JP2013039799A - Inkjet recording apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an inkjet recording apparatus that can smoothly lead the ink that is discharged outside the edge part of a recording medium on a platen to a waste liquid collector and hardly causes a leakage and an overflow of ink regardless of postures and the like of a recording apparatus body.SOLUTION: The inkjet recording apparatus includes: a recording head for discharging ink; the platen 4 for supporting a recording medium at a position opposite to the recording head; an absorber 11 provided in the platen 4 and receiving the ink that is discharged outside the end part of the recording medium from the recording head; and the waste liquid collectors 12a, 12b which is provided below the platen 4, and to which the ink is led from the absorber 11. The waste liquid collectors 12a, 12b can suck up waste liquid with capillary force, and has a longitudinal length shorter than the vertically greatest height that the waste liquid collectors 12a, 12b can hold the waste liquid with capillary force.

Description

  The present invention relates to an ink jet recording apparatus.

  Some inkjet recording apparatuses perform recording by ejecting ink from a recording head onto a recording medium (sheet) supported on a platen. In the ink jet recording apparatus, the platen keeps the recording surface of the sheet in a preferable state. Further, in order to perform recording with no margin at the edge of the sheet (hereinafter referred to as “marginless recording”), there is an absorber (liquid absorber) for receiving the ejected ink that protrudes outside the edge of the sheet. Some are provided (see Patent Document 1). Specifically, an absorber is mounted in a recess provided in the platen. The ink ejected to the outside of the edge of the sheet at the time of marginless recording is guided from this absorber to the waste liquid collecting body.

Japanese Patent No. 4557217

  In Patent Document 1, for example, when borderless printing is performed on a small-sized sheet, if ink is ejected to a portion of the absorber that is far away from a portion that guides ink to the waste liquid collection body, the waste liquid collection body is discharged from the absorber. The ink may not be smoothly transferred to the printer. In that case, there is a possibility that a large amount of free ink that is not held by the absorber exists in the concave portion of the platen.

  If the ink jet recording apparatus is tilted in such a state, free ink leaks from the concave portion of the platen to the outside. Further, when ink exceeding the capacity of the waste liquid collection body is guided to the waste liquid collection body, if the ink jet recording apparatus is tilted, the ink overflows from the waste liquid collection body beyond the limit of the liquid holding force. As a result, the inside and outside of the casing and various parts are soiled by ink.

  The object of the present invention is to smoothly guide the ink discharged on the outside of the edge of the recording medium on the platen to the waste liquid collecting body, and to leak or overflow the ink without being influenced by the posture of the recording apparatus main body. An object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet recording apparatus which is less likely to be ejected.

  An ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention includes a recording head that ejects ink, a platen that supports a recording medium at a position facing the recording head, and a platen that is ejected from the recording head to the outside of the end of the recording medium. An absorber that receives ink, and a waste liquid collector that is provided below the platen and guides ink from the absorber. The waste liquid collection body can suck up ink by capillary force, and the length in the longitudinal direction is smaller than the maximum vertical height at which the waste liquid collection body can hold ink by capillary force.

  According to the present invention, the ink ejected onto the platen can be smoothly guided to the waste liquid collecting body, and free ink that is not held by the absorber can be suppressed. In addition, the waste liquid recovery body can prevent waste liquid from leaking and overflowing no matter what direction the recording apparatus main body is tilted or stood.

1 is a perspective view illustrating an ink jet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is the perspective view which looked at the recording head of the inkjet recording device shown in FIG. 1, and its periphery from the front. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the recording head shown in FIG. 2 and its periphery when viewed from below. It is sectional drawing of the recording part of the inkjet recording device shown in FIG. FIG. 2 is a block diagram schematically showing the ink jet recording apparatus shown in FIG. 1. It is a top view of the platen of the inkjet recording device shown in FIG. 1, and its periphery.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the same reference numerals denote the same or corresponding parts throughout the drawings. In addition, when there are multiple parts of the same type, a reference numeral is added with a suffix (A, B, etc.) to distinguish them, and when these parts are shown as a whole or not specified, Are indicated only by reference numerals without subscripts.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of an ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention. The ink jet recording apparatus includes a paper feeding unit 101, a transport unit 102, a recording unit 103, and a recovery mechanism unit (cleaning mechanism unit) 104. The paper supply unit 101 supplies a recording medium (sheet) to the inside of the recording apparatus main body. The conveyance unit 102 conveys the sheet through the inside of the recording apparatus main body. The recording unit 103 records an image on a sheet based on the image information. The recovery mechanism unit 104 maintains or recovers the ink ejection performance of the recording head 5 of the recording unit 103 in order to maintain the quality of image recording.

  The sheets stacked on the sheet feeding unit 101 are separated one by one by a sheet feeding roller 123 driven by a sheet feeding motor (not shown), and are fed to the conveying unit 102. The sheet fed to the conveyance unit 102 is conveyed through the recording unit 103 by a conveyance roller 121 and a pinch roller driven by a conveyance motor. In the recording unit 103, the recording head 5 mounted on the carriage 6 moving in the main scanning direction (sheet width direction) is driven based on image information, and ink is ejected from the ejection port of the recording head 5 to the sheet. Recording is performed. The recording head 5 has energy generating elements such as a heat generating element, a piezo element, an electrostatic element, and a MEMS element, and ejects ink by an ink jet method. The recorded sheet is discharged to the outside of the recording apparatus main body by a discharge roller 123 driven in synchronization with the conveying roller 121 and a spur pressed by the discharge roller 123.

  The recording unit 103 includes a carriage 6 and a recording cartridge 3 mounted on the carriage 6. The carriage 6 is guided and supported so as to be reciprocally movable in the main scanning direction along a guide shaft and guide rails installed in the recording apparatus main body, and is reciprocally driven by a carriage motor via a carriage belt 124. The movement of the carriage 6 is detected by the position and speed detected by the encoder sensor mounted on the carriage 6 and the encoder scale 125 stretched on the apparatus main body, and is controlled based on the detection result. Recording of the entire sheet is performed by alternately repeating the recording operation of the recording head 5 performed in synchronization with the movement of the carriage 6 (main scanning) and the conveyance (sub scanning) of the sheet at a predetermined pitch. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the recording unit 103 of this embodiment includes two recording heads 5A and 5B for black and color, and corresponding recording cartridges 3A and 3B for black and color. doing.

  The recovery mechanism unit 104 is for maintaining or recovering the quality of the recorded image in a normal state by eliminating clogging of the ejection opening of the recording head 5. The recovery mechanism unit 104 includes a capping unit for covering the ejection port, a suction unit such as a pump for sucking ink from the ejection port, and a wiping unit for wiping the ejection port surface. The recovery mechanism unit 104 of this embodiment includes a slider 7 (see FIG. 1) that can move over a predetermined range together with the carriage 6 when the carriage 6 moves to the recovery mechanism unit 104. The caps 1A and 1B (see FIG. 4) of the capping means and the wiper of the wiping means are mounted on the slider 7.

  FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing an outline of the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present embodiment. A personal computer (PC) B2, an operation panel B3, and various sensors B15 are connected to an interface unit of the control unit B1 that processes various signals. Further, a conveyance motor drive B4 and an image forming motor drive B12 are connected to the control unit B1. A transport motor B5 connected to the transport motor drive B4, a main drive transmission system B6, a main transport roller unit B7, a transport drive transmission system B8, a transport roller unit B9, a paper feed drive transmission system B10, and a paper feed roller unit B11 Directly or indirectly connected to the control unit B1. Further, the image forming unit motor B13 and the image forming unit B14 connected to the image forming motor drive B12 are directly or indirectly connected to the control unit B1.

  With such a configuration, an image forming operation is started by an image forming command signal sent from the personal computer B2 or the operation panel B3 to the control unit B1, a timer inside the control unit B1, and the like. The control unit B1 operates the conveyance motor B5 via the conveyance motor driver B4 and simultaneously activates the image formation unit motor B13 via the image formation motor driver B12. The conveyance motor B5 drives the main conveyance roller unit B7 that mainly conveys the recording medium during the image forming operation via the main drive transmission system B6. Further, the main transport roller unit B7 drives the transport roller unit B9 via the transport drive transmission system B8 to transport the fed sheet (recording medium) to the position of the main transport roller. On the other hand, the image forming motor B13 drives the image forming unit B14 to perform an image forming operation. Further, the image forming unit B14 operates the paper feed drive transmission system B10 in cooperation with the operation of the transport drive transmission system B8, and feeds the stacked recording media one by one. The roller unit B11 is operated. By the operation of the paper feed drive transmission system B10, transmission and non-transmission of power to the paper feed roller unit B11 are switched at an appropriate timing. Thereby, synchronous driving and asynchronous driving of the paper feed roller unit B11 and the transport roller unit B9 can be selectively performed.

  The rotation state and load state of each motor and the conveyance state of the sheet are detected by various sensors B15 provided in each part of the recording apparatus, and a detection signal is sent to the control unit B1. The control unit B1 performs recording by controlling each motor based on information included in the detection signal, a signal from the operation panel B3 or the personal computer B2, and the like.

  Next, borderless recording will be described. As shown in FIG. 6, the platen 4 of the present embodiment has a shape that is long in the main scanning direction. On the upper surface of the platen 4 facing the recording head 5, a plurality of ribs 8 are formed at predetermined intervals in the main scanning direction from upstream to downstream in the transport direction. Further, the platen 4 is formed with a recess extending in the main scanning direction, and an absorber 11 that absorbs ink is disposed therein. A through hole 9 shown in FIG. 4 is formed at the bottom of the recess. The base 13 located below the platen 4 is provided with substantially box-shaped waste ink storage portions 13a and 13b, and the waste liquid collection bodies 12a and 12b are disposed therein. The absorbent body 11 and the waste liquid collection bodies 12a and 12b are made of a nonwoven fabric made of pulp, chemical fiber, hemp, waste paper, or the like, a polymer absorbent body, urethane foam (so-called sponge), or the like.

  At the time of recording without margins on the sheet, the ink (waste liquid) that protrudes and is ejected to the outside of each edge of the sheet lands on the recess provided in the platen 4 and is absorbed by the absorber 11 in the recess. The ink absorbed by the absorber 11 proceeds to the bottom of the absorber 11, passes through the through hole 9, is discharged below the platen 4, and is absorbed and held by the waste liquid collectors 12 a and 12 b. In this way, the ink ejected from the recording head 5 is quickly absorbed, and problems due to floating of ink mist are prevented. Then, borderless recording on the sheet is executed without the surface of the platen 4 being soiled with ink.

  Ink discharged to the concave portion in the marginless recording is absorbed by the absorber 11. When the main body of the recording apparatus is largely tilted in the state where the absorber 11 has absorbed ink, for example, by the handling or transportation of the user, the ink staying at the bottom of the absorber 11 is the end of the platen 4, specifically, main scanning. It concentrates on the edge part 10a or 10b of the recessed part extended in the direction. In such a case, conventionally, ink may overflow from the end 10a or 10b of the recess. In particular, when borderless recording is continuously performed on a plurality of small-sized sheets, ink tends to stay at the bottom of the concave portion near the center in the main scanning direction. If the recording apparatus main body is tilted in this state, the ink abruptly concentrates on the end 10a or 10b of the recess, and the ink does not smoothly move from the absorber 11 to the waste liquid collector 12. When such a phenomenon occurs, the ink leaks to the outside of the recording apparatus, and there is a possibility that the appearance of the recording apparatus, the desk, or the like is soiled.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, the configuration described below is employed so that the ink does not overflow from the recess and the absorber 11 and leak to the outside of the apparatus.

  When a sheet having the smallest width among sheets usable (assumed to be used) in the ink jet recording apparatus is set in the concave portion of the platen 4, the width direction of the sheet in the main scanning direction is set. Through holes 9a and 9b are respectively provided on the outer sides in the vicinity of both end portions. The ink absorbed by the absorber 11 is discharged downward through the through holes 9a and 9b. When borderless recording is performed on a small-size sheet as described above, the through holes 9a and 9b are located in the immediate vicinity of the landing position of the ink ejected from the recording head 5. The ink ejected into the concave portion does not stay as free ink in the concave portion of the platen 4, and smoothly moves to the waste liquid collecting body through the through holes 9a and 9b. When borderless recording is performed on a larger sheet, ink is ejected to a position in the recess of the platen 4 far from the through holes 9a and 9b. This ink is guided to the vicinity of the through holes 9 a and 9 b by the capillary phenomenon of the absorber 11. And it transfers to the waste liquid collection body 12 smoothly through the through-holes 9a and 9b.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the ink guiding means 11 a having a capillary force integrally formed with the absorber 11 is inserted into the through holes 9 a and 9 b and is in contact with the waste liquid collecting body 12. Therefore, free ink does not enter the through holes 9a and 9b, and the ink moves more smoothly from the absorber 11 to the waste liquid recovery body. In that case, if the magnitude of the capillary force of each member is in the relationship of the absorber 11 (ink guiding means 11a) <the waste liquid collection body 12, the ink transfer to the waste liquid collection body 12 is smoother.

  In this embodiment, in consideration of cost, the ink guiding means 11a is integrally formed with the absorber 11. However, the ink guiding means 11a, which is a separate member from the absorber 11, is replaced by the absorber 11 and the waste liquid collecting body 12. You may arrange | position between. In that case, if the magnitude of the capillary force of each member is such that the absorber 11 <the ink guiding means 11a <the waste liquid collecting body 12, the ink transfer to the waste liquid collecting body 12 is smoother.

  And in this embodiment, the waste liquid collection body 12 is formed in the shape where the length of the longitudinal direction becomes smaller than the maximum height of the vertical direction in which the waste liquid collection body 12 can hold | maintain a waste liquid. Explaining this point, pulps that are usually used as the waste liquid recovery body 12, nonwoven fabrics made from chemical fibers, hemp, waste paper, etc., polymer absorbers, urethane foam (so-called sponges), etc. are too large liquids. There is no holding power. The vertical height at which the waste liquid collection body 12 can suck up and hold the liquid is approximately 100 mm, although it depends somewhat on the type and internal structure of the waste liquid collection body 12 and the type of waste liquid. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the length of the waste liquid recovery body 12 in the longitudinal direction is made smaller than the maximum vertical height (approximately 100 mm) at which the waste liquid recovery body 12 can hold the liquid. The length in the longitudinal direction of the waste liquid collection body 12 is the length of the long side when the planar shape of the waste liquid collection body 12 is rectangular, and the plane length when the planar shape of the waste liquid collection body 12 is other than rectangular. This is the length of the long side of the virtual rectangle when the rectangle approximated to the shape is assumed.

  In order to realize such a configuration, the waste liquid collection bodies 12a and 12b divided into two are arranged side by side along the longitudinal direction of the platen, and each of the longitudinal lengths can hold a liquid. It is smaller than the maximum height (approximately 100 mm) in the vertical direction. The length in the main scanning direction of the platen 4 of a general ink jet recording apparatus is often 100 mm or more. When a waste liquid recovery body is provided over almost the entire length of the platen 4, the length in the longitudinal direction holds the liquid. The maximum vertical height (approximately 100 mm) is possible. Therefore, by dividing into a plurality of lengths, the lengths of the individual waste liquid recovery bodies 12a and 12b in the longitudinal direction are made smaller than the maximum vertical height (generally 100 mm) at which each liquid can be held. . Note that the number of divisions of the waste liquid recovery body 12 is not limited to 2, and may be 3 or more. Alternatively, the number of the waste liquid recovery bodies 12 may be one as long as the above-described conditions are satisfied.

  If the length of the waste liquid recovery body in the longitudinal direction is equal to or greater than the vertical maximum height (generally 100 mm) that can hold the liquid, the waste liquid recovery body 12 is impregnated with the waste ink. If tilted, waste ink may leak or overflow. Even if there is no problem in the normal printing state, the waste liquid recovery body 12 is vertical for jam processing and storage of the recording apparatus in a state where the entire area of the waste liquid recovery body 12 is impregnated with ink at the end of the product life. Or tilted to an angle close to vertical. In such a case, due to the water head difference, the ink concentrates in the lower part of the waste liquid recovery body 12 in that state, and the waste liquid recovery body 12 holds the ink to a height exceeding the vertical height at which the liquid can be held. The ink is likely to overflow.

  In contrast, in the present embodiment, as described above, the length of the waste liquid collection body 12 in the longitudinal direction is smaller than the maximum height in the vertical direction that can hold the waste ink. Therefore, even if the waste liquid collection body is tilted in any direction, front, back, left, or right, or stands vertically, the height of the waste liquid collection body 12 is not higher than the vertical height at which the liquid collection body 12 can hold the liquid. In other words, the waste liquid collecting body 12 does not enter a state where the waste ink is held to a height exceeding the vertical height at which the liquid can be held, so that the waste ink can be prevented from overflowing.

  The dimension in the thickness direction of the waste liquid recovery body 12 is smaller than the maximum vertical height (approximately 100 mm) at which the waste liquid recovery body 12 can hold the liquid.

  In the case of bordered recording, ink does not protrude beyond the edge of the sheet and is not ejected. Even in such a case, since preliminary discharge for maintenance of the recording head 5 is performed on the absorber 11 of the platen 4, the discharge position is made variable and distributed almost evenly over a relatively wide range of the absorber 11. Thus, it is preferable to control so that ink is ejected.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the ink ejected onto the platen 4 outside the edge of the sheet can be smoothly guided to the waste liquid collecting body 12 without being influenced by the use state of the user. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the free ink from being held by the absorber 11 on the platen 4. Further, since the length in the longitudinal direction of the waste liquid collecting body 12 is smaller than the maximum height in the vertical direction that can hold the liquid, no matter what direction the recording apparatus main body is tilted or stood, It is possible to keep holding while suppressing leakage and overflow. Therefore, ink leakage and overflow are unlikely to occur regardless of the user's irregular operations (such as paper jam processing) and storage conditions when not in use.

  The present invention is not limited to the configuration of the embodiment described above. For example, the number of recording heads, the number of ejection port arrays, and the like can be arbitrarily set and changed. The present invention also relates to a type of ink used in a device that performs color recording using a plurality of different color inks, a device that performs gradation recording by changing the density of the same color ink, a device that combines these, and the like. It can be implemented without being limited to a number.

  The present invention can be similarly applied to any arrangement of the recording head and the ink tank, and the same effect can be obtained. For example, a configuration using a replaceable cartridge in which the print head and ink tank are integrated, a configuration in which the ink tank is detachably attached to the print head, and supplying ink between the print head and the ink tank as separate members A configuration in which connections are made by roads and the like can be considered.

4 Platen 5, 5A, 5B Recording head 11 Absorber 11a Ink guiding means 12, 12a, 12b Waste liquid recovery body

Claims (7)

A recording head that ejects ink, a platen that supports the recording medium at a position facing the recording head, and an absorption that is provided on the platen and receives ink ejected from the recording head to the outside of the end of the recording medium. And a waste liquid recovery body that is provided below the platen and from which the ink is guided from the absorber,
The waste liquid recovery body is capable of sucking up ink by capillary force, and the length in the longitudinal direction is smaller than the maximum height in the vertical direction in which the waste liquid recovery body can hold ink by capillary force. Inkjet recording apparatus.   The plurality of waste liquid collection bodies are provided along the longitudinal direction of the platen, and the length of each of the plurality of waste liquid collection bodies is vertical in which the waste liquid collection body can hold ink by capillary force. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the inkjet recording apparatus is smaller than a maximum height in the direction.   The ink guide means further connects the absorber and the waste liquid collection body, and the ink guide means corresponds to an end portion in the width direction of the recording medium having the smallest width among the recording media expected to be used. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the inkjet recording apparatus is disposed at a position.   The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the magnitude of the capillary force satisfies the relationship of the absorber <the ink guiding unit <the waste liquid collecting body.   The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the ink guiding unit is integrally formed with the absorber.   The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the magnitude of the capillary force satisfies the relationship of the absorber <the waste liquid collector.   The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recording head is capable of ejecting ink to dispersed positions of the absorber as preliminary ejection for maintenance.

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