JP2010227786A - Cap washing method and ink jet device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a cap washing method capable of preventing old storage liquid from remaining in a recessed part. <P>SOLUTION: The cap washing method is the method for washing a cap 30 for storing an ink jet head 4 provided on a lower surface 4a with a nozzle 8 for discharging ink by immersing the lower surface 4a in the storage liquid R1 accumulated in the recessed part 31. The cap 30 is turned to the state of being covered from above by a lid member 11, and while supplying one or both of washing liquid and air from a part above the bottom surface 32 of the recessed part 31 to the bottom surface 32, a part between the lid member 11 and the recessed part 31 is sucked and the storage liquid R1 is sucked from the part above the bottom surface 32. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a cap cleaning method used when storing an inkjet head, and an inkjet device including a cap and a cleaning device for cleaning the cap.

For example, an inkjet apparatus has been proposed as an apparatus for efficiently producing a color filter used in a flat panel display such as a color liquid crystal display. This ink jet apparatus includes an ink jet head (hereinafter referred to as a head) in which a large number of nozzles are formed on the lower surface, and each of R, G, and B is provided on a large number of fine pixel portions formed on a glass substrate. Ink is ejected from the nozzles to form R, G, and B color pixels on the glass substrate.
In such an ink jet apparatus, when the ink is dried by the nozzles, clogging occurs, and the ink is not ejected normally, which may deteriorate the quality of the product (color filter). In particular, such ink drying tends to occur when the application operation is suspended. Therefore, when the head is not used for a predetermined period, it has been proposed to store a cap attached to the lower part of the head in order to prevent ink from drying at the nozzle (see Patent Document 1).

JP 2007-245136 A (see FIG. 3)

  In the case of Patent Document 1, the storage liquid is stored in the concave portion of the cap, and the head is stored in a state where the lower part (ink ejection surface) of the head is immersed in the storage liquid. Even when the head is stored in this manner, it is necessary to keep the ink ejection surface clean for a subsequent application operation. For this reason, it is not preferable that the storage liquid in the cap is dirty. Therefore, it is necessary to periodically replace the storage liquid in the cap.

In the configuration described in Patent Document 1, a suction pump that sucks the storage liquid in the cap is provided, and this suction pump is connected to a suction port on the bottom surface of the concave portion of the cap via a pipe. According to this configuration, most of the storage liquid in the cap can be sucked out by the suction pump, but old storage liquid that could not reach the suction port may remain on the bottom surface of the recess. In this case, even if a new storage liquid is supplied to the cap, it may be mixed with the remaining old storage liquid.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a cap cleaning method capable of preventing old storage liquid from remaining in a recess, and an inkjet device including the cap and a cleaning device for cleaning the cap. And

The cap cleaning method of the present invention is a method for cleaning a cap for storage by immersing an ink jet head having a nozzle for discharging ink on the lower surface into a storage liquid stored in a recess, and storing the lower surface. The cap is covered with a lid member from above, and one or both of cleaning liquid and air is supplied to the bottom surface from above the bottom surface of the concave portion, while the lid member and the concave portion are And the storage solution is sucked out from above the bottom surface.
According to the present invention, while supplying one or both of cleaning liquid and air from above to the bottom surface of the concave portion, the storage liquid stored in the concave portion is sucked out from above the bottom surface. Can be prevented from remaining.

Further, in the cap cleaning method, while supplying one or both of the cleaning liquid and the air to the bottom surface in a portion inside the peripheral portion of the concave portion, the gap between the lid member and the concave portion is provided. It is preferable to suck from the peripheral edge.
In this case, one or both of the cleaning liquid and the air is supplied to the bottom surface in the portion inside the peripheral portion of the concave portion, so that the storage liquid can be poured out from the inner side of the concave portion to the peripheral portion. Since the suction is performed from the peripheral edge of the recess, the storage liquid can be sucked even if there is a storage liquid flowing to the peripheral edge of the recess, or even a storage liquid that is about to overflow from the peripheral edge of the recess. .
Further, it is preferable to suck from a partially formed slot in the entire peripheral edge of the recess. In this case, the flow rate of the storage liquid sucked out from the peripheral edge of the recess is increased, and the old storage liquid is quickly sucked out to the outside. be able to.

In addition, the ink jet apparatus of the present invention includes an ink jet head having a nozzle for discharging ink on the lower surface, and a cap having a recess for storing a storage liquid for immersing the lower surface when the ink jet head is stored. A cleaning device that is positioned on the cap and that cleans the recess, if necessary. The cleaning device covers a lid member that covers the cap from above, and a bottom surface of the recess that is covered by the lid member. A cleaning liquid supply unit that supplies cleaning liquid from above the bottom surface, an air supply unit for supplying air between the lid member and the recess, and a suction between the lid member and the recess And a suction part for sucking out the storage liquid in the recess from above the bottom surface.
According to the present invention, while the cleaning liquid supply unit supplies the cleaning liquid to the bottom surface of the concave portion from above the bottom surface, the suction portion sucks between the lid member and the concave portion and is stored in the concave portion. The suction liquid sucks between the lid member and the recess while the stored liquid is sucked out from above the bottom surface, and the air supply unit supplies air between the lid member and the recess. Since the storage liquid stored in the recess is sucked from above the bottom surface, it is possible to prevent the old storage liquid from remaining in the recess.

  According to the present invention, since it is possible to prevent the old storage liquid from remaining in the recess, it is possible to prevent the new storage liquid in the recess from being contaminated by the remaining old storage liquid. The cap can be stored in an appropriate state.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is the schematic which shows one Embodiment of an inkjet apparatus, (a) is a whole perspective view, (b) is the one part top view, (c) is sectional drawing which looked at the part from the side It is. It is a figure of a cap and a washing | cleaning unit, (a) is sectional drawing seen from the side, (b) is sectional drawing in the bb cross section. It is a flowchart of the washing | cleaning method. It is a time chart explaining operation | movement of a washing | cleaning apparatus. It is a figure explaining the other example of the washing | cleaning unit.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1A is a perspective view showing an outline of the entire inkjet apparatus. The ink jet apparatus includes a base frame 2 placed on a floor surface, a stage 3 provided on the base frame 2 on which a substrate W is placed, a coating gantry 5 and a camera gantry 6.
The stage 3 can adsorb and hold the substrate W on its upper surface by a suction pump (not shown), and is rotated around the Z axis and positioned in the Y axis direction to position the substrate W. Driven. The Z-axis direction is a vertical direction, the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction are directions on a horizontal plane, and the X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction, and the Z-axis direction are orthogonal to each other.

The coating gantry 5 has a head mounting portion (head mounting frame) 5a mounted thereon. As shown in the partial plan view of FIG. 1B, the head mounting portion 5a includes a plurality of ink jet heads 4 (hereinafter referred to as “heads”). , Referred to as head 4). As shown in the sectional view seen from the side of FIG. 1C, each head 4 has a plurality of nozzles 8 on its lower surface 4a. Ink is ejected from the nozzle 8 onto the substrate W on the stage 3. That is, the lower surface 4a is an ink ejection surface. In FIG. 1A, the application gantry 5 is driven in the X-axis direction in order to eject ink from the nozzles 8 and apply the ink to the substrate W on the stage 3.
The camera gantry 6 is equipped with a camera 9a for adjusting the position of the substrate W and a camera 9b for imaging the ink ejected by the head 4, and the camera gantry 6 performs the position adjustment and imaging of the ink. Therefore, it is possible to move in the X-axis direction. The cameras 9a and 9b can move in the Y-axis direction on the camera gantry 6, respectively.

  When performing the coating operation, ink is ejected from the head 4, but when the coating operation is suspended, that is, when the head 4 is not used for a predetermined period of time, drying of the ink at the nozzle 8 (drying of the ejection surface) is prevented. Therefore, the ink jet apparatus includes a cap 30 for storing the head 4 on the base frame 2. In FIG. 1 (c), the cap 30 has a dish shape that opens upward, and has a recess (head insertion portion) 31. The storage liquid R1 is stored in the recess 31. When the head 4 is stored, the lower part of the head including the lower surface 4a of the head 4 is immersed in the storage liquid R1. The storage liquid R1 is a liquid for preventing the ink from drying on the ejection surface of the head 4, and for example, a liquid mainly containing the main solvent of the ink discharged from the head 4 or other than the main solvent. It may be included.

  A bottom surface 32 (see FIG. 2) of the recess 31 of the cap 30 is a flat surface. Further, as shown in FIG. 1B, a cap 30 is provided for each head 4, and the plurality of caps 30 are provided on the base member 33 in the same arrangement as that of the head 4. The base member 33 is driven in the Z-axis direction by a drive mechanism (not shown). When the head 4 is stored, the base member 33 rises from the standby position, and the cap 30 can be put on the head 4 from below. .

Further, the ink jet apparatus includes a cleaning device 10 that cleans the recess 31 of the cap 30. The cleaning apparatus 10 shown in FIG. 1B is configured to simultaneously clean a plurality (three) of caps 30 as a set. That is, the cleaning device 10 includes the same number (three) of cleaning units 16 that individually clean a set (three) of caps 30, a device frame 15 on which these cleaning units 16 are mounted, and the device frame. A rotation drive mechanism (not shown) that rotates 15 around the Z-axis and a linear drive mechanism (not shown) that moves the device frame 15 in the Y-axis direction are provided. When the cap 30 needs to be cleaned, the apparatus frame 15 in the standby position (the state shown in FIG. 1B) is rotated onto the base member 33, and cleaning is performed with the cleaning unit 16 facing the cap 30. Can do. Then, when the device frame 15 moves by a predetermined pitch in the Y-axis direction, the cleaning device 10 can clean a large number of caps 30 on the base member 33 one by one (three).
In addition, it is not necessary to wash | clean one set (three) simultaneously, and you may wash | clean one by one. Furthermore, the number of the cleaning units 16 can be increased or decreased, and three or more cleaning units 16 can be cleaned at the same time.

  The three cleaning units 16 have the same configuration. 2A and 2B are views of one cap 30 and one cleaning unit 16 that cleans the cap 30, wherein FIG. 2A is a cross-sectional view seen from the side, and FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line bb. is there. The cleaning unit 16 is stored in the lid member 11 that covers the cap 30 from above, a cleaning liquid supply unit 12 that supplies a cleaning liquid to the cap 30, an air supply unit 13 that supplies air to the cap 30, and a recess 31 of the cap 30. And a suction part 14 for sucking out the stored storage liquid R1.

The lid member 11 has an outer lid 17 and an inner lid 18, and a planar first flow path 21 is formed between the inner surface 17 a of the upper wall portion of the outer lid 17 and the upper surface 18 a of the inner lid 18. ing. The outer lid 17 has a side wall 20 that contacts the upper surface of the peripheral wall 34 of the cap 30. When the lid member 11 (side wall 20) is placed on the cap 30, a closed space is obtained between the outer lid 17 and the cap 30. Further, when the outer lid 17 (the lid member 11) is placed on the cap 30, the inner lid 18 is placed on the outer lid 17 so that a gap d is formed between the lower surface 18c of the inner lid 18 and the bottom surface 32 of the recess 31. Is attached. The gap d becomes a flow path through which the storage liquid R1, the cleaning liquid, and air flow.
As shown in FIG. 2B, a second flow path 22 is formed between the inner surface 20 a of the side wall 20 of the outer lid 17 and the side surface 18 b of the inner lid 18. The second flow path 22 of this embodiment is composed of slots that are partially formed between the four corners of the inner surface 20 a of the entire circumference of the side wall 20 and the four corners of the side surface 18 b of the entire circumference of the inner lid 18. That is, the second flow path (slot) 22 is arranged at the four corners of the recess 31.

In FIG. 2A, the second flow path 22 is connected to the first flow path 21, and further, the first flow path 21 is connected to the suction nozzle 23 included in the suction portion 14. For this reason, the storage liquid R1 existing in the recess 31 is passed through the second flow path 22 and the first flow path 21 from the suction nozzle 23 to the outside of the cleaning unit 16 by the suction pump 14a included in the suction section 14. Sucked out.
The suction part 14 has a liquid reservoir part (not shown) in addition to the suction nozzle 23 and the suction pump 14a. When the suction pump 14a is operated, a space between the lid member 11 and the recess 31, that is, between the inner lid 18 and the recess 31 and in which the storage liquid R1 is stored is sucked from above to store the storage liquid in the recess 31. R1 can be sucked out from the flow paths 22, 21 and the suction nozzle 23 above the bottom surface 32, and the sucked liquid can be sent to the liquid reservoir.

  The cleaning liquid supply unit 12 includes a tank (not shown) for storing the cleaning liquid, a liquid feeding means 12a for sending out the cleaning liquid in the tank, and a cleaning liquid sent through the lid member 11 through the lid member 11 and sent out by the liquid feeding means 12a. And a cleaning liquid nozzle 24 that allows the liquid to pass therethrough. In addition, the said liquid feeding means 12a can be set as the mechanism and pump which send out cleaning liquid by pressurizing a tank, for example, and demonstrates as the pump 12a below. When the pump 12a is operated, the cleaning liquid is sent from the tank to the cleaning liquid nozzle 24, and the cleaning liquid is supplied to the bottom surface 32 of the concave portion 31 of the cap 30 covered by the lid member 11 by spraying from above the bottom surface 32. be able to.

  The air supply unit 13 includes an air delivery unit 13a that sends out air in the atmosphere, and an air nozzle 25 that is provided through the lid member 11 so as to pass through the air sent out by the air delivery unit 13a. The air delivery means 12a can be, for example, a mechanism that pumps air by pressurizing an air tank or a pump, and will be described as a pump 13a below. When the pump 13 a is activated, air in the atmosphere is sent to the air nozzle 25, the air flows through the air nozzle 25, and the air can be supplied between the lid member 11 and the recess 31 of the cap 30. In particular, since the pump 13 a and the air nozzle 25 are provided, air that has been pressurized by the pump 13 a is transferred to the bottom surface 32 of the concave portion 31 of the cap 30 covered by the lid member 11, rather than the bottom surface 32. Can be supplied by spraying from above.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 2A, the edge of the inner lid 18 is one of the upper surface 18a and the lower surface 18c of the inner lid 18 so that the thickness decreases toward the outer side in the horizontal direction. Alternatively, inclined surfaces 18d (18e) are formed on both sides. The inclined surface 18d (18e) allows the storage liquid R1, the cleaning liquid, and the air to flow smoothly. The slope of the inclined surface 18d (18e) can be 45 ° or more with respect to the horizontal plane (the upper surface 18a and the lower surface 18c of the inner lid 18), but is preferably less than 45 ° and has a gentle inclination. . The inclined surface 18d (18e) may be omitted.

A method for cleaning the cap 30 performed in the ink jet apparatus configured as described above will be described. FIG. 3 is a flowchart of the cleaning method, and shows the cleaning unit 16 schematically shown for easy explanation. FIG. 4 is a time chart for explaining the operation of the cleaning apparatus 10 (cleaning unit 16).
The storage liquid R <b> 1 is accumulated in the recess 31 of the cap 30. The cleaning unit 16 that has started the suction operation by the suction unit 14 (t0 in FIG. 4) is brought close to the cap 30 (steps S1 and S2 in FIG. 3). The lid member 11 is placed on the cap 30, and a closed space is formed between the outer lid 17 and the cap 30. In addition, when the suction part 14 sucks the closed space, the contact surface between the outer lid 17 and the cap 30 comes into close contact.

  Thereafter, in the state where the suction operation is performed by the suction unit 14, the air supply unit 13 starts to eject air (step S3 in FIG. 3, t1 in FIG. 4), and continues for a predetermined time (for example, 5 seconds). . After a predetermined time elapses, the air supply unit 13 stops air ejection (step S4 in FIG. 3 and t2 in FIG. 4). As a result, the old storage liquid R1 in the recess 31 is pushed to the peripheral edge of the recess 31 by the ejected air, and the storage liquid R1 together with the air flows from the peripheral edge of the recess 31 to the second flow path 22, The liquid is sucked out of the cleaning unit 16 through the one flow path 21 and the suction nozzle 23. Further, the pressure of air supplied by the air supply unit 13 (discharge pressure in the pump 13a) is set to a predetermined pressure.

  Then, while the suction operation by the suction unit 14 is continuing, the cleaning liquid supply unit 12 starts to eject the cleaning liquid (step S5 in FIG. 3, t2 in FIG. 4), and a predetermined time (for example, 10 seconds to 15 seconds). )continue. After a predetermined time has elapsed, the ejection of the cleaning liquid by the cleaning liquid supply unit 12 is stopped (step S6 in FIG. 3 and t3 in FIG. 4). As a result, even if the storage liquid R1 remains in the recess 31, the storage liquid R1 is pushed to the peripheral edge of the recess 31 by the jetted cleaning liquid, and the storage liquid R1 together with the cleaning liquid is stored in the recess 31. From the peripheral edge, the second flow path 22, the first flow path 21 and the suction nozzle 23 are sucked out of the cleaning unit 16. The cleaning liquid has a component that can flow the solid component of the ink discharged from the head 4 (a component that can be dissolved), and can wash away the ink adhering to the recess 31. Further, the pressure for feeding the cleaning liquid (discharge pressure in the pump 12a) is set to a predetermined pressure.

Then, in a state where the suction operation by the suction unit 14 continues, the air supply unit 13 starts to eject air again (step S7 in FIG. 3, t3 in FIG. 4), and a predetermined time (for example, 3 to 5). Seconds) to continue. After a predetermined time has elapsed, the cleaning unit 16 and the cap 30 are separated from each other (step S8 in FIG. 3), and further, the ejection of air by the air supply unit 13 is stopped (step S9 in FIG. 3, t4 in FIG. 4). Then, the suction operation by the suction unit 14 is stopped (step S10 in FIG. 3, t5 in FIG. 4). At this time, the air pressure (the discharge pressure in the pump 13a) is set to a predetermined pressure.
Thereby, the storage liquid R1 and the cleaning liquid remaining in the concave portion 31 are pushed to the peripheral edge portion of the concave portion 31 by the jetted air, and the storage liquid R1 and the cleaning liquid together with the air are discharged from the peripheral edge portion of the concave portion 31. Then, it is sucked out of the cleaning unit 16 through the second flow path 22, the first flow path 21 and the suction nozzle 23. Thus, the cleaning of the cap 30 is completed.

Thereafter, a new storage liquid is supplied to the recess 31 of the cap 30.
Alternatively, even if the order of step S8 and step S9 in FIG. 4 is changed and the ejection of air is finished first and the cleaning unit 16 is separated from the cap 30, new storage liquid may be supplied to the recess 31 of the cap 30. Good. In this case, the cleaning unit 16 includes a storage liquid supply unit for supplying a new storage liquid, and the nozzle 26 (see FIG. 5) that the storage liquid supply unit has in the state where the lid member 11 is placed on the cap 30. 2 (b)), a new storage solution may be supplied.
Alternatively, the storage liquid supply unit may supply new storage liquid while raising the cleaning unit 16, and in this case, dripping from the cleaning unit 16 can be suppressed.

As described above, in the method for cleaning the cap 30 according to the present invention, the cap 30 is covered with the lid member 11 from above, the cleaning liquid is supplied by the cleaning liquid supply unit 12, or the air is supplied by the air supply unit 13. While sucking and supplying the bottom surface 32 from above the bottom surface 32 of the concave portion 31, the suction portion 14 sucks the space between the lid member 11 and the concave portion 31, and the storage liquid R1 existing in the concave portion 31 is removed. This is performed by sucking from above the bottom surface 32. According to this cleaning method, the storage liquid R1 is sucked out from above the bottom surface 32 while supplying the cleaning liquid and air to the bottom surface 32 of the recess 31 from above, so that no old storage liquid remains in the recess 31. It becomes possible to do so.
That is, in the conventional configuration described in Patent Document 1, a pump as a liquid (storage liquid) supply means is connected to the opening in the bottom surface of the recess of the cap via a pipe. Even if it is discharged, the old storage liquid remains in the pipe, and even if a new storage liquid is supplied to the cap by the liquid supply means, the remaining old storage liquid is mixed.
However, according to the present invention, since the old storage liquid is sucked out from above, it is possible to prevent the new storage liquid in the recess 31 from being contaminated by mixing with the remaining old storage liquid. Can be stored by the cap 30 in a state in which it is not soiled. Further, all of the cleaning work can be realized in the cleaning unit 16, and the operator's hand can be prevented from becoming dirty.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the second flow path 22 for sucking the storage liquid R <b> 1 in the recess 31 of the cap 30 is formed at the outermost part of the peripheral edge of the recess 31. The cleaning liquid nozzle 24 and the air nozzle 25 are opened at a portion inside the peripheral edge portion. For this reason, while supplying the cleaning liquid or air (or both) by spraying the bottom surface 32 in the portion inside the peripheral portion of the concave portion 31 of the cap 30 and supplying the cleaning liquid or the air from the peripheral portion. Can be aspirated. In particular, in the embodiment of FIG. 2, the second flow is formed by a slot formed partially (intermittently) out of the entire peripheral edge portion of the concave portion 31 instead of being sucked from the entire peripheral edge portion of the concave portion 31 of the cap 30. Suction is performed through the path 22. For this reason, the suction area can be narrowed, and the flow rate of the storage liquid R1 to be sucked out can be increased (the suction force can be improved). As a result, the old storage liquid R1 and the like can be sucked out quickly and reliably, and the working time can be shortened.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining another example of the cleaning unit 16. The embodiment of FIG. 5 is different from the embodiment of FIG. 2 in the configuration of the second flow path 22, but is otherwise the same. In the cleaning unit 16 of FIG. 5, the second flow path 22 is formed by an annular gap formed on the entire circumference of the recess 31 of the cap 30. That is, a gap is formed over the entire circumference between the inner surface 20a of the side wall 20 of the outer lid 17 and the side surface 18b of the inner lid 18, and the storage liquid R1 in the recess 31 is sucked up from this gap. . Therefore, as in the embodiment of FIG. 2, also in the embodiment of FIG. 5, the cleaning liquid or air (or both) is supplied by spraying onto the bottom surface 32 in the portion inside the peripheral edge of the recess 31. The storage liquid R1 can be poured out from the inner side to the peripheral edge. And since it attracts | sucks from the peripheral part of the recessed part 31, even if there exists the storage liquid R1 which flows into a peripheral part, and also the storage liquid R1 which is going to overflow from a peripheral part, the storage liquid R1 can be attracted | sucked. .

Further, the present invention is not limited to the illustrated form, and other forms may be employed within the scope of the present invention. For example, in the embodiment of FIG. 2, the number of slots serving as the second flow path 22 is four, but this number can be changed in size. The slot may be formed not in the corner (corner) between the outer lid 17 and the inner lid 18 but in the middle of the straight line portion.
A slot serving as the second flow path 22 is formed by cutting out the square of the inner lid 18, but (not shown) the upper and lower sides of the peripheral edge that is slightly inward of the outermost edge portion of the inner lid 18. It is possible to form a hole penetrating through the second flow path 22.
The shape of the cap 30 may be a circle or an ellipse other than the rectangle, and the shape of the lid member 11 may be formed according to this.
The case where the air supply unit 13 forcibly supplies air to the cap 30 by the pump 13a has been described, but the pump 13a may be omitted, and the air nozzle 25 may be opened to the atmosphere to perform natural intake. Alternatively, the suction pump 14 on the suction side is omitted, the suction nozzle 23 is opened to the atmosphere, and the air (cleaning liquid) is forced to the cap 30 by the pump 13a (pump 12a) in the air supply section 13 (cleaning liquid supply section 12). And the air (cleaning liquid) pressurized by the air nozzle 25 (cleaning liquid nozzle 24) is ejected, the inside of the suction nozzle 23 is brought into a negative pressure state relative to the inside of the concave portion 31, and is sucked from the suction nozzle 23. It is good also as a structure.
In the cleaning operation, the case where only one of the cleaning liquid and air is supplied to the cap 30 while being divided has been described. However, both the cleaning liquid and air may be supplied simultaneously. In other words, air may be supplied while supplying the cleaning liquid.
Moreover, the kind of ink is not limited and can be applied irrespective of the presence or absence of a solid component. Moreover, although the said embodiment demonstrated the coating device used for manufacture of a color filter, it is applicable also to the inkjet apparatus used for manufacture of the flat panel display containing an organic EL, a solar cell, etc.

4: Head (inkjet head), 4a: Lower surface, 8: Nozzle, 10: Cleaning device, 11: Cover member, 12: Cleaning liquid supply unit, 13: Air supply unit, 14: Suction unit, 22: Second flow path ( Slot), 30: cap, 31: recess, 32: bottom surface, R1: storage solution

Claims (4)

An ink jet head having a nozzle for discharging ink on the lower surface is a method of immersing the lower surface in a storage liquid stored in a recess and washing a cap for storage,
The cap is covered with a lid member from above,
While supplying one or both of cleaning liquid and air to the bottom surface from above the bottom surface of the concave portion, the space between the lid member and the concave portion is sucked, and the storage liquid is poured from above the bottom surface. A method of cleaning a cap characterized by sucking out.   The suction between the lid member and the concave portion is sucked from the peripheral portion while supplying one or both of the cleaning liquid and the air to the bottom surface in the portion inside the peripheral portion of the concave portion. 2. A method for cleaning a cap according to 1.   The cap cleaning method according to claim 2, wherein suction is performed from a partially formed slot in the entire peripheral edge of the recess. An inkjet head having a nozzle on the lower surface for ejecting ink;
A cap having a recess for storing a storage liquid for immersing the lower surface when storing the inkjet head;
A cleaning device positioned on the cap and cleaning the recess as required,
The cleaning device includes:
A lid member covering the cap from above;
A cleaning liquid supply unit that supplies a cleaning liquid to the bottom surface of the recess covered by the lid member from above the bottom surface;
An air supply section for supplying air between the lid member and the recess;
An ink jet apparatus comprising: a suction portion that sucks a space between the lid member and the concave portion and sucks the storage liquid in the concave portion from above the bottom surface.

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