JP2006130826A - Inkjet printer - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an inkjet printer which can carry out stable image recording by performing cleaning or replacement of a joint part with an ink tank of an ink tank loading part at a suitable time, and preventing solidification and clogging of the joint part. <P>SOLUTION: The inkjet printer is equipped with the ink tank 11 which stores ink, the ink tank loading part 12 which has a lid part 15 and the joint part 19 and loads the ink tank 11, an opening and closing sensor 18 which detects the number of opening and closing times of the lid part 15, a recording head 7 which ejects the ink supplied from the ink tank 11, and a display part 25 which notifies that cleaning or replacement of the joint part 19 is necessary when the number of opening and closing times of the lid part 15 detected by the opening and closing sensor 18 becomes not smaller than a predetermined number of times. The lid part 15 becomes open by the insertion of the ink tank 11, and the joint part 19 is connected with the ink tank 11 when the ink tank 11 is loaded. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an ink jet printer, and more particularly to an ink jet printer that supplies ink from an ink tank that is detachably provided.

  In general, an ink jet printer that performs image recording by an ink jet method is known as a means for performing printing on various recording media. Ink jet printers, for example, use a piezo element or a heater to eject ink from the nozzles of the recording head as fine droplets toward a recording medium such as paper, and then adjust the recording head while penetrating or fixing the ink to the recording medium. Since the image is recorded on the recording medium by moving it on the recording medium, there is an advantage that printing according to demand is possible because a plate making process is not required. In particular, in recent years, inkjet printers using a photocurable ink that is cured by light such as ultraviolet rays have been known. According to this, ink is cured by irradiating the ink landed on the recording medium with light. Since the image can be fixed on the recording medium, printing can be easily performed even on a recording medium that does not absorb ink, such as a transparent or translucent resin film.

  Such an ink jet printer generally includes an ink tank that stores a predetermined amount of ink, and continuous image recording is possible by appropriately supplying ink from the ink tank to the recording head. As an ink tank used for an ink jet printer, for example, a cartridge type has been proposed, and such a cartridge type ink tank is detachably loaded in an ink tank loading section (for example, Patent Document 1).

  The ink tank loading section for loading the ink tank has an opening for inserting the ink tank. Therefore, when the ink tank is not loaded, dust or the like can enter the ink tank loading section from the opening. There is a risk of intrusion. In addition, when the ink used for image recording is an ultraviolet curable ink that is cured by irradiating ultraviolet rays, when the ink tank is not loaded in the ink tank loading unit, the opening of the ink tank loading unit There is a problem that the ink adhering to the inside of the ink tank loading section is cured by being irradiated with ultraviolet rays.

In view of this, it has been proposed to provide a lid that can be freely opened and closed at the opening of the ink tank loading unit to prevent dust and the like from entering the ink tank loading unit and ultraviolet irradiation.
Japanese Patent Publication No.7-12677

  However, if the ink tank is repeatedly attached to and detached from the ink tank loading part, ink or the like adheres to the joint part, which is the connection part with the ink tank inside the ink tank loading part, and the joint part becomes dirty and the ink is solidified or clogged. Etc. When the joint portion is solidified or clogged, the stability of the ink feeding from the ink tank is impaired, and the liquid feeding accuracy may be lowered. In this case, ink is not normally supplied from the ink tank to the recording head, and high-definition image recording cannot be performed.

  Also, if the joint part becomes dirty and the ink is solidified, the ink tank may not be properly connected to the joint part when the ink tank is loaded in the ink tank loading part, which may cause ink leakage or poor mounting. There is.

  Therefore, it is necessary to clean and replace the joint part as appropriate, but generally it is difficult to observe the internal state of the ink tank loading part from the outside, especially when a lid is provided on the ink tank loading part. It is almost impossible to grasp the internal state from the outside. For this reason, even if the joint portion is solidified or clogged, it cannot be confirmed, and the joint portion may be left as it is without being cleaned or replaced. On the other hand, if the joint part is frequently cleaned or replaced in order to prevent the joint part from being solidified, there is a problem that it is inefficient.

  Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and cleaning or replacement of the joint portion with the ink tank of the ink tank loading portion is performed at an appropriate time to prevent the joint portion from being solidified or clogged. An object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet printer capable of performing stable image recording.

In order to solve such a problem, the invention described in claim 1 includes an ink tank for storing ink,
An ink tank loading portion for loading the ink tank, the lid portion being opened by insertion of the ink tank and a joint portion connected to the ink tank when the ink tank is loaded;
Open / close detecting means for detecting opening / closing of the lid,
A recording head for discharging ink supplied from the ink tank;
Informing means for notifying that the joint part needs to be cleaned or replaced when the number of opening and closing times of the lid detected by the opening and closing detecting means is equal to or greater than a predetermined number of times. Yes.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention having such a configuration, the opening / closing detection means detects the opening / closing of the lid of the ink tank loading section for loading the ink tank for storing ink, and the opening / closing detection means detects the opening / closing of the lid. When the number of times of opening and closing becomes equal to or greater than a predetermined number, the notification means notifies that the joint portion needs to be cleaned or replaced.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the ink jet printer according to the first aspect, when the number of times of opening and closing of the lid detected by the open / close detection unit is more than one, the notification by the notification unit is performed. With setting means that can set
The setting means is characterized in that the opening / closing frequency of the lid can be set within a range of 10 to 5000 times.

  The invention according to claim 2 having such a configuration allows the setting means to set the number of times of opening and closing the lid part that requires cleaning or replacement of the joint part within a range of 10 to 5000 times. ing.

  According to a third aspect of the invention, in the ink jet printer according to the first or second aspect of the invention, the recording head is configured to heat the ink that is a liquid having a viscosity of 10 to 500 mPa · s at 30 ° C. by a heating unit. It is characterized by being heated to ˜150 ° C. and ejected so that one dot becomes a small droplet of 2 to 20 pl.

  In the invention according to claim 3 having such a configuration, image recording is performed using a high-viscosity ink having a viscosity of 10 to 500 mPa · s at 30 ° C.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the inkjet printer according to any one of the first to third aspects, the ink is a photocurable ink that is cured by irradiating light, and the recording head is used. In addition, a light irradiating device for irradiating light onto the ink landed on the recording medium is provided on the downstream side in the transport direction of the recording medium.

  In the invention according to claim 4 having such a configuration, the ink is cured and fixed onto the recording medium by irradiating the ink ejected from the recording head with light.

  Further, the invention according to claim 5 is the ink jet printer according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the ink is an ultraviolet curable ink that is cured by irradiating with ultraviolet rays, and the light irradiation. It is characterized in that at least a part of light emitted from the apparatus is ultraviolet light.

  As described above, in the invention described in claim 5, the ink is cured and fixed on the recording medium by irradiating the ink ejected from the recording head with ultraviolet rays.

  Next, an invention according to claim 6 is the ink jet printer according to claim 5, wherein the ink is a high-viscosity ink and is a cationic polymerization type ultraviolet curable ink.

  According to the invention described in claim 6, image recording is performed using a high viscosity ink, in particular, a cationic polymerization type ultraviolet curable ink mainly composed of a monomer.

  Next, the invention according to claim 7 is the ink jet printer according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the recording medium has no ink absorbability.

  Therefore, in the invention described in claim 7, image recording is performed on a recording medium having no ink absorbability such as resin.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, when the ink tank loading unit is provided with a lid to prevent light shielding and dust and the like from entering, the state inside the ink tank loading unit cannot be directly visually confirmed. However, it is possible to properly grasp the timing for cleaning and replacing the joint portion of the ink tank loading portion. For this reason, it is possible to prevent the ink from solidifying or clogging in the joint portion, and the ink feeding accuracy from the ink tank is maintained and the ink is always supplied normally to the recording head. There is an effect that high-definition image recording can be performed.

  In addition, since the joint part can be appropriately cleaned and replaced before the joint part becomes dirty and the ink is solidified, when the ink tank is loaded in the ink tank loading part, the ink tank is poorly mounted, There is an effect that ink leakage does not occur.

  In addition, since the user is informed that the joint portion of the ink tank loading portion needs to be cleaned and replaced, there is an effect that the user can easily grasp when the joint portion should be cleaned and replaced.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, the number of times of opening and closing of the lid part that requires cleaning and replacement of the joint part can be set within a range of 10 to 5000 times. It can be set arbitrarily according to the use conditions and the like, and there is an effect that the joint portion can be efficiently cleaned and replaced.

  Next, according to the invention described in claim 3, since the high-viscosity ink having a viscosity of 10 to 500 mPa · s at 30 ° C. is used, the recording medium P can be used even for the recording medium P having no ink absorbability. It is possible to perform high-quality image recording without causing ink flow or the like above, and even when such high viscosity ink is used, the timing for cleaning and replacing the joint portion of the ink tank loading portion As a result, it is possible to properly grasp the ink, and it is possible to maintain the liquid feeding accuracy of the ink from the ink tank, and to prevent improper mounting of the ink tank.

  Further, since the ink is heated to 30 to 150 ° C. and discharged from the recording head, it is possible to perform image recording while maintaining good ink discharge from the nozzle, and further, the ink is 2 to 20 pl per dot. Since the liquid droplets are ejected in small droplets, a high-quality image can be obtained even with high viscosity ink. Even in such a case, it is possible to appropriately grasp the timing of cleaning and replacement of the joint portion of the ink tank loading portion, and it is possible to maintain the liquid feeding accuracy of the ink from the ink tank, and to mount the ink tank poorly. There is an effect that can be prevented.

  According to the invention described in claim 4, since the ink is cured by irradiating the ink with light, it is possible to form an image even on a recording medium having poor ink absorbability such as a resin film. However, even in such a case, it is possible to properly grasp the timing of cleaning and replacement of the joint part of the ink tank loading part, and it is possible to maintain the liquid feeding accuracy from the ink tank and to install the ink tank. There exists an effect that a defect etc. can be prevented.

  According to the invention described in claim 5, since the ink is cured by irradiating the ink with ultraviolet rays, it is possible to form an image even on a recording medium having poor ink absorption such as a resin film. However, even in such a case, it is possible to properly grasp the timing of cleaning and replacement of the joint part of the ink tank loading part, and it is possible to maintain the liquid feeding accuracy from the ink tank and to install the ink tank. There exists an effect that a defect etc. can be prevented.

  Furthermore, according to the invention described in claim 6, even when a high-viscosity ink, particularly a cationic ultraviolet curable ink mainly composed of a monomer, is used, It is possible to appropriately grasp the cleaning and replacement timing, maintain the liquid feeding accuracy of the ink from the ink tank, and prevent the ink tank from being mounted poorly.

  According to the invention described in claim 7, high-viscosity ink is used in order to prevent ink from flowing on the recording medium even when an image is recorded on a recording medium having no ink absorption such as resin. Even in such a case, it is possible to appropriately grasp the timing of cleaning and replacement of the joint portion of the ink tank loading portion, and it is possible to maintain the accuracy of ink feeding from the ink tank and to maintain the ink tank. There is an effect that it is possible to prevent a mounting failure or the like.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of an ink jet printer according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4.

  First, as shown in FIG. 1, in this embodiment, the ink jet printer 1 is an ink jet printer 1 of a serial printing system, and the ink jet printer 1 is formed in a flat plate shape and supports a recording medium P from a non-recording surface. A platen 2 is provided. Conveying rollers 3 and 4 for conveying the recording medium P while maintaining the substantially same height as the platen 2 are rotatably provided on the upstream side and the downstream side of the platen 2, respectively. The conveyance rollers 3 and 4 are rotated by the mechanism 26 (see FIG. 4), and are conveyed along the upper surface of the platen 2 in a predetermined conveyance direction X.

  Above the platen 2, a rod-shaped guide rail 5 extending in the main scanning direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction X of the recording medium P is provided. A carriage 6 is supported on the guide rail 5, and the carriage 6 reciprocates in the main scanning direction along the guide rail 5 by a carriage drive mechanism 27 (see FIG. 4).

  A recording head 7 corresponding to each color (for example, yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), black (K)) used in the ink jet printer 1 according to the present embodiment is mounted on the carriage 6. ing. A plurality of nozzles (not shown) for ejecting ink are provided on the surface of the recording head 7 facing the recording medium P. For example, a piezo element (not shown) as a piezoelectric element that is deformed by applying a voltage is attached to the nozzle of each recording head 7, and the piezo element is deformed by applying a driving voltage to the piezo element. Thus, the ink flow path is compressed and ink is ejected from the nozzles. In addition, a heater (not shown) is provided in the ink flow path so as to heat the ink before the ink is ejected. In order to enable high-definition image recording, it is desirable that the ink is ejected as minute droplets in which one dot is 2 to 20 pl. Further, the ink used in the inkjet printer 1 is not limited to those illustrated, and for example, colors such as light yellow (LY), light magenta (LM), and light cyan (LC) can be used. In this case, a recording head corresponding to each color is mounted on the carriage.

  The ink used in the present embodiment is a photocurable ink having a property of being cured when irradiated with ultraviolet rays as light, and has at least a polymerizable compound (including a known polymerizable compound) as a main component. And a photoinitiator and a coloring material. The photocurable ink is roughly classified into a radical polymerization ink containing a radical polymerizable compound as a polymerizable compound and a cationic polymerization ink containing a cationic polymerizable compound. Both inks are included in this embodiment. Each can be applied as an ink to be used. Further, a hybrid ink in which a radical polymerization ink and a cation polymerization ink are combined may be applied as the ink used in this embodiment. However, since cationic polymerization inks that have little or no inhibitory action on polymerization reaction due to oxygen are superior in functionality and versatility, it is particularly preferable to use cationic polymerization inks. The cationic polymerization ink is a mixture containing at least a cationic polymerizable compound such as an oxetane compound, an epoxy compound, and a vinyl ether compound, a photocationic initiator, and a coloring material.

  The ink used in this embodiment is a high-viscosity ink having a viscosity at 30 ° C. of 10 to 500 mPa · s. Since the viscosity of the ink is lowered by heating the ink, even when high-viscosity ink is smoothly ejected and ejected as fine droplets, the ink can be landed accurately on the recording medium to enable high-definition image recording. For this purpose, it is desirable to heat the temperature of the ink to 30 ° C. to 150 ° C. with a heater before discharging the ink.

  Further, an ultraviolet irradiation device 8 having a length dimension substantially equal to the length of the recording head 7 in the recording medium conveyance direction X is provided inside the carriage 6 and between the side wall of the carriage 6 and the recording head 7. Extending in the longitudinal direction. The ultraviolet irradiation device 8 is provided with an ultraviolet light source (not shown). As the ultraviolet light source, for example, a high pressure mercury lamp, a low pressure mercury lamp, a metal halide lamp, a semiconductor laser, a cold cathode tube, an excimer lamp, or an LED (Light Emitting Diode) can be applied. The position where the ultraviolet irradiation device 8 is provided is not limited to this. For example, the ultraviolet irradiation device may be provided between the recording heads.

  An intermediate tank that temporarily stores yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K) inks on the back side of the carriage 6 and below the recording head 7. The intermediate tank 10 communicates with the corresponding recording head 7 of each color through an ink supply tube 9 and a damper 28 each formed of a flexible material.

  Each intermediate tank 10 is connected to an ink tank loading section 12 for loading an ink tank 11 for storing ink of each color via an ink supply pipe 9.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, an opening 13 for inserting the ink tank 11 is formed in the upper part of the ink tank loading unit 12 in FIGS. 2 and 3. A support shaft 14 extending in the horizontal direction in FIGS. 2 and 3 is provided along one side surface inside the ink tank loading portion 12, and a cover portion 15 that covers the opening 13 is supported on the support shaft 14. The shaft 14 is pivotally supported with the shaft 14 as a fulcrum. The support shaft 14 is provided with an urging member (not shown) composed of, for example, a torsion coil spring, and the lid portion 15 is urged upward in FIGS. 2 and 3 by this urging member. Has been. In addition, the structure which urges | biases the cover part 15 to upper direction is not limited to what was illustrated here, You may make it urge | bias a cover part by structures other than a torsion coil spring.

  The ink tank loading part 12 and its lid part 15 are made of, for example, a material that does not transmit ultraviolet rays or the like such as acrylic resin, and prevents the inside of the ink tank loading part 12 from being irradiated with ultraviolet rays or the like. It has become.

  Further, a regulating member 16 that regulates the position of the lid 15 slightly above the position where the support shaft 14 is provided on the inner side surface of the ink tank loading portion 12 that faces the support shaft 14. Is provided. The regulating member 16 comes into contact with the upper surface of the lid portion 15 urged upward by the urging member and regulates the position of the lid portion 15 so that the lid portion 15 does not rotate further upward. ing.

  On the inner side surface of the ink tank loading portion 12 and the side where the support shaft 14 is provided, the lid portion 15 is below the support shaft 14 by a distance shorter than the length dimension in the direction orthogonal to the support shaft 14. A recess 17 is formed at the position, and the recess 17 is provided with an opening / closing detection sensor 18 as an opening / closing detection mechanism for detecting the opening / closing of the lid 15. As the open / close detection sensor 18, for example, a light emitting unit that irradiates an object with infrared light and a light receiving unit that detects infrared light reflected by the object, and infrared light that is irradiated from the light emitting unit and reflected by the object are used. A reflective sensor such as a photo reflector that detects an object by detecting it with a light receiving unit and outputs it as an electric signal, or a micro switch that detects an object by contacting the object and outputs the detection result as an electric signal. A contact-type sensor can be applied, and the type and shape thereof are not limited to those exemplified here.

  A portion corresponding to the connection position with the ink supply pipe 9 at the bottom of the ink tank loading unit 12 is a joint unit 19 connected to the ink tank 11. A joint receiving portion 20 connected to the joint portion 19 is formed at one end of each ink tank 11 and in contact with the bottom of the ink tank loading portion 12 when the ink tank 11 is loaded into the ink tank loading portion 12. The ink tank 11 is loaded into the ink tank loading section 12 and the joint section 19 of the ink tank loading section 12 and the joint receiving section 20 of the ink tank 11 are connected, whereby the ink supply pipe 9 is connected to the ink tank 11. It has come to communicate with.

  A liquid feed pump 21 is provided in the middle of each ink supply pipe 9 and between the intermediate tank 10 and the damper 28. The liquid feed pump 21 is operated to operate each liquid feed pump 21. The ink in the intermediate tank 10 is supplied to the damper 28 via the ink supply pipe 9, temporarily stored in the damper 28, and then supplied to each recording head 7. For example, various pumps such as a diaphragm pump and a gear pump can be applied as the liquid feed pump 21.

  A supply valve 22 for restricting the inflow of ink from the ink tank 11 to the intermediate tank 10 is provided in the middle of the ink supply pipe 9. The supply valve 22 is, for example, an electromagnetic valve including a solenoid and a diaphragm (both not shown), and the valve is opened and closed by liquid flowing into and out of the diaphragm by opening and closing of the solenoid. Note that the mechanism for restricting inflow and outflow of ink is not limited to this, and various valves having other structures or other various mechanisms can be used.

  The recording medium P used in this embodiment includes various paper such as plain paper, recycled paper, and glossy paper, various fabrics, various non-woven fabrics, and other non-ink-absorbing media such as resin, metal, and glass. The recording medium P made of various materials can be applied. In addition, as the form of the recording medium P, various forms such as a roll form, a cut sheet form, and a plate form are applicable.

  Next, the control configuration of the ink jet printer 1 in the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

  The inkjet printer 1 includes, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory) that stores various processing programs, a RAM (Random Access Memory) that temporarily stores image data, and the like (none of which are shown). A control unit 23 configured to control each unit of the inkjet printer 1 is provided. The control unit 23 develops a processing program recorded in the ROM in a work area of the RAM and executes the processing program by the CPU.

  The control unit 23 is connected to a power source (not shown) that supplies power to the inkjet printer 1.

  Further, the ink jet printer 1 has an input unit 24 as a setting unit for setting and inputting the number of times of opening and closing the cover unit 15 and image recording conditions that require cleaning and replacement of the joint unit 19 of the ink tank loading unit 12. The information input from the input unit 24 is sent to the control unit 23. The input unit 24 is a keyboard or an operation panel, for example, and the user can perform various settings by operating the input unit 24.

  A detection result is sent as an electrical signal from the open / close detection sensor 18 to the control unit 23, and the control unit 23 counts the number of times the lid 15 is opened and closed from the sent electrical signal. Further, the control unit 23 determines the number of opening / closing operations stored in advance in the ROM or the like as the number of opening / closing operations required to clean and replace the joint unit 19 of the ink tank loading unit 12 or the number of opening / closing operations input from the input unit 24 by the user. With reference to this, it is determined whether or not the number of opening / closing of the lid detected by the opening / closing detection sensor 18 has reached the number of opening / closing that the joint 19 should be cleaned and replaced.

  The joint portion 19 of the ink tank loading portion 12 needs to be cleaned and replaced in order to appropriately prevent the joint portion 19 of the ink tank loading portion 12 from being solidified and to efficiently clean and replace the joint portion 19. It is preferable that the number of times of opening and closing is set between 10 times and 5000 times.

  Further, the inkjet printer 1 needs to clean and replace the joint portion 19 of the ink tank loading portion 12 when the opening / closing frequency of the lid portion 15 detected by the open / close detection sensor 18 exceeds a predetermined number of times set in advance. In some cases, the display unit 25 is provided as a notification means for notifying the user of the fact. The display unit 25 is configured by, for example, a liquid crystal display provided with a TFT (Thin Film Transistor) or the like, and the control unit 23 determines whether the lid unit 15 of each ink tank loading unit 12 is opened or closed. When it is determined that the number of times of opening and closing that should be cleaned and replaced has been reached, the control unit 23 displays on the display unit 25 that the joint unit 19 needs to be cleaned and replaced for the ink tank loading unit 12. It has become. The display unit 25 may display not only a display regarding whether or not the joint unit 19 needs to be cleaned and replaced, but also a condition regarding image recording and other various types of information. In addition, the configuration of the display unit 25 is not limited to that illustrated here, and the number of times of opening and closing the lid 15 of the ink tank loading unit 12 exceeds a predetermined number, and the joint unit 19 needs to be cleaned and replaced. As long as the user can recognize the above.

  Further, the control unit 23 controls the carriage drive mechanism 27 to reciprocate the carriage 6 in the main scanning direction, and repeats the conveyance and stop of the recording medium P in accordance with the operation of the carriage 6, thereby intermittently recording the recording medium P. Therefore, the conveyance rollers 3 and 4 are operated by controlling the recording medium conveyance mechanism 26 so as to be conveyed in the conveyance direction X.

  In addition, the control unit 23 operates the recording head 7 to heat the ink in the ink flow path of the recording head 7 to about 30 ° C. to 150 ° C., and the ink is made into minute droplets of 2 to 20 pl per dot. A predetermined image is formed by discharging onto the recording medium P. Further, the control unit 23 controls the ultraviolet irradiation device 8 so that the ink landed on the recording medium P is irradiated with ultraviolet rays from an ultraviolet light source.

  Further, the control unit 23 controls the supply valve 22 and the liquid feed pump 21 to sequentially supply the ink stored in the ink tank 11 to the recording head 7.

  Next, the operation in this embodiment will be described.

  When the power source of the ink jet printer 1 is turned on, power is supplied from the power source to each part of the ink jet printer 1, and the carriage 6 on which the recording head 7 is mounted moves above the platen 2.

  When the carriage 6 reaches a predetermined position, the control unit 23 controls the recording medium conveyance mechanism 26 to rotate the conveyance rollers 3 and 4 so that the recording medium P is sequentially conveyed intermittently from the upstream side to the downstream side in the conveyance direction X. The Further, the control unit 23 controls the carriage drive mechanism 27 to reciprocate the carriage 6 on the recording medium P along the main scanning direction, and the control unit 23 controls each recording head 6 to perform a predetermined operation. A discharge amount of ink is discharged to a predetermined pixel. The ink discharged onto the recording medium P is irradiated with ultraviolet rays from the ultraviolet irradiation device 8, whereby the ink is cured and fixed, and an image is recorded on the recording medium P.

  Ink is sequentially supplied from the ink tank 11 to the recording head 7 via the intermediate tank 10 and the damper 28. When the ink in the ink tank 11 becomes empty, the user starts from the ink tank loading unit 12. The ink tank 11 is taken out and a new ink tank 11 is inserted from the opening 13 of the ink tank loading unit 12. At this time, the lid portion 15 of the ink tank loading portion 12 is pushed down by the ink tank 11 to be inserted, and rotates downward against the urging member. When the lid 15 rotates to the vicinity of the side surface of the ink tank loading unit 12, the lid 15 is detected by the open / close detection sensor 18, and the detection result is sent to the control unit 23.

  The number of times the lid 15 is opened and closed is counted by the controller 23, and the number of times the lid 15 is opened and closed exceeds a predetermined number of times, and the number of times that the joint 19 of the ink tank loading unit 12 needs to be cleaned and replaced. Is displayed on the display unit 25.

  When the user cleans or replaces the joint part 19 of the ink tank loading unit 12, the control unit 23 opens and closes the lid 15 for the ink tank loading unit 12 that has been cleaned or replaced. The count is reset, and when the lid portion 15 is opened and closed next, the count is started again from the first time.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the ink tank loading unit 12 is detected even when the state inside the ink tank loading unit 12 cannot be confirmed by detecting the number of times the lid 15 of the ink tank loading unit 12 is opened and closed. It is possible to appropriately grasp the timing for cleaning and replacing the joint portion 19.

  Further, since the display unit 25 displays that the joint unit 19 of the ink tank loading unit 12 needs to be cleaned and replaced, the user can easily grasp when the joint unit 19 should be cleaned and replaced.

  In the present embodiment, a lid 15 having a size covering the opening 13 of the ink tank loading unit 12 is provided, and the lid 15 is provided with a support shaft 14 provided on one inner side surface of the ink tank loading unit 12. Although it is configured to pivot about the center, the lid portion 15 may be anything that covers the opening 13 of the ink tank loading portion 12, and the configuration is not limited to that exemplified here. For example, a support shaft is provided on each of two opposing side surfaces inside the ink tank loading section, and a lid having a size covering the half of the opening of the ink tank loading section is rotatably supported on each support shaft. You may be made to do.

  Further, in this embodiment, the concave portion 17 is formed on the inner side surface of the ink tank loading portion 12 and the side surface on which the support shaft 14 is provided, and the open / close detection sensor 18 is provided in the concave portion 17. The position where the open / close detection sensor 18 is provided is not limited to this. For example, recesses may be formed on both side surfaces facing each other across the surface on which the support shaft is provided, and a light emitting unit may be disposed on one side of the recess and a light receiving unit on the other side. In this case, when the lid is rotated, infrared rays or the like emitted from the light emitting unit are blocked by the lid and do not reach the light receiving unit, so that the opening / closing of the lid can be detected.

  In this embodiment, the recess 17 is formed inside the ink tank loading unit 12 and the opening / closing detection sensor 18 is provided in the recess 17. However, the opening / closing detection sensor 18 is a lid from the outside of the ink tank loading unit 12. When a device capable of detecting the section 15 is used, the open / close detection sensor 19 may be disposed outside the ink tank loading section 12. In this case, it is not necessary to form the recess 17 inside the ink tank loading unit 12, and the manufacturing process of the ink tank loading unit 12 can be simplified.

  In this embodiment, the display unit 25 is provided as a notification unit that notifies that the joint 19 of the ink tank loading unit 12 needs to be cleaned and replaced. However, the notification unit is not limited to this, and for example, An audio output unit may be provided to generate a warning sound, or a warning lamp may be provided to turn on the lamp, thereby notifying the user that the joint unit needs to be cleaned or replaced.

  Further, as the ink jet printer 1 to which the ink jet printer 1 according to the present invention can be applied, either an on-demand type or a continuous type recording head 7 may be used. In addition, as a discharge method, for example, an electro-mechanical conversion method (for example, a single cavity type, a double cavity type, a bender type, a piston type, a shear mode type, a shared wall type, etc.), an electro-thermal conversion method (for example, , Thermal ink jet type, bubble jet (registered trademark) type), electrostatic suction type (for example, electric field control type, slit jet type, etc.) and discharge type (for example, spark jet type, etc.) The recording head 7 may be used.

  In this embodiment, image recording is performed using ink that is cured by irradiation with ultraviolet rays. However, the ink is not necessarily limited to this, and for example, ultraviolet rays, electron beams, X-rays, and visible rays. The ink may be cured by irradiating light other than ultraviolet rays such as electromagnetic waves such as infrared rays. In this case, a polymerizable compound that is polymerized and cured with light other than ultraviolet light and a photoinitiator that initiates a polymerization reaction between the polymerizable compounds with light other than ultraviolet light are applied to the ink. In the case of using a photocurable ink that is cured by light other than ultraviolet light, a light source that emits the light is applied instead of the ultraviolet light source. Further, an ink that is cured and fixed without irradiating light may be used. In this case, it is not necessary to provide an ultraviolet irradiation device.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the ink jet printer 1 causes the recording head 7 mounted on the carriage 6 to reciprocate in the main scanning direction and ejects ink from the recording head 7 while transporting the recording medium P in the transport direction X. The serial head type ink jet printer 1 for forming an image is formed, but the ink jet printer 1 according to the present invention forms an image by ejecting ink from a recording head fixed to the printer body and transporting a recording medium. It may be a line head type inkjet printer.

  In addition, it is needless to say that the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment and can be modified as appropriate.

1 is a side view schematically showing a main part of an embodiment of an ink jet printer according to the present invention. It is a sectional side view of the ink tank and ink tank loading part in this embodiment. It is a sectional side view showing the state where the ink tank was loaded in the ink tank loading part in this embodiment. It is a principal part block diagram which showed the outline of the control structure which concerns on this embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Inkjet printer 7 Recording head 9 Ink supply pipe 11 Ink tank 12 Ink tank loading part 15 Cover part 16 Restriction member 18 Opening / closing detection sensor 19 Joint part 20 Joint receiving part P Recording medium X Conveyance direction

Claims (7)

An ink tank for storing ink;
An ink tank loading portion for loading the ink tank, the lid portion being opened by insertion of the ink tank and a joint portion connected to the ink tank when the ink tank is loaded;
Open / close detecting means for detecting opening / closing of the lid,
A recording head for discharging ink supplied from the ink tank;
Informing means for notifying that the joint part needs to be cleaned or replaced when the number of times of opening and closing of the lid part detected by the opening / closing detection means is equal to or greater than a predetermined number of times. Inkjet printer. Comprising setting means capable of setting the notification by the notification means when the number of opening / closing times of the lid detected by the opening / closing detection means is more than
The inkjet printer according to claim 1, wherein the setting unit can set the number of opening / closing times of the lid within a range of 10 to 5000 times.   The recording head heats the ink, which is a liquid having a viscosity of 10 to 500 mPa · s at 30 ° C., to 30 to 150 ° C. by a heating unit, and discharges the ink so that one dot becomes a small droplet of 2 to 20 pl. The ink-jet printer according to claim 1, wherein:   The ink is a photocurable ink that is cured by irradiating light, and irradiates the ink that has landed on the recording medium downstream of the recording head in the transport direction of the recording medium. The inkjet printer according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising an apparatus.   5. The ink according to claim 1, wherein the ink is ultraviolet curable ink that is cured by irradiating with ultraviolet light, and at least a part of the light emitted from the light irradiation device is ultraviolet light. The inkjet printer according to one item.   6. The ink jet printer according to claim 5, wherein the ink is a high-viscosity ink and is a cationic polymerization ultraviolet curable ink.   The inkjet printer according to claim 1, wherein the recording medium has no ink absorbability.

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