JP2011183785A - Ink jet recorder and ink tank - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a printer equipped with an ink tank provided with a light emitting element that emits light having a main peak in a visible light region and a sub-peak in an infrared light region, the printer being configured such that a user can be informed of tank status information while variation in the brightness of a light emitting element is reduced, and erroneous determination is suppressed when it is determined whether the attached position of the tank is correct or not. <P>SOLUTION: The determination is made by using the light emitting element of the ink tank and a light receiving portion which is sensitive to the wavelength of the main peak but not sensitive to the wavelength of the sub-peak. At that time, the light reception result of the light receiving portion contains no quantity of light of the sub-peak. Accordingly, erroneous determination resulting from the sub-peak can be suppressed. Besides, when tank status information is notified to a user by means of light emission, the light emitting element is driven based on the light emission characteristic information of visible light stored in the memory of the tank. This makes it possible to drive the light emitting element by using a pattern corresponding to a quantity of visible light. Accordingly, a user can be informed of information while variation in brightness is reduced. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an ink jet recording apparatus and an ink tank containing ink used in the ink jet recording apparatus.

  2. Related Art There is known an ink jet recording apparatus (also simply referred to as “printer”) in a form in which a plurality of ink tanks can be detachably mounted on an ink tank mounting portion. In such a printer, a so-called erroneous mounting in which an ink tank is mounted at an incorrect mounting position may occur. Therefore, it is desirable to provide a determination function for determining whether or not the mounting position of the ink tank is correct (“mounting position correctness determination”). As such a determination mechanism, a configuration using a light emitting element such as an LED provided in an ink tank and a light receiving unit provided in a printer main body is known (see Patent Document 1).

  On the other hand, it is known to use the light emission of the light emitting element of the ink tank in order to perform processing (tank state notification processing) for notifying the user of information regarding the remaining amount of ink in the ink tank and information regarding the mounting state of the ink tank. (See Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2). In particular, in Patent Document 2, a problem is caused by the fact that the brightness of the light emitting element varies greatly for each ink tank by notifying the user in a state where the brightness variation of the light emitting element due to the manufacturing variation of the light emitting element is reduced. (User misrecognition) is not caused.

JP 2006-181717 A JP 2006-181722 A JP-A-9-181358

  By the way, there are various types of light emitting elements such as LEDs that can emit visible light to notify the user, and there are also light emitting elements that emit infrared light together with visible light. For example, there is a light-emitting element that emits light having a main peak in the visible light region and a sub-peak in the infrared light region (see, for example, Patent Document 3). Hereinafter, a case where the above-described tank state notification process and mounting position correctness determination process are performed using a light emitting element having such characteristics will be considered.

  First, regarding the tank state notification process, in order to reduce the brightness variation of the light emitting element as described above, it is necessary to drive the light emitting element with a light emission pattern corresponding to the brightness (light emission characteristics) of the light emitting element. is there. Therefore, before shipping the ink tank, a light emitting element that is determined based on the measurement result by measuring the amount of light emitted from the light emitting element using a light receiving part having the same characteristics as the light receiving part of the printer main body at a factory or the like. Information on the light emission characteristics is stored in a memory. In performing the notification process, the light emitting element is driven in accordance with the light emission pattern corresponding to the light emission characteristic information stored in the memory of the ink tank attached to the printer main body. In this way, a method of reducing the brightness variation of the light emitting element can be considered.

  However, if the light-receiving unit used to measure the brightness of the light-emitting element receives not only visible light but also infrared light, the amount of light emission including the sub-peak light amount in the infrared light region is measured. Will be. That is, not only the amount of visible light that can be visually recognized by the user but also the light emission characteristic information considering the amount of infrared light is stored in the memory. Further, since the light amount of the sub-peak varies for each light emitting element, the ratio of the amount of visible light to the amount of received light (the amount of received light of visible light + the amount of received light of infrared light) also varies. For this reason, even if the light emitting element is driven according to the light emission characteristic information determined based on the total light quantity of visible light and infrared light, the light emission pattern emits light corresponding to only the visible light quantity that affects the brightness of the light emitting element. The element cannot be driven. That is, the notification process cannot be performed in a state where the brightness variation in the visible light region of the light emitting element is reduced.

  As described above, the amount of light emitted from a light emitting element that emits light having a main peak in the visible light region and a sub peak in the infrared light region is measured using a light receiving unit capable of receiving visible light and infrared light. Then, the brightness of the light emitting element visible to the user cannot be measured with high accuracy, and the brightness variation cannot be sufficiently reduced.

  Next, regarding the mounting position correctness determination processing, when the light receiving unit used for this determination receives not only visible light but also infrared light, the light receiving result of the light receiving unit is naturally in the infrared light region. It is affected by the light intensity of a certain sub peak. At this time, when the light amount of the sub peak is large or when the sensitivity of the light receiving unit with respect to the wavelength of the sub peak is high, the light receiving amount of the light receiving unit may exceed the upper limit value and normal determination may not be performed.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object thereof is to use an ink tank including a light emitting element that emits light having a main peak in the visible light region and a sub peak in the infrared light region. Even in this case, it is possible to perform the tank state notification process in a state in which the brightness variation in the visible light region of the light emitting element is reduced, and to suppress an erroneous determination error in the ink tank mounting position correctness determination. .

  The present invention for solving the above-described problems includes: (A) a light emitting element, a memory storing characteristic information relating to light emission characteristics of the light emitting element, and an ink tank including a drive control unit that controls driving of the light emitting element; B) a mounting unit on which the ink tank is detachably mounted; and (C) a light receiving unit for receiving light from the light emitting element driven by a drive control unit of the ink tank mounted on the mounting unit. And (D) a determination unit that determines whether or not the ink tank is attached to a correct attachment unit based on a light reception result of the light receiving unit, and (E) an openable / closable cover. And (F) the drive control unit is configured to notify the user of information on the state of the ink tank by light emission of the light emitting element in a state where the cover is opened. The driving of the light emitting element is controlled based on the characteristic information stored in the memory. (G) The light emitted from the light emitting element has a main peak in the visible light region and a sub peak in the infrared light region. (H) the light receiving unit is sensitive to the wavelength of the main peak and not sensitive to the wavelength of the sub-peak, and (I) the characteristic information includes visible light emitted from the light emitting element. An ink jet recording apparatus characterized in that the information is information relating to light emission characteristics.

  As described above, in the present invention, the main peak is in the visible light region (the first wavelength region of 400 nm to 760 nm) and the sub peak is in the infrared light region (the second wavelength region on the longer wavelength side than the first wavelength region). A light emitting element that emits light having a light receiving sensitivity at a main peak wavelength and no light receiving sensitivity at a sub peak wavelength. As a result, the light reception result of the light receiving unit used for determining whether the ink tank mounting position is correct does not include the light amount of the sub peak, and thus it is possible to suppress the occurrence of erroneous determination due to the sub peak. In addition, the light emission characteristic information excluding the influence of the sub-peak in the infrared light region, that is, information on the light emission characteristic of visible light out of the light emitted from the light emitting element is stored in the memory, and the light emission characteristic information is stored in the memory. Based on this, the light emitting element is driven. As a result, the light emitting element can be driven with a pattern according to the amount of visible light emitted from the light emitting element, so that information on the state of the ink tank is notified in a state where the brightness variation of the light emitting element is reduced. Can be performed on the user.

  According to the present invention, even when an ink tank having a light emitting element that emits light having a main peak in the visible light region and a sub peak in the infrared light region is used, variation in brightness of the light emitting element is reduced. In this state, it is possible to perform the notification process, and it is possible to suppress erroneous determination in determining whether the ink tank mounting position is correct.

(A), (b), and (c) are a side view, a front view, and a bottom view of the ink tank according to the first embodiment of the present invention, respectively. FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of the ink tank according to the first embodiment of the present invention. (A) And (b) is a typical side view for demonstrating the outline of the function of the board | substrate arrange | positioned at the ink tank which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. (A) And (b) is the side view and front view which respectively show an example of the control board attached to the ink tank which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a typical side view of an ink tank which has a light guide member applicable by the present invention. FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating an example of a recording head unit having a holder to which an ink tank according to the first embodiment is attached. (A)-(c) is a typical side view for demonstrating the operation | movement at the time of attaching / detaching the ink tank which concerns on 1st Embodiment to the holder shown in FIG. (A) And (b) is a perspective view which shows the other example of a structure of the ink tank attachment part which concerns on 1st Embodiment. (A) is a figure which shows the external appearance of an inkjet printer, (b) is a perspective view of the state which open | released the main body cover 201 shown to (a). It is a typical side view of an ink tank which has a light guide member applicable by the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the control structure of the said inkjet printer. It is a figure which shows the structure of the signal wiring for the signal connection of the control circuit 300 of the said inkjet printer, and an ink tank. It is a circuit diagram which shows the detail of the board | substrate 100 with which the control circuit 103 was provided. It is a circuit diagram which shows the modification of the structure of the board | substrate shown in FIG. It is a timing chart for demonstrating the operation | movement of writing and reading of data with respect to the memory of the said board | substrate, respectively. 3 is a timing chart for explaining the operation of turning on and off the light emitting element 101. FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the control procedure regarding attachment / detachment of the ink tank which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing details of ink tank attachment / detachment processing in FIG. 17. FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the recording process concerning the said embodiment. (A) and (b) are a schematic side view and a front view of an ink tank applicable in the present invention, respectively. It is a circuit diagram which shows the detail of the board | substrate 100 with which the control circuit 103 etc. which concern on another embodiment of this invention were provided. It is a timing chart which concerns on embodiment of FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of an optical collation process. It is a figure for demonstrating operation | movement of the optical collation process in case the correct ink tank is mounted | worn with all the mounting parts. It is a table used by the mounting tank right / wrong determination process in S11 of FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the mounting tank correctness determination sequence performed using the table of FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating operation | movement of the optical collation process in case the incorrect ink tank is mounted in the mounting part. It is a figure for demonstrating the operation | movement of the error confirmation process in S13 of FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the error confirmation process of FIG. It is a figure which shows the light emission wavelength characteristic of the light emitting element which can be applied in 1st Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 35 is a diagram showing the sensitivity wavelength range of FIG. 34 superimposed on the emission wavelength of FIG. 30. It is a figure which shows the light reception sensitivity characteristic of the light receiving element applicable in 1st Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 33 is a diagram in which the sensitivity wavelength range of FIG. 32 is superimposed on the emission wavelength of FIG. 30. It is the figure which showed the light reception sensitivity characteristic of the light receiving element which has light reception sensitivity in visible region and an infrared region. It is a figure which shows the spectral sensitivity characteristic of the filter which cuts a wavelength of 750 nm or more. FIG. 36 is a diagram in which the emission wavelength of FIG. 31, the sensitivity wavelength range of FIG. 34, and the filter wavelength range of FIG. It is the figure which showed the light emission pattern of the light emitting element corresponding to different rank information. It is the figure which showed the light emission pattern of the light emitting element at the time of blinking and lighting. FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining an operation of optical collation processing in a case where correct ink tanks are attached to all attachment units in the second embodiment. It is a table used by the mounting tank right / wrong determination process in 2nd Embodiment. FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining an operation of optical collation processing when an incorrect ink tank is attached to the attachment portion in the second embodiment. It is a figure for demonstrating the operation | movement of the error confirmation process in 2nd Embodiment.

(Outline of the present invention)
First, an outline of the present invention will be described. The ink tank of the present invention has a main peak in the visible light region (the first wavelength region of 400 nm to 760 nm) and the infrared light region (the second wavelength region on the longer wavelength side than the first wavelength region). A light emitting element that emits light having a subpeak is provided. An example of such a light emitting element is as shown in FIG. In the present invention, using such a light emitting element and a light receiving unit as described later, it is determined whether or not the mounting position of the ink tank is correct (mounting position correctness determination). In addition to this, when the cover is opened, the light emission of the light emitting element is used to determine the ink tank state (for example, whether the ink tank is installed properly, whether the installation position is correct, or the ink remaining in the ink tank). A process (tank state notifying process) for notifying the user of information on the state of (no state) is also performed.

  As described in the problem section, when brightness variation occurs in the light emitting element used in the tank state notification process, the user may mistakenly recognize that there is some meaning in the difference in brightness. is there. In order to reduce this brightness variation, it is necessary to drive the light emitting element with a light emission pattern corresponding to the brightness (light emission characteristics) of the light emitting element. Therefore, in the present invention, before shipping the ink tank, a parameter (for example, light emission amount) relating to the brightness of the light emitting element is measured at a factory or the like using a light receiving unit having the same characteristics as the light receiving unit of the printer main body. Then, based on the measurement result, information on the light emission characteristics of the light emitting element (for example, rank information classified or ranked in a plurality of stages according to the brightness of the light emitting element) is stored in the memory.

  Here, if a light-receiving unit having sensitivity in the visible light region and the infrared light region as shown in FIG. 34 is used as the light-receiving unit used when measuring the brightness of the light-emitting element, The amount of light including infrared light (sub-peak light) is measured. For example, consider a case in which the light receiving unit shown in FIG. 34 and the light emitting element shown in FIG. 30 are used in combination. In this case, as shown in FIG. 31, since the sensitivity of the light receiving unit with respect to the sub-peak wavelength of the light-emitting element is sufficiently high, the light-emission characteristic information is determined in a form strongly influenced by the sub-peak light in the infrared light region. . In addition, the light amount of the sub peak varies for each light emitting element. Therefore, even if the light emitting element is driven according to such light emission characteristic information, the light emitting element cannot be driven with a light emission pattern corresponding to the amount of visible light that affects the brightness of the light emitting element. Variations cannot be reduced sufficiently.

  Therefore, in the present invention, the light receiving portion used when measuring the brightness of the light emitting element has sensitivity to the main peak wavelength in the visible light region out of the light emitted from the light emitting element, but the infrared A light receiving portion (for example, the light receiving portion in FIG. 32) that does not have sensitivity to the sub-peak wavelength in the region is used. When the light receiving part shown in FIG. 32 and the light emitting element shown in FIG. 30 are used in combination, the sensitivity of the light receiving part with respect to the sub-peak wavelength of the light emitting element is substantially absent as shown in FIG. For this reason, it is possible to substantially eliminate the influence of sub-peak light and measure the amount of light only from visible light. Therefore, it is possible to obtain light emission characteristics that substantially exclude light having a sub-peak wavelength, in other words, light emission characteristics that depend on visible light emitted from the light emitting element. And by driving a light emitting element according to such light emission characteristic information, a light emitting element can be driven with the light emission pattern corresponding to the light quantity of visible light which affects the brightness of a light emitting element. As a result, the tank state notification process can be performed in a state where the brightness variation of the light emitting elements is sufficiently reduced.

  By the way, even when the light emission characteristic information from which the influence of the sub-peak is eliminated is stored in the memory, it is natural that the light-emitting element itself emits the sub-peak light. In particular, when the sub-peak light in the infrared region is not detected in the light receiving unit as described above, there are various light emitting elements in which the light emission characteristic information is stored in the memory, such as those with strong or weak sub-peaks. There is something. That is, even if the light emission characteristics are determined as described above, a light emitting element having a strong subpeak intensity is not removed. If a step of removing a light emitting element having a strong subpeak intensity is provided, the number of steps is increased and the number of usable light emitting elements is reduced, which leads to an increase in cost. Therefore, it is preferable to determine the characteristics of the light receiving portion of the printer body, assuming that a light emitting element having a strong subpeak intensity is used.

  Therefore, in the present invention, as a light receiving unit provided in the printer body, that is, a light receiving unit used when determining whether the mounting position is correct or not, a light receiving unit having no sensitivity to the sub-peak wavelength (for example, the light receiving unit in FIG. 32). I use it. This is because if the light emitting element having a strong sub-peak intensity and a light receiving part having sensitivity in the visible light region and the infrared light region as shown in FIG. 34 are used in combination, the light receiving amount of the light receiving part has an upper limit value. There is a possibility of exceeding. When the amount of received light exceeds the upper limit value, normal determination cannot be performed, and erroneous determination is caused. Therefore, in the present invention, a light receiving unit (for example, the light receiving unit in FIG. 32) that has sensitivity to the main peak wavelength in the visible light region but does not have sensitivity to the sub-peak wavelength in the infrared region is used. If such a light-receiving unit is used, even if the sub-peak intensity of the light-emitting element is strong, as is apparent from FIG. 33, sub-peak light in the infrared light region is not substantially received, resulting in sub-peak light. Misjudgments can be suppressed.

  As described above, according to the present invention, a light emitting element that emits light having a main peak in the visible light region and a sub peak in the infrared light region, a light receiving sensitivity at the main peak wavelength, and a sub peak wavelength. And a light receiving portion having no light receiving sensitivity. As a result, the light reception result of the light receiving unit used for determining whether the ink tank mounting position is correct does not include the light amount of the sub peak, and thus it is possible to suppress erroneous determination due to the sub peak. In addition, information related to the emission characteristics of visible light except infrared light is stored in a memory, and the light emitting element is driven based on the light emission characteristic information, so that the pattern according to the amount of visible light emitted from the light emitting element is obtained. The light emitting element can be driven. Accordingly, it is possible to notify the user of information on the state of the ink tank and the like in a state where the brightness variation of the light emitting element is reduced.

  In this specification, “visible light region” refers to a wavelength region of 400 nm to 760 nm, and “infrared light region” refers to a wavelength region on the longer wavelength side than 760 nm.

<First Embodiment>
Hereinafter, the first embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail along the following flow.

1. Mechanical structure 1.1 Ink tank 1.2 Ink tank mounting part 1.3 Recording device (printer) body Configuration of control system 2.1 Overall configuration 2.2 Configuration of connection section 2.3 Control procedure <1. Mechanical configuration>
<1.1 Ink tank (FIGS. 1 to 4)>
1A, 1B, and 1C are a side view, a front view, and a bottom view, respectively, of the ink tank according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. In this description, the front surface of the ink tank refers to a surface on the side where an operation lever (hereinafter referred to as “support member”) used when the ink tank is attached or detached.

  In FIG. 1, an ink tank 1 of the present embodiment has a support member 3 supported at the lower part on the front side. The support member 3 is formed of a resin integrally with the exterior of the ink tank 1 and is configured to be displaceable around a supported portion when performing an attaching / detaching operation to a tank holder described later. On the back side and the front side of the ink tank 1, a first engaging portion 5 and a second engaging portion 6 (in this example, integrated with the support member 3) that can be engaged with a locking portion on the tank holder side, respectively. These are engaged, and the mounting state of the ink tank 1 to the tank holder is ensured. The operation at the time of mounting will be described later with reference to FIG.

  An ink supply port 7 is provided on the bottom surface of the ink tank 1 to supply ink in combination with an ink introduction port of a recording head, which will be described later, when the ink tank 1 is attached to the tank holder. A base is provided at a portion connecting the bottom surface and the front surface (in this example, a slope). Although the shape of the substrate may be a chip shape or a plate shape, the substrate 100 will be described below.

  FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of the ink tank 1. The interior of the ink tank 1 is divided into an ink storage chamber 11 located on the front side where the support member 3 and the substrate 100 are provided, and a negative pressure generating member storage chamber 12 located on the back side and communicating with the ink supply port 7. Both are connected via the communication port 13. While the ink is stored in the ink storage chamber 11 as it is, the negative pressure generating member storage chamber 12 has an ink absorber 15 such as a sponge or a fiber assembly impregnated and held therein (hereinafter referred to as a porous member for convenience). Is shown). This porous member 15 is sufficient to prevent ink leakage from the ink discharge portion in balance with the holding force of the meniscus formed in the ink discharge nozzle portion of the print head, and the ink discharge operation of the print head can be performed. This is to generate an appropriate negative pressure within the possible range.

  The upper surface of the negative pressure generating member storage chamber 12 is provided with an atmospheric communication portion 12A for introducing external air to alleviate the negative pressure that increases with the supply of ink to the recording head and maintain it in a preferable predetermined range. It has been.

  At the bottom of the ink storage chamber 11, a detected portion 17 is provided at a portion that can face an ink remaining amount detection sensor (described later) provided on the apparatus side when the ink tank 1 is attached to the apparatus main body. Yes. In this embodiment, the remaining ink detection sensor is an optical sensor having a light emitting means and a light receiving means. The detected portion 17 is made of a transparent or semi-transparent material, and has a shape, an angle, etc. so that the light from the light emitting portion can be appropriately reflected and returned to the light receiving means (described later) when the ink is not contained. It has a prism shape with a predetermined slope.

  The configuration and function of the substrate 100 will be described with reference to FIGS. Here, FIGS. 3A and 3B are schematic side views for explaining the outline of the function of the substrate disposed in the ink tank. 4A and 4B are a side view and a front view, respectively, showing an example of the substrate 100 attached to the ink tank.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the first ink tank 1 has a first locking portion 155 and a second locking portion 156 of the holder 150 integrated with the recording head unit 105 having the recording head 105 ′. When the engaging portion 5 and the second engaging portion 6 are engaged with each other, the ink tank 1 is mounted on the holder 150 and fixed. At this time, the connector 152 as the apparatus main body side contact provided in the holder 150 and the electrode pad 102 as the tank side contact of the substrate 100 provided in the ink tank 1 come into contact with each other, and both the contacts (102, 152). Are electrically connected.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a light emitting element 101 and a control circuit 103 for controlling the light emitting element are provided on the back surface of the surface on which the electrode pad 102 is provided. The control circuit 103 as a tank side control unit controls light emission and extinction of the light emitting element 101 in accordance with an electric signal supplied from the connector 152 via the pad 102. The light-emitting element 101 applied in the present embodiment is a red LED having a main peak emission wavelength in the vicinity of 640 nm and a sub-peak emission wavelength in the vicinity of 870 nm, as shown in FIG. The light emitting element may be applied.

  FIG. 4 shows a state in which the control circuit 103 is mounted on the substrate 100 and then covered with a protective sealant. Also, ink information indicating the type of ink stored in the ink tank, ink amount information in the ink tank (information indicating the amount of ink consumed or information indicating the remaining amount of ink), and the above-described light emission characteristic information of the light emitting element Even when a memory for storing information such as is mounted on the substrate 100, it can be mounted at the same position and covered with a sealant. The types of ink described above are basically distinguished by different colors, but can be further distinguished by inks of the same color and having different materials and components, for example, differences between pigments and dyes, differences in density, and the like. .

  As shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, a part of the light emitted from the light emitting element 101 travels outward from the front side of the ink tank 1 along the slope. The light thus projected from the light emitting element 101 is received by the light receiving unit 210 as shown in FIG. The light receiving unit 210 is located at the end of the scanning range of the carriage on which the holder 150 is mounted, and is disposed at a position where light projected in the upper right direction can be received as shown in FIG. By moving the carriage to a position where the projected light can be received by the light receiving unit 210 and controlling the light emission of the light emitting element 101 there, the apparatus main body mounts the ink tank 1 from the light receiving content (light reception result) of the light receiving unit. It can be determined whether the position is correct. In the present embodiment, the location of the light receiving unit 210 in the printer is the end of the scanning range of the carriage as shown in FIG. 9B, but the location of the light receiving unit 210 is limited to this. It is not a thing.

  For example, the light receiving unit 210 may be disposed near the center of the carriage scanning range.

  In addition, the light from the light emitting element is used not only for obtaining a light reception result used in the attachment position correct / incorrect determination, but also used for notifying the user as shown in FIG. . That is, the light emission of the light emitting element 101 is controlled by positioning the carriage near the center of the scanning range (hereinafter referred to as “tank replacement position”) in order to notify the user of information regarding the state of the ink tank when the cover is opened. . By doing so, as shown in FIG. 3B, it becomes possible for the user to visually recognize the light emission state of the light emitting element, and information on the state of the ink tank 1 (for example, information on whether the ink tank is attached or not, It is possible to make the user recognize information regarding whether or not the mounting position is correct or information regarding the remaining amount of ink in the ink tank.

<1.2 Ink tank mounting portion (FIGS. 6 to 8)>
FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating an example of a recording head unit in which the ink tank according to the first embodiment is configured to be detachable. FIGS. 7A to 7C are views when the ink tank is mounted on the recording head unit. It is a figure for demonstrating operation | movement. In this embodiment, the carriage of the recording apparatus main body is detachably equipped with a recording head unit, and each ink tank is detachably attached to the recording head unit.

  The recording head unit 105 generally includes a holder 150 that detachably holds a plurality of ink tanks, and a recording head 105 ′ (not shown in FIG. 6) disposed on the bottom side. The holder 150 includes an in-tank mounting portion for each ink type, and in the case of this embodiment, dye black (hereinafter also referred to as K), pigment black (hereinafter also referred to as PGK), yellow (hereinafter referred to as Y). 5), magenta (hereinafter also referred to as “M”), and cyan (hereinafter also referred to as “C”). By mounting the ink tank 1 on the holder 150, the ink introduction port 107 on the recording head side located at the bottom of the holder and the ink supply port 7 on the ink tank side are coupled to form an ink communication path therebetween. .

  As the recording head 105 ′, an electrothermal conversion element is provided in a liquid path constituting a nozzle, and thermal energy is applied to the ink by applying an electric pulse serving as a recording signal to the ink, and the phase change of the ink at that time What uses the pressure at the time of the foaming (boiling) produced for ink discharge can be used. Then, contact is made between an electrical contact portion (not shown) for signal transmission provided on a carriage 205, which will be described later, and an electrical contact portion 157 on the recording head unit 105 side, and the recording head 105 ′ is connected via the wiring portion 158. The recording signal is transmitted to the electrothermal transducer driving circuit. A wiring part 159 extending from the electrical contact part 157 to the connector 152 is also extended.

  When the ink tank 1 is mounted on the recording head unit 105, the ink tank 1 is handled above the holder 150 (FIG. 7A), and the protruding first engagement provided on the back side of the ink tank 1 is used. The part 5 is placed on the bottom surface of the holder 150 in a state where the part 5 is inserted into a through hole-shaped first locking part 155 provided on the back side of the holder 150 (FIG. 7B). In this state, when the front side end of the upper surface of the ink tank 1 is pushed down in the direction indicated by the arrow P, the ink tank 1 uses the engagement portions of the first engagement portion 5 and the first locking portion 155 as rotation fulcrums. Rotating in the R direction, the front side of the ink tank 1 is displaced downward. In this process, while the side surface of the second engagement portion 5 provided on the support member 3 on the front side of the ink tank 1 is pushed by the second locking portion 156 provided on the front side of the holder, the support member 3 also has an arrow. Displacement in the Q direction.

  When the upper surface of the second engaging portion 5 reaches below the second engaging portion 156, the support member 3 is displaced in the Q ′ direction by its own elastic force, and the second engaging portion 5 becomes the second engaging portion. Locked by 156. In this state (FIG. 7C), the second locking portion 155 elastically biases the ink tank 1 in the horizontal direction via the support member 3, and the back surface of the ink tank 1 contacts the back surface of the holder 150. Touch.

  Further, the upward displacement of the ink tank 1 is suppressed by the first locking portion 155 engaged with the first engaging portion 5 and the second locking portion 156 engaged with the second engaging portion 6. This is a state where the ink tank 1 is completely installed, and at this time, the ink supply port 7 and the ink introduction port 107, the pad 102, and the connector 152 are connected.

  The configuration of the attachment portion of the ink tank according to the present invention is not limited to that shown in FIG. This will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4A is a perspective view of a carriage in which a recording head unit that receives a supply of ink from an ink tank and executes a recording operation is separated. FIG. 5B is a perspective view of the carriage in a state in which the recording head unit is mounted. is there.

  The recording head unit 405 is different from the holder 150 as in the above example for fixing and holding the entire ink tank, as shown in FIG. 8A, a holder portion corresponding to the front side of the ink tank, and disposed here. The second locking portion and the connector are not provided. Others are substantially the same as the above example. The ink introduction port 107 connected to the ink supply port 7 is provided on the bottom surface, the first locking portion 155 is provided on the back side, and the signal transmission is provided on the back surface. It has an electrical contact (not shown).

  On the other hand, a carriage 415 that can move along the shaft 417 is configured to replace the carriage 205 described later, and as shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, a lever for mounting and fixing the recording head unit 405 is provided. In addition to the electrical contact portion 418 connected to the print head side electrical contact portion 419, a holder portion corresponding to the front side of the ink tank 1 is provided in the carriage body 415. That is, the second locking portion 156, the connector 152, and the wiring portion 159 to the connector are disposed on the carriage side.

  In such a configuration, the entire attachment portion of the ink tank 1 is configured in the carriage 415 in a state where the recording head unit 405 is mounted as shown in FIG. In the example shown in FIG. 8, as shown in FIG. 8B, ink tank mounting portions for K, PGK, Y, M, and C are configured in order from the left in the drawing. Then, through the same mounting operation as in FIG. 7, the connection of the ink supply port 7 and the ink introduction port 107 and the connection of the pad 102 and the connector 152 are performed, and the mounting operation is completed.

<1.3 Recording Device (Printer) Body (FIG. 9)>
FIG. 9A is a diagram illustrating an appearance of an ink jet printer (ink jet recording apparatus) 200 that performs recording with the ink tank 1 described above being mounted, and FIG. 9B is a diagram illustrated in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the state which open | released main body cover 201 grade | etc.,.

  As shown in FIG. 9A, the printer 200 according to this embodiment includes a main body cover 201 in which main parts of the printer such as a mechanism in which a carriage mounted with a recording head and an ink tank moves for scanning is used. And a printer main body covered with other case portions, a paper discharge tray 203 provided before and after the printer main body, and an automatic paper feeder (ASF) 202, respectively. An operation unit 213 including a display for displaying the status of the printer in both the closed state and the open state of the main body cover, a power switch, and a reset switch is provided.

  The main body cover 201 is provided so as to be openable and closable so as to cover the carriage 205 over its moving range. In the state where the main body cover 201 is opened, as shown in FIG. 9B, the user can use the recording head unit 105 and the ink tanks 1K, 1PGK, 1Y, 1M, 1C (hereinafter, these are collectively referred to as these). The range in which the carriage 205 carrying the ink tank (which may be indicated by the same reference numeral “1”) and the vicinity thereof can be seen. Actually, when the main body cover 201 is opened, a sequence in which the carriage 205 automatically moves to a substantially central position (hereinafter also referred to as “tank replacement position”) shown in FIG. Each ink tank can be exchanged.

  In the printer of this embodiment, the recording head unit 105 is provided with a recording head (not shown) in the form of a chip corresponding to each type of ink, and the recording head corresponding to each type of ink is moved to a sheet by reciprocating movement of the carriage 205. The recording medium is scanned, and ink is ejected onto the recording medium during the scanning to perform recording. That is, the carriage 205 is slidably engaged with a guide shaft 207 extending in the moving direction, and can be reciprocated by the carriage motor and its driving force transmission mechanism. In this embodiment, the mounting portions of the ink tanks 1K, 1PGK, 1Y, 1M, and 1C are arranged in one direction, and the arrangement direction and the reciprocating direction of the carriage 205 are the same direction.

  In each recording head corresponding to K, PGK, Y, M, and C inks, ink is ejected based on ejection data sent from the control circuit on the main body side via the flexible cable 206. Further, a paper feed mechanism such as a paper feed roller and a paper discharge roller is provided, and a recording medium (not shown) fed from the automatic paper feeder 202 can be conveyed to the paper discharge tray 203.

  In the recording operation, the recording head scans by the above movement, and during that time, ink is ejected from the respective recording heads to the recording medium to perform recording in a region having a width corresponding to the ejection port in the recording head. During scanning, the paper feeding mechanism feeds a predetermined amount of paper according to the width, thereby sequentially recording on the recording medium. In addition, a recovery unit (not shown) such as a cap is provided at the end of the moving range of the recording head by the carriage movement described above to cover the surface of each recording head on which the ejection port is provided. As a result, the recording head moves to a position where the recovery unit is provided at predetermined time intervals, and performs recovery processing such as preliminary ejection and suction recovery.

  As described above, the recording head unit 105 provided with the mounting portions of the ink tanks 1 is provided with the connectors 152 for electrical connection with the pads 102 of the ink tanks 1 mounted on the mounting portions. . When the connector 152 and the pad 102 are electrically connected, the light emitting element 101 can be controlled to be turned on or off according to the sequence shown in FIGS.

  In the movement range of the carriage 205, a light receiving unit 210 having a light receiving element is provided in the vicinity of the end opposite to the position where the recovery unit is provided. The light receiving unit 210 is, for example, a phototransistor, but may be another type of light receiving element such as a photo IC. The light receiving unit 210 is disposed at a position on the side of the movement direction with respect to the carriage 205. In particular, in the present embodiment, the light receiving unit 210 is fixedly arranged so that the relative positional relationship with each of the plurality of mounting units changes as the carriage 205 moves.

  Then, as will be described later, the light from the light emitting element 101 is received by the light receiving unit 210, and it is determined whether or not the ink tank is mounted at the correct position based on the light reception result (light matching process). it can. In the present embodiment, the light emitting element 101 directly projects light to the light receiving unit 210. However, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 10, light is indirectly transmitted to the light receiving unit 210 through a light guide member or the like. It is good also as a structure which projects light.

<2. Configuration of control system>
<2.1 Overall configuration (Fig. 11)>
FIG. 11 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a control system of the above-described inkjet printer. This block diagram mainly shows a configuration relating to a control circuit 300 in the form of a PCB (printed wiring board) provided in the printer main body, a control circuit 103 provided in the ink tank 1, a light emitting element 101, and the like.

  In FIG. 11, a control circuit 300 executes data processing and operation control related to the ink jet printer. Specifically, the CPU 301 executes the processes shown in FIGS. 17 to 19 and the like according to a program stored in the ROM 303. The RAM 302 is used as a work area when the CPU 301 executes processing.

  As schematically shown in FIG. 11, the recording head unit 105 of the carriage 205 receives inks of dye black (K), pigment black (PGK), yellow (Y), magenta (M), and cyan (C). Each recording head 105K, 105PGK, 105Y, 105M, and 105C is provided with a plurality of ejection openings for ejection. Ink holders 1K, 1PGK, 1Y, 1M, and 1C are detachably mounted on the holder of the recording head unit 105 corresponding to these recording heads.

  In the present embodiment, since the shape (size) of the pigment black ink tank 1PGK is larger than the other ink tanks 1K, 1Y, 1M, and 1C, the pigment black ink tank 1PGK cannot be mounted on each mounting portion of the KYCM. On the other hand, since the ink tanks 1K, 1Y, 1M, and 1C have the same shape, the ink tanks 1K, 1Y, 1M, and 1C can be mounted on the mounting portions of the KYCM. For this reason, the ink tanks 1K, 1Y, 1M, and 1C may be erroneously mounted.

  As described above, each ink tank 1 is provided with a substrate 100 provided with a light emitting element 101, a control circuit 103 for the light emitting element 101, a pad 102 as a contact terminal, and the like. When the ink tank 1 is correctly attached to the recording head unit 105, the pad 102 on the substrate 100 comes into contact with the connector 152 provided on the recording head unit 105. A connector (not shown) provided on the carriage 205 and the control circuit 300 on the main body side are electrically connected via a flexible cable 206. Further, when the recording head unit 105 is attached to the main body of the carriage 205, the connector of the main body of the carriage 205 and the connector 152 of the recording head unit 105 are electrically connected. With the above connection configuration, the control circuit 300 on the main body side and the control circuit 103 of each ink tank 1 are electrically connected, and signals can be exchanged between them. As a result, the control circuit 300 as the apparatus main body side control unit and the control circuit 103 as the tank side control unit can control lighting or extinguishing according to the sequence shown in FIG. 17 or FIG.

  Such on / off control is a process of notifying the user of information relating to the state of the ink tank (tank state notifying process) in addition to the optical collation process (step S109 in FIG. 17) for determining whether the mounting position is correct or not. Is also executed. This tank state notification process includes the following three notification processes.

  The first notification process is a process for notifying information relating to the remaining amount of ink, and is executed during S105 in FIG. This process is for informing the user of the ink remaining amount by changing the light emitting state of the light emitting element according to the ink remaining amount. In the present embodiment, as will be described later, the light emitting element is turned on when the ink remaining amount is greater than a predetermined amount, and the light emitting element is blinked when the ink remaining amount is less than the predetermined amount.

  The second notification process is a process for notifying information on whether the ink tank is attached or not, and is also executed in S105 of FIG. This process is mainly notification for indicating the completion of the mounting when the ink tank is newly mounted in the cover open state. In a state where the ink tank is only placed on the holder and is not pushed downward, the first engaging portion 6 of the ink tank is on the wall portion of the holder as shown in FIG. There is no electrical connection. In this case, the mounting of the ink tank is incomplete and the mounting state is not normal, so the light emitting element does not light up. On the other hand, in the state where the second engagement portion is engaged with the holder locking portion 156 as shown in FIG. 7B, since the mounting of the ink tank is completed, the light emitting element is turned on. By such lighting, it is possible to notify the user that the ink tank has been installed.

  The third notification process is a process for notifying information on whether or not the ink tank mounting position is correct, and is executed in S112 of FIG. This process is for informing the user of the result of the correctness determination of the mounting position by the optical matching process in S109 of FIG. For example, the user notification is performed by blinking the light emitting element of the ink tank in which the mounting position is wrong.

  In these tank state notification processes, as described above, the light emitting elements are driven according to the light emission pattern corresponding to the characteristic information relating to the light emission characteristics stored in the memory 103 of the ink tank. Accordingly, it is possible to notify the user of information relating to the state of the ink tank in a state where the brightness variation of the light emitting elements is reduced. In the present embodiment, three notification processes are listed as the tank state notification process, but the executable notification process is not limited to these. Only one or two of the three notification processes may be executed, or a notification process other than the above three notification processes may be executed.

  Similarly, each ink ejection control in the recording heads 105K, 105PGK, 105Y, 105M, and 105C is provided in each recording head via the flexible cable 206, the connector of the carriage 205, and the connector 152 of the recording head unit. The drive circuit and the like are electrically connected to the control circuit 300 on the main body side, so that the control circuit 300 can control ink ejection and the like in each recording head.

  The light receiving unit 210 provided near one end of the moving range of the carriage 205 receives light emitted from the light emitting element 101 of the ink tank 1 and outputs a signal corresponding to the light reception result to the control circuit 300. As will be described later, the control circuit 300 can determine whether or not the correct ink tank is mounted on the mounting portion of the carriage 205 based on this signal. An encoder scale 209 is provided along the movement path of the carriage 205, and an encoder sensor 211 is provided on the carriage 205. The detection signal of the sensor 211 is input to the control circuit 300 via the flexible cable 206, and the control circuit 300 detects the movement position of the carriage 205 according to the input detection signal. This moving position information is used for each print head ejection control, and is also used in an optical collation process for determining whether the ink tank mounting position is correct, which will be described later with reference to FIG.

  Further, the ink remaining amount detection sensor 214 provided at a predetermined position in the movement range of the carriage 205 includes a light emitting unit and a light receiving unit. The light emitting means irradiates light toward the detected portion light 17 of the ink tank. When there is ink in the ink storage chamber 11, the light emitted from the light emitting means passes through the detected part 17, and thus the light receiving means does not receive the reflected light from the detected part 17. On the other hand, when there is no ink in the ink storage chamber 11, the light emitted from the light emitting means is reflected by the detected part 17, so that the light receiving means receives the reflected light from the detected part 17. In this way, the presence or absence of ink in the ink storage chamber 11 can be determined based on the light reception result by the light receiving means. The absence of ink in the ink storage chamber means that the remaining amount of ink in the tank is less than a predetermined amount.

  The detection result by the ink remaining amount detection sensor is transmitted to the control circuit 300 on the main body side. Specifically, a signal indicating whether or not ink has been detected is output to the control circuit 300 for each ink tank 1 mounted on the carriage 205. Upon receiving this signal, the control circuit 300 performs dot count processing in order to manage the ink consumption of the negative pressure generating member storage chamber 12 from this point. In this dot count process, the total of the number of ink droplets ejected from the head and the number of ink droplets corresponding to the amount of ink consumed by the recovery process is counted. Then, the control circuit 300 manages the ink amount by writing the count value in the sequential RAM 302. Then, at a predetermined timing such as when the cover is opened, the latest ink amount information (remaining ink amount or ink consumption amount) stored in the RAM 302 on the main body side is stored in the memory 103B on the tank side via the bus wiring described later. Write. When the cover is open (S105 in FIG. 17), the control circuit 300 receives ink amount information from the tank control circuit 103 (S202 in FIG. 18), and the light emitting element emits light based on the received ink amount information. The state is determined (S205 in FIG. 18). Specifically, when there is ink in the ink storage chamber (when the remaining amount of ink is greater than a predetermined amount), the control circuit 300 outputs a data signal for causing the light emitting element to blink, to the control unit 103. Then, the control unit 103 blinks the light emitting element. On the other hand, when there is no ink in the ink storage chamber (when the remaining amount of ink is less than the predetermined amount), the control circuit 300 outputs a data signal for making the light emitting element blinking to the control unit 103 for control. The unit 103 blinks the light emitting element. Note that the user can be notified of information regarding the remaining amount of ink by another method such as using a lamp in the operation unit 213.

<2.2 Configuration of Connection Unit (FIGS. 12 to 16)>
FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a configuration of signal wiring for electrically connecting the main body side control circuit 300 and the tank side control circuit 103 via the flexible cable 206 in relation to the substrate 100 of each ink tank. is there.

  As shown in FIG. 12, the signal wiring for the ink tank 1 is composed of four signal lines, and is a signal wiring common to the five ink tanks 1 (so-called bus connection). That is, the common signal lines for the respective ink tanks 1 are the power supply signal line “VDD” and the ground signal line “GND” for power supply such as the operation of the control circuit 103 that performs light emission and driving of the light emitting element 101 in the ink tank. As will be described later, a signal line “DATA” for transmitting a control signal (control data) relating to processing such as turning on and off of the light emitting element 101 from the control circuit 300 to the control circuit 103 and its clock signal. It is composed of four signal lines of the line “CLK”. In the present embodiment, description will be made with four signal lines. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the “GND” line can be omitted by achieving a ground signal in another configuration. . It is also possible to configure the signal line of “CLK” and “DATA” by sharing one.

  On the other hand, the substrate 100 of each ink tank 1 is provided with a control circuit 103 that operates according to signals of these four signal lines and a light emitting element 101 that is controlled by the control circuit 103.

  FIG. 13 is a circuit diagram showing details of the substrate 100 provided with the control circuit 103 and the like. As shown in the figure, the control circuit 103 includes an input / output control circuit (I / O CTRL) 103A, a memory 103B, and an LED driver 103C. The input / output control circuit 103A functions as a drive control unit that performs drive control of the light emitting element 101 via the LED driver 103C in accordance with control data sent from the control circuit 300 on the main body side via the flexible cable 206. At the same time, it controls writing and reading of data to and from the memory 103B.

  The memory 103B is in the form of an EEPROM in this embodiment, but may be another type of storage device. The memory 103B functions as a storage unit and can store individual information of the ink tank 1. The individual information includes, for example, ink information indicating the type of ink stored in the tank, ID information indicating the unique number of the ink tank, manufacturing information indicating the manufacturing date and manufacturing lot number of the tank, etc. For example, characteristic information on the light emission characteristics is included.

  The ink information is written at a predetermined address in the memory 103B corresponding to the type of ink stored in the tank when the ink tank is shipped or manufactured. For example, the ink information is used as information (identification information) for identifying the ink tank, as will be described later with reference to FIGS. 15 and 16, whereby the ink tank is identified and data stored in the memory 103 </ b> B is stored. It is possible to perform writing and reading of data from the memory 103B and to control lighting and extinguishing of the light emitting element 101 of the ink tank.

  In addition, characteristic information regarding the light emission characteristics of the light emitting element described above is also written at a predetermined address in the memory 103B when the ink tank 1 is shipped or manufactured. Specifically, first, a light receiving unit having the same characteristics as the light receiving unit provided in the printer main body is prepared. As described above, this light receiving portion has no sensitivity to the sub-peak emission wavelength in the infrared light region. In this embodiment, the light receiving portion shown in FIG. 32 is used. Next, the amount of light emitted from the light emitting element is measured using this light receiving portion. This light emission amount corresponds to the amount of visible light excluding infrared light among the light emitted from the light emitting element, and is a parameter corresponding to the brightness of the light emitting element. The light quantity data obtained in this manner is classified into N stages (in this example, 4 stages) and ranked, and the rank information of the N stages is written in the memory 103B as the characteristic information. The rank information in the memory 103B is used to determine a light emission pattern (lighting time or number of lighting times per unit time) for causing the light emitting element to emit light in the tank state notification process.

  Examples of data written to and read from the memory 103B include data indicating the ink remaining amount or ink consumption of the tank. As described above, the ink tank 1 of the present embodiment is provided with the detected portion 17 (prism) at the bottom thereof, and when the remaining amount of ink decreases, this fact is optically detected via this prism. can do. In addition to this, the control circuit 300 can calculate the ink remaining amount and the ink consumption amount for each ink tank by the dot count process described above. Then, the ink amount information such as the remaining amount or the consumption amount is written into and read from the corresponding ink tank memory 103B. As a result, the memory 103B can hold the ink amount information at that time, and this information is used, for example, for more accurate remaining amount detection combined with the remaining ink amount detection using a prism, or attached. It is used to determine whether the ink tank is new or has been used and remounted.

  When the signal output from the input / output control circuit 103A is on, the LED driver 103C operates to apply a power supply voltage to the light emitting element 101, thereby causing the light emitting element 101 to emit light. On the other hand, the LED driver 103C operates so as not to apply the power supply voltage to the light emitting element 101 when the signal output from the input / output control circuit 103A is OFF, thereby turning off the light emitting element 101. Therefore, when the signal output from the input / output control circuit 103A is in an on state, the light emitting element 101 is kept on, and when the signal is off, the light emitting element 101 is kept off. 113 is a terminal for connecting the anode side of the light emitting element 101 to the LED driver 103C, and 115 is a terminal for connecting the cathode side of the light emitting element 101 to the ground line. Reference numeral 114 denotes a limiting resistor that determines a current to be supplied to the light emitting element 101, and is interposed between the output of the LED driver 103 </ b> C and the anode of the LED 114.

  FIG. 14 is a circuit diagram showing a modification of the configuration of the substrate 100 shown in FIG. This modification is different from the example shown in FIG. 13 in that power is supplied from a VDD power pattern provided in the substrate 100 of the ink tank in a configuration in which a power supply voltage is applied to the light emitting element 101. . The control circuit 103 is generally built on a semiconductor substrate, and the connection terminals on the semiconductor substrate are only LED connection terminals. Reducing the number of connection terminals greatly affects the area occupied by the semiconductor substrate, leading to cost reduction of the semiconductor substrate.

  FIG. 15 is a timing chart for explaining the data writing and reading operations for the memory 103B, and FIG. 16 is a timing chart for explaining the lighting and extinguishing operations of the light emitting element 101. When the main body side control circuit 300 transmits a command to the tank side control circuit 103, the main body side control circuit 300 specifies the type of ink based on the ink information, thereby specifying the ink tank to be commanded. As described above, the control circuit 300 functions as a transmission unit capable of transmitting a data signal including ink information as identification information for identifying the ink tank to the ink tank via the common signal line.

  As shown in FIG. 15, in the writing to the memory 103B, the “start code +” is sent from the control circuit 300 on the main body side to the input / output control circuit 103A in the control circuit 103 on the tank side via the signal line DATA (FIG. 12). The data signals “ink information”, “control code”, “address code”, and “data code” are sent in this order in synchronization with the clock signal CLK. “Start code + ink information” means the start of a series of data signals by the “start code” signal, and the ink tank 1 that is the target of this series of data signals by the “ink information” signal. Identify.

  As shown in the figure, the “ink information” has codes corresponding to the ink types “K”, “PGK”, “C”, “M”, “Y”, and the input / output control circuit 103A. Compares the ink information indicated by this code with its own ink information stored in the memory 103B, and only performs processing based on the subsequent data signal. The processing based on the data signal is not performed.

  Thus, even if the data signal is sent from the control circuit 300 on the main body side to each ink tank 1 via the common signal line “DATA” shown in FIG. 12, the ink information is included in the data signal. Thus, the ink tank 1 can be specified. Therefore, processing based on the control code of the subsequent data signal, such as writing, reading, turning on and off the light emitting element 101, can be performed only for the specified ink tank. It is apparent from the above description that the configuration using such a common data signal line can be the same without being limited to the number of ink tanks.

  The “control code” in the present embodiment indicates the type of command from the control circuit 300. As shown in FIG. 15, “ON” and “OFF” are used for turning on and off the light emitting element 101 described later. , Codes “READ” and “WRITE” indicating reading and writing to the memory, respectively, and “CALL” code for the main body side control circuit 300 to confirm the presence / absence of the ink tank 1. In this writing operation, the “WRITE” code follows the “ink information” code for specifying the ink tank 1. The next “address code” indicates the address of the memory that is the write destination, and the last “data code” indicates the content to be written (for example, data indicating the ink consumption).

  Note that the content represented by the “control code” is not limited to the above example, and for example, a control code related to a verify command, a continuous read command, or the like can be added.

  In reading, except that the control code is “READ”, the configuration of the data signal is the same as in the case of the above writing, and the code of “start code + ink information” is the same as in the case of the above writing. Similarly, the input / output control circuit 103A for all ink tanks captures the data signal thereafter, and only the input / output control circuit 103A for the ink tank having the same “ink information” captures. The difference is that after the address is specified by the address code, the read data is output in synchronization with the rising edge of the first clock (the 13th clock in FIG. 15). Even if the data signal terminals of a plurality of ink tanks are connected to such a common data signal line, the input / output control circuit 103A performs arbitration so that the read data does not collide with other input signals. is there.

  When the light emitting element 101 is turned on or off, as shown in FIG. 16, first, similarly to the above, first, a data signal of “start code + ink information” is input / output controlled from the control circuit 300 on the main body side via the signal line DATA. It is sent to the circuit 103A. As described above, the ink tank is specified by the “ink information”, and the light emitting element 101 is turned on / off based on the “control code” sent thereafter, only in the ink tank specified as described above. . As described above with reference to FIG. 15, the “control code” for turning on / off includes the “ON” or “OFF” code, and the light emitting element 101 is turned on by “ON” and turned off by “OFF”. Is done. That is, when the control code is “ON”, the input / output control circuit 103A outputs an ON signal to the LED driver 103C as described above with reference to FIG. 14, and maintains the output state thereafter. Conversely, when the control code is “OFF”, the input / output control circuit 103A outputs an OFF signal to the LED driver 103C and maintains the output state thereafter. Note that the actual timing of turning on or off the light emitting element 101 is performed after the seventh clock of the clock CLK for each data signal shown in FIG.

  In the example shown in FIG. 16, the “ink information” of the first data signal at the leftmost end of FIG. 16 specifies the pigment black ink PGK, and the “control code” instructs lighting. The pigment black ink tank 1PGK is specified, and the light emitting element 101 of the pigment black ink tank 1PGK is turned on. Next, since the “ink information” of the second data signal specifies magenta ink M and the “control code” instructs to turn on, the light emitting element 101 of the pigment black ink tank 1PGK is turned on. The light emitting element 101 of the magenta ink tank 1M is also turned on. Since the “ink information” of the third data signal specifies the pigment black ink PGK, and the “control code” instructs to turn off the light emitting element 101 only for the pigment black ink tank PGK. Turns off.

  Next, the code “CALL” in FIG. 15 will be described. The “CALL” code is one of the control codes transmitted from the main body side control circuit 300 to the tank side control circuit 103, and is typically used in the ink tank attaching / detaching process shown in FIG. First, a data signal having “start code + ink information” and “control code (including“ CALL ”code)” is input from the control circuit 300 on the main body side via the signal line DATA to the input / output control circuit of the control circuit 103. 103A. The input / output control circuit 103A that has received the “CALL” code confirms the coincidence between the “ink information” included in the transmitted data signal and the ink information stored in the memory 103B. If the match is confirmed, the control circuit 103 transmits a response to the control circuit 300. On the other hand, if the match cannot be confirmed, the control circuit 103B does not transmit a response to the control circuit 300. Thereby, for example, if the ink information specifies cyan ink C, the control circuit 300 can check whether or not a cyan ink tank is mounted.

<2.3 Control Procedure (FIGS. 17-18, 23-29)>
FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing a control procedure related to the attachment / detachment of the ink tank based on the configuration of the present embodiment described above. The control of turning on and off 101 is shown.

  When the main body cover 201 of the printer is opened by the user, this (cover open) is detected by a sensor (not shown) that is provided in the apparatus main body and detects the open / closed state of the main body cover 201 (S101). The process shown in FIG. 17 is a process that is activated upon detection of this cover open. When the cover open is detected, the carriage starts to move to the “tank replacement position” set in the vicinity of the center of the carriage movement range in S103, and ink tank attachment / detachment processing is executed in S105.

  FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing details of the ink tank attaching / detaching process. The ink attaching / detaching process is a process for detecting attachment / detachment of the ink tank in the cover open state, or counting the continuous non-attachment time of the ink tank. Note that when the ink tank is attached during the process of FIG. 18 (that is, the process of S105 of FIG. 17), a process (second notification process) for notifying the user of the completion of the ink tank attachment is performed. Done. In addition to this, a process (first notification process) for notifying the user of information relating to the ink remaining amount is also performed by turning on or blinking the light emitting element according to the ink remaining amount at the tank replacement position.

  In S201, the ink tank 1 to be processed is selected from the ink tanks 1K, 1PGK, 1Y, 1M, and 1C. In S202, a confirmation process is performed. In this confirmation process, first, as described above, the control circuit 300 sends a data signal including “ink information” corresponding to the ink tank 1 selected in S201 and a “CALL” code to the control circuit 103 on the tank side. Send. Upon receiving the “CALL” code, the tank-side control circuit 103 checks whether the “ink information” included in the received data signal matches the ink information stored in the memory 103B. When the coincidence is confirmed, the control circuit 103 transmits a response to the control circuit 300 and transmits the ink amount information and the light emission characteristic information (rank information) stored in the memory 103B together. On the other hand, when the match cannot be confirmed, the control circuit 103 does not transmit a response to the control circuit 300.

  In S203, the control circuit 300 confirms the response from the control circuit 103. If the control circuit 300 cannot confirm the response from the control circuit 103, it is determined that the ink tank 1 selected in S201 is not attached to the carriage 205, and the process proceeds to S204. The contents of the process of S204 will be described later.

  When the control circuit 300 confirms the response from the control circuit 103, it is determined that the ink tank 1 selected in S201 is being mounted on the carriage 205, and the process proceeds to S205. The contents of the process of S205 will be described later.

  After the processing of S204 and S205, one unit of processing is terminated. The ink tank attaching / detaching process including such a process is repeatedly performed until the closing of the main body cover 201 is detected by the sensor in S106 of FIG. At that time, the respective ink tanks 1 are selected in order in S201.

  Next, the contents of S204 and S205 will be described. In S204, information indicating that the ink tank 1 is not attached is stored in the RAM 302 of the printer as information regarding the ink tank 1 selected in S201. Further, referring to the result of the previous ink tank attaching / detaching process of the ink tank 1 stored in the RAM 302, it is determined whether or not the ink tank has changed from mounting to non-mounting. When the state changes from mounting to non-mounting, counting of the non-mounting time for the ink tank 1 is started. In the first ink tank attaching / detaching process with respect to the ink tank 1, when it is determined that there is no response in S203 and the process of S204 is executed, that is, when it is determined that the ink tank 1 is not attached from the beginning, the non-attaching time Start timing.

  In S205, information indicating that the ink tank 1 is being mounted is stored in the RAM 302 of the printer as information related to the ink tank 1 selected in S201. Further, the control circuit 300 transmits a data signal including “ink information” for specifying the ink tank 1 and a control code (ON code or OFF code) for controlling the light emission state of the light emitting element via a common wiring. To a plurality of control circuits 103. Upon receiving such a data signal, the control circuit 103 checks whether the “ink information” included in the transmitted data signal matches the “ink information” stored in the memory 103B. Then, the control circuit 103 that has confirmed the coincidence controls the light emission state of the light emitting element according to the control code included in the transmitted data signal. Whether the control code is the “ON” code or the “OFF” code is determined by the control circuit 300 on the main body side based on the ink amount information and the rank information received from the control circuit 103 on the tank side. Thereby, the light emission state of a light emitting element can be changed according to ink remaining amount and rank information. This will be described later with reference to FIGS.

  In S205, the result of the previous ink tank attaching / detaching process of the ink tank 1 stored in the RAM 302 is referred to, and it is determined whether the ink tank 1 has changed from non-installation to installation. When the ink tank 1 changes from non-installation to installation, the measurement of the non-installation time for the ink tank 1 is terminated and the measurement result is stored in the RAM 302. If the closing of the main body cover 201 is detected by the above-described sensor in S106 of FIG. 17 while the non-mounting time is being counted and the ink tank attaching / detaching process is completed, the non-mounting time is also counted simultaneously. To do.

  Then, it is determined whether or not there is an ink tank 1 whose non-mounting time exceeds a predetermined time when the cover is closed, and if it exceeds the predetermined time, a recovery flag is set in a predetermined area of the RAM 302. Only when it is determined in S110 of FIG. 17 that the optical collation process has been normally completed, the suction recovery process using the recovery unit is performed based on the recovery flag.

(Light-emitting element lighting / flashing pattern)
Here, a method for controlling the light emitting state of the light emitting element performed during the ink attaching / detaching process of FIG. 18 will be described with reference to FIGS. 37 to 38. FIG. 37 is a diagram schematically showing a light emission pattern of a light emitting element corresponding to different rank information. Note that the printer of this embodiment is configured to include the five ink tanks 1 as described above. However, in FIG. 37, Y (yellow), M (magenta), and C (cyan) are used for easy understanding. A case where the three ink tanks 1 (1Y, 1M, 1C) are mounted will be described as an example.

  In “C-on”, “M-on”, and “Y-on” on the left end side in the “DATA” column in FIG. 37, “C”, “M”, and “Y” indicate ink information, “On” indicates a lighting command of the light emitting element. Therefore, “C-on”, “M-on”, and “Y-on” are commands for lighting the light emitting elements (LEDs) of the ink tank 1C, the ink tank 1M, and the ink tank 1Y, respectively. The subsequent “C-off” and “M-off” are commands for turning off the light emitting elements 101 of the ink tank 1C and the ink tank 1M. Note that “null” indicates that there is no signal. The columns “Cyan LED”, “Magenta LED”, and “Yellow LED” indicate whether the light emitting elements of the ink tank 1C, the ink tank 1M, and the ink tank 1Y are in the ON state or the OFF state, respectively. Yes.

  As described above, the rank information stored in the memory 103B is obtained by classifying the light amounts of the light emitting elements into four stages, and specifically, rank 0, rank 0 in order from the light amount (dark LED). 1, rank 2, and rank 3. In FIG. 37, “Cyan LED” is a rank 3 LED (brightest LED), “Magenta LED” is a rank 2 LED, and “Yellow LED” is a rank 0 LED (darkest LED). Based on such rank information, the control circuit 300 on the apparatus main body side controls the lighting time (or the number of lighting times) of the light emitting element 101 per unit time. That is, the lighting time of a light emitting element with a large amount of light emission (bright) is made shorter than the lighting time of a light emitting element with a small amount of light emission (dark). Thereby, the variation in the brightness of the light emitting element of each ink tank can be suppressed small.

  In order to perform such brightness control, the control circuit 103 transmits rank information to the control circuit 300 as described in S202 of FIG. Upon receiving the rank information, the control circuit 300 determines the ON / OFF pattern of the control code included in the data signal transmitted to the control circuit 103 so that the light emitting element is driven with the light emission pattern according to the rank information. To do. For example, the control circuit 300 determines the ON / OFF code per unit time so that the light emission duty of the light emitting element of the ink tank 1C is 25% based on the rank information (rank 3) transmitted from the ink tank 1C. Determine the occurrence pattern. In addition, the control circuit 300 determines the ON / OFF code per unit time so that the light emission duty of the light emitting element of the ink tank 1M becomes 50% based on the rank information (rank 2) transmitted from the ink tank 1M. Determine the occurrence pattern. Furthermore, the control circuit 300 determines the ON / OFF code per unit time based on the rank information (rank 0) transmitted from the ink tank 1Y so that the light emission duty of the light emitting element of the ink tank 1Y becomes 100%. Determine the occurrence pattern. Then, the control circuit 300 sends a data signal including an ON or OFF code to the control circuit 103 according to the pattern thus determined. Upon receiving such a data signal, the control circuit 103 controls the light emitting state of the light emitting element in accordance with the ON or OFF code included in the data signal.

  The light emission duty is a numerical value corresponding to the lighting time per unit time. 100% duty is set for 100% duty when the entire period per unit time is “on”, 50% duty when the “on” time per unit time is ½, and “on” time per unit time Is set to 25% duty. In this way, by changing the “on” time per unit time, it is possible to change the brightness of the light-emitting element in human vision. In FIG. 37, the light emission pattern of rank 1 is omitted, but in the case of rank 1, the duty is 75%.

  In general, in the case of a light emitting element such as an LED having a brightness twice as high as that of a standard, by setting the light emission duty to 50%, the brightness looks the same as a standard one. Therefore, the brightness variation of the ink tank can be reduced by appropriately associating the rank information with the light emission duty. Note that blinking associated with the setting of the light emission duty of a light emitting element such as an LED is generally recognized as flicker in human vision below 50 Hz. Therefore, it is desirable to set the light emission duty with blinking of 100 Hz or more.

  FIG. 38 is a diagram showing a light emission pattern of the light emitting element at the time of blinking and lighting.

  FIG. 38A shows an example of a light emission pattern when the user can visually recognize that the LED is blinking. The repetition of “lighting” and “lighting off” in FIG. 38 is recognized as blinking. In the case of FIG. 38A, a part at the time of “lighting” corresponds to FIG. 37 described above. FIG. 38B is an example of a light emission pattern when the user can visually recognize that the LED is continuously lit, and a part at the time of “lighting” corresponds to FIG. 37 described above. In each of FIGS. 38A and 38B, the light emission duty is 25%, 50%, and 100% from the top. By repeating lighting and extinction as shown in FIG. 37 at a cycle (100 Hz or more) faster than the repetition of “lighting” and “lighting off” in FIG. Visual brightness can be adjusted.

  By combining the light emission patterns of FIGS. 38A and 38B, the light emitting elements can emit light according to the rank information (ranks 1 to 4) and the ink amount information in S205 of FIG. That is, for the ink tank determined based on the ink amount information when the remaining amount of ink is less than the predetermined amount (when there is no ink in the ink storage chamber 11), as shown in FIG. The light emitting element is caused to emit light so as to be visually recognized as blinking. At that time, the light emitting element is caused to emit light at a light emission duty corresponding to the rank information (ranks 1 to 4). On the other hand, for the ink tank determined based on the ink amount information when the remaining amount of ink is greater than the predetermined amount (when there is ink in the ink storage chamber 11), as shown in FIG. The light emitting element is caused to emit light so that it is visually recognized as lighting. At that time, the light emitting element is caused to emit light at a light emission duty corresponding to the rank information (ranks 1 to 4). According to the above configuration, in the first notification process and the second notification process described above, it is possible to notify the user of information regarding the state of the ink tank in a state where the brightness variation of the light emitting element is reduced. .

  Returning to FIG. 17, when it is detected in S106 that the main body cover 201 is closed, in S107, a process (mounting confirmation process) for confirming whether or not the mounting of the ink tank is normal is performed. In this mounting confirmation process, it is confirmed whether all the ink information corresponding to the ink tank to be mounted on the carriage is prepared by the same process as that described in the confirmation process in S202 of FIG. That is, in this embodiment, it is confirmed whether or not five types of ink tanks (1K, 1PGK, 1Y, 1M, 1C) are mounted on the carriage.

  More specifically, the control circuit 300 transmits a data signal including “ink information” and a “CALL” code while sequentially changing “ink information” corresponding to the five types of ink tanks. Check the response from.

  If the control circuit 300 can acquire ink information from each of the control circuits 103 of the five types of ink tanks (that is, if all the five types of ink information can be acquired), it is determined that the mounting is normal, and the process proceeds to S109. . On the other hand, if the five types of ink information cannot be acquired, it is determined that the mounting is abnormal, and the process proceeds to S108. As a case where the five types of ink information cannot be acquired, for example, there are cases where a plurality of ink tanks containing the same type (color) of ink are mounted on the carriage. If it is determined that there is a mounting abnormality, the process proceeds to S108, and an abnormality display in which the display unit of the operation unit 213 blinks in orange, for example, is performed.

<Optical verification processing>
Next, the optical verification process will be described. First, the optical verification process will be outlined. The optical matching process is a determination process in which light from the light emitting element 101 is received by the light receiving unit 210 and whether or not the ink tank is mounted at a correct position based on the light reception result.

  The optical collation process is performed when the ink tank 1 is mounted on the correct mounting portion and when the light emitting element 101 of the ink tank 1 is illuminated, although the position of the carriage 205 is the same. The principle is that the light receiving results of the light receiving unit 210 are different.

  For example, when the carriage 205 is in a predetermined position, the control circuit 300 specifies the type of ink and transmits a lighting command to the common wiring. The light receiving unit 210 emits light from the light emitting element 1010 based on the lighting command at that time. Using the light reception result, it can be determined whether or not the ink tank 1 containing the type of ink specified by the lighting command is mounted in the correct mounting portion.

  In this case, the type of ink targeted for the lighting command may be determined in advance corresponding to the position of the carriage 205. As one form in that case, one type of ink that is the target of the lighting command is assigned to each of a plurality of positions of the carriage 205 (for example, the mounting portion for the ink tank 1Y is opposed to the light receiving portion). In this case, yellow ink is allocated at a certain position, and magenta ink is allocated at a position where the mounting portion for the ink tank 1M is opposed to the light receiving portion. In this case, the light emitting element of one ink tank that is the target of the lighting command is caused to emit light at each of the plurality of positions, and the light reception amount detected by the light receiving unit 210 at this time (light reception associated with light emission at the plurality of positions). (Result) can be used to determine whether or not the ink tank is mounted in the correct position.

  As another form, two or more types of inks that are the target of the lighting command are assigned to each of a plurality of positions of the carriage 205 (for example, the mounting portion for the ink tank 1Y is opposed to the light receiving portion). In this position, yellow ink, magenta ink, and black ink are assigned, and magenta ink, cyan ink, and yellow ink are assigned to the light receiving portion where the mounting portion for the ink tank 1M is opposed. In this case, the plurality of ink tanks that are the targets of the lighting command are sequentially caused to emit light at each of the plurality of positions, and the amount of received light detected by the light receiving unit 210 at this time (according to the sequential light emission at each of the plurality of positions). It is possible to determine whether or not the ink tank is mounted at the correct position using the light reception result.

  Alternatively, it may be determined whether or not the ink tank is mounted at the correct position by sequentially changing the type of ink targeted for the lighting command for one position of the carriage 205. For example, the carriage 205 is moved and stopped so that the mounting portion for the ink tank 1Y is opposed to the light receiving unit 210, and light is emitted by sequentially changing the type of ink targeted for the lighting command such as Y, M, and C. The element 101 is illuminated. If the light receiving amount of the light receiving unit 210 is the strongest when the lighting command for Y is transmitted, it can be determined that the ink tank 1Y is mounted on the mounting unit for the ink tank 1Y.

  As described above, the specific contents of the optical collation processing can take various forms, and it goes without saying that these may be used together or different forms may be adopted depending on the type of ink. Further, the optical collation process may be performed for all types of ink tanks, or the optical collation process may be performed for some ink tanks.

<Characteristics of Light-Emitting Element 101 and Light-Receiving Unit 210 Used in Optical Collation Processing>
Here, the characteristics of the light emitting element applied in the present embodiment and the light receiving elements constituting the light receiving unit 210 will be described. FIG. 30 shows the emission wavelength of the light emitting element 101 used in the present embodiment. The emission wavelength is in the range of 580 nm to 700 nm, and the main peak emission wavelength is in the vicinity of about 640 nm. Further, the sub-peak emission wavelength is in the vicinity of 870 nm, and the amount of the sub-peak light is about 10% of the amount of the main peak light. On the other hand, FIG. 34 is a diagram showing light receiving sensitivity characteristics of a light receiving element having light receiving sensitivity in the visible light region and the infrared region. The sensitivity wavelength range of this light receiving element is 400 nm to 1100 nm, and the peak sensitivity wavelength is 800 nm.

  FIG. 31 shows the sensitivity wavelength range of FIG. 34 superimposed on the emission wavelength of FIG. As is clear from FIG. 31, the vicinity of 870 nm where sub-peak light is generated is close to the peak sensitivity wavelength of the light receiving element, and the sensitivity of the light receiving element with respect to the sub-peak wavelength is high. For this reason, as described above, the amount of received light exceeds the upper limit depending on the generation amount of the sub-peak. If the amount of received light exceeds the upper limit value, an erroneous determination may occur in the mounting position correctness determination.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 32, the main peak wavelength in the visible light region has sensitivity but the sub peak in the infrared region, so as not to be substantially affected by the sub peak emission wavelength. A light receiving element having no sensitivity to the wavelength is used. The light receiving element of FIG. 32 has a sensitivity wavelength range in the vicinity of 400 nm to 700 nm and a peak light receiving sensitivity in the vicinity of 570 nm. Note that the sensitivity wavelength range of the light receiving element applicable in this embodiment is not limited to the example of FIG. In the present embodiment, a light receiving element having a sensitivity wavelength range that is substantially not affected by the sub-peak emission wavelength may be used. For example, the upper limit of the sensitivity wavelength range is preferably around 680 nm to 750 nm. FIG. 33 shows the sensitivity wavelength range of FIG. 32 superimposed on the emission wavelength of FIG. As is clear from FIG. 33, the vicinity of 870 nm where the sub-peak is generated is outside the sensitivity wavelength range of the light receiving element in FIG. Therefore, erroneous determination due to sub-peak light can be suppressed. Furthermore, since the peak sensitivity wavelength of the light receiving element in FIG. 32 is close to the peak light emission wavelength of the light emitting element 101, it is possible to receive visible light more efficiently than using the light receiving element in FIG. It is also possible to save power by using a (dark) light emitting element.

  In the above description, the case where the light emission characteristic information of the visible light emitted from the light emitting element is obtained at the factory or the like at the time of manufacturing the tank has been described. However, the light emission characteristic information can also be obtained by the printer main body. In this case, the light emission characteristic information is obtained using the light receiving element of FIG. 32, but the light received by the light receiving element is visible light excluding infrared light (sub-peak light), and thus light is emitted from the light emitting element. It is possible to obtain the emission characteristics of visible light with high accuracy.

<Specific example of optical verification processing>
Next, a specific processing example of the optical matching process will be described. FIG. 23 is a flowchart showing the flow of the optical collation processing shown in S109 of FIG. 24 to 27 are diagrams for explaining the attached tank correctness determination process in S11 of FIG. FIG. 28 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the error check process in S13 of FIG.

  In FIGS. 24, 27 and 28, “K, PGK, Y, M, C” written on the carriage 205 are a dye black ink tank 1K, a pigment black ink tank 1PGK, a yellow ink tank 1Y, respectively. This represents the position of the mounting portion where the magenta ink tank 1M and the cyan ink tank 1C should be mounted.

  As shown in FIG. 11, in this embodiment, a mounting portion for mounting a dye black ink tank (referred to as “K mounting portion”) and a mounting portion for mounting a pigment black ink tank (referred to as “PGK mounting portion”). A yellow ink tank mounting portion (referred to as “Y mounting portion”), a magenta ink tank mounting portion (referred to as “M mounting portion”), and a cyan ink tank mounting portion (“C mounting portion”). Are arranged in this order from the left end. In the present embodiment, the rightmost C mounting portion cannot be opposed to the light receiving unit 210 because of the relationship between the movement range of the carriage 205 and the position of the light receiving unit 210.

  When the optical collation process in S109 of FIG. 17 is started, first, in S11 of FIG. 23, a process of determining whether or not the correct ink tank is mounted in each of the five ink tank mounting parts (mounting tank correct / incorrect determination). Process).

  FIG. 24 is an operation explanatory diagram in a case where correct ink tanks are mounted in all the mounting portions. When the carriage 205 is at the home position, the light emitting element 101 of the ink tank 1 is turned off. First, as shown in FIG. 24A, the carriage 205 in the rightmost home position (not shown) starts moving toward a position facing the light receiving unit 210.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 24B, before the carriage 205 reaches the position facing the light receiving unit 210, the light emitting element 101 of the dye black ink tank 1 </ b> K to be mounted on the K mounting unit at the left end is turned on. Let Next, with the light emitting element 101 of the dye black ink tank 1K turned on, the carriage 205 is moved from the position shown in FIG. 24B to the position shown in FIG. 24C, as shown in FIG. The K mounting part is opposed to the light receiving part 210.

  Here, the lighting (light emission) of the light emitting element 101 of the dye black ink tank 1K is performed as follows. First, the control circuit 300 on the main body side transmits a data signal including “ink information” for specifying the dye black ink and “control code” for instructing lighting to the common wiring. This data signal is input to the control circuit 103 of the five ink tanks (1K, 1PGK, 1Y, 1M, 1C) via the common wiring. Next, each control circuit 103 of these five ink tanks has “ink information” included in the data signal sent from the control circuit 300 on the main body side through the common wiring and “ink” stored in its own memory. Compare information.

  Then, when the compared ink information matches, the control to turn on the light emitting element 101 is performed, and when the compared ink information does not match, the control to turn on the light emitting element 101 is not performed. In the case of FIG. 24B, since the “ink information” included in the data signal specifies the dye black ink, only the control circuit 103 provided in the dye black ink tank 1K is a light emitting element provided in its own tank. The control circuit 103 provided in the other ink tanks (1PGK, 1Y, 1M, 1C) does not perform the lighting control of the light emitting element 101. As a result, even if a data signal is sent from the control circuit 300 on the main body side to each ink tank 1, only the light emitting element 101 of one designated ink tank can emit light. Although the case where the light emitting element 101 of the dye black ink tank emits light has been described above, it goes without saying that the mechanism for causing the light emitting elements of other ink tanks to emit light is the same.

  Then, the amount of received light (1) of the light receiving unit 210 when the light emitting element 101 of the dye black ink tank 1K is lit is detected, and information regarding this received amount of light (1) is stored in the RAM 302 as “K / Center”. . If the dye black ink tank 1K is attached to the K attachment portion, the light reception amount of “K / Center” becomes the maximum among the light reception amounts (“K / Center”, “K / Right”) relating to the tank 1K. .

  Next, after the light emitting element 101 of the dye black ink tank 1K is turned off, the amount of light received at this position is obtained as the background light amount (10), and information relating to this background light amount (10) is stored in the RAM 302 as “K / BG”. Remember. The background light amount corresponds to the light amount of external light (external light). The reason for obtaining the background light amount will be described later.

  Next, without changing the position of the carriage 205, as shown in FIG. 24D, the light emitting element 101 of the yellow ink tank 1Y to be mounted on the Y mounting portion adjacent to the K mounting portion except for the PGK mounting portion. Light up. Then, the light reception amount (2) of the light receiving unit 210 when the light emitting element 101 of the yellow ink tank 1Y is lit is detected, and information regarding this light reception amount (2) is stored in the RAM 302 as “Y / Left”.

  Next, the carriage 205 is moved from the position shown in FIG. 24D to the position shown in FIG. 24E while the light emitting element 101 of the yellow ink tank 1Y is turned on. As shown in FIG. The mounting portion is opposed to the light receiving portion 210. Then, the light reception amount (3) of the light receiving unit when the light emitting element 101 of the yellow ink tank 1Y is turned on is detected, and information regarding this light reception amount (3) is stored in the RAM 302 as “Y / Center”.

  If the yellow ink tank 1Y is attached to the Y attachment portion, the light reception of “Y / Center” among the light reception amounts (“Y / Center”, “Y / Left”, “Y / Right”) related to the tank 1Y. The amount is maximized. Next, after the light emitting element 101 of the yellow ink tank 1Y is turned off, the amount of received light at this position is obtained as the background light amount (11), and information on the background light amount (11) is stored in the RAM 302 as “Y / BG”. To do.

  Next, without changing the position of the carriage 205, the light emitting element 101 of the dye black ink tank 1K is turned on as shown in FIG. Then, the received light amount (4) of the light receiving unit when the light emitting element 101 of the dye black ink tank 1K is lit is detected, and information regarding the received light amount (4) is stored in the RAM 302 as “K / Right”.

  Next, after the light emitting element 101 of the dye black ink tank 1K is turned off without changing the position of the carriage 205, as shown in FIG. 24G, magenta to be mounted on the M mounting portion adjacent to the Y mounting portion. The light emitting element 101 of the ink tank 1M is turned on. Then, the light reception amount (5) of the light receiving unit 210 when the light emitting element 101 of the magenta ink tank 1M is turned on is detected, and information regarding this light reception amount (5) is stored in the RAM 302 as “M / Left”.

  Next, with the light emitting element 101 of the magenta ink tank 1M being turned on, the carriage 205 is moved from the position shown in FIG. 24G to the position shown in FIG. 24H, and M as shown in FIG. The mounting portion is opposed to the light receiving portion 210. Then, the light reception amount (6) of the light receiving unit 210 when the light emitting element 101 of the magenta ink tank 1M is turned on is detected, and information on the light reception amount (6) is stored in the RAM 302 as “M / Center”. If the magenta ink tank 1M is attached to the M attachment portion, the light reception amount of “M / Center” becomes the maximum among the light reception amounts (“M / Center”, “M / Left”) related to the tank 1M.

  Next, after the light emitting element 101 of the magenta ink tank 1M is turned off, the amount of received light at this position is obtained as the background light amount (12), and information on the background light amount (12) is stored in the RAM 302 as “M / BG”. To do. Next, without changing the position of the carriage 205, the light emitting element 101 of the yellow ink tank 1Y is turned on as shown in FIG.

  Then, the light reception amount (7) of the light receiving unit 210 when the light emitting element 101 of the yellow ink tank 1Y is lit is detected, and information regarding this light reception amount (7) is stored in the RAM 302 as “Y / Right”. Next, after the light emitting element 101 of the yellow ink tank 1Y is turned off without changing the position of the carriage 205, the cyan ink tank to be attached to the C attachment portion adjacent to the M attachment portion as shown in FIG. The 1C light emitting element 101 is turned on. Then, the light reception amount (8) of the light receiving unit 210 when the light emitting element 101 of the cyan ink tank 1C is lit is detected, and information regarding this light reception amount (8) is stored in the RAM 302 as “C / Left”. Thereafter, the light emitting element 101 of the cyan ink tank 1C is turned off.

  Finally, the carriage 205 is moved from the position shown in FIG. 24 (j) to the position shown in FIG. 24 (k) so that the PGK mounting portion faces the light receiving portion 210. Then, at this position, the light emitting element 101 of the pigment black ink tank 1PGK is caused to emit light, and the amount of light received (9) of the light receiving unit 210 at this time is detected, and information on the amount of received light (9) is “PGK / Center”. Is stored in the RAM 302.

  Next, after the light emitting element 101 of the pigment black ink tank 1PGK is turned off, the received light amount at this position is obtained as the background light amount (13), and information relating to this background light amount (13) is stored in the RAM 302 as “PGK / BG”. Remember.

  As described above, by repeating the light emission of the light emitting element 101 of the ink tank specified according to the position of the carriage 205 and the light reception by the light receiving unit 210, information on the received light amounts (1) to (9) and the background light amount. Information on (10) to (13) is obtained. Information on the received light amounts (1) to (9) is stored in the RAM 302 as the table 1 shown in FIG. 25A, and information on the background light amounts (10) to (13) is shown in FIG. Is stored in the RAM 302 as the table 2 shown in FIG. Thereafter, the CPU 301 of the printer subtracts the background light amount of the table 2 from the received light amount of the table 1 to obtain a corrected light amount from which the influence of the background light amount is removed, and information on this corrected light amount is shown in FIG. Stored in the RAM 302 as the table 3 to be stored.

  Here, the reason for creating the table 3 will be described. As described above, depending on the use environment of the printer, external light enters from the ASF 202 side or the discharge tray 203 side, and the light receiving unit 210 transmits external light even though the light emitting element 101 of the ink tank 1 is not lit. It may be detected. When the light emitting element 101 of the ink tank 1 is turned on in a situation where external light is entering, the amount of light received at that time is the light amount of the light emitting element 101 + the amount of external light. Therefore, it is preferable to determine the tank mounting position after removing the amount of external light (background light amount) from the amount of light received by the light receiving unit 210 during the light matching process.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, the correction light amount is obtained by subtracting the background light amount from the light reception amount of the light receiving unit 210, and the optical matching process is performed according to the correction light amount. For this purpose, the table 3 shown in FIG. 25C is created. Thus, the determination accuracy can be further improved by performing the tank attachment position correctness determination process using the table of FIG.

  Next, the control circuit 300 on the main body side uses the table 3 in FIG. 25C to check whether or not the correct ink tanks are mounted in the mounting sections in the order of K, Y, M, C, and PGK. I will make the judgment. FIG. 26 is a flowchart showing this determination sequence.

  First, in S40 of FIG. 26, it is determined whether or not an external light error has occurred. Specifically, it is determined whether or not each background light amount (BG) shown in the table 2 of FIG. When the background light amount is extremely large, the light amount of the light emitting element 101 + the light amount of external light exceeds the upper limit of the light amount that can be received by the light receiving unit 210, and the output value from the light receiving unit 210 is saturated. Then, a value obtained by subtracting the background light amount from the received light amount (corrected light amount) does not indicate the light amount of the light emitting element 101, and there is a risk of erroneous detection. Therefore, when the background light quantity exceeds the predetermined value, it is regarded as an “external light error”, the processing of FIG. 26 is terminated without performing the processing after S41, and the processing of S11 of FIG. 23 is terminated. Thereafter, the process proceeds to S12 in FIG. 23. In S12, it is determined that there is no “position error”, and the process in FIG.

  Thereby, the optical collation process (S109) of FIG. 17 is completed. Thereafter, it is determined in S110 that the optical matching process has not been completed normally, and an abnormal display is performed in S112. In the case of “external light error”, the display of the operation unit 213 blinks in orange, for example. If a display panel is provided on the operation unit 213 or the printer is connected to a PC, for example, “Printer trouble has occurred. Turn the power on again. If the problem persists, see the instruction manual. "Is displayed.

  On the other hand, if no “external light error” has occurred in S40 of FIG. 26, it is determined in S41 of FIG. 26 whether or not the correct ink tank (dye black ink tank 1K) is installed in the K mounting portion. judge. Therefore, it is determined whether or not the following condition (I) is satisfied.

[Condition (I)]
(1) “K / Center” correction light quantity (1) − (10) ≧ threshold, and (2) “K / Center” correction light quantity (1)-(10)> “K / Right” correction light quantity ( 4)-(11)
When the condition (I) is satisfied, it is determined that the correct ink tank (dye black ink tank 1K) is attached to the K attachment portion. On the other hand, if the condition (I) is not satisfied, it is determined that the correct ink tank is not mounted on the K mounting portion, and a “position error” flag is set for the K mounting portion.

  Next, in S42 of FIG. 26, it is determined whether or not the correct ink tank (yellow ink tank 1Y) is attached to the Y attachment portion. Therefore, it is determined whether or not the following condition (II) is satisfied.

[Condition (II)]
(1) “Y / Center” correction light quantity (3) − (11) ≧ threshold, and (2) “Y / Center” correction light quantity (3) − (11)> “Y / Right” correction light quantity ( 7)-(12), and (3) Correction light amount of “Y / Center” (3)-(11)> Correction light amount of “Y / Left” (2)-(10)
When the condition (II) is satisfied, it is determined that the correct ink tank (yellow ink tank 1Y) is attached to the Y attachment portion. On the other hand, when the condition (II) is not satisfied, it is determined that the correct ink tank is not mounted on the Y mounting portion, and a “position error” flag is set for the Y mounting portion.

  Next, in S43 of FIG. 26, it is determined whether or not the correct ink tank (magenta ink tank 1M) is attached to the M attachment portion. Therefore, it is determined whether or not the following condition (III) is satisfied.

[Condition (III)]
(1) “M / Center” corrected light quantity (6) − (12) ≧ threshold, and (2) “M / Center” corrected light quantity (6) − (12)> “M / Left” corrected light quantity ( 5)-(11) and (3) Correction light quantity of “M / Center” (6)-(12)> Correction light quantity of “C / Left” (8)-(12)
When the condition (III) is satisfied, it is determined that the correct ink tank (magenta ink tank 1M) is attached to the M attachment portion. On the other hand, if the condition (III) is not satisfied, it is determined that the correct ink tank is not mounted on the M mounting portion, and a “position error” flag is set for the M mounting portion.

  Next, in S44 of FIG. 26, it is determined whether or not the correct ink tank (cyan ink tank 1C) is attached to the C attachment portion. Therefore, it is determined whether or not the following condition (IV) is satisfied.

[Condition (IV)]
(1) The “position error” flag is not set in the processing of S41 to S43 in FIG. 26. If there is no “position error” flag, the correct ink tank (cyan ink tank 1C) is attached to the C attachment portion. judge. That is, if it is confirmed in S107 in FIG. 17 that the ink tanks 1C, 1Y, and 1K are normally installed in S41 to S43 under the condition that the KYMC ink tanks are confirmed to be aligned. , The tank attached to the C attachment portion can only be the cyan ink tank 1C. As described above, the pigment black ink 1PGK is larger than the other ink tanks 1 and cannot be attached to the C attachment part. Therefore, if the condition (IV) is satisfied, the tank attached to the C attachment part is the cyan ink tank 1C. It is decided. On the other hand, if there is at least one “position error” flag, the tank attached to the C attachment portion cannot be determined to be the cyan ink tank 1C. In this case, the “position error” flag for the C attachment portion Stand up.

  Finally, in S45 of FIG. 26, it is determined whether or not the correct ink tank (pigment black ink tank 1PGK) is attached to the PGK attachment portion. Therefore, it is determined whether or not the following condition (V) is satisfied.

[Condition (V)]
When “PGK / Center” correction light quantity (9) − (13) ≧ threshold condition (V) is satisfied, it is determined that the correct ink tank (pigment black ink tank 1M) is mounted on the PGK mounting section. . On the other hand, when the condition (V) is not satisfied, it is determined that the light emitting element 101 (or other part of the control circuit 300) of the pigment black ink tank mounted on the PGK mounting unit is defective. In this case, an “LED error” flag is set for the PGK mounting portion.

  As described above, the attached tank correct / incorrect determination process in FIG. 26 ends, that is, S11 in FIG. 23 ends.

  In the present embodiment, as described above, not only the received light amount (center light amount) obtained when the light emitting element 101 of the ink tank to be mounted on the mounting portion facing the light receiving unit 210 emits light, but also the received light. Using the received light amount (Left light amount, Rgiht light amount) obtained when the LED emits light at a position not facing the unit 210, it is determined whether or not the ink tank is mounted at the correct position. Yes. The reason is as follows.

  In order to determine whether the ink tank mounting position is correct or not, a mode in which only the light amount of the center is used is also conceivable. For example, if the Center light amount is equal to or greater than the threshold, it is determined that the tank mounting position is correct. If the Center light amount is less than the threshold, it is determined that the tank mounting position is incorrect. Even with such processing, it is possible to determine whether the tank mounting position is correct. However, when an LED is used as the light emitting element 101 as in this embodiment, the amount of emitted light varies due to manufacturing variations. If only an LED with a small emission amount variation tolerance and a small difference in emission amount is used, it is possible to determine whether the mounting position is correct or not even by using only the light amount of the center.

  However, considering the manufacturing cost, a certain amount of emission variation must be allowed. For example, when it is allowed to use an LED having a light emission amount difference of about several times, there is a case where it is not possible to determine whether the mounting position is correct with high accuracy by using only the light amount of the center. This will be described by taking as an example a case where the ink tank 1Y is erroneously mounted.

  Assume that the ink tank 1Y is erroneously attached to the M attachment portion adjacent to the Y attachment portion. In this case, the LED of the ink tank 1Y mounted on the M mounting portion is caused to emit light at a position where the Y mounting portion faces the light receiving portion, and the amount of received light at this time becomes the light amount of “Y / Center”. Here, if the light emission amount of the LED of the ink tank 1Y is large, the light amount of “Y / Center” may exceed the threshold value. That is, there is a case where the condition ((II)) (1) is satisfied despite the occurrence of a position error.

  Therefore, in this embodiment, in order to improve the accuracy of the ink tank mounting position, not only the Center light amount but also the Left and Right light amounts are used. Specifically, since the light amount of Left and Right can be detected for the Y mounting portion, the light amount of Center, Left and Right is used. In addition, since the Left light amount cannot be detected for the K attachment portion, the Right light amount can be detected, and therefore, the Center and Right light amounts are used. Further, since the Right light amount cannot be detected for the M mounting portion, the Left light amount can be detected, and therefore the Center and Left light amounts are used.

  In addition, regarding the M mounting portion, the use of only the light amounts of Center and Left may not be able to determine erroneous mounting, so the light amount of C / Left is also used. That is, a case is considered where the light emission amount of the light emitting element 101 of the magenta ink tank 1M erroneously attached to the C attachment portion is large. In this case, the amount of light received when the light emitting element 101 of the magenta ink tank 1M mounted on the C mounting unit emits light at a position where the M mounting unit faces the light receiving unit 210 is the light amount of “M / Center”. However, if the light emission amount of the LED of the magenta ink tank 1M is large, the light quantity of the M / Center becomes equal to or greater than the threshold value. That is, the condition (III) (1) is satisfied.

  In addition, when the light emitting element 101 of the magenta ink tank 1M attached to the C attachment portion emits light at a position where the Y attachment portion faces the light receiving portion 210, the amount of received light is “M / left”. Become. The distance between the light receiving unit 210 and the ink tank when the light quantity of “M / left” is obtained is larger than the distance between the light receiving part 210 and the ink tank when the light quantity of “M / Center” is obtained. . For this reason, since the light quantity of M / Left becomes smaller than the light quantity of M / Center, the condition (III) (2) is satisfied.

  Therefore, the determination using the light quantity of C / Left as shown in (3) of the condition (III) is performed. The amount of light received when the LED of the cyan ink tank 1C mounted on the M mounting portion emits light at a position where the M mounting portion faces the light receiving portion is the amount of light of “C / Left”. ) (3) is included, it is determined that the light amount of C / Left> the light amount of M / Center, and as a result, it is possible to determine the erroneous mounting as described above.

  Returning to FIG. 23, after S11, in S12 of FIG. 23, it is determined whether or not a position error has occurred in the process of S11. If it is determined that no position error has occurred, the optical collation process shown in FIG. 23 is terminated, and the process proceeds to S110 in FIG. For example, in the case of FIG. 24 described above, since it is determined that the correct ink tanks are installed in all the mounting units, that is, there is no error, the optical collation process is finished here. On the other hand, if it is determined in S12 of FIG. 23 that a position error has occurred, the process proceeds to S13, and an error check process is executed.

  In order to shift to this error confirmation process (S13), a situation in which a position error has occurred in the mounted tank correctness determination process (S11) is necessary. First, the case where a “position error” occurs will be described with reference to FIG. 27, and then the error confirmation process will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 27 shows a case where the dye black ink tank 1 and the yellow ink tank 1Y are installed in reverse, that is, the dye black ink tank 1K is installed in the Y installation section and the yellow ink tank 1Y is installed in the K installation section. FIG. At this point, since the printer cannot recognize that the erroneous mounting has occurred, the light emitting element 101 of the ink tank specified according to the position of the carriage 205 emits light and receives the light as in FIG. The operation of receiving light by the unit 210 is repeated. As a result, the information table 1 relating to the received light amounts (1) to (9) and the information table 2 relating to the background light amounts (10) to (13) shown in FIG. 25 are created. Table 3 is created from Thereafter, in the same manner as described above, the processing of S41 to S45 in FIG.

  As is clear from a comparison between FIG. 24 and FIG. 27, the lit ink tank is the same at all the timings (b) to (k). This is because the lighting timing of the light emitting element 101 of each ink tank is controlled according to the position of the carriage 205 and the lighting order of the plurality of tanks at that position. However, in FIG. 24 and FIG. 27, the lighting positions of the dye black ink tank 1K and the yellow tank 1Y are different, and accordingly, the received light amounts are different at several positions.

  For example, comparing FIG. 24 and FIG. 27C, the dye black-in tank 1K is lit at a position facing the light receiving unit 210 in FIG. 24, whereas it faces the light receiving unit 210 in FIG. The dye black-in tank 1K is lit at the position where it is not. For this reason, the received light amount of “K / Center” obtained in FIG. 27C is smaller than the received light amount of “K / Center” obtained in FIG. Similarly, comparing (e) with each other, the received light amount of “Y / Center” obtained in FIG. 27 (e) is larger than the received light amount of “Y / Center” obtained in FIG. 24 (e). Will also be small.

  On the other hand, when FIG. 24 and FIG. 27 (d) are compared with each other, in FIG. 24, the yellow ink tank 1Y is lit at a position not facing the light receiving unit 210, whereas in FIG. The yellow in-tank 1Y is lit at the position. For this reason, the received light amount “Y / Left” obtained in FIG. 27D is larger than the received light amount “Y / Left” obtained in FIG. Similarly, comparing (f) with each other, the received light amount of “K / Right” obtained in FIG. 27F is more than the received light amount of “K / Right” obtained in FIG. Will also be large.

  Thus, there is a difference in the amount of received light between normal mounting (FIG. 24) and erroneous mounting (FIG. 27). As a result, a “position error” that has not occurred in the case of normal mounting as shown in FIG. 24 occurs in the case of incorrect mounting as shown in FIG. In the case of FIG. 27, the processing results of S41 to S45 of FIG. 26 are as follows.

First, in S41 of FIG. 26, it is determined that the condition (I) is not satisfied.
For example,
(1) Correction light amount of “K / Center” (1) − (10) <threshold, and
(2) Correction light amount of “K / Center” (1) − (10) <correction light amount of “K / Right” (4) − (11)
It is determined. As a result, a “position error” flag is set for the K mounting portion.

Next, in S42 of FIG. 26, it is determined that the condition (II) is not satisfied.
For example,
(1) “Y / Center” correction light quantity (3) − (11) <threshold, and
(2) “Y / Center” corrected light intensity (3) − (11) <“Y / Right” corrected light intensity (7) − (12), and (3) “Y / Center” corrected light intensity (3) -(11)>"Y / Left" correction light quantity (2)-(10)
It is determined. As a result, a “position error” flag is set for the Y mounting portion.

  Next, in S43 of FIG. 26, it is determined that the condition (III) is satisfied. Therefore, the “position error” flag is not raised. In the case of FIG. 27, as in the case of FIG. 24, since the magenta ink tank 1M is mounted on the M mounting portion, the determination result is the same as in the case of FIG.

  Next, in S44 of FIG. 26, it is determined that the condition (IV) is not satisfied. This is because the “position error” has occurred with respect to the K mounting portion and the Y mounting portion, and the ink tanks mounted to the C mounting portion cannot be determined. Therefore, the “position error” flag is set for the C mounting portion.

  Finally, in S45 of FIG. 26, it is determined that the condition (V) is satisfied. This is because no failure has occurred in the light emitting element 101 of the pigment black ink tank 1PGK mounted on the PGK mounting portion.

  In this way, in the case of FIG. 27, in the process of FIG. 26 (the process of S11 of FIG. 23), a “position error” occurs for the K attachment part, the Y attachment part, and the M attachment part. Therefore, it is determined that there is a position error in S12 of FIG. 23, and the process proceeds to an error confirmation process (S13).

  In this error check process, when a “position error” occurs in the process of S11, in addition to determining what color ink tank is mounted in the mounting portion where the position error has occurred, a position error occurs. It is also determined whether or not the light emitting element 101 of the ink tank attached to the attached attachment part (excluding the C attachment part) has failed. Then, in S112 in FIG. 17, which is a subsequent process, flags for displaying these errors are set.

  FIG. 28 is an explanatory diagram of the error checking process, and FIG. 29 is a flowchart of the error checking process. First, in S21 of FIG. 29, one mounting unit is selected from the mounting units where the “position error” has occurred (except for the C mounting unit that cannot face the light receiving unit). Next, in step S22, it is made to face one selected mounting part light receiving part 210. Next, in S23, the ink tanks to be mounted on the respective mounting portions where the position error has occurred are sequentially turned on / off, and the received light amounts at that time are sequentially obtained. This is shown in FIGS. 28A to 28C.

  First, as shown in FIG. 28A, the light emitting element 101 of the dye black ink tank 1K is placed with the K mounting portion selected from the mounting portions where the “position error” has occurred facing the light receiving portion 210. Turn on and acquire the amount of light received at that time. Thereafter, the light emitting element 101 of the dye black ink tank 1K is turned off. Next, as shown in FIG. 28B, the light emitting element 101 of the yellow ink tank 1Y is turned on in a state where the K mounting portion is opposed to the light receiving portion 210, and the received light amount at that time is acquired. Thereafter, the light emitting element 101 of the yellow ink tank 1Y is turned off. Finally, as shown in FIG. 28C, the light emitting element 101 of the cyan ink tank 1C is turned on with the K mounting portion facing the light receiving portion 210, and the amount of light received at that time is acquired. Thereafter, the light emitting element 101 of the cyan ink tank 1C is turned off.

  Next, in S24 of FIG. 29, the maximum received light amount is specified from the received light amounts obtained in S23. Next, in S25, it is determined whether or not the maximum received light amount is greater than or equal to a threshold value. If it is determined that the maximum amount of received light is equal to or greater than the threshold, the ink tank that was turned on when the maximum amount of received light was obtained in S26 is determined as the ink tank attached to the K attachment portion.

  In the case of FIG. 28, the amount of light received when the yellow ink tank 1Y attached to the K attachment portion is turned on becomes the maximum amount of light received, so the yellow ink tank 1Y is attached to the K attachment portion. It is determined. On the other hand, if it is determined in S25 that the maximum light receiving amount is not equal to or greater than the threshold value, it is determined that the light emitting element 101 of the ink tank mounted on the mounting portion facing the light receiving portion has failed, and an LED error has occurred. To do. In this case, an LED error of the ink tank attached to the K attachment portion is assumed.

  Thereafter, the process proceeds to S28, in which it is determined whether or not all mounting parts (excluding the C mounting part) where the position error has occurred have been selected. If all the mounting parts have been selected, the process proceeds to S29. On the other hand, when not all the mounting parts are selected, the process proceeds to S21, and the processes after S21 are repeated for the mounting parts that are not selected.

  In the case of FIG. 28, since a position error has occurred in the Y mounting portion in addition to the K mounting portion, the processing subsequent to S21 is performed for the Y mounting portion as well as the K mounting portion. This is shown in FIGS. 28D to 28F. First, as shown in FIG. 28D, the light emitting element 101 of the dye black ink tank 1K is turned on with the Y mounting portion facing the light receiving portion 210, and the amount of light received at that time is acquired. Thereafter, the light emitting element 101 of the dye black ink tank 1K is turned off.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 28E, the light emitting element 101 of the yellow ink tank 1Y is turned on with the Y mounting portion facing the light receiving portion 210, and the amount of light received at that time is acquired. Thereafter, the light emitting element 101 of the yellow ink tank 1Y is turned off. Finally, as shown in FIG. 28 (f), the light emitting element 101 of the cyan ink tank 1C is turned on with the Y mounting portion facing the light receiving portion 210, and the amount of light received at that time is acquired. Thereafter, the light emitting element 101 of the cyan ink tank 1C is turned off.

  Next, the processing after S24 in FIG. 29 is performed. In the case of FIG. 28, since the received light amount obtained when the dye black ink tank 1K mounted on the Y mounting portion is turned on becomes the maximum received light amount, the black ink tank 1Y is mounted on the Y mounting portion. It is determined that

  Next, in S29 of FIG. 29, it is determined whether there is an LED error. If it is determined in S29 that there is no LED error, the process proceeds to S30, and the ink tank attached to the C attachment portion is specified. At the time of S30, an ink tank other than the ink tank mounted on the C mounting portion in S26 is specified. For example, in the case of FIG. 28, since it is specified in S26 that the yellow ink tank 1Y is attached to the K attachment portion and the dye black ink tank 1K is attached to the Y attachment portion, It is specified that the ink tank is installed.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in S29 that there is an LED error, the ink tank attached to the C attachment portion cannot be determined, and the process is terminated as it is. As a result, the error confirmation process (S13) in FIG. 23 ends, and the optical collation process in FIG. 23 also ends.

  Note that the body cover 201 may be opened during the optical verification process. Even in this case, the optical matching process (S109) is continued. If the cover close is detected before the optical matching process is completed, the subsequent normal display (S111) or abnormal display (S112) is performed, and then the carriage is moved to the “tank replacement position” (S103). On the other hand, if the cover close is not detected before the optical verification process is completed, that is, if the cover open state is continued, the cover open state is displayed via the display unit, display panel, PC monitor, etc. of the operation unit 213. This is notified to the user. At the same time, if the optical collation process is not normally completed, an abnormal display as described later is performed in S112.

  In FIG. 17, when the above-described optical verification process in S109 is completed, it is determined in S110 whether the optical verification process has been normally completed. In S110, it is determined whether or not there is an “external light error”, “position error”, or “LED error” flag in the light verification process. It is determined that there is no normal end. If an error has occurred, the control circuit 300 does not perform recording based on the recording start command input at this time or the recording start command input thereafter, unless the error is canceled. To control. By doing so, for example, it is possible to prevent the recording from being performed in a state where the ink tank mounting position is wrong, and it is possible to avoid a serious color mixture in the ink liquid chamber of the recording head. it can.

  When it is determined in S110 that the process is normally completed, the process proceeds to S111, the display of the operation unit 213 is lit in green, for example, and the process is terminated. On the other hand, if it is determined in S110 that the process has not ended normally, the process proceeds to S112.

  In S112, the indicator of the operation unit 213 is blinked in orange, for example. At this time, the content of the error can be notified to the user by changing the number of blinks according to the error specified in S109. Further, in order to perform the process of informing the user of the ink tank in which the “position error” has occurred (the third notification process), the light emitting element of the ink tank is blinked. The blinking method is as described with reference to FIGS.

  When the operation unit 213 is provided with a display panel or when a printer is connected to the PC, the following display is performed on the display panel or the PC monitor, for example. In the case of “LED error”, the error message “An error has occurred in the ink tank. Open the printer cover and replace the ink tank installed in the installed part.” Is displayed. .

  On the other hand, in the case of “Position error”, “There is an ink tank that is not installed in the correct position. △ Check that the correct ink tank is installed in the installation position of the ink tank installed in the installation part. Error message is displayed. As a result, the user can be notified of an ink tank that is not mounted in the original correct position or an ink tank in which the light emitting element 101 has failed, and the ink tank that has been mounted incorrectly can be remounted or light-emitted. The user can be prompted to replace the ink tank in which the element (LED) 101 has not failed.

  FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing a recording process that is started in response to the normal termination of the process of FIG. 17 and the input of a recording start signal to the printer. In this process, first, in S401, a remaining ink amount confirmation process is performed. In this process, for the job that is going to be recorded, the recording amount is obtained from the recording data, and this amount is compared with the remaining amount of each ink tank. It is a process to confirm. In this process, the ink remaining amount obtained by the control circuit 300 as the remaining amount at that time can be used.

  In S402, it is determined whether there is an ink amount necessary for recording based on the above confirmation processing. When there is a sufficient amount of ink, a recording operation is performed in S403, and the display unit of the operation unit 213 is lit in green in S404 and the process ends normally. On the other hand, when it is determined in S402 that there is not a sufficient ink amount, the display unit of the operation unit 213 blinks orange in S405. If the host PC that controls the printing apparatus is connected to the printing apparatus, the remaining ink amount can be displayed through the PC monitor in S405. Furthermore, in response to the detection of the cover open, the light emitting element of the tank that has been determined that the ink amount is not sufficient can be blinked to notify the user of the ink tank to be replaced.

<Second Embodiment>
In the first embodiment, the optical matching process in the case where the C mounting portion that is the right end mounting portion cannot face the light receiving unit 210 has been described. However, in the second embodiment, the C mounting portion that is the right end mounting portion. The optical collation process in the case where can face the light receiving unit 210 will be described. Except for this point, the second embodiment is the same as the first embodiment, so only the differences will be described below.

  In the second embodiment, similarly to the first embodiment, the optical matching process is performed according to the flowchart of FIG. However, in the second embodiment, the determination process regarding the M mounting portion and the C mounting portion is different from that of the first embodiment. Therefore, the processing contents of S11 and S13 in FIG. 23 are different between the second embodiment and the first embodiment, and the operation contents and processing contents shown in FIGS. .

  The second embodiment is greatly different from the first embodiment in that the cyan ink tank 1C is located at a position where the C mounting portion, which is the right end mounting portion, faces the light receiving portion 210 in the second embodiment. Is emitted, and the amount of received light (21) at that time is detected. At this position, the magenta ink tank 1M is caused to emit light, and the amount of received light (22) is detected. This is the point used for determining the success or failure of the installed tank. Hereinafter, the optical matching process in the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 39 to 42.

  FIG. 39 is an explanatory diagram of an operation in the second embodiment in a case where correct ink tanks are mounted on all the mounting portions. FIG. 39 corresponds to FIG. 24 of the first embodiment, and FIGS. 39 (a) to (j) and (k) are the same as FIGS. 24 (a) to (j) and (k). On the other hand, FIGS. 39 (l) to (n) do not exist in FIG. 24, and this is the difference between FIG. 39 and FIG. In the mounting tank success / failure determination process (S11 in FIG. 23) of the second embodiment, the received light amount (1) in FIGS. 39 (c) to (j) as described in FIGS. 24 (c) to (j). To (8) and background light amounts (10) to (12) are obtained. Next, while the light emitting element 101 of the cyan ink tank 1C is kept lit, the carriage 205 is moved from the position shown in FIG. 39 (j), and as shown in FIG. The mounting portion is opposed to the light receiving portion 210. Then, at the position of FIG. 39 (l), the amount of received light (21) when the light emitting element 101 of the cyan ink tank 1C is lit is detected, and information on the amount of received light (21) is [C / Center]. Is stored in the RAM 302.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 39 (m), after the light emitting element 101 of the cyan ink tank 1C is turned off, the received light amount at this position is obtained as the background light amount (14), and information on the background light amount (14) is obtained. Is stored in the RAM 302 as “C / BG”. Next, as shown in FIG. 39 (n), the light emitting element 101 of the magenta ink tank 1M is turned on without changing the position of the carriage 205. Then, the amount of received light (22) when the light emitting element 101 of the magenta ink tank 1M is lit is detected, and information regarding the received amount of light (22) is stored in the RAM 302 as “M / Right”. Thereafter, the carriage 205 is moved to the position shown in FIG. 39K, and the received light amount (9) and the background light amount (13) are obtained as described in the first embodiment.

  As described above, the received light amounts (21) to (22) and the background light amount (14) are obtained in addition to the received light amounts (1) to (9) and the background light amounts (10) to (13). Then, a table 1 ′ is created in which information relating to the received light amounts (21) and (22) is written in the [C / Center] and [M / Right] fields of the table 1 in FIG. This table 1 ′ is the table shown in FIG. In addition, a table 2 ′ is created in which information on the background amount (14) is written in the [C / BG] column of the table 2 in FIG. This table 2 ′ is the table shown in FIG. Further, information on (21)-(14) is written as the correction light quantity in the [C / Center] column of Table 3, and information on (22)-(14) is written as the correction light quantity in the [M / Right] column. A written table 3 'is created. This table 3 ′ is the table shown in FIG.

  In the second embodiment, the attached tank correctness determination process (FIG. 26) is performed using the table 3 ′ shown in FIG. Since the processes of S41 to S42 and S45 in FIG. 26 are the same as those of the first embodiment, the processes of S43 and S44 will be described below.

  As is clear from the above, regarding the M mounting portion, the information of Center, Left, and Right is obtained in the same manner as the Y mounting portion. Therefore, in the determination process of S43 in FIG. 26, in addition to the [M / Center] and [M / Left] information used in the first embodiment, the [M / Right] information is also used. Specifically, it is determined whether or not the following condition (III ′) is satisfied.

(Condition III ')
(1) “M / Center” corrected light quantity (6) − (12) ≧ threshold, and (2) “M / Center” corrected light quantity (6) − (12)> “M / Left” corrected light quantity ( 5)-(11) and (3) Correction light quantity of “M / Center” (6)-(12)> Correction light quantity of “M / Right” (22)-(14)
If the condition (III ′) is satisfied, it is determined that the correct ink tank (magenta ink tank 1M) is attached to the M attachment portion. On the other hand, if the condition (III ′) is not satisfied, it is determined that the correct ink tank is not mounted on the M mounting portion, and a “position error” flag is set for the M mounting portion.

  Next, the determination process (S44) of the C mounting portion will be described. As for the C mounting part, in the same way as the K mounting part, in addition to the Center information, information at another position (Right information for the K mounting part, but Left information for the C mounting part) ) Specifically, it is determined whether or not the following condition (IV ′) is satisfied.

[Condition (IV ′)]
(1) “C / Center” correction light quantity (21) − (14) ≧ threshold, and (2) “C / Center” correction light quantity (21)-(14)> “C / Left” correction light quantity ( 8)-(12)
If the condition (IV ′) is satisfied, it is determined that the correct ink tank (magenta ink tank 1M) is attached to the C attachment portion. on the other hand. If the condition (IV ′) is not satisfied, it is determined that the correct ink tank is not attached to the C attachment portion, and a “position error” flag is set for the C attachment portion.

  As described above, the attached tank correct / incorrect determination process of FIG. 26 is finished, and thereby, S11 of FIG. 23 is finished. Thereafter, the determination criteria in S12 of FIG. 23 are the same as those in the first embodiment. Regarding the error confirmation processing in S13, the operation content and the processing content differ between the first embodiment and the second embodiment. The differences are as follows.

  The error checking process (S13) in the first embodiment is as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 29. However, in S21 and S28 of this flowchart, the C mounting part cannot face the light receiving part (S22 cannot be executed). In relation), the processing is executed except for the C mounting portion. Further, the processing of S29 and S30 is included because of the processing except for the C mounting portion in S21 and S28.

  On the other hand, in the second embodiment, since the C mounting portion can face the light receiving portion, processing is performed without removing the C mounting portion in S21 and S28 in the flowchart of FIG. Therefore, when a “position error” has occurred in the C mounting portion, the C mounting portion can be selected in S21. When the C mounting portion is selected, the C mounting portion is made to face the light receiving portion (S22), and in this state, the light emitting elements 101 of the ink tanks to be mounted on the mounting portion where the “position error” has occurred are sequentially placed. Turn on / off and sequentially obtain the amount of light received at that time (S23).

  Next, after performing S24 to S27 as in the first embodiment, the process proceeds to S28. In S28, the determination is made without removing the C mounting portion, and when all the position error mounting portions are selected, the processing ends without performing the processing of S29 and S30. As described above, the second embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that the determination is made without removing the C mounting portion in S21 and S28 and the processing in S29 and S30 is not performed.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 41, consider a case where the cyan ink tank 1C is mounted on the M mounting portion and the magenta ink tank 1M is mounted on the C mounting portion. It is assumed that neither the light emitting element 101 of the cyan ink tank 1C nor the magenta ink tank 1M has failed. In this case, in S11 of FIG. 23 (attached tank correct / incorrect determination process), as shown in FIG. 41, the light emitting elements of each tank emit light, and the light from the light emitting elements is received by the light receiving unit. As a result, a “position error” occurs in the M mounting portion and the C mounting portion. Therefore, in FIG. 29 corresponding to S13 (error confirmation processing) in FIG. 23, one mounting portion (here, M mounting portion) out of the mounting portions (here, M mounting portion and C mounting) where the “position error” has occurred. (Mounting part) is selected (S21).

  Next, as shown in FIG. 42A, the M mounting portion is opposed to the light receiving portion 210 (S22). Next, the light emitting element 101 of the magenta ink tank 1M is turned on with the M mounting part facing the light receiving part 210, the amount of light received at that time is acquired, and then the light emitting element 101 of the magenta ink tank 1M is turned off. (S23). Next, as shown in FIG. 42 (b), the light emitting element 101 of the cyan ink tank 1C is turned on with the M mounting portion facing the light receiving portion, and the amount of light received at that time is acquired. The light emitting element 101 of the ink tank 1C is turned off (S23).

  Next, the maximum received light amount is specified from the received light amounts obtained in S23 (S24). Here, the amount of received light obtained when the cyan ink tank 1C is turned on is larger than the amount of received light obtained when the magenta ink tank 1M is turned on, so the former amount of received light is the maximum amount of received light. Next, it is determined whether or not the maximum received light amount is equal to or greater than a threshold value (S25). If it is determined that the maximum amount of received light is equal to or greater than the threshold, the ink tank that was lit when the maximum amount of received light was obtained is determined as the ink tank attached to the M attachment portion. In this case, it is determined that the cyan ink tank 1C is attached to the M attachment portion. On the other hand, if it is determined in S25 that the maximum light reception amount is not equal to or greater than the threshold value, the light emitting element 101 of the ink tank attached to the attachment portion facing the light receiving portion 210 is the same as in the first embodiment. Is determined to have failed, and an LED error occurs.

  Next, the process proceeds to S28, in which it is determined whether or not all mounting parts in which position errors have occurred have been selected. In this case, since a “position error” has also occurred in the C mounting portion, the processing from S21 onward is performed for the C mounting portion as well as the M mounting portion. That is, the C mounting portion is selected as the mounting portion in which the “position error” has occurred (S21), and then the C mounting portion is made to face the light receiving unit 210 (S22).

  Next, as shown in FIG. 42C, the light emitting element 101 of the magenta ink tank 1M is turned on in a state where the C mounting portion is opposed to the light receiving portion 210, and the received light amount at that time is acquired. The light emitting element 101 of the tank 1M is turned off (S23). Next, as shown in FIG. 42 (d), the light emitting element 101 of the cyan ink tank 1C is turned on with the C mounting portion facing the light receiving portion 210, and the amount of light received at that time is acquired. The light emitting element 101 of the cyan ink tank 1C is turned off (S23).

  Next, the maximum received light amount is specified from the received light amounts obtained in S23 (S24). Here, the amount of received light obtained when the magenta ink tank 1M is turned on is larger than the amount of received light obtained when the cyan ink tank 1C is turned on, so the former amount of received light is the maximum amount of received light. Next, it is determined whether or not the maximum received light amount is equal to or greater than a threshold value (S25). If it is determined that the maximum amount of received light is equal to or greater than the threshold, the ink tank that was turned on when the maximum amount of received light was obtained is determined as the ink tank attached to the C attachment portion. In this case, it is determined that the magenta ink tank 1M is attached to the C attachment portion. Next, the process proceeds to S28, and determination is performed again. In this case, since there is no mounting portion in which a “position error” has occurred, the processing is terminated as it is.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, position errors and LED errors can be detected with high accuracy.

<Third Embodiment>
In the first and second embodiments, the embodiment including the pigment black ink tank 1PGK having a shape (size) different from that of the other ink tanks has been described. However, the present invention naturally includes such an ink tank having a different shape. May be included.

  In the third embodiment, four ink tanks 1K, 1Y, 1M, and 1C obtained by removing the pigment black ink tank 1PG from the five ink tanks used in the first and second embodiments are used. In this embodiment, each of the four ink tanks can be attached to any attachment portion, so that erroneous attachment may occur as in the above-described embodiment.

  In the third embodiment, the optical verification process is performed by excluding the process of the PGK mounting unit from the optical verification process of the first and second embodiments. Since other points are the same as those in the first and second embodiments, description thereof will be omitted. Thereby, it is possible to perform optical collation processing when all the ink tanks have the same shape.

<Fourth Embodiment>
The difference between the fourth embodiment and the above-described embodiment is only the configuration of the light receiving unit 210, and the others are the same. The light receiving section applicable in the present invention has substantially no light receiving sensitivity with respect to the sub-peak light emission wavelength of the light emitting element 101, and is not limited to the light receiving element shown in FIG.

  FIG. 35 is a diagram illustrating characteristics of a filter that is one element constituting a light receiving unit of another form that can reduce the influence of sub-peaks. The filter of FIG. 35 passes about 90% or more of the wavelength region of 400 nm to 750 nm, but cuts the wavelength of 750 nm or more. Therefore, by using this filter, it becomes possible to reduce the influence of the sub-peak near 870 nm.

  In the present embodiment, such a filter is arranged on the front surface of the light receiving element in FIG. 34 (the surface on the light incident side of the light emitting element) to constitute the light receiving unit 210. FIG. 36 is a diagram in which the emission wavelength of FIG. 31, the sensitivity wavelength range of FIG. 34, and the filter wavelength range of FIG. 35 are overlapped. As is apparent from FIG. 36, since the sub-peak light near 870 nm is cut by the filter, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of erroneous determination due to the effect of the sub-peak.

  Note that the filter applicable in the present embodiment is not limited to the filter of FIG. 35, and for example, a filter that cuts a wavelength of 700 nm or more may be used. Further, the wavelength range to be cut changes depending on the wavelength and influence of the sub-peak. For this reason, it goes without saying that an effective filter is selected according to the wavelength range to be cut.

  In this embodiment, a filter is used as means for cutting the wavelength range. However, the number of parts is reduced by a configuration such as coating the surface of the light receiving unit 210 to cut a wavelength of 700 nm or more. Is also effective.

<Other embodiments>
(Tank modification)
The ink tank applicable in the present invention is not limited to that shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, and for example, tanks as shown in FIGS. 5, 10, and 20 can be used. The light emitting elements 101 provided in these tanks are, for example, the light emitting elements shown in FIG. However, the light emitting element applicable in the present invention is not limited to the light emitting element of FIG. In the present invention, any light-emitting element having a main peak emission wavelength in the visible light region (wavelength region of 400 nm to 760 nm) and a sub-peak emission wavelength in the infrared light region (wavelength region on the longer wavelength side than 760 nm) Applicable. Hereinafter, modifications of the tank will be described.

(Tank modification 1)
20A and 20B are a schematic side view and a front view, respectively, of an ink tank (tank of modified example 1) that can be applied in the present invention. In the ink tank shown in FIGS. In this example, 100 and the light emitting element 101 are arranged at different positions.

  In this example, a light emitting element 101 and a substrate 100-2 on which the light emitting element 101 is mounted are provided in the upper front portion of the ink tank 1. In the same manner as described above, the substrate 100 and the substrate 100-2 or the light emitting element 101, which are disposed on a slope portion preferable for good electrical connection with the connector 152 on the carriage side and protection from ink, and the wiring portion 159-2. By connecting via the, an electrical signal is exchanged. 3H is a hole provided in the base portion of the support member 3 in order to arrange the wiring portion 159-2 along the ink tank casing.

  In this example, when the light emitting element 101 emits light, light is projected in a direction (front side) indicated by an arrow in the figure. The projected light reaches a visible position by the user. On the other hand, the light receiving unit 210 is located at the end of the scanning range of the carriage and at a position where it can receive the light projected from the light emitting element 101. As described in each of the above-described embodiments, the light emission of the light emitting element 101 is controlled when the carriage 205 is positioned at a position facing the light receiving unit 210 or a position in the vicinity of the facing position. The control circuit 300 can recognize whether or not the ink tank 1 is mounted at the correct position from the light reception information as the light reception result of the light receiving unit 210. In the configuration of FIG. 20, the substrate 100, the wiring portion 159-2, and the substrate 100-2 can be integrated with each other by using a flexible printed cable (FPC).

(Tank modification 2)
FIG. 5 is a side view showing another ink tank (tank of modification 2) applicable in the present invention. The substrate 100 is disposed in the vicinity (slope) of the portion where the front and bottom surfaces of the ink tank 1 intersect so as to be inclined with respect to both the front and bottom surfaces. As in the above-described embodiment, the substrate 100 is provided with a light emitting element 101, a control circuit 103 for controlling the light emitting element, a memory (not shown), and an electrode pad as a tank side contact. Then, the control circuit 103 controls the light emission of the light emitting element 101 in accordance with an electrical signal supplied through the electrode pad from the connector as the apparatus body side contact.

  Further, the ink tank 1 is provided with a light guide part 121 for guiding light from the light emitting element 101. As is apparent from the drawing, the light guide unit 121 is erected between the front side wall surface of the ink tank exterior and the support member 3 at intervals from the front side wall surface and the support member. A light incident surface 123 is provided at the lower end of the light guide unit 121, and the light incident surface 123 is disposed in the vicinity of the light emitting element 101. The reason why such an arrangement is made is to suppress the attenuation of the amount of light when the light emitted from the light emitting element 101 is projected onto the light guide unit 121. The light incident from the light incident surface 123 is emitted to the outside from the upper end portion 122 of the light guide portion 121 or a portion between the upper end portion 122 and the lower end portion. The light emitted from the light guide unit 121 to the outside is received by the light receiving unit 210 during the above-described optical matching process.

  By providing the light guide unit 121 in the ink tank 1 in this way, the light emitted from the light emitting element 101 can reach the light receiving unit 210 without being blocked by a holder or the like. Thereby, it becomes easy to project the amount of light necessary for the optical collation processing to the light receiving unit, and the degree of freedom of arrangement of the light emitting element 101 can be increased.

(Tank modification 3)
FIG. 10 is a side view showing another ink tank (tank of modification 3) applicable in the present invention. The tank shown in FIG. 10 has a light guide part 121 as in the tank shown in FIG. 5, but the arrangement of the light guide part 121 is different from that shown in FIG. Hereinafter, the tank of FIG. 10 will be described. The configuration of the substrate 100, the control circuit 103, the light emitting element 101, and the like in the tank of FIG. 10 is the same as that in FIG.

  The support member 3 of the ink tank 1 is integrally formed with the exterior member of the ink tank 1 and resin, and serves as a fulcrum portion (root portion) when the portion 234 connected to the exterior member is elastically displaced. A light guide 121 is provided on the inner surface of the support member 3 (the side facing the tank front side wall surface). The light guide 121 is configured to project from the inner surface of the support member 3 toward the tank front side wall, and the light incident surface 123 at the lower end of the light guide 121 is a root portion 234 of the support member 3. It is provided in the vicinity. Light emitted from the light emitting element 101 is incident from the light incident surface 123, and the incident light is emitted to the outside from the front end 122 of the light guide unit 121. The light emitted from the light guide unit 121 is received by the light receiving unit 210 (not shown) during the optical matching process. The light guide 121 may be formed integrally with the support member 3, or the individually formed light guide 121 may be fixed to the support member 3.

(Tank modification 4)
In each of the above embodiments, the supply system is configured such that an amount of ink corresponding to the amount of ejected ink is always continuously supplied to the print head (hereinafter referred to as a continuous supply method). The case where the present invention is applied to a configuration using an ink tank that is detachably attached to a recording head that is mounted on a carriage or the like and reciprocally moves (main scanning) has been described. However, the present invention can also be applied to a configuration using an ink tank that is inseparably attached to the recording head. This is because even with such a configuration, it is conceivable that if the mounting position is different, data of different colors is received, or the order of color overlap is different from the design, so that a desired recording quality cannot be obtained.

(Substrate variations)
FIG. 21 is a circuit diagram showing details of a substrate 100 according to another embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the figure, the control circuit 103 includes an input / output control circuit (I / O CTRL) 103A and an LED driver 103C. The input / output control circuit 103A controls driving of the light emitting element 101 via the LED driver 103C according to control data sent from the control circuit 300 on the main body via the flexible cable 206. The LED driver 103C operates to apply a power supply voltage to the light emitting element 101 when the signal output from the input / output control circuit 103A is on, thereby causing the light emitting element 101 to emit light. Accordingly, when the signal output from the input / output control circuit 103A is in an on state, the light emitting element 101 is turned on, and when the signal is in an off state, the light emitting element 101 is turned off.

  This embodiment is different from the first embodiment shown in FIG. 13 in that there is no memory 103B. A method for specifying an ink tank even when there is no individual information (for example, ink information) stored in the memory and controlling turning on / off of the light emitting element 101 of the ink tank is shown in the timing chart shown in FIG. Explained.

  From the control circuit 300 as the main body side control unit to the input / output control circuit 103A in the control circuit 103 as the tank side control unit, “start code + ink information” and “control code” via the signal line DATA (FIG. 12). Are sent in synchronization with the clock signal CLK. The input / output control circuit 103A identifies the “ink information” + “control code” sent together as a “command”, and internally includes a command identification unit 103D that determines whether the output signal to the LED driver 103C is on or off. It is configured.

  Each type of ink tank of K, PGK, Y, M, and C is equipped with a control circuit 103 having a different command identification unit 103D, and the commands for controlling on / off of each ink type are shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. That is, each command identification unit 103D is configured to include individual information (ink information) for each ink type, and this is compared with the “ink information” portion of the input “command”. Identify and control various operations. Accordingly, for example, when the main body transmits “K-ON” ink information + control code “111100” for lighting the ink tank 1K together with the start code, only the command identification unit 103D of the ink tank 1K identifies and only the ink tank 1K. Can be controlled to light up. In this embodiment, the control circuit 103 needs to be configured differently for each ink type, but it is advantageous in that it is not necessary to mount the memory 103B.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 22, the command identification unit 103D does not only turn on / off the light emitting elements 101 for each ink type, but also, for example, a command “ALL-ON” for turning on / off the light emitting elements 101 of all types of ink. ”,“ ALL-OFF ”, and a“ CALL ”command for specifying a type of ink and outputting a response signal from the control circuit 103 may be used.

  As another example, the present invention can also be applied to a case where a command comprising ink information + control code sent from the control circuit 300 on the main body side to the ink tank 1 is not directly compared with ink information (individual information) in the ink tank. It is. That is, the control circuit 103 converts (calculates) the input command, compares the converted value with a predetermined value held in the memory 103B or the command identification unit 103D, and the comparison result is a predetermined value. Control corresponding to turning on or off may be performed in response to the above relationship.

  Separately from the above example, the signal sent from the main body side is converted (calculated) in the control circuit 103, and the value held in the memory 103B or the command control circuit 103D is also converted (calculated) in the control circuit 103. When the converted values are compared, and the comparison result corresponds to a predetermined relationship, control such as lighting or extinguishing may be performed.

<Types of ink used>
In the above-described embodiment, the case where five types of ink (K, PGK, Y, C, M) or four types of ink (K, Y, C, M) are used has been described. However, the ink that can be applied in the present invention. The kind of is not limited to this. In the present invention, in addition to the above four or five types of ink, a form using a light ink (for example, light cyan (Lc), light magenta (Lm), gray (GY), etc.) having higher brightness than these inks, Also applicable to forms using special color inks (for example, red (R), blue (B), green (G), etc.) that can express lightness and saturation that cannot be expressed by the combination of the above four or five types of ink. It is. As such a form, for example, a form using six kinds of inks (K, Y, C, M, Lc, Lm), and seven kinds of inks (K, PGK, Y, C, M, Lc, Lm) are used. There may be various forms such as a form to be used and eight types of ink (K, Y, C, M, Lc, Lm, R, G, etc.). The present invention can also be applied to forms using three types of inks, Y, C, and M.

(Modification of determining light emission pattern)
In the embodiment described above, the control circuit 300 receives the light emission characteristic information (rank information) from the tank-side control circuit 103, and determines the ON / OFF code transmission pattern according to the rank information, whereby the light emission pattern of the light emitting element. (See FIGS. 18 and 37). However, the present invention is not limited to this. The light emission pattern may be determined by the tank control circuit 103. For example, the control circuit 103 on the tank side stores it in its own memory 103 within the time (unit time) from receiving the previous “ON” code until receiving the next “ON or OFF” code. The light emitting element is turned on / off according to the rank information. That is, although the reception of the “ON” code is used as a trigger for light emission, the light emission pattern itself is determined by the control circuit 103 based on the rank information. The transmission frequency of the “ON” code can be lowered.

  The following forms are also applicable. When the control circuit 300 receives the light emission characteristic information (rank information) from the tank side control circuit 103, the lighting counter information is obtained based on the rank information. Then, a data signal including the lighting counter information and the “ON” code is transmitted to the control circuit 103. This lighting counter information is information indicating how many times the light emitting element is lit within the time (unit time) from the transmission of the previous “ON” code to the transmission of the next “ON or OFF” code. It is. For example, it is assumed that the maximum number of lighting times per unit time is 8. When the rank information is rank 0, since it is necessary to emit light with 100% duty, the counter information is “8”. When the rank information is ranks 1, 2, and 3, since it is necessary to emit light at 75%, 50%, and 25% duty, the counter information is “6”, “4”, and “2”, respectively. Upon receiving such counter information together with the “ON” code, the control circuit 103 turns on the light emitting element for the number of times according to the counter information until the next “ON” or “OFF” code is received. For example, when the counter is 8, the light emitting element is lit 8 times out of 8 times per unit time, and when the counter is 6, the light emitting element is lit 6 times out of 8 times.

Claims (6)

An ink tank comprising a light emitting element, a memory storing characteristic information relating to the light emitting characteristics of the light emitting element, and a drive control unit for controlling driving of the light emitting element;
A mounting portion on which the ink tank is detachably mounted;
A light receiving unit for receiving light from the light emitting element driven by a drive control unit of an ink tank mounted on the mounting unit;
Determination means for determining whether or not the ink tank is attached to a correct attachment portion based on a light reception result of the light receiving portion;
A cover that can be opened and closed;
An inkjet recording apparatus comprising:
The drive control unit is based on the characteristic information stored in the memory so as to notify the user of the state of the ink tank mounted on the mounting unit by the light emission of the light emitting element when the cover is opened. Controlling the driving of the light emitting element,
The light emitted from the light emitting element has a main peak in the visible light region and a sub peak in the infrared light region,
The light receiving unit is sensitive to the wavelength of the main peak and not sensitive to the wavelength of the sub-peak,
The ink jet recording apparatus, wherein the characteristic information is information on a light emission characteristic of visible light emitted from the light emitting element. A signal line electrically connected to the drive control unit of the ink tank mounted on the mounting unit;
Transmitting means capable of transmitting a control signal for causing the light emitting element to emit light according to a light emission pattern determined based on characteristic information stored in the memory to the drive control unit via the signal line. Prepared,
The drive control unit follows the control signal transmitted from the transmission unit so as to notify the user of the state of the ink tank mounted on the mounting unit by light emission of the light emitting element when the cover is opened. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein driving of the light emitting element is controlled. A plurality of ink tanks comprising: a light emitting element; a memory storing characteristic information regarding the light emission characteristics of the light emitting element; and a drive control unit that controls driving of the light emitting element;
A mounting portion on which the plurality of ink tanks are detachably mounted;
A common signal line electrically connected in common to the drive control units of the plurality of ink tanks mounted on the mounting unit;
Transmission means capable of transmitting a data signal including identification information for specifying the ink tank to the drive control unit via the common signal line;
A light receiving unit for receiving light from the light emitting element driven by the drive control unit of the ink tank specified by the identification information included in the data signal transmitted from the transmission unit;
Determination means for determining whether or not the ink tank is attached to a correct attachment portion based on a light reception result of the light receiving portion;
A cover that can be opened and closed;
An inkjet recording apparatus comprising:
In order to notify the user of information on the state of the ink tank by light emission of the light emitting element in a state where the cover is opened, the transmitting means transmits the light emitting element according to a light emission pattern determined based on characteristic information stored in the memory. The data signal including a control signal for causing light emission and the identification information is transmitted to the drive control unit, and the drive control unit of the ink tank specified by the identification information included in the data signal is in accordance with the control signal. Controlling the driving of the light emitting element,
The light emitted from the light emitting element has a main peak in the visible light region and a sub peak in the infrared light region,
The light receiving unit is sensitive to the wavelength of the main peak and not sensitive to the wavelength of the sub-peak,
The ink jet recording apparatus, wherein the characteristic information is information on a light emission characteristic of visible light emitted from the light emitting element.   The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the light receiving unit has no sensitivity in the infrared light region. A light-emitting element and a mounting part on which an ink tank having a drive control unit for controlling driving of the light-emitting element is detachably mounted, and the light-emitting element driven by the drive control unit of the ink tank mounted on the mounting part A light receiving unit for receiving light from the light receiving unit, a determination unit for determining whether or not the ink tank is mounted on a correct mounting unit based on a light reception result of the light receiving unit, and a cover that can be opened and closed. An ink tank that is detachably attached to the apparatus main body,
The light emitting element;
A memory storing characteristic information on the light emission characteristics of the light emitting element;
The drive control unit,
The drive control unit drives the light emitting element based on the characteristic information stored in the memory so as to notify the user of information on the state of the ink tank by light emission of the light emitting element when the cover is opened. Control
The main peak emission wavelength of the light emitting element is in a visible light region where the sensitivity of the light receiving unit is present,
The sub-peak emission wavelength of the light emitting element is in the infrared region where the sensitivity of the light receiving unit is not present,
The ink tank according to claim 1, wherein the characteristic information is information relating to a light emission characteristic of visible light emitted from the light emitting element. A mounting unit on which a plurality of ink tanks including a light emitting element and a drive control unit that controls driving of the light emitting element are detachably mounted;
A common signal line electrically connected in common to the drive control units of the plurality of ink tanks mounted on the mounting unit;
Transmission means capable of transmitting a data signal including identification information for specifying the ink tank to the drive control unit via the common signal line;
A light receiving unit for receiving light from the light emitting element driven by the drive control unit of the ink tank specified by the identification information included in the data signal transmitted from the transmission unit;
Determination means for determining whether or not the ink tank is attached to a correct attachment portion based on a light reception result of the light receiving portion;
A cover that can be opened and closed;
An ink tank that is detachably attached to the main body of the apparatus,
The light emitting element;
A memory storing characteristic information on the light emission characteristics of the light emitting element;
The drive control unit,
The drive control unit is configured to notify the user of information about the state of the ink tank by light emission of the light emitting element in a state where the cover is opened, according to a light emission pattern determined based on characteristic information stored in the memory. The data signal including a control signal for causing a light emitting element to emit light and the identification information is received via the common signal line, and the light emitting element is provided according to the control signal and the identification information included in the received data signal. Control the drive of
The main peak emission wavelength of the light emitting element is in a visible light region where the sensitivity of the light receiving unit is present,
The sub-peak emission wavelength of the light emitting element is in the infrared region where the sensitivity of the light receiving unit is not present,
The ink tank according to claim 1, wherein the characteristic information is information relating to a light emission characteristic of visible light emitted from the light emitting element.

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