JP2024033442A - Printer, control method of printer and program - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a printer which can prevent dryness of ink in nozzles in a capping state while reducing ink consumption.SOLUTION: In a printer 10, a control device 80 executes printing operation of discharging ink from nozzles 21 on the basis of image data in an uncapping state, and printing an image on a print medium A, counting operation of accumulating an uncapping time Tu that is duration of the uncapping state, and counting the uncapping time Tu as accumulation uncapping time Tt, and first flushing operation of discharging ink to a cap 60 from the nozzle 21 at timing according to the accumulation uncapping time Tt, and executes reset operation of not resetting the accumulation uncapping time Tt by state change to the capping state from the uncapping state, and resetting the accumulation uncapping time Tt by execution of the first flushing operation, in the counting operation.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to a printing device, a method of controlling the printing device, and a program.

As a conventional printing device, for example, a liquid ejecting device disclosed in Patent Document 1 is known. This liquid ejecting device includes a liquid ejecting head in which a nozzle for ejecting liquid opens, and a capping device. In a liquid ejecting apparatus, a printing operation is performed by ejecting liquid from a liquid ejecting head with a capping device open. After this printing operation, the nozzle opening of the liquid ejecting head is sealed with a capping device, and liquid is ejected from the nozzle opening to suppress drying of the liquid at the nozzle opening.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2004-017543

In a device such as the liquid ejecting device described above, if a printing operation is performed with the capping device open for a long period of time, the liquid remaining in the capping device dries during that time. When the nozzle opening is sealed with this capping device, the coloring material precipitated from the liquid due to drying functions as a moisture absorbing material and absorbs moisture from the liquid from the nozzle opening, resulting in an increase in the viscosity of the liquid in the nozzle. When the next printing operation is started in this state, there is a possibility that the liquid will not be ejected from the nozzle opening due to the increase in viscosity.

In view of this situation, an object of the present invention is to provide a printing device, a method for controlling the printing device, and a program that can prevent ink from drying in a nozzle in a capped state while suppressing ink consumption. There is.

A printing device according to an aspect of the present invention includes a head having a nozzle opening in an ejection surface, a drive element that applies ejection pressure to ink, a cap capable of covering the ejection surface, and the head and the cap. By moving only the head, moving only the cap, or moving both the head and the cap, the ejection surface is covered with the cap, and the ejection surface is covered with the cap. A first moving device that changes the state between an uncapping state in which the first moving device is separated from the cap, and a control device, the control device causing ink to be ejected from the nozzle based on image data in the uncapping state. a printing operation for printing an image on a print medium; a timing operation for accumulating uncapping time, which is the duration of the uncapping state, and measuring it as cumulative uncapping time; and a timing operation according to the cumulative uncapping time. a first flushing operation of ejecting ink from the nozzle to the cap, and in the timing operation, the cumulative uncapping time is not reset by changing the state from the uncapping state to the capping state; A reset operation for resetting the cumulative uncapping time is executed by executing the first flushing operation.

A method for controlling a printing apparatus according to an aspect of the present invention includes: a head having a nozzle opening on an ejection surface; a drive element that applies ejection pressure to ink; a cap capable of covering the ejection surface; And among the caps, by moving only the head, moving only the cap, or moving both the head and the cap, a capping state in which the ejection surface is covered with the cap and the ejection state are achieved. a first moving device that changes the state between an uncapping state in which a surface is separated from the cap, and the method comprises: a first moving device that changes the state between an uncapping state in which a surface is separated from the cap, and in the uncapping state, ink is ejected from the nozzle based on image data. a printing operation in which an image is printed on a print medium by ejecting an image, a timing operation in which an uncapping time that is a duration of the uncapping state is accumulated and counted as a cumulative uncapping time, and a timekeeping operation that is performed according to the cumulative uncapping time. a first flushing operation of ejecting ink from the nozzle to the cap at the same timing, and in the timing operation, the cumulative uncapping time is not reset when changing the state from the uncapping state to the capping state. Then, a reset operation is executed to reset the cumulative uncapping time by executing the first flushing operation.

A program according to an aspect of the present invention includes: a head having a nozzle opening in an ejection surface; a drive element that applies ejection pressure to ink; a cap capable of covering the ejection surface; By moving only the head, moving only the cap, or moving both the head and the cap, the ejection surface is covered with the cap and the ejection surface is covered with the cap. a first moving device that changes the state between an uncapping state separated from a printing operation of printing on the cap, a timing operation of accumulating uncapping time, which is the duration of the uncapping state, and measuring it as cumulative uncapping time, and printing from the nozzle to the cap at a timing corresponding to the cumulative uncapping time. a first flushing operation of ejecting ink, and in the timing operation, the first flushing operation is performed without resetting the cumulative uncapping time upon changing the state from the uncapping state to the capping state. A reset operation for resetting the cumulative uncapping time is executed.

The present invention has the advantage that it is possible to provide a printing device, a method for controlling the printing device, and a program that can prevent ink from drying in a nozzle in a capped state while suppressing ink consumption.

The above objects, other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 2 is a top view of a printing device according to an embodiment and a modification of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of a printing device. It is a figure which shows a receiving part. FIG. 4(a) is a diagram of the head and cap in a capped state. FIG. 4(b) is a diagram of the head and cap in an uncapped state. It is a graph showing the change over time in the degree of dryness of the cap. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method for controlling a printing apparatus according to an embodiment. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method for controlling a printing apparatus according to Modification 1. FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method for controlling a printing apparatus according to Modification 2. FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method for controlling a printing apparatus according to Modification 3. FIGS. 10(a) to 10(b) are graphs showing the remaining amount of ink in each of the black tank, yellow tank, cyan tank, and magenta tank. FIGS. 11(a) to 11(c) are diagrams showing the positional relationship between the head and the cap. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method for controlling a printing apparatus according to Modification 11. FIG.

(Embodiment)
<Printing device configuration>
As shown in the example of FIG. 1, a printing device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention is a device that prints an image on the printing medium A using ink by ejecting ink from a nozzle 21 of a head 20 onto a printing medium A. It is. An example in which the printing device 10 is applied to an inkjet printer will be described below. Further, the print medium A is, for example, a sheet of paper, cloth, or the like.

The printing apparatus 10 is of a serial head type and includes a head 20, a platen 11, a tank 12, a housing 13, a transport device 30, and a second moving device 40. In addition, below, the 1st direction in which the printing medium A on the platen 11 is conveyed by the conveyance device 30 is called the front-back direction. A second direction that intersects (eg, is orthogonal to) the first direction is referred to as the right, and a third direction that intersects (eg, orthogonally) to the first direction is referred to as the left. However, the arrangement of the printing device 10 is not limited to this.

The housing 13 houses each part of the printing apparatus 10. Inside the housing 13, a first area B, a printing area C, and a second area D are provided in the left-right direction. The first area B is placed to the right of the print area C, and the second area D is placed to the left of the print area C.

The head 20 has a plurality of nozzles 21 and a plurality of drive elements 22 (FIG. 2). The nozzle 21 opens on a discharge surface 23 that is the lower surface of the head 20 . The driving element 22 is a piezoelectric element, a heating element, an electrostatic actuator, or the like, and is provided for each nozzle 21 to apply pressure to the ink to eject the ink from the nozzle 21.

The platen 11 is arranged in the print area C, has a flat upper surface, and the print medium A is placed on the upper surface. The upper surface of the platen 11 faces the ejection surface 23 of the head 20, and defines the distance between the print medium A disposed on the upper surface and the ejection surface 23. Tank 12 communicates with nozzle 21 of head 20 through tube 15 . The tank 12 stores ink and communicates with the nozzle 21 via a tube 15 to supply the ink.

The conveyance device 30 includes, for example, two conveyance rollers 31 and a conveyance motor 32 (FIG. 2). The two transport rollers 31 sandwich the platen 11 between them in the front-rear direction, and their central axes extend in the left-right direction. The conveyance roller 31 is connected to a conveyance motor 32, rotates by the drive of the conveyance motor 32, and conveys the print medium A in the front-rear direction on the platen 11.

The second moving device 40 includes a carriage 41, two guide rails 42, a second moving motor 43, and an endless belt 44. The carriage 41 mounts the head 20 and is supported by two guide rails 42 so as to be movable in the left and right direction. The two guide rails 42 extend in the left-right direction above the platen 11 so as to sandwich the ejection surface 23 of the head 20 therebetween in the front-back direction. The endless belt 44 extends in the left-right direction and is attached to the carriage 41 and the second moving motor 43. When the second moving motor 43 is driven, the endless belt 44 runs, and the carriage 41 reciprocates in the left-right direction along the guide rail 42. Thereby, the carriage 41 moves the head 20 between the first region B and the second region D in the left-right direction.

<Receiving part>
The printing device 10 further includes a receiving portion 50 that receives ink ejected from the head 20 during the second flushing operation. The receiving portion 50 is disposed in the second region D along with the platen 11 in the left-right direction. The receiving part 50 has an absorber 51, a guide 52, and a waste container 53, as shown in the example of FIG.

The absorber 51 is made of, for example, a porous material that absorbs liquid. The absorber 51 is arranged at a position further away from the print area C (for example, to the left) than the guide 52 is. Note that the absorbent body 51 may be housed in a container that is open at the top.

The guide 52 has the shape of a bent flat plate, and extends longer than the discharge surface 23 in the front-rear direction. The guide 52 has, for example, a bent portion 52a, a lower portion 52b below the bent portion 52a, and an upper portion 52c above the bent portion 52a. The upper part 52c is inclined obliquely upward and to the right from the bent part 52a with respect to the extension line of the lower part 52b so that the upper part from the bent part 52a is closer to the printing area C. The lower portion 52b extends downward from the bent portion 52a.

The waste container 53 is disposed below the guide 52 and has an open top. A lower portion 52b of the guide 52 extends into the waste container 53. The liquid discharged from the nozzle 21 of the discharge surface 23 by the second flushing process may land on the absorber 51 and be absorbed, or land on the upper part 52c of the guide 52, slide down the guide 52, and be stored in the waste container 53. or

<Cap>
As shown in the example of FIG. 1, the printing device 10 further includes a cap 60 that can cover the ejection surface 23. The cap 60 is arranged in the first region B along with the platen 11 and the receiving part 50 in the left-right direction. The distance between the cap 60 and the platen 11 is greater than the distance between the receiving portion 50 and the platen 11, and the cap 60 is further away from the platen 11 than the receiving portion 50 is.

The cap 60 is made of an elastic material such as rubber, and is a member capable of covering the ejection surface 23 of the head 20. As shown in the examples of FIGS. 4(a) and 4(b), the cap 60 has a container shape with an open top. This upper opening is larger than the nozzle opening area, which is the area in which the nozzle 21 opens on the discharge surface 23 . The cap 60 has a rectangular flat bottom wall 61, an annular side wall 62 rising upward from the edge of the bottom wall 61, and an annular lip 63 projecting upward from the upper end of the side wall 62. With the lip 63 in contact with the discharge surface 23 , the cap 60 surrounds the nozzle opening area, and the cap space, which is the space inside the cap 60 , is closed by the discharge surface 23 . Note that the cap chip 64 may be placed inside the cap 60 and supported from the inside of the cap 60 by the cap chip 64 to maintain the shape of the cap 60.

<First moving device>
The printing device 10 further includes a first moving device 70 that moves at least one of the head 20 and the cap 60. The first moving device 70 moves only the cap 60 of the head 20 and the cap 60, thereby creating a capped state in which the ejection surface 23 is covered with the cap 60 and an uncapping state in which the ejection surface 23 is separated from the cap 60. Change state between. In addition, although the case where the cap 60 is moved by the 1st moving device 70 is demonstrated below, the 1st moving device 70 is not limited to the case where only the cap 60 is moved. The first moving device 70 moves only the head 20 out of the head 20 and the cap 60, or moves both the head 20 and the cap 60, thereby achieving a capped state in which the ejection surface 23 is covered with the cap 60 and ejection. The state may be changed between an uncapped state in which the surface 23 is separated from the cap 60. In this case, for example, the first moving device 70 may move the head 20 with respect to the cap 60 in the vertical direction. Further, the first moving device 70 may move both the head 20 and the cap 60 in the vertical direction.

The first moving device 70 includes a cap holder 71 and a first moving motor 72. The cap holder 71 has a container shape with an open top and accommodates the cap 60 therein. The cap holder 71 supports the cap 60 from the outside to maintain the shape of the cap 60.

By driving the first moving motor 72, the cap holder 71 moves in the vertical direction. As shown in the example of FIG. 4A, the first moving device 70 moves the cap holder 71 upward to bring the cap 60 held by the cap holder 71 closer to the discharge surface 23. Then, when the lip 63 of the cap 60 contacts the discharge surface 23, the first moving device 70 stops the movement of the cap 60. This capping operation brings the upper opening of the cap 60 into a capped state where it is covered by the discharge surface 23. In this capping state, the cap space between the ejection surface 23 and the inner surface of the cap 60 is closed, and drying of ink from the nozzle 21 that opens into the ejection surface 23 is reduced.

On the other hand, as shown in the example of FIG. 4(b), the first moving device 70 moves the cap holder 71 downward, separates the cap 60 held by the cap holder 71 from the discharge surface 23, and moves the cap holder 71 downward. Stop the movement of 60. This uncapping operation brings the discharge surface 23 into an uncapping state where it is separated from the cap 60. In the uncapping state, the cap space between the discharge surface 23 and the inner surface of the cap 60 is opened, and the discharge surface 23 and the inner surface of the cap 60 are exposed to the outside.

<Control device>
As shown in the example of FIG. 2, the control device 80 is, for example, a computer, and includes an interface 81, a calculation section 82, and a storage section 83. The interface 81 receives various data such as image data from external devices E such as computers, cameras, networks, and recording media. The image data is raster data indicating an image to be printed on the print medium A, or the like. Note that the control device 80 may be configured as a single device, or a plurality of devices may be distributed and configured to work together to operate the printing device 10. .

The storage unit 83 is a memory that can be accessed from the calculation unit 82 and includes at least one RAM, ROM, E2PROM, NVRAM, or the like. The storage unit 83 stores image data, data converted by the calculation unit 82, programs for performing various data processing, and the like. The calculation unit 82 includes, for example, a processor such as a CPU, an integrated circuit such as an ASIC, or both circuits, controls each unit by executing a program stored in the storage unit 83, and performs printing operations, first A flushing operation, a timing operation, and a second flushing operation are executed. Note that details of various operations will be described later.

Such a control device 80 is electrically connected to the drive element 22 of the head 20 via a head drive circuit 84. The control device 80 outputs a control signal for the drive element 22 to the head drive circuit 84, and the head drive circuit 84 generates a drive signal based on the control signal and outputs it to the drive element 22. The drive element 22 is driven according to a drive signal to apply ejection pressure to the ink.

Further, the control device 80 is electrically connected to the transport motor 32 of the transport device 30 via a transport drive circuit 85, and controls the drive of the transport motor 32. Thereby, the conveyance of the print medium A by the conveyance device 30 is controlled. Furthermore, the control device 80 is electrically connected to the second movement motor 43 of the second movement device 40 via a second movement drive circuit 86, and controls the drive of the second movement motor 43. Thereby, the movement of the head 20 by the second moving device 40 is controlled.

Further, the control device 80 is electrically connected to the first movement motor 72 of the first movement device 70 via a first movement drive circuit 87, and controls the drive of the first movement motor 72. As a result, the relative movement of the head 20 and the cap 60 by the first moving device 70 is controlled, and the state is changed between a capping state in which the cap 60 covers the ejection surface 23 and an uncapping state in which the cap 60 is separated from the ejection surface 23. is controlled.

<Printing operation>
In such a printing device 10, the control device 80 performs a printing operation of ejecting ink from the nozzles 21 based on image data in the uncapping state to print an image on the print medium A. Specifically, in the printing operation, the control device 80 executes a pass operation and a conveyance operation. In this pass operation, the control device 80 causes the head 20 to eject ink onto the print medium A while moving the head 20 to the right or left in the print area C. Furthermore, in the conveyance operation, the control device 80 causes the print medium A to be conveyed forward. In this way, the printing apparatus 10 alternately repeats the pass operation and the conveyance operation to proceed with the printing operation.

<Second flushing operation>
The printing operation is performed in an uncapped state in which the ejection surface 23 is separated from the upper opening of the cap 60. In this uncapping state, the ejection surface 23 is exposed to the outside, so the ink in the nozzle 21 opened to the ejection surface 23 dries and the viscosity of the ink increases. Therefore, the control device 80 executes a second flushing operation to eject ink from the nozzle 21 to the receiving portion 50 at a predetermined timing during the printing operation.

In the second flushing operation, the control device 80 measures, for example, the elapsed time from execution of the first flushing operation or execution of the second flushing operation as the flushing time Tf, and when the flushing time Tf reaches the third predetermined time T3, , is determined to be a predetermined timing during the printing operation. The third predetermined time T3 is determined depending on, for example, the ease with which the ink dries.

Here, when a predetermined timing is reached during execution of the pass operation in the printing operation, the control device 80 moves the head 20 from the print area C to the second area D after completing the pass operation. Moreover, when the conveyance operation in the printing operation is being executed, the control device 80 moves the head 20 from the printing area C to the second area D while executing the conveyance operation. Then, while moving the head 20 in the second region D, the control device 80 causes the ink to be ejected from the nozzle 21 to the receiving portion 50, thereby executing the second flushing operation. As a result, the thickened ink is discharged from the nozzle 21 to the receiving portion 50, so that deterioration in print image quality caused by the thickened ink can be reduced.

<Time measurement operation, first flushing operation>
In the capping state, since the upper opening of the cap 60 is covered with the discharge surface 23, drying inside the cap 60 is suppressed. Therefore, in the change over time in the dryness of the cap 60 shown in the example of FIG. 5, the increase in the dryness of the cap 60 during the capping time Tc, which is the duration of the capping state, is suppressed.

On the other hand, in the uncapped state, since the upper opening of the cap 60 is open, the interior of the cap 60 continues to dry. Therefore, in the example of FIG. 5, as the uncapping time Tu, which is the duration of the uncapping state, becomes longer, the degree of dryness of the cap 60 increases. Therefore, in the uncapped state, the ink remaining in the cap 60 dries, and coloring materials such as pigments and dyes contained in the ink dry. Here, when the upper opening of the cap 60 is in a capping state where the upper opening is covered with the ejection surface 23, the dried coloring material inside the cap 60 functions as a moisture absorbing material and absorbs the ink of the nozzle 21 opened on the ejection surface 23. The ink becomes thicker. Therefore, the control device 80 executes a timing operation and a first flushing operation.

In the timing operation, the control device 80 accumulates the uncapping time Tu, which is the duration of the uncapping state, and measures the cumulative uncapping time Tt. In this timing operation, the control device 80 performs a reset operation of resetting the cumulative uncapping time Tt by executing the first flushing operation, without resetting the cumulative uncapping time Tt by changing the state from the uncapping state to the capping state. Execute. In the first flushing operation, the control device 80 causes ink to be ejected from the nozzle 21 to the cap 60 at a timing corresponding to the cumulative uncapping time Tt.

Specifically, in the example of FIG. 5, the control device 80 executes the first flushing operation at a first time point Tf1, which is a timing corresponding to the cumulative uncapping time Tt. Here, if a pass operation in the printing operation is being executed, the control device 80 moves the head 20 from the print area C to the first area B after completing the pass operation. Further, when the conveyance operation in the printing operation is being executed, the control device 80 moves the head 20 from the printing area C to the first area B while executing the conveyance operation.

Then, the control device 80 causes ink to be ejected from the nozzles 21 of the head 20 onto the cap 60 in the first region B in an uncapped state. As a result, the ink adheres to the inside of the cap 60, the inside of the cap 60 is humidified by the ink, and the degree of dryness of the cap 60 is reduced. Therefore, even in the capped state, such a cap 60 can prevent ink from drying in the nozzle 21 opened to the ejection surface 23.

Furthermore, in the first flushing operation, the control device 80 causes all the nozzles 21 in the head 20 to eject ink equally. As a result, the ink that has increased in viscosity in the nozzle 21 is discharged from the nozzle 21, so that deterioration in print image quality due to the increased viscosity ink can be reduced.

Then, the control device 80 resets the cumulative uncapping time Tt to 0 by executing the first flushing operation, and then resets the cumulative uncapping time Tt to 0, which is the elapsed time from the first time point Tf1 and the duration of the uncapping state. The capping time Tu1 is measured as the cumulative uncapping time Tt. During this uncapping time Tu1, the degree of dryness of the cap 60 increases over time. Then, upon completion of the printing operation, etc., the control device 80 executes the capping operation. As a result, the state is changed from the uncapping state to the capping state, and drying of the cap 60 is suppressed. Therefore, the control device 80 stores the cumulative uncapping time Tt in the storage section 83 without resetting the cumulative uncapping time Tt to 0. Keep it in.

Then, by starting a printing operation or the like, the control device 80 executes an uncapping operation and changes the state from the capping state to the uncapping state. Here, the control device 80 accumulates the current uncapping time Tu2 on the previous cumulative uncapping time Tt without resetting the cumulative uncapping time Tt to 0, and sets the cumulative time Tu1+Tu2 as the cumulative uncapping time Tt. Keep time.

In this way, the control device 80 accumulates the uncapping time Tu from the execution of the first flushing operation. Then, when the cumulative uncapping time Tt reaches the first predetermined time T1 at the second time point Tf2 when it becomes Tu1+Tu2+Tu3, the control device 80 executes the first flushing operation. Thereby, ink is ejected from the nozzle 21 to the cap 60, and drying of the cap 60 is reduced. Therefore, the control device 80 resets the cumulative uncapping time Tt to 0, then accumulates the uncapping time Tu from the first flushing operation, and measures the cumulative uncapping time Tt. Then, when the cumulative uncapping time Tt reaches the first predetermined time T1 at the third time point Tf3 when it becomes Tu4+Tu5, the control device 80 executes the first flushing operation.

In this way, the current first flushing operation is performed based on the cumulative uncapping time Tt obtained by accumulating the uncapping times Tu from the previous first flushing operation. The timing of the next first flushing operation is determined from the point in time when the inside of the cap 60 is humidified by this first flushing operation. Thereby, it is possible to suppress the amount of ink ejected by the first flushing operation and reduce the moisture absorption effect of the dry coloring material in the cap 60 by the ink generated by the first flushing operation. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the ink inside the nozzle 21 from drying in the capped state while suppressing the amount of ink consumed.

<Control method>
When the control device 80 receives image data from the external device E via the interface 81, it executes a flowchart of an example of a control method shown in the example of FIG. First, the control device 80 acquires image data (step S1), and performs an uncapping operation (step S2). Then, the control device 80 executes an operation to measure the cumulative uncapping time Tt (step S3). Through this timing operation, the control device 80 adds the uncapping time Tu from the execution of the uncapping operation in step S2 to the cumulative uncapping time Tt from the previous execution of the first flushing operation stored in the storage unit 83. The cumulative uncapping time Tt is counted and stored in the storage unit 83.

Then, the control device 80 starts a printing operation to eject ink from the nozzle 21 based on the image data in the uncapping state (step S4), and continues printing until the printing operation ends (S13: YES) in the process of step S13. perform an action. During execution of this printing operation, the control device 80 determines whether the cumulative uncapping time Tt from the first flushing operation is less than the first predetermined time T1 (step S5). If the cumulative uncapping time Tt is less than the first predetermined time T1 (step S5: YES), it is determined whether the flushing time Tf from the first flushing operation or the second flushing operation is longer than the third predetermined time T3 ( Step S6). If the flushing time Tf is less than the third predetermined time T3 (step S6: NO), the process proceeds to step S13.

On the other hand, if the flushing time Tf is equal to or longer than the third predetermined time T3 (step S6: YES), it is assumed that the predetermined timing during the printing operation has been reached, and the control device 80 executes the second flushing operation (step S7). By this second flushing operation, the thickened ink is ejected from the nozzle 21 to the receiving portion 50, and it is possible to reduce the deterioration in print image quality caused by the thickened ink. Then, the control device 80 resets the flushing time Tf to 0 (step S8), performs a timing operation that sets the elapsed time from the second flushing operation as the flushing time Tf (step S9), and proceeds to the process of step S13. .

Further, in the process of step S5, if the cumulative uncapping time Tt is equal to or longer than the first predetermined time T1 (step S5: NO), the control device 80 performs the first flushing operation at a timing corresponding to the cumulative uncapping time Tt. Execute (step S10). By this first flushing operation, ink is ejected from the nozzle 21 into the cap 60, and the inside of the cap 60 is humidified. In this capped state with the cap 60, the ink inside the nozzle 21 can be prevented from drying.

Then, the control device 80 resets the cumulative uncapping time Tt to 0 by the first flushing operation (step S11), and then accumulates the uncapping time Tu from the first flushing operation to measure the cumulative uncapping time Tt. (Step S12). In this way, by measuring the cumulative uncapping time Tt starting from the time when the inside of the cap 60 is humidified by the first flushing operation, the amount of ink consumed by the first flushing operation according to the cumulative uncapping time Tt can be suppressed. At the same time, drying of the ink inside the nozzle 21 in the capped state can be prevented.

Further, by the first flushing operation in step S10, the thickened ink is ejected from the nozzle 21 onto the cap 60, and it is possible to reduce the deterioration in print image quality caused by the thickened ink. Therefore, the control device 80 resets the flushing time Tf to 0 (step S8), performs a timing operation that sets the elapsed time from the first flushing operation as the flushing time Tf (step S9), and returns to the process of step S13. move on.

Then, the control device 80 determines whether or not to end the printing operation (step S13). If there remains an unexecuted pass operation for printing an image based on the image data, the control device 80 determines that the printing operation is in progress (step S13: NO), returns to the process of step S5, and executes this operation. Execute the following processing. On the other hand, if all pass operations for printing an image based on print image data have been executed, the control device 80 determines that the printing operation has ended (step S13: YES). Then, the control device 80 moves the head 20 from the print area C to the first area B and executes a capping operation to cover the ejection surface 23 with the upper opening of the cap 60 (step S14).

<Modification 1>
The printing apparatus 10 according to the first modification includes a receiving section 50 that receives ink ejected from the nozzle 21 in the embodiment described above. The control device 80 executes a second flushing operation to eject ink from the nozzle 21 to the receiving portion 50 at a predetermined timing during the printing operation. In the printing operation, if the time difference ΔT between the execution timing of the first flushing operation and the execution timing of the second flushing operation is less than a predetermined value T0, the control device 80 performs the second flushing at the execution timing of the second flushing operation. A first flushing operation is performed instead of the first flushing operation.

This printing device 10 is controlled by a control device 80 according to the example flowchart of FIG. In the flowchart of FIG. 7, the process of step S15 is executed between the process of step S6 and the process of step S7 in the flowchart of FIG. Note that the processing in steps S1 to S14 in FIG. 7 is similar to the processing in steps S1 to S14 in FIG. 6, respectively.

Specifically, the control device 80 determines that if the cumulative uncapping time Tt is less than the first predetermined time T1 (step S5: YES) and the flushing time Tf is equal to or greater than the third predetermined time T3 (step S6: YES) , it is determined whether the time difference ΔT is greater than or equal to a predetermined value T0 (step S15). Here, the control device 80 obtains the timing at which the flushing time Tf becomes equal to or longer than the third predetermined time T3 as the execution timing of the second flushing operation. Further, the control device 80 obtains the timing at which the cumulative uncapping time Tt becomes equal to or longer than the first predetermined time T1 as the execution timing for the first flushing operation. Then, the control device 80 obtains the time difference ΔT between the execution timing of the first flushing operation and the execution timing of the second flushing operation, and compares this time difference ΔT with a predetermined value T0.

Here, if the time difference ΔT is less than the predetermined value T0 (step S15: NO), the execution timing of the second flushing operation is close to the execution timing of the first flushing operation. In this case, the control device 80 executes the first flushing operation without executing the second flushing operation (step S10). As a result, the first flushing operation is executed at the same timing as or close to the execution timing of the second flushing operation, so that thickened ink is ejected from the nozzle 21, thereby reducing deterioration in print image quality caused by thickened ink. Can be done. Furthermore, while preventing excessive ink from being ejected by executing the first flushing operation immediately after executing the second flushing operation, the first flushing operation humidifies the inside of the cap 60. can prevent ink from drying out.

On the other hand, if the time difference ΔT is greater than or equal to the predetermined value T0 (step S15: YES), the execution timing of the second flushing operation is far from the execution timing of the first flushing operation. Therefore, the control device 80 executes the second flushing operation (step S7) and executes the subsequent processes. According to this second flushing operation, ink is ejected from the head 20 to the receiving portion 50 which is closer to the printing area C than the cap 60, so it is performed in a shorter time than in the case of the first flushing operation in which ink is ejected to the cap 60. It is possible to eject ink and reduce the length of printing time caused by flushing operations.

<Modification 2>
In the printing device 10 according to Modification 2, in the above embodiment and Modification 1, the printing operation has a first printing mode and a second printing mode in which printing is performed at a higher speed than the first printing mode. There is. The control device 80 does not perform the first flushing operation during the printing operation in the second printing mode.

This method of controlling the printing device 10 is executed by the control device 80 as shown in the example flowchart of FIG. In the flowchart of FIG. 8, the process of step S16 is executed between the process of step S5 and the processes of steps S10 and S13 in the flowchart of FIG. Furthermore, in the flowchart of FIG. 8, the processing of steps S17 to S19 is executed between the processing of step S13 and the processing of step S14 in the flowchart of FIG. Note that the processing in steps S1 to S14 in FIG. 8 is similar to the processing in steps S1 to S14 in FIG. 6, respectively.

Specifically, if the cumulative uncapping time Tt is greater than or equal to the first predetermined time T1 (step S5: NO), the control device 80 determines whether the print mode of the print operation being executed in S4 is the second print mode. (Step S16).

This second printing mode is a high-speed printing mode that aims to shorten printing time compared to the first printing mode. Further, the first printing mode is a high-quality printing mode in which the printing time required for the printing operation is longer and the resolution of the image printed on the printing medium A is higher than that in the second printing mode. For example, in the printing operation in the first printing mode, the moving speed of the carriage 41 in the pass operation is slower than in the second printing mode, and the resolution of the image in the left and right direction is higher than in the second printing mode. Furthermore, in the printing operation in the first printing mode, the number of pass operations is greater than in the second printing mode, and the resolution of the image in the front and back direction is higher than in the second printing mode.

In such a first printing mode, even if the printing time becomes somewhat longer, the usability for the user does not change much. Therefore, when the printing operation mode is the first printing mode (step S16: NO), the control device 80 performs the processing from step S10 onwards. Thereby, the control device 80 can perform the first flushing operation at a timing corresponding to the cumulative uncapping time Tt, and can prevent the ink inside the nozzle 21 from drying in the capping state.

On the other hand, the second print mode is a print mode in which priority should normally be given to shortening the operation time required for printing operations, and if the printing end time is delayed, the user's usability becomes worse. Therefore, when the print mode of the print operation is the second print mode (step S16: YES), the control device 80 executes the process of step S13 without executing the first flushing operation. Here, the control device 80 determines whether or not to end the printing operation (step S13). If there remains an unexecuted pass operation for printing an image based on the image data (step S13: NO), the control device 80 returns to the process of step S5 and executes the subsequent processes.

On the other hand, if all pass operations for printing an image based on the image data have been executed (step S13: YES), the control device 80 determines that the cumulative uncapping time Tt from the first flushing operation is the first predetermined time. It is determined whether or not it is equal to or greater than T1 (step S17). If the cumulative uncapping time Tt is less than the first predetermined time T1 (step S17: NO), the cap 60 is prevented from drying, so the control device 80 executes the capping operation (step S14).

If the cumulative uncapping time Tt is equal to or longer than the first predetermined time T1 in the process of step S17 (step S17: YES), the control device 80 executes the first flushing operation (step S18). Then, the control device 80 resets the cumulative uncapping time Tt to 0 by the first flushing operation (step S19), and then executes the capping operation (step S14). In this way, in the first printing mode, the first flushing operation is not executed during the printing operation but after the printing operation, thereby reducing the length of printing time due to the first flushing operation, and reducing the nozzle in the capped state. It is possible to prevent the ink inside 21 from drying.

<Modification 3>
In the printing apparatus 10 according to the third modification, in the second modification, the amount of ink ejected in the first flushing operation differs depending on the cumulative uncapping time Tt. The amount of ink ejected in the second flushing operation varies depending on predetermined conditions. When executing the second flushing operation during the printing operation in the second print mode, the control device 80 performs the first flushing operation determined based on the cumulative uncapping time Tt up to the time point at which the second flushing operation is executed. A comparison operation is performed to compare the first ejection amount, which is the ink ejection amount, with the second ejection amount, which is the ink ejection amount of the second flushing operation determined based on the conditions at the time point. If the second ejection amount is greater than or equal to the first ejection amount, the control device 80 performs a third flushing operation in which ink is ejected to the cap 60 instead of the receiving portion 50 in the second flushing operation.

This method of controlling the printing device 10 is executed by the control device 80 as shown in the example flowchart of FIG. In the flowchart of FIG. 9, the processing of steps S20 to S22 is executed between the processing of step S6 and the processing of step S7 in the flowchart of FIG. Note that the processes in steps S1 to S14 and S16 to S19 in FIG. 8 are the same as the processes in steps S1 to S14 and S16 to S19 in FIG. 8, respectively.

Specifically, if the flushing time Tf is equal to or longer than the third predetermined time T3 (step S6: YES), the control device 80 determines whether the print mode of the print operation being executed in S4 is the first print mode. Determination is made (step S20). If the print mode is the first print mode (step S20: YES), the control device 80 executes the processes from step S7 onwards.

On the other hand, if the print mode is the second print mode (step S20: NO), the control device 80 performs a comparison operation to compare the second ejection amount and the first ejection amount (step S21). The first ejection amount is the amount of ink ejected from the head 20 in the first flushing operation, and is determined to be a different amount depending on the cumulative uncapping time Tt. The first ejection amount increases as the cumulative uncapping time Tt becomes longer until the first predetermined time T1, and reaches the predetermined ejection amount when the cumulative uncapping time Tt is equal to or longer than the first predetermined time T1. In this case, the control device 80 sets, for example, a predetermined timing during the printing operation at which the flushing time Tf becomes equal to or longer than the third predetermined time T3 in step S6 to execute the second flushing operation, and performs the cumulative uncapping up to this point. The first ejection amount is determined according to the time Tt.

Further, the second ejection amount is the amount of ink ejected from the head 20 by the second flushing operation, and a different amount is determined depending on predetermined conditions. For example, the predetermined conditions include a first condition for performing a second flushing operation to eject a first predetermined amount of ink, and a second condition for performing a second flushing operation to eject a second predetermined amount of ink that is greater than the first predetermined amount. It has a second condition for execution.

This second flushing operation is continuously performed a predetermined number of times (for example, four times) under the first condition, and then performed a predetermined time (for example, the fifth time) under the second condition. This second flushing operation is then repeated in this order of conditions. Therefore, the control device 80 stores the number of times the second flushing operation is executed in the storage unit 83 every time the second flushing operation is executed. Then, when performing the second flushing operation, the control device 80 determines the second discharge amount under the current predetermined conditions based on the number of times the second flushing operation is performed.

In this way, the control device 80 determines and compares the first discharge amount and the second discharge amount. As a result, if the second ejection amount is less than the first ejection amount (step S21: NO), the control device 80 executes the second flushing operation because the ink ejection amount in the second flushing operation is small. (Step S7), and the subsequent processing is executed. The amount of ink ejected in this second flushing operation is smaller than that in the first flushing operation, and the receiving portion 50 that ejects ink in the second flushing operation has a print area that is smaller than the cap 60 that ejects ink in the first flushing operation. Close to. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the lengthening of printing time caused by the flushing operation, and to reduce the deterioration in print image quality caused by thickened ink.

On the other hand, if the second discharge amount is greater than or equal to the first discharge amount (step S21: YES), the control device 80 executes a third flushing operation instead of the second flushing operation (step S22). This third flushing operation causes the head 20 to eject the second ejection amount of ink, which is the same amount as the second flushing operation, from the head 20 to the cap 60 . As a result, the thickened ink can be ejected and the inside of the cap 60 can be humidified, and while the prolongation of printing time caused by the flushing operation can be reduced, the print quality can be reduced due to the thickened ink and the inside of the nozzle 21 in the capping state can be reduced. Ink drying can be reduced.

<Modification 4>
In the printing device 10 according to Modification 4, the nozzle 21 in the above embodiment and Modifications 1 to 3 includes a first nozzle and a second nozzle. The printing device 10 includes a first tank that communicates with a first nozzle and stores ink to be supplied to the first nozzle, and a second tank that communicates with a second nozzle and stores ink that is supplied to the second nozzle. We are prepared. In the first flushing operation, the control device 80 controls a second tank in which the remaining amount of ink in the first tank is equal to or greater than a first predetermined remaining amount F1, and the remaining amount of ink in the second tank is less than the first predetermined remaining amount F1. If the remaining amount is less than the predetermined amount F2, ink is not ejected from the second nozzle, but ink is ejected from the first nozzle.

For example, as shown in the example of FIG. 1, the nozzles 21 include a black nozzle 21k for ejecting black ink, a yellow nozzle 21y for ejecting yellow ink, a cyan nozzle 21c for ejecting cyan ink, and a magenta nozzle 21c for ejecting magenta ink. Contains 21m of nozzles.

The tanks 12 include a black tank 12k, a yellow tank 12y, a cyan tank 12c, and a magenta tank 12m. The black tank 12k stores black ink, communicates with the black nozzle 21k, and supplies the black ink. The yellow tank 12y stores yellow ink, communicates with the yellow nozzle 21y, and supplies the yellow ink. The cyan tank 12c stores cyan ink, communicates with the cyan nozzle 21c, and supplies the cyan ink. The magenta tank 12m stores magenta ink, communicates with the magenta nozzle 21m, and supplies the magenta ink.

The amount of ink remaining in the tank 12 varies depending on the amount of ink ejected from the nozzle 21 due to the printing operation and each flushing operation. For this reason, the tank 12 is provided with a tank sensor 16, as shown in the example of FIG. The tank sensor 16 is electrically connected to the control device 80, detects the remaining amount of ink remaining in the tank 12, and outputs the detected remaining amount to the control device 80. For example, the tank sensor 16 detects the height of ink stored in the tank 12 with a predetermined capacity and outputs it to the control device 80. The control device 80 obtains the amount of ink remaining in the tank 12 according to the height of the ink in the tank 12. The relationship between the height of the ink and the remaining amount is stored in the storage section 83 in advance.

Note that the printing apparatus 10 does not need to include the tank sensor 16. In this case, the control device 80 obtains the amount of ink ejected each time ink is ejected from the nozzle 21 in a printing operation and a flushing operation. For example, the control device 80 integrates the amount of ink ejected from when the tank 12 is attached, obtains the cumulative amount of ejected, and stores it in the storage unit 83. Then, the control device 80 obtains the difference obtained by subtracting the cumulative ejection amount from the predetermined storage amount of ink stored in advance in the tank 12 as the remaining amount of ink.

For example, in the example of FIG. 10A, the remaining amount Fk of black ink in the black tank 12k is less than or equal to the second predetermined remaining amount F2. Further, the remaining yellow ink amount Fy in the remaining yellow tank 12y, the cyan ink remaining amount Fc in the cyan tank 12c, and the magenta ink remaining amount Fm in the magenta tank 12m are greater than or equal to the first predetermined remaining amount F1. In this case, the yellow nozzle 21y, the cyan nozzle 21c, and the magenta nozzle 21m are the first nozzles, and the yellow tank 12y, the cyan tank 12c, and the magenta tank 12m are the first tanks. Further, the black nozzle 21k is a second nozzle, and the black tank 12k is a second tank. The second predetermined remaining amount F2 is, for example, the amount of ink supplied from the tank 12 to the nozzle 21 for the second flushing operation, and is from the plurality of nozzles 21 communicating with each tank 12 for the second flushing operation. is the predetermined total amount of ink ejected from the head 20.

In this case, when performing the first flushing operation in the processing of steps S10 and S18 in FIGS. 6 to 9, the control device 80 does not eject black ink from the black nozzle 21k, but controls the yellow nozzle 21y, cyan nozzle 21c, and Yellow ink, cyan ink, and magenta ink are respectively ejected from the magenta nozzle 21m. The total amount of the yellow ink ejection amount, the cyan ink ejection amount, and the magenta ink ejection amount is made equal to a predetermined total amount of ink ejected from the head 20 in the first flushing operation. The ejection amount of yellow ink, the ejection amount of cyan ink, and the ejection amount of magenta ink are made equal to each other. Thereby, in the first flushing operation, the amount of ink that has a large remaining amount of ink can be suppressed to a low level without consuming the ink that has a small remaining amount of ink. Therefore, it is possible to avoid ink shortage caused by the first flushing operation, and to reduce drying of the ink inside the nozzle 21 in the capping state.

<Modification 5>
In the printing apparatus 10 according to the fifth modification, in the fourth modification, the control device 80 controls the remaining amount of ink in the first tank and the remaining amount of ink in the second tank to a first predetermined remaining amount F1 in the first flushing operation. If the amount is less than 1, ink is ejected from the first nozzle and the second nozzle.

For example, as shown in the example of FIG. 10(b), the remaining ink amount Fk in the black tank 12k, the remaining ink amount Fy in the yellow tank 12y, the remaining ink amount Fc in the cyan tank 12c, and the ink remaining amount in the magenta tank 12m. The remaining amount Fm is less than the first predetermined remaining amount F1. In this case, when performing the first flushing operation in the processing of steps S10 and S18 in FIGS. 6 to 9, the control device 80 injects black ink, yellow ink, Ink, cyan ink, and magenta ink are respectively ejected.

The total amount of the black ink, the yellow ink, the cyan ink, and the magenta ink is made equal to a predetermined total amount of ink ejected from the head 20 in the first flushing operation. Further, the ejection amount of black ink, the ejection amount of yellow ink, the ejection amount of cyan ink, and the ejection amount of magenta ink are made equal. As a result, even if the remaining amount of ink in each tank 12 is small, the amount of ink ejected from each nozzle 21 can be suppressed by ejecting ink from more nozzles 21. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the drying of the ink inside the nozzle 21 in the capping state while avoiding the ink shortage caused by the first flushing operation.

<Modification 6>
In the printing device 10 according to Modification 6, in Modifications 4 and 5, the control device 80 determines that the remaining amount of ink in the first tank is equal to or greater than the first predetermined remaining amount F1, and the remaining amount of ink in the second tank is Since the remaining amount is less than the first predetermined amount F1 and the time difference between the execution timing of the second flushing operation and the execution timing of the first flushing operation is less than the predetermined value, the second flushing operation is performed at the execution timing of the second flushing operation. When performing the first flushing operation instead, the second nozzle ejects the amount of ink that is ejected from one nozzle 21 in the second flushing operation, and the ink is ejected from all the nozzles 21 of the head 20. A larger amount of ink is ejected from the first nozzle than the amount ejected from the first nozzle 21 in the first flushing operation so that the total amount of ink ejected is the total amount of ink ejected in the first flushing operation. .

For example, in the example flowchart of FIG. 7, if the time difference ΔT is less than the predetermined value T0 (step S15: NO), the control device 80 executes the first flushing operation instead of the second flushing operation (step S10). . When performing this first flushing operation, the control device 80 acquires the amount of ink remaining in each tank 12. As in the example of FIG. 10A, the remaining amount Fk of black ink in the black tank 12k is less than the first predetermined remaining amount F1, the remaining amount Fy of yellow ink in the remaining yellow tank 12y, and the remaining amount Fy of yellow ink in the remaining yellow tank 12c. The remaining amount Fc of cyan ink and the remaining amount Fm of magenta ink in the magenta tank 12m are greater than or equal to the first predetermined remaining amount F1.

In this case, the control device 80 causes black ink, yellow ink, cyan ink, and magenta ink to be ejected from the black nozzle 21k, yellow nozzle 21y, cyan nozzle 21c, and magenta nozzle 21m, respectively. Here, the total amount of the black ink ejection amount, the yellow ink ejection amount, the cyan ink ejection amount, and the magenta ink ejection amount is made equal to a predetermined total amount of ink ejected from the head 20 in the first flushing operation. The predetermined total amount of ink resulting from this first flushing operation is calculated by ejecting a predetermined amount of ink from each nozzle 21, for example, 80 times, and adding up the total amount of ink ejected from each nozzle 21 for all nozzles 21. is the total amount of

Among these, for the black ink with a small remaining amount, the ejection amount C2 of the black ink ejected from each black nozzle 21k in the first flushing operation is made equal to the ejection amount of ink ejected from each nozzle 21 in the second flushing operation. . The amount of ink ejected from each nozzle 21 in this second flushing operation is the total amount of ink ejected from each nozzle 21 when a predetermined amount of ink is ejected from each nozzle 21, for example, 20 times.

Further, for each of the yellow ink, cyan ink, and magenta ink, which have a large remaining amount, the ejection amount C1 of the ink ejected from each nozzle 21 in the first flushing operation is made larger than the ejection amount C2 of the black ink. For example, the number of times the ink is ejected from each nozzle 21 in the first flushing operation is 80 times, whereas the number of times the black ink is ejected from each black nozzle 21k in the second flushing operation is 20 times. , the difference between these 60 times is insufficient. Therefore, this shortage of 60 times is supplemented by other nozzles 21. Therefore, for each ink of yellow ink, cyan ink, and magenta ink, ink is ejected from each nozzle 100 times, which is 80 times of ink ejection from each nozzle 21 by the first flushing operation, plus 60/3 times of the complementary amount. Discharge.

In this manner, in the first flushing operation, ink is ejected from the black nozzle 21k, yellow nozzle 21y, cyan nozzle 21c, and magenta nozzle 21m. Then, the ejection amount of yellow ink, the ejection amount of cyan ink, and the ejection amount of magenta ink are made equal, and these ejection amounts complement the ejection amount of black ink. Thereby, it is possible to secure the amount of ink for humidifying the inside of the cap 60 by the first flushing operation while suppressing the amount of black ink that is consumed by the first flushing operation, which has a small remaining amount. Therefore, while avoiding the ink shortage caused by the first flushing operation, it is possible to eject thickened ink from each nozzle 21 and reduce the deterioration in print image quality caused by the thickened ink.

<Modification 7>
In Modifications 4 and 5, the printing device 10 according to Modification 7 includes a platen 11 on which print medium A is placed, a conveyance device 30 that conveys print medium A on platen 11 in a first direction, and A second moving device 40 that moves the head 20 in a second direction and a third direction that intersect with the head 20 is provided. The cap 60 is arranged in the second direction relative to the platen 11. The nozzle 21 has a third nozzle arranged at the end of the head 20 in the third direction. In the first flushing operation, if the ink cannot be ejected from the third nozzle to the end of the cap 60 in the second direction, the control device 80 causes the ink to be ejected from the first nozzle and the second nozzle.

In the example of FIG. 1, the cap 60 is disposed to the right of the platen 11 along with the platen 11 in the left-right direction. In the head 20, a black nozzle 21k, a yellow nozzle 21y, a cyan nozzle 21c, and a magenta nozzle 21m are arranged in this order from left to right. In this case, the black nozzle 21k is arranged at the left end of the head 20 and is the third nozzle.

As shown in the example of FIG. 11, in the first flushing operation, the control device 80 causes the head 20 to eject ink from the head 20 onto the cap 60 while moving the head 20 in the left-right direction on the cap 60. In this way, by discharging ink from the head 20 that moves relative to the cap 60, the ink lands uniformly on the entire cap 60, so that drying of the ink inside the nozzle 21 in the capping state can be reduced. can.

Here, as shown in the example of FIG. 11A, the cap 60 is placed at a predetermined position on the housing 13, and the nozzle 21 is placed at a predetermined position on the head 20. Therefore, the control device 80 obtains the distance between the nozzle 21 and the cap 60 in the left-right direction based on the position of the head 20 moving to the right. The control device 80 acquires the nozzle 21 located on the cap 60 from among the nozzles 21 based on the distance, and causes the nozzle 21 to eject ink. In the example of FIG. 11A, the magenta nozzle 21m located at the right end of the head 20 is located on the cap 60, and the other nozzles 21 are arranged to the left of the cap 60. Therefore, the control device 80 causes magenta ink to be ejected from the magenta nozzle 21m without ejecting ink from the nozzles 21 other than the magenta nozzle 21m.

As shown in the examples of FIGS. 11(b) and 11(c), as the head 20 moves to the right, the magenta nozzle 21m, cyan nozzle 21c, yellow nozzle 21y, and black nozzle 21k are placed on the cap 60 in this order. Located in Therefore, the control device 80 causes ink to be ejected from the magenta nozzle 21m, the cyan nozzle 21c, the yellow nozzle 21y, and the black nozzle 21k in this order. Furthermore, when the head 20 moves to the right, the magenta nozzle 21m moves to the right of the cap 60, so the control device 80 causes the magenta nozzle 21m to eject ink from the cyan nozzle 21c, the yellow nozzle 21y, and the black nozzle 21k. Stops ejecting magenta ink from. In this way, as the head 20 moves to the right, the magenta nozzle 21m, the cyan nozzle 21c, and the yellow nozzle 21y are located to the right of the cap 60 in this order. Then, the ejection of ink from the yellow nozzle 21y is stopped in this order.

However, as shown in the example of FIG. 11(c), there may be a barrier such as a wall of the casing 13 to the right of the cap 60. This barrier restricts the movement of the cap 60 to the right, and prevents the head 20 from moving to the right until the black nozzle 21k is positioned above the right end of the cap 60. It may not be possible to eject.

In this case, the amount of ink that lands on the right end of the cap 60 is smaller than the amount of ink that lands on the left end of the cap 60. Therefore, if black ink cannot be ejected from the black nozzle 21k that is close to the platen 11 in the left-right direction to the right end of the cap 60 that is far from the platen 11, the control device 80 performs the first flushing operation to eject not only ink with a large remaining amount , even when there is little remaining ink. Thereby, ink adheres to a wide range of the cap 60, and drying of the ink inside the nozzle 21 in the capping state can be reduced.

On the other hand, if black ink can be ejected from the black nozzle 21k near the platen 11 in the left-right direction to the right end of the cap 60 that is far from the platen 11, the control device 80 causes a small amount of ink to be ejected in the first flushing operation. The ink that has a large amount remaining is ejected. Thereby, it is possible to humidify the inside of the cap 60 and reduce drying of the ink inside the nozzle 21 in the capping state, while avoiding ink shortage caused by the first flushing operation.

<Modification 8>
In the printing device 10 according to Modification 8, in the above embodiment and Modifications 1 to 7, the nozzle 21 is the fourth nozzle that discharges the first type of ink, and the nozzle 21 has a moisture retention property higher than that of the first type of ink. It has a fifth nozzle that ejects a second type of ink of high quality. In the head 20, the fifth nozzle is arranged further in the second direction than the fourth nozzle.

In the printing apparatus 10 shown in FIG. 1, the head 20 is capable of ejecting black ink, yellow ink, cyan ink, and magenta ink. Among these inks, for example, black ink is a pigment ink, and yellow ink, cyan ink, and magenta ink are dye inks. The moisture retention properties of yellow ink, cyan ink, and magenta ink may be higher than that of black ink.

In this case, the black ink is the first type of ink, and the black nozzle 21k that discharges the black ink is the fourth nozzle that discharges the first type of ink. Further, yellow ink, cyan ink, and magenta ink are second type inks that have higher moisture retention properties than the first type ink. The yellow nozzle 21y that ejects yellow ink, the cyan nozzle 21c that ejects cyan ink, and the magenta nozzle 21m that ejects magenta ink are fifth nozzles that eject the second type of ink.

In the printing apparatus 10, the cap 60 is arranged to the right of the platen 11 along with the platen 11 in the left-right direction. In the head 20, a black nozzle 21k, a yellow nozzle 21y, a cyan nozzle 21c, and a magenta nozzle 21m are arranged in this order from left to right. Therefore, the yellow nozzle 21y, the cyan nozzle 21c, and the magenta nozzle 21m are arranged to the right of the black nozzle 21k, and the black nozzle 21k is arranged at the left end of the head 20.

As shown in the example of FIG. 11, in the first flushing operation, the control device 80 causes the head 20 to eject ink from the nozzle 21 located on the cap 60 while moving the head 20 in the left-right direction, and ejects ink from the other nozzles. Prevent ink from being ejected from 21. Thereby, the ejected ink lands on the cap 60 and humidifies the inside of the cap 60, thereby making it possible to reduce drying of the ink inside the nozzle 21 in the capping state.

Here, as shown in the example of FIG. 11(c), if a barrier such as a wall of the housing 13 is located to the right of the cap 60, movement of the head 20 to the right is restricted, and the head 20 is positioned at the left end. The black nozzle 21k may not be able to move above the right end of the cap 60. Even in such a case, the highly moisturizing ink nozzle 21 can be moved from above the left end to above the right end of the cap 60 in the left-right direction. As a result, highly moisturizing ink can be landed over a wide range of the cap 60, so the inside of the cap 60 is humidified while the amount of ink used in the first flushing operation is kept small, and the inside of the nozzle 21 in the capping state is kept low. Ink drying can be reduced.

<Modification 9>
In the printing device 10 according to Modification 9, in the above embodiment and Modifications 1 to 8, in Modification 8, the nozzle 21 is a sixth nozzle that discharges pigment ink and a seventh nozzle that discharges dye ink. have. In the first flushing operation, the control device 80 causes the dye ink to be ejected from the seventh nozzle without ejecting the pigment ink from the sixth nozzle.

In the printing apparatus 10 shown in FIG. 1, the head 20 is capable of ejecting black ink, yellow ink, cyan ink, and magenta ink. Among these inks, for example, black ink is a pigment ink, and yellow ink, cyan ink, and magenta ink are dye inks.

In this case, the black nozzle 21k that ejects black ink is the sixth nozzle that ejects pigment ink. Further, the yellow nozzle 21y that discharges yellow ink, the cyan nozzle 21c that discharges cyan ink, and the magenta nozzle 21m that discharges magenta ink are the seventh nozzles that discharge dye ink.

When performing the first flushing operation in the processing of steps S10 and S18 in FIGS. 6 to 9, the control device 80 does not eject black ink from the black nozzle 21k, and instead discharges black ink from the yellow nozzle 21y, cyan nozzle 21c, and magenta nozzle 21m. Yellow ink, cyan ink, and magenta ink are respectively ejected from the ink. The pigments in this black ink are more hygroscopic when dry than the dyes in other inks. Since this black ink is not ejected into the cap 60, the pigment of the black ink dries and does not function as a moisture absorption material, so that drying of the ink inside the nozzle 21 in the capped state can be reduced.

<Modification 10>
In the printing device 10 according to Modification 10, in the above embodiments and Modifications 1 to 9, the control device 80 controls the first ink droplet consisting of a predetermined amount of ink and the first ink droplet consisting of an amount of ink larger than the predetermined amount. A second ink droplet can be ejected from the nozzle 21. The control device 80 causes the second ink droplet to be ejected from the nozzle 21 in the first flushing operation.

Specifically, in the printing operation, the control device 80 selects one type of waveform signal from a plurality of types of waveform signals for each pixel of the image according to the amount of ink ejected, and generates waveform selection data. The waveform signal is, for example, a pulse signal, and is a first waveform signal that causes a first ink droplet made of a predetermined amount of ink to be ejected from the nozzle 21, and a second waveform signal that causes a second ink droplet made of an amount larger than the predetermined amount to be ejected from the nozzle 21. It has a second waveform signal for ejecting from the nozzle 21.

Then, the control device 80 outputs control data including the waveform selection data and the waveform signal to the head drive circuit 84. In response, the head drive circuit 84 selects one type of waveform signal based on the waveform selection data of the control data, and applies a voltage signal corresponding to the waveform of this waveform signal to the drive element 22 as a drive signal. As a result, the drive element 22 is driven according to the drive signal, ejection pressure is applied to the ink, and an amount of ink corresponding to the selected waveform signal is ejected from the nozzle 21.

In this case, when performing the first flushing operation in steps S10 and S18 in FIGS. 6 to 9, the control device 80 selects the second waveform signal to drive the drive element 22. As a result, a second ink droplet is ejected from the nozzle 21 onto the cap 60. Even if the gap between the ejection surface 23 of the head 20 with this nozzle 21 opened and the cap 60 is larger than the gap between the ejection surface 23 and the print medium A on the platen 11, the second ink Since the droplets are large, it is difficult to turn them into mist. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the adhesion of the ink mist to the ejection surface 23 and the like. Further, the ejected ink is used for humidifying the inside of the cap 60, and it is possible to reduce drying of the ink inside the nozzle 21 in the capping state.

<Modification 11>
The printing apparatus 10 according to Modification 11 includes the suction pump 90 that sucks the cap space surrounded by the discharge surface 23 and the cap 60 in the capping state in the above embodiment and Modifications 1 to 10. The control device 80 executes the first flushing operation when the cumulative uncapping time Tt reaches the first predetermined time T1. When the cumulative uncapping time Tt is longer than the first predetermined time T1 by a second predetermined time T2 or more, the control device 80 performs a suction purge in which the cap space is sucked by the suction pump 90 in the capping state, instead of the first flushing operation. Execute.

In this case, as shown in the example of FIG. 4, the printing device 10 includes a suction pump 90 and a suction tube 91. The suction tube 91 is, for example, an elastic tube, passes through the cap 60 and the cap holder 71, and opens on the inner surface of the cap 60. The suction pump 90 is, for example, a tube pump, and communicates with the cap space of the cap 60 through a suction pipe 91. Further, the suction pump 90 is connected to a control device 80 (FIG. 2), and its drive is controlled by the control device 80 to execute a suction purge operation.

In the suction purge operation, when the suction pump 90 is driven in the capping state, the rollers included in the tube pump rotate while crushing the suction tube 91, thereby pushing out the ink inside the suction tube 91. When the crushed suction tube 91 returns to its original shape due to restoring force, it sucks the next ink into the suction tube 91 . In this way, the air in the cap space covered by the ejection surface 23 is sucked, the pressure in the cap space is reduced, and ink is discharged from the nozzle 21 into the cap 60.

This method of controlling the printing device 10 is executed by the control device 80 as shown in the example flowchart of FIG. In the flowchart of FIG. 12, the processes of steps S23 to S26 are executed between the process of step S5 and the process of step S10 or S11 in the flowchart of FIG. Note that the processing in steps S1 to S14 in FIG. 12 is similar to the processing in steps S1 to S14 in FIG. 6, respectively.

Specifically, if the cumulative uncapping time Tt is greater than or equal to the first predetermined time T1 (step S5: NO), the control device 80 determines whether the cumulative uncapping time Tt is less than the second predetermined time T2. (Step S23). The second predetermined time T2 is longer than the first predetermined time T1. If the cumulative uncapping time Tt is less than the second predetermined time T2 (step S23: YES), the control device 80 executes the first flushing operation (step S10). By this first flushing operation, ink is ejected from the nozzle 21 into the cap 60, and the inside of the cap 60 is humidified. The ink inside the nozzle 21 can be prevented from drying when the cap 60 is in this capped state.

On the other hand, if the cumulative uncapping time Tt becomes equal to or longer than the second predetermined time T2 due to occurrence of a jam or the like (step S23: NO), the control device 80 executes the capping operation (step S24), and performs a suction purge operation in the capping state. After performing (step S25), an uncapping operation is performed (step S26). Even if such an uncapping state continues for a long time and the ink in the nozzle 21 dries, the dry ink can be discharged from the nozzle 21 by the suction purge operation and the ink can be ejected. Further, by the suction purge operation, ink is ejected from the nozzle 21 into the cap 60, the inside of the cap 60 is humidified, and the ink inside the nozzle 21 can be prevented from drying in the capping state.

In this way, the control device 80 resets the cumulative uncapping time Tt to 0 after performing the first flushing operation (step S10) or after performing the uncapping operation (step S24) (step S11), and then resets the cumulative uncapping time Tt to 0 (step S11). The uncapping time Tu from one flushing operation is accumulated to measure the cumulative uncapping time Tt (step S12). Further, the control device 80 resets the flushing time Tf to 0 (step S8), performs a timing operation that sets the elapsed time from the first flushing operation as the flushing time Tf (step S9), and proceeds to the process of step S13. .

Note that all of the above embodiments may be combined with each other as long as they do not exclude each other. Additionally, from the above description, many modifications and other embodiments of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, the above description is to be construed as illustrative only, and is provided for the purpose of teaching those skilled in the art the best mode of carrying out the invention. Substantial changes may be made in the structural and/or functional details thereof without departing from the spirit of the invention.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICATION This invention is applicable to the printing device, the control method of a printing device, and the program which can prevent the drying of the ink in a nozzle in a capping state while suppressing the consumption of ink.

10: Printing device 11: Platen 12: Tank 20: Head 21: Nozzle 22: Drive element 23: Discharge surface 30: Conveying device 40: Second moving device 50: Receiving portion 60: Cap 70: First moving device 80: Control Device 90: Suction pump

Claims (14)

a head having a nozzle opening on the ejection surface and a drive element that applies ejection pressure to the ink;
a cap capable of covering the discharge surface;
Of the head and the cap, by moving only the head, moving only the cap, or moving both the head and the cap, a capping state in which the ejection surface is covered with the cap can be achieved. a first moving device that changes the state between an uncapping state in which the discharge surface is separated from the cap;
comprising a control device;
The control device includes:
a printing operation of ejecting ink from the nozzle based on image data in the uncapping state to print an image on a print medium;
a time counting operation of accumulating uncapping time, which is the duration of the uncapping state, and measuring it as cumulative uncapping time;
performing a first flushing operation of ejecting ink from the nozzle to the cap at a timing corresponding to the cumulative uncapping time;
In the time measurement operation, a reset operation is performed in which the cumulative uncapping time is not reset by changing the state from the uncapping state to the capping state, but the cumulative uncapping time is reset by performing the first flushing operation. ,
Printing device. comprising a receiving part for receiving ink ejected from the nozzle,
The control device includes:
performing a second flushing operation to eject ink from the nozzle to the receiving portion at a predetermined timing during the printing operation;
In the printing operation, if the time difference between the execution timing of the first flushing operation and the execution timing of the second flushing operation is less than a predetermined value, the execution timing of the second flushing operation is replaced by the second flushing operation. performing the first flushing operation;
The printing device according to claim 1. The printing operation has a first printing mode and a second printing mode in which printing is performed at a higher speed than the first printing mode,
The control device does not perform the first flushing operation during the printing operation in the second printing mode.
The printing device according to claim 2. The amount of ink ejected in the first flushing operation varies depending on the cumulative uncapping time,
The amount of ink ejected in the second flushing operation varies depending on predetermined conditions,
The control device includes:
When performing the second flushing operation during the printing operation in the second print mode, the first flushing operation is determined based on the cumulative uncapping time up to the time when the second flushing operation is performed. a comparison operation of comparing a first ejection amount that is the ink ejection amount of the second flushing operation with a second ejection amount that is the ink ejection amount of the second flushing operation determined based on the conditions at the time point;
If the second ejection amount is greater than or equal to the first ejection amount, performing a third flushing operation in which ink is ejected to the cap instead of the receiving portion in the second flushing operation.
The printing device according to claim 3. The nozzle has a first nozzle and a second nozzle,
a first tank communicating with the first nozzle and storing ink to be supplied to the first nozzle;
a second tank communicating with the second nozzle and storing ink to be supplied to the second nozzle;
The control device is configured such that in the first flushing operation, the remaining amount of ink in the first tank is equal to or greater than a first predetermined remaining amount, and the remaining amount of ink in the second tank is less than the first predetermined remaining amount. If the remaining amount is less than a second predetermined amount, the ink is not ejected from the second nozzle and the ink is ejected from the first nozzle;
The printing device according to claim 2. In the first flushing operation, when the remaining amount of ink in the first tank and the remaining amount of ink in the second tank are less than the first predetermined remaining amount, the control device controls the first nozzle and ejecting ink from the second nozzle;
The printing device according to claim 5. The control device includes:
The remaining amount of ink in the first tank is equal to or greater than the first predetermined remaining amount, the remaining amount of ink in the second tank is less than the first predetermined remaining amount, and the execution timing of the second flushing operation is provided. and the execution timing of the first flushing operation is less than a predetermined value, so when executing the first flushing operation instead of the second flushing operation at the execution timing of the second flushing operation,
From the second nozzle, the amount of ink ejected from the first nozzle in the second flushing operation is ejected, and
The amount of ink ejected from one nozzle in the first flushing operation is such that the total amount of ink ejected from all nozzles of the head is the total amount of ink ejected in the first flushing operation. ejecting a larger amount of ink than the amount to be ejected,
The printing device according to claim 5. a platen on which the print medium is placed;
a conveyance device that conveys the print medium on the platen in a first direction;
a second moving device that moves the head in a second direction and a third direction intersecting the first direction,
the cap is arranged in the second direction relative to the platen,
The nozzle has a third nozzle disposed at an end of the head in the third direction,
In the first flushing operation, the control device causes ink to be ejected from the first nozzle and the second nozzle if ink cannot be ejected from the third nozzle to the end of the cap in the second direction.
The printing device according to claim 5. The nozzle has a fourth nozzle that ejects a first type of ink, and a fifth nozzle that ejects a second type of ink that has higher moisture retention than the first type of ink,
In the head, the fifth nozzle is arranged further in the second direction than the fourth nozzle.
The printing device according to claim 8. The nozzle has a sixth nozzle that discharges pigment ink and a seventh nozzle that discharges dye ink,
In the first flushing operation, the control device causes dye ink to be ejected from the seventh nozzle without ejecting pigment ink from the sixth nozzle.
The printing device according to claim 1. The control device includes:
A first ink droplet comprising a predetermined amount of ink and a second ink droplet comprising an amount of ink greater than the predetermined amount can be ejected from the nozzle;
in the first flushing operation, ejecting the second ink droplet from the nozzle;
The printing device according to claim 1. comprising a suction pump that sucks a cap space surrounded by the discharge surface and the cap in the capping state,
The control device includes:
When the cumulative uncapping time reaches a first predetermined time, performing the first flushing operation;
When the cumulative uncapping time becomes longer than the first predetermined time by a second predetermined time or more, instead of the first flushing operation, a suction purge is performed in which the cap space is suctioned by the suction pump in the capping state. ,
The printing device according to claim 1. a head having a nozzle opening on the ejection surface and a drive element that applies ejection pressure to the ink;
a cap capable of covering the discharge surface;
Of the head and the cap, by moving only the head, moving only the cap, or moving both the head and the cap, a capping state in which the ejection surface is covered with the cap can be achieved. A method for controlling a printing device, comprising: a first moving device that changes the state between an uncapping state in which the ejection surface is separated from the cap;
a printing operation of ejecting ink from the nozzle based on image data in the uncapping state to print an image on a print medium;
a time counting operation of accumulating uncapping time, which is the duration of the uncapping state, and measuring it as cumulative uncapping time;
performing a first flushing operation of ejecting ink from the nozzle to the cap at a timing corresponding to the cumulative uncapping time;
In the time measurement operation, a reset operation is performed in which the cumulative uncapping time is reset by executing the first flushing operation without resetting the cumulative uncapping time by changing the state from the uncapping state to the capping state. ,
How to control a printing device. a head having a nozzle opening on the ejection surface and a drive element that applies ejection pressure to the ink;
a cap capable of covering the discharge surface;
Of the head and the cap, by moving only the head, moving only the cap, or moving both the head and the cap, a capping state in which the ejection surface is covered with the cap can be achieved. a first moving device that changes the state between an uncapping state in which the ejection surface is separated from the cap;
a printing operation of ejecting ink from the nozzle based on image data in the uncapping state to print an image on a print medium;
a time counting operation of accumulating uncapping time, which is the duration of the uncapping state, and measuring it as cumulative uncapping time;
performing a first flushing operation of ejecting ink from the nozzle to the cap at a timing corresponding to the cumulative uncapping time;
In the time measurement operation, a reset operation is performed in which the cumulative uncapping time is reset by executing the first flushing operation without resetting the cumulative uncapping time by changing the state from the uncapping state to the capping state. ,
program.

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