JP2008062608A - Inkjet recording device and its control - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make the number of shots of the reserve discharge in a recording head variable according to the operating condition, and thereby to perform the suppression of an waste ink and the prevention of the aggravation of a running cost. <P>SOLUTION: The recording device includes a carriage in which the scan movement is possible, a driving means which carries out the scan drive of the carriage, and a means which performs the maintenance of a recording head, wherein the number of times of wiping in the recording head or the recording device, or the number of times of the suction, or both of them are counted, and thereby the same number of shots of the reserve discharge is altered according to the operating condition. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an ink jet recording apparatus and a method for suppressing the amount of waste ink, and more particularly to control for optimizing various recovery operations in accordance with the use status of a print head or the use status of an ink jet recording apparatus. It is.

  Recording devices responsible for print output functions in printers, copiers, facsimiles, etc., or recording devices used as output devices for composite electronic devices and workstations including computers and word processors, are based on image information, such as paper and plastic thin plates The image is recorded on the recording medium. These recording apparatuses can be classified into an ink jet type, a wire dot type, a thermal type, a laser beam type, and the like according to the recording method.

  In addition, with the recent miniaturization of computers, portable computers known as notebook computers have become popular. Along with this, a compact recording apparatus that focuses on portability has also been proposed.

  By the way, an ink jet recording apparatus performs recording by ejecting ink from a recording head onto a recording medium. As the recording operation is continued, drying of the ink in the ink ejection port of the recording head and the ink ejection port are performed. In some cases, normal recording cannot be performed due to adhesion of foreign matter to the surrounding area or growth of bubbles. In addition, when the ink cartridge filled with ink is separable from the recording head and only the ink cartridge is replaced when the ink runs out, the ink cartridge is inserted into the recording head after the new ink cartridge is installed. And the process of introducing ink.

  From such a point, the ink jet recording apparatus is generally provided with a recovery mechanism for forcibly discharging the ink in the recording head by sucking or pressurizing the ink in the recording head. Thereby, dried ink, foreign matter, bubbles and the like can be discharged together with the ink, and ink can be introduced (hereinafter referred to as suction recovery) when the ink cartridge is replaced.

  In addition, as an aspect of recovery, an elastic member is used to adhere to the face surface of the ink jet recording head by sliding against the surface (hereinafter referred to as the face surface) on which the ink discharge nozzle of the ink jet recording head is formed. Means for cleaning foreign matter and ink mist, that is, wiping means is provided.

  Further, as one aspect of the recovery process, it is also known to perform ejection (hereinafter referred to as preliminary ejection) that is not involved in recording at a predetermined location.

  Ink is discharged along with such recovery processing, suction recovery, and preliminary discharge. The ink jet recording apparatus includes waste ink storage means for storing the discharged waste ink.

  As one form of waste ink storage means, one formed by a sheet material having a high ink holding capacity in which pulp, a polymer absorber, or the like is laminated is known. This type of waste ink storage means is configured to store and hold the ink, promote the evaporation of the ink to reduce the amount of waste ink, and prevent the ink from overflowing from the sheet material. The cover for storing the sheet material is usually provided with an opening for promoting ink evaporation. Further, the waste ink storage means is set so that the waste ink storage volume is maximized in the installed posture of the recording apparatus in use. The waste ink storage volume of such a waste ink storage means is preferably as large as possible in consideration of the overflow of the ink and the like. On the other hand, there are certain restrictions in downsizing the recording apparatus. It is a fact.

In the above-described background art, there are a number of prior examples of head recovery processing by preliminary discharge. For example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 03-234039 proposes preliminary discharge in time management of a specified time interval and discharge interval during printing. ing. All of them set the same number of preliminary discharges in order to maintain printing reliability in all periods during the life of the apparatus.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 03-234639

  However, when preliminary discharge with a large number of shots is performed from the beginning in order to maintain high reliability even in the final stage of the product life, an increase in waste ink is inevitable. In order to provide the recording apparatus main body with an absorption holding member capable of holding the waste ink, there are problems such as an increase in cost and an increase in the size of the apparatus, and a further problem is an increase in running cost.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to minimize the amount of waste ink generated while maintaining high printing reliability, thereby accommodating waste ink. The purpose is to provide a low-cost and highly reliable inkjet recording apparatus by reducing the volume of the means and reducing the cost, and to suppress the deterioration of the running cost.

  Therefore, in the present invention, the following means is used in an ink jet recording apparatus that uses a recording head and discharges ink from the recording head onto a recording medium.

  In an inkjet recording apparatus that performs recording by discharging ink from a recording head to a recording medium using a recording head, recovery means for discharging the ink from the recording head and performing a recovery operation, and an ink discharge nozzle surface of the recording head Use of the head, means for ejecting non-printing ink from the recording head, means for reading the contents of the storage element of the recording head, a memory for storing the contents of the storage element of the recording head, and the use of the head An ink discharge nozzle comprising: means for storing the status; means for counting the number of times the ink discharge nozzle surface of the head is contact-cleaned; and means for comparing the number of times the ink discharge nozzle surface is contact-cleaned with a specified number of times If the number of times of contact cleaning the surface exceeds a specified value, the number of ink discharges other than printing performed after contact cleaning of the ink discharge nozzle surface is changed. That.

  The means for storing the number of suctions of the head and the number of suctions when the number of suctions exceeds a predetermined value change the number of ink ejections other than printing performed after contact cleaning of the ink ejection nozzle surface.

  The specified value is provided in a plurality of stages.

  In an inkjet recording apparatus that performs recording by discharging ink from a recording head to a recording medium using a recording head, recovery means for discharging the ink from the recording head and performing a recovery operation, and an ink discharge nozzle surface of the recording head Means for contact cleaning, means for discharging non-printing ink from the recording head, means for counting the number of times the recording device has contact cleaned the ink discharge nozzle face, and the number of times the ink discharge nozzle face has been contact cleaned. And a means for comparing the specified number of times, and when the number of times of contact cleaning of the ink discharge nozzle surface exceeds a specified value, the number of ink discharges other than printing performed after contact cleaning of the ink discharge nozzle surface is changed. .

  The means for storing the number of suctions of the general recording device and the number of suctions when the number of suctions exceeds a predetermined value change the number of ink ejections other than printing performed after contact cleaning of the ink ejection nozzle surface.

  The specified value is provided in a plurality of stages.

  In an ink jet recording apparatus that performs recording by discharging ink from a recording head to a recording medium using a recording head, recovery means for discharging the ink from the recording head and performing a recovery operation, and an ink discharge nozzle surface of the recording head Contact cleaning means, means for ejecting non-printing ink from the recording head, means for reading the contents of the storage element of the recording head, a memory for storing the contents of the storage element of the recording head, and the usage status of the head Storing means, means for counting the number of ink discharges per ink discharge nozzle of the head, and means for comparing the number of ink discharges per ink discharge nozzle with the specified number of times. When the number of ejections exceeds a specified value, the number of ink ejections other than printing performed after contact cleaning of the ink ejection nozzle surface To reduction.

  The specified value is provided in a plurality of stages.

  According to the present invention, within the product life of the ink jet recording apparatus, the reliability of printing that reduces the amount of waste ink by enabling the recovery control when the use of the product progresses or deteriorates over time only during the optimum period. It is possible to provide an ink jet recording apparatus with high performance.

(Basic configuration)
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the same reference numerals denote the same or corresponding parts throughout the drawings.

  FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the entire recording apparatus provided with the sheet conveying apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state where the access cover is opened from FIG. FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing the configuration of a recording apparatus with a part of the outer cover removed from FIG. 4, and the case where the recording apparatus is an ink jet recording apparatus that records on a recording medium by discharging ink. Show.

  The recording apparatus according to the present embodiment is roughly composed of a paper feeding section 37, a recording medium transport section (paper transport section) 20, a recording section head 200, and a recording head (recording means) maintenance section. Recording data is sent from a host device (not shown), stored in a recording device controller (not shown) on the control board, and a recording operation start command is issued from the controller to start the recording operation.

  First, the overall control outline will be described.

  FIG. 10 is a schematic block diagram of a control unit in such a recording apparatus.

  In FIG. 10, a CPU 194 executes control processing of the operation of the printing apparatus of this example, data processing, and the like. The ROM 191 stores programs such as those processing procedures, and the RAM 192 is used as a work area for executing these processes. Ink is ejected from the recording head 200 (H1001) when the CPU 194 supplies driving data (recording data) and a driving control signal (heat pulse signal) such as an electrothermal transducer to the head driver 195. The CPU 194 controls a carriage motor 198 for driving the carriage in the main scanning direction via the motor driver 196, and controls a PF motor 199 for conveying the paper in the sub scanning direction via the motor driver 197.

  When recording is performed by the ink jet recording apparatus having the above configuration, first, recording data sent from the host apparatus 193 through the external I / F is temporarily stored in the print buffer. Then, a recording operation in which ink is ejected from the recording head 200 (H1001) based on the recording data while the recording head 200 (H1001) is moved in the main scanning direction together with the carriage by the carriage motor 198, and the paper is sub-scanned by the PF motor 199. Images are sequentially recorded on the sheet by repeating the conveying operation of conveying a predetermined amount in the direction.

  Next, the actual operation in the above control will be described.

  When recording starts, a paper feeding operation is first performed. The paper feeding unit is a main ASF (Automatic Sheet Feeder), and this paper feeding unit pulls out one recording sheet for each recording operation from a recording medium (recording sheet) stacked on the pressure plate 41. And an automatic paper feeding unit that sends the recording medium to a recording medium conveyance unit (paper conveyance unit). At the start of the paper feeding operation, the ASF motor 46 rotates in the forward direction, and the power rotates the cam holding the pressure plate 41 via the gear train. When the cam is removed by the rotation of the ASF motor 46, the pressure plate 41 is urged toward the paper feed roller 39 by the action of a pressure plate spring (not shown). At the same time, the paper feed roller 39 rotates in the direction in which the recording medium (paper) is conveyed, so that only the uppermost one of the stacked recording media is conveyed. At that time, a plurality of recording sheets may be sent out simultaneously depending on the frictional force between the paper feed roller 39 and the recording sheet 4 and the frictional force between the recording sheets.

  In that case, a separation roller 40 is pressed against the paper feed roller 39 and has a predetermined return rotational torque in the direction opposite to the recording sheet conveyance direction, and this separation roller 40 is the recording sheet closest to the paper feed roller 39. It works to push back the recording sheet other than the original pressure plate. At the end of the ASF paper feeding operation, the separation roller 40 is released from the pressure contact state with the paper feeding roller 39 by the operation of the cam and is separated by a predetermined distance. At that time, the recording sheet is surely reached a predetermined position on the pressure plate. In order to push back, the return claw 43 rotates and plays a role. With the operation as described above, only one recording sheet is conveyed to the sheet conveying unit.

  The recording sheet 4 as a recording medium conveyed from the paper feeding unit is conveyed toward a nip portion between a conveying roller (paper feeding roller) 21 and a pinch roller 22 as a paper conveying unit (recording medium conveying unit). Since the center of the pinch roller 22 is attached with a slight offset in the direction approaching the first paper discharge roller 30 with respect to the center of the transport roller 21, the tangential direction angle at which the recording sheet is inserted is from the horizontal. Slightly inclined. Therefore, the sheet is conveyed at an angle in the sheet passing path formed by the pinch roller holder 23 and the guide member (sheet passing guide) 70 so that the leading end of the sheet is accurately guided to the nip portion.

  A sheet (recording sheet) conveyed (feeded or fed) by the ASF 37 is abutted against the nip portion of the conveying roller 21 in a stopped state. At this time, a paper loop is formed between the paper feed roller 39 and the transport roller 21 by transporting the main ASF 37 for a distance slightly longer than a predetermined sheet passing path length. When the leading edge of the sheet is pressed against the nip portion of the conveying roller 21 with a force that the loop returns straight, the leading edge of the sheet becomes parallel to the conveying roller 21 and the so-called registration removing operation is completed. After the registration removal operation is completed, the rotation (forward rotation) of the LF motor (conveyance motor) 26 is performed in the direction in which the recording sheet moves in the forward direction (the direction in which the recording sheet advances toward the first paper discharge roller 30). ).

  Thereafter, the paper feeding roller 39 is cut in driving force and is rotated with the recording sheet. At this time, the recording sheet is conveyed only by the conveying roller 21 and the pinch roller 22. The recording sheet advances in the positive direction for every predetermined line feed amount, and advances along the rib provided on the platen 29.

  The leading edge of the paper gradually reaches the nip portion of the first paper discharge roller 30 and the first spur train 32 and the nip portion of the second paper discharge roller 31 and the first spur train 33. Since the peripheral speed of the paper roller 31 is set to be substantially equal to the peripheral speed of the transport roller 21 and the first discharge roller 30 and the second discharge roller 31 are connected from the transport roller 21 by a gear train, the first discharge The paper roller 30 and the second paper discharge roller 31 rotate in synchronization with the conveyance roller 21, so that the recording sheet 4 is conveyed without being loosened or pulled.

  The recording unit mainly includes a recording head 200 as recording means, and a carriage 100 that mounts the recording head 200 and scans (moves) in a direction crossing (usually orthogonal) to the recording sheet conveyance direction. The carriage 100 is guided and supported by a guide rail 14 fixed to the chassis 10 and a support rail 15 that is a part of the chassis 10, and a carriage belt 16 that is stretched between a carriage motor 17 and an idler pulley 20. The carriage motor 17 is reciprocated (scanned) by transmitting the driving force of the carriage motor 17.

  A plurality of ink flow paths are formed inside the recording head 200, and the ink flow paths communicate with ejection ports arranged on a surface (ejection port surface) facing the platen 29. Ink discharge actuators (energy generating means) are arranged inside each of the plurality of discharge ports forming the discharge port array. As this actuator, for example, an actuator using a liquid film boiling pressure by an electrothermal transducer (heat generating element), an electromechanical transducer (electric-pressure transducer) such as a piezo element, or the like is used.

  In an ink jet recording apparatus using the above recording head 200 as a recording apparatus, a head driver (not shown) signal is transmitted to the recording head 200 via a flexible flat cable 73, so that ink can be used in accordance with recording data. It is possible to eject drops. Further, by reading the code strip 18 stretched on the chassis 10 by a CR (carriage 100) encoder 19 mounted on the carriage 100, ink droplets can be ejected toward the recording sheet at an appropriate timing. In this way, when the recording for one line is completed, the recording sheet is conveyed (paper fed) by a necessary amount by the sheet conveying unit (recording medium conveying unit). By repeating this operation, the recording operation over the entire surface of the recording sheet becomes possible.

  The maintenance unit 36 also includes a pump (not shown) for cleaning the recording head 200, caps 361 and 362 for suppressing the drying of the recording head 200, and blades 363 and 364 for cleaning the face surface around the nozzles of the recording head 200. And a slider 365 supported by the base 3 and holding a cap, a blade, and the like.

  The slider 365 is supported by a rail formed on the base 3 and is movable in the main scanning direction of the carriage 100. The caps 361 and 362 are brought into close contact with the nozzle portion of the recording head 200, and ink suction from the recording head 200 is performed. Cap position, pre-discharge position where the nozzle and the cap 361, 362 face each other at a fixed distance, and the position of the wiping position where the tip of the blades 363, 364 ensures a certain amount of penetration with respect to the nozzle part ing.

  Cap absorbers 366 and 367 are provided in the caps 361 and 362 in order to reduce ink remaining on the face surface of the recording head 100 after suction. Therefore, the ink remaining in the caps 361 and 362 is sucked (hereinafter referred to as empty suction) in a state where the caps 361 and 362 are opened so that the ink remains stuck and does not cause harmful effects. . Waste ink sucked by the pump (not shown) is absorbed and held by a waste ink absorber (not shown) provided on the base 3.

On the other hand, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a recording head as a recording means. As an embodiment of the present invention, a replaceable inkjet cartridge (head cartridge) in which a recording means (recording head) and an ink reservoir (ink tank) are integrated. ) Is used. In the case of normal color recording, the recording head is provided with a black cartridge 200A as a recording means in the recording means accommodating portion, and the three-color cartridge 200B (cyan, magenta, yellow) as the recording means in the recording means accommodating portion. ) Is used. It is also possible to use a photo cartridge (not shown) (black, light cyan, light magenta) as an optional head instead of the black cartridge when recording in photographic tone photo color. Furthermore, when the recording apparatus is used as a scanner, a scanner head (not shown) as an optional head can be used instead of the black cartridge 200A or the three-color cartridge 200B. As shown, the recording head unit H1001 and the ink tank unit H1900 are separated, and it is possible to select for each recording apparatus to use an ink jet cartridge H1000 having an arbitrarily detachable configuration.

  The above is the outline of the recording apparatus.

(Control by number of wiping of inkjet recording head)
The operation of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG. When recording data from the host is received or data from other media in the main unit is processed standalone and recording operation starts, or when the power is turned on and S101 starts, the recording head mounted in S102 is removed. It is judged whether it was attached. When the head is removed and attached, the information of the currently attached head is read in S103, and the means for storing this information is not shown in FIG. These storage elements (means) may be connected to the electrical contacts shown in FIGS. 2 and 207, and the recording apparatus main body can access the stored contents through 207. .

  Next, in S104, it is determined based on the information included in the head information such as the head ID whether the head removed and attached is a stored head. If No, the information read in S103 is stored in S107 head information in S106.

  In S102, if there is no attachment / detachment of the head, the process proceeds to S105, and information S107 stored in the main body of the corresponding head is read and referred to. Also, if the answer is Yes in S104, the process proceeds to S105, and the information S107 stored in the main body of the corresponding head is read and referred to.

  Next, in S108, it is determined whether or not the number of wipings and the number of preliminary ejections of the currently mounted head have exceeded the number of wipings to be changed. At this time, reference is made to the threshold value of the number of times of wiping that the S109 preliminary ejection number stored in the recording apparatus main body should be changed. This threshold value is provided in a plurality of stages including at least two stages.

  In the case of Yes here, the number of preliminary ejections is changed in S111. Specifically, a preliminary ejection number table corresponding to the number of wiping operations stored in S110 is cited and set. After the setting is completed, the process proceeds to S112 to start standby or operation.

  In the case of No in S108, the process proceeds to S112, and standby or operation is started without changing the number of preliminary discharges.

  In step S113, a printing operation or a recovery operation is performed. At the same time, the number of wipings occurring during the operation is counted in S114. For this purpose, the number of wiping performed when the power is turned on and the number of wiping when capping is performed after waiting for printing are counted, and the number of wiping is updated to S107 (the latest information is written) at S115 at a specified timing.

Thereafter, in S116, it is determined whether the power is off or not. If Yes, the number of wiping operations performed in the power off sequence is added in S117 and stored in S107. Thereafter, the process ends at S118. (To power-off sequence)
If No in S116, that is, if the power-on state continues, the process returns to S108 and it is determined whether or not the total number of wipings added in S115 exceeds the specified value, and the operation is continued. The embodiment of the present invention has been described with an actual recording apparatus operation flow.

  Next, an example of the preliminary discharge table to be switched is shown in FIG.

  Name of preliminary discharge in the leftmost column, number of preliminary discharges of Bk nozzle, number of preliminary discharges of large Col nozzle and number of preliminary discharges of small Col in order to the right, and preliminary discharge in the rightmost column In the column below the number of shots, the heater driving conditions at that time are shown. Here, the number of ejections indicates the number of ejections per nozzle, which does not cause a problem in ink ejection in each use application, and the minimum number of ejections is determined from experimental results and calculation results. .

  The heater driving condition indicates the length, frequency, etc. of the heat pulse for ink ejection, and is selected and executed with a dedicated driving table and head conditions stored in the main body.

  In this embodiment, the preliminary discharge to be changed is the preliminary discharge 9, and A in FIG. 11 shows a preliminary discharge table when the head assumes an initial state and the number of wipings is less than 1000. After wiping, there are 100 Bk nozzles, 200 Col large nozzles and 300 Col small nozzles.

  Next, FIG. 11B shows a table of the number of preliminary ejections of the heads in which the number of wiping operations is 1000 times or more and less than 2000 times. In this state, 500 Bk nozzles, 1000 large Col nozzles, and 1000 small Col nozzles are generated after waiping.

  Next, FIG. 11C shows a table of the number of preliminary ejections of the head having the number of wiping of 2000 or more. In this state, 1000 Bk nozzles, 2000 Col large nozzles, and 2000 Col small nozzles are generated after waiping. In this example, there are three stages, but it may be more.

  These are based on results from experiments, and as the number of wiping increases, the water repellency of the surface on which the ink discharge nozzles of the recording head are reduced decreases, and ink such as wiping and suction operations adheres. This is a control for compensating for a decrease in the wiping effect caused by accumulation of ink remaining in the head in the operation.

  As an example, with reference to FIG. 7, the number of errors and the number of prints when performing durable printing with a configuration targeting 4000 sheets while the number of preliminary discharges is set at the initial state of the head and the main body. The relationship will be explained. The vertical axis indicates the number of errors, and the horizontal axis indicates the number of prints. The content of the error indicates a color mixture in color printing. Printing can be performed without error up to 960 prints, but one error occurred in 1060, which is 1/4 of the life in this experimental example, and then up to approximately 1600 prints per 100 prints. Although the number of error occurrences changes by one digit, 22 errors have occurred in the next 100 sheets exceeding 1600 sheets. This result is a count of errors based on very strict criteria in product design experiments. Although it counts errors at a level that cannot be recognized in actual user use, 22 errors / 100 errors are counted. This is an unacceptable level in product design. Further, 41 times of errors occur in 100 sheets of 1840 to 1940 sheets, and the error is continued to occur 13 to 24 times thereafter, with the value as the maximum value.

  As a result of diligent investigation of this cause, the phenomenon of color mixing has been elucidated. The cause of color mixing will be described below with reference to FIG.

  6A is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a cross section AA in FIG. 2, and is a schematic cross-sectional view in the vicinity of a heater board configured in the head. Reference numeral 601 denotes an HB (heater board) which is a silicon wafer constituting the nozzle, 602 denotes a nozzle for ejecting ink, 603 denotes an ink chamber in which the heater 606 is disposed, 607 denotes a groove for injecting an adhesive and a sealing agent. 604 is a tab for connecting the heater board and the electrical contact of the recording apparatus, and 605 is an ink flow path communicating with the ink tank. The groove 607 is indispensable for hermetically fixing the 601 with other members (mainly plastic as an ink tank or ceramic as a fixing member). In the wiping operation, the 608 wiper moves in the direction crossing the 601HB and 604 tabs (in the direction of the arrow in the figure, or the head moves relative to the fixed wiper 608, and the nozzle surface with a predetermined penetration amount (overlap amount). And clean the tabs.

  As the number of ink suctions and wipings by the head increases, the remaining ink 609 during wiping or suction gradually accumulates in the groove for sealing 607 shown in FIG. 6B, and this ink residue evaporates. Accordingly, when the wiping operation is carried out in a state exceeding a certain amount, the tip of the wiper scrapes out the ink pool with the increased viscosity as shown in FIG. 6-c. As a result, as shown in FIG. 6D, ink having increased viscosity adheres to the nozzle 602 and the vicinity thereof. When the adhering ink enters the ink liquid chamber 603 through the ink nozzle more than the expected amount, it cannot be removed by the subsequent number of preliminary ejections and color mixing occurs in the printed matter. Further, ink that adheres to the vicinity of the nozzle and does not enter the liquid chamber adversely affects the ejection direction of the ink dots that form the image, causing image distortion. In the worst case, non-ejection of ink is also caused.

  In order to eliminate such problems, the above-described control method was implemented, and it was confirmed that the effect was that the frequency of occurrence of errors could be maintained at a level of 1000 sheets or less in this example during the lifetime of the recording apparatus. As a result, it is possible to maintain the printing reliability during the life of the recording apparatus, suppress the generation of waste ink, and suppress the deterioration of running cost.

(Control by the number of wiping of the inkjet recording device)
Next, a description will be given of an embodiment in which the preliminary ejection control based on the number of times of wiping is performed focusing on the printing apparatus main body.

  The operation of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG. When recording data is received from the host or data from other media included in the main body is processed in a stand-alone manner to start the recording operation, or when the power is turned on and S801 is started, information on the total number of wipings of the recording apparatus in S802 Is read from S803.

  In step S804, it is determined whether the number of wipings and the number of preliminary ejections of the currently mounted head exceed the number of wipings to be changed. At this time, reference is made to the threshold value of the number of wipings that the S805 preliminary ejection number stored in the recording apparatus main body should be changed. This threshold value is provided in a plurality of stages including at least two stages.

  In the case of Yes here, the number of preliminary ejections is changed in S806. Specifically, a preliminary ejection number table corresponding to the number of wiping operations stored in S807 is cited and set. After the setting is completed, the process proceeds to S808 to start standby or operation.

  In the case of No in S804, the process proceeds to S808, and standby or operation is started without changing the number of preliminary discharges.

  In step S809, a printing operation or a recovery operation is performed. At the same time, the number of wiping operations that occurred during the operation is counted in S810. For this purpose, the number of wiping performed when the power is turned on and the number of wiping when capping is performed after waiting for printing are counted, and the number of wiping is updated to S803 in S811 at the specified timing (the latest information is written).

Thereafter, in S812, it is determined whether the power is off or not. If Yes, the number of wiping operations performed in the power off sequence is added in S813 and stored in S803. Thereafter, the process ends at S814. (To power-off sequence)
In the case of No in S812, that is, when the power-on state continues, the process returns to S804 and it is determined whether or not the total number of wiping added in S811 exceeds the specified value, and the operation is continued. The embodiment of the present invention has been described with an actual recording apparatus operation flow.

  The second embodiment focuses on a recording apparatus equipped with a head in which an ink jet head and an ink tank unit are configured identically. The ink jet cartridge in which the head and the ink tank unit are integrally formed as shown in FIG. 2 is completed, and at the same time, the printing unit is replaced and the water repellency and the ink accumulation in the groove unit 607 are renewed. It is.

  In this case, it should be noted that the wiping mechanism and the suction mechanism of the recording apparatus main body are clearly fouled, and the necessity of this embodiment arises.

  As described above, even when control is performed to change the number of preliminary ejections in multiple steps, paying attention to the total number of wiping operations of the recording device itself, the printing reliability during the life of the recording device is maintained and waste ink is generated. It is possible to suppress the deterioration of running cost.

  Also, since the ink accumulation in the groove 607 of the recording head is promoted depending on the number of times of suction, the total number of times of wiping is replaced with the total number of times of suction unique to the head, and the total number of times of suction of the recording device is a threshold for changing the number of preliminary ejections The same effect can be obtained as a parameter.

  In addition, the number of preliminary ejections is changed by combining four types of parameters: the number of wipings specific to the recording head, the number of suctions specific to the recording head, the number of wipings specific to the recording apparatus, and the number of suctions specific to the recording apparatus. Things are also possible.

  The present invention can be applied to an ink jet recording apparatus that uses an ink jet recording head 200 that uses an electromechanical transducer such as a piezo element. In particular, the ink is ejected using thermal energy. In the ink jet recording apparatus using the ink jet recording head 200 of the above method, an excellent effect is brought about. This is because according to such a method, high density and high definition of recording (print) can be achieved.

  According to the present invention, an inkjet with high printing reliability in which the amount of waste ink is reduced by enabling the recovery control when the use of the product has progressed within the product life of the inkjet recording apparatus only during the optimum period. It is possible to provide a recording device.

1 is a schematic perspective view illustrating an overall configuration of an ink jet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view showing a recording head as recording means according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart concerning one embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a perspective view of an entire inkjet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a perspective view of an entire inkjet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a cross-sectional schematic diagram of the inkjet recording head which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a graph of the number of printed sheets and the number of errors that can be placed in control not corresponding to the embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart concerning one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view showing a recording head as recording means according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a schematic diagram of the control part of the inkjet recording device which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. 5 is a preliminary ejection number table according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols

1. Recording device body (recording unit body)
2 Access cover 3 Base 4 Recording medium (recording sheet, recording paper)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Chassis 12 Flexible flat cable 13 Head guide member 13a Head guide member guide groove 14 Guide rail 15 Support rail 16 Carriage belt 17 Carriage motor 20 Paper conveyance part (paper feed part)
21 Conveyance roller (LF roller, paper feed roller)
22 Pinch roller 23 Pinch roller holder 24 Pinch roller spring 25 Pinch roller shaft 26 LF motor (paper feed motor, transport motor)
27 LF belt 28 Code wheel 29 Platen 30 First paper discharge roller 31 Second paper discharge roller 32 First spur train (rotating body)
33 Second spur train (rotating body)
35 LF encoder 36 Maintenance unit (discharge recovery device)
361 Cap 362 Cap 363 Blade 364 Blade 365 Slider 366 Cap absorber 367 Cap absorber 37 Main ASF (automatic paper feeder)
39 Feed roller 40 Separation roller 41 Pressure plate 44 ASF flap 46 ASF motor 55 Guide shaft spring 58 Lift cam shaft 66 PE sensor lever (paper detection lever)
67 PE sensor 68 PE sensor lever spring 70 Paper feed guide (guide member)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Carriage 101 Carriage positioning protrusion 103 Carriage outer wall 104 Carriage inner wall 105 Carriage guide groove 110 Headset cam 111 Headset spring 113 Head side spring 120 Connector 200A Recording head (black cartridge)
200B recording head (color cartridge)
201 Nozzle part 202 Positioning groove 203 Rough guide protrusion 204 Head pressing part 205 Head handle a
206 Head handle b
601 Heater board (HB)
602 Ink discharge nozzle 603 Ink liquid chamber 604 Tab 605 Ink flow path 606 Heater 607 Sealing groove 608 Wiper 609 Accumulated ink H1000 Inkjet recording cartridge H1001 Inkjet recording head H1900 Ink tank 191 ROM
192 RAM
193 Host device 194 CPU
195 Head driver 196 Motor driver 197 Motor driver 198 Carriage motor 199 PF motor

Claims (8)

A recovery unit that performs a recovery operation by discharging ink from a recording head in an inkjet recording apparatus that performs recording by discharging ink from a recording head to a recording medium using a recording head;
Means for cleaning the ink discharge nozzle surface of the recording head, means for discharging non-printing ink from the recording head, means for reading the contents of the storage element of the recording head, and storing the contents of the storage element of the recording head Memory, means for storing the usage status of the head, means for counting the number of times the ink discharge nozzle surface of the head is contact cleaned, means for comparing the number of times the ink discharge nozzle surface is contact cleaned with the specified number of times An ink jet recording apparatus, wherein the number of ink discharges other than printing performed after contact cleaning of the ink discharge nozzle surface is changed when the number of times of contact cleaning of the ink discharge nozzle surface exceeds a predetermined value .   The means for storing the number of times of suction of the approximate head according to claim 1, wherein when the number of suction times exceeds a predetermined value, the number of ink discharges other than printing performed after contact cleaning of the ink discharge nozzle surface is changed. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1.   3. An ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the prescribed values of claims 1 and 2 are provided in a plurality of stages. A recovery unit that performs a recovery operation by discharging ink from a recording head in an inkjet recording apparatus that performs recording by discharging ink from a recording head to a recording medium using a recording head;
Means for contact cleaning the ink discharge nozzle surface of the recording head, means for discharging non-printing ink from the recording head, means for counting the number of times the recording device has contact cleaned the ink discharge nozzle surface, and ink discharge nozzles Other than printing that is performed after contact cleaning of the ink discharge nozzle surface when the number of times of contact cleaning of the ink discharge nozzle surface exceeds a specified value. An ink jet recording apparatus characterized by changing the number of ink ejections.   The means for storing the number of suctions of the general recording device according to claim 4 and, when the number of suctions exceeds a predetermined value, the number of ink ejections other than printing performed after contact cleaning of the ink ejection nozzle surface is changed. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 4.   6. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the prescribed values of claims 4 and 5 are provided in a plurality of stages. A recovery unit that performs a recovery operation by discharging ink from a recording head in an inkjet recording apparatus that performs recording by discharging ink from a recording head to a recording medium using a recording head;
Means for cleaning the ink discharge nozzle surface of the recording head, means for discharging non-printing ink from the recording head, means for reading the contents of the storage element of the recording head, and storing the contents of the storage element of the recording head A memory, means for storing the usage status of the head, means for counting the number of ink discharges per ink discharge nozzle of the head, and means for comparing the number of ink discharges per ink discharge nozzle with a specified number of times An ink jet recording apparatus, wherein when the number of ink ejection per ink ejection nozzle exceeds a predetermined value, the number of ink ejections other than printing performed after contact cleaning of the ink ejection nozzle surface is changed.   8. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the specified value according to claim 7 is provided in a plurality of stages.

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