JP2015013375A - Droplet discharge device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a droplet discharge device which improves sediment of an ink in an ink cartridge with a simple structure.SOLUTION: A printer 1 includes a droplet discharge part for discharging an ink and includes: an ink cartridge 30 where the ink is stored; a cartridge holder 40 which holds the ink cartridge 30; and a rotation mechanism 50 which rotates the cartridge holder. The rotation mechanism rotates the cartridge holder around a center axis arranged parallel with an insertion direction that the ink cartridge is inserted into the cartridge holder.

Description

  The present invention relates to a droplet discharge device having a droplet discharge head (print head) for discharging ink supplied from an ink cartridge.

  The droplet discharge device is a device that includes a droplet discharge head capable of ejecting fluid as droplets and discharges various fluids (hereinafter referred to as ink) from the droplet discharge head. As a typical droplet discharge device, for example, an ink jet recording head (hereinafter simply referred to as an ink jet head) is provided, and fluid ink is discharged and landed on a print medium from a nozzle of the ink jet head. There is a droplet discharge device such as an ink jet printer that performs printing by forming dots.

The main inks used in ink jet printers can be broadly classified into two types, dye inks and pigment inks. In recent years, the use of pigment inks having excellent weather resistance has been increasing.
Since the pigment ink is more likely to cause pigment aggregation because the specific gravity of the pigment in the ink is greater than the specific gravity of the solvent, if the pigment ink is stored in the container for a long time, the pigment particles cause sedimentation in the container, A density difference and a viscosity difference are generated between the upper part and the lower part of the ink in the container. When printing is performed by supplying ink with such non-uniformity to an inkjet head, the desired printing (drawing) cannot be performed, or the nozzles of the inkjet head are clogged and ink droplets can be ejected. It may cause a malfunction that does not exist.

  In order to prevent such unevenness of stored ink, for example, Patent Document 1 discloses an ink supply path serving as an ink flow path between an ink container (a main tank and a sub tank) and an inkjet head, and the ink supply path. An ink jet printer (drawing apparatus) having an ink circulation path branched from a branch port in the middle and connected to an ink container has been introduced.

JP 2006-116761 A

However, the inkjet printer described in Patent Document 1 has a problem that the apparatus becomes complicated, such as a complicated tank such as a sub tank, an ink flow path between the main tank and the sub tank, an ink circulation path, and a circulation pump are required. At the same time, there is a problem that ink may settle in the added ink flow path.
Further, the inventor has found that ink sedimentation that occurs in an ink container such as an ink cartridge can be eliminated by moving the ink by tilting or rotating the ink cartridge.

  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 droplet discharge device according to this application example is a droplet discharge device including a droplet discharge unit that discharges ink, and holds an ink cartridge containing the ink and the ink cartridge. A cartridge holder that rotates, and a rotation mechanism that rotates the cartridge holder. The rotation mechanism rotates the cartridge holder about a central axis that is parallel to the insertion direction of the ink cartridge into the cartridge holder. It is characterized by doing.

According to this application example, by rotating the cartridge holder with the ink cartridge inserted, the ink in the ink cartridge moves and is agitated. Therefore, when the ink has settled, the ink is evenly dispersed. Can be made.
Accordingly, it is possible to provide a droplet discharge device that can improve ink sedimentation with a simple device configuration and prevent printing defects due to sedimented ink even when ink having high sedimentation properties is used.

  Application Example 2 In the droplet discharge device according to the application example described above, it is preferable that the cartridge holder can be rotated by the rotation mechanism by sliding in the extending direction of the central axis.

  According to this application example, the stirring of the ink by rotating the cartridge holder can be performed at a position different from the position of the cartridge holder during the printing operation by the droplet discharge device, that is, the ink cartridge is inserted. it can. As a result, even when the ink cartridge is inserted and arranged in a narrow space of the droplet discharge device, for example, when the ink cartridge is arranged in the vicinity of the droplet discharge head during printing, the cartridge holder can be The ink can be agitated by rotating.

  Application Example 3 In the droplet discharge device according to the application example described above, it is preferable that the cartridge holder is connected to the rotation mechanism on a side surface parallel to the central axis of the cartridge holder.

  According to this application example, the support member that holds the cartridge holder on the side surface parallel to the central axis of the cartridge holder is bent toward the central axis side outside the side surface, and further, the distal end side is bent near the central axis. Thus, by using a mechanism that supports the front end side of the support member, the cartridge holder can be rotated in a smaller space to improve ink sedimentation.

1 is a schematic perspective view illustrating a configuration of a printer as a droplet discharge device according to an embodiment. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the configuration and operation of an ink unit of a printer.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following drawings, the scale of each member or the like is shown differently from the actual scale so as to make each member or the like recognizable.

<Schematic configuration of printer>
First, a printer as a droplet discharge device according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view illustrating a configuration of a printer 1 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 1 shows XYZ axes orthogonal to each other in order to specify the direction. In the following drawings, XYZ axes that are orthogonal to each other are shown as necessary.
The printer 1 according to the present embodiment is an ink jet printer that can perform printing on a large print medium (print paper having a size of JIS standard A2 or larger). As shown in FIG. 1, the printer 1 includes a printer main body 10, an ink unit 20, and a leg portion 80. The printer main body 10 is covered with a printer case 11 and includes a paper feed unit 12, a paper discharge unit 13, and a carriage 14.

The paper feeding unit 12 includes a roll body RP inside an opening / closing lid 16 of the printer case 11. In the roll body RP, the printing paper is wound in a roll shape, and when the roll body RP rotates, the printing paper used for printing is pulled out and conveyed to the carriage 14 side. Then, the printed printing paper is discharged from the paper discharge unit 13. The printing paper discharged from the paper discharge unit 13 is cut by the cutter 91 or taken up by the winding device 92.
The print medium is not limited to “paper”, and for example, a film-like member, a resin sheet, a fabric sheet, an aluminum foil, or the like can be used as the print medium.

  The carriage 14 can be moved in the main scanning direction (printing paper width direction, X-axis direction) by a carriage moving mechanism 15. A print head (not shown) is provided on the lower surface of the carriage 14. Printing is performed by ejecting ink onto the printing paper from a plurality of nozzles arranged in the print head. The print head can employ a method of ejecting ink from the nozzles using a piezoelectric element, a method of ejecting ink from the nozzles by generating bubbles in the print head using a heating element, and the like.

  The ink unit 20 is installed at a position outside the scanning range of the carriage 14 on the front side (+ Y direction side) of the printer main body 10 (a position outside the scanning range in the −X direction side in the drawing). The ink unit 20 includes a plurality of ink cartridges (ink containers) 30 and a cartridge holder 40 to which each of the ink cartridges 30 is mounted. In the present embodiment, four ink cartridges 30 are mounted on the cartridge holder 40.

In the present embodiment, each of the four ink cartridges 30 is an ink cartridge 30 for black ink, cyan ink, magenta ink, and yellow ink. The ink in each ink cartridge 30 is supplied to the print head via a corresponding tube (supply channel) (not shown) in the printer main body 10.
The ink unit 20 of the present embodiment is a cartridge rotation capable of rotating the cartridge holder 40 in which the ink cartridge 30 is mounted about a central axis parallel to the ink cartridge insertion direction (Y direction in FIG. 1). A mechanism 50 is included. Details of the ink unit 20 including the cartridge rotation mechanism 50 will be described later.

  The leg portion 80 is fixed to the printer body 10 so as to be removable. The leg portion 80 is provided with a support column 81 and a rotatable caster 82 is attached to the caster support portion 83.

  Next, in the printer 1 of the present embodiment, details of the configuration and operation of the ink unit 20 that is an ink supply unit including the cartridge rotation mechanism 50 will be described. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration and operation of the ink unit 20 of the printer 1.

<Configuration of ink unit>
First, details of the configuration of the ink unit 20 will be described.
2A, the ink unit 20 includes a cartridge holder 40 in which four ink cartridges 30 are mounted, and a cartridge rotation unit 52 including a bearing portion 52 that rotatably supports the cartridge holder 40 with respect to the printer 1. Moving mechanism 50.

The cartridge rotation mechanism 50 includes a bearing portion 52 that rotatably supports the cartridge holder 40 via a support member 57, a holding base 53 that holds the cartridge holder 40 from below in the opening 19, and a rotation of the cartridge holder. A holding base slide mechanism 54 that slides the holding base 53 to move the cartridge holder 40 in the opening 19 when moving the cartridge holder 40 is provided.
The support member 57 is fixed to the side surface of the cartridge holder 40 (the side surface parallel to the cartridge insertion direction 45a). In the present embodiment, one end side of the support member 57 is fixed to the bottom surface 41 of the cartridge holder 40 (see FIG. 2C), and the other end side is supported by the bearing portion 52. The other end side of the support member 57 whose one end side is fixed to the bottom surface 41 of the cartridge holder 40 extends toward the insertion direction 45a of the ink cartridge 30 in the cartridge holder 40, and is once orthogonal to the insertion direction 45a of the ink cartridge 30. It is bent in the direction (the direction on the central axis P side), its tip side is bent again in the insertion direction 45 a side of the ink cartridge 30, and its tip side is supported by the bearing portion 52.
For example, a ball bearing can be used for the bearing portion 52 that rotatably supports the support member 57. The bearing portion 52 is fixed to a pedestal (not shown) provided in the printer 1 main body.
As described above, the cartridge holder 40 supported by the bearing portion 52 via the support member 57 can be rotated by rotating the support member 57 around the central axis P by a motor (not shown). It has become.

  FIG. 2A shows a state in which the cartridge holder 40 is positioned and fixed during the printing operation of the printer 1, that is, when the ink cartridge 30 that supplies ink from each ink cartridge 30 to the print head is used.

By attaching each ink cartridge 30 to the cartridge holder 40, an ink supply needle (not shown) protruding from the cartridge holder 40 is inserted into an ink supply port (not shown) provided in the ink cartridge 30. An ink flow path is formed between each ink supply needle and the ink outlet port 48 provided on the side surface of the cartridge holder 40 on the cartridge insertion direction 45a side.
In the cartridge holder 40 positioned and mounted on the printer 1, each ink outlet 48 is connected to a corresponding tube (not shown) connected to the print head. Thereby, an ink flow path is formed between each ink cartridge 30 and the corresponding print head, and the ink of the ink cartridge 30 is supplied to the print head.

<Rotation of ink unit>
Next, the rotation operation of the cartridge holder 40 (ink cartridge 30) of the ink unit 20 will be described.
The rotation operation of the cartridge holder 40 is, for example, the purpose of eliminating ink settling when there is a possibility that the ink in each ink cartridge 30 has settled before the printer 1 performs predetermined printing. To do.
In FIG. 2A, when it is necessary to rotate the cartridge holder 40 positioned and fixed with respect to the printer 1 during the printing operation, the user operates the holding base slide mechanism 54 to move the holding base 53 to the arrow. The space of the opening 19 is secured so that the cartridge holder 40 loaded with the ink cartridge 30 can be rotated around the central axis P (FIG. 2B).
Next, in FIG. 2B, the support member 57 that is rotatably supported by the bearing portion 52 by the motor is rotated about the rotation axis P in the direction of the arrow 55a, as shown in FIG. Thus, the cartridge holder 40 is rotated. Thereby, the ink is stirred in the rotated ink cartridge 30.

After a predetermined time has elapsed with the cartridge holder 40 shown in FIG. 2 (c) being rotated, the support member 57 is centered on the rotation axis P by the motor with the arrow 55b in the direction opposite to the arrow 55a (FIG. 2 (b)). The cartridge holder 40 is returned to the state shown in FIG. Then, the holding table slide mechanism 54 is operated to return the holding table 53 to the position shown in FIG. 2A so that the cartridge holder 40 can be held by the holding table 53 and the rotation operation is completed.
Thereafter, the printing operation by the printer 1 is performed.

As described above, according to the rotation operation of the ink unit 20 and the cartridge holder 40 of the printer 1 according to the present embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
According to the ink unit 20 provided in the printer 1 of the above embodiment, since the cartridge holder 40 can be rotated with a relatively simple structure, even in the case of using highly settled ink, The ink can be moved and stirred to disperse the ink uniformly before use in printing. Accordingly, it is possible to provide the printer 1 that can prevent printing defects due to the sedimented ink even when using highly sedimentable ink.

  Further, in the above embodiment, the example in which the cartridge holder 40 is rotated at the positioning / fixing position has been illustrated and described. According to the above configuration, even in the printer 1 having a configuration in which the ink unit 20 including the ink cartridge 30 is arranged in a narrow region near the droplet discharge head during printing, a space for rotating the cartridge holder 40 is secured, The configuration of the ink unit 20 capable of stirring the ink can be provided.

In the above embodiment, the cartridge holder 40 is supported by one end side of the support member 57 by the bottom surface 41 that is a side surface parallel to the rotation axis, and the other end side of the support member 57 is bent and rotated by the bearing portion 52. The cartridge holder 40 in which the ink cartridge 30 is mounted is supported so as to be rotatable, so that the cartridge holder 40 can be rotated about the central axis P.
As a result, the cartridge holder 40 to which the ink cartridge 30 is mounted can be rotated in a smaller space, so that the ink settling can be improved by rotating the cartridge holder 40 in a smaller space. .

  The embodiment of the present invention made by the inventor has been specifically described above, but the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are made without departing from the scope of the present invention. Is possible.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, an example in which the cartridge holder 40 is rotated 180 ° to improve the sedimentation of the ink in the ink cartridge 30 has been described. However, the ink moves in the ink cartridge 30 to improve the ink sedimentation. For example, the angle at which the cartridge holder 40 is rotated is not particularly limited. However, in carrying out the present invention, paying attention to the twisting and bending of the tube serving as the ink flow path between each ink cartridge 30 and the print head, the rotation angle of the cartridge holder 40 and the length of the tube serving as the ink flow path. Please determine the sheath routing shape.

  In the above embodiment, the cartridge holder 40 is rotated at the positioning / fixing position. However, by pulling the cartridge holder 40 in the extending direction of the support member 57, the lock by the holding base 53 is released. It is good also as a structure which enables rotation (turning). In this case, the holding base slide mechanism 54 becomes unnecessary. Since the cartridge holder 40 can be rotated between the front sides of the housing of the printer 1, the opening 19 that is a rotation space in the vicinity of the fixing position of the cartridge holder 40 is also unnecessary.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Printer as droplet discharge device, 10 ... Printer main body, 11 ... Printer case, 12 ... Paper feeding part, 13 ... Paper discharge part, 14 ... Carriage, 15 ... Carriage moving mechanism, 16 ... Opening / closing lid, 20 ... Ink unit, 30 ... ink cartridge, 45a ... arrow as insertion direction of ink cartridge, 40 ... cartridge holder, 41 ... side surface, 50 ... cartridge rotating mechanism, 52 ... bearing portion, 57 ... support member, 80 ... leg portion, 81 ... support, 82 ... caster, 83 ... caster support, 91 ... cutter, 92 ... winding device, P ... center axis.

Claims (3)

A droplet discharge apparatus including a droplet discharge unit for discharging ink,
An ink cartridge containing the ink;
A cartridge holder for holding the ink cartridge;
A rotation mechanism for rotating the cartridge holder,
The droplet ejection device, wherein the rotation mechanism rotates the cartridge holder around a central axis parallel to a direction in which the ink cartridge is inserted into the cartridge holder. The droplet discharge device according to claim 1,
The liquid droplet ejection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cartridge holder can be rotated by the rotation mechanism by sliding in the extending direction of the central axis. The droplet discharge device according to claim 1 or 2,
The droplet discharge device, wherein the cartridge holder is connected to the rotation mechanism on a side surface parallel to the central axis of the cartridge holder.

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