JP3347647B2 - Ink jet recording apparatus and ink jet recording method - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to an ink jet recording apparatus and an ink jet recording method.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional ink jet recording apparatus has a drawback that ink adhered to recording paper for forming an image is dissolved in water and the recorded image is blurred. Therefore, a technique for recording a water-resistant image that does not degrade image quality is required. As one of the techniques for this, there is a method in which a processing liquid for improving printability is discharged to a discharge position of the ink on recording paper before and after the discharge of the ink. For example, prior to the ejection of the ink, the processing liquid is discharged to the discharge position of the ink, and thereafter, the black ink or the like is discharged to the discharge position of the processing liquid to mix the two droplets on the recording paper. This makes the ink less soluble in water. Such a treatment liquid is transparent and has a property of fixing the ink on the recording paper.

On the other hand, recent improvements in ink jet recording technology have made it easier to obtain photographic images. This creates a risk that banknotes are forged by the inkjet recording apparatus. For example, a banknote may be forged by capturing an image of a banknote with a scanner and recording the image on paper with an inkjet recording device.

[0004]

Conventionally, various techniques have been employed in copiers to prevent counterfeiting of banknotes, but due to the accuracy of the techniques, they have not been made public. One of the techniques that can be easily imagined is as follows.

That is, image information of various kinds of banknotes is stored in a memory in advance, an image of a document placed on a platen of a copying machine is read, and the read image is compared with image information in the memory. I do. If the same image as the read image is found in the image information in the memory, it is determined that the bill is to be copied, and the recorded portion of the read image of the bill is painted out in white or black and output. However, such a technology for preventing counterfeiting of banknotes requires a large-capacity memory, and also requires special collation processing to determine whether or not a banknote is to be copied.
There has been a problem that the price of the entire apparatus is increased.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet recording apparatus and an ink jet recording method which can easily and surely suppress the occurrence of counterfeit crime of banknotes.

[0007]

According to an ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention, an image is recorded on a recording material by driving the recording head based on image data using a recording head for discharging ink. An ink jet recording apparatus capable of forming a latent image with the liquid on the recording material by using a liquid head that discharges a liquid for forming a latent image on the recording material, Determining means for determining whether there is a blank portion having a size equal to or greater than a predetermined size based on the image data; and (a) when the determining means determines that the blank portion exists,
Forming a predetermined latent image of the liquid in a blank portion on the recording material, and recording an image based on the image data on the recording material; and (b) controlling the blank by the determination means. And control means for controlling to record an image based on the image data on the recording material without forming a latent image with the liquid when it is determined that there is no copy. .

According to the ink jet recording method of the present invention, an image can be recorded on a recording material by driving the recording head based on image data using a recording head for discharging ink. Using a liquid head that discharges a liquid for forming a latent image on a recording material,
In an ink jet recording method capable of forming a latent image using the liquid on the recording material, a determining step of determining whether there is a blank portion having a size equal to or greater than a predetermined value based on the image data; a) when it is determined in the determining step that the blank portion is present, a predetermined latent image is formed with the liquid in the blank portion on the recording material, and based on the image data on the recording material. Recording an image, and (b) recording an image based on the image data on the recording material without forming a latent image using the liquid when it is determined in the determination step that the blank portion does not exist. Recording step.

[0009]

[0010]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a serial scan type ink jet recording apparatus as an application example of the present invention. In FIG. 1, a carriage 101 has a recording head 102 and a cartridge guide 103 mounted thereon, and can scan along guide shafts 104 and 105. The drive mechanism of the carriage 101 is not shown. The recording paper 106 as a recording material is fed into the main body by a paper feed roller 107, and
8, sent to the front of the recording head 102 while being pinched by a pinch roller (not shown) and a paper pressing plate 109,
An image is formed. C (cyan), M (magenta), Y
The color cartridge 110 containing the three color inks (yellow) and the cartridge 111 containing the black ink and the processing liquid are separately inserted into the cartridge guide 103 and connected to the recording head 102.

The recording head 102 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. On the front surface of the recording head 102, ejection port groups 209, 210, 211, and 212 for cyan, magenta, yellow, and black inks are arranged in a straight line. A discharge port group 213 for the processing liquid is disposed at a side position of the discharge port group 212 for the black ink. The ejection port groups 209, 210, and 211 for cyan, magenta, and yellow have 24
Each discharge port is formed, and 64 discharge ports are formed in the discharge port groups 212 and 213 for black and processing liquid. Each outlet group 209 ~
An interval equal to or longer than the nozzle pitch is set between 212. Liquid paths communicate with each of these discharge ports, and a common liquid chamber (not shown) for supplying ink and processing liquid to these liquid paths is provided at a rear portion of these liquid paths. ing. Ink ejection port groups 209 and 21
0, 211, and 212 may be formed in the recording head for discharging ink, and the discharge port group 213 for processing liquid may be formed separately for the liquid head for discharging processing liquid.

In each of the liquid passages corresponding to each of the discharge ports, an electrothermal converter for generating thermal energy used for discharging the ink or the processing liquid from these discharge ports, and a power supply for supplying electric power thereto. Are provided. These electrothermal transducers and electrode wires are formed by a film forming technique on a substrate 201 made of silicon or the like. Further, a partition or a top plate made of a resin or a glass material is laminated on the substrate 201 so that the above-described discharge port,
A liquid path and a common liquid chamber are configured. A drive circuit for driving the electrothermal transducer based on a recording signal is provided in the form of a printed board 202 behind the board 201.

The substrates 201 and 202 are fixed to the same aluminum plate 203. Cartridge 1
10 and 111 (see FIG. 1) are aluminum plates 20
3 is inserted into the cartridge guide 103 (see FIG. 1) substantially along the pipes 203, 205, 206, 207, and 2 protruding along the aluminum plate 203.
07 '. The pipe 204 is for yellow, the pipe 205 is for magenta, the pipe 206 is for cyan, the pipe 207 is for black, and the pipe 207 'is for processing liquid. These pipes 204 to 207 and 207 ′ are
Projecting from a plastic member (referred to as a "distributor") 208 extending in a direction orthogonal to 01. Each pipe 204-207, 207 '
It communicates with the common liquid chamber of the corresponding discharge port group 209 to 213 through the flow path in the plastic member 208.

In FIG. 3, 209 to 212, 213
Are nozzle rows for discharging cyan (C), magenta (M), yellow (Y), and black (BK) inks, and a processing liquid (SS), respectively. The recording head 102 moves in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 3 together with the carriage 101, and records an image on the recording paper 106. The resolution is, for example, 360 dpi.

Here, the processing liquid (SS) will be described.

As described above, this processing liquid is discharged to the discharge position of the ink on the recording paper before and after the discharge of the ink to improve printability. For example, in the case of this example, Contains sodium salicylate, sodium benzoate, white fluorescent dye, and the like. For example, sodium salicylate is water-soluble, becomes transparent when dried, is used as a preservative for sake and wine, and shines blue when exposed to ultraviolet light. Therefore, by using such a treatment liquid mixed with sodium salicylate and recording identification information in a blank portion of an image as described later, it is unknown what is recorded by visible light, but it is more than a predetermined value. When it is exposed to strong ultraviolet light, it shines blue, so that the identification information can be read. That is, a latent image can be formed by the processing liquid. Then, for example, when trying to copy a banknote, forgery of the banknote is recorded by recording the manufacturing number and date of the recording device as identification information in a portion corresponding to the watermark of the banknote (image blank portion) in the copy image of the banknote. Useful for criminal investigations. Further, under normal circumstances, the identification information cannot be seen by human eyes, so that it does not become an obstacle.

FIG. 4 is a schematic block diagram of a control system.

In FIG. 4, reference numeral 800 denotes a central control unit, which comprises a CPU 801, a RAM 802, and a ROM 803. The CPU 801 performs control as described below according to a control program stored in the ROM 203.
The RAM 802 is used for a work area for the work and data processing for recording. 804 is a gate array (A
SIC) for controlling the recording head 102. 805, a carriage motor; and 806, a paper feed motor.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a data processing unit for drawing processing, image blank area detection, and the like.

In FIG. 5, reference numeral 301 denotes an I / F (interface) for receiving data from a host device. A reception buffer 302 stores the data received by the IF unit 301. Reference numeral 303 denotes a command analysis unit which controls a control code, a character code,
A dot pattern or the like is analyzed, and in the case of a character pattern, it is stored as text information in a text buffer 304. In the case of a dot pattern, the first drawing processing unit 306 is used.
Pass data directly to A CG font unit 305 stores a character font for developing a character code into a character pattern. Reference numeral 306 denotes a first drawing processing unit which stores text information in the text buffer 304 and CG
The character pattern to be recorded is developed by referring to the character font in the font unit 305, and the character pattern and the dot pattern are drawn in the recording buffer 307.

For example, when image data of a thousand-yen bill as shown in FIG. 8 is fetched, the presence or absence of an image blank portion in the watermark portion P1 and the peripheral portion P2 is determined by the image blank determining portion 310 as blank portion recognizing means. judge. Blank part P1, P
When the area 2 is larger than the predetermined recordable size,
The result is sent to the second drawing processing unit 311. When the blank portions P1 and P2 are larger than the predetermined recordable size, the second drawing processing unit 311 sends identification information as shown in FIG. 9 to the record buffer 307, and the record buffer 307
Creates the combined image data as shown in FIG. 10 by combining the data of FIG. 8 and FIG. In FIG. 9, for convenience of description, the identification information is “ABC” and “XYZ”. The actual identification information is a date code, a product number of the recording device, and the like as described later, and these are input from the date code generation unit 314 and the product number generation unit 315 to the second drawing processing unit 311. The recording control unit 312 controls the recording unit 313 based on information from the first drawing processing unit 306 and the second drawing processing unit 311 to form a composite image as shown in FIG.

FIGS. 6A and 6B are explanatory diagrams of a data table used according to the presence or absence of an image blank portion. This data table is stored in, for example, the second drawing processing unit 311.
Is created on the memory and becomes an important table for control.

A data table is created for each block of image data. The tables of FIGS. 6A and 6B are No. It has 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 data. In each table, No. The data of 1 is a resolution flag, "1" means 360 dpi, and "0" means 720 dpi. No. The data No. 2 relates to the drawing table start address, and in the control for ejecting the ink or the processing liquid so as to overlap the same recording position, corresponds to the type of the ink or the processing liquid to be discharged first, and “C” indicates the cyan first. It means that ink is ejected, and similarly,
“M”, “Y”, “BK”, and “SS” mean that the magenta ink, the yellow ink, the black ink, and the processing liquid are ejected first. No. The data of No. 3 relates to the presence or absence of an image blank portion. “1” means that there is no image blank portion of a predetermined size or more, and “0” means that there is no image blank portion of a predetermined size or more. No. The data of No. 4 relates to the serial number (product number) of the recording device and N
o. The data No. 5 relates to the date code. These data are generated by the generating units 314 and 315 (see FIG. 5) and set in the block (b-1) in FIG. 6B. . These Nos. As the data of 4 and 5,
For example, identification information such as a personal computer ID, a printer driver type, a model name, and a country of production may be used.

As shown in FIG. 6A, if there is no blank portion having a predetermined size or more, the processing liquid (SS), ink (BK),
(C), (M), and (Y) are ejected based on the respective control information. On the other hand, when there is a blank portion of a predetermined size or more as shown in FIG. 6B, the ink (BK), (C), (M), and (Y) are not ejected to the blank portion, and the process is performed. The serial number of the recording device (N
o. 4 data) and the date code (No. 5 data)
To form a latent image.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining the control of the recording operation.

Here, first, fetching of data from the reception buffer 302 is started (step S70).
1). Next, after the first drawing processing is performed by the first drawing processing unit 306 (step S702), an image data table is created (step S703). Next, an image blank portion is checked (step S704). If there is a blank portion having a predetermined size or more, the second drawing processing unit 311 performs second image processing.
Is performed (step S705), and an image data table is selected (step S706). That is, when there is an image blank portion having a predetermined size or more, the block (b-1) in FIG. 6B is used to form a latent image related to the product number and date code of the recording apparatus with the processing liquid in the image blank portion. ) Data.

On the other hand, if there is no blank portion larger than the predetermined size, the contents of the recording operation are determined (step S707).
The recording operation is started (step S708). In step S709, it is checked whether or not recording for one page has been completed.
Then, the work is continued, and when "complete", the recording operation is completed.

Here, the relationship between the black (BK) ink and the processing liquid (SS) will be described. First, the processing liquid
When ejected above and black ink ejected on it,
After the two liquids are mixed on the recording paper 106 and they are dried, they do not ooze out even if water is applied.

However, as described above, in order to prevent paper money from being copied, only the processing liquid is discharged to the blank portion of the image, and for example,
A latent image related to identification information (such as a product number of a recording apparatus and a date code) is formed. Then, the latent image is irradiated with ultraviolet rays of a predetermined amount or more to shine blue, so that it can be read.

By the way, as the treatment liquid, various liquids containing a substance (fluorescent substance or the like) which reacts to ultraviolet rays or the like can be used, and in short, any liquid capable of forming a latent image can be used. In addition, as described above, the processing liquid may not only have a function as a processing liquid for improving printability but also may not have the function.

In the above description, a latent image is formed with a liquid containing a fluorescent substance in a blank portion of an image area.
A latent image may be formed with a liquid containing a fluorescent substance or the like in a normal image area instead of a blank portion.

In the following, specific examples of a treatment liquid for insolubilizing or aggregating ink to improve printability will be described.

The treatment liquid for insolubilizing the ink dye can be obtained, for example, as follows. By making these treatment liquids contain, for example, sodium salicylate or sodium benzoate, the above-mentioned treatment liquids which react to ultraviolet rays can be produced.

That is, after mixing and dissolving the following components,
Further, after filtration under pressure with a membrane filter having a pore size of 0.22 μm (trade name: Fluoropore Filter, manufactured by Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.), the pH is adjusted to 4.8 with NaOH to obtain a treatment liquid A1. it can.

[Component of A1] Low molecular weight component of cationic compound Stearyl trimethyl ammonium salt 2.0 parts (trade name: Electrostripper QE, manufactured by Kao Corporation) or stearyl trimethyl ammonium chloride (trade name: Eutamine 86P, Kao) High molecular component of cationic compound Copolymer of diallylamine hydrochloride and sulfur dioxide 3.0 parts (average molecular weight: 5000) (trade name: polyamine sulfone PAS-92, manufactured by Nitto Boseki Co., Ltd.) Thiodi Glycol 10 parts Water Remainder In addition, the following can be mentioned as a preferable example of the ink which is mixed with the above-mentioned treatment liquid and insolubilized.

That is, the following components were mixed, and the mixture was filtered under pressure through a membrane filter having a pore size of 0.22 μm (trade name: Fluoropore Filter, manufactured by Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.), and yellow, magenta, cyan, and black were then filtered. Inks Y1, M1, C1, and K1 can be obtained.

Y1 C.I. I. Direct Yellow 142 2 parts Thiodiglycol 10 parts Trade name; acetylenol EH 0.05 part (manufactured by Kawaken Fine Chemical Co., Ltd.) Water balance M1 I. Acid Red 289; the same composition as Y1 except that 2.5 parts was used. I. Acid Blue 9: The same composition as Y1 except that 2.5 parts was used. I. Food Black 2: Same composition as Y1 except that 3 parts are replaced. In the mixing of the processing liquid (liquid composition) and the ink shown above, in the present invention, the above-mentioned processing liquid and the ink are coated on the printing material or coated. As a result of mixing at the position where it has penetrated into the printing material, as a first step of the reaction, among the cationic substances contained in the processing solution, low molecular weight components or cationic oligomers and anionic groups used in the ink are used. The water-soluble dye has an association due to ionic interaction and instantaneously separates from the solution phase.

Next, in the second stage of the reaction, the above-mentioned aggregate of the dye and the low molecular weight cationic substance or cationic oligomer is adsorbed by the high molecular component contained in the processing solution, and the association is formed. The size of the aggregates of the dyes becomes even larger, making it difficult to enter the gaps between the fibers of the printing material, and as a result, only the liquid portion that has been separated into solid and liquid penetrates into the recording paper, resulting in print quality and fixability. Is achieved. At the same time, the aggregate formed by the low molecular weight component of the cationic substance or the cationic oligomer and the anionic dye formed by the mechanism described above increases in viscosity and does not move with the movement of the liquid medium, so that a full-color image is obtained. Even when adjacent ink dots are formed of different color inks as in the case of formation, they do not mix with each other, and bleeding does not occur. Also, the agglomerates are essentially water-insoluble and the formed images have perfect water resistance.
Further, it also has an effect of improving the light fastness of an image formed by the shielding effect of the polymer.

As used herein, the term "insolubilization" or "aggregation" refers to a phenomenon that occurs only in the first step or a phenomenon that includes both the first step and the second step.

In practicing the present invention, it is not necessary to use a cationic polymer substance having a high molecular weight or a polyvalent metal salt as in the prior art. Since it is only necessary to use it supplementarily to further improve the effect, the amount of use can be minimized. As a result, another problem of the present invention is that the decrease in the coloring property of the dye, which has been a problem in the case of using a conventional cationic polymer substance or a polyvalent metal salt to obtain a water resistance effect, is eliminated. This can be mentioned as an effect.

In carrying out the present invention, the ink used is not particularly limited to a dye ink, but a pigment ink in which a pigment is dispersed may be used. Can be used. The following can be mentioned as an example of the pigment ink which causes aggregation by mixing with the above-mentioned colorless liquid A1. That is, as described below, yellow, magenta,
Cyan and black inks, Y2, M2, C2 and K2, can be obtained.

Black ink K2 Anionic polymer P-1 (styrene-methacrylic acid-ethyl acrylate, acid value 400, weight average molecular weight 6,0
00, an aqueous solution having a solid content of 20%, a neutralizing agent: potassium hydroxide) was used as a dispersant, and the following materials were charged into a batch-type vertical sand mill (manufactured by Imex Corporation).
Glass beads having a diameter of mm were filled as a medium, and a dispersion treatment was performed for 3 hours while cooling with water. The viscosity after dispersion is 9 cp
s, pH was 10.0. The dispersion was centrifuged to remove coarse particles, thereby producing a carbon black dispersion having a weight average particle diameter of 100 nm.

(Composition of Carbon Black Dispersion) ・ 40 parts of P-1 aqueous solution (solid content: 20%) ・ 24 parts of carbon black (trade name: Mogul L, manufactured by Cablack Co., Ltd.) ・ 15 parts of glycerin ・ ethylene glycol mono 0.5 parts of butyl ether, 3 parts of isopropyl alcohol, and 135 parts of water Next, the dispersion obtained above was sufficiently diffused to obtain a black ink K2 for inkjet containing a pigment. The solids content of the final preparation was about 10%.

Yellow ink Y2 Anionic polymer P-2 (styrene-acrylic acid-methyl methacrylate, acid value 280, weight average molecular weight 1
1,000, an aqueous solution having a solid content of 20%, and a neutralizing agent: diethanolamine) as a dispersant, and using the materials described below, a dispersion treatment was performed in the same manner as in the preparation of the black ink K2, and the weight average particle size was determined. A 103 nm yellow dispersion was prepared.

(Composition of Yellow Dispersion) 35 parts of P-2 aqueous solution (solid content: 20%) I. Pigment Yellow 180 24 parts (trade name: Nova Palm Yellow PH-G, manufactured by Hoechst Aktiengesellschaft)-Triethylene glycol 10 parts-Diethylene glycol 10 parts-Ethylene glycol monobutyl ether 1.0 parts-Isopropyl alcohol 0.5 parts-Water 135 parts The yellow dispersion obtained above was sufficiently diffused to obtain a yellow ink Y2 for inkjet containing a pigment. The solids content of the final preparation was about 10%.

Using the anionic polymer P-1 used in the preparation of the cyan ink C2 and the black ink K2 as a dispersant, and using the following materials, the same dispersion treatment as in the case of the carbon black dispersion described above was carried out. Was carried out to produce a cyan dispersion having a weight average particle size of 120 nm.

(Composition of Cyan Color Dispersion) 30 parts of P-1 aqueous solution (solid content: 20%) I. Pigment Blue 15: 3 24 parts (trade name: Fast Genble-FGF, manufactured by Dainippon Ink and Chemicals, Inc.)-Glycerin 15 parts-Diethylene glycol monobutyl ether 0.5 parts-Isopropyl alcohol 3 parts-Water 135 parts Above The obtained cyan dispersion was sufficiently stirred to obtain a cyan ink C2 for inkjet containing a pigment. The solids content of the final preparation was about 9.6%.

Magenta Ink M2 Dispersion treatment using the anionic polymer P-1 used in the preparation of the black ink K2 as a dispersant, and using the following materials and the same dispersion treatment as in the case of the carbon black dispersion described above. Was carried out to produce a magenta color dispersion having a weight average particle size of 115 nm.

(Composition of magenta color dispersion) 20 parts of P-1 aqueous solution (solid content: 20%) I. Pigment Red 122 24 parts (manufactured by Dainippon Ink and Chemicals, Inc.) 15 parts of glycerin 3 parts of isopropyl alcohol 135 parts of water The magenta color dispersion obtained above is sufficiently diffused to obtain an ink jet containing a pigment. Magenta ink M2
I got The solids content of the final preparation was about 9.2%.

(Others) It should be noted that the present invention includes a means (for example, an electrothermal converter or a laser beam) for generating thermal energy as energy used for performing ink ejection, particularly in an ink jet recording system. An excellent effect is obtained in a recording head and a recording apparatus of the type in which the state of ink is changed by the thermal energy. This is because according to such a method, it is possible to achieve higher density and higher definition of recording.

The typical configuration and principle are described in, for example, US Pat. Nos. 4,723,129 and 4,740.
It is preferable to use the basic principle disclosed in the specification of Japanese Patent No. 796. This method is a so-called on-demand type,
Although it can be applied to any type of continuous type, in particular, in the case of the on-demand type, it can be applied to a sheet holding liquid (ink) or an electrothermal converter arranged corresponding to the liquid path. By applying at least one drive signal corresponding to the recorded information and giving a rapid temperature rise exceeding the nucleate boiling, heat energy is generated in the electrothermal transducer, and film boiling occurs on the heat acting surface of the recording head. Liquid (ink) corresponding to this drive signal on a one-to-one basis.
This is effective because air bubbles inside can be formed. The liquid (ink) is ejected through the ejection opening by the growth and contraction of the bubble to form at least one droplet. When the drive signal is formed into a pulse shape, the growth and shrinkage of the bubble are performed immediately and appropriately, so that the ejection of a liquid (ink) having particularly excellent responsiveness can be achieved, which is more preferable. As the pulse-shaped drive signal, those described in US Pat. Nos. 4,463,359 and 4,345,262 are suitable. Further, if the conditions described in US Pat. No. 4,313,124 relating to the temperature rise rate of the heat acting surface are adopted, more excellent recording can be performed.

As the configuration of the recording head, in addition to the combination configuration of the discharge port, the liquid path, and the electrothermal converter (a linear liquid flow path or a right-angled liquid flow path) as disclosed in the above-mentioned respective specifications, U.S. Pat. No. 4,558,333 and U.S. Pat. No. 44,558 which disclose a configuration in which a heat acting portion is arranged in a bending region.
A configuration using the specification of Japanese Patent No. 59600 is also included in the present invention. In addition, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 59-123670 discloses a configuration in which a common slit is used as a discharge portion of an electrothermal converter for a plurality of electrothermal converters, and an aperture for absorbing a pressure wave of thermal energy is provided. The effect of the present invention is effective even if the configuration is based on JP-A-59-138461, which discloses a configuration corresponding to a discharge unit. That is, according to the present invention, recording can be reliably and efficiently performed regardless of the form of the recording head.

Further, the present invention can be effectively applied to a full-line type recording head having a length corresponding to the maximum width of a recording medium on which a recording apparatus can record. Such a recording head may have a configuration that satisfies the length by a combination of a plurality of recording heads, or a configuration as one integrally formed recording head.

In addition, even in the case of the serial type as described above, a recording head fixed to the apparatus main body or an electric connection with the apparatus main body or ink from the apparatus main body by being attached to the apparatus main body. The present invention is also effective when a replaceable chip-type recording head that can be supplied or a cartridge-type recording head in which an ink tank is provided integrally with the recording head itself is used.

Further, it is preferable to add a recording head ejection recovery unit, a preliminary auxiliary unit, and the like as the configuration of the recording apparatus of the present invention since the effects of the present invention can be further stabilized. If these are specifically mentioned, the recording head is heated using capping means, cleaning means, pressurizing or suction means, an electrothermal transducer, another heating element or a combination thereof. Pre-heating means for performing the pre-heating and pre-discharging means for performing the discharging other than the recording can be used.

Regarding the type and number of recording heads to be mounted, for example, in addition to the recording head having only one corresponding to a single color ink, it corresponds to a plurality of inks having different recording colors and densities. A plurality may be provided. That is, for example, the printing mode of the printing apparatus is not limited to a printing mode of only a mainstream color such as black, but may be any of integrally forming a printing head or a combination of a plurality of printing heads. The present invention is also very effective for an apparatus provided with at least one of the recording modes of full color by color mixture.

In addition, in the embodiments of the present invention described above, the ink is described as a liquid. However, an ink which solidifies at room temperature or lower and which softens or liquefies at room temperature may be used. In general, the ink jet method generally controls the temperature of the ink itself within a range of 30 ° C. or more and 70 ° C. or less to control the temperature so that the viscosity of the ink is in a stable ejection range. Sometimes, the ink may be in a liquid state. In addition, in order to positively prevent temperature rise due to thermal energy by using it as energy for changing the state of the ink from a solid state to a liquid state, or to prevent evaporation of the ink, the ink is solidified in a standing state and heated. May be used. In any case, the application of heat energy causes the ink to be liquefied by the application of the heat energy according to the recording signal and the liquid ink to be ejected, or to start to solidify when reaching the recording medium. The present invention is also applicable to a case where an ink having a property of liquefying for the first time is used. In such a case, the ink
JP-A-54-56847 or JP-A-60-7
As described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 1260, a form may be adopted in which the liquid sheet or the solid substance is held as a liquid or solid substance in the concave portion or through hole of the porous sheet and faces the electrothermal converter. In the present invention, the most effective one for each of the above-mentioned inks is to execute the above-mentioned film boiling method.

In addition, the form of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention is not limited to the one used as an image output terminal of an information processing apparatus such as a computer, a copying apparatus combined with a reader or the like, and a facsimile apparatus having a transmission / reception function. It may take a form.

[0060]

As described above, according to the present invention,
By forming a latent image on a recording material, counterfeiting of banknotes can be suppressed, and by forming a serial number, date, etc. of an inkjet recording device as a latent image, it can be used for criminal investigation. Can be a clue.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an ink jet recording apparatus as one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the recording head in FIG.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a nozzle array of the recording head in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a control system of the inkjet recording apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a data processing unit in the inkjet recording apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of a data table used in the ink jet recording apparatus of FIG.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the inkjet recording apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram of image data of a bill.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram of latent image data.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of a relationship between an image blank portion of a bill and latent image data.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 101 carriage 102 recording head 103 cartridge guide 104, 105 guide shaft 106 recording paper 107 paper feed roller 108 paper feed roller 109 paper presser plate 110 color cartridge 111 cartridge 306 first drawing processing unit 307 recording buffer 310 image blank determining unit 311 second Drawing processing unit 312 Recording control unit 313 Recording unit 314 Date code generation unit 315 Product number generation unit

────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-9-174823 (JP, A) JP-A-8-323968 (JP, A) JP-A-9-11575 (JP, A) JP-A 9-174 174996 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B41J 2/01 B41J 2/05 B41J 29/40 B41M 5/00

Claims (14)

(57) [Claims] [Claim 1] with a recording head for ejecting ink,
It is possible to record an image on a recording material by driving the recording head based on image data , and
Liquid for discharging a liquid for forming a latent image on the recording material
Latent image of the liquid on the recording material using a body head
An ink jet recording apparatus capable of forming a blank portion having a predetermined size or more based on the image data.
Of determining a determination means for determining whether the or not there, and the blank part is present by (a) the determination means
When, in the liquid against a blank portion on the recording medium
A predetermined latent image is formed , and the
Controlling to record an image based on the image data, (b)
If the determination unit determines that the blank portion does not exist,
In this case, the recording is performed without forming a latent image with the liquid.
Control to record an image based on the image data on a material
An ink jet recording apparatus comprising: 2. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the liquid head discharges a liquid containing a fluorescent substance. 3. The liquid head according to claim 1, wherein the liquid head discharges a liquid for insolubilizing the ink.
Or the inkjet recording device according to 2. 4. A processing unit for synthesizing latent image data for forming the latent image and the image data, wherein the recording head and the liquid head are each one of the data synthesized by the processing unit. 4. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control is performed based on image data and the latent image data. 5. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the latent image relates to at least one of date information and a serial number of the ink jet recording apparatus. 6. A moving means for moving the recording head and the liquid head in a main scanning direction, and a conveying means for conveying the recording material in a sub-scanning direction substantially orthogonal to the main scanning direction. The ink jet recording apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein: 7. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recording head has an electrothermal transducer that generates thermal energy for discharging the ink. 8. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the liquid head has an electrothermal converter that generates thermal energy for discharging the liquid. 9. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recording head ejects two or more different inks. 10. A recording head for discharging ink.
Te, it is possible to record an image on a recording material by driving, based the recording head in the image data,
And discharging a liquid for forming a latent image on the recording material.
The recording material with the liquid
In an ink jet recording method capable of forming a latent image, a blank portion having a size equal to or larger than a predetermined size based on the image data.
Forming a determination step of determining whether the or not there, the (a) the determination if the blank portion is determined that there in the process, a predetermined latent image by the liquid relative to a blank portion on the recording medium In addition, an image based on the image data is recorded on the recording material, and (b) when it is determined in the determination step that there is no blank portion, the latent image is not formed with the liquid, and the latent image is not formed. A recording step of recording an image based on the image data on a recording material. 11. The method according to claim 11, wherein the latent image is irradiated with ultraviolet light.
The reading step for reading the latent image.
12. The ink jet printer according to claim 11, wherein
Recording method. 12. The liquid according to claim 12, wherein the liquid contains a fluorescent substance.
The inkjet according to claim 10, wherein
Recording method. 13. The liquid according to claim 13, wherein the liquid insolubilizes the ink.
The liquid according to claim 10, wherein the liquid is
The jet recording method. 14. The latent image may be date information or the date information.
Manufacture of inkjet recording equipment that performs the jet recording method
Claims characterized by identification information including product number information
Item 14. Ink jet recording according to any one of Items 10 to 13
Method.