JP2007205177A - Tube pump and liquid jetting device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a tube pump hardly causing malfunction in a roller part moved between a suction part in an operating position or the like and a release part in a retreat position or the like, and also to provide a liquid jet device. <P>SOLUTION: The tube pump 100 has: a tube part 110 for sucking a liquid; the roller part 130 arranged in relation to the tube part; and a guide part 140 for moving the roller part in an approaching direction or a separating direction with respect to the tube part. The guide part has: a suction part 141 for arranging the roller part in a direction to crush the tube part; the release part 142 for arranging the roller part in the separating direction from the tube part; and a connecting part 143 connecting the suction part to the release part. A moving part 160 is provided for moving the roller part between the suction part and the release part, and the moving part has a shape memory elastic part changed into memorized shape according to temperature. The roller part is moved by the change of the shape memory elastic part. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a tube pump for sucking liquid and the like and a liquid ejecting apparatus.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, ink jet recording apparatuses have an ink jet recording head for ejecting ink onto recording paper or the like. Since this ink jet recording head discharges ink onto recording paper or the like via a nozzle, the ink thickens in the vicinity of the nozzle or bubbles are mixed in the nozzle, making it impossible to discharge the ink satisfactorily. There was a fear.
For this reason, the ink jet recording apparatus is provided with a head cleaning device in order to avoid these phenomena.

The head cleaning device has a capping unit arranged so as to cover the nozzles and a pump for making negative pressure in the capping unit, and is configured to perform cleaning by sucking ink in the vicinity of the nozzles by the pump. ing.
As the pump, a tube pump having a relatively simple structure and easy to be miniaturized is used (for example, Patent Document 1).
As shown in FIG. 4, the tube pump 25 of Patent Document 1 includes a pressing device 41 having a coil spring 25 and the like, and the coil spring 25 and the like of the pressing device 41 moves the roller 44 toward the inner wall surface 31 a of the housing case 31. The flexible tube 24 is pressed so as to be crushed. And by crushing in this way, the tube pump 25 is configured to suck the ink by reducing the pressure (negative pressure state) of the flexible tube.
At this time, the roller 44 is disposed at the operation position S in the guide groove 55 of FIG.
Conversely, when the tube pump 25 does not suck ink, the roller 44 is moved to the retracted position T in the guide groove 55, and the roller 44 does not crush the tube 24.

As described above, in Patent Document 1, when the tube pump 25 is sucking ink, the roller 44 is disposed at the operation position S of the guide groove 55, and when the suction is finished, the roller 44 is moved to the retracted position of the guide groove 55. It was necessary to arrange at T.
JP 2004-308523 A (FIG. 6 etc.)

  However, even if the tube pump 25 tries to move the roller 44 between the operating position S and the retracted position T of the guide groove 55, there is a problem that the roller 44 does not move and the tube pump 25 malfunctions. It was.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is that it provides a tube pump and a liquid ejecting apparatus that are less likely to malfunction in a roller portion that moves between a suction portion such as an operating position and a release portion such as a retracted position.

  According to the present invention, the problem is that the tube portion that sucks the liquid, the roller portion that is disposed with respect to the tube portion, and the roller portion moves in the proximity direction or the separation direction with respect to the tube portion. A guide part, a suction part for arranging the roller part in a direction to crush the tube part, and a release part for arranging the roller part in a direction away from the tube part, A connecting part that connects the suction part and the release part, and a moving part for moving the roller part between the suction part and the release part is provided, and the moving part has a temperature And a shape memory elastic portion that changes to a shape memorized by the above-mentioned configuration, and the roller portion is moved by the change of the shape memory elastic portion. .

According to the said structure, the moving part for moving a roller part between a suction part and a release part is provided, and a moving part has a shape memory elastic part which changes to the shape memorize | stored with temperature, and shape memory elasticity The roller part moves according to the change of the part.
For this reason, when the shape memory elastic portion is changed to a predetermined temperature and changed, the roller portion moves to, for example, the suction portion due to the change of the shape memory elastic portion.
Therefore, for example, when it is desired to move the roller portion to the suction portion, the shape memory elastic portion can reliably move the roller portion to the suction portion or the like only by setting the temperature of the shape memory elastic portion to a predetermined temperature. it can.
As described above, unlike the prior art, the tube pump of the present invention has a configuration in which operation failure is unlikely to occur in the roller portion that moves between the suction portion and the release portion.

  Preferably, the tube portion is arranged in a substantially circular shape, and the guide portion is linearly formed from the tube portion toward a substantially circular central portion of the tube portion. It is a tube pump.

According to the said structure, the guide part is linearly formed toward the substantially circular center part of the tube part from the tube part.
For this reason, since a roller part moves linearly between a suction part and a release part, it has composition which it is hard to produce a malfunctioning.

  Preferably, in the tube pump, the shape memory elastic portion is formed of a shape memory spring.

  In the present invention, the subject is a tube portion for sucking a liquid, a roller portion arranged with respect to the tube portion, and a guide for the roller portion to move in a proximity direction or a separation direction with respect to the tube portion. The guide section includes a suction section that disposes the roller section in a direction that crushes the tube section, a release section that disposes the roller section in a direction away from the tube section, and the suction section. And a connecting part that connects between the release part and the release part, and a moving part for moving the roller part between the suction part and the release part is provided, and the moving part stores the temperature according to temperature A liquid ejecting apparatus having a tube pump, comprising: a shape memory elastic portion that changes to a shaped shape, wherein the roller portion is moved by the change of the shape memory elastic portion. It is achieved by.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
The embodiments described below are preferred specific examples of the present invention, and thus various technically preferable limitations are given. However, the scope of the present invention is particularly limited in the following description. Unless otherwise stated, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments.

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing an ink jet recording apparatus (hereinafter referred to as “recording apparatus”) 10 according to an embodiment of a liquid ejecting apparatus having a tube pump of the present invention.
As shown in FIG. 1, the recording apparatus 10 includes a frame 11, and a platen 12 is disposed on the frame 11. On the platen 12, the paper P is fed by a paper feed mechanism (not shown).
Further, the recording apparatus 10 includes a carriage 13, and the carriage 13 is supported so as to be movable in the longitudinal direction of the platen 12 via a guide member 14, and is reciprocated by a carriage motor 15 via a timing belt 16. It has become.

An ink jet recording head (hereinafter referred to as “recording head”) 20 is mounted on the lower portion of the carriage 13. The recording head 20 is configured to eject, for example, ink that is a liquid with respect to the paper P.
Specifically, the recording head 20 has a nozzle that ejects ink, and is configured to eject ink droplets from the nozzle by expansion and contraction of a piezoelectric vibrator.
An ink cartridge 17 that contains ink is detachably mounted on the carriage 13, and the ink is supplied from the ink cartridge 17 to the recording head 20.
In other words, while the carriage 13 moves along the platen 12, the piezoelectric vibrator is expanded and contracted based on the print data, so that ink is ejected from the recording head 20 onto the paper P and printing is performed. ing.

In the frame 11 of FIG. 1, the paper P is arranged and has a print region T where printing is performed on the paper P. Further, the frame 11 has a home position H which is a non-printing area on one end side thereof.
The carriage 13 is configured to move between the printing region T and the home position H by moving along the platen 12.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a head cleaning mechanism 30 is disposed at the home position H. The head cleaning mechanism 30 has a cap holder 34 and a tube pump 100. The cap holder 34 is installed on the frame 11 so as to be movable up and down by a known lifting means (not shown).

  The head cleaning mechanism 30 has a cap 32. The cap 32 has a configuration in which the upper end edge of the cap 32 comes into contact with the nozzle plate or the like of the recording head 20 to seal the nozzles of the recording head 20.

  By the way, as shown in FIG. 1, the recording apparatus 10 includes a blade 19. The blade 19 is in contact with the nozzle plate of the recording head 20 and performs a wiping operation by wiping off ink.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the head cleaning mechanism 30 and the like of FIG.
As shown in FIG. 2, a sheet-like sponge 32 a is disposed at the bottom of the cap 32. The sponge 32a is configured to face the nozzles of the recording head 20 with a predetermined interval in a state where the cap 32 is in contact with the recording head 20, and absorb ink ejected from the nozzles of the recording head 20. .

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 2, the cap 32 is formed with a discharge port 32b so as to penetrate the bottom surface thereof.
The tube pump 100 is provided in the frame 11 with the cap 32 sealing the nozzles of the recording head 20, reducing the pressure in the cap 32 to a negative pressure, and sucking ink from the nozzles of the recording head 20. The ink is discharged to the waste ink tank 33.

3 and 4 are schematic views showing the main configuration of the tube pump 100. FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the tube pump 100 includes, for example, a tube 110 that is a tube portion that sucks ink, which is a liquid.
As shown in FIG. 3, the tube 110 is integrally formed of rubber, resin, or the like, and has a single long shape.
In addition, a cap side opening 111 for sucking ink and a waste ink tank side opening 112 for discharging ink are formed on both ends of the tube 110, respectively.

As shown in FIG. 3, the tube pump 100 includes a frame 120 for arranging the tubes 110 in a circular shape.
In addition, the tube pump 100 includes, for example, a roller 130 that is a roller portion disposed with respect to the tube 110.
Further, as shown in FIG. 3, a pump foil 150 is formed inside the tube 110, and the pump foil 150 is a guide portion for moving the roller 130 in the direction of arrow Y in FIG. A groove 140 is formed.
That is, the guide groove 140 is a groove for the roller 130 to move in the proximity direction or the separation direction with respect to the tube 110.
Such a guide groove 140 is a through hole. Specifically, the rotation shaft 131 of the roller 130 moves in the guide groove 140.
Further, the pump wheel 150 is configured to be rotatable in the direction of arrow R in FIG. 3 by a stepping motor 170 or the like.

As shown in FIG. 3, the guide groove 140 includes a suction part 141 that arranges the roller 130 in a direction in which the tube 110 is crushed, a release part 142 that arranges the roller 130 in a direction away from the tube 110, and a suction part 141. It has the connection part 143 which connects between the release parts 142. FIG.
And the guide groove 140 is linearly formed (along arrow Y direction) toward the substantially circular center part of the tube 110 shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 4, the tube pump 100 has a moving unit 160 for moving the roller 130 between the suction unit 141 and the release unit 142 of FIG.
Hereinafter, the configuration of the moving unit 160 will be described.
First, the moving part 160 has a shape memory spring 162 that extends in the direction of arrow Y1 in FIG. 4 when a predetermined temperature is reached. That is, the shape memory spring 162 is an example of a shape memory elastic portion that changes to a shape memorized according to temperature.
An electrode 164 is connected to the shape memory spring 161. That is, when a current is supplied from the electrode 164 to the shape memory spring 161, the temperature of the shape memory spring 161 rises due to electrical resistance, and when the temperature rises to a predetermined temperature, the shape memory spring 164 extends in the arrow Y1 direction. Yes.

The moving unit 160 has a shape memory spring fixing unit 162 for fixing the shape memory spring 161 and a roller pressing unit 163 that moves by the extension of the shape memory spring 161 and presses the roller 130.
That is, when the shape memory spring 161 extends in the direction of arrow Y1 in FIG. 4, the roller pressing portion 163 also moves in the direction of arrow Y1, and the roller 130 is moved from the release portion 143 in FIG. 3 to the suction portion 141. ing.

Hereinafter, the operation of the roller 130 will be described.
First, when the shape memory spring 161 is not energized from the electrode 164 in FIG. 4, the shape memory spring 161 does not extend in the direction of the arrow Y1 in FIG. 4 is in a contracted state.
In this state, the roller 130 is positioned at the release portion 142 of FIG. 3 by the elastic force of the tube 110 (when the tube pump 100 is not driven).
Next, when the tube pump 100 is driven, an electric current is supplied from the electrode 164. As described above, when the shape memory spring 161 rises to a predetermined temperature, the shape memory spring 161 is extended, and the roller 130 is moved to the tube 110. The suction unit 141 shown in FIG. 3 is moved against the elastic force.
Thereafter, when the pump wheel 150 is rotated in the direction of arrow R in FIG. 3 by the stepping motor 170, the roller 130 moves in a state where the tube 110 is crushed and generates a negative pressure in the tube 110.
Therefore, the ink introduced from the cap side opening 111 by this negative pressure is transported through the tube 110 and guided to the waste ink tank side opening 112.
As the tube pump 100 is driven in this way, the ink in the cap 32 is discharged to the waste ink tank 33.

When the ink discharge is completed, the supply of current to the shape memory spring 161 in FIG. 4 is stopped. Then, the shape memory spring 161 is reset by the reaction force, and enters the state shown in FIG.
Thus, according to the present embodiment, the roller 130 can be disposed on the suction unit 141 or the release unit 142 simply by supplying a current to the shape memory spring 161 to increase the temperature or stopping the current. .
Therefore, unlike the prior art, it is difficult to cause malfunction such as the roller 130 stopping in the guide groove 140.
In particular, as shown in FIG. Since the guide groove 140 is arranged substantially linearly, it is configured such that a malfunction such as the roller 130 stopping in the middle of the connecting portion 143 is extremely unlikely to occur.

Further, according to the present embodiment, since the roller 130 is moved by the shape memory spring 161, the tube pump 100 can be easily downsized because the configuration is not complicated as in the prior art.
Further, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to control the load on the tube 110 of the roller 130 by the shape memory spring 161. Therefore, a complicated configuration is not required to perform load control as in the prior art, and the tube pump 100 can be further downsized.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment. 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 ejecting head used in manufacturing a color filter such as a liquid crystal display, an organic EL display, and an FED (surface emitting). Electrode material ejection heads used for electrode formation such as displays), liquid ejection devices using liquid ejection heads that eject liquids such as bio-organic matter ejection heads used in biochip manufacturing, sample ejection devices as precision pipettes, etc. Applicable.

1 is a schematic perspective view showing an ink jet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of a liquid ejecting apparatus having a tube pump of the present invention. It is the schematic which shows the head cleaning mechanism etc. of FIG. It is the schematic which shows the main structures of a tube pump. It is the schematic which shows the other main structures of a tube pump.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Inkjet recording apparatus, 30 ... Head cleaning mechanism, 100 ... Tube pump, 110 ... Tube, 111 ... Cap side opening, 112 ... Waste ink tank side opening, 120. ..Frame, 130 ... roller, 131 ... roller shaft, 140 ... guide groove, 141 ... suction part, 142 ... release part, 143 ... connecting part, 150 ... pump Foil, 160 ... moving part, 161 ... shape memory spring, 162 ... shape memory spring fixing part, 163 ... roller pressing part, 164 ... electrode, 170 ... stepping motor

Claims (4)

A tube section for sucking liquid;
A roller portion disposed with respect to the tube portion;
A guide portion for moving the roller portion in a proximity direction or a separation direction with respect to the tube portion,
The guide part is
A suction part for disposing the roller part in the direction of crushing the tube part;
A release portion for disposing the roller portion in a direction away from the tube portion;
A connecting part for connecting the suction part and the release part,
A moving unit for moving the roller unit between the suction unit and the release unit;
The moving part has a shape memory elastic part that changes into a shape memorized by temperature,
The tube pump, wherein the roller portion is moved by the change of the shape memory elastic portion. The tube portion is arranged in a substantially circular shape,
The tube pump according to claim 1, wherein the guide portion is linearly formed from the tube portion toward a substantially circular central portion of the tube portion.   The tube pump according to claim 1, wherein the shape memory elastic portion is formed of a shape memory spring. A tube section for sucking liquid;
A roller portion disposed with respect to the tube portion;
A guide portion for moving the roller portion in a proximity direction or a separation direction with respect to the tube portion,
The guide part is
A suction part for disposing the roller part in the direction of crushing the tube part;
A release portion for disposing the roller portion in a direction away from the tube portion;
A connecting part for connecting the suction part and the release part,
A moving unit for moving the roller unit between the suction unit and the release unit;
The moving part has a shape memory elastic part that changes into a shape memorized by temperature,
The liquid ejecting apparatus having a tube pump, wherein the roller portion is moved by the change of the shape memory elastic portion.

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