However, the processing related to the opening / closing detection unit may be omitted as a configuration without the opening / closing detection unit. In such a configuration, the device becomes cheaper.
[0063]
Further, as a process when an error state is detected, a process of notifying by an LED or the like provided on the operation panel 504 or a process of notifying via an electronic device such as a computer electrically connected to the recording device may be added. Good.
[0064]
Further, in the present embodiment, the user determines the amount of ink stored and issues a replacement instruction in response to the ink tank replacement request. The ink tank may be provided and instructed and requested to be replaced based on the detection result.
[0065]
According to the first embodiment of the recording apparatus of the present invention described above, the following effects can be obtained.
[0066]
Since the position of the carriage and the means for closing the printer cover are controlled according to the detected error state, it is not necessary to move the carriage after opening the printer cover in the case of an error state. It is possible to simplify the operation and take quick action.
[0067]
Specifically, when the recording head or the ink tank is replaced, the carriage is moved to a predetermined replacement position before the printer cover is opened, so that the replacement operation can be performed easily and quickly.
[0068]
In addition, when a paper conveyance failure is detected, the scanning speed of the carriage to the home position is set lower than the normal moving speed, so that the carriage may be damaged even if the paper is jammed or intersected with the carriage. Can be reduced.
[0069]
If the carriage needs to be moved to cope with the error, the movement of the carriage is completed before the printer cover is opened, so that safety can be ensured even for a user who is not used to handling the device.
[0070]
The printer cover of the recording device is held locked to the lower case during recording operation and standby, which prevents erroneous operations inside the recording device and can be used safely even in homes with infants. it can.
[0071]
Hereinafter, a second embodiment of the recording apparatus of the present invention will be described.
[0072]
In the first embodiment, means for detecting the open / closed state of the printer cover that can expose the inside of the recording device when opened, and closing means for opening and closing the printer cover are provided. Although the carriage of the recording apparatus and the cover closing means are configured to be controlled, in this embodiment, a printer cover open / close detection means is not provided, and a damper gear having a damper function is provided as the closing means. Other configurations are the same as in the first embodiment.
[0073]
FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram illustrating the appearance of the recording apparatus of the present embodiment. In this embodiment, the printer cover 505 is configured to open to the front side as shown by a solid line in the drawing. In this state, the inside of the recording apparatus is exposed, and at the same time, the paper transport as described in the previous embodiment is performed. It is configured such that an operation of removing paper jammed inside the recording apparatus due to a defect or the like and an exchange operation of exchanging the recording head 401 or the ink tank 405 can be performed.
[0074]
FIG. 12 is a partial perspective view illustrating the operation of the printer cover 505. The printer cover 505 of the present embodiment has a rotation shaft 505b serving as a center when the printer cover 505 rotates, a damper gear 505d fixedly provided on the lower case 6, and having a damper function, and a circle meshing with the damper gear 505d. An arc-shaped rack gear 505c is provided.
[0075]
The damper gear 505d is a gear that has an oil damper or the like and rotates viscously according to the weight of the mating member and the like. For example, when the printer cover is opened as shown by a broken line in FIG. 12, the damper gear is not used. It is configured to open at a slower speed than in the case.
[0076]
In the present embodiment, the printer cover 505 is changed from a closed state shown by a solid line in FIG. 12 to an open state shown by a broken line, that is, an operation for removing paper jammed inside the printing apparatus, the print head 401 or the ink tank 405. It takes about 2 seconds to shift to a state in which the inside of the recording apparatus is exposed so that the replacement operation can be performed.
[0077]
Next, an operation when an error state is detected in the recording apparatus of the present embodiment will be described with reference to a flowchart of FIG. The present embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that there is no solenoid which is a closing means of the printer cover or an open / close detecting means for detecting the open / close state, so that there is no operation related to these.
[0078]
First, when an error state relating to the recording apparatus is detected, as in the first embodiment, the type of the error state is indicated by a sheet conveyance failure, a request to replace a recording head or an ink tank, and an instruction for a recovery operation. The determination is made in step S40, step S50, and step S60 for three types.
[0079]
If it is determined in step S40 that the error state is a conveyance failure of a sheet or the like detected based on the sheet feeding sensor 514 or the sheet ejection sensor 515, first, an electronic device such as a computer connected to the recording device or an operation is performed. An error is notified by an LED (not shown) provided on the panel 504 (step S41). Next, similarly to the first embodiment, the carriage is moved to the home position shown in FIG. 10 at a speed lower than the normal scanning speed and retracted (step S42).
[0080]
Thereafter, it is detected whether or not the sheet that caused the conveyance failure has been removed based on the sheet feed sensor 514 and the sheet ejection sensor 515 (step S43), and after confirming that the sheet has been removed, recording is performed again. A recovery process such as feeding a sheet from the automatic feeding unit 1 of the apparatus is performed (step S44).
[0081]
Here, in the case of the present embodiment, the time required from the notification of the error to the completion of the movement of the carriage to the home position is about 1 second, which is usually required for opening the printer cover 505 and exposing the inside of the recording apparatus. The movement of the carriage is completed in a shorter time than the required time. Therefore, similarly to the first embodiment, when the user opens the printer cover, the carriage is retracted to a position where it does not interfere, so that the paper can be safely and quickly removed.
[0082]
If it is determined in step S50 that the error state is a request to replace the recording head 401, the ink tank 405, or the like, a notification of an error such as "Please replace the ink tank" is sent to a computer or the like connected to the recording apparatus. This is performed by using the electronic device described above or an LED (not shown) provided on the operation panel 504 (step S51), and the carriage is moved to the exchange position shown in FIG. 10 (step S52).
[0083]
The moving speed of the carriage 402 in this case is also lower than the normal scanning speed of, for example, 200 mm / s or less. Thereafter, the process waits until the replacement of the recording head and the ink tank is completed (step S53). When the completion of the replacement is confirmed, the carriage is moved to the home position again at a low speed (step S54), and the replacement of the recording head and the ink tank is performed. The subsequent recovery operation is performed by the discharge recovery processing unit 602 (step S54).
[0084]
Also in this case, the time required from the notification that the recording head or the ink tank needs to be exchanged to the time when the carriage moves to the exchange position is about 1 second, and the printer cover 505 is opened to expose the inside of the recording apparatus. The movement of the carriage is completed in a time shorter than the time required for the movement.
[0085]
If it is determined in step S60 that the error state is an instruction for the recovery operation of the recording head 401, the error state is provided on an electronic device such as a computer or an operation panel 504 connected to the recording apparatus, as in steps S41 and S51. An error notification such as "Perform the recovery operation" is performed by an LED (not shown) or the like (step S61), and it is confirmed whether or not the carriage is at the home position where the recovery operation is performed (step S62).
[0086]
If the current position of the carriage 402 is not the home position, the carriage 402 is moved to the home position at a speed of 200 mm / s or less (step S63), and a recovery operation is executed (step S64), as in steps S42 and S52. Thereafter, the carriage is moved to the home position again (step S65), and the process is terminated.
[0087]
If the detected error state is a recovery operation instruction, the recovery operation is executed after the normal carriage has moved to the home position. Therefore, in step S65, the carriage is not actually moved to the home position. .
[0088]
In this case, as in the case described above, the time required from the notification of the error state to the start of the recovery operation is about 1 second.
[0089]
In this embodiment, in addition to the above-described configuration, an open / close detecting unit that detects an open / closed state of the printer cover can be provided.In this case, it is determined that the printer cover is opened during the printing operation of the printing apparatus or during standby. When it is detected, it may be processed as an error state. In this way, for example, if the printer cover is opened during printing, the printing operation is temporarily interrupted, the carriage is moved at a low speed to retract to the home position, and then waits until the printer cover is closed. It is also conceivable that the recording operation is restarted after it is confirmed that the recording medium is closed.
[0090]
According to the second embodiment of the recording apparatus of the present invention described above, the following effects can be obtained.
[0091]
The position of the carriage is moved to the position where the subsequent work is performed according to the detected error condition.Therefore, when an error condition occurs, it is not necessary to move the carriage after opening the printer cover. It is possible to make the operation of the user simple and to cope quickly.
[0092]
Specifically, when replacing the recording head and the ink tank, the carriage is moved to a predetermined replacement position while the printer cover is open, so that the replacement operation can be performed easily and quickly.
[0093]
In addition, when a paper conveyance failure is detected, the scanning speed of the carriage to the home position is set lower than the normal moving speed, so that the carriage may be damaged even if the paper is jammed or intersected with the carriage. Can be reduced.
[0094]
If the carriage needs to be moved to cope with the error, the movement of the carriage is completed while the printer cover is open, ensuring safety even for users who are not used to handling the equipment. .
[0095]
In the above embodiments, the description has been made assuming that the droplets ejected from the recording head are ink, and the liquid contained in the ink tank is ink, but the contained matter is limited to ink. Not something. For example, an ink tank may contain a processing liquid discharged to a recording medium in order to improve the fixability and water resistance of a recorded image or to improve the image quality.
[0096]
Further, in the above-described embodiment, the ink tank is configured to be detachable from the recording head. However, these may be integrally formed to constitute an ink cartridge that can be replaced at the same time.
[0097]
The above-described embodiment includes a means (for example, an electrothermal converter or a laser beam) for generating thermal energy as energy used for causing ink to be ejected, particularly in an ink jet recording system. By using a method that causes a change in the state, it is possible to achieve higher density and higher definition of recording.
[0098]
Regarding the typical configuration and principle, it is preferable to use the basic principle disclosed in, for example, US Pat. Nos. 4,723,129 and 4,740,796. This method can be applied to both the so-called on-demand type and the continuous type. In particular, in the case of the on-demand type, it is arranged corresponding to the sheet or liquid path holding the liquid (ink). By applying at least one drive signal corresponding to recording information and giving a sharp temperature rise exceeding nucleate boiling to the electrothermal transducer, heat energy is generated in the electrothermal transducer, and a recording head is produced. This is effective because a film in the liquid (ink) corresponding to this drive signal can be formed on a one-to-one basis by causing film boiling on the heat acting surface. By discharging the liquid (ink) through the discharge opening by the growth and contraction of the bubble, at least one droplet is formed. When the drive signal is in a pulse shape, the growth and shrinkage of the bubble are performed immediately and appropriately, so that the ejection of liquid (ink) having particularly excellent responsiveness can be achieved, which is more preferable.
[0099]
As the pulse-shaped drive signal, those described in US Pat. Nos. 4,463,359 and 4,345,262 are suitable. Further, if the conditions described in US Pat. No. 4,313,124 of the invention relating to the temperature rise rate of the heat acting surface are adopted, more excellent recording can be performed.
[0100]
As the configuration of the recording head, in addition to the combination of the discharge port, the liquid path, and the electrothermal converter (the linear liquid flow path or the right-angled liquid flow path) as disclosed in each of the above-mentioned specifications, a heat acting surface A configuration using U.S. Pat. No. 4,558,333 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,459,600, which disclose a configuration in which is disposed in a bending region, is also included in the present invention. In addition, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 59-123670 discloses a configuration in which a common slot is used as a discharge portion of an electrothermal converter for a plurality of electrothermal converters, or an opening for absorbing a pressure wave of thermal energy is discharged. A configuration based on JP-A-59-138461, which discloses a configuration corresponding to each unit, may be adopted.
[0101]
Further, as a full-line type recording head having a length corresponding to the width of the maximum recording medium that can be recorded by the recording apparatus, the length is satisfied by a combination of a plurality of recording heads as disclosed in the above specification. Either the configuration or the configuration as one recording head integrally formed may be used.
[0102]
In addition, not only the cartridge-type recording head in which the ink tank is provided integrally with the recording head itself described in the above embodiment, but also the electric connection with the apparatus main body by being attached to the apparatus main body. A replaceable chip-type recording head that can supply ink from the apparatus main body may be used.
[0103]
Further, it is preferable to add recovery means for the printhead, preliminary auxiliary means, and the like to the configuration of the printing apparatus described above, since the printing operation can be further stabilized. Specific examples thereof include capping means for the recording head, cleaning means, pressurizing or sucking means, preheating means using an electrothermal transducer or another heating element or a combination thereof. It is also effective to provide a preliminary ejection mode for performing ejection that is different from printing, in order to perform stable printing.
[0104]
Further, the printing mode of the printing apparatus is not limited to a printing mode of only a mainstream color such as black, and may be a printing head integrally formed or a combination of a plurality of printing heads. The device may be provided with at least one of the full colors.
[0105]
In the above-described embodiment, the description has been made on the assumption that the ink is a liquid.However, even if the ink solidifies at room temperature or below, an ink that softens or liquefies at room temperature may be used. Alternatively, in the ink jet system, the temperature of the ink itself is controlled within a range of 30 ° C. or more and 70 ° C. or less to control the temperature so that the viscosity of the ink is in a stable ejection range. It is sufficient if the ink is sometimes in a liquid state.
[0106]
In addition, to prevent the temperature rise due to thermal energy from being used as the energy of the state change of the ink from the solid state to the liquid state, or to prevent the ink from evaporating, the ink solidifies in a standing state. Alternatively, ink that liquefies by heating may be used. In any case, the application of heat energy causes the ink to be liquefied by the application of the heat energy according to the recording signal and the liquid ink to be ejected, or to start solidifying when it reaches the recording medium. The present invention is also applicable to a case where an ink having a property of liquefying for the first time is used. In such a case, as described in JP-A-54-56847 or JP-A-60-71260, the ink is held in a liquid state or a solid state in the concave portion or through hole of the porous sheet. It is good also as a form which opposes an electrothermal transducer. In the present invention, the most effective one for each of the above-mentioned inks is to execute the above-mentioned film boiling method.
[0107]
The present invention can be applied to a system including a plurality of devices (for example, a host computer, an interface device, a reader, a printer, etc.), but it can be applied to a device including one device (for example, a copier, a facsimile device, etc.). May be applied.
[0108]
Further, an object of the present invention is to provide a storage medium storing a program code of software for realizing the functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or an apparatus, and a computer (or CPU or MPU) of the system or apparatus to store the storage medium. It is needless to say that the present invention can also be achieved by reading and executing the program code stored in the program.
[0109]
In this case, the program code itself read from the storage medium realizes the function of the above-described embodiment, and the storage medium storing the program code constitutes the present invention.
[0110]
As a storage medium for supplying the program code, for example, a floppy disk, a hard disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, a CD-ROM, a CD-R, a magnetic tape, a nonvolatile memory card, a ROM, and the like can be used.
[0111]
When the computer executes the readout program code, not only the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized, but also an OS (Operating System) running on the computer based on the instruction of the program code. It goes without saying that a part or all of the actual processing is performed and the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized by the processing.
[0112]
Further, after the program code read from the storage medium is written into a memory provided in a function expansion board inserted into the computer or a function expansion unit connected to the computer, the function expansion is performed based on the instruction of the program code. It goes without saying that a CPU or the like provided in the board or the function expansion unit performs part or all of the actual processing, and the processing realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments.
[0113]
When the present invention is applied to the storage medium, the storage medium stores program codes corresponding to the above-described flowcharts (shown in FIG. 9 or FIG. 13).
[0114]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the recording apparatus of the present invention, when it is necessary to open the cover of the recording apparatus and perform the recovery processing, the recording apparatus is suitable for performing the cover closing means or the cover opening operation and the recovery processing. By controlling the movement of the carriage in association with the moved position, the user can quickly and easily perform maintenance when an error occurs in a safe state.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view illustrating an appearance of a recording apparatus according to a first embodiment of the invention.
FIG. 2 is a schematic sectional view showing a section of the recording apparatus of FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a recording head of the recording apparatus of FIG.
FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a carriage of the printing apparatus of FIG. 1;
FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of an ejection recovery processing unit of the printing apparatus of FIG. 1;
FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a control configuration of the printing apparatus of FIG. 1;
FIG. 7 is a first partial sectional view for explaining the operation of the printer cover of the recording apparatus in FIG. 1;
FIG. 8 is a second partial sectional view illustrating the operation of the printer cover of the recording apparatus in FIG. 1;
FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the recording apparatus in FIG. 1 when an error is detected.
FIG. 10 is a partial perspective view illustrating a position of a carriage of the printing apparatus of FIG. 1;
FIG. 11 is a schematic perspective view illustrating an appearance of a recording apparatus according to a second embodiment of the invention.
FIG. 12 is a partial perspective view illustrating the operation of the printer cover of the recording apparatus in FIG. 11;
FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the recording apparatus of FIG. 11 when an error is detected.
[Explanation of symbols]
1 Automatic feeding unit
2 Transport section
3 discharge section
4 Recorder
5 Control part
6 Lower case
101 Paper tray
102 pressure plate
103 spring
104 Separation roller
105 Paper Bundle
106,107 Guide member
201 transport roller
202 pinch roller
203 discharge roller
204 Transmission roller
205 spurs
206 Platen
207 Transport motor
301, 302 tray
303 Stopper
401 print head
402 carriage
403,404 Guide shaft
405 ink tank
406 timing belt
407 encoder
408 Encoder sensor
409 Carriage motor
410 nozzle
411 Home position detection member
501 Inner cover
502 control board
503 Panel board
504 Operation panel
505 Upper case
506 MPU
507 timer
508 ROM
509 RAM
510 EEPROM
511 Discharge heater driver
512 Carriage motor driver
513 Transport motor driver
514 Feed sensor
515 Paper ejection sensor
516 Interface section
517 Solenoid
601 power supply
602 Discharge recovery processing unit
603 cap
604 tubes
605 pump
606 lever
607 Drain ink tube
608 wiper
609 Waste ink tank

Claims (17)

A recording apparatus that performs recording by scanning a carriage equipped with a recording head on a recording medium,
A cover that is provided so as to be openable and closable and that at least partially exposes a moving range of the carriage when opened;
Closing means for holding the cover in a closed state during operation of the recording device;
Detecting means for detecting that an error occurred in the recording device or an instruction from a user has caused the need to open the cover,
Determining means for determining the type of the error or the instruction from the user detected by the detecting means,
Movement control means for moving the carriage to a position corresponding to the type determined by the determination means,
And a closing release means for releasing the closing means after the movement of the carriage by the movement control means is completed. A recording apparatus that performs recording by scanning a carriage equipped with a recording head on a recording medium,
A cover that is provided so as to be openable and closable and that at least partially exposes a moving range of the carriage when opened;
Detecting means for detecting that an error occurred in the recording device or an instruction from a user has caused the need to open the cover,
Determining means for determining the type of the error or the instruction from the user detected by the detecting means,
Movement control means for moving the carriage to a position corresponding to the type determined by the determination means,
The recording apparatus, wherein the movement control means moves the carriage in a time shorter than a time required for opening the cover. 3. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the detection unit detects at least an error relating to conveyance of the recording medium and an instruction from a user regarding replacement of the recording head. The movement control unit moves the carriage to a home position when it is determined that the type is an error related to the conveyance of the recording medium, and determines that the type is an instruction from a user regarding replacement of the recording head. 4. The recording apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the carriage is moved to a position where the recording head can be replaced when the recording is performed. 3. The recording apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the cover has damper means for reducing an opening speed. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the movement control unit moves the carriage at a speed lower than a scanning speed at which printing is performed. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an opening / closing detection unit configured to detect an opening / closing state of the cover. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a notification unit configured to notify the type determined by the determination unit. 9. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recording head is an inkjet recording head that performs recording by discharging ink. 10. The recording head according to claim 9, wherein the recording head is a recording head that ejects ink using thermal energy, and includes a thermal energy converter for generating thermal energy to be applied to the ink. Recording device. A recording apparatus that performs recording by scanning a carriage on which a recording head is mounted on a recording medium, and is provided so as to be openable and closable, and has a cover in which a movement range of the carriage is at least partially exposed when opened. Cover opening and closing control method,
A closing step of holding the cover in a closed state during operation of the recording device;
A detection step of detecting that an error occurred in the recording apparatus or an instruction from a user has caused the need to open the cover,
A determining step of determining the type of the error or the instruction from the user detected in the detecting step;
A movement control step of moving the carriage to a position corresponding to the type determined in the determination step,
A closing release step for releasing the closed state of the cover after the movement of the carriage in the movement control step is completed. A recording apparatus that performs recording by scanning a carriage on which a recording head is mounted on a recording medium, and is provided so as to be openable and closable, and has a cover in which a movement range of the carriage is at least partially exposed when opened. Cover opening and closing control method,
A detection step of detecting that an error occurred in the recording apparatus or an instruction from a user has caused the need to open the cover,
A determining step of determining the type of the error or the instruction from the user detected in the detecting step;
A movement control step of moving the carriage to a position corresponding to the type determined in the determination step,
In the above movement control step, a method for controlling the opening and closing of a cover of a recording apparatus, wherein the carriage is moved in a time shorter than a time required for opening the cover. 13. The method according to claim 11, wherein the detecting step detects at least an error relating to conveyance of the recording medium and an instruction from a user regarding replacement of the recording head. The movement control step includes moving the carriage to a home position when it is determined that the type is an error related to conveyance of the recording medium, and determining that the type is an instruction from a user regarding replacement of the recording head. 14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the carriage is moved to a position where the recording head can be replaced when the operation is performed. 15. The method according to claim 11, wherein, in the movement control step, the carriage is moved at a speed lower than a scanning speed at the time of performing printing. 16. 16. The method according to claim 11, further comprising an open / close detection step of detecting an open / closed state of the cover. 17. The method according to claim 11, further comprising a notification step of notifying a user of the type determined in the determination step.

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