JP2008188868A - Printer, ink, and ink judging method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a printer with a mechanism precisely recognizing an object such as an ink with a simple construction, the ink, and an ink judging method. <P>SOLUTION: The printer includes at least one kind of a smell sensor 4 detecting a volatile substance and a judging circuit 5 recognizing the kind or the deterioration of the ink according to the detecting result of the smell sensor 4. For example, the printer has a plurality kinds of smell sensors 4, and the judging circuit 5 recognizes the kind or the deterioration of the ink from the output pattern of the plurality kinds of smell sensors 4. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a printer, ink, and an ink determination method.

  In recent years, ink jet printers have achieved print quality equivalent to that of photographs, and the durability of printed matter has also been improved. This is due not only to the improvement of the mechanical performance of the printer, but also to the improvement of the ink performance and quality and the advancement of the color tone control technology based on the characteristics of each ink.

  As such ink jet printers become widespread, inks having various characteristics have been developed, and the types of inks have been diversified. In order to guarantee print quality in a variety of inks, ink identification is required.

As a method for identifying ink, for example, the one disclosed in Patent Document 1 is known. In Patent Document 1, a light receiving element and a light emitting element are arranged so that the optical path crosses the ink flow path of the head, and the presence or density of ink is determined from the amount of transmitted light.
JP 2003-63013 A

  However, when the technique described in Patent Document 1 is employed, it is necessary to secure a certain amount of ink flow path deposition in order to optically monitor ink. This is contrary to the recent demand for miniaturization of inkjet heads.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a printer, an ink, and an ink determination method provided with a mechanism for accurately identifying an object such as ink with a simple configuration.

  The printer according to the present invention includes an ejection unit that ejects ink, at least one odor sensor that detects a volatile identification marker included in the ink, and the type or type of ink depending on the detection result of the odor sensor. A determination circuit for identifying deterioration.

  According to this, by including in the ink a volatile identification marker that can be detected by the odor sensor, the type or degree of deterioration of the ink can be determined by the determination circuit based on the detection result of the odor sensor. For this reason, it is only necessary to install the odor sensor at an appropriate position inside or outside the casing, so that the periphery of the ejection means and the container for storing the ink are compared with the case where ink is directly measured using an optical method. Therefore, no complicated design change is required, the mechanism is simple, and the cost can be reduced.

  Preferably, the apparatus further includes control means for displaying the identification result by the determination circuit on the display unit. Thereby, it is possible to notify the user of the type or deterioration of the ink. For example, when the ink is deteriorated, it is possible to prompt the user to replace the ink.

  Preferably, the apparatus further includes a control unit that controls the ejection unit based on the type or deterioration of the ink identified by the determination circuit. Thereby, control according to the type or deterioration of the ink is possible. Therefore, ejection control suitable for each ink can be performed, and both printing performance and failure reduction can be achieved.

  Preferably, a plurality of types of the odor sensors are provided, and the determination circuit identifies the type or deterioration of the ink based on output patterns of the plurality of types of sensors. The odor sensor may react to volatile substances other than a specific identification marker. By using a plurality of types of odor sensors, it is possible to improve the accuracy of whether or not it is a known volatile marker.

  The ink contains a plurality of types of volatile substances as the identification marker. In this way, by mixing a plurality of types of volatile substances at a predetermined ratio to produce an identification marker, a large number of identification markers can be produced by combining a small number of types of volatile substances.

  The ink according to the present invention includes a volatile identification marker. According to this, by including the volatile identification marker in the ink, it is possible to realize the ink that can determine the type or the degree of deterioration using the odor sensor.

  The ink determination method according to the present invention includes a step of detecting a volatile identification marker contained in the ejected ink, and a step of identifying the type or deterioration of the ink based on the detection result. According to this, by including a volatile identification marker in the ink, the type or degree of deterioration of the ink can be determined using the odor sensor.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a printer according to the present embodiment.
As shown in FIG. 1, a printer 1 according to this embodiment includes an ink cartridge 2, a nozzle head (ejection means) 3, an odor sensor 4, a determination circuit 5, an ejection control circuit 6, and a controller (control means). 7).

  The ink cartridge 2 contains ink. In the ink according to the present embodiment, specific volatile identification markers are mixed in a desired ratio according to the type of ink. The identification marker is a predetermined volatile chemical substance. The identification marker is required to be at least harmless to the human body, be able to be mixed without being separated from the ink, and have a substance and a mixing amount that do not affect the ink characteristics (color, drawing performance, durability). The identification marker may be at least as long as it does not smell unpleasant for humans, and may be odorless for humans.

  Such an identification marker can be selected from a large number of water-based fragrances and oil-based fragrances regardless of natural or artificial according to the properties of the ink. Since the selection of the fragrance needs to be performed in accordance with each ink, it cannot be determined in general, but it is desirable to select the aqueous fragrance for the water-based ink and the oil-based fragrance for the oil-based ink. In particular, fragrances used in cosmetics, foods, fragrances and the like are safe in terms of safety and stability. There are 800 kinds of general-purpose ones and 5000 kinds including special-purpose ones, so that a perfume suitable for the ink should be selected. In general, artificial fragrances are cheaper and easier to use. An example is shown below.

<Flower scent (floral)>
For example, benzyl acetate, geraniol, methyl epijasmonate, lavangelol, β-phenylethyl alcohol, geranyl acetate, n-octanol, l-decanol, hydroxycitronellal, α-amylcinnamic aldehyde and the like are suitable.

<Fruit fragrance>
For example, citral, citronellal, limonene, 3-methylbutyl acetate, γ-hexalactone, γ-jasmolactone, ethyl phenylglycidate, 4,7-dimethylbicyclo [3.2.1] oct-3-en-6-one 3-methyl-3-buten-1-ol, 3-hydroxy-β-damascone, pentane-2-thiol, 3-hydroxy-2-ethyl-γ-pyrone, 3-ethoxy-4-hydroxybenzaldehyde, 2, 5-dimethyl-4,5-hydroxy-3 (2H) -furanone and the like are preferable.

<Others>
In addition, vanillin, menthol, allyl isothiocyanate, l-carvone, cyclopentadecanolide, nitromusks, cedrol, germane B, and the like are suitable.

  The identification marker may be a mixture of a plurality of volatile substances at a specific mixing ratio. In this way, a large number of identification markers can be produced with a combination of a small number of components.

  The mixing concentration is 1% or less, although it depends on the type of fragrance and the sensitivity of the odor sensor. More preferably, the mixture concentration of the fragrance is 0.1% or less in view of the influence on the ink characteristics and the cost.

  The nozzle head 3 discharges the ink 10 in the form of fine droplets from the nozzle toward the object 100 such as paper. The discharge principle of the nozzle head 3 is not limited, and for example, a piezo method or a thermal method can be adopted.

  The piezo method is an ink jet method using a piezo element (piezoelectric element) that deforms when a voltage is applied. A piezo element is attached to the wall of a flow path filled with ink, and a voltage is applied to the piezo element to deform it, thereby ejecting ink out of the flow path.

  The thermal method is a method in which bubbles are generated in the ink in the flow path by heating and the ink is ejected. In the thermal jet method, a heater is attached to a part of a channel clogged with ink, and the heater is instantaneously heated to generate bubbles in the ink, thereby ejecting the ink. Heaters used for heating include resistance heating and induction heating.

  The ink 10 is ejected from the nozzle head 3 in the form of a fine liquid and applied to the object 100 such as paper, and the volatile component evaporates to fix the dye on the paper surface. Since the evaporation of the volatile components starts immediately after application, a large amount of evaporated ink volatile components are present in the printer casing or in the vicinity of the printing surface of the object to be processed 100 when printing is started. When the identification marker is included in the ink, the identification marker is also included in the volatile component of the ink.

  The odor sensor 4 detects a volatile marker contained in the volatile component of the ink. Although at least one odor sensor 4 is sufficient, for example, two different types of oxide semiconductor sensors are used as the odor sensor 4. If the number of sensors is increased, the odor discrimination performance is easily improved, so three or more may be used, but the cost is increased. One may be used if cost is given priority at the expense of discriminating performance. In addition to this, as the odor sensor 4, a crystal oscillator type, a conductive polymer type, or the like can be selected.

  The odor sensor 4 is installed, for example, in a housing cover on the downstream side of the nozzle head. The term “nozzle head downstream” refers to the direction in which the workpiece 100 advances relative to the nozzle head 3. Since the to-be-processed object 100 which has just been printed exists as an evaporation source downstream of the nozzle head, the presence or absence of the identification marker can be efficiently detected by installing the odor sensor 4 in the vicinity thereof.

  Alternatively, the odor sensor 4 may be installed near the flushing position. The flushing position is usually a position where the nozzle head 3 is capped and in a standby state. Flushing means discharging a predetermined number of inks from all nozzle openings of the nozzle head 3 in order to prevent clogging of the nozzle head 3 and to eliminate clogging. By doing so, it is possible to identify the type and deterioration of the ink during flushing without printing on the object 100.

  The determination circuit 5 determines the type or state of the ink 10 based on the output of the odor sensor 4. For example, the determination circuit 5 can determine the presence or absence of the identification marker in the volatile component by comparing the response signal pattern of the odor sensor for the identification marker prepared in advance with the actual signal pattern. As a signal pattern, a peak value of a signal or an integral value may be used. Alternatively, a value obtained by extracting some feature point from the time response characteristic of the signal can be used as the signal pattern. For example, if an identification marker is detected, it is determined that ink having a known characteristic is attached. Even if the identification marker is detected, if the signal level is low, it can be determined that the ink has deteriorated over time. If no identification marker is detected, it is determined that ink of unknown characteristics is attached.

  The reasoning for aging determination is as follows. Since the ink cartridge 2 does not have a confidential structure, the concentration of the identification marker, which is a volatile component, gradually decreases with the passage of time after the ink cartridge is opened. Along with this, the identification marker detection signal from the odor sensor 4 also decreases, which is a measure of deterioration over time. When the identification marker detection signal falls below the set value, it can be considered that the aging of the ink has occurred.

  The identification marker need not always be detected. It may be performed mainly immediately after the ink cartridge is replaced and immediately after startup. During a normal period in which detection is not performed, it is desirable to protect the sensor element from contamination such as ink droplet adhesion with a cap or cover in order to prevent deterioration of the odor sensor 4.

  The controller 7 outputs a control signal to the ejection control circuit 6 according to the ink determination result from the determination circuit 5. The controller 7 is connected to the display device through a computer, and causes the display device to display the ink determination result through the computer.

  The discharge control circuit 6 controls the operation of the nozzle head 3 in accordance with a control signal from the controller 7.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an operation flow of the printer.
As shown in FIG. 2, for example, when ink is ejected immediately after activation, the odor sensor 4 is operated to detect volatile components contained in the ink 10 after being applied to the object 100 (step ST1). Alternatively, instead of applying to the object 100, flushing may be performed, and the odor sensor 4 may detect the volatile component at the flushing position.

  Next, the output pattern from the odor sensor 4 is compared with a response pattern prepared in advance, and the determination circuit 5 determines whether or not an identification marker is included in the ink (step ST2). It is determined whether or not deterioration has progressed (step ST3).

  If the identification marker cannot be detected or if the detection level falls below the set value, it is determined that the ink with unknown characteristics is attached or the ink has been deteriorated, and the controller 7 is not shown. This is displayed on the display device to inform the user (step ST4).

  In addition, it is preferable to control the printer giving priority to prevention of failure (nozzle clogging, etc.) (step ST5). For example, the ink droplet amount and standard color tone control with a margin so as not to cause ejection failure, and operation with a nozzle cleaning frequency with further safety. Note that the control may be different depending on whether it is determined that the ink has an unknown characteristic or if it is determined that the ink has been deteriorated.

  When the presence or type of the identification marker is detected by the odor sensor 4, it is determined that the ink has a known characteristic and the ink has not deteriorated (steps ST2 and ST3), and the controller 7 detects the ink. Various controls according to the characteristics are performed by the discharge control circuit 6 (step ST6).

  For example, printing can be performed with the highest definition of the model by printing under the optimal discharge conditions for the ink. In addition, by controlling the color mixture according to the color characteristics of the ink, the color tone can be controlled as designed. Furthermore, waste of ink can be minimized by performing nozzle cleaning at a necessary and sufficient frequency.

  As described above, control according to the type of ink or the degree of deterioration is performed.

  According to the present embodiment, the ink type or the degree of deterioration can be determined based on the output pattern of the odor sensor 4 by adding the volatile identification marker detectable by the odor sensor 4 to the ink. For this reason, the odor sensor 4 only needs to be installed at an appropriate position inside or outside the casing, and therefore, the periphery of the nozzle head 3 and the ink cartridge 2 are compared with the case where ink is directly measured using an optical method. There is no need for complicated design changes in itself, the mechanism is simple, and the cost can be reduced.

  By detecting the identification marker, it is possible to distinguish between ink having a known characteristic, ink having a concern about deterioration, and ink having an unknown characteristic. By performing control suitable for each ink, it is possible to achieve both printing performance and failure reduction.

The present invention is not limited to the description of the above embodiment.
For example, the ink determination may include a different volatile marker for each ink type (color), and may determine the type or deterioration of the ink with a plurality of sensors. In this way, it can be applied to a printer having a plurality of ink cartridges.

  The ink determination may be performed while performing the flushing performed when the printer is activated while shifting the flushing timing for each color. By doing so, the effect of interference of a plurality of volatile markers can be reduced, and more accurate ink determination can be performed. In this case, the same volatile marker may be used for each color. The ink determination can be realized by determining from the sensor output that the influence of the volatile marker from the ink of the previous flushing is reduced and observing whether the sensor output increases or decreases by the next ink flushing.

In the above-described embodiment, an example in which the present invention is applied to ink for printing on a recording sheet has been described. However, ink for forming a wiring when a metal wiring is manufactured by an inkjet method, an organic EL material, a color filter material, or the like The present invention can be applied to the ink for forming the device and the printer for ejecting the ink.
In addition, various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a printer according to an embodiment. It is a figure which shows the operation | movement flow of a printer.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Printer, 2 ... Ink cartridge, 3 ... Nozzle head, 4 ... Odor sensor, 4a ... 1st sensor, 4b ... 2nd sensor, 5 ... Determination circuit, 6 ... Discharge control circuit, 7 ... Controller, 10 ... Ink, 100: object to be processed

Claims (7)

An ejection means for ejecting ink;
At least one odor sensor for detecting a volatile identification marker contained in the ink;
A determination circuit for identifying the type or deterioration of the ink according to the detection result of the odor sensor;
Having a printer. It further has control means for displaying the identification result by the determination circuit on the display unit,
The printer according to claim 1. Further comprising control means for controlling the ejection means based on the type or deterioration of the ink identified by the determination circuit;
The printer according to claim 1. Provided with a plurality of types of odor sensors
The determination circuit identifies the type or deterioration of the ink based on output patterns of the plurality of types of the odor sensors.
The printer according to claim 1. The ink contains a plurality of types of volatile substances as the identification marker.
The printer according to claim 1. Including volatile identification markers,
ink. Detecting a volatile identification marker contained in the ejected ink; and
Identifying the type or deterioration of the ink based on the detection results;
An ink determination method comprising: