JP2008087401A - Platen for recording apparatus, and recording apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a platen which captures paper powder with an adhesive by using a simple constitution, and also to provide a recording apparatus equipped with the platen. <P>SOLUTION: An inkjet printer as the recording apparatus is equipped with the platen 7. The platen 7 is arranged by facing a recording head, so as to support carried recording paper P from the backside in a position to face the recording head. The platen 7 comprises a platen body 20, and an upstream-side rib 22 which is provided on the side of the paper P with respect to the platen body 22, so as to support the paper P. The upstream-side rib 22 has a plurality of abutting portions 22a which abut on the backside of the paper P, and a void portion 23b communicating with the platen body 20 is formed between the abutting portions 22a. In the platen body 20, a pressure-sensitive adhesive layer 25 is arranged on each of surfaces 23a and 24a facing the paper P via the void portion 23b. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a platen disposed opposite to a recording head that records an image on the surface of a recording medium by ejecting ink, and a recording apparatus including the platen, and more particularly to a recording head using paper dust generated from the recording medium. The present invention relates to a configuration of a platen and a recording apparatus for preventing the nozzle holes of the printer from being contaminated.

  As an example of a recording apparatus, there is an ink jet printer that forms an image on recording paper by ejecting ink from a recording head. In this ink jet printer, a recording sheet sandwiched between a pair of transport rollers is transported to the downstream side by the rotation of the transport roller, and is opposed to the recording head while being supported from the back side by a platen. In this state, the ink ejected from the nozzle holes of the recording head adheres to the surface of the recording paper to form an image.

  The gap between the recording head and the recording paper is preferably narrower in order to increase the accuracy of the ink adhesion position on the recording paper, especially when printing an image having an image quality equivalent to that of a silver halide photograph. The head and the recording paper need to be as close as possible. Therefore, the platen that supports the recording paper at the time of printing is disposed so as to face the recording head relatively closely.

  However, in general, very fine paper dust adheres to the recording paper, and the paper dust may be detached from the recording paper and float around the recording head or be deposited on the surface of the platen. Floating paper dust or paper dust that has been deposited on the platen surface and scattered by the airflow, etc., may adhere to the nozzle holes of the recording head, and this situation may lead to poor ink ejection performance from the nozzle holes. This is not preferable because it may lead to stabilization. Of course, the adhesion of paper dust to the nozzle holes becomes more frequent as the recording paper comes closer to the recording head.

In order to solve such a situation, there is disclosed an image recording apparatus that sucks a suspended substance containing ink mist by a suction fan or the like and captures it on an ink capturing member made of a sponge or the like (see, for example, Patent Document 1). ).
JP 2003-34057 A

  However, in the case of the image recording apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1, since the suction fan and the ink capturing member made of sponge or the like are provided in the suction flow path, the apparatus becomes complicated and it is difficult to downsize the entire apparatus. Become. In addition, the production cost of the entire apparatus increases, and the running cost increases as the power consumption increases.

  Furthermore, since the suction fan has a drive unit such as a motor, even when recording is being performed, a slight vibration is generated by the drive of the motor or the like. This vibration may be transmitted to the recording paper through a platen provided with a suction fan. Such a situation is not preferable because there is a possibility that the position where the ink ejected from the recording head adheres to the recording paper becomes unstable and the positional accuracy cannot be improved.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a platen that can prevent paper dust from adhering to nozzle holes with a simpler configuration, and a recording apparatus including such a platen.

  The present invention has been made in view of the circumstances as described above, and a platen for a recording apparatus according to the present invention is disposed opposite to a recording head that discharges ink and records an image on the surface of a recording medium. A platen that supports the recording medium conveyed at a position facing the recording head from the back side, and is provided on the recording medium side with respect to the platen main body and the platen main body to support the recording medium. A support portion, and the support portion has a plurality of contact portions that contact the back surface of the recording medium, and a gap portion that leads to the platen body is formed between the contact portions. An adhesive is disposed on a surface of the main body that faces the recording medium via the gap.

  By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to capture paper dust with the adhesive without causing the recording medium to be conveyed to come into contact with the adhesive with a simple configuration, which increases production and use costs. It is possible to realize a platen that can suppress the adhesion of paper dust to the nozzle holes of the recording head.

  Further, the support portion has a plurality of ribs that are formed in a plate shape so as to stand on the platen main body and extend in the conveyance direction of the recording medium, and the adhesive is formed between the adjacent ribs. It may be disposed below the gap. By adopting such a configuration, even the platen in which a plurality of ribs are erected on the platen main body can achieve the same effects as described above. In particular, in the case of a platen having such a configuration, it becomes easy to dispose the pressure-sensitive adhesive in a wide area with respect to the area of the rib supporting the recording medium, and paper dust can be captured effectively. Further, the recording medium can be smoothly fed in the transport direction without contacting the adhesive.

  The recording apparatus according to the present invention is a recording apparatus that supports the recording medium transported at a position facing a recording head that discharges ink and records an image on the surface of the recording medium from the back side by a platen. The platen has a plurality of abutting portions that abut against the back surface of the recording medium, and a gap portion is formed between the corresponding contacting portions, and the gap between the platen and the recording medium is formed via the gap portion. A pressure-sensitive adhesive is disposed at a position facing the gap.

  By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to capture paper dust with the adhesive without causing the recording medium to be conveyed to come into contact with the adhesive with a simple configuration, which increases production and use costs. In addition, it is possible to achieve a recording apparatus that can suppress the adhesion of paper dust to the nozzle holes of the recording head.

  The platen has a plurality of plate-shaped ribs extending in the conveyance direction of the recording medium, and the adhesive is disposed below the gap formed between the adjacent ribs. May be. With such a configuration, it is possible to achieve the above-described effects even in a recording apparatus in which the platen includes a platen body and a plurality of ribs.

  According to the present invention, paper powder can be captured by the pressure-sensitive adhesive without causing the recording medium to be conveyed to come into contact with the pressure-sensitive adhesive with a simple configuration, thereby suppressing an increase in production and use costs. In addition, a platen capable of suppressing adhesion of paper dust to the nozzle holes of the recording head and a recording apparatus including the platen can be realized.

  Hereinafter, a platen and a recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be specifically described with an inkjet printer as an example with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a configuration of an inkjet printer, and for the sake of convenience of explanation, a part of the configuration such as a housing surrounding the whole is omitted. As shown in FIG. 1, the inkjet printer 1 has a pair of left and right main frames 2, 2 made of a metal plate or the like, and a recording paper (recording medium) conveyed between the main frames 2, 2. Hereinafter, a recording unit 3 that records an image on P) is provided. In the following description, the transport direction of the paper P when the image is recorded by the recording unit 3 (the direction indicated by the white arrow in FIG. 1) is assumed to be the front, and the concept of the direction based on this is defined. It will be used, and in other cases it will be explained as appropriate.

  The recording unit 3 includes chassis 4 and 4 (indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 1) installed before and after the main frames 2 and 2, and these chassis 4 have a plate shape extending in the left-right direction. ing. A carriage 5 (indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 1) is slidably supported by using the front and rear chassis 4 as guide rails, and a recording head 6 (see FIG. 2) is accommodated in the carriage 5. . The carriage 5 is connected to a timing belt that rotates around by a motor (not shown), and can move together with the recording head 6 in the longitudinal direction of the chassis 4 (that is, in the left-right direction) in accordance with the operation of the timing belt. Also, below the recording head 6 that moves in this way, a long platen 7 is disposed in the left-right direction in plan view.

  The ink jet printer 1 accommodates an ink cartridge (not shown) in a housing, the ink cartridge and the carriage 5 are connected by an ink supply pipe (not shown), and each color ( Black, cyan, magenta, yellow) ink can be supplied independently. Further, a control unit (not shown) including a CPU or the like is accommodated in the housing, and the control unit and the recording head 6 in the carriage 5 are connected by a flexible flat cable (not shown). Therefore, based on the instruction signal from the control unit, the recording head 6 can eject ink of each color from the nozzle holes.

  FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line II-II of the ink jet printer 1 shown in FIG. 1 and mainly shows the configuration of the recording unit 3. As shown in FIG. 2, the ink jet printer 1 includes a pair of upper and lower registration rollers 10 and 10 behind the platen 7, and further includes a detection lever 11 for detecting the leading edge of the paper P behind the platen 7. Yes. The ink jet printer 1 according to the present embodiment includes a cassette (not shown) that accommodates a large number of sheets P below the platen 7, and the sheet P in the cassette is provided with a detection lever 11 by a known conveying means. It is conveyed to the registration roller 10 via.

  The detection lever 11 is provided so as to intersect with the transport path of the paper P, and is configured to be retracted from the transport path of the paper P when the leading edge of the paper P in the middle of contact comes into contact. When the detection lever 11 retracts due to the leading edge of the conveyed paper P, a sensor (not shown) detects this and outputs a signal to that effect to the control unit. The control unit measures the elapsed time immediately after receiving this signal, and after a predetermined time has elapsed, emits a signal to the recording head 6 to eject ink from the nozzle holes.

  The registration roller 10 is provided with its rotation axis oriented in the left-right direction, and the paper P that has passed through the detection lever 11 is sandwiched between the upper and lower registration rollers 10 and 10 and further conveyed forward. The paper P discharged forward by the registration roller 10 is guided to a space sandwiched between the recording head 6 and the platen 7 while being supported from the back surface (lower surface) side by the platen 7. Recording is done.

  A platen cover 8 having a plate shape that is long in the left-right direction is provided above the front portion of the platen 7, and a spur roller 12 having a rotation axis in the left-right direction is disposed above the platen cover 8. ing. The spur roller 12 is in contact with the surface (upper surface) of the paper P conveyed along the upper surfaces of the platen 7 and the platen cover 8, thereby preventing the recording paper P from being lifted from the upper surface of the platen 7. Further, another spur roller 13 and a paper discharge roller 14 are disposed in front of the platen 7 and the rotation axis of each of the rollers 13 and 14 is directed in the left-right direction. The spur roller 13 and the paper discharge roller 14 rotate in a state where the paper P that has been recorded on the platen 7 is sandwiched therebetween, and the recorded paper P is sent to a discharge port (not shown) of the inkjet printer 1. And induce.

  As shown in FIG. 2, an eccentric cam 17 is provided below the front chassis 4 so as to be in contact with the lower surface of the chassis 4. The eccentric cam 17 is connected to an output shaft of a motor (not shown) driven by an instruction from the control unit via a gear, and moves the carriage 5 including the recording head 6 together with the chassis 4 by rotating. The distance between the recording head 6 and the platen 7 can be adjusted by moving in the direction, that is, the direction close to and away from the platen 7. For example, when recording with photographic image quality, the two are placed close to each other to increase the accuracy of the position of the ink ejected from the recording head 6. When printing for creating a normal document or the like, the two can be separated.

  FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the platen 7 with the platen cover 8 attached thereto, and FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the platen 7 shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the platen 7 is a synthetic resin member having a substantially box shape whose left and right directions are long when seen in a plan view, and the front portion stores excess ink that has not adhered to the paper P. The ink reservoir 7a is formed, and the rear portion is a paper support 7b that supports the paper P from the back side during recording. The platen cover 8 covers the ink reservoir 7a of the platen 7 from above (see also FIG. 2).

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the platen 7 is provided on the platen main body 20 and on the upper side of the platen main body 20 (that is, on the recording head 6 side or the paper P side during recording). A plurality of upstream ribs 22 supported from the upper side, and the upstream ribs 22 are erected on the platen main body 20.

  A concave plate portion 23 whose upper surface is depressed downward is formed at the rear portion of the platen main body 20, and a flat shelf plate portion 24 facing the back surface of the paper P is concave in front of the concave plate portion 23. It is formed continuously from the plate part 23. The upper surface of the shelf plate portion 24 is positioned relatively above the inner bottom surface of the concave plate portion 23. The upstream rib 22 described above is provided from the concave plate portion 23 to the shelf plate portion 24.

  More specifically, the upstream ribs 22 have a plate shape, and are arranged at a constant interval (an interval of about 20 mm in the present embodiment) from the left end to the right end of the platen main body 20. As shown in FIG. 4, each upstream rib 22 is erected so as to extend upward from each of the inner bottom surface 23 a of the concave plate portion 23 and the upper surface 24 a of the shelf plate portion 24, and the rear end of the concave plate portion 23. The sheet P is extended in the transport direction from the sheet to the front end of the shelf 24.

  Since a gap portion 22b is formed between the adjacent upstream ribs 22, only the upper end portion (abutting portion) 22a of the upstream rib 22 is directly on the sheet P from the back side at the rear portion of the platen body 20. It is supposed to abut against and support this. An adhesive layer 25 made of a predetermined adhesive is applied to the surface of the platen body 20 that faces the paper P through the gap 22b, that is, the inner bottom surface 23a of the concave plate portion 23 and the upper surface 24a of the shelf plate portion 24. Is arranged. The upstream side rib 22, the concave plate portion 23 and the shelf plate portion 24 of the platen main body 20, and the adhesive layer 25 constitute a sheet support portion 7 b of the platen 7.

  Here, in the present embodiment, the pressure-sensitive adhesive layer 25 is formed into a sheet shape or a layer shape, and the raw materials thereof include natural rubber, synthetic rubber such as butyl rubber, acrylic rubber such as acrylic ester copolymer, and vinyl acetate type. Copolymer, acrylic resin, urethane resin, silicone resin, styrene copolymer (such as styrene-butadiene copolymer and styrene-isoprene copolymer), and vinyl ether copolymer. One or a mixture of two or more kinds of pressure-sensitive adhesives currently used can be used. Moreover, you may add crosslinking agents, such as a vulcanizing agent, metal salt, and isocyanate, to this. Furthermore, in order to adjust the adhesive strength of the adhesive, various additives such as fillers, surfactants, silicon, aqueous adhesives, and tackifiers (for example, rosin-based, petroleum-based, terpene-based tackifiers, etc.) Agent) and the like, and may be adjusted to a desired adhesive strength, and various additives such as anti-aging agents, stabilizers, and coloring agents may be added as necessary.

  For example, when the adhesive layer 25 is formed of silicon rubber containing silicon resin as a main material, the silicon resin has a JIS hardness of 15 to 45 degrees, preferably 20 to 40 degrees. In general, a silicone resin and a crosslinking agent are mixed using a solvent and applied to a target surface (the inner bottom surface 23a of the concave plate portion 23 and the upper surface 24a of the shelf plate portion 24), and the solvent is volatilized. A type in which crosslinking proceeds at room temperature can be used. The silicone rubber material is preferably a two-liquid type cross-linking type in which a liquid silicon resin and a cross-linking agent are separated and stored, and these two liquids are mixed with each other at the time of use. The original silicon resin is crosslinked to form a three-dimensional silicon rubber.

  On the other hand, a flat plate-shaped ink receiving portion 26 is formed continuously from the shelf plate portion 24 at the front portion of the platen main body 20 and in front of the above-described shelf plate portion 24. A concave ink collecting portion 27 whose upper surface is depressed downward is continuously formed from the ink receiving portion 26. The upper surface 26a of the ink receiving portion 26 is slightly inclined so as to go downward as it goes forward. A plurality of downstream ribs 28 extending in the transport direction (that is, the front-rear direction) of the paper P are provided on the upper surface 26 a of the ink receiving portion 26, and the downstream ribs 28 are more than the upstream ribs 22 described above. They are arranged in the left-right direction at narrow constant intervals (see FIG. 3). A porous ink absorber 29 capable of absorbing ink is disposed on the inner bottom surface 27 a of the ink recovery unit 27. The ink reservoir 26 a of the platen 7 is configured by the ink receiving portion 26, the ink recovery portion 27, the downstream rib 28, and the ink absorber 29.

  In the ink jet printer 1 configured as described above, the adhesive layer 25 is provided on the upper surface of the platen 7, so that paper dust generated from the paper P is captured by the adhesive layer 25. In addition, the adhesive layer 25 is a surface of the platen 7 that faces the recording head 6 (the inner bottom surface 23a of the concave plate portion 23 and the upper surface 24a of the shelf plate portion 24), and the upstream side that directly contacts the paper P. Since it is provided below the rib 22, it is possible to efficiently capture paper dust.

  The platen 7 shown in FIG. 4 shows a configuration in which the adhesive layer 25 is disposed only on the inner bottom surface 23a of the concave plate portion 23 and the upper surface 24a of the shelf plate portion 24, but the present invention is not limited to this. is not. For example, the front vertical wall surface 23b (see FIG. 4) connecting the inner bottom surface 23a of the concave plate portion 23 and the upper surface 24a of the shelf plate portion 24, or the rear vertical wall surface 23c facing the front vertical wall surface 23b in the concave plate portion 23. You may provide the adhesion layer 25 in (refer FIG. 4). Further, the adhesive layer 25 may be provided on the left and right side surfaces 22 c of the upstream rib 22.

  In the case of the ink jet printer 1 according to the present embodiment, the platen 7 has the ink reservoir 7a. In the ink reservoir 7 a, for example, surplus ink that has not adhered to the paper P when performing so-called borderless printing or the like is guided to the ink recovery unit 27 through a groove formed between the downstream ribs 28. Absorbed by the ink absorber 29. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the paper P from being stained by excess ink. The ink that did not adhere to the paper by this borderless printing adheres to the adhesive layer 25, but adheres to the adhesive layer 25 by restricting the nozzles used when printing the edge of the paper P. Ink can be minimized.

  The present invention can capture paper dust with an adhesive with a simple configuration, and can suppress an increase in production and use costs, and also suppresses the adhesion of paper dust to the nozzle holes of the recording head. The present invention can be applied to a platen that can also be used and a recording apparatus including the platen.

1 is a plan view showing a configuration of an ink jet printer according to an embodiment of the present invention, and a part of the configuration such as a housing surrounding the whole is omitted. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line II-II of the ink jet printer shown in FIG. 1 and mainly shows the configuration of a recording unit. It is a perspective view of a platen in the state where a platen cover was attached. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the platen shown in FIG. 3 taken along line IV-IV.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Inkjet printer head 4 Chassis 5 Carriage 6 Recording head 7 Platen 11 Detection lever 17 Eccentric cam 20 Platen main body 22 Upstream rib 22a Abutting part 22b Cavity part 23 Concave plate part 23a Inner bottom face 24 Shelf part 24a Upper surface 25 Adhesive layer

Claims (4)

A platen disposed opposite to a recording head that discharges ink to record an image on the surface of the recording medium, and supports the recording medium conveyed at a position facing the recording head from the back side,
A platen main body, and a support portion that is provided closer to the recording body than the platen main body and supports the recording body,
The support portion has a plurality of contact portions that contact the back surface of the recording medium, and a gap portion that leads to the platen body is formed between the contact portions.
A platen for a recording apparatus, wherein an adhesive is disposed on a surface of the platen main body facing the recording medium via the gap.   The support portion includes a plurality of ribs that are formed upright on the platen main body and extend in the conveyance direction of the recording medium, and the adhesive is formed between the adjacent ribs. The platen for a recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the platen is disposed below the gap. A recording apparatus for supporting the recording medium transported at a position facing a recording head for recording an image on the surface of the recording medium by ejecting ink from a back surface by a platen,
The platen has a plurality of contact portions that contact the back surface of the recording medium, and a gap is formed between the contact portions.
A recording apparatus, wherein an adhesive is disposed at a position facing the recording medium with a gap through the gap.   The platen has a plurality of plate-shaped ribs extending in the conveyance direction of the recording medium, and the adhesive is disposed below the gap formed between the adjacent ribs. The recording apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the recording apparatus is a recording apparatus.

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