JP2006159500A - Inkjet recording device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve the phenomena that the leakage of ink from a nozzle section by the effect of a volume variation of an ink passage which occurs when an electromagnetic valve is opened/closed or switched, and that air is mixed in the nozzle. <P>SOLUTION: The diaphragm 1 of the electromagnetic valve extends to a valve opening/closing chamber 11 located below, and a packing 5 is provided on the distal end. An ink inlet 4 communicates with an ink outlet 3 at an intermediate location between the valve opening/closing chamber 11 and a valve chamber 6. When the valve is shifted from an opened state (Fig.(a)) to a closed state (Fig.(b)), the volume of the valve chamber 6 increases accompanying a deformation of the diaphragm 1, and the volume of the valve opening/closing chamber 11 decreases, on the contrary, by the moving of the packing 5. The volume variation amount at the ink inlet 4 is an offsetting amount with the volume variation amount of the valve opening/closing chamber 11. Therefore, by equalizing the volume variation amount of the valve chamber 6 and the volume variation amount of the valve opening/closing chamber 11, the volume variation amount at the ink inlet 4 can be suppressed to a minimum. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an ink jet recording apparatus, and more specifically, includes a recording head composed of a relatively large number of nozzles, and ejects ink droplets from the nozzles of the recording head to a recording medium according to a recording signal. The present invention relates to an ink jet recording apparatus that performs recording.

  In an ink jet recording apparatus that discharges ink droplets from a nozzle portion of a recording head (hereinafter referred to as “head”) in accordance with a recording signal and performs dot recording (printing) on a recording medium, ink in the nozzle portion, particularly an ink droplet discharge port Intermittent driving is performed in which the ink in the vicinity of the nozzle hole is repeatedly pressurized or depressurized.

  Here, the ejection operation is generally performed while the head is mounted on the carriage and the carriage is reciprocated. However, ink pressure fluctuation occurs in the head during acceleration / deceleration of the carriage for the reciprocation. Then, the meniscus of the nozzle part is destroyed by this pressure fluctuation, and there is a possibility that ink leakage occurs from the nozzle part. In order to prevent this ink leakage, at least the ink pressure inside the head during the recording operation is set to a negative pressure.

As a method of generating the negative pressure,
(1) A method using a water head difference by lowering the height of an ink tank (which supplies the stored ink to the head) than the head (2) A capillary phenomenon that causes the absorber to absorb ink such as a sponge is used. Method (3) A method of injecting ink into a flexible bag and applying a negative pressure from the outside of the bag has been adopted.

  Conventionally, an ink supply system of a head that always applies a constant negative pressure by directly connecting an ink tank and a head using these negative pressure generation methods using an ink flow path forming tube such as a tube or a manifold. Was forming. Then, as maintenance for filling the head with ink and removing bubbles and dust in the nozzle, the nozzle surface of the nozzle is sealed with a cap member, and the negative pressure applied to the ink inside the head from inside the cap member. The suction was greater than the pressure.

  However, when the number of heads and nozzle portions mounted is increased in order to increase the recording speed, there has been a problem that stable maintenance cannot be performed because the suction force to each nozzle portion varies. In addition, when the ink flow path from the ink tank to the head is relatively long, the influence of the flow path resistance of the ink flow path becomes greater, making it difficult to fill and maintain the ink by suction, and the ink during the ejection operation. There was a problem that the supply was not in time.

  In particular, when a liquid coating apparatus is applied to a production apparatus, both of the problems described above are required, and improvement in maintenance reliability is an essential requirement.

  Therefore, as shown in Patent Document 1, when performing maintenance such as ink filling into the head or removal of bubbles inside the head, an electromagnetic valve that can be switched in a direction to pressurize or depressurize the ink inside the head. A configuration having an ink flow path connected to the head has been proposed. Further, as disclosed in Patent Document 2, it has a mechanism for degassing ink so that bubbles inside the head melt into the ink itself, and for switching to supply the head while circulating the degassed ink. A configuration has also been proposed in which the electromagnetic valve is provided in an ink flow path connected to the head.

JP 2001-232816 A JP 2000-185395 A

  Further, for the purpose of reducing the ink consumption increased by the above configuration, a circulation method has been proposed as a configuration for reusing waste ink.

From the viewpoint of liquid resistance, the following two types of electromagnetic valves that are used in opening / closing or switching the ink flow path are generally included, including the above-described configuration.
(1) System using diaphragm (diaphragm valve)
(2) Crushing the tube itself with the pinch part (pinch valve)

  However, when these solenoid valves are used, the volume of the ink flow path varies when the solenoid valve is opened / closed or switched.

  FIG. 9 shows a conventional diaphragm valve opening / closing structure. When the valve is opened as shown in FIG. 9A, the diaphragm 1 is attached to the valve body 2, and a gap is formed between the valve chamber 6 and the ink outlet 3. Therefore, the ink flowing from the ink inlet 4 can flow to the ink outlet 3. However, when the valve is closed as shown in FIG. 9B, the diaphragm 1 blocks the ink outlet 3, so that ink cannot flow from the ink inlet 4 to the ink outlet 3.

  Here, when the valve shifts from the open state to the closed state, the volume of the valve chamber 6 decreases as the diaphragm 1 is deformed. Further, when the valve shifts from the closed state to the open state, the volume of the valve chamber 6 increases. The volume fluctuation of the ink flow path at the time of opening and closing the valve is due to the ink flowing in from the ink inlet 4 and flowing out to the ink outlet 3.

  FIG. 10 shows a conventional pinch valve opening / closing structure. In the state where the valve is opened as shown in FIG. 10A, the tube 9 sandwiched between the pinch 7 and the counter plate 8 is not crushed, and the ink flowing from the ink inlet 4 passes through the tube 9. The ink can be distributed to the ink outlet 3. However, when the valve is closed as shown in FIG. 10B, the tube 9 sandwiched between the pinch 7 and the opposing plate 8 is crushed, so that ink flows from the ink inlet 4 to the ink outlet 3. Can not do it.

  In this case as well, as in the case of the diaphragm valve, there is a volume fluctuation of the ink flow path corresponding to the collapse amount of the tube 9 when the valve is opened and closed.

  Here, the ink inlet 4 or the ink outlet 3 of the electromagnetic valve is connected to the head, and the volume fluctuation of the ink flow path when the electromagnetic valve is opened and closed propagates to the head as it is. This volume fluctuation affects the nozzle part, and when the volume of the valve chamber of the solenoid valve decreases, that is, when ink flows into the head, the meniscus of the nozzle part is broken and the ink leaks. Become.

  Conversely, when the volume of the valve chamber of the solenoid valve increases, the ink of the head flows out, the meniscus of the nozzle portion is broken, and air is mixed into the head.

  Especially when air is mixed inside the head, the inside of the head is normally set to a negative pressure, and the solenoid valve is likely to be in an open state, so air mixing inside the head will proceed indefinitely, There was a situation where the ink inside the head was exhausted. In this case, not only ejection failure but also the ink inside the head dries, resulting in frequent clogging and dust clogging in the nozzle part and the flow path inside the head. In the worst case, the head itself is unusable. Sometimes it became.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and the problem is that the meniscus of the nozzle portion is destroyed due to the volume fluctuation of the ink flow path that occurs when the valve is opened / closed or switched, and the ink from the nozzle portion is destroyed. It is an object of the present invention to provide an ink jet recording apparatus capable of eliminating the phenomenon of leakage of air or the entry of air into the nozzle portion.

  According to one aspect of the present invention, an ink tank that contains ink, a recording head that discharges ink supplied from the ink tank and records on a recording medium, and an internal connected to the recording head An ink flow path forming tube that forms an ink flow path, and an operation valve that is provided on the ink flow path forming pipe and that opens or closes or switches the ink flow path. The recording head is supplied from an ink tank. An ink chamber for storing the ink, a pressure chamber that communicates with the ink chamber and pressurizes and depressurizes the ink, and a nozzle unit that communicates with the pressure chamber and discharges the ink. At least one of the chambers is configured such that the amount of volume fluctuation propagating to the recording head out of the volume fluctuation of the ink flow path that occurs when the operation valve is operated is less than the total volume of the pressure chamber. An ink jet recording apparatus is provided, wherein the door.

  As an operation valve for opening / closing or switching the ink flow path in the ink jet recording apparatus, a solenoid valve is generally widely used for reasons of ease of control and certainty, but is not limited to the solenoid valve.

  In this ink jet recording apparatus, for example, the operation valve has an ink inlet, an ink outlet, an internal channel communicating with the ink inlet and the ink outlet, and an operation unit that performs an operation of opening / closing or switching the internal channel. Therefore, the internal flow path and the operation section are configured so that the amount of volume fluctuation that propagates to the recording head among the volume fluctuation of the ink flow path that occurs when the operation valve is operated is less than the total volume of the pressure chamber. .

  According to another aspect of the present invention, an ink tank that contains ink, a recording head that discharges ink supplied from the ink tank and records on a recording medium, and an internal connected to the recording head An ink flow path forming tube that forms an ink flow path, and an operation valve that is provided on the ink flow path forming pipe and that opens or closes or switches the ink flow path. The recording head is supplied from an ink tank. An ink chamber for storing the ink, a pressure chamber that communicates with the ink chamber and pressurizes and depressurizes the ink, and a nozzle unit that communicates with the pressure chamber and discharges the ink. Ink characterized in that a damper portion is provided between the head and the head for absorbing the amount of volume fluctuation propagating to the recording head among the volume fluctuation of the ink flow path generated when the operation valve is operated. Jet recording apparatus is provided.

  The damper portion in this ink jet recording apparatus has, for example, an ink inlet, an ink outlet, a damper chamber communicating with the ink inlet and the ink outlet, and a damper film for inflow of ink into the damper chamber and outflow of ink from the damper chamber. Thus, the damper chamber and the damper film are configured to absorb the amount of volume fluctuation that propagates to the recording head among the volume fluctuation of the ink flow path that occurs when the operation valve is operated.

  In the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention, the amount of volume fluctuation propagating to the recording head among the volume fluctuations of the ink flow path that occurs when the operation valve is opened / closed or switched is less than the total volume of the pressure chamber of the recording head. Therefore, the meniscus of the nozzle part is destroyed by the influence of the volume fluctuation of the ink flow path that occurs when the operation valve is operated, and ink leaks from the nozzle part, or air enters the nozzle part. Can be prevented. As a result, non-discharge does not occur in the ink jet recording head after the operation of opening / closing or switching the operation valve, and recording by stable ejection can be realized.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[Embodiment 1]
First, the first embodiment will be described. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram for explaining the configuration of an ink flow path of a recording head and a liquid recording apparatus using the same in an ink jet recording apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

  In FIG. 1, a head unit 20 including a nozzle portion 21 is disposed to face a recording medium (not shown). Further, the head unit 20 includes a flexible ink supply flow path forming tube connected to the ink tank 31 and a flexible ink discharge flow path forming tube connected to the waste liquid tank 32. An ink supply flow path 22 in the ink supply flow path forming pipe and a drain flow path 23 in the ink discharge flow path forming pipe are formed. The ink supply flow path 22 is provided with an ink supply electromagnetic valve 112 and a filter 24, and the drain flow path 23 is provided with a drain electromagnetic valve 113.

  The ink tank 31 has a flexible ink bag 30 in which ink is injected, and is connected to the pressurization source 101 through the pressurization air pipe 160 and is connected to the decompression source 102 through the decompression air pipe 161. It has a sealed structure that can pressurize and depressurize the inside.

  A tank pressurization regulator 103, a tank pressurization electropneumatic regulator 130, and a tank pressurization electromagnetic valve 110 are disposed in the pipeline of the pressurized air pipe 160, and a tank decompression is provided in the duct of the decompression air pipe 161. A regulator 104 and a tank pressure reducing electromagnetic valve 111 are provided. The waste liquid tank 32 is connected to the decompression source 102 via a waste liquid decompression air pipe 162. A waste liquid regulator 105 and a waste liquid solenoid valve 114 are disposed in the pipe line of the waste liquid decompression air pipe 162.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 1, the operation and state of each part during recording operation and head maintenance will be described.

  First, the recording operation will be described. In the state before the recording operation (hereinafter referred to as “initial state”), any of the ink supply solenoid valve 112, the drain solenoid valve 113, the tank pressurization solenoid valve 110, the tank decompression solenoid valve 111, and the waste liquid solenoid valve 114 Also, the ink supply flow path 22 and the drain flow path 23 leading to the head unit 20 are completely closed.

  When the recording operation is started, the tank pressure reducing solenoid valve 111 is opened, and a negative pressure of −2.5 kPa set in advance by the tank pressure reducing regulator 104 is applied to the ink tank 31. Here, the pressure in the ink tank 31 is monitored by a pressure sensor 121 provided in the ink tank 31. Thereafter, the ink supply electromagnetic valve 112 is opened, and the pressure applied to the ink in the head unit 20 becomes a predetermined negative pressure. In this state, the recording operation is performed by the head unit 20 ejecting ink from the nozzle portion 21 based on a predetermined recording signal. Here, the amount of ink in the ink bag 30 is monitored by a tank liquid amount sensor 120 provided in the ink tank 31, and a warning is issued when the ink amount falls below a certain amount.

  When the recording operation is completed, the ink supply solenoid valve 112 is closed, and then the tank pressure reducing solenoid valve 111 is closed and the initial state is restored.

  Next, the prime operation of the head unit 20 will be described. In the initial state, the pressure of 50 kPa preset by the tank pressurizing regulator 103 is controlled to 15 kPa as the prime pressure by the tank pressurizing electropneumatic regulator 130. Thereafter, the tank pressurization solenoid valve 110 is opened, the prime pressure is applied to the inside of the ink tank 31, and then the ink supply solenoid valve 112 is opened. By such an operation, a predetermined pressure is applied to the ink inside the head unit 20, and the ink is discharged from the nozzle portion 21 to eliminate clogging and the like.

  As other operations, an ink filling operation will be described. In the initial state, the pressure of 50 kPa preset by the tank pressurization regulator 103 is controlled to 20 kPa as the prime pressure by the tank pressurization electropneumatic regulator 130. Further, by opening the waste liquid solenoid valve 114, a negative pressure of −1 kPa set in advance by the waste liquid regulator 105 is applied to the waste liquid tank 32. Thereafter, the tank pressurizing solenoid valve 110 is opened, the prime pressure is applied to the inside of the ink tank 31, the ink supply solenoid valve 112 is then opened, and the drain solenoid valve 113 is opened.

  Here, the waste liquid tank 32 is provided with a waste liquid tank full sensor 122, and a warning is issued when the waste liquid tank 32 becomes full.

  With the above operation, the head unit 20 can be filled with ink from the ink tank 31, and the air in the ink supply channel 22 or the air in the ink channel inside the head unit 20 can be discharged to the waste liquid tank 32 side. Ink filling without air mixing into the inside of the unit 20 becomes possible.

  In each of the above operations, the solenoid valves (ink supply solenoid valve 112 and drain solenoid valve 113) connected to the head unit 20 are opened / closed, and the influence of the opening / closing operation is described below. Can be reduced.

  The solenoid valve used in this embodiment will be described. 5A and 5B are structural diagrams of electromagnetic valves used in the ink jet recording apparatus of FIG. As shown in FIGS. 5 (a) and 5 (b), the diaphragm 1 forming a part of the operation part extends to the valve opening / closing chamber 11 forming a part of the internal flow path below, and is operated at the tip. The packing 5 which forms a part of part is provided. The ink inlet 4 communicates with the ink outlet 3 at an intermediate position between the valve opening / closing chamber 11 and the valve chamber 6 forming a part of the internal flow path.

  When the electromagnetic valve is opened as shown in FIG. 5A, the diaphragm 1 attached to the valve body 2 is located between the packing 5 at the tip of the diaphragm 1 and the ink outlet 3 in the valve opening / closing chamber 11. Ink flows from the ink inlet 4 to the ink outlet 3. However, as shown in FIG. 5B, when the solenoid valve is closed, the packing 5 at the tip of the diaphragm 1 blocks the ink outlet 3, and the ink cannot flow.

  When the solenoid valve shifts from the open state to the closed state, the volume of the valve chamber 6 increases as the diaphragm 1 is deformed, and the volume of the valve opening / closing chamber 11 decreases by the movement of the packing 5. It will be.

  Here, the volume fluctuation amount between the valve chamber 6 and the valve opening / closing chamber 11, that is, the volume fluctuation amount at the ink inlet 4 is an offset amount between the volume fluctuation amount of the valve chamber 6 and the volume fluctuation amount of the valve opening / closing chamber 11. It is. Accordingly, by making the volume fluctuation amount of the valve chamber 6 equal to the volume fluctuation amount of the valve opening / closing chamber 11, the volume fluctuation amount at the ink inlet 4 can be suppressed to a minimum.

  This is the same when the solenoid valve shifts from the closed state to the open state. Therefore, by connecting the ink inlet 4 to the side of the ink supply solenoid valve 112 and the drain solenoid valve 113 shown in FIG. 1 that are connected to the head unit 20, the influence of volume fluctuations when the solenoid valves 112 and 113 are opened and closed. Can be suppressed.

  Here, in the above-described solenoid valve structure, the following three types of solenoid valves having different volume fluctuation amounts of the ink inlet 4 when the valve is opened / closed are discharged after opening / closing the solenoid valve, and the frequency of discharge failure is set to 10 times each. Examined. The results regarding the stability of the discharge are shown in Table 1 as Examples 1 to 3. Moreover, the result by a conventional structure is shown collectively as a comparative example.

  Here, as the head, a piezoelectric inkjet head having an effective nozzle number of 300 ch was used. FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing the structure of this head. As shown in FIG. 4, the head unit 62 communicates with the nozzle portion 63 serving as an ink droplet ejection port, and stores and holds ink, and applies pressure to the internal ink (pressurization / decompression). A plurality of pressure chambers (ink chambers) 65, a common ink chamber 67 communicating with the pressure chamber 65, and a regulation flow path for regulating the amount of ink flowing from the common ink chamber 67 into the pressure chamber 65. 66.

  Further, one surface of the partition wall constituting the pressure chamber 65 is a diaphragm 61, and a piezoelectric element 64 that is expanded or contracted according to a drive signal is attached to the diaphragm 61. Then, the diaphragm 61 is deformed according to the deformation of the piezoelectric element 64, so that pressure is applied to the pressure chamber 65.

  In Table 1, ◯ indicates a case where no discharge occurred after opening / closing of the solenoid valve, △ indicates a case where discharge occurred several times (1 to 3 times), and a × mark indicates discharge failure. The case where it occurs many times (4 times or more) is shown. From Table 1, it can be seen that if the volume variation due to opening and closing of the electromagnetic valve is less than the total volume of the pressure chamber of the head unit, no discharge occurs and a stable ink supply system can be formed.

  In this embodiment, only the recording operation, the prime operation, and the ink filling operation have been described. However, this embodiment is not limited to these operations, and the opening and closing of the electromagnetic valve connected to the head is not limited. Any operation can be applied as long as it is performed.

  Further, the described operation itself may be appropriately changed as long as the target operation is possible even if the operation is not completely the same as the described operation. In particular, each operation has been described on the assumption of an initial state, but each operation can be performed as a series of operations without returning to the initial state.

  Further, in this embodiment, the piezoelectric method is used as the driving method of the ink jet head. However, in this embodiment, there is no difference depending on the driving method as long as the factor to the ejection stability is the volume fluctuation. It can be applied to all systems such as the electric system.

[Embodiment 2]
Next, a second embodiment will be described. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram for explaining a configuration of an ink flow path of a recording head and a liquid recording apparatus using the same in an ink jet recording apparatus according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention.

  In FIG. 2, the head unit 20 including the nozzle portion 21 is disposed to face a recording medium (not shown). Further, the head unit 20 forms an ink flow path including an ink supply flow path 22 connected to the ink tank 31. An ink supply electromagnetic valve 112 and a filter 24 are disposed in the ink supply flow path 22.

  The ink tank 31 has a flexible ink bag 30 into which ink has been injected. The ink tank 31 is connected to the pressurization source 101 through the pressurization air pipe 160 and is connected to the decompression source 102 through the decompression air pipe 162. It has a sealed structure that can pressurize and depressurize the inside.

  A tank pressurization regulator 103, a tank pressurization electropneumatic regulator 130, and a tank pressurization electromagnetic valve 110 are disposed in the pipeline of the pressurized air pipe 160, and a tank decompression is provided in the duct of the decompression air pipe 161. A regulator 104 for the tank, an electropneumatic regulator 130 for decompressing the tank, and a solenoid valve 111 for decompressing the tank are disposed. The ink tank 31 is connected to the replenishing tank 33 via the inter-tank channel 25, and the inter-tank electromagnetic valve 116 is disposed in the inter-tank channel 25.

  The replenishment tank 33 is connected to the pressurization source 101 via a replenishment tank pressurization air pipe 163, and a replenishment tank pressurization regulator 107 and a replenishment tank electromagnetic valve 115 are connected to the replenishment tank pressurization air pipe 163. Is arranged.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 2, the operation and state of each part during the recording operation and the head maintenance will be described.

  First, the recording operation will be described. In the initial state, the ink supply solenoid valve 112, the tank pressurization solenoid valve 110, the tank decompression solenoid valve 111, the replenishment tank solenoid valve 115, and the inter-tank solenoid valve 116 are all closed, and the head unit 20 The ink supply flow path 22 leading to is completely closed.

  When the recording operation is started, the negative pressure of −20 kPa set in advance by the tank decompression regulator 104 is controlled to −2.5 kPa by the tank decompression electropneumatic regulator 131. At the same time, the tank pressure reducing electromagnetic valve 111 is opened, and a predetermined negative pressure is applied to the ink tank 31. Here, the pressure in the ink tank 31 is monitored by a pressure sensor 121 provided in the ink tank 31, and is fed back to a pressure control unit (not shown) so that the negative pressure is made constant by the tank decompression electropneumatic regulator 131. It is controlled to be kept.

  Thereafter, the ink supply electromagnetic valve 112 is opened, and the pressure applied to the ink in the head unit 20 becomes a predetermined negative pressure. In this state, the recording operation is performed by the head unit 20 ejecting ink from the nozzle portion 21 based on a predetermined recording signal. Here, the ink amount in the ink bag 30 is monitored by a tank liquid amount sensor 120 provided in the ink tank 31, and a warning is issued when the ink amount falls below a certain liquid amount.

  When the recording operation is completed, the ink supply solenoid valve 112 is closed, and then the tank pressure reducing solenoid valve 111 is closed and the initial state is restored.

  Next, the ink filling operation to the head unit 20 will be described. When the ink filling operation to the head unit 20 is started, the pressure of 50 kPa preset by the tank pressurization regulator 103 is controlled to 20 kPa as the prime pressure by the tank pressurization electropneumatic regulator 130. Thereafter, the tank pressurization solenoid valve 110 is opened, the prime pressure is applied to the inside of the ink tank 31, and then the ink supply solenoid valve 112 is opened. With such an operation, the head unit 20 can be filled with ink from the ink tank 31.

  Here, the waste liquid tank 32 is provided with a waste liquid tank full sensor 122, and a warning is issued when the waste liquid tank 32 is full.

  In such an ink filling operation, it is difficult to completely discharge air in the ink supply flow path 22 or air in the ink flow path inside the head unit 20. It is necessary to devise such as adopting a structure in which air does not easily accumulate as the ink flow path shape and arranging an air trap in the ink flow path.

  Further, for reference, an ink filling operation to the ink tank 31 will be described. The amount of ink in the ink bag 30 is monitored by a tank liquid amount sensor 120 provided in the ink tank 31. When the ink amount falls below a certain amount, ink is filled from the replenishment tank 33 to the ink tank 31. Operation is performed.

  In the initial state, the replenishment tank pressurization electromagnetic valve 115 is opened, and a pressure of 5 kPa set in advance by the replenishment tank pressurization regulator 107 is applied to the replenishment tank 33. Thereafter, the inter-tank electromagnetic valve 116 is opened, and the ink in the replenishing tank 33 is filled in the ink bag 30.

  Here, a replenishment tank empty sensor 123 is provided in the replenishment tank 33, and a warning is issued when the ink in the replenishment tank 33 becomes empty. When the tank liquid level sensor 120 detects that the liquid level in the ink bag 30 has reached a predetermined level, the inter-tank electromagnetic valve 116 is closed and the filling operation is completed.

  In the recording operation and the ink filling operation to the head, the solenoid valves (ink supply solenoid valve 112 and drain solenoid valve 113) connected to the head unit 20 are opened / closed. It could be mitigated by using the solenoid valve described.

  The solenoid valve used in this embodiment will be described. FIG. 6 is a structural diagram of an electromagnetic valve used in the ink jet recording apparatus of FIG. As shown in FIG. 6, the tube 9 ′ sandwiched between the pinch 7 forming the operation portion and the opposing plate 8 is thinner than the tube 9 used for the ink inlet 4 and the ink outlet 3. The tube 9 ′ and the tube 9 are connected by a conversion adapter 10.

  By using the above configuration, when the solenoid valve is closed, that is, when the tube 9 'is crushed, the crushed allowance can be suppressed, and the volume fluctuation amount when the solenoid valve is opened and closed can be reduced. is there. Further, by making only the tube 9 'to be closed thinner, the flow resistance in the ink supply flow path increases. As a result, there is no concern that the ease of maintenance such as ink filling and prime will be impaired, or that the ink supply to the head head unit 20 will not be in time for the ejection operation, causing non-discharge.

  Therefore, by connecting the ink inlet 4 to the side connected to the head unit 20 of the ink supply electromagnetic valve 112 shown in FIG. 2, it is possible to suppress the influence of the volume fluctuation when the electromagnetic valve is opened and closed.

  Here, in the electromagnetic valve structure described above, the inner diameter of the tube 9 is set to φ4 mm, and the following four types of electromagnetic valves having different inner diameters of the tube 9 ′ are discharged after opening and closing the electromagnetic valves, and the frequency of discharge failure is set to 10 respectively. I examined each time. The results regarding the stability of the discharge are shown in Table 2 as Examples 1 to 4. Further, the result in the case of the conventional structure, that is, the case where the inner diameter of the tube 9 ′ is φ4 mm is also shown as a comparative example.

  In Table 2, ○ indicates a case where no discharge occurred after opening / closing the solenoid valve, Δ indicates a case where discharge occurred several times (1 to 3 times), and X indicates discharge failure. The case where it occurs many times (4 times or more) is shown. Here, as the head unit 20, a piezoelectric inkjet head having an effective nozzle number of 150 ch was used.

  From Table 2, it can be seen that if the volume variation of the ink flow path due to the opening and closing of the electromagnetic valve is less than the total volume of the pressure chamber of the head unit, no discharge occurs and a stable ink supply system can be formed.

[Embodiment 3]
Next, Embodiment 3 will be described. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram for explaining the configuration of the ink flow path of the recording head and the liquid recording apparatus using the same in the ink jet recording apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  In FIG. 3, the head unit 20 including the nozzle portion 21 is disposed to face a recording medium (not shown). In addition, the head unit 20 forms an ink flow path including an ink supply flow path 22 connected to the ink tank 31 and a drain flow path 23 connected to the circulation tank 34. The ink supply flow path 22 is provided with an ink supply electromagnetic valve 112, a filter 24, and an air damper 40, and the drain flow path 23 is provided with a drain electromagnetic valve 113.

  The ink tank 31 has an ink storage body 36 made of a sponge-like ink absorber into which ink is injected, and is connected to the circulation tank 34 via the circulation channel 26. An inter-tank electromagnetic valve 116 is disposed in the circulation channel 26.

  A pressurized / depressurized air pipe 164 is connected to the circulation tank 34. The pressurization / decompression air pipe 164 is provided with a pressurization / depressurization switching electromagnetic valve 117 for switching between the pressurization air pipe 160 connected to the pressurization source 101 and the decompression air pipe 161 connected to the decompression source 102. A tank pressurization regulator 103 is disposed in the pipeline of the pressurized air pipe 160, and a circulation tank decompression regulator 108 and an electropneumatic regulator 132 for circulation tank decompression are disposed in the duct of the decompression air pipe 161. Yes.

  As a head maintenance section, a cap unit 140 is disposed at a position facing the nozzle surface of the nozzle section 21 of the head unit 20. The cap unit 140 has a vertical movement mechanism 141 for sealing the nozzle surface of the nozzle portion 21 when the cap unit 140 contacts the head unit 20 and also for suction for sucking air in the head from the sealed space. It is connected to the maintenance tank 35 via a path 27.

  A suction electromagnetic valve 150 is disposed in the suction flow path 27. The maintenance tank 35 is connected to the decompression source 102 via the maintenance decompression air pipe 163 and is opened to the atmosphere via the atmosphere release air pipe 166. A maintenance decompression regulator 107 and a maintenance tank solenoid valve 151 are disposed in the maintenance decompression air pipe 163, and an atmosphere release solenoid valve 152 is disposed in the atmosphere release air pipe 166. Yes.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 3, the operation and state of each unit during the recording operation and head maintenance will be described.

  First, the recording operation will be described. In the initial state, the ink supply solenoid valve 112, the drain solenoid valve 113, and the inter-tank solenoid valve 116 are all closed, and the ink flow path (the ink supply flow path 22 and the drain flow path to the head unit 20). 23) is in a completely closed state.

  When the recording operation starts, the ink supply electromagnetic valve 112 is opened, and a predetermined negative pressure is applied to the ink tank 31. Here, a negative pressure is applied in the ink tank 31 by the capillary force of the ink absorber of the ink reservoir 36. In this state, the recording operation is performed by the head unit 20 ejecting ink from the nozzle portion 21 based on a predetermined recording signal. Here, the amount of ink in the ink bag 30 is monitored by a tank liquid amount sensor 120 provided in the ink tank 31, and a warning is issued when the ink amount falls below a certain amount.

  When the recording operation is completed, the ink supply solenoid valve 112 is closed and the initial state is restored.

  Next, the prime operation of the head unit 20 will be described. In the case of this embodiment, the ink tank 31 is not provided with a pressurizing means, and the prime operation by the pressurization to the ink in the head unit 20 and the ink filling to the head cannot be performed. For this reason, with respect to ink filling into the head, the cap unit 140 is used to suck the ink from outside the nozzle surface of the nozzle unit 21 so that the pressure outside the nozzle surface of the nozzle unit 21 is higher than the pressure applied to the ink inside the head unit 20. Reduce pressure. As a result, the relative pressure inside the head unit 20 is made higher than that outside the nozzle surface of the nozzle portion 21 to perform ink filling.

  When the prime operation is started, the head unit 20 is moved to a position facing the cap unit 140 by a moving mechanism (not shown). With the maintenance tank solenoid valve 151 closed and the atmosphere release solenoid valve 152 and the suction solenoid valve 150 opened, the vertical movement mechanism 141 is operated to move the cap unit 140 to the nozzle portion 21 of the head unit 20. The nozzle portion 21 is sealed by contacting the nozzle surface.

  Thereafter, the air release solenoid valve 152 is closed and the maintenance tank solenoid valve 151 and the ink supply solenoid valve 112 are opened, so that a suction pressure of −30 kPa set in advance by the maintenance pressure reducing regulator 153 is applied to the sealed space. Applied. Here, the maintenance tank 35 is provided with a maintenance tank full sensor 125, and a warning is issued when the maintenance tank 35 is full.

  With the above operation, a predetermined pressure is applied to the ink inside the head unit 20, and the ink is discharged from the nozzle portion 21 to eliminate clogging.

  Further, the ink filling operation to the head will be described. Similar to the prime operation, the head unit 20 is moved to a position facing the cap unit 140. With the maintenance tank solenoid valve 151 closed and the atmosphere release solenoid valve 152 and the suction solenoid valve 150 opened, the vertical movement mechanism 141 is operated to move the cap unit 140 to the nozzle portion 21 of the head unit 20. The nozzle portion 21 is sealed by contacting the nozzle surface.

  Next, the negative pressure of −20 kPa set in advance by the circulation tank decompression regulator 108 is controlled to −5 kPa by the circulation tank electropneumatic regulator 131, and the pressurization switching solenoid valve 117 is communicated with the decompression air pipe 161. By switching to this side, a predetermined negative pressure is applied in the circulation tank 37.

  Thereafter, the air release solenoid valve 152 is closed and the maintenance tank solenoid valve 151 and the ink supply solenoid valve 112 are opened, so that a suction pressure of −30 kPa set in advance by the maintenance pressure reducing regulator 153 is applied to the sealed space. Applied. Next, the drain solenoid valve 113 is opened. Here, the circulation tank 37 is provided with a circulation tank liquid level sensor 124, and a warning is issued when the circulation tank 37 is full.

  With the above operation, the ink from the ink tank 31 can be filled into the head unit 20, and the air in the ink supply flow path 22 or the air in the ink flow path inside the head unit 20 can be discharged to the circulation tank 37 side. Ink filling without air mixing into the head unit 21 is possible.

  Furthermore, the ink filling operation to the ink tank 31 will be described. The amount of ink in the ink reservoir 36 is monitored by a tank liquid level sensor 120 provided in the ink tank 31, and when the amount of ink falls below a certain level, ink is supplied from the circulation tank 37 to the ink tank 31. The filling operation is performed.

  In the initial state, the pressure increasing / decreasing switching electromagnetic valve 117 is switched to the side communicating with the pressurized air pipe 160, and a pressure of 5 kPa preset by the tank pressurizing regulator 103 is applied to the circulation tank 37. Thereafter, the inter-tank electromagnetic valve 116 is opened, and the ink in the circulation tank 37 is filled in the ink reservoir 36.

  Here, when it is monitored by the circulation tank liquid level sensor 123 provided in the circulation tank 37 that the ink in the circulation tank 37 has become empty, a warning is issued. Further, when the tank liquid level sensor 120 monitors that the liquid level in the ink reservoir 36 has become equal to or higher than the predetermined liquid level, the inter-tank electromagnetic valve 116 is closed and the filling operation is completed.

  In each of the above operations, the solenoid valve (ink supply solenoid valve 112 and drain solenoid valve 113) connected to the head unit 20 is opened and closed, and the effect of this opening and closing operation is described below as an air damper as a damper section. It was possible to reduce it by using.

The air damper 40 used in this embodiment will be described. FIG. 7 is a structural diagram of an air damper 40 used in the inkjet recording apparatus of FIG.
As shown in FIG. 7A, the rigid air damper body 12 is provided with the ink inlet 4 and the ink outlet 3, and the ink flows into the damper chamber 13 through the ink inlet 4. The damper chamber 13 is separated from the air chamber 15 by a damper film 14 made of a PI film.

  When the volume fluctuation of the ink flow path due to the opening and closing of the electromagnetic valve occurs, the damper film 14 is deformed as shown in FIG. Here, if the rigidity of the damper film 14 is further lowered, it becomes possible to absorb the volume fluctuation more. However, the damper film 14 may be plastically deformed or torn due to the pressure fluctuation to the head part such as ink filling. In this embodiment, a 20 μm-thick PI film is used as the damper film 14.

  In this embodiment, as in the first embodiment, a piezoelectric inkjet head having 300 effective nozzles is used as the head. The volume fluctuation amount on the ink outlet 3 side connected to the head unit 20 when the ink supply electromagnetic valve 112 having a volume fluctuation amount of 34 μl was opened and closed was measured and found to be 1 μl. Further, the discharge stability after opening and closing, that is, the frequency of occurrence of discharge failure was observed, but no discharge failure occurred once in 30 times, and it was confirmed that the discharge was stable.

  In this embodiment, a PI film is used as the damper film 14, but the damper film 14 may be made of fluoro rubber such as perfluoro rubber.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 8, the air chamber 15 is provided with an atmosphere opening port 16, and an atmosphere opening electromagnetic valve 154 connected to the atmosphere opening port 16 is provided to adjust the pressure of the air chamber 15 to atmospheric pressure. It becomes a configuration that can. By using such a configuration, it is possible to eliminate pressure fluctuations in the air chamber 15 due to changes in ambient temperature or ink temperature, and more stable ejection can be realized.

  In this embodiment, the air damper 40 is provided in the ink supply channel 22. However, the air damper 40 may be provided in the drain channel 23, and the configuration is complicated, but the configuration of the ink supply channel 22 and the drain channel 2 is complicated. You may provide in both.

  Furthermore, in Embodiments 1 to 3, the combination of the channel configuration and the configuration for reducing the ink channel volume fluctuation amount when the solenoid valve is opened or closed may be a different combination. By combining the air damper and the electromagnetic valve having the configuration in the first embodiment, it is possible to almost ignore the influence of the volume fluctuation amount when the electromagnetic valve is further opened and closed.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram for explaining a configuration of an ink flow path of a recording head and a liquid recording apparatus using the same according to the first embodiment of the present invention. It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating the structure of the ink flow path of the recording head which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention, and a liquid recording apparatus using the same. It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating the structure of the ink flow path of the recording head which concerns on Embodiment 3 of this invention, and a liquid recording apparatus using the same. It is sectional drawing which shows the structure of the head which concerns on Embodiment 1-3 of this invention. 1 is a structural diagram of a solenoid valve according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. It is a structural diagram of a solenoid valve according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a structural diagram of an air damper according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention. It is another structure figure of the air damper concerning Embodiment 3 of the present invention. It is sectional drawing which shows the opening / closing structure of the conventional diaphragm valve. It is sectional drawing which shows the opening / closing structure of the conventional pinch valve.

Explanation of symbols

1. Diaphragm 3. Ink outlet 4. Ink inlet 5. Packing 20. Head unit 21. Nozzle part 40. Air damper 65. Pressure chamber 101. Pressure source 102. Reduced pressure source 112. Ink supply solenoid valve 113. Solenoid valve for drain

Claims (4)

An ink tank that contains ink, a recording head that discharges ink supplied from the ink tank and performs recording on a recording medium, and an ink channel that is connected to the recording head and forms an ink channel therein A forming tube, and an operation valve provided in the ink flow channel forming tube for opening / closing or switching the ink flow channel,
The recording head includes an ink chamber that stores ink supplied from an ink tank, a pressure chamber that communicates with the ink chamber and applies pressure to the ink, and a nozzle unit that communicates with the pressure chamber and ejects ink. Have
At least one of the operation valve and the pressure chamber is configured to make the amount of volume fluctuation propagating to the recording head out of the volume fluctuation of the ink flow path generated when the operation valve is operated less than the total volume of the pressure chamber. An ink jet recording apparatus. The operation valve has an ink inlet, an ink outlet, an internal flow path communicating with the ink inlet and the ink outlet, and an operation section for performing an operation of opening / closing or switching the internal flow path. 2. The ink jet recording according to claim 1, wherein the operation unit is configured so that an amount of volume fluctuation propagating to the recording head among volume fluctuations of the ink flow path generated when the operation valve is operated is less than a total volume of the pressure chamber. apparatus. An ink tank that contains ink, a recording head that discharges ink supplied from the ink tank and performs recording on a recording medium, and an ink channel that is connected to the recording head and forms an ink channel therein A forming tube, and an operation valve provided in the ink flow channel forming tube for opening / closing or switching the ink flow channel,
The recording head includes an ink chamber that stores ink supplied from an ink tank, a pressure chamber that communicates with the ink chamber and applies pressure to the ink, and a nozzle unit that communicates with the pressure chamber and ejects ink. Have
A damper portion is provided between the operation valve and the recording head to absorb the amount of volume fluctuation that propagates to the recording head among the volume fluctuation of the ink flow path that occurs when the operation valve is operated. Inkjet recording apparatus. The damper section includes an ink inlet, an ink outlet, a damper chamber communicating with the ink inlet and the ink outlet, and a damper film for inflow of ink into the damper chamber and outflow of ink from the damper chamber. 4. An ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the chamber and the damper film are configured to absorb the amount of volume fluctuation propagating to the recording head among the volume fluctuation of the ink flow path generated when the operation valve is operated.

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