JP2008194963A - Fluid ejection device and fluid wiping part of fluid ejection device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a fluid ejection device which does not make an ink as an example of a fluid remained while not making a paper, etc. as an example of a recording medium contaminated after wiping a nozzle opening arrangement part by a wiping part, and a wiping member of the fluid ejection device. <P>SOLUTION: The fluid ejection device is equipped with a first wiping part 162a for wiping a first wiping area WA2, etc. including a nozzle opening formation area 50A, etc. wherein a nozzle opening part 51A, etc. of the nozzle opening arrangement part 30a are arranged and a second wiping part 162b for wiping the second wiping area WB2, etc. including an unwiped area of the nozzle opening arrangement part 30a which cannot be wiped by the first wiping part 162a. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a fluid ejecting apparatus and a fluid wiping portion of the fluid ejecting apparatus.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for example, an ink jet recording apparatus is provided with an ink jet recording head for ejecting ink onto recording paper or the like. In addition, this ink jet recording head is provided with a number of nozzles for ejecting ink onto recording paper, which is a recording medium, by ejecting minute ink droplets from the nozzle onto the recording paper, An image such as a desired character or figure is recorded. A plurality of nozzles are arranged on a plate provided in the recording head to form, for example, a nozzle plate.
The ink jet recording head of such an ink jet recording apparatus ejects ink onto a recording paper or the like via a nozzle.

  For this reason, in the vicinity of the nozzle or the nozzle, the ink ejected from the nozzle may scatter when it collides with a recording medium such as recording paper, and may contaminate the nozzle plate by hitting the nozzle plate surface. In some cases, the scattered ink thickens to cause clogging of the nozzles, and the ink cannot be ejected satisfactorily.

  Therefore, in order to prevent such a phenomenon, the ink jet recording head is covered with a cap or the like during standby or stopped, or the ink near the nozzle outlet provided on the covered head is sucked. As a result, a suction process is performed to remove thickened ink or the like that causes ejection failure from the nozzles.

  By the way, after performing this suction process, ink may remain in the vicinity of the nozzle outlet, and the nozzle plate may be contaminated. Such contamination of the nozzle plate of the recording head causes the recording medium to adhere to dust, paper dust, etc., which may cause clogging of the nozzle of the recording head for a long period of time or cause ink ejection failure. It becomes.

Therefore, in order to solve such a problem, a wiping blade (hereinafter simply referred to as “blade”) for preventing ink ejection failure of the nozzle by wiping off ink near the nozzle outlet has been disclosed. Yes. In Patent Document 1, this blade has a blade for each color. When the nozzle plate is wiped (also referred to as “wiping” or “wiping”), ink remaining in the vicinity of the nozzle outlet is removed. In order to be able to wipe away the arrangement portion of the nozzle to be removed, there has been proposed one provided with a mechanism capable of individually moving the blades for each color.
Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2006-51805 (FIGS. 7, 21, etc.)

  In Patent Document 1, as shown in FIG. 15, the nozzle plate surface 30a has nozzle openings 51A, 51B, 51C, 51D for ejecting ink for each color, and an ink opening row 50A in which a plurality of these are provided. , 50B, 50C, 50D, and blades 61, 62, 63, 64 are provided so that each of the ink opening rows 50A, 50B, 50C, 50D can be wiped off. These blades 61, 62, 63 and 64 have blade wiping surfaces 61A, 62A, 63A and 64A so as to correspond to the wiping areas WA1, WA2, WA3 and WA4, respectively. These blades 61 and the like move in the direction of W1 so as to wipe the ink opening rows 50A and the like. At that time, the wiping surface 61A and the like move on the wiping area WA1 and the like to remove ink remaining in the vicinity of the outlet of the ink opening 51A and the like.

However, in such a blade 61 or the like, for example, as shown in the schematic explanatory diagram of the wiping state shown in FIG. 16, when wiping the nozzle plate surface, the ink is placed outside the nozzle plate cover member or blade width. May be pushed out. Then, the ink that cannot be removed may cause ink remaining on the nozzle plate or the cover member (represented by ink lines IL1 and IL2 in the drawing). Further, the above problem shows an example in which the blade is moved for each color, but as shown in the schematic explanatory diagram of the wiping state shown in FIG. In the case of wiping, the ink streaks IL1, IL2, etc. may be generated as described above.
If the ink remaining on the streaks is left unattended, there is a problem that the ink is thickened and deposited, and the recording medium is contaminated.

  Then, this invention exists in the point which provides the wiping member of the fluid ejecting apparatus and fluid ejecting apparatus which can wipe off the deposit | attachment of a nozzle opening arrangement | positioning part effectively with a fluid wiping part.

  According to the present invention, the above-described problem is a fluid ejecting apparatus having a nozzle opening arrangement portion having an opening portion of a nozzle that discharges a fluid, and a fluid wiping portion that wipes the fluid of the nozzle opening arrangement portion, The fluid wiping unit includes a first wiping unit for wiping a first wiping region including a nozzle opening forming region in which the nozzle opening is arranged, and at least the first wiping unit among the nozzle opening arranging unit. And a second wiping portion for wiping the second wiping area including the unwiped area of the nozzle opening arrangement portion that cannot be wiped by the fluid ejecting apparatus.

  According to the said structure, the fluid wiping part which wipes the fluid of the nozzle opening arrangement | positioning part of a fluid ejecting apparatus consists of a 1st wiping part and a 2nd wiping part, and a 1st wiping part is the said nozzle opening arrangement | positioning part among the said nozzle opening arrangement | positioning part. The first wiping area including the nozzle opening forming area where the nozzle opening is arranged is wiped, and the second wiping part includes at least a non-wiping area of the nozzle opening arranging part which cannot be wiped by the first wiping part. The wiping area of 2 is wiped off.

For this reason, after wiping off the fluid in the nozzle opening forming region with the first wiping portion, the second wiping portion is configured to wipe the region including the unwiped region of the nozzle opening arrangement portion that cannot be wiped with the first wiping portion. Therefore, after the nozzle opening arrangement portion is wiped by the fluid wiping portion including the first wiping portion and the second wiping portion, no fluid remains.
Therefore, the fluid remains in the nozzle opening arrangement portion and does not accumulate, so that the recording medium is not contaminated.

  Preferably, the first wiping portion is formed of a rubber-like elastic body, and the second wiping portion is formed of an absorbent material that absorbs the fluid.

According to the said structure, the fluid wiping part of the fluid injection apparatus forms the 1st wiping part with the rubber-like elastic body, and the 2nd wiping part is formed with the absorber.
Therefore, when wiping the nozzle opening formation region where the nozzle opening portion of the nozzle opening arrangement portion is disposed in the first wiping portion, it can be elastically deformed to follow the nozzle opening formation region and wipe off the fluid. Can be removed. And, when the fluid is protruding in the width direction of the first wiping portion when wiping with the first wiping portion, the fluid is absorbed by further wiping with the second wiping portion made of an absorbent material, and the nozzle The fluid remaining in the opening arrangement portion can be removed.

  Preferably, the second wiping portion is arranged so that at least a portion thereof overlaps the first wiping portion in a direction of wiping the nozzle opening arrangement portion, and further, at least a part of the second wiping region. Is a fluid ejecting apparatus that is disposed outside the first wiping region.

According to the said structure, the fluid wiping part of the fluid ejection apparatus is arrange | positioned so that a 2nd wiping part may overlap with a 1st wiping part at least in the wiping direction of the nozzle opening arrangement | positioning part.
Accordingly, the first wiping area that is wiped by the first wiping part is partially overlapped with the second wiping area that is the area that is wiped by the second wiping part.
In addition, the second wiping portion is an area to be wiped by the second wiping portion, so that the second wiping portion is at least partially outside the first wiping area that is the area to be wiped by the first wiping portion. Since it is the structure by which it is arrange | positioned, when it wipes in the 1st wiping part, it becomes possible to wipe off the fluid pushed out by the 1st wiping part efficiently in the 2nd wiping part.

  Preferably, the second wiping unit is configured such that when the first wiping unit wipes the nozzle opening arrangement unit, the first wiping unit wipes the first wiping unit so as not to contact the nozzle opening arrangement unit. The fluid ejecting apparatus is disposed apart from the first wiping portion.

According to the above configuration, the first wiping portion and the second wiping portion of the fluid wiping portion of the fluid ejecting apparatus are in the direction in which the first wiping portion wipes the first wiping area in the wiping direction of the nozzle opening arrangement portion. The second wiping portion is arranged so as not to contact the nozzle opening arrangement portion.
Therefore, even if the first wiping unit and the second wiping unit are moved simultaneously, when the first wiping unit wipes the nozzle opening forming part of the nozzle opening arranging unit, the second wiping unit is arranged with the nozzle opening. The part is not wiped off, and the wiping of the first wiping part is not interfered. Further, when the second wiping portion is wiping the nozzle opening arrangement portion, the first wiping portion does not interfere with the wiping of the second wiping portion. For this reason, after removing the residual fluid in the nozzle opening forming portion with the first wiping portion, the residual fluid in the unwiped area of the nozzle opening arrangement portion where the first wiping portion cannot be wiped with the second wiping portion can be removed.

  Preferably, the second wiping portion is in a direction intersecting the wiping direction of the nozzle opening arrangement portion, and is arranged at a position parallel to the first wiping portion, and the second wiping portion is When wiping the nozzle opening arrangement part, the fluid is configured to move and wipe the same path as the path when the first wiping part moves in the wiping direction. It is an injection device.

According to the said structure, after the 1st wiping part of the fluid wiping part of a fluid ejecting apparatus moves a nozzle opening arrangement | positioning part, it becomes a structure that a 2nd wiping part moves the same path | route as a 1st wiping part. The second wiping portion is arranged in a direction intersecting with the direction of wiping the nozzle opening placement portion of the first wiping portion and in parallel with the first wiping portion.
Therefore, when the first wiping portion moves through the nozzle opening arrangement portion, the second wiping portion does not interfere with the wiping of the first wiping portion. And the 2nd wiping part is arranged in parallel with the 1st wiping part, and after the 1st wiping part moves the nozzle opening arrangement part, it moves so that it may go through the same course as the course of the movement. Since it is provided, the fluid can be wiped off reliably.

  Preferably, a contact portion that contacts the nozzle opening arrangement portion of the first wiping portion has a shape corresponding to a contact surface of the nozzle opening arrangement portion, and the nozzle opening formation region of the second wiping portion is formed. In the fluid ejecting apparatus, the corresponding portion has a substantially concave shape.

According to the above configuration, the fluid wiping portion of the fluid ejection device has a shape in which the contact portion that contacts the nozzle opening placement portion of the first wiping portion corresponds to the nozzle opening placement portion, and the second wiping portion is the nozzle opening. A portion corresponding to the formation region has a substantially concave shape.
Therefore, the first wiping part wipes the nozzle opening forming part of the nozzle opening arrangement part, and the second wiping part can wipe the unwiped area of the nozzle opening arrangement part that cannot be wiped by the first wiping part. Therefore, the second wiping unit can surely wipe the fluid remaining on the streaks at both ends of the first wiping region along the direction in which the first wiping unit wipes the nozzle opening arrangement portion. It has become.

  According to the present invention, the above-described problem is a fluid wiping portion of a fluid ejecting apparatus having a nozzle opening placement portion having an opening portion of a nozzle that discharges a fluid, and a fluid wiping portion that wipes the fluid of the nozzle opening placement portion. A first wiping unit for wiping a first wiping region including a nozzle opening forming region in which the nozzle opening is arranged, and at least wiping with the first wiping unit. And a second wiping portion for wiping the second wiping area including the unwiped area of the nozzle opening arrangement portion which cannot be achieved.

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.

(First embodiment)
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 fluid ejecting apparatus of the present invention. The recording apparatus 10 shown in FIG. 1 is also called an inkjet printer.
The recording apparatus 10 has a main body 1. The main body 1 includes a guide rail 17, a platen 12, a carriage 14, an ink suction device 20, and a recording head 30. The recording head 30 is an example of a fluid ejecting head that ejects ink (an example of fluid) onto a recording sheet (hereinafter also referred to as “ejection”).

A recording apparatus 10 shown in FIG. 1 is a so-called on-carriage type recording apparatus, and has a configuration in which a plurality of ink cartridges 2, 3, 4, and 5 can be detachably mounted on the carriage 14. The ink cartridge 2 or the like contains ink that is an example of a fluid. The ink cartridge 2 contains black ink, the ink cartridge 3 contains cyan ink, the ink cartridge 4 contains yellow ink, and the ink cartridge 5 contains magenta ink. Is stored.
A recording head 30 is provided below the carriage 14. The nozzle plate surface 30 a that the recording head 30 faces the paper 29 is provided with nozzle openings for ejecting ink.

  The carriage 14 is connected to a motor 16 via a belt 15. When the motor 16 operates, the carriage 14 reciprocates along the guide rail 17 in the main scanning direction T that is the axial direction of the platen 12. As the carriage 14 reciprocates in the main scanning direction T (T1, T2) while ejecting ink from the recording head 30, an image is recorded on a sheet 29 which is an example of a recording medium.

A wiping position WP and a home position 18 are disposed at one end of the guide rail 17. The wiping position WP is also referred to as a wiping work position or a homed position, and is a non-printing region at the end of the carriage travel path.
An ink suction device 20 is disposed at the wiping position WP. The ink suction device 20 is also called a capping system or a capping unit, and is an example of a fluid receiving unit. The recording head 30 of the carriage 14 in FIG. 1 moves to the wiping position WP along the T1 direction and faces the cap body 21 of the ink suction device 20. The ink suction device 20 is in close contact with the nozzle plate surface 30a where the nozzle openings of the recording head 30 are provided. Then, the ink that is sucked from the nozzle plate surface 30 a and adhered to the nozzle plate surface 30 a is wiped by the blades 161, 162, 163, and 164 that are the ink wiping unit 130.
The home position 18 is a standby position when ink wiping or ink suction from the recording head 30 is not performed.

The ink suction device 20 has a function of preventing ink from drying at the nozzle openings of the recording head 30 while being in close contact with the recording head 30, and a negative pressure from the suction pump 19 is applied to the nozzle openings to cause ink to be discharged from the nozzle openings. It has a function to forcibly suck and discharge.
In addition, the ink suction device 20 is provided with blades 161 to 164. The ink wiping unit 130 including the blades 161 to 164 is an example of a fluid wiping unit that wipes ink on the nozzle plate surface 30a of the recording head 30, as will be described later. The ink wiping unit 130 is at substantially the same position as the ink suction device 20.

In the embodiment of FIG. 1, a plurality of ink cartridges 2 to 5 are mounted directly on the carriage 14. The embodiment of the present invention is not limited to this, and a so-called off-carriage type ink jet recording apparatus in which the ink cartridges 2 to 5 are mounted at a position different from the carriage 14 may be adopted.
Further, although an example in which the blades 161 to 164 of the ink wiping unit 130 are provided so as to correspond to the ink cartridges 2 to 5 is shown, the present invention is not limited to this, and the home position 18 in the scanning direction T of the ink suction device 20 Further, it may be provided so as to correspond to the nozzle plate surface 30a.
As will be described later, each of the blades 161 to 165 is composed of a first blade and a second blade, and a wiping direction W (W1, W2) that is a direction perpendicular to the scanning direction T of the nozzle plate surface 30a. ) To reciprocate.

When the recording apparatus 10 is used as a color printer, for example, the recording head 30 has nozzles that are independent ink paths for each ink in order to eject a plurality of different types of ink. In addition, a nozzle opening which is an outlet from which each ink droplet is ejected is provided at the end of the ink path.
FIG. 2 shows a schematic perspective view of the recording head 30 portion. FIG. 3 is a schematic front view of the recording head 30 from the nozzle plate surface 30a side.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the recording head 30 has a nozzle plate 31. The nozzle plate 31 has a nozzle plate surface 30a that is an example of a nozzle opening arrangement portion in which nozzle openings 51A, 51B, 51C, and 51D are arranged.
The nozzle plate 31 may be covered and held by a cover member. Here, when there is not only the nozzle plate 31 but also a cover member, the concept including the cover member is called a nozzle opening arrangement portion.
The nozzle openings 51A, 51B, 51C, and 51D serve as ink outlets for the nozzles corresponding to the inks. The nozzle openings 51A, 51B, 51C, and 51D include ink supply units from nozzles (not shown). It is the composition which connects with. The nozzle openings 51A, 51B, 51C, and 51D are arranged for each row so as to eject each ink, and are arranged for the nozzle opening rows 50A, 50B, 50C, and 50D. The blades 161, 162, 163, 164 are arranged so as to be wiped for each nozzle opening row 50A, 50B, 50C, 50D. And the wiping area | region of each braid | blade is like wiping area | region WA1, WA2, WA3, WA4, for example, and it can wipe now for every nozzle opening row | line | column. (See Figure 4)

FIG. 4 is a schematic explanatory diagram for explaining the positional relationship between the ink wiping unit 130 and the nozzle plate surface 30 a of the recording head 30. The blades 161, 162, 163, 164 are composed of first blades 161a, 162a, 163a, 164a and second blades 161b, 162b, 163b, 164b.
As shown in FIG. 4, the first blades 161a to 164a have shapes corresponding to the wiping areas WA1 to WA4 of the nozzle plate surface 30a of the recording head 30, respectively.
The first blade 161a wipes the wiping area WA1, and the first blade 162a wipes the wiping area WA2. The first blade 163a wipes the wiping area WA3, and the first blade 164a wipes the wiping area WA4.

Here, the wiping area WA1 is an area including the nozzle opening array 50A that is the array of nozzle openings 51A, and the wiping area WA2 is an area including the nozzle opening array 50B that is the array of nozzle openings 51B. . WA3 includes a nozzle opening row 50C that is a row of nozzle openings 51C, and WA4 is a region that includes a nozzle opening row 50D that is a row of nozzle openings 51D. Accordingly, the first blades 161a to 164a wipe the wiping areas WA1 to WA4 that are areas including the nozzle opening rows 50A to 50D of the nozzle openings 51A to 51D, respectively.
The second blades 161b to 164b are disposed outside the first blades 161a to 164a. This is because the arrangement of the second blades 161b to 164b wipes the area where the second blades 161b to 164b include the end portions in the same direction as the wiping direction W of the wiping areas WA1 to WA4. And it arrange | positions at the both ends of 1st braid | blade 161a thru | or 164a.

In order to show the relationship between the first blades 161a to 164a and the second blades 161b to 164b, schematic enlarged views are shown in FIGS. Although the first blade 162a and the second blade 162b are illustrated in the drawing, the other first blades 161a, 163a, and 164a and the second blades 161b, 163b, and 164b have the same configuration. For this purpose, the blade 162 is illustrated.
Accordingly, the second blade 162a will be described in detail as an example.
That is, referring to FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, the area including the end portion in the same direction as the wiping direction W of the wiping area WA1 is the boundary area between the wiping area WA1 and the wiping area WA2, and the wiping area WA2. It is a boundary region of the region WA3, and the second blade 162b is disposed at a position corresponding to a position where such a region can be wiped off. The second blade 162b is arranged at both ends of the first blade 162a.

  Similarly, the second blade 161b is disposed at both outer ends of the first blade 161b, the second blade 163b is disposed at both outer ends of the first blade 163a, and is disposed at both outer ends of the second blade 164b. A first blade 164a is disposed.

  The blades 161, 162, 163, and 164, which are configured by the first blades 161a to 164a and the second blades 161b to 164b, respectively, have shapes that can wipe away the positions that are shifted with respect to the scanning direction T. ing. These blades 161 to 164 are configured to be detachably held by holding portions (not shown). When the recording head 30 and the carriage 14 move in the T1 direction of the scanning direction T, the home position 18 can be moved to the wiping position WP, and the blades 161 to 164 are located at positions corresponding to the wiping position WP. It is arranged. At the wiping position WP, the suction pump 19 and the ink suction device 20 are arranged, and the recording head 30 moves to a position above this.

  As a means for moving the blades 161 to 164, for example, a first lead screw 200 and a second lead screw 201 are provided, and the blades 161 to 164 move the nozzle plate surface 30a of the recording head 30 on the nozzle plate surface 30a. The nozzle plate surface 30a is wiped by moving along the wiping direction W for each of the blades 161 to 164. And the ink adhering to the nozzle plate surface 30a is wiped off.

Next, the relationship between the wiping directions of the first blades 161a to 164a and the second blades 161b to 164b will be described. The first blades 161a to 164a can be wiped before the second blades 161b to 164b. ing. That is, the first blades 161a to 164a are disposed on the direction W1 side in the wiping direction W.
The first blades 161a to 164a are preferably made of a rubber-like elastic body that is a material that can be elastically deformed. For example, the first blades 161a to 164a are made of rubber, thermoplastic elastomer, plastic, or the like. The second blades 161b to 164b are preferably made of an absorptive material, and are made of, for example, pulp or non-woven fabric.

  Accordingly, since the first blades 161a to 164a and the second blades 161b to 164b are arranged in the positional relationship as described above, the nozzle plate surface 30a is wiped as follows, and the nozzle opening rows 50A, 50B, The ink remaining in 50C and 50D and the ink streaks do not remain between these ink opening rows 50A, 50B, 50C, and 50D.

  That is, further description will be given with reference to FIGS. For example, taking the blade 162 as an example, when the blade 162 is moved to the direction W1 in the wiping direction W, the first blade 162a moves first, and then the second blade 162b follows and moves. ing. When the blade 162 is moved toward the wiping direction W in the direction W2, the second blade 162b is moved first, and the first blade 162a is moved following the movement. The same applies to the other blades 161, 163, and 164. That is, the first blade 162a and the second blade 162b reciprocate in the wiping direction W along with each other.

  In this movement, as shown in FIG. 8 and the like, the first blade 162a and the second blade 162b are arranged at an interval in the same direction as the wiping direction W so as not to interfere with each other. That is, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, when moving in the wiping direction W in the direction W1, the first blade 162a wipes the wiping area WA2 in contact with the nozzle plate surface 30a and the second blade 162a. The blade 162b follows the first blade 162a and moves toward the direction W1. 9 and 10, when moving in the direction W2 of the wiping direction W, it is the second blade 162b that wipes in contact with WB2 of the nozzle plate surface 30a. The blade 162a follows and moves after that.

Therefore, first, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, when the blade 162 moves in the direction W1 in the wiping direction W, the first blade 162a moves the WA2 in the region including the nozzle opening row 50B of the nozzle openings 51B. Wipe away. That is, it is the first blade 162a that moves in contact with the nozzle plate surface 30a, and the second blade 162b moves along with the first blade 162a and does not contact the nozzle plate surface 30a. Yes. Accordingly, when moving in the wiping direction W in the direction W1, the ink remaining in the vicinity of the ink outlet of the nozzle opening 51B of the nozzle opening row 50B can be wiped off by the first blade 162a. As described above, since the first blade 162a and the like are made of a rubber-like elastic body that is an elastically deformable material, the ink can be wiped following the nozzle plate surface 30a.
Here, the wiping area WA2 or the like is an example of a first wiping area. The nozzle opening row 50B and the like are an example of a nozzle opening forming region. The nozzle openings 51B and the like are examples of nozzle openings.
The ink removed by the first blade 162a may remain as ink streaks IL1 and IL2 along the wiping direction with an interval between both ends of the first blade 162a. (See FIG. 7) The distance between both ends of the first blade 162a substantially matches the width of the wiping area WA2 (the direction perpendicular to the wiping direction of the wiping area WA2). Then, ink streaks (IL1, IL2) remain along the wiping direction on the width side of WA2.

Therefore, when the second blade 162b moves in the wiping direction W as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the ink lines IL1 and IL2 are wiped away. Since the second blade 162 and the like are made of the absorbent material as described above, the ink of the ink streaks IL1 and IL2 is absorbed and wiped off.
As described above, the second blade 162 is disposed on both ends of the first blade 162a. As shown in FIG. 10, when moving in the wiping direction W in the direction W2, the second blade 162b comes into contact with the nozzle plate surface 30a, and the first blade 162a is arranged not to come in contact. Yes. Further, the second blade 162a is disposed on both ends of the first blade 162a so as to straddle the width of the wiping area WA2. Therefore, the area wiped by the second blade 162b is a position where the ink lines IL1 and IL2 of the wiping area WA2 of the first blade 162a can be wiped. Accordingly, the ink lines IL1 and IL2 are removed by the second blade 162b. That is, the area wiped by the second blade 162b is a boundary area between the wiping area WA1 and the wiping area WA2, a boundary area between the wiping area WA2 and the wiping area WA3, and is a second wiping area WB2 in the drawing. It is an area.

  That is, since the first blade 162a and the second blade 162b are arranged as described above, the ink can be removed without remaining ink on the nozzle plate surface 30a by reciprocating in the wiping direction W.

The above description is not limited to the first blade 162a and the second blade 162b, but the relationship between the first blade 161a and the second blade 161b, the first blade 163a and the second blade 163b, and the first blade 164a and the second blade 164b. However, the same is true, and after the first blades 161a, 163a, 164a and the second blades 161b, 163b, 164b move in the wiping direction W1 and the wiping direction W2, the ink remains on the nozzle plate surface 30a. Therefore, the accumulation of ink does not contaminate paper or the like which is an example of the recording medium. In addition, nozzle clogging and ejection failure do not occur.
The second wiping areas WB1 to WB4 are examples of the second wiping area.
Here, the second blade 162b is described as an example. Similarly, the second wiping areas WB1, WB3, and WB4 are surfaces on which the second blades 161b, 163b, and 164b are in contact with the nozzle plate surface 30a, respectively. It has become.

The nozzle plate surface 30a is an example of a nozzle opening arrangement portion. The first blades 161a, 162a, 163a, 164a are examples of the first wiping unit, and the second blades 161b, 162b, 163b, 164b are examples of the second wiping unit.
The nozzle openings 51A, 51B, 51C, and 51D and the nozzle opening rows 50A, 50B, 50C, and 50D are examples of a plurality of nozzle openings.
Moreover, although the example which has arrange | positioned the 1st braid | blade 161a thru | or 164a and the 2nd braid | blade 161b thru | or 164b in the space is shown, you may arrange | position and close the space, the 1st braid | blade 161a thru | or 164a, The two blades 161b to 164b may be integrally formed of preferable materials. In this case, for example, the first blades 161a to 164a on the direction W1 side in the wiping direction W are formed of a rubber-like elastic body that can be elastically deformed, and the second blade 161b on the direction W2 side in the wiping direction W that is the back side thereof. Thru | or 164b may be comprised with an absorber.

(Second Embodiment)
As the second embodiment, since many configurations are common to the first embodiment, description of the common configurations will be omitted, and different configurations will be mainly described.

In the first embodiment, the second blades 161b to 164b are separately provided at two locations on both ends in the width direction of the wiping area of the first blades 161a to 164a. However, here, the second blade is integrated. Is different.
That is, as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the second blades 611b, 612b, 613b, 614b (612b in the drawing) do not wipe the positions of the ink opening rows 50A, 50B, 50C, 50D when wiping. For example, a portion corresponding to the position of the ink opening row 50A or the like is recessed in a concave shape to form a substantially concave shape. The operation when wiping the nozzle plate surface in this case is the same as that in the first embodiment.

  FIG. 11 is a schematic perspective view of the blade 612 of the second embodiment. FIG. 12 is a schematic front view of the blade 612 of the second embodiment. In the drawing, the blade 612 is mainly illustrated. However, as in the case of the first embodiment, other blades have the same positional relationship between the first blade and the second blade. 612 will be described. Instead of the blade 162 in the first embodiment, a blade 612 is used. Here, the blade 162 in the first embodiment is the blade 612, and instead of the second blade 162b disposed on both sides of the first blade 162a, a substantially recessed second blade 612b is provided. Here, the first blades 161a, 162a, 163a, 164a are examples of the first wiping unit, and the second blades 611b, 612b, 613b, 614c are examples of the second wiping unit.

When the blade 612 is moved in the wiping direction W in the direction W1, WA2 that is an area including the nozzle opening row 50B on the nozzle plate surface 30a is wiped by the first blade 162a. Next, when the blade 612 is moved in the wiping direction W in the direction W2, the second blade 612b is a wiping area excluding the nozzle opening row 50B, and is a second area that includes a width portion of the wiping area WA2. The wiping area WB2 is wiped to remove the ink lines IL1 and IL2.
Here, the material of the second blade 612b constituting the blade 612 is the same as in the first embodiment.
That is, when the first blade 162a moves on the nozzle plate surface 30a in the wiping direction W direction W1, the second blade 612b follows and moves in the wiping direction W direction W1. At this time, it is the first blade 162a that wipes off the WA2. Conversely, when moving in the wiping direction W in the direction W2, the second blade 612b moves first, and the first blade 162a moves following the second blade 612b. In this case, the second blade 612b has the width of WA2, and wipes the second wiping area WB2, which is an area including both ends of the wiping area WA2 corresponding to the wiping direction.

  Accordingly, the second blade 612b absorbs the ink lines IL1 and IL2 remaining on the nozzle play surface 30a and the like when the area WA2 and the like including the ink opening row 50B and the like are wiped by the first blade 162a and the like. Therefore, no ink is deposited and the recording medium is not contaminated. Further, since the ink in the vicinity of the outlet of the ink opening 51a such as the ink opening row 50A is removed, ink ejection failure does not occur.

In the second embodiment, the second blades 611b, 612b, 613b, and 614c have an integral concave shape, so that they can be easily attached when they are replaced.
The above description is given by showing the first blade 162a and the second blade 612b of the blade 612. However, the first blade 161a and the second blade 611b of the blade 611 and the first blade 163a and the second blade 611b of the blade 613 are described. The first blade 164a and the second blade 614b of the blade 614 have the same configuration.
The blade 611 corresponds to the area centered on the nozzle play and the wiping area WA1 at 30a, and the blade 612 corresponds to the area centered on the nozzle play and the wiping area WA2 on 30a. The blade 613 corresponds to the area centered on the nozzle play and the wiping area WA3 at 30a, and the blade 614 corresponds to the area centered on the nozzle play and the wiping area WA4 on 30a. Is the same as that of the first embodiment.

(Third embodiment)
Since many configurations are common to the first embodiment as the third embodiment, description of the common configurations will be omitted, and different configurations will be mainly described.

FIG. 13 is a schematic perspective view of a part of the recording head 30 and the blade 622 and the like, and FIG. 14 shows a schematic perspective view and a schematic front view of the blade 622.
For example, the blade 622 will be described as an example. The blade 622 includes a first blade 622a and a second blade 622b. In the first embodiment, the first blade 622a and the second blade 622b are as follows. Whereas the first blade 162a and the second blade 162b are arranged with a gap or overlap in the wiping direction W, they are arranged side by side in a direction corresponding to the scanning direction T of the carriage. It is. (See FIGS. 13 and 14)

And the 1st braid | blade 622a is provided so that the area | region containing the nozzle opening row | line | column 50B of the nozzle plate surface 30a may be wiped off. And it arrange | positions so that the both ends of the 1st braid | blade 622a may be located in a little inside from the range corresponding to the wiping area | region WA2 of 1st Embodiment. And the area | region to which this 1st braid | blade 622a wipes is shown as wiping area | region WA21 on FIG.
The second blade 622b is provided side by side with the first blade 622a. The second blade 622b has a shape in which the central portion is recessed, and has a substantially recessed shape. And it is preferable that it is provided so that it may become a little larger than the width | variety of the 1st braid | blade 622a. Therefore, the contact surface of the second blade 622b with the nozzle plate surface 30a is provided outside the wiping area WA21 of the first blade 622a, and is a second wiping area WB21 in FIG.
Here, the material and the like of the first blade 622a and the second blade 622b are the same as those in the first embodiment.
Although the blade 622 is mainly shown, the blades 621, 623, and 624 are provided so as to correspond to the respective wiping areas, and the same as in the first embodiment. The moving mechanism in the wiping direction of each blade corresponding to this wiping area is also substantially the same as that of the first embodiment.
The first blades 621a, 622a, 623a, 624a are examples of the first wiping unit, and the second blades 621b, 622b, 623b, 624b are examples of the second wiping unit. Further, the wiping area WA21 and the like are an example of the first wiping area, and the second wiping area WB21 is an example of the second wiping area.

The difference is, for example, the arrangement of the first blade 622a and the second blade 622b as described above. Therefore, first, when the blade 622 is moved in the wiping direction W in the direction W1, the first blade 622a wipes the area including the nozzle opening row 50B on the nozzle plate surface 30a, and is near the outlet of the nozzle opening 51B in the nozzle opening row 50B. Wipe off any ink remaining on the surface. At this time, the ink pushed in the width direction of the first blade 622a may remain on the streaks in the same direction as the wiping direction W on the nozzle plate surface 30a.
For this reason, after wiping with the first blade 622a, it is necessary to remove ink remaining on the streaks. Therefore, in the third embodiment, after the wiping area WA21 is wiped with the first blade 622a, the carriage 14 slightly moves in the same direction as the direction T2 in the scanning direction T. The nozzle plate surface 30a also moves to the position where the second blade 622b is disposed along with the carriage 14. Next, when the blade 622 moves in the wiping direction W in the direction W2, the second blade 622b wipes the second wiping area WB21, which is a wiping area excluding the nozzle opening row 50B on the nozzle plate surface 30a. IL1 and IL2 are removed.

Therefore, after the first blade 622a moves on the nozzle plate surface 30a which is the nozzle opening arrangement portion, the carriage 14 moves so that the second blade 622b can move and wipe along the same path as the first blade 622a. It has become. Further, the second blade 622b is arranged at a position parallel to the scanning direction T in a direction intersecting the wiping direction W of the nozzle plate surface 30a with respect to the position where the first blade 622a is provided. The first blade 622a is provided side by side.
Therefore, when the first blade 622a moves on the nozzle plate surface 30a, the second blade 622b does not interfere with the wiping of the first blade 622a. Then, after the first blade 622a moves, the carriage 14 moves so as to pass the same path as the movement path, and the second blade 622b moves along the movement path of the first blade 622a. . Therefore, the fluid can be wiped off efficiently. Further, since no ink remains on the nozzle plate surface 30a and does not accumulate, the recording medium or the like is not contaminated, and the ink near the outlet of the nozzle opening is also removed. It does not happen.
In the above description, the first blade 622a and the second blade 622b of the blade 622 are described as examples, but the blades 621, 623, 624 and the first blades 621a, 623a, 624a and the second blades 621b, 623b, The same applies to the relationship with 624b.

Further, the second blades 621 to 624 are provided in parallel with the first blades 621a to 624a, and are not provided overlapping in the thickness direction of the first blades 621a to 624a.
Therefore, in the third embodiment, since the first blades 621a to 624a and the second blades 621b to 624b constituting the blades 621 to 624 are arranged side by side, the ink wiping region 130 in which the blades 621 to 624 are arranged is provided. The space in the wiping direction W can be arranged in a space corresponding to the thickness of several blades 621 to 624 provided, and space saving can be achieved.

In the above-described embodiment, as an ink cartridge, for example, an ink cartridge containing black, cyan, yellow, and magenta inks can be mounted on the carriage. Is not limited to this, for example, it may be provided with only black ink, may be provided with two ink cartridges, or may be provided with three ink cartridges of three colors. It may be one equipped with a cartridge.
In such a case, a blade may be provided according to the number of ink cartridges, or a blade that wipes the nozzle plate surface by one reciprocating movement may be used. In the above-described embodiment, the case where the blade moves on the nozzle plate surface is mainly described. However, the blade is fixed, and the carriage reciprocates so as to wipe the nozzle plate surface on the blade. It may be like this.
In the above-described embodiment, the position where the blade is provided is provided on the side surface on the wiping direction W side of the ink suction device 20 at the wiping position WP. For example, when the carriage 14 is moved and wiped, For example, the blade may be provided on the side surface on the scanning direction T side of the ink suction device 20 between the wiping position WP and the home position 18. In this case, as shown in FIG. 17, the same direction as the scanning direction T is the wiping direction W. In this case, after the entire nozzle plate surface 30a is wiped with the first blade, the scanning of the nozzle plate surface 30a is performed. The ink lines IL1 and IL2 that are in the direction corresponding to the direction T and remain at both ends of the nozzle plate surface 30a are wiped off by the second blade and removed.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment. In the above embodiment, the fluid ejecting apparatus is embodied as an ink jet recording apparatus. However, the fluid ejecting apparatus is not limited to this, and other fluids (such as liquids and liquids in which particles of functional materials are dispersed, gels, and the like) are used. It is also possible to embody a fluid ejecting apparatus that ejects or discharges a fluid (including a solid that can be ejected as a fluid). For example, a liquid material injection device for injecting a liquid material in the form of dispersed or dissolved materials such as electrode materials and color materials used in the manufacture of liquid crystal displays, EL (electroluminescence) displays, and surface-emitting displays, and biochip manufacturing It may be a liquid ejecting apparatus that ejects a bio-organic substance used in the above, or a liquid ejecting apparatus that ejects a liquid to be used as a precision pipette. In addition, transparent resin liquids such as UV curable resin to form liquid injection devices that pinpoint lubricant oil onto precision machines such as watches and cameras, and micro hemispherical lenses (optical lenses) used in optical communication elements. A liquid jetting device that jets a liquid onto a substrate, a liquid jetting device that jets an etching solution such as acid or alkali to etch the substrate, etc., gels such as pharmaceuticals, health food extracts, seasonings and gelatin (such as capsules) In order to encapsulate the gel), a fluid ejecting apparatus that ejects an appropriate amount of the gel into a capsule, or a toner jet recording apparatus that ejects a solid such as toner powder may be used. The present invention can be applied to any one of these fluid ejecting apparatuses.

1 is a schematic perspective view showing an ink jet recording apparatus which is an example of a fluid ejecting apparatus of the present invention. It is a schematic diagram for explaining an example of the shape of the nozzle plate surface of the recording head. It is a schematic diagram for explaining an example of the shape of the nozzle plate surface of the recording head. It is a schematic explanatory drawing which shows the corresponding example of the wiping area | region of a nozzle plate surface, and each blade. It is a partial expansion schematic perspective view of the braid | blade which is an example of the wiping part of 1st Embodiment. It is a partial expanded front view of the braid | blade which is an example of the wiping part of 1st Embodiment. It is a partial schematic explanatory drawing which shows an example for demonstrating operation | movement of the wiping part of 1st Embodiment. It is a partial schematic end view which is an operation explanatory view showing an example for explaining operation of a wiping part of a 1st embodiment. It is a partial schematic explanatory drawing which shows an example for demonstrating operation | movement of the wiping part of 1st Embodiment. It is a partial schematic end view which is an operation explanatory view showing an example for explaining operation of a wiping part of a 1st embodiment. It is a partial expansion schematic perspective view of the braid | blade which is an example of the wiping part of 2nd Embodiment. It is a partial enlarged front view of the blade which is an example of the wiping part of 2nd Embodiment. It is a partial schematic explanatory drawing which shows the example of a correspondence of the wiping area | region of a nozzle plate surface, and each blade. It is a partially expanded schematic view of a blade that is an example of a wiping unit according to a third embodiment. It is a partial schematic explanatory drawing which shows the correspondence example of the wiping area | region of the conventional nozzle plate surface, and each blade. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing which shows an example for demonstrating operation | movement of the conventional wiping part. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing which shows an example for demonstrating operation | movement of the conventional wiping part.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Inkjet recording device (an example of fluid ejecting apparatus), 14 ... Carriage, 18 ... Home position, 19 ... Suction pump, 20 ... Ink suction device (an example of fluid suction device), 30 ... Recording head (an example of a fluid ejecting head), 30a ... Nozzle plate surface, 50A, 50B, 50C, 50D ... Nozzle opening row, 51A, 51B, 51C, 51D ... Nozzle opening, 130 ... Ink wiping unit, 161-164 ... Blade (example of fluid wiping unit), 161a-164a ... First blade (Example of first wiping unit, 161b-164b ... Second blade (second Example of two wiping units), 611 to 614... Blade (an example of fluid wiping unit), 611a to 614a... First blade (an example of first wiping unit), 611b to 614b .. Second blade (example of second wiping unit), 621 to 624... Blade (example of fluid wiping unit), 621a to 624a... First blade (example of first wiping unit), 621b to 624b ... 2nd blade (an example of the 2nd wiping part), W ... Wiping direction, T ... Main scanning direction, WP ... Wiping position, WA1-WA4 ... Wiping area, WB1-WB4 ..Second wiping area, WA11 and WA21 ... wiping area, WB21 ... second wiping area

Claims (7)

A nozzle opening arrangement portion having a nozzle opening for discharging fluid;
A fluid wiping unit for wiping off the fluid in the nozzle opening arrangement unit,
The fluid wiping unit is
A first wiping unit for wiping a first wiping area including a nozzle opening forming area in which the nozzle opening is arranged, among the nozzle opening arranging parts;
At least a second wiping portion for wiping a second wiping region including an unwiped region of the nozzle opening arrangement portion that cannot be wiped by the first wiping portion;
A fluid ejecting apparatus comprising:   2. The fluid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first wiping portion is formed of a rubber-like elastic body, and the second wiping portion is formed of an absorbing material that absorbs the fluid.   The second wiping portion is arranged so that at least a portion thereof overlaps the first wiping portion in a direction of wiping the nozzle opening arrangement portion, and further, at least a portion of the second wiping region is the first wiping portion. The fluid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the fluid ejecting apparatus is disposed outside the wiping area of one.   When the first wiping unit wipes the nozzle opening placement portion, the second wiping portion is configured to wipe the first wiping portion so that the first wiping portion does not come into contact with the nozzle opening placement portion. The fluid ejection device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the fluid ejection device is disposed apart from the portion.   The second wiping part is arranged in a direction intersecting the wiping direction of the nozzle opening arrangement part and in a position parallel to the first wiping part, and the second wiping part is arranged in the nozzle opening. 2. When wiping the arrangement portion, the first wiping portion is configured to move and wipe the same route as the route in the wiping direction in the wiping direction. The fluid ejecting apparatus according to claim 3. The contact portion that contacts the nozzle opening placement portion of the first wiping portion has a shape corresponding to the contact surface of the nozzle opening placement portion,
6. The fluid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a portion of the second wiping portion corresponding to the nozzle opening forming region has a substantially recessed shape. A nozzle opening arrangement portion having a nozzle opening for discharging fluid;
A fluid wiping unit for wiping the fluid of the nozzle opening arrangement unit, and a fluid wiping unit of a fluid ejecting apparatus,
A first wiping unit for wiping a first wiping area including a nozzle opening forming area in which the nozzle opening is arranged, among the nozzle opening arranging parts;
At least a second wiping portion for wiping a second wiping region including an unwiped region of the nozzle opening arrangement portion that cannot be wiped by the first wiping portion;
A fluid wiping unit for a fluid ejecting apparatus.

Images