JP2013188899A - Liquid injection device and medium conveyance device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To suppress the deterioration of the quality of an image formed in a medium.SOLUTION: A liquid injection device includes: a conveyance part that has a supporting surface for supporting a medium, and has a positional reference part used for positioning the medium on the supporting surface for conveying the medium in a first direction; an injection head that injects liquid toward the medium supported by the conveyance part; and a medium supply part that supplies the medium so that a positional relationship between the positional reference part and the medium is constant in a second direction crossing the first direction.

Description

  The present invention relates to a liquid ejecting apparatus and a medium conveying apparatus.

  Conventionally, screen printing equipment using a dyeing die has been used for printing on cotton, silk, wool, chemical fiber, blended fabric, etc. In recent years, due to improvements in the technology of inkjet printers, printing by the inkjet method has been used. Inkjet textile printing apparatuses that perform printing have attracted attention.

  Ink-jet printing does not require the dye used in screen printing, and a digitized design can be used. Therefore, it is possible to quickly respond to a fine design change according to the customer's request, and to greatly reduce the production time. In addition, there is an advantage that the degree of freedom in design is large, such as being able to express color gradation.

  In an inkjet printing apparatus, when transporting a cloth as a recording medium to an ejection head that performs inkjet printing, in order to increase the transport accuracy, the cloth is affixed to a transport belt having adhesiveness on the surface, The cloth is conveyed by driving the conveyor belt by a conveyor roller or the like.

JP 2009-173443 A

  However, in the above configuration, if the positions of the cloth and the conveyance belt change in the width direction of the cloth and the conveyance belt (direction intersecting the conveyance direction), the quality of the image formed on the cloth may be deteriorated.

  In view of the circumstances as described above, it is an object of the present invention to provide a liquid ejecting apparatus and a medium conveying apparatus that can suppress deterioration in image quality formed on a medium.

  The liquid ejecting apparatus according to the invention has a support surface that supports the medium, a position reference unit that is used for alignment of the medium is provided on the support surface, and a transport unit that transports the medium in the first direction; The ejection head that ejects liquid toward the medium supported by the transport unit, and the positional relationship between the position reference unit and the medium in a second direction intersecting the first direction is constant. A medium supply unit that supplies a medium to the transport unit.

  According to the present invention, the position reference unit used for alignment of the medium is provided on the support surface of the transport unit, and the medium supply unit is arranged so that the positional relationship between the position reference unit and the medium in the second direction is constant. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the medium and the transport unit from being shifted in the second direction. Thereby, it is possible to suppress a decrease in the quality of the image formed on the medium.

In the liquid ejecting apparatus, it is preferable that the position reference portion includes one or a plurality of first straight portions parallel to the first direction.
According to the present invention, the position reference portion has one or a plurality of first straight portions parallel to the first direction, so that the position between the medium and the transport portion can be easily aligned.

In the liquid ejecting apparatus, it is preferable that the position reference portion includes one or a plurality of second linear portions parallel to the second direction.
According to the present invention, since the position reference portion has one or a plurality of second straight portions parallel to the second direction, the position between the medium and the transport portion can be easily aligned.

In the liquid ejecting apparatus, the detection unit that detects a positional relationship between the position reference unit and the medium in the second direction, and the medium that is supplied to the transport unit according to a detection result of the detection unit. It is preferable to further include an adjustment unit that adjusts the position in the second direction.
According to the present invention, the positional relationship between the position reference unit and the medium in the second direction can be detected by the detection unit. Further, the position of the medium supplied to the transport unit in the second direction can be adjusted by the adjustment unit according to the detection result of the detection unit. As a result, alignment in the second direction between the medium and the transport unit can be automatically performed.

In the liquid ejecting apparatus, it is preferable that a detection range by the detection unit is set on the upstream side in the first direction with respect to the ejecting head.
According to the present invention, since the detection range by the detection unit is set on the upstream side in the first direction with respect to the ejection head, the position of the medium before reaching the ejection head can be detected. Thereby, alignment with a medium and a conveyance part can be performed with higher precision.

In the liquid ejecting apparatus, it is preferable that the medium supply unit includes a roller that sends out the medium to the transport unit, and the adjustment unit includes a moving unit that moves the roller in the second direction. .
According to the present invention, the medium supply unit has a roller for feeding the medium to the transport unit, and the adjustment unit has a moving unit that moves the roller in the second direction, so that the medium supply position is easily adjusted. be able to.

  A medium transport apparatus according to the present invention includes a support surface that supports a medium, a position reference unit used for alignment of the medium is provided on the support surface, and a transport unit that transports the medium in a first direction. A medium supply unit that supplies the medium to the transport unit so that a positional relationship between the position reference unit and the medium in a second direction intersecting the first direction is constant.

  According to the present invention, the position reference unit used for alignment of the medium is provided on the support surface of the transport unit, and the medium supply unit is arranged so that the positional relationship between the position reference unit and the medium in the second direction is constant. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the medium and the transport unit from being shifted in the second direction. Thereby, it is possible to obtain a medium transport apparatus having excellent transport accuracy.

The figure which shows the structure of the textile printing apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the structure of a part of textile printing apparatus which concerns on this embodiment. The figure which shows the structure of a part of textile printing apparatus which concerns on this embodiment. The figure which shows the mode of operation | movement of the textile printing apparatus which concerns on this embodiment. The figure which shows the mode of operation | movement of the textile printing apparatus which concerns on this embodiment. The figure which shows the other structure of the textile printing apparatus which concerns on this invention.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a textile printing apparatus according to the present embodiment.
As shown in FIG. 1, a textile printing apparatus (liquid ejecting apparatus) 100 includes a recording medium supply unit 10, a recording medium transport unit 20, a recording medium collection unit 30, an inkjet unit 40, a maintenance unit 50, a floating prevention unit 60, and a position detection. Part 70 and control part CONT. Each part of the textile printing apparatus 100 is attached to the frame part FR.

  The textile printing apparatus 100 prints the recording medium M by forming an image on the recording medium M. As the recording medium M, for example, a cloth such as cotton, silk, wool, chemical fiber, and mixed spinning is used. In the present embodiment, a configuration in which an image is formed on a strip-shaped recording medium M by a roll method will be described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and other methods (eg, a single wafer type) are performed. It does not matter.

  The recording medium supply unit 10 supplies the recording medium M on which no image is formed. The recording medium supply unit 10 includes a shaft part 11 and a bearing part 12.

  The shaft portion 11 is formed in a cylindrical shape or a columnar shape, and is provided to be rotatable in the circumferential direction. A belt-like recording medium M is wound around the shaft portion 11 in a roll shape. The shaft portion 11 is detachably attached to the bearing portion 12. For this reason, for example, the shaft portion 11 around which the recording medium M is wound can be attached to the bearing portion 12.

  The bearing portion 12 rotatably supports both ends of the shaft portion 11 in the axial direction. The bearing unit 12 has a rotation drive unit (not shown) that drives the shaft unit 11 to rotate. The rotation drive unit rotates the shaft unit 11 in the direction in which the recording medium M is sent out. The operation of the rotation drive unit is controlled by, for example, the control unit CONT.

  The recording medium transport unit 20 transports the recording medium M from the recording medium supply unit 10 to the recording medium collection unit 30. The recording medium conveyance unit 20 includes a conveyance roller 21, a conveyance roller 22, a conveyance belt 23, a belt rotation roller 24, a belt rotation roller 25, a conveyance roller 26, a drying unit 27, and a conveyance roller 28.

  The conveyance roller 21 relays the recording medium M between the recording medium supply unit 10 and the conveyance roller 22. The conveyance roller 22 is provided so as to be able to sandwich the recording medium M with the conveyance belt 23, for example. The conveyance roller 22 supports the recording medium M on the conveyance belt 23. The transport roller 22 is provided with a drive mechanism 22a. The drive mechanism 22a moves the transport roller 22 in a direction (second direction: width direction) orthogonal to the transport direction. When the transport roller 22 moves in the width direction, the supply position of the recording medium M with respect to the transport belt 23 can be adjusted.

  The conveyance belt 23 is formed in an endless shape, and is hung on the belt rotation roller 24 and the belt rotation roller 25. The conveyance belt 23 is held in a state where a predetermined tension is applied so that a portion between the belt rotation roller 24 and the belt rotation roller 25 is parallel to the floor surface. An adhesive layer (not shown) that adheres the recording medium M is provided on the surface (support surface 23 a) of the transport belt 23. The conveyance belt 23 supports the recording medium M on the support surface 23a on which the adhesive layer is provided.

  The belt rotation roller 24 and the belt rotation roller 25 support the inner peripheral surface 23 b of the conveyance belt 23. A configuration in which a support portion that supports the conveyance belt 23 is provided between the belt rotation roller 24 and the belt rotation roller 25 may be employed. The belt rotation roller 24 rotates as the conveyance belt 23 rotates. The belt rotation roller 25 is rotated by a rotation driving unit (such as a motor) (not shown). The rotation driving unit is controlled by the control unit CONT.

  The conveyance belt 23 is rotated by the rotation of the belt rotation roller 25, and the belt rotation roller 24 is rotated by the rotation of the conveyance belt 23. The recording medium M supported by the conveyance belt 23 is conveyed in a predetermined conveyance direction by the rotation of the conveyance belt 23. In the present embodiment, the direction from the belt rotation roller 24 toward the belt rotation roller 25 is the conveyance direction. Therefore, for example, when the belt rotation roller 24 and the belt rotation roller 25 are compared, the belt rotation roller 24 is disposed on the upstream side in the transport direction, and the belt rotation roller 25 is disposed on the downstream side in the transport direction.

  The transport roller 26 relays the recording medium M transported by the transport belt 23. The drying unit 27 is provided between the transport roller 26 and the transport roller 28 and dries the ink ejected to the recording medium M. The conveyance roller 28 relays the recording medium M that has passed through the drying unit 27 to the recording medium collection unit 30.

The recording medium collection unit 30 collects the recording medium M conveyed by the recording medium conveyance unit 20. The recording medium recovery unit 30 includes a shaft portion 31 and a bearing portion 32.
The shaft portion 31 is formed in a cylindrical shape or a columnar shape, and is provided to be rotatable in the circumferential direction. A belt-like recording medium M is wound around the shaft portion 31 in a roll shape. The shaft portion 31 is detachably attached to the bearing portion 32. For this reason, for example, in a state where the recording medium M is wound around the shaft portion 31, the recording medium M can be removed together with the shaft portion 31 by removing the shaft portion 31 from the bearing portion 32.

  The bearing portion 32 rotatably supports both ends of the shaft portion 31 in the axial direction. The bearing portion 32 has a rotation drive unit (not shown) that rotates the shaft portion 31. The rotation drive unit rotates the shaft unit 31 in the direction in which the recording medium M is wound up. The operation of the rotation drive unit is controlled by, for example, the control unit CONT.

  The ink jet unit 40 ejects ink onto the recording medium M. The inkjet unit 40 includes an ejection head H and a head moving unit 41. The ejection head H has an ejection surface Ha that ejects ink. A plurality of nozzles NZ that eject ink are formed on the ejection surface Ha. The ejection surface Ha is directed to the recording medium M that is transported by the transport belt 23. The head moving unit 41 moves the ejection head H in a direction that intersects the transport direction (for example, the width direction of the recording medium M).

  The maintenance unit 50 performs maintenance of the conveyor belt 23. The maintenance unit 50 includes a processing unit 51, a base 52, and a moving unit 53. The processing unit 51 includes, for example, a maintenance device that removes ink, dust, lint, and the like attached to the conveyor belt 23, an adhesive layer repair device that repairs the adhesive layer when the adhesive layer of the conveyor belt 23 deteriorates, and the like. An apparatus for performing various processes on the conveyor belt 23 is provided. The base 52 supports the processing unit 51. The base 52 may have an elevating unit that moves the processing unit 51 up and down. The moving unit 53 integrally moves the processing unit 51 and the base 52 along the floor surface.

  The floating prevention unit 60 prevents the recording medium M from separating (floating) from the conveyance belt 23. The floating prevention unit 60 is disposed on the upstream side in the transport direction from the ink jet unit 40 (jet head H). The floating prevention unit 60 includes a pressing roller 61 and a roller driving unit 62. The pressing roller 61 is formed in a cylindrical shape or a columnar shape, and is provided to be rotatable in the circumferential direction. The pressing roller 61 is disposed so that, for example, the axial direction intersects the transport direction so as to rotate in a direction along the transport direction. The roller driving unit 62 moves the pressing roller 61 in the transport direction and the second direction opposite to the transport direction.

  The position detection unit 70 detects the positional relationship between the recording medium M and the conveyance belt 23. As the position detection unit 70, for example, an optical sensor or a CCD camera can be used. The position detection unit 70 has a detection range 70 a on the upstream side in the transport direction from the ink ejection position by the ejection head H and the pressure position by the pressing roller 61.

  The detection range 70a is set, for example, at a position where the recording medium M sent from the transport roller 22 contacts the transport belt 23 (hereinafter sometimes referred to as “supply position”). The detection range 70a is, for example, at least one of the end side Ma and the end side Mb in the direction (width direction) orthogonal to the transport direction of the recording medium M supported by the transport belt 23 (the end side Ma in the present embodiment). Is set to an area where the positional relationship can be detected. The setting of the detection range 70a as described above is merely an example, and the detection range 70a may be set in another form.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the transport belt 23 and its surroundings.
As shown in FIG. 2, a position reference portion 80 is formed on the support surface 23 a of the transport belt 23. The position reference unit 80 is used to adjust the support position of the recording medium M supported by the conveyance belt 23.

  The position reference unit 80 includes a plurality of first straight portions 23c. The plurality of first straight portions 23c are formed in a straight line shape in plan view along the transport direction. The plurality of first straight portions 23c are provided at equal pitches in the width direction. The plurality of first straight portions 23 c are formed in a state that can be detected by the position detector 70. For example, the plurality of first straight portions 23c may have a structure described on the support surface 23a using a color material different from other portions of the support surface 23a, or may be formed in a groove shape on the support surface 23a. It may be a configuration.

  The plurality of first straight portions 23 c are used for alignment of the support position of the recording medium M supported by the conveyance belt 23. FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a partial configuration of the transport belt 23. As shown in FIG. 3, the recording medium M is supported on the conveyance belt 23 so that the edges Ma and the edges Mb in the width direction of the recording medium M are along the plurality of first straight portions 23 c, thereby recording the recording medium. The support position of M is aligned.

Next, the operation of the textile printing apparatus 100 configured as described above will be described.
When image data is input from the outside to the textile printing apparatus 100, the control unit CONT causes the recording medium M to form an image corresponding to the input image data. First, an operation flow for forming an image on the recording medium M will be described.

  The control part CONT rotates the shaft part 11 and sends out the recording medium M from the recording medium supply part 10. The recording medium M sent out from the recording medium supply unit 10 is supported by the conveyance belt 23 via the conveyance roller 21 and the conveyance roller 22. The control part CONT operates the pressing roller 61. The pressing roller 61 reciprocates alternately in the transport direction and the second direction while pressing the recording medium M against the transport belt 23. By this reciprocation, the recording medium M is pressed against the support surface 23a of the transport belt 23, and is supported in a state where it is stuck so as not to float between the support surface 23a.

  Since the transport belt 23 has adhesiveness on the support surface 23a, the recording medium M is transported in a state of being attached to the support surface 23a. The controller CONT rotates the belt rotation roller 25 to move the transport belt 23 in the transport direction. With this operation, the recording medium M is transported in the transport direction by the transport belt 23.

  After the recording medium M reaches a predetermined position on the transport belt 23, the control unit CONT ejects ink from the nozzles NZ while moving the ejection head H in the width direction of the recording medium M. The control unit CONT moves the recording medium M by a predetermined distance in the transport direction every time the ejection head H scans the recording medium M once in the width direction. The controller CONT rotates the belt rotation roller 25 by a predetermined angle in one movement. As described above, the control unit CONT intermittently moves the recording medium M in the transport direction, scans the ejection head H, and ejects ink from the nozzles NZ, thereby forming a predetermined image on the recording medium M. Is done.

  The control unit CONT moves the recording medium M on which an image is formed to the downstream side of the transport belt 23. The recording medium M that has moved to the downstream side of the conveyance belt 23 reaches the recording medium collection unit 30 via the conveyance roller 26, the drying unit 27, and the conveyance roller 28. The control part CONT rotates the shaft part 31 to wind the recording medium M around the shaft part 31. In this way, the recording medium M on which the image is formed is collected.

  In the above operation, when the recording medium M is conveyed by the conveying belt 23, the position in the width direction may change between the recording medium M and the conveying belt 23 as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, for example. . In order to suppress this change in position, the control unit CONT moves the transport roller 22 in the width direction so that the supply position of the recording medium M on the transport belt 23 does not change. At this time, it is possible to visually observe the conveyance belt 23 from the conveyance roller 22 side and move the conveyance roller 22 in accordance with the position of the recording medium M and the conveyance belt 23. However, the positioning accuracy is high in terms of conveyance accuracy. It is insufficient.

  On the other hand, in this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the conveyance belt 23 itself is provided with a position reference unit 80 (a plurality of first linear portions 23 c), and the control unit CONT is provided with the position detection unit 70. Is used to detect the positional relationship between the position reference portion 80 and the recording medium M, and the transport roller 22 is moved in the width direction according to the detection result.

  In this operation, for example, as shown in FIG. 3, the edge Ma of the recording medium M passing through the detection range 70a of the position detector 70 is the leftmost first straight portion in the width direction of the plurality of first straight portions 23c. 23c (hereinafter referred to as the straight line portion A) and the second straight line portion 23c (hereinafter referred to as the straight line portion B) second from the left, and the end Ma is parallel to the first straight line portion 23c. In the case of the arrangement, the target value of the positional relationship between the recording medium M and the conveyance belt 23 is set.

  In the conveyance operation of the recording medium M, the supply position of the recording medium M is moved to the left side in the drawing, and when the edge Ma of the recording medium M overlaps the straight line portion A as shown in FIG. Move to the middle right (end Mb side). By this operation, the supply position of the recording medium M on the transport belt 23 moves to the right side in the figure. When the supply position of the recording medium M reaches the substantially central position between the straight line portion A and the straight line portion B, the control unit CONT returns the position of the transport roller 22 to the original position.

  Further, when the supply position of the recording medium M is moved to the right side in the drawing in the conveyance operation of the recording medium M, and the edge Ma of the recording medium M overlaps the linear portion B as shown in FIG. Is moved to the left side (edge Ma side) in the figure. By this operation, the supply position of the recording medium M on the transport belt 23 moves to the left side in the drawing. When the supply position of the recording medium M reaches the substantially central position between the straight line portion A and the straight line portion B, the control unit CONT returns the position of the transport roller 22 to the original position.

  With the above operation, even when the supply position of the recording medium M on the transport belt 23 moves in the width direction, the supply position is adjusted by the transport roller 22 so as to return to a predetermined position. Therefore, the recording medium M is supplied so that the positional relationship between the recording medium M and the conveyance belt 23 is constant.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the position reference unit 80 used for alignment of the recording medium M is provided on the support surface 23a of the transport belt 23, and the position reference unit 80 in the width direction and the recording medium M are aligned. Since the recording medium M is supplied to the conveyance belt 23 while moving the conveyance roller 22 in the width direction so that the positional relationship is constant, it is possible to suppress the displacement between the recording medium M and the conveyance belt 23 in the width direction. Can do. As a result, it is possible to suppress deterioration in image quality formed on the recording medium M.

The technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and appropriate modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.
In the above embodiment, the position reference unit 80 has been described by taking as an example a configuration in which a plurality of first straight portions 23c parallel to the transport direction are provided, but the present invention is not limited to this.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 6, the position reference portion 80 may have a configuration in which a second straight portion 23 d parallel to the width direction is provided in addition to the first straight portion 23 c. A plurality of second linear portions 23d are arranged side by side in the transport direction. The second straight portions 23d are arranged at an equal pitch on each table. In this case, the recording medium M can be aligned with higher accuracy.

  In the above embodiment, the supply position of the recording medium M is adjusted by moving the transport roller 22 in the width direction. However, a drive mechanism for moving the shaft portion 11 in the width direction is provided, and the shaft portion 11 is The supply position may be adjusted by moving in the direction.

  In the above-described embodiment, the adhesive layer is provided on the support surface 23a of the transport belt 23 and the recording medium M is held by the adhesive force of the adhesive layer. However, the present invention is not limited to this. No. For example, the recording medium M may be held by electrostatic adsorption or vacuum adsorption.

In the above embodiment, the configuration in which the transport belt 23 is used when transporting the recording medium M has been described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this.
For example, instead of the transport belt 23, the recording medium M may be transported while moving a long sheet.

  In this case, the sheet having both ends wound around the shaft portion is arranged on the transport path of the recording medium M, and the sheet is sent out from one shaft portion so that the sheet moves in the transport direction immediately below the ejection head H. At the same time, the sheet is wound around the other shaft portion. When an image is recorded on the recording medium M, ink may be ejected from the ejection head H onto the recording medium M at a timing when the recording medium M passes the ejection head H in accordance with the movement of the sheet.

  Further, the recording medium M may be transported using a stage that holds and moves the recording medium M without using the transport belt 23 or a sheet. In this case, the stage is arranged directly below the ejection head H, and is configured to be capable of reciprocating in the transport direction so as to pass through the ejection head H.

  When transporting the recording medium M, the recording medium M is held on the upstream side in the transport direction with respect to the ejection head H, and the stage is moved downstream in the transport direction in this state, so that the stage moves. As a result, the recording medium M moves. In the case of recording an image on the recording medium M, ink may be ejected from the ejection head H to the recording medium M at a timing when the recording medium M passes the ejection head H together with the stage.

  CONT ... Control unit M ... Recording medium H ... Ejecting head Ma ... End side Mb ... End side 10 ... Recording medium supply unit 22 ... Conveying roller 22a ... Drive mechanism 23 ... Conveying belt 23a ... Support surface 23b ... Inner peripheral surface 23c ... Linear Part 23d: Second straight line part 70: Position detection part 70a: Detection range 80 ... Position reference part 100 ... Textile printing apparatus

Claims (7)

A support unit that supports the medium, a position reference unit that is used for alignment of the medium is provided on the support surface, and a transport unit that transports the medium in a first direction;
An ejection head that ejects liquid toward the medium supported by the transport unit;
A liquid ejecting apparatus comprising: a medium supply unit that supplies the medium to the transport unit so that a positional relationship between the position reference unit and the medium in a second direction intersecting the first direction is constant. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the position reference portion includes one or a plurality of first straight portions parallel to the first direction. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the position reference unit includes one or a plurality of second linear portions parallel to the second direction. A detection unit for detecting a positional relationship between the position reference unit and the medium in the second direction;
The adjustment part which adjusts the position in the said 2nd direction of the said medium supplied to the said conveyance part according to the detection result of the said detection part is further provided.The method as described in any one of Claims 1-3. Liquid ejector. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 4, wherein a detection range by the detecting unit is set on the upstream side in the first direction with respect to the ejecting head. The medium supply unit has a roller for feeding the medium to the transport unit,
The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the adjustment unit includes a moving unit that moves the roller in the second direction. A support unit that supports the medium, a position reference unit that is used for alignment of the medium is provided on the support surface, and a transport unit that transports the medium in a first direction;
A medium transport apparatus comprising: a medium supply unit that supplies the medium to the transport unit so that a positional relationship between the position reference unit and the medium in a second direction intersecting the first direction is constant.

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