JP2016210042A - Head assembly, head unit, and liquid discharge device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a head assembly which enables improvement of the accuracy of an impact position of a liquid.SOLUTION: A head assembly includes: an inkjet head 10 which discharges an ink; a head support part 20 which supports the inkjet head 10; a head fixing screw 62 which fixes the inkjet head 10 to the head support part 20; and a head position variable part which enables a fixing position of the inkjet head 10 relative to the head support part 20 to be adjusted in a liquid discharge direction. It is preferable that the head position variable part has a head fixing screw hole and a head screw insertion hole.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

  The present invention relates to a head assembly in which a liquid discharge head and a head support are assembled, a head unit, a liquid discharge apparatus, and a method for assembling the head assembly.

  Conventionally, a head unit including an ink jet head and a base plate is known. In this head unit, in order to improve the accuracy of the liquid landing position, the head intersects the first direction, which is the direction in which the nozzle openings of the head are arranged in parallel, with respect to the base plate. It fixes in the state positioned in the direction of 2 (refer to patent documents 1).

JP 2010-167607 A

The inventor has found the following problems.
Like a conventional head unit, even if the position of the liquid discharge head is adjusted in the plane intersecting the liquid discharge direction with respect to the head support portion, if the position is not adjusted in the discharge direction, the head for media in particular When the relative speed of the liquid is high, the accuracy of the liquid landing position is lowered.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a head assembly, a head unit, a liquid ejecting apparatus, and a method for assembling the head assembly that can improve the accuracy of the liquid landing position.

  The head assembly of the present invention includes a liquid discharge head that discharges liquid, a head support that supports the liquid discharge head, a head fixing portion that fixes the liquid discharge head to the head support, and a liquid discharge head for the head support And a head position varying unit that varies the fixing position in the liquid ejection direction.

  According to this configuration, the liquid discharge head can be fixed to the head support portion after the position of the liquid discharge head is adjusted in the discharge direction with respect to the head support portion. Thereby, the accuracy of the landing position of the liquid can be improved.

  Further, the head support portion includes a fixing member to which the liquid discharge head is fixed, and a head plate having an attachment surface that intersects the discharge direction, and the fixing member is attached to the attachment surface. It is desirable to further include a member fixing portion that is fixed to the plate, and a member position variable portion that makes the fixing position of the fixing member relative to the head plate variable within the mounting surface.

  According to this configuration, it is possible to adjust the attachment position of the liquid ejection head in the direction intersecting with the ejection direction.

  Further, it is desirable that the head plate and the fixing member are configured to be engaged with each other to suppress the rotation of the liquid discharge head when fixed.

  According to this configuration, since the liquid discharge head can be prevented from being inclined in the discharge direction, liquid discharge with high accuracy is possible.

  Further, the head position varying portion is provided on one of the liquid ejection head and the head support portion, and a head fixing screw hole in which a head fixing screw as a head fixing portion is screwed in a direction intersecting the ejection direction, the liquid ejection head and the head It is preferable to have a head screw insertion hole provided on the other side of the support portion and into which the head fixing screw is inserted with play in the discharge direction.

  According to this configuration, with the head fixing screw temporarily tightened, after adjusting the position of the liquid discharge head in the discharge direction with respect to the head support portion, the head fixing screw is finally tightened to support the liquid discharge head to the head support. It can be fixed to the part.

  In this case, the head support portion includes a fixing member to which the liquid discharge head is fixed, and a head plate having an attachment surface that intersects with the discharge direction, and the fixing member is attached to the attachment surface. It is preferable to further include a member fixing portion that is fixed to the head plate, and a member position variable portion that makes the fixing position of the fixing member relative to the head plate variable within the mounting surface.

  According to this configuration, it is possible to fix the fixing member to the head plate after adjusting the position of the inkjet head fixed to the fixing member within the mounting surface with respect to the head plate. Thereby, the liquid discharge head can be fixed to the head plate after the position of the liquid discharge head is adjusted in the mounting surface via the fixing member. Therefore, the accuracy of the liquid landing position can be further improved.

  In this case, the member position variable portion is provided on one of the fixing member and the head plate, and is provided on the other of the fixing member and the head plate, and a member fixing screw hole into which the member fixing screw as the member fixing portion is screwed in the discharge direction. Preferably, the member fixing screw has a member screw insertion hole into which the member fixing screw is inserted with play in a direction intersecting the discharge direction.

  According to this configuration, with the member fixing screw temporarily tightened, the position of the fixing member is adjusted with respect to the head plate within the mounting surface, and then the member fixing screw is finally tightened to fix the fixing member to the head plate. can do.

  In this case, it is preferable that a plurality of liquid ejection heads are fixed to the head support portion.

  According to this configuration, it is possible to reduce variation in the fixed position in the ejection direction with respect to the head support portion among the plurality of liquid ejection heads. Accordingly, it is possible to reduce variations in landing positions among a plurality of liquid discharge heads.

  A head unit according to the present invention includes a plurality of the head assemblies described above and a base plate on which the plurality of head assemblies are mounted.

  According to this configuration, since the liquid discharge head includes a plurality of head assemblies whose positions are adjusted in the discharge direction with respect to the head support portion, variation in the fixed position in the discharge direction with respect to the base plate among the plurality of liquid discharge heads. Can be reduced. Accordingly, it is possible to reduce variations in landing positions among a plurality of liquid discharge heads.

A liquid ejection apparatus according to the present invention includes the above-described head assembly.
According to this configuration, the liquid can be favorably discharged onto the medium by including the head assembly with improved accuracy of the liquid landing position.

It is a perspective view of the head unit concerning one embodiment of the present invention. It is a perspective view of a base plate. It is a perspective view of a head assembly. It is a figure showing an inkjet head, Comprising: (a) is a perspective view, (b) is a side view, (c) is a front view. It is a perspective view of a fixing member. It is a perspective view of a head plate. It is a perspective view which shows the 2nd Example of a head assembly. It is a side view of the liquid discharge apparatus of this invention. It is a block diagram of the liquid discharge apparatus of this invention.

  Hereinafter, a head assembly and a method of assembling the head assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. This head assembly is an assembly of an inkjet head and a head support, and a head unit is constituted by a plurality of head assemblies. The head unit is mounted on various printers, and ejects ink onto a medium to record an image. First, the head unit will be described.

  In the following, the direction in which the nozzle row of the inkjet head extends is the “X direction”, the direction perpendicular to the nozzle row in the nozzle surface is the “Y direction”, and the ink ejection direction of the inkjet head, that is, perpendicular to the nozzle surface. One direction is referred to as the “Z direction”, and the rotation direction around the Z direction is referred to as the “θ direction”.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the head unit 1 includes a base plate 50 and 16 head assemblies 2. Sixteen head assemblies 2 are mounted on the base plate 50. The base plate 50 to which the head assembly 2 is attached is attached to the printer.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the base plate 50 is formed in a substantially rectangular thick plate shape that is elongated in plan view. For example, carbon steel can be used as the material of the base plate 50. In the four corners of the base plate 50, mounting holes 51 for mounting in the printer are provided. The base plate 50 is provided with 16 assembly openings 52 corresponding to the 16 head assemblies 2 to be mounted. The 16 assembly openings 52 are divided into two rows of 8 and are arranged in a staggered manner. The head assembly 2 is assembled in each assembly opening 52.

  Three plate fixing screw holes 53 are provided at the edge of each assembly opening 52. A plate fixing screw 61 (see FIG. 1) is screwed into each plate fixing screw hole 53. In addition, two block mounting portions 55 are recessed in the front and back surfaces of the edges of the respective assembly openings 52, that is, the assembly surface 54 on which the head assembly 2 is assembled. A positioning block having positioning pins 56 (see FIG. 1) is attached to each block attaching portion 55. Further, the assembly surface 54 of the base plate 50 is processed to a predetermined surface roughness.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the head assembly 2 includes two inkjet heads 10 and a head support portion 20. The head support unit 20 supports the two inkjet heads 10. The head support unit 20 includes two fixing members 30 and a head plate 40. The head assembly 2 is obtained by fixing each inkjet head 10 with respect to the head support portion 20 after adjusting the position thereof.

  When the inkjet head 10 is mounted on a printer, the inkjet head 10 ejects ink onto a medium by an inkjet method. The inkjet head 10 is an example of a “liquid discharge head”.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the inkjet head 10 includes a head main body 11 and two head edge portions 12.

  The head body 11 is formed in a substantially flat rectangular parallelepiped shape. The head main body 11 has a nozzle surface 14 provided with two nozzle rows 13 extending in the X direction. On the other hand, two ink supply ports 15 are provided on the surface of the head body 11 opposite to the nozzle surface 14. Ink is supplied to each ink supply port 15 from an ink supply unit (not shown). Further, at both ends in the X direction of the head main body 11, projecting portions 16 projecting laterally are provided.

  The two head edge portions 12 are provided at both ends of the head body 11 in the X direction so as to be continuous with the ink supply port 15 side of the protrusion 16. Each head edge 12 is formed in a plate shape that is thinner than the head body 11. Each head edge portion 12 is provided with a head screw insertion hole 17. For example, head fixing screws 62a and 62b (see FIG. 3), which are small screws, are inserted into the head screw insertion hole 17. The head screw insertion hole 17 is formed in a circular shape having a slightly larger diameter than the head fixing screws 62a and 62b. More precisely, one head screw insertion hole 17 has a slightly larger diameter than the other head screw insertion hole 17 and has a shape in which the top and bottom are slightly cut horizontally. Head fixing screws 62a and 62b are inserted into the head screw insertion hole 17 with play in the Z direction. For this reason, the fixing position of the inkjet head 10 with respect to the fixing member 30 is variable in the Z direction. The head fixing screws 62a and 62b are examples of “head fixing portions”.

  Moreover, the site | part of the protrusion part 16 side rather than the head screw penetration hole 17 of each head edge part 12 is the picking object part 18 picked by the knob part 260 mentioned later.

  The inkjet head 10 is fixed to the fixing member 30. Further, the fixing member 30 is fixed to the head plate 40.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the fixing member 30 is formed in a square bar shape having a substantially “C” shape in plan view. As the material of the fixing member 30, for example, stainless steel can be used. The lower surface of the fixing member 30, that is, the contact surface 31 in contact with the head plate 40 is processed to have a predetermined surface roughness.

  The fixing member 30 includes a long portion 32 and two short portions 33. The two short portions 33 are provided so as to extend in the Y direction from both end portions of the long portion 32 extending in the X direction. Each short portion 33 is formed with a head fixing screw hole 34a penetrating in the Y direction. The head fixing screw 62a is screwed into the head fixing screw hole 34a in the Y direction. The head fixing screw 62 a is screwed into the head fixing screw hole 34 a via the head screw insertion hole 17 of the ink jet head 10, whereby the ink jet head 10 is fixed to the fixing member 30.

  Furthermore, the protrusion part 36 extended in the Z direction from the two short parts 33 is provided. Each protrusion 36 is formed with a head fixing screw hole 34b penetrating in the Y direction. A head fixing screw 62b is screwed into the head fixing screw hole 34b in the Y direction. That is, the fixing member 30 fixes the inkjet head 10 with four screws.

  With the above structure, the inkjet head 10 is fixed at two locations in the Z direction, and the inkjet head 10 can be prevented from tilting in the Z direction. As a result, the liquid discharge direction is stable, and high-precision print quality can be obtained.

  On the other hand, member screw insertion holes 35 are formed in both ends of the long portion 32 so as to penetrate in the Z direction. For example, a member fixing screw 63 (see FIG. 3) that is a hexagon socket head bolt is inserted into the member screw insertion hole 35. The member screw insertion hole 35 is formed in a circular shape having a slightly larger diameter than the member fixing screw 63. That is, the member fixing screw 63 is inserted into the member screw insertion hole 35 with play in the X direction and the Y direction. Therefore, the fixing position of the fixing member 30 is variable within a mounting surface 41 (see FIG. 6) described later. The member fixing screw 63 is an example of a “member fixing portion”.

The fixing member 30 is fixed to the head plate 40.
As shown in FIG. 6, the head plate 40 is formed in a substantially rectangular plate shape. As the material of the head plate 40, for example, stainless steel can be used. One surface of the head plate 40, that is, the mounting surface 41 to which the fixing member 30 is attached, and the other surface of the head plate 40, that is, the mounting surface (not shown) attached to the base plate 50, have a predetermined surface roughness. Has been processed. In the head assembly 2, the attachment surface 41 and the mounting surface are substantially perpendicular to the ejection direction.

  The head plate 40 is provided with a mounting opening 42 leaving room for four rounds. The mounting opening 42 is formed in a substantially rectangular shape. The inkjet head 10 is inserted into the mounting opening 42. Four member fixing screw holes 43 are provided at the edge of the mounting opening 42. A member fixing screw 63 is screwed into each member fixing screw hole 43 in the Z direction. The member fixing screw 63 is screwed into the member fixing screw hole 43 through the member screw insertion hole 35 of the fixing member 30, whereby the fixing member 30 is fixed to the head plate 40.

  Further, three plate screw insertion holes 44 are provided at the edge of the head plate 40. A plate fixing screw 61 is inserted into each plate screw insertion hole 44. The plate fixing screw 61 is screwed into the plate fixing screw hole 53 of the base plate 50 through the plate screw insertion hole 44, whereby the head plate 40 is fixed to the base plate 50. The plate fixing screw 61 is also used when fixing the head plate 40 to a set table 130 described later.

  Further, two positioning holes 45 are provided in one long side portion of the head plate 40. The two positioning holes 45 are detected as a reference for position adjustment of the inkjet head 10 by a camera unit (not shown). Each positioning hole 45 is formed as a stepped hole. That is, each positioning hole 45 includes a large hole portion 46 and a small hole portion 47, and the large hole portion 46 and the small hole portion 47 are connected via a stepped portion. The large hole portion 46 is provided on the mounting surface 41 side of the head plate 40. The small hole portion 47 is provided on the mounting surface side of the head plate 40. The two large holes 46 are formed in an oval shape having the same size and long in the X direction. Positioning pins 56 provided on the base plate 50 are inserted into the two small holes 47, respectively. One small hole portion 47 is formed in a rounded square shape in which a positioning pin 56 having a circular cross-sectional shape is inscribed. Thereby, since there is no play between the positioning hole 45 and the positioning pin 56, the positioning hole 45 and the positioning pin 56 can be positioned with high accuracy. The other small hole portion 47 has a size slightly smaller than the large hole portion 46 and is formed in an oval shape that is long in the X direction, and functions as a detent.

  After the head assembly 2 is assembled, the base plate 50 is mounted. In the method of assembling the head assembly, first, after the inkjet head 10 is adjusted in the Z direction with respect to the head plate 40, the inkjet head 10 is fixed to the fixing member 30 by the head fixing screws 62a and 62b. Subsequently, the position of the inkjet head 10 fixed to the fixing member 30 is adjusted in the XYθ direction with respect to the head plate 40, and then the fixing member 30 is fixed to the head plate 40 by the member fixing screw 63.

  Each assembled head assembly 2 is screwed to the base plate 50 with the positioning pin 56 on the base plate 50 side inserted into the positioning hole 45 of the head plate 40. Further, the assembly surface 54 of the base plate 50 and the mounting surface of the head plate 40 are processed to a predetermined surface roughness. Therefore, each head assembly 2 is positioned with high accuracy in the XYθ direction and the Z direction and mounted on the base plate 50.

  According to the head assembly 2 and the method of assembling the head assembly 2 of the present embodiment, the inkjet head 10 is fixed to the head support 20 after the inkjet head 10 is positioned in the Z direction with respect to the head support 20. can do. Thereby, the accuracy of the ink landing position can be improved.

  Further, according to the head assembly 2 and the assembly method of the head assembly 2 of the present embodiment, the position of the inkjet head 10 fixed to the fixing member 30 is adjusted in the mounting surface 41 with respect to the head plate 40. The fixing member 30 can be fixed to the head plate 40. Thereby, the inkjet head 10 can be fixed to the head plate 40 after the position of the inkjet head 10 is adjusted in the mounting surface 41 via the fixing member 30. Therefore, the accuracy of the ink landing position can be further improved.

  According to the head assembly 2 of the present embodiment, it is possible to reduce variations in the fixed position in the Z direction with respect to the head support portion 20 among the plurality of inkjet heads 10. Therefore, variations in landing positions among the plurality of inkjet heads 10 can be reduced.

  According to the head unit 1 of the present embodiment, the inkjet head 10 includes a plurality of head assemblies 2 whose positions are adjusted in the Z direction with respect to the head support portion 20. The variation in the fixed position in the Z direction with respect to can be reduced. Therefore, variations in landing positions among the plurality of inkjet heads 10 can be reduced.

  According to the printer in which the head assembly 2 of the present embodiment is mounted, the ink can be favorably ejected onto the medium by including the head assembly 2 with improved accuracy of the ink landing position. This configuration is particularly effective when the relative moving speed of the head assembly 2 with respect to the medium is high.

In addition, this embodiment can be changed into the following forms.
The head support portion 20 may be one in which the head plate 40 and the fixing member 30 are integrated. Also in this case, the position of the inkjet head 10 can be adjusted in the Z direction with respect to the head support portion 20.

  Further, the head assembly 2 shown in FIG. 3 shows an example of a type in which two inkjet heads 10 are mounted. However, the configuration is not limited to this, and a configuration in which four inkjet heads 10 are mounted may be employed. A perspective view in that case is shown in FIG.

  FIG. 8 is a side view showing a textile printer as an embodiment of the liquid ejection apparatus of the present invention. FIG. 9 is a block diagram of the main part of the textile printer.

  The textile printer 1000 includes a machine base 1100, a transport mechanism unit 1200 that transports a fabric W having ink absorbability as a recording medium, a printing mechanism unit 1300 that applies ink Q onto the fabric W, and performs printing. The moving mechanism unit 1400 that relatively moves the carriage unit 1320 of the mechanism unit 1300 to reciprocate in the direction intersecting the conveyance direction of the fabric W, the drying unit 2000 that dries the ink Q on the fabric W, and the operations of these units, respectively. And a control unit 1500 for controlling.

  The transport mechanism unit 1200 is disposed on a feeding device 300 that feeds out a long fabric W wound in a roll shape, a winding device 400 that winds up a printed fabric W, and a machine base 1100. And a supporting device 500 for supporting the fabric W.

  The feeding device 300 is disposed on the upstream side in the feed direction of the fabric W from the machine base 1100. The feeding device 300 includes a feed roller 3100 that winds the fabric W in a roll shape and feeds the fabric W, and a tensioner 3200 that applies tension to the fabric W between the feed roller 3100 and the support device 500. ing. The feed roller 3100 is connected to a motor (not shown) and can be rotated by the operation of the motor.

  The winding device 400 is disposed on the downstream side in the feed direction of the fabric W from the machine base 1100 with respect to the feeding device 300. The winding device 400 includes a winding roller 4100 that winds the fabric W in a roll shape, and tensioners 4200, 4300, and 4400 that apply tension to the fabric W between the winding roller 4100 and the support device 500. . The winding roller 4100 is connected to a motor (not shown), and can be rotated by the operation of the motor.

  The support device 500 is disposed between the feeding device 300 and the winding device 400. Support device 500 includes main driving roller 5100 and driven roller 5200, endless belt 5300 spanned between main driving roller 5100 and driven roller 5200, and tensioners 5400 and 5500 that apply tension to fabric W.

  The main driving roller 5100 is connected to a motor (not shown) and can be rotated by the operation of the motor. Further, the driven roller 5200 can rotate in conjunction with the main driving roller 5100 via the endless belt 5300.

  The endless belt 5300 is a belt in which an adhesive layer having adhesiveness is formed on the surface on the front side. A part of the fabric W is adhered and fixed to the adhesive layer and conveyed. During this conveyance, the fabric W is printed. In addition, after printing is performed, the fabric W is peeled from the endless belt 5300.

The fabric W applied with the tension by the tensioner described above is fixed to the endless belt 5300 and conveyed while the tension is applied. In such a state, the fabric W is prevented from wrinkling or the like during conveyance, and therefore, when printing is performed, the printing becomes accurate and high quality.
The carriage unit 1320 is mounted with the head assembly 2 of the present invention.

  The drying unit 2000 is disposed downstream of the printing mechanism unit 1300 in the conveyance direction of the fabric W and is disposed between the support device 500 and the winding device 400. The drying unit 2000 can generate heat. Then, the ink on the fabric W can be dried by this heat.

  The control unit 1500 is electrically connected to the transport mechanism unit 1200, the printing mechanism unit 1300, the drying unit 2000, and the moving mechanism unit 1400, and has a function of controlling these operations. As illustrated in FIG. 2, the control unit 1500 includes a CPU 1510 and a storage unit 1520.

  The head assembly 2 is not only a textile printer that ejects ink to fabric media such as T-shirts, but also an inkjet printer that ejects ink to printing paper and the like, and various substrates such as glass substrates. It can be mounted on various liquid ejection devices such as devices that eject various liquids such as liquid crystal materials, organic EL (Electro-Luminescence) element materials, and metal wiring materials.

2: Head assembly 10: Inkjet head 20: Head support 30: Head fixing member 40: Head plate 50: Base plate 62a, 62b: Head fixing screw

Claims (9)

A liquid discharge head for discharging liquid;
A head support for supporting the liquid discharge head;
A head fixing portion for fixing the liquid ejection head to the head support portion;
A head position variable section that varies a fixed position of the liquid discharge head with respect to the head support section in a liquid discharge direction;
A head assembly comprising: The head support is
A fixing member to which the liquid discharge head is fixed;
A mounting plate that intersects the discharge direction, and a head plate to which the fixing member is mounted on the mounting surface;
A member fixing portion for fixing the fixing member to the head plate;
A member position variable portion that makes the fixing position of the fixing member relative to the head plate variable within the mounting surface;
The head assembly according to claim 1, further comprising:   The head assembly according to claim 2, wherein the head plate and the fixing member are configured to engage with each other and suppress rotation of the liquid ejection head when fixed. The head position varying unit is
A head fixing screw hole provided in one of the liquid discharge head and the head support portion, and a head fixing screw which is the head fixing portion is screwed in a direction intersecting the discharge direction;
A head screw insertion hole provided on the other of the liquid discharge head and the head support portion, the head fixing screw being inserted with play in the discharge direction;
The head assembly according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising: The head support is
A fixing member to which the liquid discharge head is fixed;
A mounting plate that intersects the discharge direction, and a head plate to which the fixing member is mounted on the mounting surface;
A member fixing portion for fixing the fixing member to the head plate;
A member position variable portion that makes the fixing position of the fixing member relative to the head plate variable within the mounting surface;
The head assembly according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising: The member position varying portion is
A member fixing screw hole provided on one of the fixing member and the head plate, and a member fixing screw which is the member fixing portion is screwed in the discharge direction;
A member screw insertion hole that is provided on the other of the fixing member and the head plate, and the member fixing screw is inserted with play in a direction intersecting the discharge direction;
The head assembly according to claim 5, further comprising: The head assembly according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the liquid discharge heads are fixed to the head support portion. A plurality of head assemblies according to any one of claims 1 to 7;
A base plate on which the plurality of head assemblies are mounted;
A head unit comprising:   A liquid ejecting apparatus comprising the head assembly according to claim 1.

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