JP2009233858A - Recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a recorder which can fully dry a recording medium passed through recording processing using a liquid by a recording means, by the heat of a heating means, and also which can control adverse effects by the heat of the heating means to the recording means. <P>SOLUTION: The printer 11 includes a platen 21 which supports a cut paper 12 conveyed from an upstream side to a downstream side, a recording head unit 14 which is arranged to be opposite to the platen 21 and carries out printing by jetting an ink to the cut paper 12, one heater 29 which heats the platen 21, and an insulating material 30 which forms a temperature distribution to a support surface 21a by partially suppressing the heat given to the support surface 21a of the platen 21 from the heater 29. The temperature of a counter region 21b opposed to the recording head unit 14 on the support surface 21a of the platen 21 is made lower than temperatures of adjacent regions 21c adjacent to the adjacent region 21b on the upstream side and the downstream side in a conveyance direction of the cut paper 12. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a recording apparatus such as an ink jet printer.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an ink jet printer (hereinafter simply referred to as “printer”) is known as a type of recording apparatus that performs recording processing on a recording medium (for example, Patent Document 1). In the printer disclosed in Patent Document 1, a recording head (recording medium) mounted on a carriage that reciprocates in a direction orthogonal to the recording sheet conveyance direction on a recording sheet (recording medium) conveyed on a fixed platen (support member). Printing is performed by discharging ink from a plurality of nozzles. In this printer, the fixed platen that supports the recording sheet is heated by a heater (heating means), so that the ink ejected from the recording head by the heat and adhered to the recording sheet is forcibly dried and fixed. I am doing so.

  Further, in this printer, the ink on the recording sheet after printing is evaporated by the heat of the fixed platen heated by the heater so that the water does not adhere to the recording head. The platen part, which is a part, is not actively heated by a heater. That is, a heater is attached to a heater attachment portion that is a portion of the fixed platen that does not face the recording head.

In addition, the platen portion of the fixed platen has the heat to suppress conduction of heat from the heater attached to the heater attachment portion located downstream of the platen portion in the recording sheet conveyance direction to the platen portion. An attachment member for dissipating the water is provided.
JP-A-4-44851

  By the way, in the printer of Patent Document 1, since the platen portion of the fixed platen is not heated, only the heater mounting portion located on the downstream side of the platen portion is heated, so that the ink attached on the recording sheet is dried by printing. There is a problem that a sufficient amount of heat may not be obtained during fixing.

  The present invention has been made paying attention to such problems existing in the prior art, and its purpose is to sufficiently apply a recording medium subjected to a recording process using a liquid by the recording means to the heat of the heating means. Another object of the present invention is to provide a recording apparatus that can be dried and that can suppress adverse effects on the recording means due to the heat of the heating means.

  In order to achieve the above object, a recording apparatus of the present invention is disposed in a fixed state so as to face a support member that supports a recording medium conveyed from an upstream side to a downstream side, and Recording means for performing recording processing on the recording medium supported by the support member using a liquid, one heating means for heating the support member, and supporting the recording medium on the support member from the heating means Temperature distribution forming means for partially suppressing the heat applied to the side surface and forming a temperature distribution on the side of the support member that supports the recording medium, the recording medium of the support member being On the supporting surface, the temperature of the facing area facing the recording unit is lower than the temperature of the adjacent area adjacent to the facing area on the upstream side and the downstream side in the transport direction of the recording medium.

  According to this configuration, since the temperature of the facing area is lower than the temperature of the adjacent area, the amount of heat transferred from the heating means to the recording means via the facing area is reduced. On the other hand, the temperature of the adjacent area is higher than the temperature of the opposing area, and the adjacent area is located both upstream and downstream of the opposing area in the recording medium conveyance direction. The amount of heat transferred to the recording medium via the recording medium becomes enormous. Accordingly, it is possible to sufficiently dry the recording medium subjected to the recording process using the liquid by the recording unit by the heat of the heating unit, and to suppress the adverse effect on the recording unit due to the heat of the heating unit. Become.

In the recording apparatus of the present invention, the temperature distribution forming means is constituted by a heat insulating material that reduces heat conducted from the heating means to the counter area.
According to this configuration, by providing the heat insulating material, the temperature rise of the opposed area due to the heat of the heating means is reliably suppressed, so that the adverse effect on the recording means due to the heat of the heating means via the opposed area is effectively prevented. It becomes possible to suppress.

  In the recording apparatus according to the aspect of the invention, the heating unit includes a heater having a heating line, and the heating line has a higher density in a portion corresponding to the adjacent region than in a portion corresponding to the facing region. The temperature distribution forming means is constituted by the heating lines.

  According to this configuration, the heating line of the heater that constitutes the heating unit is patterned so that the density in the portion corresponding to the adjacent region is higher than that in the portion corresponding to the counter region. Can be easily and reliably lowered below the temperature of the adjacent region.

In the recording apparatus of the present invention, the temperature distribution forming unit is constituted by a heat absorbing unit that absorbs heat conducted from the heating unit to the counter area.
According to this configuration, since the temperature of the facing area is further lower than the temperature of the adjacent area, the amount of heat transferred from the heating means to the recording means via the facing area is greatly reduced. Accordingly, it is possible to effectively suppress the adverse effect on the recording means due to the heat of the heating means via the facing region.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment in which the recording apparatus of the present invention is embodied in an ink jet printer will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, “front-rear direction”, “left-right direction”, and “up-down direction” refer to the front-rear direction, the left-right direction, and the up-down direction indicated by arrows in FIGS. 1 and 2, respectively.

  As shown in FIG. 1, an ink jet printer 11 as a recording apparatus includes a transport unit 13 for transporting a cut sheet 12 as a recording medium in a main body frame (not shown), and the transport unit 13 above the transport unit 13. And a recording head unit 14 as recording means arranged in a fixed state so as to face the unit 13.

  The recording head unit 14 is composed of four recording heads 15 to 18 having a rectangular parallelepiped shape whose width in the front-rear direction is longer than the width of the cut paper 12. The recording heads 15 to 18 are arranged so as to be parallel to each other in the left-right direction. The recording head 15, the recording head 16, the recording head 17, and the recording head 18 are sequentially arranged from the left side. In the left-right direction, the distance between the recording heads 15 and 16 and the distance between the recording heads 17 and 18 are the same, and the distance between the recording heads 16 and 17 is the distance between the recording heads 15 and 16. In addition, the distance between the recording heads 17 and 18 is wider.

  As shown in FIG. 2, each of the recording heads 15 to 18 is configured by integrally forming a plurality of (9 in the present embodiment) unit recording heads 19 that form a cubic shape arranged in the front-rear direction. Both the recording heads 16 and 18 are arranged in a state shifted from the both recording heads 15 and 17 to the front side by a width in the front-rear direction corresponding to half of the unit recording heads 19. That is, the unit recording head 19 of both recording heads 15 and 16 and the unit recording head 19 of both recording heads 17 and 18 do not form a gap in the left-right direction, which is the direction in which the cut paper 12 is conveyed by the conveying unit 13. Are arranged in a staggered manner.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, each unit recording head 19 of each recording head 15 to 18 has a plurality of nozzles 20 for ejecting ink as liquid onto the cut sheet 12 conveyed by the conveyance unit 13. Each is provided so as to form a row in the front-rear direction (form a nozzle row). The recording heads 15 to 18 are supplied with different types (colors) of ink from ink cartridges (not shown), and the inks are conveyed from the nozzles 20 of the recording heads 15 to 18. Printing as a recording process is performed by ejecting each of the cut sheets 12 conveyed by the unit 13.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the transport unit 13 includes a rectangular platen 21 that is long in the left-right direction as a support member, and the length of the platen 21 in the left-right direction is recorded from the left end of the recording head 15. It is longer than the distance to the right end of the head 18. A driving roller 22 extending in the front-rear direction is disposed on the right side of the platen 21 so as to be rotationally driven by a driving motor 23, and a driven roller 24 extending in the front-rear direction is rotatably disposed on the left side of the platen 21. Further, a tension roller 25 extending in the front-rear direction is rotatably disposed below the platen 21.

  An endless conveying belt 26 is wound around the driving roller 22, the driven roller 24, and the tension roller 25 so as to surround the platen 21. In this case, the tension roller 25 is urged downward by a spring member (not shown), and by applying tension to the conveyor belt 26, loosening of the conveyor belt 26 is suppressed.

  Then, when the driving roller 22 is rotationally driven in the clockwise direction when viewed from the front side, the conveying belt 26 is rotated in the clockwise direction when the outside of the driving roller 22, the tension roller 25, and the driven roller 24 is viewed from the front side. It has become. In this case, the inner surface of the conveyor belt 26 slides on the upper surface of the platen 21 from the left side to the right side, and the cut sheet 12 on the conveyor belt 26 moves from the left side which is the upstream side to the right side which is the downstream side. It is designed to be transported.

  Further, the cut sheet 12 at a position facing the upper surface of the platen 21 is sucked to the platen 21 side through the conveying belt 26 by a suction unit (not shown). In other words, the cut sheet 12 at a position facing the upper surface of the platen 21 is supported by the platen 21 via the transport belt 26. Therefore, the upper surface of the platen 21 is a support surface 21 a that is a surface on the side that supports the cut paper 12.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, on the support surface 21a of the platen 21, the areas facing the recording heads 15 and 16 and the recording heads 17 and 18 are respectively opposed areas 21b. An adjacent area in the left-right direction, which is the 12 conveyance direction, is an adjacent area 21c. That is, the adjacent area 21c is adjacent to the upstream side (left side) and the downstream side (right side) of the facing area 21b in the conveyance direction of the cut paper 12, and the recording heads 15 and 16 and the recording heads 17 and 18 are different from each other. Not facing each other. That is, the support surface 21a of the platen 21 is an adjacent region 21c, an opposing region 21b, an adjacent region 21c, an opposing region 21b, and an adjacent region 21c in order from the left side.

  A pair of upper and lower paper feed rollers 27 for feeding a plurality of unprinted cut sheets 12 one by one onto the transport belt 26 one by one is provided on the upper left side of the driven roller 24. On the other hand, a pair of upper and lower discharge rollers 28 for discharging the cut sheets 12 after printing from the conveying belt 26 one by one are provided on the upper right side of the drive roller 22.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a rectangular sheet-like heater 29 as a heating unit is attached to the lower surface of the platen 21 so as to cover almost the entire lower surface. The heater 29 is heated substantially uniformly by being energized by a power source (not shown). In the portions corresponding to the opposing regions 21b between the lower surface of the platen 21 and the heater 29, heat insulating materials 30 as temperature distribution forming means are respectively disposed. Accordingly, the amount of heat conducted (applied) from the heater 29 to the facing area 21b is reduced by the heat insulating material 30, and therefore the temperature of the facing area 21b on the support surface 21a of the platen 21 is lower than that of the adjacent area 21c. A temperature distribution of the state is formed.

Next, the operation of the ink jet printer 11 will be described.
When the cut sheet 12 is fed from the upstream side (left side) onto the transport belt 26 by the paper feed roller 27, the cut sheet 12 is transported toward the downstream side (right side) by the transport belt 26. When the cut sheet 12 is conveyed onto the support surface 21a of the platen 21 heated by the heater 29, the cut sheet 12 is first heated over the conveying belt 26 by the heat of the left adjacent area 21c.

  Subsequently, the cut sheet 12 is printed by ejecting ink from the nozzles 20 of both the recording heads 15 and 16 while being transported on the facing region 21 b facing both the recording heads 15 and 16 by the transport belt 26. At this time, since the cut paper 12 has already been warmed to some extent by the heat of the adjacent region 21c on the left side, the portion of the ink printed by both the recording heads 15 and 16 is easily dried. In this case, the cut sheet 12 is also warmed by the heat of the facing area 21b facing both the recording heads 15 and 16, but the effect is smaller than the heat of the adjacent area 21c. Subsequently, the cut sheet 12 is heated over the conveying belt 26 by the heat of the adjacent region 21c in the center in the left-right direction, and the ink in the portion printed by both the recording heads 15 and 16 is sufficiently dried.

  Subsequently, the cut sheet 12 is printed again by ejecting ink from the nozzles 20 of both the recording heads 17 and 18 while being transported on the facing region 21b facing both the recording heads 17 and 18 by the transport belt 26. . At this time, since the cut sheet 12 is further warmed by the heat of the adjacent region 21c in the central portion in the left-right direction, the ink in the portion printed by the recording heads 15 and 16 is easily dried. In this case, the cut sheet 12 is also warmed by the heat of the facing area 21b facing both the recording heads 17 and 18, but the effect is smaller than the heat of the adjacent area 21c.

  Subsequently, the cut sheet 12 is heated through the conveyance belt 26 by the heat of the right adjacent area 21c, and the ink printed by the recording heads 17 and 18 is sufficiently dried. Thereafter, the cut sheet 12 is discharged from the transport belt 26 by the discharge roller 28.

  In this way, the cut sheet 12 is printed by the ink jet printer 11, but the temperature of the facing area 21b facing each of the recording heads 15 to 18 is lower than the temperature of the adjacent area 21c. The adverse effect on the recording heads 15 and 16 by the heat of 21b is small. That is, it is suppressed that the ink in each nozzle 20 of each recording head 15-18 becomes easy to solidify with the heat of the opposing area | region 21b. For this reason, since ejection failure of ink from the nozzles 20 of the recording heads 15 to 18 is suppressed, the frequency of performing flushing and cleaning of the recording heads 15 to 18 is reduced.

  Further, on the support surface 21a of the platen 21, the upstream side and the downstream side of the two opposing regions 21b in the conveyance direction of the cut paper 12 are adjacent regions 21c having a higher temperature than the opposing region 21b. For this reason, even if the cut sheet 12 is hardly heated by the heat of the facing area 21b, the cut sheet 12 is sufficiently heated by the heat of the adjacent areas 21c arranged on both the upstream side and the downstream side of the facing areas 21b. Therefore, the ink of the portion printed by the recording heads 15 to 18 on the cut paper 12 is quickly and sufficiently dried. Therefore, high-speed printing of the cut paper 12 by the ink jet printer 11 is possible.

According to the embodiment described in detail above, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) Since the temperature rise of the facing region 21b due to the heat of the heater 29 is reliably suppressed by the action of the heat insulating material 30, the temperature of the facing region 21b is higher than the temperature of the adjacent region 21c on the support surface 21a of the platen 21. It is low. For this reason, the amount of heat transferred from the heater 29 to each of the recording heads 15 to 18 via the facing region 21b can be reduced. On the other hand, the temperature of the adjacent region 21c is higher than the temperature of the facing region 21b, and the adjacent region 21c is located on both the upstream side and the downstream side of the facing region 21b in the conveyance direction of the cut paper 12. The amount of heat transferred from the heater 29 to the cut sheet 12 through the adjacent region 21c can be made large. Therefore, the cut paper 12 printed by each recording head 15-18 can be sufficiently dried by the heat of the heater 29 via the adjacent area 21c, and is transferred to each recording head 15-18 via the opposing area 21b. The amount of heat transmitted can be reduced, and adverse effects due to the heat applied to the recording heads 15 to 18 (for example, the ink in each nozzle 20 tends to solidify) can be suppressed.

(2) The heat insulating material 30 can reliably prevent the temperature of the facing region 21b from being increased by the heat from the heater 29. That is, by using the heat insulating material 30, the temperature of the opposing region 21b is lower than the temperature of the adjacent region 21c on the support surface 21a of the platen 21 by one heater 29 that heats the lower surface of the platen 21 almost uniformly. A temperature distribution can be formed.
(Example of change)
In addition, you may change the said embodiment as follows.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the heat insulating material 30 is omitted, and the density of the heating wire 29a provided in the heater 29 is higher in the portion corresponding to the adjacent region 21c than in the portion corresponding to the facing region 21b. Patterning may be performed as described above. In this way, a temperature distribution in which the temperature of the facing region 21b is lower than the temperature of the adjacent region 21c can be easily and reliably formed on the support surface 21a of the platen 21 without using the heat insulating material 30. Further, since the temperature distribution forming means is constituted by the heating wire 29a of the heater 29, the number of parts can be reduced as compared with the case where the heat insulating material 30 is used.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the heat insulating material 30 is omitted, and a Peltier element 32 is provided on the platen 21 as heat absorbing means (temperature distribution forming means) for absorbing heat conducted from the heater 29 to the facing region 21b. May be. That is, a through passage 31 having a rectangular shape in cross-section extending in the front-rear direction is formed between the opposing regions 21b of the platen 21 and the heater 29. Further, the flat Peltier elements 32 may be attached respectively. In this case, when both Peltier elements 32 are energized by a power source (not shown), the upper surface side (opposing region 21b side) absorbs heat (cools) and the lower surface side (heater 29 side) generates heat. In this way, since the opposing region 21b is cooled by the Peltier element 32, the temperature rise of the opposing region 21b due to the heat of the heater 29 is effectively suppressed. That is, the temperature of the facing region 21b is further lower than the temperature of the adjacent region 21c. Accordingly, the amount of heat transferred from the heater 29 to the recording heads 15 to 18 through the facing region 21b can be greatly reduced with a simple configuration, and the adverse effect on the recording heads 15 to 18 due to the heat of the heater 29 is effectively reduced. Can be suppressed.

  In the case shown in FIG. 4, the Peltier element 32 may be omitted, and a refrigerant such as chlorofluorocarbon, ammonia, or cold water as temperature distribution forming means, or cold air may be passed through both the through passages 31. Even in this case, as in the case shown in FIG. 4, the facing region 21 b is cooled, so that the temperature rise of the facing region 21 b due to the heat of the heater 29 is effectively suppressed. Therefore, the same effect as that shown in FIG. 4 can be obtained.

  -The conveyor belt 26 may be omitted. In this case, a long roll paper is used as the recording medium instead of the cut paper 12. The roll paper is fed out from the left side of the transport unit 13, supported and printed on the platen 21, and then wound up on the right side of the transport unit 13.

The heater 29 may be embedded in the platen 21.
In the above embodiment, the recording apparatus is embodied in the ink jet printer 11, but other liquids other than ink (liquid bodies in which functional material particles are dispersed or mixed in the liquid, flow bodies such as gels) It may be embodied in a liquid ejecting apparatus that ejects (including). The “liquid” in the present specification includes, for example, an inorganic solvent, an organic solvent, a solution, a liquid resin, a liquid metal (metal melt), and the like, as well as a liquid and a fluid.

Furthermore, the technical idea which can be grasped from the above embodiment will be described below.
(B) The recording apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the heat absorbing means is configured by a Peltier element provided on the support member.

  (B) The recording apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the heat absorbing means is constituted by a refrigerant or cold air flowing through a flow path provided so as to correspond to the facing region in the support member. .

  According to the above configurations (a) and (b), the amount of heat transferred from the heating means to the recording means via the opposing area can be greatly reduced with a simple configuration, so that the recording means by the heat of the heating means via the opposing area. It is possible to effectively suppress adverse effects on

1 is a front view of an ink jet printer according to an embodiment. The top view of the conveyance unit of the printer. The top view of the conveyance unit of the printer in the example of a change. The principal part enlarged view of the printer in the example of a change.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Inkjet printer as recording apparatus, 12 ... Cut paper as recording medium, 14 ... Recording head unit as recording means, 21 ... Platen as support member, 21b ... Opposing area, 21c ... Adjacent area, 29 ... Heating Heater as means, 29a ... heating wire, 30 ... heat insulating material as temperature distribution forming means, 32 ... Peltier element as heat absorbing means constituting temperature distribution forming means.

Claims (4)

A support member for supporting a recording medium conveyed from the upstream side to the downstream side;
A recording unit disposed in a fixed state so as to face the support member, and performing a recording process using a liquid on the recording medium supported by the support member;
One heating means for heating the support member;
Temperature distribution that forms a temperature distribution on the surface of the support member that supports the recording medium by partially suppressing heat applied from the heating means to the surface of the support member that supports the recording medium. Forming means,
On the surface of the support member on the side where the recording medium is supported, the temperature of the facing area facing the recording means is the temperature of the adjacent area adjacent to the facing area on the upstream side and downstream side in the conveyance direction of the recording medium. A recording apparatus characterized by being lower than the above. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the temperature distribution forming unit includes a heat insulating material that reduces heat conducted from the heating unit to the counter area. The heating means is constituted by a heater having a heating wire,
The heating line is patterned such that the portion corresponding to the adjacent region is higher in density than the portion corresponding to the counter region,
The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the temperature distribution forming unit is configured by the heating wire. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the temperature distribution forming unit includes a heat absorbing unit that absorbs heat conducted from the heating unit to the counter area.

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