JP2008279646A - Waste liquid container, maintenance and restoration device and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a waste liquid container which can be made compact while reducing the cost by using in common the waste liquid throw-in port and decreasing the number of components, and to provide a maintenance and restoration device and an image forming apparatus. <P>SOLUTION: In the waste liquid container, a suction member having a density dependent on the state of waste liquid discharged from one waste liquid throw-in port is provided in each region where the waste liquid drips or the suction member is not provided depending on the state of the waste liquid. Since the waste liquid throw-in port is made in common and can be distinguished in one space depending on the state of the waste liquid discharged, the waste liquid container can be made compact while reducing the cost. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a waste liquid storage container, a maintenance / recovery device, and an image forming apparatus, and more particularly to a structure of a waste liquid storage container that stores liquid waste liquid and non-liquid waste liquid.

  In recent image forming apparatuses using ink, the use of pigment-based inks using organic pigments, carbon black, etc. as colorants has been studied or put into practical use in order to enable high-quality printing on plain paper. However, since a pigment is not soluble in water unlike a dye, it is usually used as a water-based ink in a state where the pigment is mixed with a dispersant, dispersed, and stably dispersed in water. Such a pigment-based ink generally has a higher viscosity than a dye-based ink, causing a problem due to the high viscosity.

  Therefore, in order to maintain and recover the performance of the recording head that discharges the recording liquid, the image forming apparatus has a maintenance recovery function that covers the recording head with a head suction cap and sucks the recording liquid from the recording head with the head suction cap. is doing. The recording liquid sucked by the maintenance / recovery function is discharged into a waste liquid storage container having an absorbing member. By the way, since the ink of the recording liquid that has been ejected to the head suction cap has a higher viscosity than the above-described viscosity, absorption into the absorbing member is suppressed. For this reason, since the ink tends to remain on the upper surface of the absorbing member, there is a problem that the ink is deposited on the absorbing member and the ink overflows from the waste liquid container.

In order to solve such a problem, several proposals have been made conventionally. In the waste liquid storage container of Patent Document 1 as one of them, the ink storage location is distinguished and stored according to the state of the waste liquid. Yes.
JP2006-137079

  However, in Patent Document 1, the waste liquid storage container becomes large because a plurality of input ports for supplying the waste liquid into the waste liquid storage container are necessary. In addition, a partition wall member for partitioning the space is required, which increases the number of parts and increases the cost.

  The present invention is for solving these problems, and a waste liquid storage container, a maintenance and recovery device, and an image forming apparatus that can reduce the number of parts by reducing the number of parts by using a common waste liquid inlet. The purpose is to provide.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the waste liquid falls on the absorbing member having a density corresponding to the state of the waste liquid discharged from one waste liquid input port in the waste liquid storage container of the present invention that stores the waste liquid of the image forming apparatus. It is characterized in that it is installed for each area to be used, or an absorbing member is not installed according to the state of waste liquid. Therefore, since one waste liquid inlet is shared and can be distinguished in one space according to the state of the discharged waste liquid, a waste liquid storage container that can be reduced in size and cost can be provided.

  The liquid waste liquid is discharged to an area where an absorbing member having a density corresponding to the state of the waste liquid is installed. Further, the waste liquid other than liquid is discharged to an area where the absorbing member is not installed. Therefore, the liquid waste liquid is absorbed by the absorbing member, and the non-liquid waste liquid is deposited on the bottom surface of the container, so that the waste liquid does not overflow from the waste liquid storage container.

  Furthermore, it is preferable that the density of the upstream absorbent member through which the liquid waste liquid in the absorbent member flows is higher than the density of the downstream absorbent member.

  In addition, the container into which the absorbent member is inserted has a shape in which the upstream cross-sectional area through which the liquid waste liquid flows inside the absorbent member is smaller than the downstream cross-sectional area, so that a general-purpose absorbent member of uniform density can be obtained. It can be used to form a smooth flow of liquid waste liquid, so that the cost can be reduced.

  Further, the absorbent member has a shape in which the cross-sectional area with respect to the container into which the upstream absorbent member into which the liquid waste liquid flows is larger than the cross-sectional area with respect to the container into which the downstream absorbent member is inserted. Therefore, since a smooth flow of liquid waste liquid can be formed using a general-purpose absorbing member having a uniform density, the cost can be reduced.

  According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus for forming an image on a recording medium by ejecting recording liquid droplets, and maintaining and recovering the function of the recording head by sucking the recording liquid that is poorly ejected. The apparatus includes the above-described waste liquid storage container, and is characterized in that the sucked recording liquid with poor ejection and the recording liquid due to idle ejection are discharged to the waste liquid storage container. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the size and cost of the entire maintenance / recovery device.

  According to another aspect of the present invention, the image forming apparatus is characterized by having a maintenance / recovery device including the waste liquid container. Therefore, the entire image forming apparatus can be reduced in size and cost.

  The waste liquid storage container of the present invention is provided with an absorption member having a density corresponding to the state of the waste liquid discharged from one waste liquid inlet, for each region where the waste liquid falls, or according to the state of the waste liquid. do not do. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the size and cost by sharing the waste liquid inlet and reducing the number of parts.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a waste liquid storage container according to the first embodiment of the present invention. (A) of the figure is a perspective view seen from the upper surface, and (b) of the figure is a perspective view seen from the front. The waste liquid storage container 10 of the present embodiment shown in the figure includes a container main body 11, an absorbing member 12 that absorbs liquid waste liquid stored in the container main body 11, and a lid member 13 that covers the top of the container main body 11. It has. In the waste liquid storage container 10 of the present embodiment, the liquid waste liquid 14 and the liquid waste liquid 15 other than the liquid discharged from the maintenance / recovery mechanism (not shown) are passed through the waste liquid inlet 16 provided in the lid member 13. It is thrown inside. In the present embodiment, the liquid waste liquid 14 is a waste liquid having a viscosity of 8 mPa · s to 20 mPa · s, and the non-liquid waste liquid 15 is a liquid with a solid content exceeding 20 mPa · s. Waste liquid other than the shape. For example, the waste liquid generated by the head suction is a liquid waste liquid, but most of the waste liquid discarded from the empty discharge receptacle is thickened to become a liquid other than the liquid.

  According to the waste liquid container according to the present embodiment having such a configuration, by forming a notch portion in the absorbing member 12 at a site where the liquid waste liquid 14 is charged through the waste liquid charging port 16. An absorbing member 17 that is in contact with the absorbing member 12 and is lower than the absorbing member 12 is installed on the bottom surface of the container body 11, and a space is formed on the upper surface of the absorbing member 17. The density of the absorbing member 17 is the same as that of the absorbing member 12. Moreover, there is no absorbing member in a part of this space, and a space in which the bottom surface of the container body 11 is exposed is formed. In this configuration, the liquid waste liquid 14 from the head suction cap is discharged from the waste liquid inlet 16 to the absorbing member 17. Then, the liquid waste liquid 14 is absorbed by the absorbing member 17 and further absorbed throughout the absorbing member 12 in an ideal flow as indicated by arrows in the drawing. Further, the waste liquid 15 other than the liquid form resulting from the idle ejection is discharged into a space without the absorbing member and deposited on the bottom surface of the container body 11, thereby securing a space where the ink ejected in the head suction cap can be accumulated. It is possible to prevent ink from leaking from the waste liquid container 10.

  Here, regarding the configuration of the full tank detection means of the waste liquid storage container, the full tank detection of the absorbing member that absorbs the liquid waste liquid 14 is detected at a position away from the space using a full tank sensor composed of a reflective photosensor. On the other hand, the full tank detection of the waste liquid 15 other than the liquid that accumulates in the space is performed in a software manner, and the configuration of the full tank detection means is varied.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of a waste liquid storage container according to the second embodiment of the present invention. (A) of the figure is a perspective view seen from the upper surface, and (b) of the figure is a perspective view seen from the front. In the figure, the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 1 denote the same components. In the waste liquid container 20 of the present embodiment shown in the figure, instead of the absorbing member 17 of FIG. 1, a material that is more easily diffused in the horizontal direction than the absorbing member 12 is used. For example, a porous resin material is formed into a sheet-like shape. The high-density absorbing member 21 is provided. According to the waste liquid storage container 20 of the present embodiment having such a configuration, the liquid waste liquid 14 is further absorbed, and the waste liquid 14 leaks out to the space side where the empty discharge waste liquid 15 is stored. The waste liquid 14 is absorbed on the side of the absorbing member 12 that is in contact with the absorbing member 21 to prevent the absorption of the waste liquid in the absorbing member 12. Note that it is preferable to use an absorbing member in which the density of the absorbing member is changed in accordance with the liquid state of the waste liquid, or to provide a plurality of types of absorbing members for the waste liquids in different liquid states.

  Next, the structure of the absorbing member in the waste liquid storage container of the present invention will be described. FIG. 3 is a view showing an example of the structure of the absorbing member and the density in the waste liquid container according to the present invention. An inclined portion is provided on the inner side surface of the container body 32 into which the absorbing member 31 is inserted or the rib side surface of the container body as shown in (a) of the figure, and inside the container body 32 as shown in (b) of the figure. The absorbing member 31 is inserted into Then, as shown in (c) of the figure, the absorbing member 13 is gradually densified toward the bottom surface of the container main body 32. Therefore, the density of the absorbing member can be increased from the upper surface to the lower surface of the absorbing member 31, and the flow of waste liquid inside the absorbing member can be made smooth.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing another example of the structure of the absorbing member and the density in the waste liquid storage container of the present invention. As shown to (a) of the figure, by making the absorption member 31 into the trapezoid shape with the length of the lower surface of an absorption member, as shown to (b) and (c) of the figure, the absorption member 31 is shown. The density of the absorbing member 31 can be increased from the upper surface toward the lower surface, and the flow of waste liquid inside the absorbing member can be made smooth.

  FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a configuration of an image forming unit of an image forming apparatus equipped with a maintenance / recovery device having a waste liquid container of the present invention. The image forming unit of the ink jet recording apparatus, which is the image forming apparatus shown in the figure, holds the carriage 42 movably in the main scanning direction with the guide rod 41 and a guide stay (not shown), and the main scanning motor 43 drives the drive pulley 44A. And the driven pulley 44 </ b> B via the spanning timing belt 45 to move and scan in the main scanning direction.

  An ink jet recording head 46 that discharges the droplets of each color is mounted on the carriage 42, the carriage 42 is moved in the main scanning direction, and the paper S is transported in the paper transport direction (sub scanning direction). A shuttle type is used in which droplets are ejected from the recording head 46 to form an image. A line-type head can also be used.

  Here, the inkjet recording head 46 ejects two droplet ejection heads 46k1 and 46k2 that eject black (Bk) ink, and cyan (C) ink, magenta (M) ink, and yellow (Y) ink, respectively. Each of the ink droplets is composed of a total of five droplet ejection heads, one droplet ejection head 46c, 46m, and 46y, and each color ink is supplied from each sub tank (not shown) mounted on the carriage 42.

  As the ink jet recording head 46, a piezoelectric plate is used as pressure generating means (actuator means) for pressurizing ink in the ink flow path (pressure generating chamber), and a diaphragm that forms the wall surface of the ink flow path is deformed. Ink droplets are ejected at a pressure generated by generating bubbles by heating the ink in the ink channel using a so-called piezo type or a heating resistor that changes the volume in the ink channel. A so-called thermal type, a diaphragm that forms the wall surface of the ink flow path and an electrode are arranged to face each other, and the diaphragm is deformed by an electrostatic force generated between the vibration plate and the electrode. An electrostatic type that discharges ink droplets by changing the internal volume can be used.

  In addition, a maintenance / recovery device 47 having the waste liquid storage container of the present invention for maintaining and recovering the ink ejection stability of the nozzles of the ink jet recording head 46 is provided in the non-printing area on one side of the carriage 42 in the scanning direction. It is arranged. The maintenance / recovery device 47 is equipped with a suction pump (not shown), which will be described later, and further includes five moisturizing caps 48k2, 48k1, for capping the nozzle surfaces of the five recording heads 46. Moisturizing cap 48 including 48c, 48m, and 48y, one suction cap 49, wiper blade 50 for wiping the nozzle surface of recording head 46, and ejection of droplets that do not contribute to recording (empty ejection) An empty discharge receiving member 51 and the like are provided.

  Further, the non-printing area on the other side in the scanning direction of the carriage 42 is provided with an empty discharge receiving member 52 for discharging droplets (empty discharge) that do not contribute to recording from the five recording heads 46. The empty discharge receiving member 52 is formed with an opening 53 including five openings 53k2, 53k1, 53c, 53m, and 53y corresponding to the recording head 46.

  FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the maintenance and recovery apparatus having the waste liquid container of the present invention. In the figure, the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 5 denote the same components. The maintenance / recovery device having the waste liquid storage container of the present invention shown in the figure includes five moisturizing caps 48 for capping the nozzle surface of each head of the ink jet recording head 46 of FIG. 5 and one suction cap. 49, a wiper blade 50, an empty discharge receiving member 51 for discharging liquid droplets that do not contribute to recording (empty discharge), and a region covering all nozzles of the ink jet recording head are sealed and pressurized from all nozzles. A suction pump 54 for sucking ink in the liquid chamber and a waste liquid container 55 of the present invention for storing the sucked waste liquid image forming agent are provided. Accordingly, the entire maintenance / recovery apparatus can be reduced in size and cost, and further, the entire image forming apparatus having the maintenance / recovery apparatus can be reduced in size and cost.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, It cannot be overemphasized that various deformation | transformation and substitution are possible if it is description in a claim.

It is a figure which shows the structure of the waste liquid storage container which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the waste liquid storage container which concerns on the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the structure of the absorption member in the waste liquid storage container of this invention, and the mode of a density. It is a figure which shows another example of the structure of the absorption member in the waste liquid storage container of this invention, and the mode of a density. It is a top view which shows the structure of the image formation part of the image forming apparatus carrying the maintenance recovery apparatus which has a waste liquid storage container of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of the maintenance recovery apparatus which has a waste liquid storage container of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

10, 20, 55; waste liquid container, 11, 32; container body,
12, 17, 21, 31; absorbing member, 13; lid member,
14, 15; waste liquid, 16; waste liquid inlet.

Claims (8)

In the waste liquid storage container for storing the waste liquid of the image forming apparatus,
The absorption member having a density corresponding to the state of the waste liquid discharged from one waste liquid inlet is installed for each area where the corresponding waste liquid falls, or the absorption member is not installed depending on the state of the waste liquid. Waste liquid container.   2. The waste liquid container according to claim 1, wherein the liquid waste liquid is discharged to a region where the absorbing member having a density corresponding to the state of the waste liquid is installed.   The waste liquid container according to claim 1, wherein the waste liquid other than liquid is discharged to an area where the absorbing member is not installed.   3. The waste liquid container according to claim 1, wherein a density of the upstream absorbent member through which liquid waste liquid flows inside the absorbent member is higher than a density of the downstream absorbent member. 4.   5. The waste liquid storage container according to claim 4, wherein the container into which the absorbing member is inserted has a shape in which an upstream sectional area through which liquid waste liquid flows inside the absorbing member is smaller than a downstream sectional area. .   The absorbent member has a shape in which a cross-sectional area with respect to a container into which the absorbent member on the upstream side where the liquid waste liquid flows is larger than a cross-sectional area with respect to the container into which the absorbent member on the downstream side is inserted. The waste liquid container according to claim 4. An image forming apparatus that discharges recording liquid droplets to form an image on a recording medium, and that maintains and recovers the function of the recording head by sucking a recording liquid that is poorly discharged,
A maintenance / recovery device comprising the waste liquid storage container according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the sucked recording liquid of defective ejection and the recording liquid by idle ejection are discharged to the waste liquid storage container. In an image forming apparatus that forms an image on a recording medium by discharging droplets of a recording liquid,
An image forming apparatus comprising the maintenance / recovery device according to claim 7.

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