JP2012228831A - Liquid discharging system and control method of agitation in liquid housing container - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a technique capable of reducing unevenness in concentration by carrying out optimum agitation in a liquid housing container newly attached at a liquid discharging system.SOLUTION: The liquid discharging system includes: a container attaching part, which can detachably attach the liquid housing container; a drive mechanism which reciprocates the container attaching part; and a control unit, which controls the liquid discharging system. When it is detected that the liquid housing container is newly attached to the container attaching part as an agitation process, the control unit acquires information from a storage device of the attached liquid housing container, determines the degree of agitation of liquid in the attached liquid housing container at least based on the manufacturing time indicated by manufacturing time data contained in the acquired information and the current time, and, in accordance with the determination, reciprocates the attached liquid housing container by using the drive mechanism and controls an agitation operation.

Description

  The present invention relates to a liquid ejection apparatus to which a liquid storage container can be attached, and a method for controlling stirring of the liquid storage container.

  A printer that is a liquid ejecting apparatus detachably mounts an ink cartridge that is a liquid container (also simply referred to as a “cartridge”), and performs printing by ejecting ink contained in the cartridge onto a printing medium. Here, when the ink contained in the cartridge is a pigment-based ink containing pigment particles, the pigment particles may settle and the ink density distribution in the cartridge may be uneven (density unevenness). In order to reduce the density unevenness, conventionally, the ink is stirred by reciprocating the carriage (for example, Patent Documents 1 to 4).

  For example, in the printer disclosed in Patent Document 1, the agitation mode is determined in accordance with the elapsed time from the previous agitation operation, and the ink is agitated by reciprocating the carriage. For example, in the printer disclosed in Patent Document 2, the stirring mode is determined according to the type of ink such as the color of ink and the specific gravity of pigment particles, and the carriage is reciprocated to stir the ink.

JP 2007-331307 A JP 2007-331308 A JP 2007-331342 A JP 2009-73091 A

  Here, the pigment particles, which are the sediment components in the ink, settle as time passes. In general, the time from when the cartridge is manufactured to when it is mounted on the carriage may be long. In the conventional technique, the stirring performed immediately after the cartridge is mounted on the carriage does not consider the time from when the cartridge is manufactured until it is mounted on the carriage. For this reason, there is a possibility that the ink is not efficiently stirred and the density unevenness of the ink cannot be reduced. In addition, the ink is stirred for a time longer than the time required to reduce the density unevenness of the ink, and the time required for the stirring may become unnecessarily long.

  The above problems are not limited to printers in which ink cartridges can be detachably mounted, but are common to liquid ejection devices that can detachably mount liquid storage containers for storing liquids for ejection onto target objects. there were.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a technique capable of reducing density unevenness by performing more optimal stirring for a newly installed liquid storage container.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is to solve at least a part of the problems described above, and the invention can be implemented as the following forms or application examples.

Application Example 1 A liquid ejection apparatus that ejects liquid to a target through a nozzle,
A container mounting portion that can detachably mount a liquid storage container that contains the liquid and has a storage device that stores information about the liquid storage container;
A drive mechanism for reciprocating the container mounting portion;
A control unit for controlling the liquid ejection device, and a control unit for controlling the stirring process of the liquid in the liquid container newly mounted on the container mounting unit,
The information includes manufacturing time data indicating the manufacturing time of the mounted liquid storage container,
The control unit, as the stirring process,
When it is detected that the liquid container is newly attached to the container attachment part, the information is acquired from the storage device of the attached liquid container,
Based on at least the manufacturing time indicated by the manufacturing time data included in the acquired information and the current time, the degree of stirring of the liquid in the mounted liquid container is determined,
A liquid ejection apparatus that controls the stirring operation by reciprocating the mounted liquid storage container according to the determination using the drive mechanism.

  According to the liquid ejection device described in Application Example 1, when a liquid container is newly attached, the degree of stirring is determined based on the manufacturing time indicated by the acquired manufacturing time data and the current time, and the stirring is executed. . Therefore, since the degree of agitation can be determined in consideration of the time from when the liquid container is manufactured to when it is mounted on the liquid ejection device, the optimum agitation operation according to the degree of sedimentation of the sedimentation component is performed and the liquid is Density unevenness can be reduced.

[Application Example 2] The liquid ejection apparatus according to Application Example 1,
The degree of agitation is a liquid ejection device that is set stepwise by a plurality of different modes.
According to the liquid ejecting apparatus described in the application example 2, since it has a plurality of modes set in stages, the degree of stirring can be easily determined.

[Application Example 3] The liquid ejection apparatus according to Application Example 1 or Application Example 2,
The liquid ejection apparatus, wherein the degree of stirring is set to increase monotonically as the manufacturing elapsed time of the mounted liquid storage container calculated by subtracting the manufacturing time from the current time increases.
In general, there is a low possibility that the liquid storage container is actively stirred after the liquid storage container is manufactured and mounted on the container mounting portion. Therefore, the liquid concentration unevenness increases as the manufacturing elapsed time becomes longer. According to the liquid ejecting apparatus described in the application example 3, the degree of stirring is set to increase monotonically as the manufacturing elapsed time becomes longer. Therefore, more optimal stirring can be performed, which can reduce the concentration unevenness of the liquid in the liquid container. Here, “monotonically increases” may not include a portion where the degree of stirring becomes smaller as the manufacturing elapsed time becomes longer, and may include a portion where the degree of stirring is the same.

[Application Example 4] The liquid ejection apparatus according to Application Example 2 or Application Example 3 subordinate to Application Example 2,
When the current time cannot be acquired, the control unit performs the stirring operation in a mode in which the degree of stirring is maximized among the plurality of modes.
According to the liquid ejection device described in the application example 4, when the current time cannot be acquired, the stirring operation is performed in a mode in which the degree of stirring is maximized, and thus the concentration unevenness of the new liquid container is more reliably reduced. it can.

[Application Example 5] The liquid ejection apparatus according to any one of Application Examples 1 to 4,
The information further includes liquid type data indicating the type of liquid stored in the mounted liquid storage container,
The controller is
Based on the liquid type data, if it is determined that the liquid contained in the mounted liquid storage container does not contain a sediment component, the stirring process is terminated without performing the stirring operation,
Based on the liquid type data, when it is determined that the liquid stored in the mounted liquid storage container contains a sediment component, the stirring operation is performed according to the determined degree of stirring. Finish the liquid ejection device.
According to the liquid ejection device described in the application example 5, since the stirring operation is not performed when the liquid stored in the liquid storage container does not include the sediment component, the processing time of the stirring process can be shortened.

Application Example 6 The liquid ejection apparatus according to any one of Application Examples 1 to 5,
The information further includes color data indicating the color of the liquid stored in the mounted liquid storage container,
The controller is
A liquid ejection apparatus that determines the degree of stirring based on the color of the liquid indicated by the color data.
According to the liquid ejection apparatus described in Application Example 6, since the color of the liquid is also taken into consideration when determining the degree of stirring, a more optimal stirring operation for reducing density unevenness can be performed.

[Application Example 7] The liquid ejection device according to any one of Application Examples 1 to 6,
The degree of stirring is set using at least one of a moving speed, a moving acceleration, a number of reciprocating movements, a moving distance, and an operating time of the stirring operation in the reciprocating movement. Discharge device.
According to the liquid ejection device described in Application Example 7, the degree of stirring can be set based on various conditions that affect liquid stirring.

[Application Example 8] The liquid ejection apparatus according to any one of Application Examples 1 to 7,
The information further includes specification data indicating the presence or absence of a stirring plate for stirring the liquid with respect to the mounted liquid container.
When the control unit determines that the new liquid storage container includes the stirring plate based on the acquired specification data, the control unit varies at least one of the number of reciprocating movements and the movement acceleration of the container mounting unit. A liquid ejection apparatus that performs the stirring operation based on the degree of stirring set in (1).
According to the liquid ejection device described in Application Example 8, with respect to the liquid storage container including the stirring plate, the stirring operation is performed based on the degree of stirring set by changing at least one of the number of reciprocating movements and the moving acceleration. Is running. Therefore, since a large inertia force can be applied to the stirring plate by the stirring operation, the liquid can be efficiently stirred by swinging the stirring plate.

[Application Example 9] The liquid ejection apparatus according to any one of Application Examples 1 to 8,
Furthermore, a suction mechanism for sucking ink from the nozzle is provided,
The controller, after performing the stirring process,
A liquid ejection apparatus that executes a first process of sucking the liquid by the suction mechanism from an exchange nozzle that discharges the liquid in the mounted liquid container among the nozzles.
Various problems occur in the nozzle that discharges the liquid. For example, there is a case where a liquid discharge operation is performed without filling the nozzle with a liquid, or a case where the discharge operation is performed in a state where impurities such as dust, fixed matter, and bubbles are present in the nozzle. According to the liquid ejection device described in the application example 9, it is possible to reduce the possibility that the above-described various problems occur due to the first processing. In addition, since the first process is performed after the stirring process, the liquid is supplied to the nozzle from the liquid container having reduced density unevenness, so that the concentration change of the entire liquid in the mounted liquid container can be changed. Can be suppressed.

[Application Example 10] The liquid ejection apparatus according to Application Example 9,
Furthermore, a discharge mechanism for discharging the liquid from the nozzle is provided,
The controller, after executing the first process,
A liquid ejection apparatus that performs a second process of ejecting the liquid in the exchange nozzle from the exchange nozzle to the outside other than the target by the ejection mechanism.
According to the liquid ejection device described in application example 10, the occurrence of the above-described problem can be further reduced by performing the second process after the first process. In addition, since the second process is also performed after the stirring process, the liquid is supplied to the nozzle from the liquid container having reduced density unevenness, so that the concentration change of the entire liquid in the mounted liquid container can be changed. Can be suppressed.

[Application Example 11] The liquid ejection apparatus according to any one of Application Examples 1 to 10,
The controller is
Write the current time as write time data at a predetermined timing in the storage device of the liquid container mounted in the container mounting portion,
When it is detected that the liquid storage container mounted on the container mounting section is removed and the removed liquid storage container is mounted again on the container mounting section, the storage device of the liquid storage container mounted again The write time data written in
Based on at least the writing time indicated by the acquired writing time data and the current time, the degree of stirring of the liquid in the liquid container that has been mounted again is determined, and according to the determined degree of stirring. A liquid ejection apparatus that controls the stirring operation.
According to the liquid ejection device described in Application Example 11, the re-installed liquid storage container determines the degree of stirring based on the writing time and the current time and performs stirring. Therefore, the degree of stirring can be determined in consideration of the time removed from the liquid ejection device, and a more efficient stirring operation can be executed.

  The present invention can be realized in various forms. In addition to the liquid ejection device described above, the liquid storage container attached to the liquid ejection device, and a computer program for performing the agitation method. The present invention can be realized in the form of a recording medium on which the program is recorded.

1 is an explanatory diagram showing a schematic configuration of a printing system 1. FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating the detail of the stirring condition table. FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining a cartridge 80. It is a 1st figure for demonstrating a cleaning process. It is a 2nd figure for demonstrating a cleaning process. It is a figure for demonstrating a flushing process. It is a flow for demonstrating a mounting process. It is a flow for demonstrating the detail of a stirring process. It is a figure for demonstrating the stirring process of 2nd Example. It is a figure for demonstrating the stirring condition table of 3rd Example. It is a figure for demonstrating the stirring process of 3rd Example. It is a figure for demonstrating the stirring process of 4th Example.

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described in the following order.
AD. Various examples:
E. Variations:

A. First embodiment:
A-1. System configuration:
FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a schematic configuration of the printing system 1. The printing system 1 includes a printer 10 and a computer 100 as a first example of the present example. A printer 10 as a liquid ejection apparatus is connected to a computer 100 as an electronic device via a connector 92. The computer 100 has a built-in time module 102 for indicating the current time.

  The printer 10 includes a control unit 40, a carriage 70 as a container mounting unit, a drive mechanism 13, a paper feed mechanism 21, a wiper unit 60, and a suction mechanism 30. An ink cartridge 80 (also simply referred to as “cartridge 80”) as a liquid container is detachably mounted on the carriage 70. A head (not shown) for ejecting the ink in the cartridge 80 mounted on the carriage 70 to the outside is attached to the side of the carriage 70 facing the print medium P. In the carriage 70 of this embodiment, four types of cartridges 80C, 80M, 80Y, and 80K that respectively accommodate cyan (C), magenta (M), yellow (Y), and black (K) inks are mounted. Here, when the description is made without distinguishing the cartridges 80C, 80M, 80Y, and 80K containing the respective color inks, they are simply referred to as the cartridge 80. In the present embodiment, the cartridge 80 contains pigment-based ink containing pigment particles that are sedimentation components.

  The drive mechanism 13 is a mechanism for moving the carriage 70 in the main scanning direction. The drive mechanism 13 includes a carriage motor 12, a pulley 18, a drive belt 16, and a sliding shaft 14. The slide shaft 14 slidably holds a carriage 70 fixed to the drive belt 16. The rotation of the carriage motor 12 is transmitted to the carriage 70 via the drive belt 16. As a result, the carriage 70 reciprocates in the main scanning direction along the sliding shaft 14. The paper feed mechanism 21 includes a paper feed roller 26 and a paper feed motor 22. As the paper feed roller rotates, the print medium P is conveyed in the sub-scanning direction.

  The wiper unit 60 is used to wipe the head surface facing the print medium P among the heads attached to the carriage 70. The suction mechanism 30 is used to suck ink from the nozzles of the head. Details of the wiper unit 60 and the suction mechanism 30 will be described later.

  The control unit 40 includes a CPU 41, a ROM 50, a RAM 52, and a stirring condition table 54 recorded in the EEPROM. The CPU 41 loads various control programs recorded in the ROM 50 to the RAM 52 and executes them. The CPU 41 includes a cleaning module 42, a flushing module 44, and an agitation processing module 46 as functional units that are loaded from the RAM 52 and execute a program.

  The cleaning module 42 controls the suction mechanism 30 and the wiper unit 60 to execute a cleaning process as a first process. In the cleaning process, the head surface is wiped and ink is sucked from the nozzles of the head. The cleaning process is executed in order to reduce the occurrence of defects in the head 72 such as so-called idle driving or contamination of the head 72 due to adhesion of a defective discharge. The details of the cleaning process executed by the cleaning module 42 will be described later.

  The flushing module 44 controls a discharge mechanism (described later) included in the head, and executes a flushing process as a second process for discharging ink from the head. The flushing process is used to eject ink that has entered the nozzle and is different from the color that should be ejected, or to remove bubbles that have entered the head. That is, the flushing process is executed to reduce the occurrence of head defects. Details of the flushing process executed by the flushing module 44 will be described later.

  The agitation processing module 46 detects whether or not a new cartridge 80 is mounted on the carriage 20. When the agitation processing module 46 detects that the cartridge 80 is newly installed, the agitation processing module 46 performs the ink agitation of the newly installed cartridge 80 by reciprocating the carriage 70 based on a predetermined agitation mode. The stirring conditions are stored in the stirring condition table 54.

  The printer 10 further includes an operation unit 90 that allows the user to make various settings of the printer 10 and to check the status of the printer 10.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the details of the stirring condition table 54. FIG. 2A shows the first condition table Ta. FIG. 2B shows the second condition table Tb. The first and second condition tables Ta and Tb define a stirring mode that determines the degree of stirring.

  As shown in FIG. 2A, the stirring mode is determined based on the manufacturing elapsed time and the ink color. Specifically, the manufacturing elapsed time is divided into a plurality of groups for each elapsed time, and one of a plurality of stirring modes is assigned to each group. That is, in this embodiment, the degree of stirring of the ink in the cartridge 80 is set in stages. Here, the elapsed manufacturing time refers to the number of days calculated by subtracting the manufacturing time acquired from the cartridge 80 newly mounted on the carriage 70 from the current time acquired from the computer 100. Note that the manufacturing elapsed time “undefined” indicates a case where the manufacturing elapsed time cannot be calculated because the current time and the manufacturing time cannot be acquired.

  As shown in FIG. 2B, the first to third agitation modes are set using the number of reciprocations of the carriage (CR) 70. In the first agitation mode, the number of reciprocations of the carriage 70 is set to 30 times, in the second agitation mode, the number of reciprocations of the carriage 70 is set to 60 times, and in the third agitation mode, the number of reciprocations of the carriage 70 is 270 times. Is set to Here, as the number of reciprocations of the carriage 70 increases, the effect of stirring increases. That is, the density unevenness of the ink in the liquid container 80 is further reduced. In this embodiment, the degree of stirring increases in the order of the first, second, and third stirring modes, and the effect of stirring increases.

  As can be understood from FIGS. 2A and 2B, the agitation mode of this example is set so that the degree of agitation increases monotonically as the manufacturing elapsed time increases. In addition, agitation mode is set for each color group by dividing into two color groups of cyan and other than cyan (in this embodiment, magenta, yellow, and black). For example, when the manufacturing elapsed time is 0 to 365, the cartridge 80C containing cyan ink has a larger degree of stirring than the cartridges 80M, Y, and K containing ink other than cyan. This is because, in the cartridge 80 used in the present embodiment, the mass of the pigment particles contained in the cyan ink is larger than the mass of the pigment particles contained in the other ink, so that the density is increased when the cartridge 80 is allowed to stand for the same number of days. This is because the ink cartridge 80C with unevenness (density distribution) appears more markedly than the other ink cartridges 80M, Y, and K.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 2A, when the manufacturing elapsed time is indefinite, among the stirring modes stored in the stirring condition table 54, the third stirring mode that maximizes the degree of stirring is set as the stirring mode. Is set.

  FIG. 3 is a view for explaining the cartridge 80. FIG. 3A is a perspective view of the cartridge 80. FIG. 3B is a view for explaining the inside of the cartridge 80. FIG. 3C is a diagram for explaining the circuit board 84. 3A and 3B have XYZ axes orthogonal to each other. When the cartridge 80 is mounted on the carriage 70 of the printer 10 installed on a horizontal surface, the negative Z-axis direction is the vertically downward direction, and the Y-axis direction is the main scanning direction.

  As shown in FIG. 3A, the cartridge 80 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape and includes a liquid storage chamber 82 for storing ink therein. The cartridge 80 includes a liquid supply port 87 and a circuit board 84. The ink in the liquid storage chamber 82 is supplied from the liquid supply port 87 to the head attached to the carriage. Further, as shown in FIG. 3B, a flat stirring plate 81 is disposed in the liquid storage chamber 82. Specifically, the stirring plate 81 is disposed so that the plane of the stirring plate 81 intersects the main scanning direction in a state where the cartridge 80 is mounted on the carriage 70 of the printer 10 installed on a horizontal surface. Accordingly, when the cartridge 80 is mounted on the carriage 70 and reciprocates in the main scanning direction, the stirring plate 81 swings. The stirring of the ink in the liquid storage chamber 82 is promoted by the swinging stirring plate 81.

  As shown in FIG. 3C, the circuit board 84 includes a terminal group 85 and a storage device 88. The terminal group 85 is in contact with the terminal group provided on the carriage 70, and various signals are exchanged with the control unit 40. For example, when the terminal group 85 of the cartridge 80 and the terminal group of the carriage 70 are in contact with each other, the control unit 40 detects that the cartridge 80 is mounted on the carriage 70 and acquires information about the cartridge 80 from the storage device 88. To do.

  The storage device 88 stores information related to the cartridge 80 to which the storage device 88 is mounted. For example, manufacturing time data indicating the manufacturing time of the cartridge 80, liquid type data indicating the ink type, color data indicating the ink color, manufacturing number data indicating the manufacturing number, specification data indicating the specification of the cartridge 80, and the like are stored. ing. The liquid type data includes at least data for determining whether or not pigment particles are included.

  Next, a cleaning process executed by the cleaning module 42 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. FIG. 4 is a first diagram for explaining the cleaning process. FIG. 4A is a diagram before the start of the cleaning process. FIG. 4B is a diagram after the start of the cleaning process. FIG. 5 is a second diagram for explaining the cleaning process. FIG. 5A is a diagram showing a state after FIG. FIG. 5B is a diagram for explaining processing using the wiper unit 60. 4 and 5, the vertical downward direction when the printer 10 is arranged on a horizontal surface is the lower side of the drawing.

  As shown in FIG. 4A, the cleaning process is executed using the suction mechanism 30 and the wiper unit 60. The head 72 includes a pressure chamber 76 that communicates with the nozzle 78 and changes the pressure in the chamber to discharge ink from the nozzle 78 to the outside. The pressure chamber 76 communicates with the liquid supply port 87 of the cartridge 80. Further, a nozzle 78 is formed at the tip portion of the pressure chamber 76 where the flow channel area is smaller than the other portions.

  Two suction mechanisms 30 are provided, and include housings 31a and 31b, liquid discharge pipes 36a and 36b, pumps 34a and 34b, and drive mechanisms 33a and 33b, respectively. The first suction mechanism 30a is provided corresponding to cartridges 80C, 80M, and 80Y that accommodate cyan (C), magenta (M), and yellow (Y), respectively. The second suction mechanism 30b is provided corresponding to the cartridge 80K that stores black (K). Note that when the first and second suction mechanisms 30a and 30b are used without being distinguished from each other, they are simply referred to as the suction mechanism 30. Although two suction mechanisms 30 are provided, the number is not particularly limited, and the number of suction mechanisms 30 may be one or three or more.

  The casings 31a and 31b are concave-shaped members having one side opened. The casings 31a and 31b are disposed at least on the head surface 74 of the head 72 at a position facing the region where the tip opening of the nozzle 78 is formed. The casings 31a and 31b receive ink that has flowed out of the nozzles 78 during the cleaning process. Through holes 38a and 38b are provided on the bottom surfaces of the casings 31a and 31b, respectively. The liquid discharge pipes 36a and 36b are connected to the through holes 38a and 38b, respectively. The pumps 34a and 34b are provided in the liquid discharge pipes 36a and 36b, respectively, and suck ink collected in the casings 31a and 31b. As a result, ink is reliably filled in the liquid flow path in the head 72 including the pressure chamber 76 and the nozzle 78. The ink sucked and discharged through the nozzle 78 is discharged to the discharged ink tank through the liquid discharge pipes 36a and 36b. The drive mechanisms 33a and 33b are used to move the casings 31a and 31b in the vertical direction (vertical direction).

  The wiper unit 60 includes a wiper blade 61 and a drive mechanism 65. The wiper blade 61 is a member made of rubber or soft resin, and is used for wiping off dirt on the head surface 74. The drive mechanism 65 is used to move the wiper blade 61 in the vertical direction (vertical direction).

  As shown in FIG. 4B, when the cleaning process is started, the cleaning module 42 (FIG. 1) controls the drive mechanisms 33a and 33b to raise the casings 31a and 31b, and the casings 31a and 31b. The end surface of 31 b is brought into contact with the head surface 74. By bringing the end surfaces of the casings 31a and 31b into contact with the head surface 74, the spaces inside the casings 31b and 31b are sealed. Next, by using the pumps 34a and 34b to make the inner space negative, ink is sucked from the nozzles 78 for a predetermined time.

  As shown in FIG. 5A, when the ink suction process is completed, the cleaning module 42 lowers the casings 31a and 31b to their original positions. Next, as shown in FIG. 5B, the cleaning module 42 lifts the wiper blade 61 using the drive mechanism 65 and then reciprocates the carriage 70 to clean the head surface 74 by the wiper blade 61. Wipe off. When the wiping process is completed, the carriage 70 is moved to the original position (maintenance position) shown in FIG. The cleaning process may be performed on at least the nozzles 78 (also referred to as “replacement nozzles 78”) that discharge ink in the newly installed cartridge 80.

  Next, the flushing process executed by the flushing module will be described. FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining the flushing process. The flushing process is executed at a maintenance position where the carriage 70 is located directly above the casings 31a and 31b. Specifically, the carriage 70 is positioned at the maintenance position, and the piezoelectric chamber 79 as a discharge mechanism provided at a position facing the nozzle 78 in the wall surface of the pressure chamber 76 is vibrated to apply pressure to the pressure chamber 76. Then, the ink is ejected from the nozzle 78 to the outside. The piezoelectric vibration element 79 includes a stacked piezoelectric vibrator configured by alternately laminating piezoelectric bodies and internal electrodes, and a vibration plate that is in contact with the pressure chamber 76 through which the vibration of the piezoelectric vibrator is transmitted. As the vibration plate vibrates, the volume of the pressure chamber 76 varies and pressure is applied to the pressure chamber 76. Thereby, ink is ejected from the nozzle 78 to the housings 31a and 31b. The flushing process may be performed on at least the nozzles 78 (also referred to as “replacement nozzles 78”) that eject ink in the newly installed cartridge 80.

  FIG. 7 is a flow for explaining the mounting process. The mounting process is a process performed when the control unit 40 detects that the cartridge 80 is newly mounted on the carriage 70. After the mounting process, the printer 10 is ready for printing. Here, the cartridge 80 newly attached to the carriage 70 is also referred to as a “new cartridge 80”. “Newly mounted” includes not only mounting on the carriage 70 for the first time but also removing the mounted cartridge 80 from the carriage 70 and mounting it on the carriage 70 again.

  When the control unit 40 detects that the new cartridge 80 is mounted on the carriage 70, the control unit 40 executes the processing in the order of the stirring process (step S10), the cleaning process (step S20), and the flushing process (step S30).

  FIG. 8 is a flow for explaining details of the stirring process. The stirring process is executed by the stirring process module 46 (FIG. 1) of the control unit 40. First, the agitation processing module 46 determines whether or not current time data indicating the current time can be acquired from the computer 100, which is an external electronic device (step S110). In other words, it is determined whether or not the computer 100 and the printer 10 are logically connected via the connector 92. When a logical connection is not formed and it is determined that the current time data cannot be obtained from the computer 100 (step S110: NO), the stirring mode in which the degree of stirring is maximized (in this embodiment, the third time) A stirring operation (reciprocating operation of the carriage 70) is executed in the stirring mode) (step S180). Thereby, the density unevenness of the ink in the new cartridge 80 can be more reliably reduced, and the ink density in the new cartridge 80 can be reliably made uniform.

  On the other hand, when the stirring processing module 46 determines that the current time data can be acquired (step S110: YES), the manufacturing time data is acquired from the storage device 88 of the new cartridge 80 and the current time data is acquired from the computer 100. (Steps S120 and S130). Next, the manufacturing elapsed days are calculated by subtracting the manufacturing time indicated by the manufacturing time data from the current time indicated by the acquired current time data (step S140). Further, color data is acquired from the storage device 88 of the new cartridge 80 (step S150). Then, the agitation mode is determined with reference to the agitation condition table 54 based on the elapsed manufacturing days and the ink color indicated by the color data (step S160), and the agitation operation is executed in the determined agitation mode (S170).

  In addition, in said stirring process flow, step S120 and step S150 should just be performed before step S160, and an order is not ask | required. Further, step S120, step S130, and step S150 are not limited to this order, and an arbitrary order can be adopted. Further, when a plurality of new cartridges 80 are mounted at a time, the stirring mode is determined for the plurality of new cartridges 80, and the stirring operation is executed in the stirring mode having the largest stirring degree among the determined stirring modes.

  As described above, the printer 10 of the first embodiment calculates the manufacturing elapsed time based on the manufacturing time data and the current time data, and determines the stirring mode based on the manufacturing elapsed time (step S160 in FIG. 8). Here, the uneven density of the ink occurs due to various factors. For example, factors include elapsed manufacturing time, ink color, ink component (type), and mass of pigment particles. In general, the elapsed manufacturing time from the manufacture of the cartridge 80 to the mounting on the carriage 70 is longer than the time between stirring operations in which the cartridge 80 is mounted on the carriage 70 and the stirring operation is periodically performed. Therefore, the degree of density unevenness of the newly installed cartridge 80 is most affected by the elapsed manufacturing time. Therefore, by determining the degree of stirring based on the elapsed manufacturing time, density unevenness can be reduced by a more optimal stirring operation. In the present embodiment, each agitation mode is set using the number of reciprocations of the carriage 70. The greater the number of reciprocations of the carriage 70, the longer the stirring operation time. In this embodiment, since the agitation in the optimum agitation mode can be executed by determining the degree of agitation based on the elapsed manufacturing time, concentration unevenness can be reduced while shortening the agitation time.

  Moreover, in the said Example, the grade of stirring is set by several stirring mode, and stirring mode is set according to manufacture elapsed time (FIG. 2). Therefore, the degree of stirring can be easily determined based on the manufacturing elapsed time. Further, the stirring mode is assigned so that the degree of stirring increases monotonically as the manufacturing elapsed time becomes longer (FIG. 2). Therefore, stirring can be executed in an optimal stirring mode that can reduce ink density unevenness of the newly installed cartridge 80.

  In the above embodiment, the stirring mode is determined based on the ink color in addition to the manufacturing elapsed time (step S160 in FIG. 8). Therefore, stirring can be executed in a more optimal stirring mode for reducing ink density unevenness.

  Moreover, in the said Example, after performing the stirring process, the cleaning process and the flushing process are performed. In the cleaning process and the flushing process performed to reduce the occurrence of problems with the head 72, ink is ejected to the outside from the nozzle 78 communicating with the liquid supply port 87 of the cartridge 80. Therefore, after the stirring process is performed and the ink density distribution in the cartridge 80 becomes uniform, the density change in the cartridge 80 can be suppressed by performing the cleaning process and the flushing process.

B. Second embodiment:
FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining the stirring process of the second embodiment. The difference from the agitation process of the first embodiment is that the content of the agitation process is divided according to the information acquired from the storage device 88 of the cartridge 80 and the presence or absence of sedimentation components. The other steps of the agitation process are the same steps as the agitation process of the first embodiment, and thus the same steps are denoted by the same reference numerals and the description thereof is omitted. Further, the cleaning process (step S20 in FIG. 7) and the flushing process (step S30 in FIG. 7), which are executed during the mounting process, are executed after the stirring process in the same manner as in the first embodiment. Furthermore, since the configurations of the printer 10, the computer 100, and the cartridge 80 are the same as those in the first embodiment, description thereof will be omitted. In the second embodiment, either pigment-based ink or dye-based ink is used as the ink of the cartridge 80.

  As illustrated in FIG. 9, when the agitation processing module 46 detects that the new cartridge 80 is mounted on the carriage 70, the agitation processing module 46 acquires information about ink from the storage device 88 of the new cartridge 80 (step S90). The information related to ink includes liquid type data indicating the type of ink and color data indicating the color of the ink.

  After step S90, the stirring processing module 46 determines whether or not pigment particles that are sedimentation components are contained in the ink based on the acquired liquid type data (step S92). If it is determined that the ink in the new cartridge 80 is dye-based ink and does not contain pigment particles (step S92: NO), the stirring process is terminated without executing the stirring operation. On the other hand, if it is determined that the ink in the new cartridge 80 is pigment-based ink and contains pigment particles (step S92: YES), the processing from step S110 is executed as in the first embodiment. In the second embodiment, since the acquisition of the color data executed in the first embodiment (step S150 in FIG. 8) has already been performed in step S90, step S150 in the first embodiment is omitted.

  Here, the density of the ink in the cartridge 80 is less likely to occur in the cartridge 80 containing the dye-based ink than the cartridge 80 containing the pigment-based ink. Therefore, when the cartridge 80 containing the dye-based ink is newly attached to the carriage 70, the stirring process can be completed without executing the stirring operation, thereby shortening the processing time of the stirring process. Furthermore, similarly to the first embodiment, the second embodiment determines the degree of stirring based on the elapsed manufacturing time, thereby reducing density unevenness by a more optimal stirring operation.

C. Third embodiment:
FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining the stirring condition table of the third embodiment. FIG. 10A shows the first condition table Ta. FIG. 10B shows the second condition table Tb. The difference from the stirring condition table of the first embodiment is that two types of tables Tb1 and Tb2 are stored in the stirring condition table 54 as the second condition table, and the first to third of the tables Tb1 and Tb2. In this mode, the conditions for making a difference in the degree of stirring are different. The first condition table Ta has the same contents as those in the first embodiment, and therefore description thereof is omitted. Since the printer 10 and the computer 100 have the same configuration as that of the first embodiment, description thereof is omitted. In the third embodiment, a type having a stirring plate 81 and a type having no stirring plate 81 are used for the cartridge.

  As shown in FIG. 10B, the table Tb1 varies the degree of stirring by varying the acceleration at which the carriage 70 moves during the stirring operation. Specifically, the acceleration at which the carriage 70 moves increases in the order of the first, second, and third stirring modes. Accordingly, the degree of ink stirring is increased in the order of the first, second, and third stirring modes, and the ink is further stirred.

  As shown in FIG. 10B, the table Tb2 varies the degree of stirring by changing the stirring time. Specifically, the stirring time becomes longer in the order of the first, second, and third stirring modes. Accordingly, the degree of ink stirring is increased in the order of the first, second, and third stirring modes, and the ink is further stirred.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining the stirring process of the third embodiment. The difference from the stirring process of the first embodiment is that step S105 is added. The other steps are the same steps as the stirring process of the first embodiment, and therefore the same steps are denoted by the same reference numerals and the description thereof is omitted. Further, the cleaning process (step S20 in FIG. 7) and the flushing process (step S30 in FIG. 7), which are executed during the mounting process, are executed after the stirring process in the same manner as in the first embodiment.

  As illustrated in FIG. 11, when the agitation processing module 46 detects that the new cartridge 80 is mounted on the carriage 70, the agitation processing module 46 acquires specification data indicating the specification of the cartridge from the storage device 88 of the new cartridge 80. Here, the specification data includes information on whether or not the new cartridge 80 includes a stirring plate. Then, based on the acquired specification data, it is determined which of the tables Tb1 and Tb2 having different conditions affecting the degree of stirring is used to execute the stirring operation (step S105). Specifically, when the new cartridge 80 includes the stirring plate 81, it is determined that the table Tb is used. When the new cartridge 80 does not include the stirring plate 81, the table Tb2 is used.

  As described above, when the cartridge 80 newly mounted on the carriage 70 has the stirring plate 81, the printer of the third embodiment uses the table Tb1 in which the degree of stirring is set using acceleration. The operation is being executed. Therefore, a larger inertial force can be applied to the stirring plate 81 than when the stirring operation is performed using the table Tb2 in which the degree of stirring is set using the stirring time. Therefore, the ink can be efficiently stirred by swinging the stirring plate 81 more greatly. Furthermore, in the third embodiment, similarly to the first embodiment, density unevenness can be reduced by a more optimal stirring operation by determining the degree of stirring based on the elapsed manufacturing time. Note that step S105 may be employed in the stirring process flow of the second embodiment. Specifically, for example, step S105 may be performed between step S92 and step S100.

  In the third embodiment, the table Tb selected when the new cartridge 70 has the stirring plate 81 may have the degree of stirring set by the number of reciprocating movements of the carriage 70 instead of the acceleration. The degree of stirring may be set by combining acceleration and the number of reciprocating movements. As the number of reciprocations of the carriage 70 increases, a larger inertial force is applied to the stirring plate 81, and efficient stirring using the stirring plate 81 can be realized.

D. Fourth embodiment:
FIG. 12 is a diagram for explaining the stirring process of the fourth embodiment. The difference from the printer 10 of the first embodiment is that the control unit 40 writes data indicating the current time as write time data in the storage device 88 of the cartridge 80 mounted on the carriage 70 at a predetermined timing. is there. Also, the difference in the stirring process is the flow of calculating the elapsed days. The other steps of the agitation process are the same steps as the agitation process of the first embodiment, and thus the same steps are denoted by the same reference numerals and the description thereof is omitted. Further, the cleaning process (step S20 in FIG. 7) and the flushing process (step S30 in FIG. 7), which are executed during the mounting process, are executed after the stirring process in the same manner as in the first embodiment. The configurations of the printer 10, the computer 100, and the cartridge 80 other than those described above are the same as those in the first embodiment.

  As illustrated in FIG. 12, when the stirring processing module 46 determines that the current time can be acquired (step S110: YES), the manufacturing time data and the writing time data are stored from the storage device 88 of the new cartridge 80. Including cartridge time data is acquired (step S120b). In addition, the agitation processing module 46 acquires current time data from the computer 100 (step S130). Then, the elapsed days are calculated based on the acquired current time data and cartridge time data (step S140b). The elapsed days correspond to the elapsed days after manufacture in FIG. Details of step S140b will be described below. In other words, when the writing time data is included in the cartridge time data, the stirring processing module 46 calculates the elapsed days based on the writing time data with the latest time among the writing time data and the current time data. On the other hand, when there is no writing time data in the cartridge time data, the stirring processing module 46 calculates the elapsed days based on the manufacturing time data and the current time data.

  Here, the case where the writing time data exists in the time data means that the new cartridge 80 has been removed from the carriage 70 in the past and has been attached to the carriage 70 again. Further, when the new cartridge 80 is mounted on the carriage 70 in the past, a stirring process is performed (see FIG. 8). Therefore, by determining the agitation mode based on the elapsed days calculated by subtracting the writing time data from the current time data, ink density unevenness can be reduced by a more optimal agitation operation.

E. Variations:
In addition, elements other than the elements described in the independent claims of the claims in the constituent elements in the above-described embodiments are additional elements and can be omitted as appropriate. Further, the present invention is not limited to the above-described examples and embodiments, and can be implemented in various forms without departing from the gist thereof. For example, the following modifications are possible.

E-1. First modification:
In the above embodiment, the current time data is acquired from the computer 100, which is an external electronic device, but acquisition of the current time data is not limited to this. For example, when the printer 10 includes a module for indicating the current time, the current time data may be acquired from the module.

E-2. Second modification:
In the above embodiment, the agitation mode was determined based on the number of days of production in which “day” is the minimum unit (FIG. 2), but is not limited to this, and “hour”, “minute”, etc. The stirring mode may be determined based on the manufacturing elapsed time as the minimum unit.

E-3. Third modification:
In the above embodiment, the degree of agitation is set using the number of times the carriage 70 is reciprocated, the acceleration of movement, and the time of the agitation operation (agitation time). However, the degree of agitation is set according to other conditions that affect the degree of agitation. Also good. For example, the degree of agitation may be set using a moving distance in one reciprocating movement of the carriage 70, or a combination of a plurality of conditions that affect the degree of agitation to set the degree of agitation. Also good.

E-4. Fourth modification:
In the above embodiment, the degree of agitation is set by dividing the number of days elapsed in production into a plurality of groups and assigning one of a plurality of modes with different degrees of agitation to each group. It is not something. For example, the degree of agitation may be set using a table in which each of the elapsed days of production in advance corresponds to the agitation conditions on a one-to-one basis. By carrying out like this, stirring operation can be performed on the more optimal stirring conditions according to manufacture progress days.

E-5. Fifth modification:
In the embodiment described above, the printer 10 is used as the liquid ejecting apparatus, but the liquid ejecting apparatus is not limited to this. For example, devices equipped with color material discharge nozzles such as liquid crystal displays, devices equipped with electrode material (conductive paste) discharge nozzles used for electrode formation such as organic EL displays and surface emitting displays (FEDs), and biochip manufacturing The present invention can be applied to an apparatus provided with a biological organic matter discharge nozzle, an apparatus provided with a sample discharge nozzle as a precision pipette, a liquid discharge apparatus such as a textile printing apparatus or a microdispenser. In addition, when a liquid container is used for the various liquid ejection devices described above, liquids (coloring material, conductive paste, biological organic matter, etc.) corresponding to the type of liquid ejected by the various liquid ejection devices are stored in the liquid. What is necessary is just to accommodate in the inside of a container.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Printing system 10 ... Printer 12 ... Carriage motor 13 ... Drive mechanism 14 ... Sliding shaft 16 ... Drive belt 18 ... Pulley 20 ... Carriage 21 ... Mechanism 22 ... Motor 26 ... Roller 30 ... Suction mechanism 30a ... 1st suction mechanism 30b ... second suction mechanism 31a ... housing 31b ... housing 33a ... driving mechanism 34a ... pump 36a ... liquid discharge pipe 38a ... through hole 40 ... control unit 41 ... CPU
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 42 ... Cleaning module 44 ... Flushing module 46 ... Agitation processing module 54 ... Agitation condition table 60 ... Wiper part 61 ... Wiper blade 65 ... Drive mechanism 70 ... Carriage 72 ... Head 74 ... Head surface 76 ... Pressure chamber 78 ... Nozzle 79 ... Piezoelectric Vibrating element 80 ... Ink cartridge 81 ... Stirring plate 82 ... Liquid storage chamber 84 ... Circuit board 85 ... Terminal group 87 ... Liquid supply port 88 ... Storage device 90 ... Operation unit 92 ... Connector 100 ... Computer 102 ... Time module P ... Printing medium

Claims (12)

A liquid ejection device that ejects liquid to a target through a nozzle,
A container mounting portion that can detachably mount a liquid storage container that contains the liquid and has a storage device that stores information about the liquid storage container;
A drive mechanism for reciprocating the container mounting portion;
A control unit for controlling the liquid ejection device, and a control unit for controlling the stirring process of the liquid in the liquid container newly mounted on the container mounting unit,
The information includes manufacturing time data indicating the manufacturing time of the mounted liquid storage container,
The control unit, as the stirring process,
When it is detected that the liquid container is newly attached to the container attachment part, the information is acquired from the storage device of the attached liquid container,
Based on at least the manufacturing time indicated by the manufacturing time data included in the acquired information and the current time, the degree of stirring of the liquid in the mounted liquid container is determined,
A liquid ejection apparatus that controls the stirring operation by reciprocating the mounted liquid storage container according to the determination using the drive mechanism. The liquid ejection device according to claim 1,
The degree of agitation is a liquid ejection device that is set stepwise by a plurality of different modes. The liquid ejection device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein
The liquid ejection apparatus, wherein the degree of stirring is set to increase monotonically as the manufacturing elapsed time of the mounted liquid storage container calculated by subtracting the manufacturing time from the current time increases. The liquid ejection device according to claim 2 or claim 3 dependent on claim 2,
When the current time cannot be acquired, the control unit performs the stirring operation in a mode in which the degree of stirring is maximized among the plurality of modes. A liquid ejection apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein
The information further includes liquid type data indicating the type of liquid stored in the mounted liquid storage container,
The controller is
Based on the liquid type data, if it is determined that the liquid contained in the mounted liquid storage container does not contain a sediment component, the stirring process is terminated without performing the stirring operation,
Based on the liquid type data, when it is determined that the liquid stored in the mounted liquid storage container contains a sediment component, the stirring operation is performed according to the determined degree of stirring. Finish the liquid ejection device. A liquid ejection apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The information further includes color data indicating the color of the liquid stored in the mounted liquid storage container,
The controller is
A liquid ejection apparatus that determines the degree of stirring based on the color of the liquid indicated by the color data. A liquid ejection apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
The degree of stirring is set using at least one of a moving speed, a moving acceleration, a number of reciprocating movements, a moving distance, and an operating time of the stirring operation in the reciprocating movement. Discharge device. The liquid ejection apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
The information further includes specification data indicating the presence or absence of a stirring plate for stirring the liquid with respect to the mounted liquid container.
When the control unit determines that the new liquid storage container includes the stirring plate based on the acquired specification data, the control unit varies at least one of the number of reciprocating movements and the movement acceleration of the container mounting unit. A liquid ejection apparatus that performs the stirring operation based on the degree of stirring set in (1). The liquid ejection device according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
Furthermore, a suction mechanism for sucking ink from the nozzle is provided,
The controller, after performing the stirring process,
A liquid ejection apparatus that executes a first process of sucking the liquid by the suction mechanism from an exchange nozzle that discharges the liquid in the mounted liquid container among the nozzles. The liquid ejection device according to claim 9, wherein
Furthermore, a discharge mechanism for discharging the liquid from the nozzle is provided,
The controller, after executing the first process,
A liquid ejection apparatus that performs a second process of ejecting the liquid in the exchange nozzle from the exchange nozzle to the outside other than the target by the ejection mechanism. The liquid ejection device according to any one of claims 1 to 10,
The controller is
Write the current time as write time data at a predetermined timing in the storage device of the liquid container mounted in the container mounting portion,
When it is detected that the liquid storage container mounted on the container mounting section is removed and the removed liquid storage container is mounted again on the container mounting section, the storage device of the liquid storage container mounted again The write time data written in
Based on at least the writing time indicated by the acquired writing time data and the current time, the degree of stirring of the liquid in the liquid container that has been mounted again is determined, and according to the determined degree of stirring. A liquid ejection apparatus that controls the stirring operation. A method for controlling the stirring of a liquid storage container mounted on a liquid discharge apparatus that discharges liquid to a target through a nozzle,
When the liquid ejection device detects that the liquid storage container containing the liquid is newly attached to the liquid ejection device, the production time of the attached liquid storage container is indicated from the attached liquid storage container Obtaining information on the liquid container including production time data;
The liquid ejection device determines the degree of stirring of the liquid in the mounted liquid storage container based on at least the manufacturing time indicated by the manufacturing time data included in the acquired information and the current time. A step of determining;
A step of controlling the stirring operation by reciprocally moving the mounted liquid storage container according to the determination;

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