JP2009241533A - Inkjet recording device and discharge state inspecting method therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an inkjet recording device able to achieve efficient recording of a test pattern and inspection of an ink discharge state by a compact configuration of the device. <P>SOLUTION: An inspecting conveyance section 7 is disposed in an inspecting area adjacent to a conveyance section 3 which conveys a recording medium. The inspecting conveyance section 7 conveys the inspecting recording sheet 70 in the same direction as a recording medium at the same conveying speed as that for the recording medium. To inspect an discharge state, a recording head 2 is positioned in the inspecting area, and a test pattern is disposed opposite the inspecting recording sheet 70 and recorded thereon. The recorded test pattern is read by moving a reading head for scanning. Based on the read image data, the ink discharge state is determined. If the discharge state is abnormal, an discharge ink processing section is moved to an inspecting area to recover the discharge. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an ink jet recording apparatus that inspects an ink discharge state based on a test pattern recorded on a predetermined recording medium.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, ink jet recording apparatuses that perform recording by ejecting ink onto a recording medium with heat or pressure are known. In such an ink jet recording apparatus, for example, when the recording operation is not activated, air clogging, ink in the nozzle that discharges ink dries, or dust adheres to the ink discharge port, and the nozzle does not move. Ink ejection failure may occur due to clogging.

  Ink ejection failure is generally detected by recording a predetermined image (test pattern) with an inkjet head, and comparing the recorded image with the dot area, length, density, etc. of the predetermined test pattern ( Ink discharge state inspection).

  Ink ejection failure is recovered by performing a cleaning process such as a purge process that drains ink from the nozzles, a suction process that sucks ink from the nozzles, or a wiping process that removes ink that has adhered to the inkjet head. . Generally, the wiping process is performed when the ink ejection failure is not improved even by the purge process.

  In order to reduce the influence on the recording result by detecting the ejection failure nozzle for the above-described ink ejection failure, the image reading means reads the printing result by each recording head for each color and immediately after printing. Ink jet recording apparatuses that detect defective ejection nozzles from the reading results are known (see Patent Document 1).

Further, in order to detect an ejection failure state and reduce the influence on the recording result, a carriage having a width wider than the inkjet group width is mounted on the carriage for moving the inkjet head group, and the carriage is moved by moving the carriage. There is also known a printing inspection apparatus that reads an image recorded by a CCD mounted on the printer and detects an ejection failure nozzle based on the read result (see Patent Document 2).
JP 2005-96447 A JP 2006-35727 A

  Since the ink jet recording apparatus described in Patent Document 1 can be read for each color and immediately after printing, it is possible to appropriately perform a cleaning process on a nozzle in a defective discharge state.

  However, this ink jet recording apparatus needs to include a plurality of sensors immediately after each print head, and it is necessary to provide a line sensor or area sensor of the same size as the print head nozzle array on the transport line. , The sensor size becomes large and the initial cost is high. In addition, by arranging a sensor between the print heads, the interval between the print heads cannot be reduced, so that the landing accuracy of the ejection dots between the print heads is lowered. There is also a problem that the size of the carriage becomes large.

  In the print inspection apparatus described in Patent Document 2, a CCD having a wider CCD width than the inkjet group width is mounted, so that the CCD is not mounted for each color unlike the inkjet printing apparatus described in Patent Document 1. Therefore, the number of CCDs can be reduced.

  However, the print inspection apparatus described in Patent Document 2 increases the carriage weight and the carriage size by mounting the line CCD on the carriage. Therefore, a motor for moving a heavy object and a large frame are required, and the line CCD width is made larger than the inkjet group width, so that an initial cost is required.

  As described above, in the ink jet recording apparatus, it is possible to prevent the deterioration of image quality due to the ejection failure by recovering the ejection failure nozzle by the cleaning process including the purge process and the wiping process, and restarting the printing after confirming the ejection recovery state again. Preferred above. In the printing inspection apparatus described in Patent Document 2, the ejection recovery state after the cleaning process is confirmed by moving the carriage to the printing area, printing the ejection inspection pattern, and moving again to the cleaning area to read the ejection inspection pattern. Therefore, it takes time to reconfirm the ink discharge state.

  Further, in order to increase the detection accuracy of the line CCD, it is necessary to move slowly on the printed ejection pattern, and the movement of the cleaning area from the printing area for reading the ejection inspection pattern cannot be accelerated. Therefore, it takes time to move the carriage, leading to a decrease in productivity.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet recording apparatus capable of efficiently recording a test pattern and inspecting an ink discharge state with a compact apparatus configuration.

  The inkjet recording apparatus according to the present invention is set outside the recording area of the recording head unit in the inkjet recording apparatus that performs recording operation by ejecting ink from the recording head unit while transporting the recording medium in a predetermined transport direction. A head moving unit that moves the recording head unit to an inspection area; and an inspection unit that inspects an ink discharge state based on a test pattern recorded by the recording head unit on an inspection recording medium in the inspection area. It is characterized by. Furthermore, an inspection transport section is provided that moves the inspection recording medium in the same direction as the transport direction while facing the recording head section in the inspection area. Furthermore, the inspection transport unit moves the inspection recording medium at the same speed as the recording medium transport speed in the recording area. Furthermore, the inspection unit includes a reading head that reads the test pattern and a scanning mechanism that scans the reading head. Furthermore, a first moving unit that moves the inspection transport unit to the inspection region or the retreat position, a discharge ink processing unit that processes the discharge ink of the recording head unit, and the discharge ink processing unit at the retreat position or the inspection And a second moving unit that moves the region.

  An ejection state inspection method for an ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention is an ejection state inspection method for an ink jet recording apparatus that performs a recording operation by ejecting ink from a recording head unit while transporting a recording medium in a predetermined transport direction, The recording head unit is moved to an inspection area set outside the recording area of the recording head unit, and the inspection recording medium is moved in the same direction as the transport direction while facing the recording head unit in the inspection area. A test pattern is recorded on the inspection recording medium by the recording head unit, and an ink ejection state is inspected based on the test pattern recorded on the inspection recording medium.

  According to the present invention, the recording head unit is moved to the inspection area set outside the recording area, the test pattern is recorded on the inspection recording medium in the inspection area, and the inspection recording medium is inspected. Costs are reduced because an input mechanism for input to the production line, a recovery mechanism for discharging the inspection recording medium from the production line, and an alignment mechanism for the inspection recording medium on the production line are not required.

  In addition, if the test recording medium is recorded by moving the inspection recording medium in the same direction as the actual recording operation, the recording can be performed under the same conditions as the recording operation in the recording area, and the actual recording image quality is reproduced and the ink is reproduced. It becomes possible to inspect the discharge state.

  Further, by providing a reading head for reading a test pattern and its scanning mechanism as an inspection unit, the installation space for the reading head is reduced, and an accurate inspection can be performed with a compact configuration. Moreover, since the number of mounted CCDs can be reduced, the initial cost can be reduced.

  Then, by retracting the inspection transport unit and moving the ejection ink processing unit to the inspection region, it is possible to perform the ejection recovery processing of the recording head unit, and with the recording head unit installed in the inspection region, It is possible to efficiently perform a series of processes such as performing an ejection recovery process on a nozzle that has failed to be ejected after an ink ejection state test and performing an ink ejection state inspection again.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The embodiments described below are preferable specific examples for carrying out the present invention, and thus various technical limitations are made. However, the present invention is particularly limited in the following description. Unless otherwise specified, the present invention is not limited to these forms.

  FIG. 1 is a top view illustrating a schematic configuration of the ink jet recording apparatus. The ink jet recording apparatus 1 includes a recording head unit 2 that performs a recording operation, a transport unit 3 that transports a recording medium S in a predetermined transport direction (Y direction in FIG. 1), and ejected ink during the ejection recovery operation of the recording head unit 2. An ejection ink processing unit 4 to be processed and a head moving unit 5 that moves the recording head unit 2 in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction (X direction in FIG. 1) are provided.

  The inspection unit that inspects the ink discharge state based on the test pattern recorded on the inspection recording sheet by the recording head unit 2 includes the scanning unit 6 that scans and moves the reading head 60 in the X direction and the inspection recording sheet 70. An inspection transport unit 7 for transporting in the Y direction is provided.

  In this example, an ultraviolet irradiation unit 8 is provided downstream of the conveyance unit 3 in the conveyance direction in order to perform a recording operation using ultraviolet curable ink.

  In FIG. 1, the recording head unit 2 is arranged in a recording area facing the conveyance unit 3, and an inspection conveyance unit 7 is arranged in an inspection area adjacent to the recording area. The inspection transport section 7 is provided so as to be movable from the inspection area to a retracted position (a position indicated by a dotted line 7h) by a moving mechanism (not shown). Further, although the ejected ink processing unit 4 is disposed at the retracted position in FIG. 1, the ejected ink processing unit 4 is provided so as to be movable to the inspection region by a moving mechanism (not shown).

  In the recording head unit 2, head units 20 to 24 configured by arranging a plurality of ink discharge heads 200 to 240 in the X direction are attached to and supported by a rectangular carriage 25. Each head unit is configured so that different colors of ink are ejected from the ink ejection head. After the recording operation is performed on the recording medium by the head unit 20 of the first color, the recording medium is transported to the next. Recording operations of different colors are performed on the recording medium by the head units 21 of the colors, and full color recording is performed by sequentially performing the recording by the head units 22, 23 and 24.

  Each head unit is set to have an overall length substantially the same as the width of the transport unit 3 in the X direction. Therefore, each head unit can perform a recording operation over the entire width of the recording medium S, and the recording head unit 2 The recording operation is performed without moving.

  As the ink discharge head, a known on-demand type ink discharge method head may be used, but an ink discharge method other than the on-demand type may be used. In addition, a recording operation other than the above-described recording operation may be used as long as it is an inkjet recording apparatus that performs a recording operation while conveying a recording medium.

  Each ink discharge head is provided with a plurality of nozzle holes for discharging ink, and these nozzle holes may be arranged in a line in a straight line in the X direction, or a plurality of nozzle holes, for example, 32 and 64, respectively. The 128 nozzle holes may be arranged in a linear shape, a staggered shape, a staircase shape, or the like, or a combination thereof.

  In the transport unit 3, the transport belt 30 is stretched substantially horizontally between the drive roll 31 and the driven roll 32, and the transport belt 30 is transported in the Y direction by rotating the drive roll 31 by the drive motor M1. Is supposed to do. The conveyance surface of the conveyance belt 30 is disposed opposite to the upper recording head unit 2, and ink is ejected from the ink ejection head of the recording head unit 2 onto the upper surface of the recording medium S conveyed by the conveyance belt 30. Done. The width of the conveyance belt 30 is formed wider than the recording medium S, and the recording medium S is conveyed by being attracted to the conveyance surface by a suction unit (not shown). The conveyance belt 30 may be provided with a large number of suction holes on the conveyance surface to improve the suction efficiency. If the recording medium S is heavy without deformation such as warping, it may not be adsorbed.

  The ejected ink processing unit 4 is provided with ejected ink receiving units 41 a to 41 e on the carriage 40 corresponding to the head units 20 to 24. The ejection ink receiving portions 41a to 41e are formed so as to cover the entire corresponding head unit, and receive the ink ejected while being opposed to each head unit during the ejection recovery operation of the ink ejection head. ing. Then, the ink discharged to each discharge ink receiving portion is sucked, collected for each color, and regenerated.

  Further, the ejection ink processing unit 4 is provided with cleaning processing units 42a to 42e on the side of the conveyance belt 30 corresponding to each head unit. The cleaning processing units 42a to 42e are for cleaning the residual ink adhering to the ink discharge head subjected to the discharge recovery process. In the present embodiment, each cleaning processing unit includes a blade that slides on the ejection surface to wipe off residual ink, and a suction nozzle for collecting ink remaining between the recesses of the ink ejection head and the head and the head support member. I have. A suction pump is connected to the suction nozzle so that residual ink is sucked and ink adhering to the blade is also sucked and collected by the suction pump.

  The carriage 40 can be reciprocated along the X direction by a moving mechanism (not shown), and the ejection ink processing unit 4 is moved and positioned from the retracted position shown in FIG. The

  The head moving unit 5 includes a pair of guide rails 50 and a pair of screw rod members 51 arranged along the X direction on both sides of the recording head unit 2. A support member 52 that supports the carriage 25 is slidably attached to each guide rail 50. The support member 52 has a screw hole and is screwed into the screw rod member 51. When the screw rod member 51 rotates, the support member 52 moves along the X direction and is positioned at a predetermined position. Is done. As the head moving unit 5, a known moving mechanism such as a moving mechanism using a timing belt, a rack and pinion mechanism, or a moving mechanism using a linear motor is used in addition to the moving mechanism using a screw rod member. May be.

  The end of the screw rod member 51 is connected to the drive motor M2 via a drive transmission mechanism including a driven pulley and a timing belt. Therefore, when the drive motor M2 is driven to rotate, the screw rod member 51 rotates and the support member 52 moves in the X direction. The recording head unit 2 is moved by the movement of the support member 52 and positioned in the recording area facing the conveying belt 30 or the inspection area adjacent to the recording area.

  The scanning unit 6 includes a reading head 60 provided with an imaging device such as a CCD camera, a screw rod member 61 that is screwed into a screw hole formed in the reading head 60, and a drive motor M3 that rotationally drives the screw rod member 61. ing. The screw rod member 61 is rotatably supported at both ends by a support member (not shown). Then, when the screw rod member 61 is rotated by the drive motor M3, the reading head 60 scans and moves in the X direction. As the scanning unit 6, in addition to a moving mechanism using a screw rod member, for example, a known moving mechanism such as a moving mechanism using a timing belt, a rack and pinion mechanism, or a moving mechanism using a linear motor is used. Also good.

  The inspection conveyance unit 7 includes a winding roller 71 fixed to a drive shaft that is rotationally driven by a drive motor M4 and a sheet roller 72 around which a long inspection recording sheet 70 is wound. Yes. By rotating the drive motor M4, the winding roller 71 winds up the inspection recording sheet 70, and the inspection recording sheet 70 is conveyed in the Y direction from the sheet roller 72 at a predetermined conveyance speed. The width of the inspection recording sheet 70 is set to be the same as the width of the recording area so that the recording head unit 2 positioned in the inspection area can perform a recording operation under the same conveyance conditions as the recording area. It has become. Further, the carriage 73 can be moved in the Y direction by a moving mechanism (not shown), and at the time of the ejection recovery process, the inspection transport unit 7 is moved from the inspection area shown in FIG. Moved. After the ejection recovery process, the inspection transport unit 7 moves from the retracted position and is positioned again in the inspection area.

  In this example, the inspection transport unit 7 is retracted in the Y direction, but may be retracted downward so that the ejected ink processing unit 4 can move to the inspection region.

  FIG. 2 is a schematic side view of the inspection transport unit 7 when the recording head unit 2 is moved from the recording region and positioned in the inspection region. Below the recording head unit 2, an inspection transport unit 7 is disposed to face the recording head unit 2. The inspection conveyance unit 7 is set such that the length of the inspection recording sheet 70 conveyed between the winding roller 71 and the sheet roller 72 in the Y direction is longer than the length of the recording head unit 2. The inspection recording sheet 70 is conveyed and wound up to a position facing the reading head 60 disposed adjacent to the head 2.

  The inspection transport unit 7 is provided with a spacer for setting a predetermined interval between the inspection recording sheet 70 and the recording head unit 2, and is set to be the same interval as that during the recording operation of the recording medium. The

  The reading head 60 is disposed adjacent to the recording head unit 2 on the downstream side in the conveyance direction of the inspection recording sheet 70. The reading head 60 reads the test pattern recorded on the inspection recording sheet 70 by the recording head unit 2 while scanning along the X direction.

  Since the reading operation is performed by scanning and moving using a small reading head, the installation space can be reduced and the apparatus configuration of the inspection unit can be made compact.

  The test pattern image captured by the reading head 60 is subjected to a test pattern image analysis process by a known image processing circuit, and the ink ejection state of the ink ejection head is inspected. When analyzing the recorded test pattern, the captured image is subjected to image processing to calculate an RGB value for each pixel, and a threshold for binarization processing of the captured image is determined based on the calculated RGB value. . Then, the captured image is binarized based on the threshold value, and the area and size of the binarized recording pattern of each nozzle is compared with a preset reference value to determine whether there is an ejection abnormality. Is called.

  For the test pattern, if the recording area in the Y direction is made compact, the number of scans of the reading head 60 can be reduced, and consumption of the inspection recording medium can be reduced.

  FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram relating to the control of the ink jet recording apparatus. The control unit 10 controls the entire apparatus. The control unit 10 includes a recording control unit 10 a that controls the recording operation of the recording head unit 2 based on the recording data transmitted from the recording data management device 11, a conveyance control unit 10 b that performs conveyance control of the conveyance unit 3, and a head. A movement control unit 10c that controls the moving unit 5 to move the entire recording head unit 2 and an irradiation control unit 10d that controls irradiation of the ultraviolet irradiation device 8 are provided.

  Further, the control unit 10 includes a recovery control unit 10e that performs an ejection recovery process of the ink discharge head. The recovery control unit 10e controls the head moving unit 5 to move the recording head unit 2 to the inspection area. After positioning, the ejected ink processing unit 4 is moved from the retracted position to the inspection area and is disposed opposite the recording head unit 2. Then, the pressure in the sub tank provided in the recording head unit 2 is controlled to perform a discharge recovery operation, and the discharge ink processing unit 4 is controlled to perform a cleaning operation of the ink discharge head.

  In addition, the control unit 10 includes an inspection control unit 10f that performs an inspection process of the ink discharge state of the ink discharge head. The inspection control unit 10f positions the inspection transport unit 7 in the inspection region and records the inspection recording sheet. 70 is controlled, and the scanning unit 6 is controlled to scan and move the reading head 60 to read the test pattern to determine whether there is an ejection abnormality of the ink ejection head.

  FIG. 4 is a flow relating to the inspection process and the discharge recovery process of the ink discharge state of the ink discharge head. First, the supply of the recording medium is stopped (S100), and it is checked whether all the supplied recording media have been recorded (S101). In this case, as shown in FIG. 5A, the recording head unit 2 is disposed in a recording area facing the conveyance unit 3, and an inspection conveyance unit 7 is installed in advance in an inspection area adjacent to the recording area. Has been. The ejected ink processing unit 4 has moved to the retracted position.

  When the recording of all the supplied recording media is completed, the recording head unit 2 is moved and positioned in the inspection area (S102). In this case, as shown in FIG. 5B, the recording head unit 2 is disposed so as to face the inspection recording sheet of the inspection transport unit 7. The interval between the recording head unit 2 and the inspection recording sheet is set to be the same as that of the recording medium. Then, the inspection transport unit 7 is controlled to transport the inspection recording sheet at the same transport speed as the transport unit 3 (S103). Therefore, recording can be performed under the same transport conditions as the recording operation of the recording medium.

  A predetermined test pattern is recorded on the inspection recording sheet by the recording head unit 2 (S104), and the recorded test pattern is read by the reading head of the scanning unit 6 (S105). As shown in FIG. 5C, the reading head is arranged on the downstream side in the transport direction with respect to the recording head unit 2 so as to scan and move, and the recorded test pattern is immediately read by the reading head. The recorded recording sheet for inspection is taken up by a take-up roller.

  When recording a test pattern, if the recording area in the Y direction of the test pattern is made compact, the number of scans of the reading head 60 can be reduced, and consumption of the inspection recording medium can be reduced.

  Image analysis processing is performed based on the read image data of the test pattern, and the ejection state of the ink ejection head is determined (S106). In this case, the determination process is performed for each ink discharge head.

  When there is an ink ejection head determined to be abnormal in ejection (S107), the inspection transport unit 7 is moved to the retracted position (S108), and the ejected ink processing unit 4 is moved from the retracted position to be positioned in the inspection area. (S109). As shown in FIG. 5 (d), the ejected ink processing unit 4 moves below the recording head unit 2 and is disposed oppositely.

  Then, a discharge recovery process is performed in which the ink in the sub-tank communicating with the ink discharge head determined to be abnormal in discharge is pressurized to discharge ink forcibly (S110). After the ejection recovery process, the ink ejection head is cleaned while moving the ejected ink processing section to the retracted position (S111).

  After the ejected ink processing unit 4 is retracted, the inspection transport unit 7 is moved again from the retracted position and positioned in the inspection region, and is disposed opposite to the recording head unit 2 (S112). In step S103, the ink ejection state inspection process is performed again.

  If there is no ink ejection head determined to be abnormal in step S107, the recording head unit 2 is moved from the inspection area and positioned in the recording area (S113).

  By performing the ink ejection state inspection process and the ejection recovery process as described above, both processes can be efficiently performed only by moving the recording head section 2 to the inspection area, and the recording head section 2 is further stopped. It is also possible to perform both processes repeatedly. In addition, since the test pattern is recorded under the same transport conditions as in the recording operation of the recording medium, it is possible to accurately inspect the ink ejection state.

  FIG. 6 is a top view of a modification of the embodiment shown in FIG. FIG. 7 is a schematic side view relating to the ejection ink processing unit 4 and the inspection transport unit 7 ′ illustrated in FIG. 6. In this example, the ejected ink processing unit 4 and the inspection transport unit 7 ′ are configured to move along the transport direction with respect to the inspection region in which the recording head unit 2 moves, or to be installed or retracted.

  A pair of guide rails 90 and 91 are installed along the transport direction in order to move along the transport direction, and the ejected ink processing unit 4 and the inspection transport unit 7 ′ move through the carriage on the guide rail. Installed as possible. The movement on the guide rail is performed by a moving mechanism (not shown). As the moving mechanism, for example, a known moving mechanism such as a moving mechanism using a timing belt, a rack and pinion mechanism, or a moving mechanism using a linear motor may be used.

  In the inspection transport section 7 ′, an inspection recording sheet 70 ′ transported between the winding roller 71 ′ and the sheet roller 72 ′ is disposed on the upper surface of the carriage 73 ′ along the X direction. The inspection recording sheet 70 ′ is formed in a narrow and long shape, and the length of the recording surface between the winding roller 71 ′ and the sheet roller 72 ′ is set longer than the length of the recording head unit 2. ing. When the test pattern is recorded on the recording surface, the drive motor M4 'is driven and the inspection recording sheet 70' is taken up by the take-up roller 71 'to set a new recording surface.

  When a test pattern is recorded on the inspection recording sheet 70 ′ by the recording head unit 2, after the ejected ink processing unit 4 is retracted from the inspection region, the recording for inspection is performed on one end of the recording head unit 2. Sheet 70 'is set (position shown with a dotted line in Drawing 7). The interval between the inspection recording sheet 70 ′ and the recording head unit 2 is set in advance to be the same as the interval between the recording medium. Then, the test recording sheet 70 'is moved at the same conveyance speed as that of the recording medium to record the test pattern. At this time, since the width of the inspection recording sheet 70 'is narrow, the recording area in the Y direction may be formed compactly for the test pattern.

  After the test pattern is recorded on the inspection recording sheet 70 ′, the inspection recording sheet 70 ′ is positioned at a position facing the scanning unit 6 shown in FIG. 1 (position indicated by a solid line in FIG. 7), and the reading head is moved by scanning. And read the test pattern.

  In this example, the inspection transport unit can be made compact, and the moving mechanism of the ejected ink processing unit and the inspection transport unit can be partially shared, so that the structure can be simplified.

  In the example described above, the test pattern is recorded while winding the long inspection recording sheet. However, the test pattern is recorded by using a sheet body such as glass or plastic. You may make it wipe off after reading.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram relating to an ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention. It is a side view regarding the conveyance part for a test | inspection when a recording head part is positioned in a test | inspection area | region. FIG. 2 is a schematic block configuration diagram relating to control of an inkjet recording apparatus. It is a flow regarding an inspection process of an ink discharge state and an ejection recovery process. FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating an arrangement relationship in an ink discharge state inspection process and an ejection recovery process. It is a schematic block diagram regarding the modification of embodiment shown in FIG. FIG. 7 is a side view relating to the ejection ink processing unit and the inspection transport unit illustrated in FIG. 6.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Inkjet recording device 2 Recording head part
20 ~ 24 Head unit 3 Conveying section
30 Conveying belt 4 Discharged ink processing unit 5 Head moving unit 6 Scanning unit
60 Reading head 7, 7 'Inspection conveyance unit
70, 70 'inspection recording sheet 8 UV irradiation part
10 Control unit
90 guide rail
91 Guide rail

Claims (6)

  In an inkjet recording apparatus that performs a recording operation by ejecting ink from a recording head unit while transporting a recording medium in a predetermined transport direction, the recording head unit is moved to an inspection region set outside the recording region of the recording head unit Inkjet recording, comprising: a head moving unit to be inspected; and an inspection unit that inspects an ink discharge state based on a test pattern recorded by the recording head unit on an inspection recording medium in the inspection region apparatus.   The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an inspection transport unit that moves the inspection recording medium in the same direction as the transport direction while facing the recording head unit in the inspection region.   The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the inspection transport unit moves the inspection recording medium at the same speed as the transport speed of the recording medium in a recording area.   The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the inspection unit includes a reading head that reads the test pattern and a scanning mechanism that scans the reading head.   A first moving unit that moves the inspection transport unit to the inspection region or the retreat position, a discharge ink processing unit that processes the discharge ink of the recording head unit, and the discharge ink processing unit to the retreat position or the inspection region The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a second moving unit that is moved.   An ejection state inspection method for an ink jet recording apparatus that performs a recording operation by ejecting ink from a recording head unit while transporting a recording medium in a predetermined transport direction, wherein the inspection region is set outside the recording region of the recording head unit And moving the inspection recording medium in the inspection area in the same direction as the transport direction while facing the recording head portion, and testing the inspection recording medium with the recording head portion. An ejection state inspection method for an ink jet recording apparatus, comprising: recording a pattern and inspecting an ink ejection state based on a test pattern recorded on the inspection recording medium.

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