JP2006181921A - Liquid-ejecting apparatus and liquid-suction device for liquid-ejecting apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a liquid-ejecting apparatus which can secure a liquid-ejection performance of a head by surely absorbing even any liquid and preventing effects onto a nozzle face of the head when the liquids of different kinds such as a pigment system liquid and a dye system liquid are used, and to provide a liquid-suction device for the liquid-ejecting apparatus. <P>SOLUTION: The liquid-ejecting apparatus 10 has the liquid-suction device 20 which sucks the liquid from the nozzle face 61 of the head 30 that ejects the liquid. The liquid-suction device 20 has a body 21 for sealing the nozzle face 61, and an absorber 22 which is set in the body 21 and absorbs the liquid ejected from a plurality of nozzle arrays of the nozzle face 61. Distances D1 and D2 between the nozzle face 61 and a surface of the absorber 22 are changed to be set correspondingly to the nozzle arrays of the nozzle face 61 in a state while the body 21 seals the nozzle face 61. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a liquid ejecting apparatus configured to eject liquid and a liquid suction device of the liquid ejecting apparatus.

As a liquid ejecting apparatus that ejects liquid onto a target, an ink jet recording apparatus that performs printing by ejecting ink droplets from a recording head onto a recording medium is used. Is ejected to record an image of a desired character or figure.
In this ink jet recording apparatus, since the recording head comes close to the recording medium during the recording operation, ink splashes generated when ink droplets collide with the recording medium bounce off the nozzle surface of the recording head and contaminate the nozzle surface. There are things to do.

  In particular, in the recording head of an on-demand type ink jet recording apparatus, since the ejection of ink droplets is due to weak pressure applied to the ink in the vicinity of the nozzles, the ejection energy of the ink droplets is small, and the interval between the recording medium and the recording medium is several millimeters. In other words, the splash of ink splashes easily adhere to the nozzle surface. However, since the pressure is small, once clogging occurs in the nozzle, the clogging cannot be easily restored.

Therefore, in order to prevent or recover from clogging of the nozzles of the recording head, the cap member is sealed to the nozzle surface in order to discharge the clogged ink by sucking ink from the nozzle openings during the non-printing operation. Then, the work of sucking the nozzle surface is performed.
Some of these types of cap members contain an absorbing material for absorbing ink (for example, Patent Document 1).
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-342633 (pages 4 to 5, FIG. 4)

The absorbent material of this type of cap member is a porous material, a uniform material is used, and it is a rectangular member.
However, in ink jet recording apparatuses, the types of ink are diversified. For example, water-based dye-based inks and water-based pigment-based inks are beginning to be used. Pigment-based inks are those in which the color material is present in the form of particles, and are characterized by being resistant to attacks on ozone, light, and the like and difficult to fade. Dye-based ink is ink that reproduces color by ink droplets soaking into paper. When the pigment-based ink and the dye-based ink are ejected from one head through different nozzle rows, if the same absorbent material is used, for example, pigment ink particles solidify and accumulate on the surface of the absorbent material. The deposited particles may adhere to the nozzle surface of the head. If the density of all the absorbers is increased so that the pigment ink particles penetrate into the absorber, the absorber cannot hold the ink, and the nozzle opening of the head is moistened in the cap, which is another function of the absorber. The function of preventing the ink from drying may be impaired.

  Therefore, the present invention solves the above-mentioned problems, and when different types of liquids such as pigment-based liquids and dye-based liquids are used, any liquid is surely absorbed and does not affect the nozzle surface of the head. An object of the present invention is to provide a liquid ejecting apparatus capable of ensuring the liquid ejection performance of the head and a liquid suction apparatus for the liquid ejecting apparatus.

In the present invention, the above object is a liquid ejecting apparatus having a liquid suction device that sucks the liquid from a nozzle surface of a head that ejects liquid, and the liquid suction device seals the nozzle surface. A main body for absorbing the liquid that is disposed in the main body and absorbs the liquid ejected from a plurality of nozzle rows of the nozzle surface, and the main body seals the nozzle surface, This is achieved by a liquid ejecting apparatus characterized in that the distance between the nozzle surface and the surface of the absorbent material is set corresponding to the nozzle row of the nozzle surface.
According to the configuration of the present invention, the main body of the liquid suction device is for sealing the nozzle surface. The absorbent material is disposed in the main body and absorbs liquid ejected from a plurality of nozzle rows on the nozzle surface.
In a state where the main body seals the nozzle surface, the distance between the nozzle surface and the surface of the absorbent material is set corresponding to the nozzle row of the nozzle surface.
Thereby, when different types of liquid are ejected from a plurality of nozzle rows, corresponding to the different types of liquid ejected by the nozzle rows, by changing the distance between the nozzle surface and the surface of the absorbent material, Ensure that different types of liquids are absorbed by the absorbent material. Therefore, by ensuring the liquid ejecting performance on the nozzle surface of the head, the liquid ejecting apparatus can reliably eject the liquid.

In the present invention, the distance corresponding to the nozzle row to which the pigment-based liquid is ejected is set to be larger than the distance corresponding to the nozzle row to which the dye-based liquid is ejected. desirable.
According to the configuration of the present invention, the distance corresponding to the nozzle row from which the pigment-based liquid is ejected is set to be larger than the distance corresponding to the nozzle row from which the dye-based liquid is ejected.
As a result, even if pigment-based liquid particles are deposited on the surface of the absorbent material, the deposited particles can be prevented from affecting the nozzle surface because of the distance from the nozzle row.

In the present invention, it is desirable that a protruding member for holding the absorbent material in the main body is provided in the main body.
According to the structure of this invention, the protrusion part which hold | maintains an absorber in a main body is provided in the main body.
Thereby, an absorber can be reliably hold | maintained when absorbing a liquid by hold | maintaining an absorber in a main body with a protrusion member.

The present invention preferably has a pressing member for pressing the surface of the absorbent material held by the protruding member by being fixed to the protruding member.
According to the structure of this invention, a pressing member presses the surface of the absorber hold | maintained at the protrusion member by fixing to a protrusion member.
As a result, the surface of the absorbent material can be reliably pressed by the pressing member, so that the absorbent material absorbs liquid while forcibly holding the absorbent material made of different materials inside the main body. Can be prevented.

In the present invention, it is preferable that the plurality of surfaces having different distances are pressed by one pressing member.
According to the configuration of the present invention, a plurality of surfaces having different distances are pressed by one pressing member.
Thereby, the several surface from which distance differs by one press member can be fixed reliably.

In the present invention, it is preferable that the plurality of surfaces having different distances are pressed by different pressing members.
According to the configuration of the present invention, the plurality of surfaces having different distances are pressed by different pressing members.
Thereby, it is possible to more reliably press a plurality of surfaces having different distances using different pressing members.

In the present invention, the above object is a liquid suction device for sucking the liquid from the nozzle surface of the head in a liquid ejecting apparatus having a head for ejecting liquid, and a main body for sealing the nozzle surface And an absorbing material that is disposed in the main body and absorbs the liquid ejected from a plurality of nozzle rows of the nozzle surface, and in the state where the main body seals the nozzle surface, the nozzle surface This is achieved by the liquid suction device of the liquid ejecting apparatus, wherein the distance between the nozzle surface and the surface of the absorbent material is set corresponding to the nozzle row.
Thereby, when different types of liquid are ejected from a plurality of nozzle rows, corresponding to the different types of liquid ejected by the nozzle rows, by changing the distance between the nozzle surface and the surface of the absorbent material, Ensure that different types of liquids are absorbed by the absorbent material. Therefore, by ensuring the liquid ejecting performance on the nozzle surface of the head, the liquid ejecting apparatus can reliably eject the liquid.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 shows an ink jet recording apparatus 10 which is a preferred embodiment of the liquid ejecting apparatus of the present invention.
The ink jet recording apparatus 10 shown in FIG. 1 is also called an ink jet printer. The ink jet recording apparatus 10 has a main body 1. The main body 1 includes a guide rail 17, a platen 12, a carriage 14, an ink suction device 20, and a recording head 30. The recording head 30 is an example of a liquid jet head, and is also called a print head.

  An ink jet recording apparatus 10 shown in FIG. 1 is a so-called on-carriage recording apparatus, and a plurality of ink cartridges 2, 3, 4, and 5 can be detachably mounted on the upper part of the carriage 14. A recording head 30 is provided below the carriage 14. The carriage 14 is connected to a motor 16 via a belt 15. When the motor 16 operates, the carriage 14 reciprocates along the guide rail 17 in the main scanning direction T that is the axial direction of the platen 12.

The home position 18 is located at one end of the guide rail 17. The home position 18 is a non-printing area at the end of the carriage travel path. An ink suction device 20 is disposed on the main body 1 at the home position 18. This ink suction device 20 is also called a capping system or capping means. The recording head 30 of the carriage 14 in FIG. 1 faces the cap body 21 of the ink suction device 20 by moving to the home position 18 along the T1 direction.
The ink suction device 20 has a function of preventing the ink from drying at the nozzle openings of the recording head 30 and a function of forcing the negative pressure from the suction pump 19 to act on the nozzle openings to forcibly suck and discharge the ink from the nozzle openings. Is provided. The suction pump 19 is a component constituting the ink suction device 20. The ink suction device 20 is an example of a liquid suction device. Ink is an example of a liquid.
In addition, a wiping member 400 is provided beside the ink suction device 20. The wiping member 400 contacts the nozzle plate surface of the recording head 30 as necessary, and wipes ink on the nozzle plate surface.

  FIG. 2 shows an example of electrical connection of the ink jet recording apparatus 10 shown in FIG. The control device 7 of the ink jet recording apparatus 10 is connected to a printer driver 41 of the host computer 40 via a local printer cable or a communication network. The printer driver 41 includes software that sends a command for causing the ink jet recording apparatus 10 to execute printing, cleaning operation, or ink suction operation.

In addition to the control device 7, the ink jet recording device 10 shown in FIG. 2 includes a sensor 8, an ink suction device 20, ink cartridges 2, 3, 4, and 5, a recording head 30, a carriage 14, and a paper transport mechanism 15A. Yes.
In the embodiment of FIG. 1, a plurality of ink cartridges 2, 3, 4, and 5 are mounted directly on the carriage 14, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the ink cartridges 2, 3, 4, and 5 are separate from the carriage. Of course, a so-called off-carriage type ink jet recording apparatus mounted at the position may be adopted.
The paper transport mechanism 15A shown in FIG. 2 is configured to transport the paper 29 shown in FIG. The paper 29 is a kind of recording medium.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a structural example of the recording head 30 shown in FIG.
In particular, when the ink jet recording apparatus 10 is used as a color printer, the recording head 30 has an independent ink path 50 for each ink type in order to eject a plurality of different types of ink. Yes.
Ink from each of the ink cartridges 2, 3, 4, and 5 flows into the ink path 50 through the ink supply needle 50A. Ink paths 50 independent for each type of ink are connected to a plurality of pressure chambers 51, respectively. Each nozzle opening row 54 </ b> A to 54 </ b> D is connected to each pressure chamber 51. Ink droplets pushed out from the pressure chamber 51 are ejected from the nozzle openings 55A to 55D of the nozzle opening rows 54A to 54D.

FIG. 4 shows an arrangement example of the nozzle opening rows 54 </ b> A to 54 </ b> D on the nozzle plate surface 61. Different ink types mean not only the apparent color difference, but also the types and ratios of the ink components. Each nozzle opening row | line | column 54A-54D is comprised from several 10 to several thousand nozzle opening 55A-55D, for example.
As shown in FIG. 4, each nozzle opening row | line | column 54A-54D is formed at intervals along the U direction, for example, is formed in 4 rows. That is, the nozzle opening rows 54A to 54D are arranged in parallel along the T direction at intervals. The longitudinal direction of each nozzle opening row is the U direction.
In the illustrated embodiment, for example, the nozzle openings 55A of the nozzle opening row 54A eject water-based black ink (B), and the nozzle openings 55B of the nozzle opening row 54B eject water-based cyan ink (C). Spray. For example, the nozzle openings 55C of the nozzle opening row 54C eject water-based magenta ink (M), and the nozzle openings 55D of the nozzle opening row 54D eject water-based yellow ink (Y).

The nozzle plate surface 61 shown in FIG. 4 is an example of a nozzle surface, but a water repellent portion 800 is formed on the nozzle plate surface 61. The water repellent part 800 is an example of a liquid repellent part. This water repellent portion 800 is obtained by forming, for example, a fluororesin (tetrafluoroethylene resin).
The water repellent part 800 is an area including all the nozzle opening rows 54. In this way, by forming a water-repellent part, which is an example of a liquid-repellent part, in a region including all the nozzle opening rows 54, the ink meniscus shape at each nozzle opening is stabilized and ink is ejected from the nozzle openings. At this time, in order to obtain straightness of ink dots (ink droplets), at least wettability with respect to the ink in the vicinity of the nozzle opening can be made uniform.

  The ink on the nozzle plate surface 61 has a structure that can be wiped off and cleaned by lightly contacting the wiping member 400 with the nozzle plate surface 61 by, for example, relative movement between the wiping member 400 and the recording head 30. Yes. In the example of FIG. 4, the recording head 30 actually moves in the T2 direction with respect to the wiping member 400, so that the wiping member 400 wipes the ink on the nozzle plate surface 61 while mechanically touching lightly. it can.

FIG. 5 shows an example of the internal structure of the recording head 30 of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention. The ink supplied from the ink cartridge described above is supplied to the pressure chamber 51 through the ink path 50. At the time of printing, the piezoelectric vibrator 39 as a pressure generating element expands and contracts, thereby changing the volume of the pressure chamber 51 and causing pressure fluctuation in the ink in the pressure chamber 51. Thereby, ink droplets can be ejected from the nozzle openings 55A to 55D.
If air bubbles are mixed in the ink in the recording head 30 or there is thickened ink in the ink path 50 or the pressure chamber 51, the normal flow of the ink is inhibited and normal ink cannot be ejected. There is. In this case, the ink suction device 20 shown in FIG. 2 is used, and it is necessary to forcibly discharge ink by the ink suction device 20.

  Further, when the ink jet recording apparatus 10 is first used or when the ink cartridge is replaced with another type of ink cartridge, ink is filled into the ink path 50 in the recording head 30 in FIG. There is a need to. In such initial ink filling, the ink suction device 20 is used, and the ink suction device 20 is configured to forcibly suck air and ink from the nozzle openings 55A to 55D of the recording head 30 in FIG. It discharges | emits from opening 55A-55D.

Next, the ink suction device 20 as an example of the liquid suction device shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 will be described.
6 shows a standby state in which the cap main body 21 of the ink suction device 20 is separated from the nozzle plate surface 61 of the recording head 30, and FIG. 7 shows the suction state where the ink suction device 20 seals the nozzle plate surface 61 and sucks it. The example of the state which is carrying out is shown.

The ink suction device 20 shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 includes a cap main body 21, an absorbent material 22, a suction part 500, an air release part 600, and an elevating means 250. FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a structural example of the cap body 21 and the recording head 30.
The cap body 21 is made of metal or plastic and has a bottom portion 21A and four side portions 21B. An upper opening 21 </ b> C is formed in the upper part of the cap body 21. The size of the upper opening 21C is slightly smaller than the size of the nozzle plate surface 61, and the upper end portion of the cap body 21 has an adhesive member 29 that can be elastically deformed. The contact member 29 can seal the nozzle plate surface 61.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the suction unit 500 includes a suction pipe 501 and a suction pump 19. One end of the suction pipe 501 is connected to the bottom 21 </ b> A of the cap body 21. The suction pump 19 is connected to a suction pipe 501, and the ink and bubbles in the cap body 21 can be disposed on the waste ink tank 100 side by operating the suction pump 19.

  The atmosphere release unit 600 includes an atmosphere release pipe 601 and an atmosphere release valve 605. One end of the air release pipe 601 is connected to the bottom 21 </ b> A of the cap body 21. The atmosphere release valve 605 is connected to the atmosphere release pipe 601, and the atmosphere release pipe 601 can be closed or opened by operating a solenoid, for example. Thereby, the inside of the cap main body 21 can be recovered from the negative pressure state to the atmospheric pressure state.

The elevating means 250 shown in FIG. 6 can raise the cap body 21 from the standby state to the raised position shown in FIG. 7 in the Z2 direction. As a result, the contact member 29 of the cap body 21 is in close contact with the nozzle plate surface 61, so that the cap body 21 can seal all the nozzle opening rows 54 </ b> A to 54 </ b> D on the nozzle plate surface 61.
On the contrary, when the elevating means 250 is operated, the cap body 21 can be returned from the sealed state of the cap body 21 shown in FIG. 7 to the standby state shown in FIG. 6 along the Z1 direction.

Next, the absorbent 22 shown in FIGS. 6, 7 and 8 will be described.
The absorbent 22 is a substantially rectangular parallelepiped member housed in the cap body 21. The absorbing material 22 is a member for absorbing ink ejected from the nozzle openings 55A to 55D of the nozzle opening rows 54A to 54D of the nozzle plate surface 61 of the recording head 30. For example, a sponge made of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), which is a foamed plastic, can be used as the absorbent material 22. Such a foamed plastic is preferably a hydrophilic material, and it is desirable to use such a hydrophilic material.

As shown in FIG. 6, the absorbent material 22 is composed of a first portion 22A and a second portion 22B.
The first portion 22A is disposed at a position corresponding to the two nozzle opening rows 54A and the nozzle opening row 54B. Similarly, the second portion 22B is arranged corresponding to the two nozzle opening rows 54C and the nozzle opening row 54D. FIG. 8 shows a state in which the first portion 22 </ b> A and the second portion 22 </ b> B of the absorbent material 22 are accommodated in the cap body 21. FIG. 9 shows an example of the shape of the absorbent material 22. The first portion 22A and the second portion 22B have a rectangular parallelepiped shape, but the height H1 in the Z direction of the first portion 22A is set to be smaller than the height H2 of the second portion 22B. That is, the first surface 91 of the first portion 22A is at a lower position than the second surface 92 of the second portion 22B.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the first surface 91 is located farther from the nozzle plate surface 61 than the second surface 92. Therefore, in the state where the cap body 21 is in close contact with the nozzle plate surface 61 and sealed as shown in FIG. 7, the distance D1 between the first surface 91 of the first portion 22A and the nozzle plate surface 61 is the second portion 22B. Is set larger than the distance D2 between the second surface 92 and the nozzle plate surface 61.

The reason why the first surface 91 is positioned lower than the second surface 92 and the distance D1 is set larger than the distance D2 is as follows.
The nozzle opening rows 54A and 54B discharge water-based pigment-based ink, while the nozzle opening rows 54C and 54D discharge water-based dye-based ink. Since the water-based pigment-based ink exists in the form of particles, the particles are likely to be deposited on the first surface 91 when the water-based pigment-based ink is ejected from the nozzle openings 55A and 55B.
On the other hand, even when water-based dye-based ink is ejected from the nozzle openings 55C and 55D, the water-based dye-based ink droplets are infiltrated into a medium such as paper, so that the color is reproduced. Does not deposit on the second surface 92.

For this reason, the first surface 91 is set lower than the second surface 92 when viewed from the nozzle plate surface 61 in consideration of the accumulation of water-based pigment-based ink particles in advance. Even if water-based pigment-based ink particles are deposited on the first surface 91, the distance D1 is set to be larger than the distance D2, so that the deposited particles can be reliably prevented from coming into direct contact. it can.
Thus, the liquid ejection performance can be ensured without impairing the liquid ejection performance from the nozzle openings of each nozzle opening row of the nozzle plate surface 61.

The tissue density of the first portion 22A of the absorbent material 22 is different from the tissue density of the second portion 22B. That is, the structure of the first portion 22A is rough, and the structure of the second portion 22B is finer than the first portion 22A. In other words, the material of the first portion 22A has a lower density than the material of the second portion 22B.
Thus, the first portion 22A can easily absorb the aqueous pigment-based ink containing particles. Since the second portion 22B absorbs water-based dye-based ink, the water-based dye-based ink can be absorbed even if the structure is finer than that of the first portion 22A.

  By changing the structure of the first portion 22A and the second portion 22B, the aqueous pigment-based ink ejected from the nozzle openings 55A and 55B and the aqueous dye-based ink ejected from the nozzle openings 55C and 55D can be changed. Thus, the ink can be sucked and discharged smoothly and reliably toward the waste ink tank 100 by the suction of the suction pump 19 through the first portion 22A and the second portion 22B, respectively.

Next, a structure in which the absorbent 22 is fixed in the cap body 21 will be described.
As shown in FIGS. 6 and 8, the first portion 22 </ b> A and the second portion 22 </ b> B of the absorbent material 22 are securely fixed and held by a plurality of protruding members 150 and one pressing member 130, respectively.
As shown in FIG. 6, the protruding member 150 is formed in parallel to protrude in the Z2 direction inside the cap body 21. The protruding member 150 is preferably formed at a position away from the nozzle opening without facing the nozzle openings 55A to 55D. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the ink ejected from the nozzle opening from being directly placed on the protruding member 150. The protruding member 150 is made of, for example, plastic. The protruding member 150 is a pin-shaped member, but has a small-diameter portion 151 at the tip of the protruding member 150 as shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 and 8, the pressing member 130 is preferably a thin plate-like member made of a metal material that can be elastically deformed. The pressing member 130 is formed, for example, by punching a thin metal material. The pressing member 130 has a hole 131 as shown in FIG. The hole 131 is located at a position corresponding to the small diameter portion 151 of each protruding member 150, and the inner diameter of the hole 131 corresponds to the outer diameter of the small diameter portion 151.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the first portion 22 </ b> A and the second portion 22 </ b> B are accommodated in the cap body 21, but as shown in FIG. have. The through hole 133 is formed corresponding to each protruding member 150. When the protruding member 150 is passed through each corresponding through hole 133, the first portion 22 </ b> A and the second portion 22 </ b> B are held in the cap body 21 as shown in FIG. 6.

Moreover, as shown in FIG. 10, the small diameter portion 151 of each protruding member 150 is provided with the hole 131 of the pressing member 130, so that the pressing member 130 is disposed in close contact with the first surface 91 and the second surface 92. Is done. After that, as shown in FIG. 10B, the fixed portion 155 is formed by pressing the small diameter portion 151 in the Z1 direction while heating it with a heater member and performing heat caulking.
The fixed portion 155 is preferably formed in a hemispherical shape, for example. The fixing portion 155 can reliably mechanically fix the pressing member 130 to the protruding member 150, and the pressing member 130 connects the first portion 22 </ b> A and the second portion 22 </ b> B to the bottom surface portion 21 </ b> A of the cap body 21. It can be securely fixed by pressing against the inner bottom surface. The first portion 22A and the second portion 22B can be securely held and fixed in the cap body 21 by the protruding member 150 and the pressing member 130.

  By making the fixed portion 155 shown in FIG. 10 hemispherical, even if ink is placed on the fixed portion 155 when ink is ejected from the nozzle openings 55A to 55D shown in FIG. Since the fixed portion 155 is hemispherical, the loaded ink can be reliably guided to the first surface 91 or the second surface 92 side through the fixed portion 155. Therefore, the problem that the ink is hardened on the fixed portion 155 can be solved.

  An air opening 22H is formed in the second portion 22B shown in FIG. This air release port 22H is connected to the air release pipe 601 of the air release part 600 shown in FIG. As a result, when the cap body 21 is in a negative pressure state with the cap body 21 sealing the nozzle plate surface 61 as shown in FIG. 7, the negative pressure state is returned to the atmospheric pressure state. The cap body 21 can be reliably and smoothly returned to the atmospheric pressure state through the air release pipe 601 and the air release port 22H shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the pressing member 130 has a structure in which the first surface 91 and the second surface 92 are pressed by separate portions 130A and 130B, respectively. However, the portions 130 </ b> A and 130 </ b> B are formed in advance according to the heights of the first surface 91 and the second surface 92. By using such portions 130A and 130B, even when the heights of the first surface 91 of the first portion 22A and the second surface 92 of the second portion 22B are different, the absorbent 22 is surely contained in the cap body 21. There is an advantage that can be pressed down mechanically.

Next, an example of a liquid suction method of the liquid ejecting head in the liquid ejecting apparatus according to the embodiment of the invention will be described with reference to FIG.
When the first use of the ink jet recording apparatus 10 shown in FIG. 1 is started or when the ink cartridge is replaced with another ink cartridge, it is necessary to fill the ink path 50 of the recording head 30 with ink. When filling, air and ink may be forcibly sucked and discharged from the nozzle openings 55 of the recording head 30 by the ink suction device 20 and cleaned.
In addition, if bubbles are mixed in the ink of the recording head 30 or ink having increased viscosity is present in the ink path 50, the normal flow of the ink may be hindered. Even in such a case, the ink may be forcibly discharged by the ink suction device 20 for cleaning.

  In the printing step ST1 shown in FIG. 11, the recording head 30 and the carriage 14 shown in FIG. 1 are located in a printing area away from the ink suction device 20 during printing. As a result, the recording head 30 moves in the printing area together with the carriage 14 so that printing can be performed on the paper 29. However, when it is necessary to perform the suction operation (also referred to as cleaning) of the recording head 30 as described above, the carriage 14 and the recording head 30 in FIG. 1 move in the head moving direction T1 as shown in FIG. Is positioned at the home position 18. As shown in FIG. 6, when the recording head 30 is positioned at the home position 18, the nozzle plate surface 61 of the recording head 30 is positioned above the ink suction device 20.

In step ST <b> 2 of FIG. 11, the control device 7 shown in FIG. 2 issues an ink suction operation execution command to the ink suction device 20.
In step ST3 of FIG. 11, the elevating means 250 shown in FIG. 6 raises the cap body 21 in the Z2 direction, whereby the contact member 29 of the cap body 21 seals the nozzle plate surface 61 as shown in FIG.

  In the ink suction step ST4 of FIG. 11, the suction pump 19 shown in FIG. 7 is operated to suck the ink toward the absorber 22 of the cap body 21. At this time, the air release valve 605 is closed. As a result, as shown in FIG. 9, for example, ink droplets formed in the nozzle openings 55 </ b> A, 55 </ b> B, 55 </ b> C, 55 </ b> D of the nozzle plate surface 61 pass through the first surface 91 and the second surface 92 of the absorbent 22. And can be discharged to the waste ink tank 100 side through the suction pipe 501 and the pump 19 shown in FIG.

In step ST5, the negative pressure in the cap body 21 is returned to atmospheric pressure. That is, the atmosphere release valve 605 is changed from the closed state to the opened state, and thereby the inside of the cap body 21 is smoothly recovered from the negative pressure state to the atmospheric pressure.
Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 11, in step ST6, the elevating means 250 shown in FIG. 7 is activated, and the cap body 21 shown in FIG. 7 returns from the raised state shown in FIG. 7 to the standby state shown in FIG.

The air release valve 605 is effective for returning the inside of the cap body 21 to atmospheric pressure and discharging the ink in the cap before opening the cap body 21 from the nozzle plate surface 61. If the air release valve 605 is not provided, it takes several tens of seconds to return the inside of the cap main body 21 from the negative pressure to the atmospheric pressure. Since there is a risk of spilling, the ink suction operation cannot be performed efficiently.
In the case of performing the liquid suction method of the liquid ejecting head as described above, since the structure of the absorbent 22 as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 is adopted, the following advantages are obtained.

As shown in FIG. 7, the nozzle opening rows 54 </ b> A to 54 </ b> D in a state where the cap main body 21 seals the nozzle plate surface 61 by the close contact portion 29 of the cap main body 21 contacting the nozzle plate surface 61. Consider a case where ink is ejected or flushed from the nozzle openings 55A to 55D.
In this case, water-based pigment-based ink is ejected from the nozzle opening rows 54A and 54B to the first portion 91 of the first portion 22A. Water-based dye-based ink is ejected from the nozzle opening rows 54C and 54D onto the second surface 92 of the second portion 22B.

The aqueous pigment-based ink is absorbed by the first portion 22 </ b> A and discharged to the waste ink tank 100 through the suction pump 19. On the other hand, the aqueous dye-based ink is absorbed by the second portion 22B and discharged to the waste ink tank 100 side by the suction pump 19.
As shown in FIG. 7, the distance D1 of the first surface 91 of the first portion 22A is set to be larger than the distance D2 of the second surface 92. For this reason, even if particles contained in the aqueous pigment-based ink are deposited on the first surface 91, the distance D1 is secured large in advance, so that the deposited particles adhere to the nozzle plate surface 61, and the nozzle A phenomenon that closes the opening does not occur.

Further, when water-based dye-based ink is ejected from the nozzle opening rows 54C and 54D, the water-based dye-based ink tends to be mist (mist). However, since the distance D2 is set to be smaller than the distance D1, the water-based dye-based ink can easily reach the second surface 92 before it becomes mist-like, so that the water-based dye-based ink is prevented from becoming mist as much as possible. be able to.
If the water-based dye-based ink becomes mist, the mist may be scattered and contaminated in each part of the ink jet recording apparatus after the cap body 21 is unsealed. In the embodiment of the present invention, Such a phenomenon can be prevented.

Here, with reference to FIG. 12, for the dye-based ink and the pigment-based ink, the possibility of ink mist formation with respect to the size of the distance D and the influence on the nozzle plate surface due to the accumulation of ink particles To do.
A distance D (also referred to as an interval) between the absorbent material surface and the nozzle plate surface 61 is illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 12B. In FIG. 12A, the possibility of ink mist formation is illustrated for dye-based inks, and the influence of the nozzle plate surface due to the accumulation of ink particles is illustrated for pigment-based inks.

Examples of the distance D between the absorbent material surface and the nozzle plate surface 61 are 1 mm, 1.2 mm, and 1.5 mm. The possibility of mist formation (mist floating) of the dye-based ink is relatively small when the distance D is 1 mm, but the possibility becomes large when the distance D is slightly large as 1.2 mm. When the thickness is 5 mm, the possibility of mist formation increases.
On the other hand, the effect on the nozzle plate surface 61 due to the accumulation of pigment-based ink particles on the surface of the absorber is large when the distance D is 1 mm, and is medium when the distance D is 1.2 mm. Yes, and 1.5mm is smaller.

  From the above, when ejecting dye-based ink, it is desirable to make the distance D as small as possible in order to prevent the formation of ink mist. On the other hand, when the pigment-based ink is ejected, the interval D is set relatively large in order to prevent the accumulated particles from affecting the nozzle plate surface if the ink particles are accumulated. It turns out that is desirable.

Other Embodiments of the Present Invention Next, other embodiments of the present invention will be described. In other embodiments of the present invention to be described, the same portions as those in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 are denoted by the same reference numerals and the description thereof is used.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, the first portion 22A of the absorbent 22 corresponds only to the nozzle opening row 54A. On the other hand, the second portion 22B corresponds to the three nozzle opening rows 54B to 54D. In this case, the nozzle opening row 54A ejects water-based pigment-based ink, and the remaining three nozzle opening rows 54B to 54D eject water-based dye-based ink. The distance D1 of the first portion 22A is set larger than the distance D2 of the second portion 22B. Moreover, the structure of the first portion 22A is rough, and the structure of the second portion 22B is finer than the structure of the first portion 22A. That is, the material of the first portion 22A has a lower density than the material of the second portion 22B.
As described above, the embodiment shown in FIG. 13 and FIG. 14 can be used when one nozzle opening row ejects water-based pigment-based ink.

  In the embodiment of FIG. 15, the first portion 22A is arranged corresponding to the nozzle opening rows 54A and 54B, and the second portion 22B is arranged corresponding to the nozzle opening rows 54C and 54D. The embodiment of FIG. 15 differs from the embodiment of FIG. 7 in that the pressing member 130 is not provided. The first portion 22 </ b> A and the second portion 22 </ b> B are held and fixed in the cap body 21 by only the protruding member 150. In this case, a fixed portion 150A is formed at the tip portion of the protruding member 150 by heat caulking or the like. The fixed portion 150A pushes and fixes the first surface 91 of the first portion 22A and the second surface 92 of the second portion 22B.

  In the embodiment of FIGS. 16 and 17, the nozzle opening rows 54A and 54B correspond to the first portion 22A, and the nozzle opening rows 54C and 54D correspond to the second portion 22B. The nozzle opening rows 54A and 54B eject water-based pigment-based ink, and the nozzle opening rows 54C and 54D eject water-based dye-based ink.

  The embodiment shown in FIGS. 16 and 17 is different from the embodiment shown in FIG. 7 in the shape of the pressing member 130. The portion 130A and the portion 130B of the pressing member 130 are separate members. The portion 130A mechanically fixes the first surface 91, and the portion 130B mechanically fixes the second surface 92. By doing in this way, formation of the pressing member 130 becomes easy.

  In the embodiment of FIGS. 18 and 19, the nozzle opening rows 54A and 54B correspond to the first portion 22A, and the nozzle opening rows 54C and 54D correspond to the second portion 22B. However, as shown in FIG. 19, the portions 130 </ b> A and 130 </ b> B of the pressing member 130 are formed by being bent at the central protruding member 150. That is, the first portion 22 </ b> A and the second portion 22 </ b> B of the absorbent material 22 are separated at the center position of the protruding member 150. The portions 130A and 130B of the pressing member 130 are integrally formed by a connection portion 130C.

In the embodiment of FIG. 20, the absorbent 22 has a first portion 22A having a height H1, a second portion 22B having a height H2, and a third portion 22C having a height H3. The distance D1 of the first portion 22A is larger than the distance D2 of the second portion 22B. The distance D2 of the second portion 22B is larger than the distance D3 of the third portion 22C.
In this example, the nozzle opening row 54A faces the first surface 91 of the first portion 22A. The nozzle opening row 54B faces the second surface 92 of the second portion 22B. The nozzle opening rows 54C and 54D face the third surface 93 of the third portion 22C. The nozzle opening rows 54C and 54D eject water-based dye-based ink. In contrast, the nozzle opening rows 54A and 54B eject water-based pigment ink. However, for example, the amount of the aqueous pigment-based particles ejected by the nozzle opening row 54A is larger than the amount of the aqueous pigment-based particles ejected by the nozzle opening row 54B.

  In this way, even if larger particles are deposited on the first surface 91 of the first portion 22A than the second surface 92 of the second portion 22B, the accumulated particles are in the nozzle plate surface 61. It is possible to prevent the influence as much as possible.

FIG. 21 shows yet another embodiment of the present invention.
In the embodiment shown in FIG. 21, the material of the first portion 22A and the second portion 22B of the absorbent 22 is the same. However, the distance D1 of the first portion 22A is set to be larger than the distance D2 of the second portion 22B.
In this way, the same material and the same roughness of the structure are used, that is, the first portion 22A and the second portion 22B have the same density. In the first portion 22A and the second portion 22B, The height is different. The surface 91 of the first portion 22A absorbs the aqueous pigment-based ink from the nozzle openings 54A and 54B, and the surface 92 of the second portion 22B absorbs the aqueous dye-based ink from the nozzle openings 54C and 54D.

In each embodiment of the present invention, the first portion 22A and the second portion 22B are set to have different materials by changing the structure using the same material. However, the first portion 22A and the second portion 22B are not limited to this, and the first portion 22A and the second portion 22B are made of different materials so that the structure of the first portion 22A is coarse and the structure of the second portion 22B is fine. The material of the second part may be set to be different, or the liquid permeability may be different by using different materials with the same density. For example, when the aforementioned PVA and a nonwoven fabric are combined, the nonwoven fabric has better permeability. .
In any case, the material of the first portion 22A is set so as to be more permeable than the material of the second portion 22B.

  In an embodiment of the present invention, when different types of liquid are ejected from a plurality of nozzle rows, the distance between the nozzle surface and the surface of the absorbent material is set corresponding to the different types of liquid ejected by the nozzle rows. By changing, different types of liquids are surely absorbed by the absorbent material. Therefore, by ensuring the liquid ejecting performance on the nozzle surface of the head, the liquid ejecting apparatus can reliably eject the liquid. Even if pigment-based liquid particles are deposited on the surface of the absorber, the deposited particles can be prevented from affecting the nozzle surface because of the distance from the nozzle row.

  In the embodiment of the present invention, the absorbent material is held in the main body by the protruding member, so that the absorbent material can be reliably held when absorbing the liquid. Since the surface of the absorbent material can be securely pressed by the pressing member, it is possible to forcibly prevent swelling when the absorbent material absorbs liquid while securely holding the absorbent material made of different materials inside the main body. it can. A plurality of surfaces with different distances can be reliably fixed by one pressing member or different pressing members.

  In the illustrated embodiment of the present invention, four ink cartridges using pigment-based black ink and cyan ink, and dye-based magenta ink and yellow ink can be mounted on the carriage. However, this is an example, and the types and number of colors of the pigment-based ink and the dye-based ink can be arbitrarily selected. Further, only pigment-based ink or dye-based ink may be used. This is because, even in the same series of inks, the state of solidification varies depending on the viscosity. The number of ink cartridges can be arbitrarily selected.

  The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment as an ink jet recording apparatus, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the claims. Furthermore, the above-described embodiments may be combined with each other. In addition, the present invention is not limited to an ink jet recording apparatus, but a recording head used in an image recording apparatus such as a printer, a color material ejection head used in manufacturing a color filter such as a liquid crystal display, an organic EL display, and an FED (surface issuance). Electrode material ejecting heads used for electrode formation such as displays), liquid ejecting apparatuses using liquid ejecting heads for ejecting liquids such as bioorganic ejecting heads used for biochip manufacturing, sample ejecting apparatuses as precision pipettes, etc. Applicable.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the claims.
A part of each configuration of the above embodiment can be omitted, or can be arbitrarily combined so as to be different from the above.

1 is a schematic perspective view illustrating an ink jet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of a liquid ejecting apparatus of the invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of electrical connection of the ink jet recording apparatus of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a structure example of a recording head. The figure which shows the example of a nozzle plate surface and the shape of a wiping member. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a structure example of a recording head. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a state where the ink suction device is in a standby state. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a state where the ink suction device is in a suction state. FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating the recording head and the ink suction device illustrated in FIGS. 6 and 7. The perspective view which shows the example of a shape of the absorber of FIG. The figure which shows the example of fixation of a protrusion member and a pressing member. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an ink suction operation by the ink suction device. The figure which shows the example of a relationship of the distance with respect to dye-type ink and pigment-type ink. The figure which shows another embodiment of this invention. FIG. 14 is a perspective view of an ink suction device and the like showing the embodiment of FIG. 13. The figure which shows another embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows another embodiment of this invention. FIG. 17 is a perspective view showing an ink suction device and the like of the embodiment of FIG. The figure which shows another embodiment of this invention. FIG. 19 is a perspective view showing the ink suction device and the like of the embodiment shown in FIG. The figure which shows another embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows another embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Inkjet recording device, 20 ... Ink suction device (an example of a liquid suction device), 21 ... A cap main body (an example of a main body), 22 ... Absorber, 22A ... 1st part 22B ... second part, 30 ... recording head (an example of a liquid ejecting head), 61 ... nozzle plate surface (an example of a nozzle surface), 130 ... pressing member, 150 ... projecting member , D1, D2 ... Distance between the nozzle plate surface and the surface of the absorbent material

Claims (7)

A liquid ejecting apparatus having a liquid suction device for sucking the liquid from a nozzle surface of a head for ejecting liquid,
The liquid suction device is
A main body for sealing the nozzle surface;
An absorbent that is disposed within the main body and absorbs the liquid ejected from a plurality of nozzle rows on the nozzle surface;
In a state where the main body seals the nozzle surface, the distance between the nozzle surface and the surface of the absorbent material is set corresponding to the nozzle row of the nozzle surface. Liquid ejecting device.   The distance corresponding to the nozzle row to which the pigment-based liquid is ejected is set to be larger than the distance corresponding to the nozzle row to which the dye-based liquid is ejected. Item 2. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to Item 1.   The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a projecting member that holds the absorbing material in the main body is provided in the main body.   The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising a pressing member that presses the surface of the absorbent material held by the protruding member by being fixed to the protruding member.   The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the plurality of surfaces having different distances are pressed by one pressing member.   The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the plurality of surfaces having different distances are respectively pressed by different pressing members. In a liquid ejecting apparatus having a head for ejecting liquid, the liquid sucking apparatus sucks the liquid from the nozzle surface of the head,
A main body for sealing the nozzle surface;
An absorbent that is disposed within the main body and absorbs the liquid ejected from a plurality of nozzle rows on the nozzle surface;
In a state where the main body seals the nozzle surface, the distance between the nozzle surface and the surface of the absorbent material is set corresponding to the nozzle row of the nozzle surface. A liquid suction device for a liquid ejecting apparatus.

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