JP2008246799A - Liquid jet system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a liquid jet system which can perform a highly accurate positioning by improving position efficiency. <P>SOLUTION: The liquid jet system 1 has a mainframe 2, liquid jet heads 3 provided with nozzle openings jetting a liquid, and a carriage 4 holding a plurality of liquid jet heads 3 in a relatively positioned condition and provided movable to an application area in which the liquid jet heads 3 apply the liquid to a recording medium S and to a nonapplication area other than the application area. An adjustment device 30 having an imaging means 40 to image an alignment marks provided on liquid jet faces where the nozzle openings of the liquid jet heads 3 are opened and an adjustment means 50 to move the liquid jet heads 3 to the carriage 4 in the plane directions of the liquid jet faces in the nonapplication area of the mainframe 2. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a liquid ejecting apparatus including a plurality of liquid ejecting heads that eject liquid, a carriage that holds the plurality of liquid ejecting heads, and an adjustment device that positions the plurality of liquid ejecting heads relative to the carriage.

  A liquid ejecting apparatus typified by an ink jet recording apparatus such as an ink jet printer or a plotter includes a liquid ejecting head that ejects a liquid such as ink, and a carriage that holds a plurality of liquid ejecting heads and is provided in the apparatus main body. It is configured.

  In such a liquid ejecting apparatus, the positions of the nozzle openings of the plurality of liquid ejecting heads are relatively positioned by holding the carriage in a state where the plurality of liquid ejecting heads are relatively positioned with high accuracy. Printing (liquid application) can be performed.

  In order to fix a plurality of liquid ejecting heads to such a carriage in a relatively positioned state, for example, after temporarily assembling a plurality of liquid ejecting heads on the carriage, the liquid ejecting heads are actually mounted on a recording medium such as a recording sheet. There is a method in which printing is performed and the adjustment is repeated while checking the amount of liquid dot deviation during printing.

  Further, in order to fix the plurality of liquid ejecting heads to the carriage in a relatively positioned state, the carriage is detached from the apparatus main body, and the plurality of liquid ejecting heads are fixed to the carriage in a relatively positioned state. There are methods (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2). In Patent Documents 1 and 2, the alignment marks of the liquid ejecting heads are positioned with respect to the reference marks provided on the mask, so that the plurality of liquid ejecting heads are relatively positioned.

JP 2004-322606 A (pages 5-7, FIGS. 1-3) Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-127391 (page 13, FIG. 12)

  However, with the former method of fixing a plurality of liquid jet heads in a relatively positioned state on the carriage, positioning can be performed with low accuracy in a short time, and it takes time to perform positioning with high accuracy. There is a problem that it ends up.

  Further, in the latter method of fixing a plurality of liquid jet heads in a relatively positioned state, the carriage is removed from the apparatus main body, and therefore the carriage must be positioned and attached to the apparatus main body, which is complicated. There's a problem. In particular, when the liquid ejecting head is selectively replaced due to a failure or the like among a plurality of liquid ejecting heads, such a problem appears remarkably when the carriage is removed from the apparatus main body.

  In view of such circumstances, it is an object of the present invention to provide a liquid ejecting apparatus capable of improving positioning work efficiency and performing highly accurate positioning.

According to an aspect of the present invention for solving the above-described problem, an apparatus main body, a liquid ejecting head provided with a nozzle opening for ejecting liquid, and a plurality of liquid ejecting heads are held in a relatively positioned state, and the liquid ejecting head is provided. Is a liquid ejecting apparatus comprising a coating area for applying a liquid to a recording medium and a carriage movably provided in a non-coating area other than the coating area, wherein the non-coating area of the apparatus body includes An image pickup means for picking up an image of an alignment mark provided on a liquid jet surface where the nozzle opening of the liquid jet head opens, and an adjustment for moving each liquid jet head in the surface direction of the liquid jet surface with respect to the carriage The liquid ejecting apparatus is provided with an adjusting device including the means.
In this aspect, since the relative alignment of the plurality of liquid ejecting heads by the adjusting device can be performed without removing the carriage mounting the liquid ejecting heads from the apparatus main body, it is necessary to align the carriage with the apparatus main body. In addition, it can be performed with high accuracy, and the working efficiency can be improved in a short time.

  Here, it is preferable that the imaging unit is provided so as to be movable in a direction in which the liquid ejecting heads are arranged side by side so that each alignment mark of each liquid ejecting head can be imaged. According to this, since the alignment marks of a plurality of liquid ejecting heads can be photographed by one imaging means, the adjustment device can be reduced in size, and the number of components can be reduced to reduce the cost.

  In addition, the adjustment device includes an adjustment carriage that is provided on a surface side of the liquid ejecting head opposite to the liquid ejecting surface and is movable in a parallel arrangement direction of the plurality of liquid ejecting heads. It is preferable that the adjusting unit is held at a position where the adjustment carriage does not interfere with the movement of the carriage and the liquid ejecting head. According to this, since the alignment marks of a plurality of liquid ejecting heads can be photographed by one imaging means, the adjustment device can be reduced in size, and the number of components can be reduced to reduce the cost.

  Further, the mask is a transparent member in which the adjustment device is provided across a plurality of liquid ejecting heads between the imaging unit and the liquid ejecting surface and provided with a reference mark for positioning the alignment mark It is preferable that the imaging unit is provided so that the reference mark and the alignment mark can be imaged simultaneously. According to this, by using the mask, it is not necessary to align the moving position of the imaging unit with high accuracy, and the error of the alignment of the liquid ejecting head due to the moving error of the moving unit is reduced, so that the liquid ejecting head High-precision alignment can be performed.

  The adjusting device includes an adjusting carriage provided on the liquid ejecting surface side of the liquid ejecting head and movably provided in a parallel arrangement direction of the plurality of liquid ejecting heads. It is preferable that the adjustment carriage is held at a position that does not interfere with movement of the carriage and the liquid ejecting head. According to this, since the adjusting unit can press and move the liquid ejecting surface side of the liquid ejecting head, the alignment of the liquid ejecting head by the adjusting unit can be performed with high accuracy. Further, by providing the adjustment carriage on the liquid ejecting surface side, the relative alignment of the plurality of liquid ejecting heads can be performed without removing the supply system such as a supply pipe for supplying the liquid to the liquid ejecting head from the liquid ejecting head. It can be carried out. Thereby, working efficiency can further be improved. In particular, when replacing a failed liquid ejecting head among a plurality of liquid ejecting heads, it is not necessary to remove the carriage from the apparatus main body, and it is not necessary to remove the supply system such as the supply pipe of the liquid ejecting head that is not replaced. Therefore, work efficiency can be improved.

  Also, the mask is a transparent member in which the adjustment device is provided across the plurality of liquid jet heads between the adjustment carriage and the imaging unit and provided with a reference mark for positioning the alignment mark It is preferable that the imaging unit is provided so that the reference mark and the alignment mark can be imaged simultaneously. According to this, since the adjustment unit does not interfere with the movement of the adjustment carriage, the adjustment unit performs the liquid ejection while simultaneously imaging the alignment mark of the liquid ejection head and the reference mark of the mask by the imaging unit. Since the head can be aligned, working efficiency can be improved and highly accurate alignment can be performed.

  The adjustment device may be a transparent member provided between the adjustment carriage and the liquid ejecting surface over a plurality of liquid ejecting heads and provided with a reference mark for positioning the alignment mark. A mask is provided, and the mask is provided so as to be movable from a region facing the liquid ejection surface to another region, so that the imaging unit can simultaneously image the reference mark and the alignment mark. It is preferable to be provided. According to this, since the interval between the alignment mark on the liquid ejection surface and the reference mark on the mask can be narrowed, an error such as an optical system of the image pickup means hardly occurs, and highly accurate alignment can be performed.

  The adjusting means presses the liquid ejecting head in the X direction, which is one direction in the plane of the liquid ejecting surface, and the liquid ejecting head in the plane and orthogonal to the X direction. It is preferable to include a Y-direction pressing unit that presses in the Y-direction that is a direction in which the liquid-jet head is pressed, and a θ-direction pressing unit that presses the liquid-jet head around the axis perpendicular to the liquid-jet surface in the plane. According to this, the liquid ejecting head can be moved in all directions of the liquid ejecting surface.

  Moreover, it is preferable that the X direction pressing means, the Y direction pressing means, and the θ direction pressing means are micrometers. According to this, it is possible to perform the fine and high-precision positioning of the liquid ejecting head.

  In addition, it is preferable that the imaging unit images the nozzle opening as the alignment mark of the liquid ejecting head. According to this, by using the nozzle opening as the alignment mark, it is not necessary to separately form the alignment mark, and the working efficiency can be improved.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail based on embodiments.
(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing an ink jet recording apparatus which is an example of the liquid ejecting apparatus of the invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the ink jet recording apparatus 1 includes an apparatus main body 2, a plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 (liquid ejecting heads), and a state in which the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 are relatively positioned. A carriage 4 to be held, and an ink container 6 for supplying ink through an ink supply pipe 5 made of a flexible tube are provided.

  The carriage 4 is provided so as to be movable in the axial direction on a pair of carriage shafts 7 and 8 attached to the apparatus main body 2. A drive motor 9 is provided on one end side of the carriage shafts 7 and 8, and a driving force by the drive motor 9 is applied to the pair of pulleys 10 and 11 provided on both end sides of the carriage shafts 7 and 8. By being transmitted to the carriage 4 via the timing belt 12 spanned between, the carriage 4 on which the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 are mounted is moved along the carriage shafts 7 and 8 (main scanning direction). .

  On the other hand, the apparatus main body 2 is provided with a platen 13 along the carriage shafts 7 and 8 so that a recording medium S such as a recording sheet fed by a sheet feeding roller (not shown) is conveyed onto the platen 13. It has become.

  In such an ink jet recording apparatus 1, the carriage 4 is moved in the main scanning direction, ink (liquid) is ejected to the ink jet recording head 3, and ink printing (liquid application) is performed on the recording medium S. And a non-printing area (non-application area) in which ink printing (liquid application) is not performed without discharging ink (liquid) to the inkjet recording head 3 is provided. Yes. An adjustment device 30 is provided in the non-printing area (non-application area) of the ink jet recording apparatus 1.

  Here, the ink jet recording head 3 and the carriage 4 mounted on the ink jet recording apparatus 1 will be described. 2 is a perspective view showing the ink jet recording head of the present embodiment, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a carriage and an adjusting device on which the ink jet recording head of the present embodiment is mounted. FIG. 3 is a plan view of a carriage holding an ink jet recording head.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the ink jet recording head 3 is provided on the opposite side of the head main body 14 to the ink supply pipe 5 of the head main body 14 with the ink supply pipe 5 (see FIG. 1) connected on one side. The nozzle plate 15 is provided.

  The head main body 14 is provided with a liquid flow path having a pressure generating chamber inside (not shown) and pressure generating means for causing a pressure change in the pressure generating chamber. The pressure generating means is formed by, for example, a thin film type actuator device having a piezoelectric material such as lead zirconate titanate (PZT) formed by film formation and lithography, or a method of attaching a green sheet. Examples thereof include a pressure film type actuator device, and a longitudinal vibration type actuator device in which piezoelectric materials and electrode forming materials are alternately stacked to expand and contract in the axial direction. In addition, as a pressure generating means, for example, a heating element is arranged in the pressure generating chamber, and a droplet is discharged from the nozzle opening by a bubble generated by heat generation of the heating element, or static electricity is generated between the diaphragm and the electrode. It is possible to use a so-called electrostatic actuator that is generated and deforms the diaphragm by electrostatic force.

  The nozzle plate 15 is provided with a nozzle opening 16 communicating with a pressure generation chamber (not shown) provided inside. Then, by causing a pressure change in the pressure generating chamber by the pressure generating means described above, an ink droplet (liquid) is ejected from the nozzle opening 16.

  In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of nozzle rows 17 in which nozzle openings 16 are arranged in parallel are provided on the nozzle plate 15 of one ink jet recording head 3. In this embodiment, two nozzle row groups in which eight nozzle rows 17 are arranged in parallel are arranged in parallel in the direction in which the nozzle openings 16 are arranged. Then, as shown in FIG. 4, the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 are adjusted by an adjusting device 30 to be described later in detail, so that one nozzle opening group of one ink jet recording head 3 adjacent to each other and the other ink jet recording head. One nozzle opening group of the head is positioned so as to be at the same position in the parallel direction of the nozzle rows 17.

  In such an ink jet recording head 3, the surface on which the nozzle openings 16 open is the liquid ejection surface A. In other words, in the ink jet recording head 3 of the present embodiment, the surface on the supply system side to which the ink supply pipe 5 to which ink from the ink container 6 is supplied is connected is provided on the side opposite to the liquid ejection surface A. ing.

  An alignment mark 16 </ b> A for relatively aligning the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 is provided on the liquid ejection surface A of the ink jet recording head 3. In the present embodiment, the nozzle openings 16 are used as the alignment marks 16A. The alignment mark 16A is not particularly limited to this. For example, an alignment mark different from the nozzle opening 16 may be formed by printing, film formation, or the like. You may make it form the alignment mark which is not used for discharge of an ink. Further, it is sufficient that at least two alignment marks 16A are provided in one ink jet recording head 3. In the present embodiment, the two farthest diagonal nozzle openings 16 are used as the alignment mark 16A.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a plurality of such ink jet recording heads 3 are held in parallel in a common carriage 4 in the present embodiment.

  The carriage 4 is provided with a holding hole 18 for holding a plurality of ink jet recording heads 3. The holding holes 18 are arranged side by side in the movement direction (main scanning direction) of the carriage 4 and are shifted by a predetermined amount in a direction (sub-scanning direction) orthogonal to the movement direction. As described above, one nozzle opening group of one ink jet recording head 3 adjacent to each other and one nozzle opening group of the other ink jet recording head 3 are the same in the parallel direction of the nozzle rows 17. This is because they are arranged so as to be positioned (see FIG. 4).

  Such a carriage 4 holds the liquid ejecting surface A of the ink jet recording head 3 from the holding hole 18 in a protruding state. Specifically, a flange portion 19 is provided on the surface of the ink jet recording head 3 on the supply system side to which the ink supply pipe 5 is connected. The ink jet recording head 3 has a flange portion 19 screwed to the carriage 4. It is held by being detachably fixed via a fixing member such as a member.

  The plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 are held by the carriage 4 so that the liquid ejection surfaces A are at the same height, that is, within the same surface. Thereby, the distance between the liquid ejecting surfaces A of the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 and the recording medium S can be made uniform so that the landing positions of the inks are aligned, thereby preventing variations in printing characteristics.

  The holding hole 18 is provided with an inner diameter larger than the outer periphery of the ink jet recording head 3 on the liquid ejection surface A side. As a result, the inkjet recording head 3 can be moved within the holding hole 18 of the carriage 4 by an adjusting device 30 which will be described in detail later, and the relative alignment of the plurality of inkjet recording heads 3 can be performed.

  Here, the adjusting device 30 that performs relative alignment of the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3, 5, and 6. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the carriage and the adjustment device on which the ink jet recording head of this embodiment is mounted, and FIG. 6 is a plan view of the main part of the carriage and the adjustment device on which the ink jet recording head is mounted. is there.

  The adjustment device 30 performs relative positioning of the plurality of inkjet recording heads 3 by moving the adjustment device 30 with respect to the carriage 4 that is positioned and held in the apparatus main body 2 of the inkjet recording device 1. The ink jet recording apparatus 1 is provided in a non-printing area (non-application area) at a position where the carriage 4 and the ink jet recording head 3 are not buffered by movement in the main scanning direction.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the adjusting device 30 is provided on the liquid ejecting surface A side of the ink jet recording head 3, and imaging means 40 that images the alignment mark 16 </ b> A (nozzle opening 16) of the ink jet recording head 3. And an adjusting unit 50 for moving each ink jet recording head 3 with respect to the carriage 4, an image pickup unit 40 and an adjusting unit 50, and a parallel arrangement direction of the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 (main scanning in the present embodiment). And an adjustment carriage 60 that moves in the direction).

  The imaging means 40 includes a microscope and a CCD camera having an optical system provided on the liquid ejection surface A side, and images (observes) at least two alignment marks 16A provided on one inkjet recording head 3. is there. If the imaging means 40 is provided for each alignment mark 16A of the ink jet recording head 3, the viewing angle of the imaging means 40 can be narrowed and the alignment mark 16A can be photographed at a high magnification. The relative alignment of the ink jet recording head 3 can be performed with high accuracy by the adjusting device 30.

  Further, the image pickup means 40 is attached to an adjustment carriage 60 that moves in the direction in which the inkjet recording heads 3 held by the carriage 4 are arranged in parallel (in this embodiment, the same direction as the main scanning direction, which is the movement direction of the carriage 4). Is retained. Thereby, the imaging means 40 can image the alignment marks 16 </ b> A of the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3. Of course, by providing a plurality of imaging units 40 corresponding to the plurality of inkjet recording heads 3, the alignment marks 16A of the plurality of inkjet recording heads 3 can be imaged simultaneously without moving the imaging unit 40. .

  The adjusting means 50 moves the ink jet recording head in the surface direction of the liquid ejecting surface A with respect to the carriage, thereby performing relative positioning of the plurality of ink jet recording heads. As shown in FIG. 6, the adjusting unit 50 of the present embodiment includes an X-direction pressing unit 51 that presses in the X direction, which is one direction in the plane of the liquid ejection surface A, and an X direction in the plane of the liquid ejection surface A. Y direction pressing means 52 that presses in the Y direction orthogonal to the surface, and θ direction pressing means 53 that presses in the plane of the liquid ejecting surface A and around an axis orthogonal to the liquid ejecting surface A.

  Specifically, the adjusting means 50 includes a holding table 54 having a shape in which a rectangular corner is cut out, and an adjusting table 55 provided on the holding table 54 so as to be movable in the X direction. And on the holding table 54, the base end side of the X-direction pressing means 51 provided so that the protruding amount of the tip can be adjusted is held. Such an X-direction pressing means 51 presses the adjustment table 55 in the X direction with its tip, and thus via the pressing pin 56 provided on the adjustment table 55 and protruding into the notched region of the holding table 54. The ink jet recording head 3 can be pressed in the X direction.

  Further, on the adjustment table 55, the base end side of the θ-direction pressing means 53 provided so that the protruding amount of the tip can be adjusted is held. The θ-direction pressing unit 53 moves in the X direction together with the adjustment table 55 pressed by the X-direction pressing unit 51, and presses the ink jet recording head 3 in the X direction at the tip thereof together with the pressing pin 56 of the adjustment table 55. . Further, by fixing the adjustment table 55 and adjusting the protruding amount of the tip of the θ direction pressing means 53, the ink jet recording head 3 is pressed by the tip of the θ direction pressing means 53, and the ink jet recording head 3 is moved in the θ direction. Rotate to

  Further, on the holding table 54, the proximal end side of the Y-direction pressing means 52 provided with the tip protruding into the notched region of the holding table 54 and the protruding amount being adjustable is held. The ink jet recording head 3 can be moved in the Y direction by adjusting the protruding amount of the tip of the Y direction pressing means 52.

  That is, the adjusting means 50 is configured so that the X-direction pressing means 51, the Y-direction pressing means 52, and the θ-direction pressing means 53 cause the ink jet recording head 3 to move in the X direction within the liquid ejection surface A with respect to the carriage 4. , Y direction and θ direction can be moved.

  As the X direction pressing means 51, the Y direction pressing means 52, and the θ direction pressing means 53, for example, a micrometer is used to finely adjust the X direction, Y direction, and θ direction of the ink jet recording head 3. It can be carried out.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, such an adjustment unit 50 is held by an adjustment carriage 60, and moves in the direction in which a plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 are arranged. Movement by the photographing and adjusting means 50 can be performed with respect to each ink jet recording head 3. In other words, in the present embodiment, the imaging unit 40 and the adjustment unit 50 are moved in the juxtaposition direction of the inkjet recording heads 3 so that the plurality of imaging units 40 and the adjustment units 50 are arranged with respect to the plurality of inkjet recording heads 3. The adjustment device 30 can be prevented from increasing in size and the cost of the adjustment device 30 can be prevented from increasing. Needless to say, the size and cost of the ink jet recording apparatus 1 provided with the adjusting device 30 can be reduced by reducing the size and cost of the adjusting device 30.

  5 and 6, the adjusting means 50 is an ink jet type through an adjusting jig 70 which is detachably provided on the ink jet recording head 3 so as to protrude from the liquid ejecting surface A. The recording head 3 is pressed. The adjustment jig 70 is made of a member having a L-shaped cross section, and one surface of the adjustment jig 70 is pressed against the tip of the pressing pin 56 and the θ-direction pressing unit 53 of the adjusting unit 50 and the other is bent from the one surface. The ink jet recording head 3 is mounted such that the surface is pressed against the tip of the Y-direction pressing means 52. The adjusting means 50 moves the ink jet recording head 3 by pressing a region protruding from the liquid ejection surface A of the adjusting jig 70. That is, the adjusting means 50 moves the ink jet recording head 3 via the adjusting jig 70 provided so as to protrude from the liquid ejecting surface A, whereby the adjusting jig 70 is moved to the ink jet recording head 3. If it is removed, the movement of the adjusting means 50 by the adjusting carriage 60 can move in the direction in which the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 are arranged without interfering with the ink jet recording head 3 and the carriage 4. Of course, since the adjusting means 50 is provided without interfering with the ink jet recording head 3 and the carriage 4 as described above, the ink jet recording head 3 can be held by removing the adjusting jig 70 from the ink jet recording head 3. The carriage 4 can be moved in the main scanning direction.

  A method for aligning a plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 using such an adjusting device 30 will be described below. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a method of aligning the ink jet recording head using the adjusting means.

  First, in step S1, the imaging means 40 captures the alignment mark 16A of the first ink jet recording head 3 to acquire an image.

  Next, in step S2, the adjustment carriage 60 is moved in the direction in which the ink jet recording heads 3 are arranged, and the image pickup means 40 and the adjusting means 50 are moved to the second ink jet recording head 3 side. Next, in step S3, the imaging means 40 captures an image by capturing the alignment mark 16A of the second ink jet recording head 3. Next, in step S 4, the second ink jet recording head 3 is moved with respect to the carriage 4 by the adjusting means 50, and the second ink jet recording head 3 is changed to the first ink jet recording head 3. Align with respect to. At this time, the moving amount of the second ink jet recording head 3 by the adjusting means 50 is an image obtained by photographing the first ink jet recording head 3 and an image obtained by photographing the second ink jet recording head 3. And the alignment mark 16A of the second ink jet recording head 3 is set to the same position as the alignment mark 16A of the image obtained by photographing the first ink jet recording head 3. Thereby, the second ink jet recording head 3 can be aligned with the first ink jet recording head 3. Note that this image comparison is performed in consideration of the amount of shift in the sub-scanning direction of the fixed positions of the two ink jet recording heads 3.

  Further, when the adjustment is performed by the adjustment unit 50, the adjustment jig 70 described above is attached to the second ink jet recording head 3. The adjustment jig 70 is attached to the second ink jet recording head 3 before the image pickup means 40 and the adjustment means 50 are moved to the second ink jet recording head 3 side. The adjustment jig 70 can be easily attached to the ink jet recording head 3 of the eye. Further, the comparison of the images acquired by the imaging unit 40 may be performed by performing image processing on each image to acquire coordinate information which is position information of the alignment mark 16A, and an inkjet type is adjusted by the adjusting unit 50 based on the coordinate information. The recording head 3 may be aligned. The comparison of the images acquired by the imaging unit 40 is not particularly limited to this. For example, a reference mark serving as a reference such as a cross-shaped or dot-shaped mark or a grid line is provided on the optical system or microscope of the imaging unit 40. The coordinates of the alignment mark 16A may be acquired from the reference mark using the image acquired by the imaging means 40.

  Next, in step S5, the adjustment carriage 60 is moved in the direction in which the ink jet recording heads 3 are arranged, and the image pickup means 40 and the adjusting means 50 are moved to the third ink jet recording head 3 side. At this time, the adjustment jig 70 attached to the second ink jet recording head is removed, and the adjustment jig 70 is attached to the third ink jet recording head 3, so that the image pickup means 40 and the adjustment means 50 are made of the ink jet type. The recording head 3 and the carriage 4 can be moved without interfering with each other.

  After that, in step S6 and step S7 similar to step S3 and step S4, the third ink jet recording head 3 is aligned, so that a plurality of ink jet recording heads 3, in this embodiment, three Relative positioning of the ink jet recording head 3 can be performed. At the same time, the alignment of each ink jet recording head 3 with respect to the carriage 4 can be performed.

  Such relative alignment of the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 by the adjusting device 30 can be performed without removing the carriage 4 on which the ink jet recording heads 3 are mounted from the apparatus main body 2 of the ink jet recording apparatus 1. Therefore, alignment when the carriage 4 is attached to and detached from the apparatus main body 2 becomes unnecessary, and only the alignment of the ink jet recording head 3 can be performed in a short time and in a simple process.

  Further, in the adjustment device 30 of the present embodiment, the adjustment carriage 60 is provided on the liquid ejection surface A side, so that a plurality of supply systems such as the ink supply pipe 5 that supplies ink are not removed from the ink jet recording head 3. Relative positioning of the ink jet recording head 3 can be performed. Thereby, working efficiency can further be improved. In particular, when one inkjet recording head 3 is replaced due to a failure or the like among the three inkjet recording heads 3, the carriage 4 is not removed from the apparatus main body 2, and the inkjet recording head 3 that is not replaced is replaced. Since it is not necessary to remove the supply system such as the ink supply pipe 5, it is possible to shorten the time required for alignment and improve the working efficiency.

  The movement of the image pickup means 40 and the adjustment means 50 by the adjustment carriage 60, particularly the movement of the image pickup means 40, is performed so that the relative alignment of the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 can be achieved. That is, the moving position of the image pickup means 40 affects the image when the relative alignment of the ink jet recording head 3 is performed, and therefore affects the accuracy of the relative alignment of the ink jet recording head 3. Because it ends up.

  In the first embodiment described above, the image pickup means 40 and the adjustment means 50 are held by the adjustment carriage 60 to move them in the direction in which the ink jet recording heads 3 are arranged. For example, a first adjustment carriage that holds the adjustment unit 50 and a second adjustment carriage that holds the imaging unit 40 are provided, and the first adjustment carriage and the second adjustment carriage are provided. May be moved independently in the juxtaposition direction of the ink jet recording heads 3.

  In the first embodiment described above, the imaging unit 40 and the adjustment unit 50 are held by the adjustment carriage 60 so that each of the plurality of inkjet recording heads 3 is aligned by the single imaging unit 40 and the adjustment unit 50. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the imaging unit 40 and the adjusting unit 50 are fixed to the apparatus main body 2 of the inkjet recording apparatus 1, and the carriage 4 holding the inkjet recording head 3 is used as the inkjet recording head. 3 may be moved in the juxtaposed direction so that each of the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 is aligned by one imaging means 40 and adjusting means 50. Incidentally, in the present embodiment, since a plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 are arranged in parallel in the moving direction (main scanning direction) of the carriage 4, a configuration in which the imaging means 40 and the adjusting means 50 are fixed to the apparatus main body 2 is possible. However, when a plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 are arranged in parallel in the direction (sub-scanning direction) orthogonal to the moving direction (main scanning direction) of the carriage 4, the image pickup means 40 and the adjustment means 50 are installed in the apparatus. The adjustment carriage 60 may be moved in the sub-scanning direction without being fixed to the main body 2.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the main parts of the carriage and the adjustment device that hold the ink jet recording head according to the second embodiment of the present invention. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the member similar to embodiment mentioned above, and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted. For members not shown in the present embodiment, the same members as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the drawings and overlapping description are omitted.

  The adjustment device 30A of the present embodiment is provided in a non-printing area (non-application area) of the ink jet recording apparatus 1 as in the first embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the adjustment device 30 </ b> A is provided on the liquid ejection surface A side of the ink jet recording head 3, and includes an image capturing means 40 that images the alignment mark 16 </ b> A (nozzle opening 16) of the ink jet recording head 3. The image pickup carriage 61 that holds the means 40 and moves in the juxtaposition direction of the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 (main scanning direction in this embodiment), and each ink jet recording head 3 is moved relative to the carriage 4. The adjusting unit 50, the adjusting carriage 60A that holds the adjusting unit 50 and moves in the direction in which the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 are arranged (main scanning direction in the present embodiment), the adjusting carriage 60A, and the imaging unit 40 And a mask 80 provided therebetween.

  The image pickup carriage 61 and the adjustment carriage 60A hold the image pickup means 40 and the adjustment means 50, respectively, and are provided independently so as to be movable in the direction in which the ink jet recording heads 3 are juxtaposed (main scanning direction). .

  The mask 80 is made of, for example, a plate-like transparent member such as glass, and a reference mark 81 for aligning the alignment mark 16A is provided on one surface thereof. In this embodiment, since the two alignment marks 16A are provided on the liquid ejection surface A as in the first embodiment described above, two reference marks 81 are provided for one ink jet recording head 3. Yes. That is, six reference marks 81 are provided on the mask 80. In addition, the mask 80 is positioned between the imaging unit 40 and the adjustment carriage 60A so as not to interfere with the movement of the adjustment carriage 60A and the movement of the imaging carriage 61. It is fixed and provided.

  Note that the imaging means 40 of the present embodiment is capable of simultaneously photographing the alignment mark 16A of the ink jet recording head 3 and the reference mark 81 of the mask 80. For this reason, it is preferable to use a bifocal microscope as the imaging means 40, for example. In this way, by using the bifocal microscope as the image pickup means 40, the reference mark 81 and the alignment mark 16A can be seen at the same time. Therefore, the reference mark individually focused by one optical system and the other optical system. The predetermined positioning can be performed by superimposing the images of 81 and the alignment mark 16A. That is, despite the space between the reference mark 81 and the alignment mark 16A, the depth of field of each optical system can be made as small as possible and the magnification can be increased accordingly. As a result, the predetermined positioning of the ink jet recording head 3 can be performed with high accuracy.

  Further, the configuration of the adjusting means 50 is the same as that of the first embodiment described above, and a detachable adjusting jig 70 is provided on the ink jet recording head 3, and the adjusting means 50 is connected to the ink jet type via the adjusting jig 70. Since the point of moving the recording head 3 is also the same as that of the first embodiment described above, redundant description is omitted.

  A method for performing relative alignment of the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 using such an adjusting device 30A will be described below. FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a method of aligning the ink jet recording head using the adjusting means.

  First, in step S <b> 11, an image is obtained by simultaneously photographing the alignment mark 16 </ b> A of the first ink jet recording head 3 and the reference mark 81 of the mask 80 by the imaging unit 40. Then, the coordinates of the alignment mark 16 </ b> A with respect to the reference mark 81 are acquired from the image captured by the imaging unit 40.

  Next, in step 12, the imaging carriage 61 and the adjustment carriage 60A are moved to the second ink jet recording head 3 side to move the imaging means 40 and the adjustment means 50. Next, in step S <b> 13, the second inkjet recording head 3 is aligned with the first inkjet recording head 3 by the adjusting unit 50. At this time, the imaging unit 40 simultaneously images the alignment mark 16A of the second inkjet recording head 3 and the reference mark 81 of the mask 80, while the adjustment unit 50 moves the second inkjet recording head 3 to 2 By aligning the alignment mark 16A of the first ink jet recording head 3 with the position of the alignment mark 16A with respect to the reference mark 81 of the first ink jet recording head 3, it is easy and highly accurate. Can be aligned. That is, the alignment of the second ink jet recording head 3 by the adjusting means 50 is performed based on the coordinates of the alignment mark 16A with respect to the reference mark 81 of the first ink jet recording head 3 acquired by the imaging means 40. Can do.

  Thereafter, similarly to step S12 and step S13, in step S14 and step S15, the third ink jet recording head 3 is aligned, so that a plurality of ink jet recording heads 3, in this embodiment, 3 is used. The relative alignment of the two ink jet recording heads 3 can be performed.

  The relative positioning of the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 by the adjusting device 30A can be performed without removing the carriage 4 on which the ink jet recording heads 3 are mounted from the apparatus main body 2 of the ink jet recording apparatus 1. Therefore, alignment when the carriage 4 is attached to and detached from the apparatus main body 2 becomes unnecessary, and only the alignment of the ink jet recording head 3 can be performed in a short time and in a simple process.

  In the adjustment device 30A of the present embodiment, the adjustment carriage 60A is provided on the liquid ejecting surface A side, so that a plurality of supply systems such as the ink supply pipe 5 for supplying ink are not removed from the ink jet recording head 3. Relative positioning of the ink jet recording head 3 can be performed. Thereby, working efficiency can further be improved. In particular, when one inkjet recording head 3 is replaced due to a failure or the like among the three inkjet recording heads 3, the carriage 4 is not removed from the apparatus main body 2, and the inkjet recording head 3 that is not replaced is replaced. Since it is not necessary to remove the supply system such as the ink supply pipe 5, it is possible to shorten the time required for alignment and improve the working efficiency.

  Further, in the present embodiment, since the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 can be relatively aligned with respect to the reference mark 81 of the mask 80, the image pickup means 40 is arranged in the direction in which the ink jet recording heads 3 are arranged side by side. The positioning accuracy of the image pickup carriage 61 to be moved to is not required. For this reason, an error in the relative positional accuracy of the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 due to an error in the imaging carriage 61 can be eliminated, and highly accurate alignment can be easily performed. That is, in Embodiment 1 described above, the accuracy of the movement position of the imaging unit 40 directly affects the accuracy of relative alignment of the inkjet recording head 3, but in this embodiment, the movement position of the imaging unit 40 Since the relative alignment of the ink jet recording head 3 can be performed without being affected by the accuracy, highly accurate alignment can be easily performed.

  In the present embodiment, an imaging carriage 61 that moves the imaging unit 40 and an adjustment carriage 60A that moves the adjustment unit 50 are provided, and the imaging carriage 61 and the adjustment carriage 60A are moved independently. However, the present invention is not particularly limited to this, and the image pickup means 40 and the adjustment means 50 may be simultaneously held and moved on one adjustment carriage 60 as in the first embodiment described above. In this case, the movement of the adjustment carriage 60 may be provided so as not to interfere with the mask 80. Of course, by providing a plurality of image pickup means 40 for each of the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3, the alignment marks 16 </ b> A of the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 and the reference marks 81 of the mask 80 are all simultaneously provided without moving the image pickup means 40. Since imaging can be performed, the imaging carriage 61 is not necessary.

(Embodiment 3)
FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view showing an adjusting device according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the member similar to Embodiment 2 mentioned above, and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted. For members not shown in the present embodiment, the same members as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the drawings and overlapping description are omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the adjusting device 30 </ b> B is provided on the liquid ejection surface A side of the ink jet recording head 3, and the image capturing means 40 that images the alignment mark 16 </ b> A (nozzle opening 16) of the ink jet recording head. An image pickup carriage 61 that holds the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 and moves in the direction in which the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 are arranged (main scanning direction in the present embodiment), and an adjustment unit that moves each ink jet recording head 3 relative to the carriage 4 50, an adjustment carriage 60A that holds the adjustment means 50 and moves in the direction in which the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 are juxtaposed (in the main scanning direction in the present embodiment), the adjustment carriage 60A, and the liquid ejection surface A. And a mask 80A provided therebetween.

  The mask 80A is made of, for example, a plate-like transparent member such as glass, and a reference mark 81 for aligning the alignment mark 16A is provided on one surface thereof. Further, in this embodiment, the mask 80A does not interfere with the movement of the carriage 4 holding the ink jet recording head 3 between the liquid ejection surface A of the ink jet recording head 3 and the adjustment carriage 60A, and performs ink jetting. The recording head 3 is disposed as close as possible to the liquid ejection surface A of the recording head 3. The mask 80 </ b> A of this embodiment is disposed on the liquid ejection surface A side with respect to the tip of the adjustment jig 70 attached to the ink jet recording head 3. Of course, the mask 80A may be provided in a region opposite to the tip of the adjustment jig 70 attached to the ink jet recording head 3.

  The mask 80A is provided so as to be movable from a region facing the liquid ejection surface A of the ink jet recording head 3 to another region. In the present embodiment, the mask 80 </ b> A is detachably fixed to the apparatus main body 2, so that the mask 80 </ b> A can be moved from a region facing the liquid ejection surface A to another region. Of course, by providing the mask 80A so as to be movable in the sub-scanning direction of the carriage 4, the mask 80A may be movable from a region facing the liquid ejection surface A to another region.

  In this way, by moving the mask 80A from the area facing the liquid ejection surface A of the ink jet recording head 3 to another area, the adjustment carriage 60A holding the adjusting means 50 does not interfere with the mask 80A. The ink jet recording heads 3 can be moved in the parallel direction. Further, by providing the mask 80A so as to be movable from the region facing the liquid ejection surface A to another region, the mask 80A does not interfere with the movement of the adjustment carriage 60A holding the adjusting means 50. It can be provided close to the ejection surface A. Thereby, the interval between the alignment mark 16A provided on the liquid ejection surface A and the reference mark 81 provided on the mask 80A can be narrowed, and the ink jet recording head 3 can be aligned with high accuracy.

  Note that the imaging unit 40, the adjustment unit 50, the imaging carriage 61, and the adjustment carriage 60A are the same as those in the above-described second embodiment, and thus redundant description is omitted. Further, since the ink jet recording head 3 is provided with a detachable adjusting jig 70 and the adjusting means 50 aligns the ink jet recording head 3 via the adjusting jig 70, it is the same as in the first embodiment. A duplicate description is omitted.

  A method of aligning the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 using such an adjusting device 30B will be described below. FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a method for aligning an ink jet recording head using the adjusting means according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

  First, in step S <b> 21, the mask 80 </ b> A is fixed to a region facing the liquid ejection surface A of the ink jet recording head 3. Next, in steps S22 to S24, the imaging carriage 61 is moved in the direction in which the inkjet recording heads 3 are arranged, and the alignment mark 16A of each inkjet recording head 3 and the reference mark 81 of the mask 80A are moved by the imaging means 40. Take a picture. Accordingly, the coordinates of the alignment mark 16A with respect to the reference mark 81 are acquired from the images acquired by the imaging unit 40 for each of the inkjet recording heads 3.

  Next, in step S <b> 25, the mask 80 </ b> A is moved from the region facing the liquid ejection surface A of the ink jet recording head 3 to another region. In the present embodiment, the mask 80A is removed from the apparatus main body 2. Thereby, the adjustment carriage 60A holding the adjustment means 50 can move in the direction in which the ink jet recording heads 3 are arranged without interfering with the mask 80A. Since the mask 80A is movably provided from the region facing the liquid ejection surface A to another region, the mask 80A does not interfere with the movement of the adjustment carriage 60A holding the adjusting means 50. It can be provided close to the ejection surface A. Thereby, the interval between the alignment mark 16A provided on the liquid ejection surface A and the reference mark 81 provided on the mask 80A can be narrowed, and high-precision alignment can be performed.

  Next, in step S26, based on the coordinates acquired from the image captured by the image capturing unit 40, the adjustment unit 50 performs relative positioning of each ink jet recording head 3. Specifically, based on the coordinates of the alignment mark 16A with respect to the reference mark 81 of the reference inkjet recording head 3, the alignment mark 16A of the other inkjet recording head 3 is aligned with the reference inkjet recording head 3. Positioning is performed so that the coordinates from the reference mark 81 are the same as the mark 16A.

  Such relative alignment of the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 by the adjusting device 30B can be performed without removing the carriage 4 on which the ink jet recording head 3 is mounted from the apparatus main body 2 of the ink jet recording apparatus 1. Therefore, alignment when the carriage 4 is attached to and detached from the apparatus main body 2 becomes unnecessary, and only the alignment of the ink jet recording head 3 can be performed in a short time and in a simple process.

  Further, in the adjustment device 30B of the present embodiment, the adjustment carriage 60A is provided on the liquid ejection surface A side, so that a plurality of supply systems such as the ink supply pipe 5 for supplying ink are not removed from the ink jet recording head 3. Relative positioning of the ink jet recording head 3 can be performed. Thereby, working efficiency can further be improved. In particular, when one inkjet recording head 3 is replaced due to a failure or the like among the three inkjet recording heads 3, the carriage 4 is not removed from the apparatus main body 2, and the inkjet recording head 3 that is not replaced is replaced. Since it is not necessary to remove the supply system such as the ink supply pipe 5, it is possible to shorten the time required for alignment and improve the working efficiency.

  Furthermore, in this embodiment, since the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 can be relatively aligned with respect to the reference mark 81 of the mask 80A, the image pickup means 40 is arranged in the direction in which the ink jet recording heads 3 are arranged side by side. The positioning accuracy of the image pickup carriage 61 to be moved to is not required. For this reason, an error in the relative positional accuracy of the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 due to an error in the imaging carriage 61 can be eliminated, and highly accurate alignment can be easily performed. That is, in Embodiment 1 described above, the accuracy of the movement position of the imaging unit 40 directly affects the accuracy of relative alignment of the inkjet recording head 3, but in this embodiment, the movement position of the imaging unit 40 Since the relative alignment of the ink jet recording head 3 can be performed without being affected by the accuracy, highly accurate alignment can be easily performed.

  In this embodiment, since the mask 80A can be provided close to the liquid ejection surface A, it is not necessary to use a bifocal microscope similar to that of the above-described embodiment 2 as the imaging unit 40, and a single-focus microscope is used. Even if used, the alignment mark 16A provided on the liquid ejection surface A and the reference mark 81 provided on the mask 80A can be photographed simultaneously.

(Embodiment 4)
FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view showing an adjusting device according to Embodiment 4 of the present invention. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the member similar to embodiment mentioned above, and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted. Also, for members not shown in the present embodiment, the same members as those in the above-described embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the drawings and overlapping description are omitted.

  The adjustment device 30 </ b> C of the present embodiment is provided in a non-printing area (non-application area) of the ink jet recording apparatus 1 as in the first embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 12, the adjusting device 30 </ b> C is provided on the liquid ejecting surface A side of the ink jet recording head 3, and includes an image capturing means 40 that images the alignment mark 16 </ b> A (nozzle opening 16) of the ink jet recording head 3. The image pickup carriage 61 that holds the means 40 and moves in the juxtaposition direction of the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 (main scanning direction in this embodiment), and each ink jet recording head 3 is moved relative to the carriage 4. An adjustment unit 50A, an adjustment carriage 60B that holds the adjustment unit 50A and moves in the direction in which the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 are arranged (in the main scanning direction in this embodiment), and a region facing the liquid ejection surface A And a mask 80 </ b> B provided on the surface.

  The adjusting means 50A has the same configuration as that of the first embodiment described above. In this embodiment, the adjustment carriage 60B that holds the adjustment unit 50A is provided on the surface side of the ink supply system to which the ink supply pipe 5 opposite to the liquid ejection surface A of the ink jet recording head 3 is connected. It has been. Then, the adjusting means 50A is an ink jet recording head via an adjusting jig 70A that is detachably fixed to the surface side to which the ink supply pipe 5 opposite to the liquid ejection surface A of the ink jet recording head 3 is connected. 3 is moved with respect to the carriage 4.

  The mask 80A is made of, for example, a plate-shaped transparent member such as glass, and a reference mark 81 for aligning the alignment mark 16A is provided on one surface thereof. Further, the mask 80A does not interfere with the movement of the carriage 4 holding the ink jet recording head 3 between the liquid ejecting surface A of the ink jet recording head 3 and the imaging means 40, as in the third embodiment. In addition, it is fixed to the apparatus main body 2 of the ink jet recording apparatus 1 so as to be as close as possible to the liquid ejection surface A of the ink jet recording head 3.

  A method of aligning the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 using such an adjusting device 30C will be described below. FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing a method for aligning an ink jet recording head using the adjusting means according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

  First, in step S31, an image is obtained by simultaneously photographing the alignment mark 16A of the first ink jet recording head 3 and the reference mark 81 of the mask 80A by the imaging means 40. Then, the coordinates of the alignment mark 16 </ b> A with respect to the reference mark 81 are acquired from the image captured by the imaging unit 40.

  Next, in step 32, the imaging carriage 61 and the adjustment carriage 60B are moved to the second ink jet recording head 3 side to move the imaging means 40 and the adjustment means 50A. Next, in step S33, the second ink jet recording head 3 is aligned with the first ink jet recording head 3 by the adjusting means 50A. At this time, while the imaging unit 40 simultaneously photographs the alignment mark 16A of the second ink jet recording head 3 and the reference mark 81 of the mask 80A, the second ink jet recording head 3 is aligned by the adjusting unit 50A. By doing so, alignment can be performed easily and with high accuracy. The alignment of the second ink jet recording head 3 by the adjusting means 50A is performed based on the coordinates of the alignment mark 16A with respect to the reference mark 81 of the first ink jet recording head 3 acquired by the imaging means 40.

  After that, as in step S32 and step S33, the third ink jet recording head 3 is aligned in step S34 and step S35, so that a plurality of ink jet recording heads 3, in this embodiment, 3 is used. The relative alignment of the two ink jet recording heads 3 can be performed.

  The alignment of the ink jet recording head 3 by the adjusting means 50A is performed by removing the ink supply system provided in the opposite side to the liquid ejection surface A of the ink jet recording head 3, in this embodiment, the ink supply pipe 5. Do. Thereby, the adjustment carriage 60B holding the adjustment means 50A can be moved in the direction in which the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 are arranged.

  Such relative alignment of the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 by the adjusting device 30C can be performed without removing the carriage 4 on which the ink jet recording head 3 is mounted from the apparatus main body 2 of the ink jet recording apparatus 1. Therefore, alignment when the carriage 4 is attached to and detached from the apparatus main body 2 becomes unnecessary, and only the alignment of the ink jet recording head 3 can be performed in a short time and in a simple process.

  In the present embodiment, since the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 can be relatively aligned with respect to the reference mark 81 of the mask 80A, the image pickup means 40 is arranged in the direction in which the ink jet recording heads 3 are arranged side by side. The positioning accuracy of the image pickup carriage 61 to be moved to is not required. For this reason, an error in the relative positional accuracy of the plurality of ink jet recording heads 3 due to an error in the imaging carriage 61 can be eliminated, and highly accurate alignment can be easily performed. That is, in Embodiment 1 described above, the accuracy of the movement position of the imaging unit 40 directly affects the accuracy of relative alignment of the inkjet recording head 3, but in this embodiment, the movement position of the imaging unit 40 Since the relative alignment of the ink jet recording head 3 can be performed without being affected by the accuracy, highly accurate alignment can be easily performed.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the mask 80A provided close to the liquid ejection surface A is not removed from the apparatus main body 2, and the reference mark 81 of the mask 80A is photographed by the adjusting unit 50A while the ink jet recording head 3 is being photographed. Since alignment can be performed, highly accurate alignment can be performed more easily.

  In the present embodiment, the adjustment device 30C having the mask 80A is exemplified, but the present invention is not particularly limited thereto. For example, as in the first embodiment described above, only the imaging unit 40 without the mask 80A is used. It may be an adjusting device for aligning the recording head 3.

(Other embodiments)
As mentioned above, although each embodiment of this invention was described, the basic composition of this invention is not limited to what was mentioned above. For example, in Embodiments 1 to 4 described above, the ink jet recording apparatus 1 in which the carriage 4 that holds the ink jet recording head 3 moves in the main scanning direction is exemplified, but the invention is not particularly limited thereto. The present invention can also be applied to a so-called line-type ink jet recording apparatus that performs printing on the recording medium S in a state where the carriage 4 holding the ink jet recording head 3 is fixed at a predetermined position of the apparatus main body 2. Even in the case of a line-type ink jet recording apparatus, the carriage may be provided so as to be movable from the printing area to the non-printing area, and the adjusting devices 30 to 30C may be provided in the non-printing area.

  In the first to fourth embodiments described above, the adjusting units 50 and 50A are provided so as to be movable in the direction in which the ink jet recording heads 3 are arranged, and one adjusting unit 50 and 50A includes a plurality of ink jet recording heads 3. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a plurality of adjusting means are provided corresponding to each ink jet recording head 3 so that the adjusting means can move in the liquid ejecting direction. Good.

  In Embodiments 1 to 4 described above, the three ink jet recording heads 3 are provided in the ink jet recording apparatus 1. However, the number of ink jet recording heads 3 is not particularly limited as long as there are two or more ink jet recording heads 3. It is not something.

  In the above-described embodiment, the ink jet recording apparatus 1 including the ink jet recording head 3 that discharges ink has been described as an example. However, the present invention is intended for all liquid ejecting apparatuses having a liquid ejecting head. It is. Examples of the liquid ejecting apparatus include an image recording apparatus such as a printer, a liquid ejecting apparatus having a color material ejecting head used for manufacturing a color filter such as a liquid crystal display, an organic EL display, and an electrode formation such as an FED (field emission display). And a liquid ejecting apparatus having a bio-organic material ejecting head used for biochip production.

1 is a schematic perspective view of a recording apparatus according to Embodiment 1. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a recording head according to Embodiment 1. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a recording head, a carriage, and an adjustment device according to Embodiment 1. FIG. 2 is a plan view of a recording head and a carriage according to Embodiment 1. FIG. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the recording head, the carriage, and the adjustment device according to the first embodiment. 2 is a plan view of a recording head, a carriage, and an adjustment device according to Embodiment 1. FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an alignment method according to the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a recording head, a carriage, and an adjustment device according to a second embodiment. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an alignment method according to the second embodiment. FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of a recording head, a carriage, and an adjustment device according to a third embodiment. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an alignment method according to the third embodiment. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a recording head, a carriage, and an adjustment device according to a fourth embodiment. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an alignment method according to a fourth embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Inkjet recording device (liquid ejecting apparatus), 2 Apparatus main body, 3 Inkjet recording head (liquid ejecting head), 4 Carriage, 16 Nozzle opening, 16A Alignment mark, 30, 30A, 30B, 30C Adjustment apparatus, 40 Imaging means 50, 50A adjustment means, 60, 60A, 60B adjustment carriage, 61 imaging carriage, 70, 70A adjustment jig, 80, 80A mask, 81 fiducial mark, A liquid ejection surface, S recording medium

Claims (10)

An apparatus main body, a liquid ejecting head provided with a nozzle opening for ejecting liquid, and a plurality of liquid ejecting heads are held in a relatively positioned state, and the liquid ejecting head applies a liquid to a recording medium. And a carriage provided movably in a non-application area other than the application area,
In the non-application area of the apparatus main body, an imaging unit that images an alignment mark provided on a liquid ejection surface where the nozzle opening of the liquid ejection head opens, and the liquid ejection heads with respect to the carriage A liquid ejecting apparatus, comprising: an adjusting device including an adjusting unit that moves the liquid ejecting surface in a surface direction.   The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the imaging unit is provided so as to be movable in a direction in which the liquid ejecting heads are arranged side by side, and is provided so as to be able to image each alignment mark of each liquid ejecting head. .   The adjustment device includes an adjustment carriage that is provided on a surface of the liquid ejecting head opposite to the liquid ejecting surface and is movable in a parallel arrangement direction of the plurality of liquid ejecting heads. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the adjusting unit is held by the adjusting carriage at a position that does not interfere with movement of the carriage and the liquid ejecting head.   The adjustment device includes a mask which is a transparent member provided between the imaging unit and the liquid ejecting surface over a plurality of liquid ejecting heads and provided with a reference mark for positioning the alignment mark. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the imaging unit is provided so that the reference mark and the alignment mark can be simultaneously imaged.   The adjusting device includes an adjustment carriage provided on the liquid ejecting surface side of the liquid ejecting head and movably provided in a parallel arrangement direction of the plurality of liquid ejecting heads, and the adjusting means includes the adjustment 3. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the liquid ejecting apparatus is held at a position that does not interfere with movement of the carriage and the liquid ejecting head.   The adjustment device includes a mask that is a transparent member provided between the adjustment carriage and the imaging unit over a plurality of liquid ejecting heads and provided with a reference mark for positioning the alignment mark. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the imaging unit is provided so that the reference mark and the alignment mark can be simultaneously imaged.   A mask that is a transparent member provided with a reference mark for positioning the alignment mark provided between the adjustment carriage and the liquid ejection surface across the plurality of liquid ejection heads; And the mask is provided so as to be movable from a region facing the liquid ejection surface to another region, and the imaging means is provided so that the reference mark and the alignment mark can be imaged simultaneously. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the liquid ejecting apparatus is a liquid ejecting apparatus.   The adjusting means presses the liquid ejecting head in the X direction, which is one direction in the plane of the liquid ejecting surface, and the direction of the liquid ejecting head in the plane and orthogonal to the X direction. A Y-direction pressing means for pressing in the Y-direction, and a θ-direction pressing means for pressing the liquid ejecting head in the plane and around an axis orthogonal to the liquid ejecting surface. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to any one of 1 to 7.   The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the X direction pressing unit, the Y direction pressing unit, and the θ direction pressing unit are micrometers.   The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the imaging unit is configured to image the nozzle opening as the alignment mark of the liquid ejecting head.

Images