JP3359156B2 - Ink jet recording device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to a character, a recording means for outputting the input information of the image on the recording medium, in which relates to an ink jet recording equipment having a so-called recording head.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In the field of ink jet recording, in recent years, a cartridge type ink jet unit in which a recording head and an ink tank are integrated has been used from the viewpoint of miniaturization of the apparatus and maintenance-free. The ink jet unit is detachable from a scanning carriage provided in the recording apparatus, and a user can easily replace a new ink jet unit when the ink in the ink tank ends.

However, in recent years, the demand for color images has increased, and as a configuration that satisfies the demand for colorization by the above-described ink-jet units, for example, ink-jet units are arranged in parallel on a carriage in the scanning direction for each color. A color ink jet unit that performs color printing by using a color ink jet unit, or an ink jet unit that contains yellow, magenta, and cyan inks used for color printing and a head that discharges these inks arranged in parallel and integrated, and a single ink jet unit that uses only black And on the carriage for recording,
and so on.

Among them, there has been proposed an apparatus using an integrated recording head equipped with yellow, magenta, cyan, and black inks as a color head cartridge, but none has been put into practical use. , Yellow, magenta, and cyan (hereinafter, Y, M, and C) are integrated with a recording head cartridge and a black (hereinafter, BK) recording head cartridge. Only things. In addition, practically used devices do not perform a suction recovery operation or the like when exchanging a head cartridge.

Further, the above color head cartridge is
When the ink tanks of the three colors Y, M, and C are integrated and the ink runs out, the head cartridge itself has to be replaced.

[0006]

When the integrated Y, M, and C color head cartridge and the BK head cartridge are exchangeable and detachable from the recording body, it is necessary to perform the suction recovery operation. It has excellent properties and stability. However, performing the suction recovery operation under the same conditions with the integrated Y, M, C color head cartridge to be exchanged, or the integrated Y, M, C, BK color head cartridge and the BK head cartridge is the largest. Since it must be performed under the recovery condition, there is wasteful consumption of ink.

Further, it has been found that the use of the color head portion cannot prevent the deterioration or disturbance of the printed image due to the color mixture between the color nozzles.

According to the present invention, the recovery operation and suction conditions of an ink jet recording apparatus having a detachable head capable of exchanging a plurality of different heads are made different, and the color nozzles between the color nozzles of the color head are provided. It is an object of the present invention to provide a recovery method, a recovery sequence, and a device capable of preventing color mixing.

[0009]

The present invention has solved the above-mentioned problems by the following technical constitution. (1) For attaching and detaching a recording head for forming an image by discharging ink to a recording medium at a predetermined position on a carriage on at least one replacement position set along the main scanning direction. Attaching / detaching means, an electric contact portion provided on the carriage for sending an electric signal to the recording head mounted by the attaching / detaching means, and one cap for covering a nozzle of the recording head; A suction recovery unit that is connected to the cap and suctions ink from the nozzles; and a wiper blade that rubs the surface of the recording head.In an ink jet recording apparatus, when the recording head is mounted on the carriage, According to the electrical information obtained through the electrical contact part, the recording head is a black head or a multi-colored It is identified whether the nozzle that discharges the color head is an integrated type, and the conditions of the suction operation by the suction recovery unit are changed based on the identification information.When the color head is identified, prior to the suction operation, Preliminary ejection of ink of a volume equal to or greater than the volume of the liquid chamber in the recording head that ejects ink of each color, and multiple ejections of all nozzles from a plurality of nozzles ejecting at least relatively thin ink after the suction operation. An ink jet recording apparatus comprising: a preliminary ejection operation in which ejection is performed only in the end nozzles of the first ejection and ejection of all the plurality of nozzles in that order, and the preliminary ejection operation is completed in the ejection of all the plurality of nozzles. (2) In the above item (1), the color head integrally has a nozzle group for discharging black ink and a nozzle group for discharging a plurality of color inks, and is performed prior to the suction operation of the color head. An ink jet recording apparatus, wherein a preliminary discharge performed after a preliminary discharge and a suction operation is performed only for each nozzle group that discharges color ink. (3) In the above item (1) or (2), the color head is an integrated head in which nozzle groups for ejecting black, magenta, cyan, and yellow inks are arranged on the same plane or on a straight line. An ink jet recording apparatus characterized by the following.

(4) A recording head for forming an image by ejecting ink onto a recording medium at a predetermined position on a carriage at at least one replacement position set along the main scanning direction. Attaching / detaching means for sending / receiving an electric signal to / from the recording head mounted by the attaching / detaching means, and an electric contact portion provided on the carriage; and one for covering a nozzle of the recording head. In an ink jet recording apparatus having a cap, suction recovery means connected to the cap for sucking ink from the nozzle, and a wiper blade for rubbing the surface of the recording head, the recording head is mounted on the carriage. In this case, whether the recording head is a black head is determined by electrical information obtained through the electrical contact portion. A plurality of nozzles for discharging several colors of ink are identified as a single integrated color head, the conditions of the suction operation by the suction recovery unit are changed based on the identification information, and when the color head is identified, The suction operation or the suction negative pressure of the suction operation is performed on a plurality of nozzles in combination with each other, and the ink that is equal to or more than the volume of the liquid chamber in the recording head that discharges the ink of each color is discharged by preliminary discharge prior to the suction operation. a plurality onset of all the nozzles eject the preliminary ejection from the nozzles for discharging at least a relatively thin ink after said suction operation, discharging only the end nozzles of the plurality onset, the preliminary ejection operation performed in the order of several onset of all the nozzles discharge An ink jet recording apparatus that performs a preliminary ejection operation that ends with a plurality of all nozzle ejections. (5) In the above item (4), in the color head, the nozzle groups for discharging magenta, cyan, and yellow inks or the nozzle groups for discharging black, magenta, cyan, and yellow inks are on the same plane or on the same straight line. Wherein the suction operation performs a plurality of different types of suction in conjunction with each other. (6) The ink jet recording apparatus according to the above mode (4) or (5), wherein a plurality of different suctions in the suction operation are sequentially switched from a high suction negative pressure to a low suction negative pressure. (7) In the above item (5) or (6), the plurality of different suctions in the suction operation are performed by dividing the movement of the piston stroke of the pump serving as the suction means into a plurality and repeating the operation and the stop. An ink jet recording apparatus comprising: (8) In the above item (7), the plurality of different suctions in the suction operation are performed by repeating the operation and stop by dividing the movement of the piston stroke of the pump as the suction means into three stages, and sequentially reducing the suction negative pressure. An ink jet recording apparatus wherein the suction is performed by gradually decreasing the suction amount from a high negative pressure to a low negative pressure.

( 9 ) An ink jet recording apparatus according to any one of the above (1) to ( 8 ), wherein the wiping operation conditions for each of the recording heads are made different based on the identification information. ( 10 ) In the above item ( 9 ), the wiping operation conditions include a predetermined temperature, an environmental temperature, a difference between an environmental temperature and the temperature of the recording head, and a predetermined printing mode based on information on a printing mode. An ink jet recording apparatus, wherein a value based on the identification information is added to a value and set.

( 11 ) The recording head is provided for each of a plurality of nozzles for ejecting ink and a corresponding nozzle, and causes a state change in the ink, and ejects the ink from the nozzle based on the state change to fly. An ink jet recording apparatus according to any one of the above items (1) to ( 10 ), further comprising: heat energy generating means for generating heat energy used to form a target droplet.

[0013]

【Example】

(Embodiment 1) A schematic configuration of an ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention is shown in FIG. 1 and will be described. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the overall configuration of the recording apparatus. The recording apparatus 1 includes a paper feed unit 2, paper feed units 30, 34, 36, and 37, a paper discharge unit 41, carriage units 5, 50, and cleaning units 6, 60, and 61.

The carriage section 50 is provided with a head cartridge and an electrical contact section when the head cartridge is mounted. The electric contact portion is provided at an end of the flexible cable 56, and the opposite is attached to an electric board in a main body (not shown). The carriage 50 performs printing by ejecting ink droplets while reciprocating along a guide shaft 81 for reciprocating scanning in a direction perpendicular to the recording paper conveyance direction (sub-scanning direction).

The cleaning section 6 includes a cap 60 for preventing the nozzles of the pump 60 and the recording head 7 from drying when the head cartridge 7 shown in FIG. 2 is mounted on the main body, and for preventing dust from adhering from outside.
One. Further, there is provided a blade made of an elastic material for removing dust adhering to the nozzle portion of the head and ink droplets adhering after the suction operation is performed. The material of the blade is preferably non-hydrolyzable urethane rubber or HNBR rubber, which has no reactivity with ink and further minimizes damage to the face surface of the head.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the appearance of a first BK head cartridge (hereinafter, also simply referred to as a BK head) 7 mounted on a recording apparatus (see FIG. 1) according to the present invention. ) Is a rear view, (b) is a front (or face) view seen from arrow 4B of (a), and (c) and (d) are arrows 4C and 4 of (a), respectively.
It is the side view seen from D.

The BK head cartridge 7 is an easily replaceable ink jet recording head integrally formed with an ink tank, and the head portion has means capable of applying heat to the ink by a heater or the like. The ink is ejected from the nozzle 70 of the recording head cartridge 7 by a pressure change caused by the growth or shrinkage of bubbles caused by the film boiling, thereby forming a print image on a recording medium.

The head 7 has a discharge nozzle, and the ink discharge amount is about 90 ng / dot (1 ng / dot).
= 1 × 10 ^over 9 g) has been designed as out, print drive frequency is 6 KHz. The ink used had a composition such that the print quality was good on plain paper. Table 1 shows specific ink compositions, but there is no particular limitation.

[0019]

[Table 1]

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view for explaining the structure of the carriage section 5 in detail. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a state where the BK head cartridge 7 or a color head cartridge 101 described later is attached to the carriage section 5. FIG.

By attaching the BK head cartridge 7 to the carriage section 5, an electrical contact can be obtained.

Next, FIG. 5 shows a color head cartridge 1.
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an outline of a color head (hereinafter, also referred to as a color head). The head 101 has an ink tank mounting portion 11
0 and 111 are provided. As shown in FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 5C, a housing 103 having a pair of side plates and a back plate connecting the pair of side plates to the color head 101.
And a front plate 113 constituting a storage space for the ink tank.
And a middle plate 104 that divides a space surrounded by these plates into two regions, and the divided spaces serve as a mounting portion 110 for the color ink tank and a mounting portion 111 for the black ink tank.

At the bottom of the color head 101, an ink tank is inserted.
K, C, M, Y parts (120BK, 120C, 1 respectively)
20M, 120Y), the ink outlet tube 107 (Y, M, C, BK;
M and BK are not shown), and have a predetermined length so that they can be inserted into the ink tank.
11 protrudes inside.

As shown in FIG. 5, a filter 109 (Y, M) is provided in the opening inside the housing of the outlet pipe 107 disposed on the side of the mounting portions 110 and 111 where the color ink tank and the black ink tank are mounted. , C, BK; M, BK are not shown), and a predetermined length protrudes into the mounting portions 110 and 111 so as to be inserted into the ink supply port of the ink tank.

FIG. 5 shows the flow from the outlet tube 107 to the recording head.
As shown in (d), the ink supply tubes 106 (Y, M,
C, BK) are provided on the bottom surface of the recording head.

An elastic plate 108 (a, b) having a predetermined thickness is laid around the outlet pipe 107 on the surface of the mounting portion where the outlet pipe 107 is arranged. The elastic plate 108 (a,
In b), the rib provided at the ink supply port of the ink tank is pressed so that the ink does not leak into the inside of the color head.

It should be noted that as shown in FIG.
A notch 112 is provided at a position facing the third mounting portion 111. This is designed so that the rib provided on the black ink tank containing the black ink can be inserted, and does not cause erroneous insertion with the color ink tank containing yellow, magenta, and cyan. I have.

The mounting section 111 of the color head 101 having such a configuration is provided with an ink tank containing black ink, and the mounting section 110 is provided with a color ink tank containing yellow, magenta and cyan inks. You.

FIGS. 6 (a), (b), (c) and (d)
Is a BK ink tank 201 containing black ink.
1 is a side view, a front view, a bottom surface, and an upper cross-sectional view, each of which is partially cut away. In the drawing, reference numeral 201 denotes an ink tank ink, 202 denotes a housing for storing ink, and 203 denotes a lid member, which is an air communication opening 2.
05. Reference numeral 204 denotes an upper member having a knob 204a used for attaching and detaching the tank. The ink supply opening 20 into which the outlet pipe 107 (BK) of the color head 101 is inserted is provided at the bottom of the ink tank.
8 and a rib 215 protruding therearound, and an inclined portion 21 connecting the ink supply opening 208 and the rib 215.
4a and 214b.

The knob 204 of the ink tank 201
A rib 212 is provided on a part of the side surface on which a is provided, and in correspondence with the notch 112 provided on the front plate 113 of the mounting portion 111 of the color head 101,
Incorrect insertion of the ink tank 201 is prevented. The rib 212 is also used as a guide for mounting the ink tank 201. Reference numeral 206 denotes an ink container, which is a porous body made of a material such as urethane. Reference numeral 207 denotes an ink lead-out member, which is a fiber bundle-shaped ink holding member. Reference numeral 209 denotes a support member for supporting the ink lead-out member 207 in the tank.

Next, FIGS. 7A, 7B, 7C and 7D are schematic structural views for explaining a color ink tank. In this example, the color ink tank 321 containing yellow (Y), magenta (M), and cyan (C) inks is configured integrally with the ink tanks containing these inks. The configuration is the same as that of the black ink tank described with reference to FIG.

The color ink tank 321 has a structure in which the inside of the housing 322 for storing ink is partitioned by partition members 336 and 337 having a substantially T shape. The storage amounts of the color inks stored in the respective ink tanks partitioned in this manner are designed to be substantially equal.

The configuration of the ink tank will be described.
The ink tank 321 covers the housing 322 for ink storage and the housing 322, and has an opening 325 (Y, M, C;
(M and C are not shown), and a cover member 32
3 and has a space that serves as a buffer chamber so that ink leakage from each air communication opening 325 does not reach the outside.
And one knob 32 for use in attaching and detaching to and from the color head 101.
4a.

At the bottom of the ink tank, an ink supply opening 328 (Y, M, C) into which the outlet pipe 107 (Y, M, C) of the color head 101 is inserted, and a projection protruding therefrom are provided. Rib 335 (Y, M, C), ink supply opening 328 (Y, M, C) and rib 335 (Y, M, C).
M, C) with the inclined portion 334a (Y, M, C).

The ink tank 321 includes the color head 10
In contrast, the ink supply opening 328 (Y, M, C) does not impede the leading end of the outlet tube 107 to prevent the ink from being smoothly mounted.
The 34a (Y, M, C) side is an inclined surface having a gentle angle.

The ink container 326 (Y, M, C) is accommodated in the ink tank 321. The ink container 326 (Y, M, C) and the ink supply opening 328 are provided.
(Y, M, C), the ink lead-out member 327
(Y, M, C). A slit for communicating the inside and the outside of the ink tank is formed in a part of the inner surface of the support member 329 (Y, M, C) for supporting the ink lead-out member 327 (Y, M, C) in the tank. It is provided in.

The ink composition used was a black ink having excellent printing quality with respect to generally used so-called plain paper, and a black ink having a high character quality such as text and a clear feeling was adopted. Further, as for the color inks, inks were used in which even if the inks were adjacent to each other, the image at the boundary was hardly blurred. Table 2 shows composition examples of each color ink.

[0038]

[Table 2]

The color head 101 has a configuration in which three types of black nozzles and color nozzles (Y, M, C) are arranged on a straight line. Specifically, black is designed to discharge amount of ink droplets has 64 nozzle groups out about 90 ng / dot (1ng = 1 × 10 ^{over 9} g). The color nozzles each have 24 nozzle groups for each of yellow, magenta, and cyan, and the ejection amount of ink droplets is about 40 ng / dot. The distance between the nozzle groups of each color is approximately 8 nozzles. The printing drive frequency is the same as that of the BK head cartridge 7, that is, 6 kHz.

FIG. 8 shows that the ink tank 321 is placed on the upper portion 114 of the front plate 113 of the ink jet unit 101.
The housing is rotatably mounted using a part of the housing as a guide. FIGS. 9 (a) and 9 (b) show the state of the replacement operation on the main body, in which the ink tank is mounted. FIG. 10 is a schematic view showing the operation of exchanging the head cartridge. The BK head cartridge 7 and the color head cartridge 101 can be exchanged.

As described above, the present invention is a recording apparatus in which the black head cartridge 7 and the color head cartridge 101 can be arbitrarily exchanged on the main body, and the head type for each head cartridge 7, 101 is the main body of the recording apparatus. It is configured to be able to detect above.

The purpose of the present application is to determine the type of head and the type of ink color, and to perform a recovery operation optimized for each of them to improve the reliability of the head and stably perform printing and high image quality. It can be provided. Hereinafter, a specific recovery operation will be described.

When the BK head cartridge 7 or the color head cartridge 101 is mounted on a recording apparatus, the head itself has a contact portion on the carriage and a PCB (wiring board) of the head due to electrical connection. ID (unique information) is detected, and the type of the head is determined in the recording apparatus main body.

The optimum recovery operation and recovery sequence for the head are set based on the discrimination information.

First, when the BK head cartridge 7 is detected first, a recovery operation I is set. It is used for an automatic recovery operation at the time of head replacement, a manual suction recovery operation by a user, a timer suction recovery operation for removing a bubble accumulation in the head after a predetermined time has elapsed, and an automatic recovery operation at power-on.

Specifically, the recovery operation I has the following sequence.

Recovery operation I Suction operation A Empty suction operation Wiping operation Pre-discharge A1 Double suction operation twice Wiping operation Pre-discharge B1 The suction operation A in the above operation is performed using a pump or the like using negative pressure generating means. The ink suction amount is set to be about 1 to 2 times the total capacity of the supply system of the BK head cartridge 7. Specifically, about 0.15cc per suction operation
About to suck. The idle suction operation that is subsequently performed is an operation for discharging the residual ink in the cap due to the suction operation, and the wiping is performed to remove ink droplets and stains attached to the head face surface.

The preliminary ejection A1 is performed in order to eliminate dirt due to pushing the ink droplets remaining on the face surface into the nozzles when wiping is performed. Specifically, all the nozzles discharge 50 shots, and the discharge frequency is lower than the maximum frequency of the printing drive, whereby stable discharge can be performed. Since only BK is used, the number of preliminary ejections may be small.

Subsequently, the idle suction operation is performed twice so that the ink does not remain in the pump performing the suction operation.

This is because the BK head cartridge 7 used in the present application uses ink having excellent water resistance, and thus it is necessary to prevent ink sticking in the pump. Next, a wiping operation is performed to clean the head face, and a preliminary ejection B1 is performed. Specifically, all nozzles perform 100 shots. The driving frequency is the same as the above-mentioned preliminary ejection. Preliminary ejection of wiping is performed under the same conditions when cleaning the head face surface during printing or before printing, and therefore, a relatively large number of settings are set in order to eliminate pushing of thickened ink or the like.

Next, when the color head cartridge 101 is replaced and mounted on the recording apparatus, the ID unique to the head is used.
Is detected, and recovery operations II and III are set.

The recovery operation II is used for an automatic suction operation at the time of head replacement, a manual suction recovery operation, a timer suction operation for removing a bubble accumulation after a predetermined time has elapsed, and the like. The recovery operation III is a recovery operation performed for the tank replacement operation.

The color head cartridge 101 has a replaceable structure in which a head unit for discharging ink and an ink tank are separately separated. The ink tank includes the BK ink tank 201 and the color inks Y,
A color ink tank 321 of a three-color integrated type of M and C is detachable.

The recovery operation II will be described. A sequence for performing the following operation is set.

Predischarge C2 Suction operation B1 Idle suction operation Wiping operation Predischarge A2 Idle suction operation twice Wiping operation Predischarge B2 Each operation will be described. Prior to the recovery operation II, the preliminary ejection C2 is performed. The suction pressure is increased by increasing the negative pressure in the nozzle at the time of suction, and when bubbles remain in the nozzle, the liquid chamber, etc., a preliminary ejection of an ink amount larger than the volume in the nozzle and the liquid chamber is performed. Thereby, the small bubbles inside can be united or the small bubbles can be discharged outside through the nozzle.

Subsequently, the suction operation B1 is performed. In the suction operation B1, nozzles of four colors of BK, Y, M, and C are suctioned with one cap, and the suction amount is set for each color (BK, Y, M, and C).
It is designed to suction at least about twice the total volume from the tip of the nozzle in (C) to the filter section joined to the ink tank. Further, the suction operation B1 is performed by a three-stage suction operation without subtracting the suction amount at one time, and the suction amount is about 0.3 cc. The reason for performing the three-stage suction is to manage the negative pressure peak value at the time of suction, and is an operation that suppresses the generation of bubbles at the time of suction. See Figure 11 for details.
It will be described later.

Subsequently, an empty suction operation for emptying the ink in the cap filled with the ink by the suction operation is performed. Then, a color mixture elimination preliminary ejection A2 for eliminating color mixture to other color nozzles at the time of the suction is performed. The preliminary discharge A
2 is to perform special preliminary discharge considering efficiency.
By repeating the simultaneous ejection of all nozzles and the ejection of only the nozzle ends, the number of ejections is minimized and the maximum efficiency for color mixing can be increased.

The preliminary discharge A2 for discharging the mixed color ink from the nozzle is performed by concentrating the ink at the nozzle end in order to remove the mixed color ink staying at the nozzle end, that is, the wall surface of the liquid chamber end constituting the nozzle. This is because it is necessary to discharge With respect to the central nozzle, since the ink flow smoothly occurs, the nozzle can be recovered with a relatively small number of ejections.

The predischarge operation A2 will be described in detail.

First, preliminary discharge of only black is performed.

6KHz 300 shots All nozzles (64 nozzles) Ejection drive A 300 shots All nozzles (64) Ejection drive B 300 shots All nozzles (64) Ejection drive C Secondly, preliminary ejection of color nozzles (Y, M, C) Is carried out.

6KHz 1000 shots All nozzles (24 nozzles) Ejection drive C 2000 shots Both ends 6 nozzles Ejection drive C 500 shots All nozzles ejection drive C 1000 shots Both ends 6 nozzles Ejection drive C 2000 shots All nozzles ejection drive C

FIG. 17 is a schematic diagram showing the state of ejection.
It will be described later.

Subsequently, as a preliminary discharge B2 for eliminating nozzles slightly mixed in color by the idle suction operation twice, the wiping operation, and the wiping operation, 100 shots of BK 2 KHz, 100 shots of all nozzles, and 100 shots of full nozzles, B 100 Discharge all nozzle discharge drive C Color (common to Y, M, C) 2KHz 400 discharge All nozzle discharge drive C is performed.

Here, the ejection drive will be described in detail. It is known that the ejection amount of ink droplets is controlled with respect to the temperature of the head during printing. In the printing apparatus of the present application, since the voltage pulse of the electric signal applied to the heater in the nozzle is set to be changed as appropriate,
In response to the setting application pulse, the ejection drive A is a voltage pulse that gives the lowest ejection energy when printing is performed, the ejection drive C is a voltage pulse that gives the maximum ejection energy when printing is performed, and the ejection drive B is , The middle of which occurs.

Next, a recovery operation at the time of ink tank replacement III
Will be described.

Pre-discharge C2 Suction operation B2 Suction operation B1 Idle suction operation Wiping operation Pre-discharge A2 Idle suction operation twice Wiping operation Pre-discharge B2 Recovery operation III is a suction operation performed when the ink tank is replaced. If the replacement of the ink tank cannot be directly detected, the replacement may be performed when the replacement operation is predicted.
The color head cartridge 101 is designed so that the tank can be replaced, so that when the tank is replaced, once the joint between the head and the ink tank is detached, the new ink tank is set again when the new ink tank is set again. May hold air bubbles. At this time, it is known that the air bubbles block the ink flow path on the filter surface and hinder the flow of the ink, so that suction for removing the air bubbles is necessary.

As a suction condition, first, the suction operation B2 is performed, and the total volume from the nozzle tip of each color (BK, Y, M, C) to the filter portion to which the ink tank is joined is set to 1 or more. Suction is performed by a three-stage or three-stage operation, and suction is performed to draw bubbles in the filter unit into the head / flow path or liquid chamber. The suction amount is about 0.35 cc.

Subsequently, the suction operation B is set as the second suction condition.
In order to perform the suction for removing the bubbles moved into the head / flow path or the liquid chamber to the outside of the nozzle by performing step 1, the ink amount substantially equal to the suction amount is sucked to completely remove the bubbles in the liquid chamber. Or can be minimized. The suction is
This is performed by a three-stage suction operation in which the generation of bubbles during suction is suppressed.
The suction amount is about 0.3 cc. In other words, the total amount of ink suction at the time of tank replacement requires about 0.65 cc to perform the above two suction operations.

Subsequently, an empty suction operation is performed to empty the ink in the cap filled with the ink by the suction operation. Then, at the time of the suction, a color mixture elimination preliminary ejection for eliminating color mixture to other color nozzles is performed. The preliminary discharge is a special preliminary discharge in consideration of the efficiency, and by repeating the simultaneous discharge of all nozzles and the discharge of only the nozzle end, the number of discharges is minimized and the maximum efficiency for color mixing is increased. Can do things.

The specific preliminary ejection operation A2 will be described. As in the case of the recovery operation II, first, preliminary discharge of only black is performed.

6 KHz 300 shots All nozzles (64 nozzles) Ejection drive A 300 shots All nozzles (64) Ejection drive B 300 shots All nozzles (64) Ejection drive C Secondly, preliminary ejection of color nozzles (Y, M, C) Is carried out.

6KHz 1000 shots All nozzles (24 nozzles) J1 Ejection drive C 2000 shots Both ends 6 nozzles J2 Ejection drive C 500 shots All nozzles J3 Ejection drive C 1000 shots Both ends 6 nozzles J4 Ejection drive C 2000 shots All nozzles J5 Ejection drive C Is carried out. FIG. 17 shows a specific state of ejection with respect to J1 to J5. One color (Y) as a representative
The figure shows a state in which preliminary discharge is performed from the nozzles.

Subsequently, as a preliminary ejection B2 for eliminating the nozzles slightly mixed in color by the idle suction operation twice, the wiping operation, and the wiping operation, BK 2 kHz 100 shots all nozzles ejection drive A 100 shots all nozzles ejection drive B 100 Discharge all nozzle discharge drive C Color (common to Y, M, C) 2KHz 400 discharge All nozzle discharge drive C is performed.

Here, the ejection drive is the same as the above-described recovery operation II, and therefore the description is omitted.

Here, the aforementioned suction operations B1, B2 and A will be described in detail.

FIG. 11 is a view of a recovery suction pump used in the recording apparatus of the present invention. FIG. 11A is a cross-sectional view of the entire pump. Reference numeral 91 in the figure denotes a cylinder,
2a is a piston shaft, and 95 is a cap for sucking ink from the head.

FIG. 11B is a view for explaining the piston shaft 92a.
And has a notch 92c at the tip. The cutout portion 92 c at the tip has a role of moving the ink in the cylinder 91 after the suction operation is performed in the opposite direction in the cylinder 91 via the center hole of the rubber member 93.

FIG. 11 (c) shows a rubber member 93 which is in close contact with the inner wall of the cylinder, and when the flange 92b is pressed, the rib behind the rubber member 93 is closed and moved forward. , The space formed behind it can be brought into a negative pressure state.

Grease or the like is used to improve the sealing of the rubber member 93 and the inner wall of the cylinder 91.

The movement of the piston shaft 92a when performing the suction operation will be described with reference to FIG.

When the piston shaft 92a moves in the direction of the arrow (P1) in the cylinder 91 and the notch 92c at the end of the piston shaft 92a passes through the position L1 in the figure, the cap 95 is provided on the cap 95. Through the suction passage 97,
In this configuration, a negative pressure generated in the cylinder 91 is applied to a head (not shown).

Referring to FIG. 12B, a head (not shown)
A description will be given of discharging waste ink when ink is sucked from the printer. The ink sucked from the head is supplied to the cap 95
Accumulates in the cylinder 91 via Here, the piston shaft 9
When 2a is pulled back in the direction of the arrow (P2), the ink flows to the opposite side of the rubber member 93 through a hole provided in the center of the rubber member 93, and further passes through the cutout portion 92c of the piston shaft 92.

Thereafter, with the head released, FIG.
The ink in the cylinder 91 is discharged from the ink discharge port 96 to the outside by repeating the operations of 2 (a) and FIG. 12 (b).

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a state where the color head 101 is capped. For reference, the positions of the nozzles for each color of the head are roughly shown.

A specific suction operation will be described with reference to FIGS.

First, the suction operation A of the recovery operation I for suction recovery of the BK head cartridge 7 will be described. The suction operation A stops when the flange 92b of the piston shaft 92a moves from the position 0 to A in the drawing.

In this state, the cap is released from the BK head, and subsequent movement to the positions B and C does not perform the suction operation, but performs idle suction of the ink remaining in the cap.
Here, the suction amount is about 0.15 cc.

Next, the suction operation B1 in the recovery operations II and III for recovering the color head cartridge 101 by suction will be described. As described above, the suction operation B1 performs a three-stage suction operation. The piston shaft 92a in FIG.
The movement / stop of the robot will be described below.

First, the flange 92b of the piston shaft 92a is moved from the position 0 to the position A and stopped for 2 seconds.
In the suction operation at the stage, about 0.15 cc is sucked.

Next, second, the flange 92b of the piston shaft 92a is moved from the position A to the position B and stopped for 2 seconds.
Approximately 0.12 cc is sucked in the second-stage suction operation.

Third, the flange 92b of the piston shaft 92a is moved from B to C to release the cap from the head. The suction amount is about 0.03 cc.

As described above, the suction operation is performed in three stages when the piston shaft 92a is moved.

FIG. 15 shows a suction waveform applied to the head when the above-described three-stage suction operation is performed, in which the vertical axis indicates negative pressure and the horizontal axis indicates time. The suction negative pressure is 0.4
The pressure can be suctioned within a range of 0.6 to 0.6 atm.

The color ink used in the present application employs an ink composition having high permeability to paper so that high-speed fixing can be performed on plain paper. By suctioning stepwise, the generation of bubbles is reduced and can be removed from the ink supply path in the head.

Next, the suction operation B2 used in the recovery operation III will be described.

The suction operation B2 is a suction operation when the piston shaft is continuously moved to the position C without stopping at the positions A and B where the flange 92b of the piston shaft 92a is stopped.

FIG. 16 is a diagram showing a suction waveform applied to the head when the suction operations B2 and B1 performed in the recovery operation III are performed. If the suction negative pressure exceeds 0.8 atm, fine bubbles are likely to be generated from the ink tank or the vicinity of the joint surface between the ink tank and the filter. Suction can be performed in the range of 0.6 atm.

When replacing the ink tank, it is preferable to apply a slightly higher suction negative pressure to remove the air bubbles caught in the joint surface between the ink tank and the filter as described above. However, since it is slightly disadvantageous to the generation of fine bubbles, the residual bubbles in the nozzle can be removed by performing the second suction operation (three-stage suction).

Here, even if the three-stage suction operation of the suction operation B1 is repeated twice, the residual bubbles can be sufficiently removed and minimized, so that the same operation may be repeated.

(Embodiment 2) Explaining that when a head cartridge is mounted on the recording body, the suction recovery operation is changed and a sequence of optimal conditions according to the type of head is set, thereby eliminating wasteful ink consumption. did. In the second embodiment, a wiping operation during printing will be described.

In order to ensure image stabilization during printing, it is necessary to periodically clean ink droplets adhering to the head face and dust adhering from the outside. The main problem is that the ink mist during printing is attached to the face surface, the area around the ejection port is spilled with ink, and the accuracy of the landing point of the main droplet, which is used for printing, deteriorates, and printing deteriorates. Avoid it.

When the BK head cartridge 7 is mounted, as described above, since ink having good print quality on plain paper is employed, ink spills on the face surface of the head are relatively generated due to the physical properties of the ink. Although the ink used in the color head cartridge 101, especially the color ink, has been devised to improve the permeability on paper, the surface tension is low and the ink around the ejection port is easily wetted. There is a tendency.

Therefore, when performing the wiping operation during printing, it is necessary to match the physical properties of the ink. Further, since the number of nozzles of the head is significantly different, the degree of ink wetting is also different depending on the number of ejections per unit nozzle. Ink wetting also changes depending on the number of ejection pulses used during printing and the head temperature during printing.

Specific examples will be described below.

First, when the recording body detects the BK head cartridge 7, the wiping condition is set to the earlier of the total number of ejections during printing and the time management during printing. The count of the number of ejections during printing is controlled by detecting the printing mode, head temperature, and the difference between the head temperature and the environmental temperature, multiplying by a weighting coefficient, and adding the result.

The total number of ejections during printing is counted, and when the total exceeds a predetermined value, a wiping operation is performed.
The following information a) to c) is obtained and added.

1) Set value in BK head cartridge The number of discharges corresponding to 9 lines was set for all discharges, and 3, 317 and 760 were set as reference values. (128 nozzles x 36 columns x 80 columns x 9 rows = 3317
760) 2) Set value in color head cartridge When printing was performed with the BK nozzle, the number of discharges corresponding to 9 lines was determined for all discharges, and 1,658,880 was used as a reference value.

(64 nozzles × 36 columns × 80 columns × 9 rows = 1658880) When printing was performed with the color nozzles, judgment was made based on the count value obtained by summing up three colors.

The number of discharges corresponding to 7 lines in all the discharges is 483,
840 was set as a reference value.

(24 nozzles × 36 columns × 80 columns × 7 rows = 483840) a) <Weighting coefficient> in print mode 1 pass: 12 pass: 0.5 4 pass: 0.25 When the number of ejected prints (including preliminary ejection) reaches a predetermined set number, wiping is performed.

B) <Weighting coefficient> at head temperature Head temperature -10 ° C: 0.510 to 20 ° C: 0.820 to 30 ° C: 130 to 40 ° C: 1.340 to 50 ° C: 1 5.5 50 ° C. or more: 2 and the number of ejections is multiplied by the above coefficient and added, and this is carried out when the number of ejections printed (including preliminary ejections) reaches a predetermined value.

C) Temperature difference ΔT between head temperature and environmental temperature
Weighting (degrees) is performed.

<Weighting coefficient> Temperature difference: -10 ° C: 110 to 20 ° C: 1.220 to 30 ° C: 1.330 to 40 ° C: 1.540 to 50 ° C: 1.850 ° C or more: The number is multiplied by the above coefficient and added.

The above-mentioned weighting coefficients are not fixed, and needless to say, they change if the ejection performance of the head or the physical properties of the ink are different.

Next, time management during printing is performed. In the time management, an ink droplet adhered to the head face surface is fixed during printing, and it is difficult to remove the ink droplet. Therefore, a wiping operation is required after a predetermined time has elapsed.

The same time was set for the BK head and the color head. However, since there are differences in ink physical properties and the like, it is desirable to change the weighting coefficient depending on the type of head or the type of ink.

<Set time> The lapse of 60 seconds was used as a criterion.

However, conditions change depending on the following weighting factors.

1) BK head cartridge a) Depends on head temperature <Weighting coefficient> Head temperature: -10 ° C: 0.510 to 20 ° C: 0.820 to 30 ° C: 130 to: 2 This is performed when the printing time reaches a predetermined value by multiplying by the above coefficient and adding.

B) Temperature difference ΔT between ambient temperature and head temperature
Weighting (degrees) is performed.

<Weighting Coefficient> Temperature difference: -10 ° C .: 110 to 20 ° C .: 1.220 to 30 ° C .: 1.430 to 40 ° C .: 1.640 to: 2; Multiply and add.

2) Color head cartridge BK,
Color common a) Depends on head temperature <Weighting coefficient> Head temperature -10 ° C: 0.610 to 20 ° C: 0.820 to 30 ° C: 130 to: 1.2, multiply the timer count value by the above coefficient And when the printing time reaches a predetermined value.

B) Temperature difference ΔT between ambient temperature and head temperature
Weighting (degrees) is performed.

<Weighting coefficient> Temperature difference: -10 ° C: 0.810 to 20 ° C: 120 to 30 ° C: 1.230 to 40 ° C: 1.440 to: 1.6 Multiply by the above coefficient and add.

As described above, by detecting the BK head cartridge and the color head cartridge and optimizing the wiping operation as described above, unstable ejection or non-ejection during printing can be avoided, and a highly reliable image can be avoided. And printing system.

(Embodiment 3) Next, an automatic suction operation for preventing non-discharge due to residual bubbles during printing will be described. In an ink-jet head, in particular, a head provided with an electric print signal to a heater provided in a nozzle and applying heat to the heater to cause a film boiling of the ink on the heater to fly ink droplets, the temperature in the nozzle during printing is increased. If the dissolved air dissolved in the ink continues to print due to the temperature rise or the temperature rise in the ink liquid chamber, residual bubbles are generated in the liquid chamber and the flow path of the ink supply system.

When the residual bubbles gradually grow and fill the liquid chamber, or when the printing duty becomes high when the liquid chamber reaches a certain size even if it is not full, ink supply is stopped. In some cases, ink catches up and ink drops occur.

Therefore, in this embodiment, it is possible to optimize the setting of the automatic suction operation for removing the bubble accumulation during printing depending on the type of the head and the type of the ink so that the useless suction operation is not performed and the reliability is improved. did it.

As a result of observing how the remaining air bubbles accumulate when printing is repeated for the BK head and the color head, it is found that the shape and volume of the liquid chamber of the head, the head temperature, and the physical properties of the ink are greatly affected. I understood. Therefore, it has been found that it is better to detect the head temperature that can be managed and to multiply the weight by a weighting coefficient.

The physical properties of the ink can be solved by changing the initial set values.

1) BK Head Cartridge When the total number of applied pulses ejected reaches the following value, printing is stopped, and an automatic air bubble removal suction operation is performed.
Alternatively, in the case of a cut sheet, the page being printed when the following predetermined value is detected may be completed, and the processing may be performed after the sheet is discharged before starting the next printing.

The head temperature during printing is monitored, the number of ejected ink droplets, that is, the number of applied pulses is measured, and multiplied by the following temperature weighting coefficient and added.

Set value of the number of applied pulses: 200,000,000
000 pulses was used as a criterion.

(Number of applied pulses corresponding to 400 sheets for 5% duty image) a) Weighting coefficient at head temperature Head temperature -10 ° C: 0.810 to 20 ° C: 120 to 30 ° C: 1.2 30 to 40 ° C .: 1.540 to 50 ° C .: 1.850 to 60 ° C .: 260 to 2.5: The number of applied pulses was multiplied by the above coefficient, and the sum was a predetermined value. At this time, an automatic suction operation is performed.

2) Color head cartridge a) BK nozzle portion Set value of the number of applied pulses: 100,000,000 pulses were used as a criterion.

(Number of applied pulses corresponding to 200 sheets of 5% duty image) Weighting coefficient at head temperature Head temperature -10 ° C: 0.810 to 20 ° C: 120 to 30 ° C: 1.230 to 40 ° C .: 1.5 40 to 50 ° C .: 1.850 to 60 ° C .: 260 to 2.5: The number of applied pulses is multiplied by the above-mentioned coefficient and added. When the sum reaches a predetermined value, Perform an automatic suction operation.

A) Color nozzle section The set value of the number of applied pulses: 66,000,000 pulses was used as a criterion.

(Number of applied pulses corresponding to 20 sheets of 30% duty image) Weighting coefficient at head temperature Head temperature -10 ° C: 0.410 to 20 ° C: 0.620 to 30 ° C: 0.8 30 to 40 ° C .: 1.040 to 50 ° C .: 1.450 to 60 ° C .: 1.860 to: 2.2, multiply the number of applied pulses by the above coefficient, and add the total. When exceeded, automatic suction operation is performed.

The automatic suction operation for removing bubbles during printing is performed by BK
The head cartridge performs the recovery operation I, and the color head cartridge performs the recovery operation II.

In this manner, the minimum necessary suction operation is performed, so that unnecessary ink is not consumed, and non-discharge during printing is eliminated, so that stable printing and images can always be obtained. And reliability is improved.

The preliminary discharge C2 performed prior to the suction operation will be described in detail.

The following embodiment is an ink jet apparatus having an ink droplet discharging means for discharging ink droplets to record an image, a cap for sucking and discharging the ink in the ink droplet discharging means to the outside, and a suction means having a suction pump. The recording apparatus has a pre-suction preliminary ejection recovery mode in which the suction unit is continuously operated after the ejection of the ink droplets to the non-image area is completed.

More preferably, the ink preliminary ejection is performed to be larger than the nozzle nozzle volume of the head and equal to or less than the total volume including the common liquid chamber volume and the nozzle volume. As a more preferable mode, the non-image area for discharging the ink droplet is set in the cap of the suction unit.

The features of this modified example can be summarized in a method. In a suction recovery method for an ink-jet head including a nozzle communicating with an orifice for discharging ink and a liquid chamber communicating with the nozzle, Prior to suction recovery, preliminary discharge is performed to eliminate an ink meniscus between the nozzles, or to form an air region in the liquid chamber having a capacity capable of removing the ink meniscus by suction action by the suction recovery. It can be said that this is a method of recovering the suction of the inkjet head characterized by the following.

The background of this embodiment will be described. In recent print heads, the discharge ports and the liquid paths communicating with the discharge ports can be configured extremely finely and at a high density, and there are cases where the conventional suction recovery method is not effective. It has become.

FIG. 23 is a schematic diagram showing an example of such a case in which the ink in the flow path is divided into a plurality of portions. In the figure, the inks are 1212, 1213a, 121
The figure shows a state where the area is divided into four areas 3b, 1213c, and 1213a.

In such an ink-filled head, printing cannot be continued and suction recovery is required. 1
The capping means 313 generates the negative pressure P ₀ in the cap. However, since the ink is filled in and the common liquid chamber nozzle, arriving negative pressure adjacent gap, a nozzle / the pressure loss due to the resistance of the common liquid chamber wall surface and the ink and P ₀ is smaller than the negative pressure P ₁ Become. Furthermore the adjacent gap only negative pressure P ₂ has reached smaller than the negative pressure P ₁ by the pressure loss due to the resistance of the ink region 1213a and the channel wall.

By repeating this, the negative pressure P ₄ arriving at the gap between the coupling part between the absorber, which is the ink supply part, and the flow path is obtained.
Is much smaller than the negative pressure P _{0 in the} cap. For suction is performed, the negative pressure P ₄ is must exceed the ink holding force of the absorber, if small, the ink is not filled even after repeated much the conventional suction recovery operation.

Conventionally, in order to avoid such a state in which the ink cannot be filled, (1) set the suction negative pressure / suction amount to be sufficiently large. (2) reduce the pressure loss by making the flow path sectional area sufficiently large. It is conceivable to reduce the number of divided parts by making the path length sufficiently short, but in the case of (1), the waste ink increases,
In the case of (2), there is a problem such as an increase in the size of the pump, and in case (2), there is a similar problem due to an increase in the required suction amount due to an increase in the flow path volume. Was made up. In the case of (3), the vibration caused by the flow of ink in the ink absorber and the supply path affects the inside of the nozzle, so that a discharge failure is likely to occur. I was

More recently, (A) finer nozzles for the purpose of improving the recording resolution, (B) lowering of the surface tension of the ink for the purpose of improving the drying speed of the ink have been remarkably progressing. In the case of the increase of pressure loss,
In the case of (B), the problem of the inability to fill the ink due to the separation of the ink is becoming an increasingly important problem due to the increase in the frequency of bubble generation.

As described above, in the conventional suction recovery method, miniaturization, low running cost, high-speed, high-quality, high-resolution recording, and high-speed fixing are achieved while avoiding / eliminating a state in which ink cannot be filled due to ink division. It is impossible to configure an ink jet recording apparatus, and a configuration that can improve such a state will be described below.

(Embodiment 4) FIG. 18 is a flowchart for explaining a suction recovery method according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

When the suction recovery operation is instructed, the carriage moves to a position where the discharge port faces the preliminary discharge receiving portion (1).
101), preliminary discharge is performed in the preliminary discharge receiving section (110)
2).

Next, the carriage is moved to the home position (H
The process moves to P) (1103), and the capping means covers the discharge port surface to complete the capping (1104). next,
The suction pump is operated, a negative pressure is generated in the cap, ink is sucked from the discharge port, and the suction operation is performed. At a predetermined time, the operation is stopped and the suction operation is completed (1105). Next, the cap of the capping means is detached from the discharge port surface, and the inside of the cap is connected to the atmosphere (1106). Next, the suction pump operates again to remove the ink in the pump, the tube, and the cap (1107). Next, the wiping blade advances in the direction of the discharge port surface (1108), and further, the carriage moves in the blade direction and the discharge port surface slides on the wiping blade to perform wiping. Is removed (1109). Further, the carriage continues to move in the same direction and performs a preliminary ejection when the ejection port reaches a position facing the preliminary ejection receiving portion (1110), and discharges unnecessary ink, small bubbles, and the like in the nozzle.

If the preliminary ejection operation is performed before the suction as described above, the ink divided state as shown in FIG. 23 is generated. The ink meniscus at the discharge port is broken, and most of the ink in the common liquid chamber and in the flow path returns to the tank due to the negative pressure of the ink tank (shown in FIG. 19A).

B. The amount of the discharged ink droplets in the volume integrating liquid chamber decreases, and a large void is formed in the common liquid chamber (shown in FIG. 19B).

That is, Next, when suction is performed, A.I. In the case of (1), since there is no pressure loss in the nozzle / common liquid chamber, the suction negative pressure is directly applied to the ink in the flow path, and the ink is separated at a higher pressure than in the conventional example.

B. In the case of (1), the ink near the nozzle is removed at the initial stage of the suction, and thereafter, A.P. As in the case (1), the suction negative pressure is directly applied to the ink in the flow path, and the ink is drawn with a stronger pressure than in the conventional example, so that the ink divided state is effectively eliminated. As described above, in any case, according to the suction method of the present invention, in which the preliminary ejection is performed before the suction and then the suction is performed, the effect of resolving the ink divided state is significantly improved as compared with the conventional suction method.

Further, the number of preliminary discharges performed at this time is such that when the total preliminary discharge is completely executed without any non-discharge, the total ink droplet volume is equal to or greater than the total nozzle internal volume and the total nozzle internal volume and the common liquid chamber volume. Is preferably set to be approximately the sum of This is because if the total volume of the ink droplets is smaller than the total volume in all nozzles, the probability of inducing the aforementioned ink meniscus breakage becomes extremely low, so that effective recovery is not performed. If the sum is extremely larger than the sum of the capacities of the common liquid chambers, ink ejection driving is performed in a state where there is no ink in the nozzles, and the probability of damaging the recording element due to heat generation or the like increases.

(Embodiment 5) FIG. 20 is a flowchart for explaining a suction recovery method according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

When the suction recovery operation is instructed, the carriage moves to the home position (HP), performs (1301) preliminary discharge (1302), and thereafter the capping means covers the discharge port surface to complete capping (1303). ). Next, the suction pump is operated, a negative pressure is generated in the cap, ink is sucked from the ejection port, and a suction operation is performed. At a predetermined time, the operation is stopped and the suction operation is completed (1304). Next, the cap of the capping means is separated from the discharge port surface, and the inside of the cap is connected to the atmosphere (1305). Next, the suction pump operates again to remove the ink in the pump, the tube, and the cap (1306). Next, the wiping blade advances in the direction of the ejection port surface (1307), and further, the carriage moves in the blade direction, and the ejection port surface and the wiping blade rub against each other to perform wiping to remove ink and the like adhering to the ejection port surface. (1308). Further, the carriage continues to move in the same direction and executes a preliminary ejection when the ejection port reaches a position facing the preliminary ejection receiving portion (1309), and discharges unnecessary ink, small bubbles and the like in the nozzle.

If the preliminary ejection is performed in the cap before the suction as described above, the volume in the cap at the time of the suction is reduced by the volume of the pre-discharged ink droplet, and the initial suction volume is reduced. (Internal negative pressure) is effectively increased. Therefore, the effect of increasing the suction negative pressure is added to the effect described in the first embodiment, and the effect of eliminating the ink divided state is further enhanced.

(Embodiment 6) A case in which the present invention is applied to a cartridge having a means for discharging and recording inks of a plurality of colors (referred to as a multi-color integrated cartridge) will be described below. FIG. 21 is a schematic diagram showing the ink separation state of the multicolor integrated cartridge (in this drawing, the two-color integrated cartridge).

In FIG. 21, 1211A and 1211B
Denotes a nozzle having an ink discharge port at an end thereof, and a driving means for ink discharge is provided inside. 1212
A and 1212B are liquid chambers (referred to as common liquid chambers) common to the respective nozzles, and 1213A and 1213B are ink flow paths which are respectively connected to absorbers 1214A and 1214B filled with ink and common liquid chambers 1212A and 1212B. ing.
Recording means 1211A for ejecting ink of ink color A, 1
212A, 1213A, 1214A
Recording means 12 for discharging ink of ink color B
11B, 1212B, 1213B, and 1214B (these are referred to as recording means B) are provided in the cartridge in a state separated by a partition, and the ejection ports 211A and B have the same ejection port face opening.

In FIG. 21, the solid portion shows a state in which ink is filled, and FIG. 21 shows a state in which the recording means A has no ink division state and the recording means B has an ink division state. I have. In FIG. 21, reference numeral 1313 denotes a capping unit for suction, which integrally seals the discharge port surfaces including the discharge ports 1211A and 1211A, and recovers the recording units A and B integrally by suction. In the recording means B in the ink filled state as shown in FIG. 21, printing cannot be continued and suction recovery is necessary. However, in the integrated suction method having such a configuration, the recording means A having no ink division state It is easy to suck the ink, and the negative pressure in the cap due to the suction starts to be eliminated by the ink A, so that the magnitude of the negative pressure is not sufficiently applied to the recording means B, and there is a situation where the ink separation state of the recording means B cannot be eliminated at all. I do.

In particular, in the case of a four-color integrated full-color cartridge for recording four colors of cyan (C), magenta (M), yellow (Y), and black (BK), C, M, and Y inks are used for each color. Use low surface tension ink with fast drying speed to prevent color bleeding. ・ BK uses high surface tension ink to emphasize the density. M,
Since it is configured to be larger than the ejection port for the Y ink, the ink separation state is likely to occur in the C, M, and Y ink recording means, and the situation in FIG. 21 that does not occur for the BK ink tends to occur. Since the pressure loss is smaller in the BK ink discharging means, the BK ink is easily sucked, and the divided state of the Y, M, and C inks is hardly eliminated.

FIG. 22 is a flowchart illustrating a suction recovery method when the present invention is applied to such a four-color integrated cartridge.

When the suction recovery operation is instructed, the carriage moves to a position where the discharge port faces the preliminary discharge receiving portion (1).
501), preliminary ejection is performed on the preliminary ejection receiving section by the Y, M, and C ink recording means (1502). Next, the capping means covers the discharge port surface and the capping is completed (15).
03).

Next, the suction pump is operated, a negative pressure is generated in the cap, ink is sucked from the discharge port, and a suction operation is performed. At a predetermined time, the operation is stopped and the suction operation is completed (1).
504). Next, the cap of the capping means is detached from the discharge port surface, and the inside of the cap is connected to the atmosphere (150).
5). Next, the suction pump is operated again to remove the ink in the pump, the tube, and the cap (1506). Next, the wiping blade advances toward the discharge port surface (15).
07) Further, the carriage moves in the blade direction, and the ejection port surface rubs against the wiping blade to perform wiping, thereby removing ink and the like attached to the ejection port surface (150).
8).

Further, the carriage continues to move in the same direction, and when the ejection port reaches a position facing the preliminary ejection receiving portion, Y,
Preliminary ejection by the M, C, and BK recording means is executed (15
09), discharging unnecessary ink, small bubbles and the like in the nozzles.

When the preliminary ejection of only the Y, M, and C inks is performed before the suction, the ink divided state can be effectively eliminated by the effect described in the first embodiment. Since the BK ink, which is difficult and has a large ink droplet volume, is not predischarged, there is an advantage that the effect of suppressing ink consumption is high.

In the above-described embodiment, the suction operation is performed immediately after the preliminary discharge before suction. However, the suction operation may be performed after a predetermined standby time is provided after the preliminary discharge. By giving the standby time in this way, it is possible to allow sufficient time for the ink to return to the tank, so that the probability of the ink divided state in the flow path being smaller than when there is no standby time is increased, and the effect of suction is improved. It is possible to further increase.

As described above, according to the above-described embodiment, the ink droplet discharging means for discharging the ink droplets to record an image, the cap for sucking and discharging the ink in the ink droplet discharging means to the outside, and the suction pump. In an ink jet recording apparatus having a suction means having a suction means, a pre-suction preliminary ejection recovery mode in which the suction means is operated after ejecting ink droplets to a non-image area is provided, so that an effective recovery method for eliminating the ink divided state is provided. Thus, an ink jet recording apparatus having a small size, low running cost, high speed, high quality, high resolution recording, and high speed fixing is provided.

The features of the ink jet recording apparatus of the embodiment shown in FIG. 17 described above can be summarized as follows: a method of recovering a recording head having a plurality of types of ink ejection portions (more preferably, at least a relatively thin ink). The preliminary discharge of the discharge section includes a preliminary discharge operation of performing preliminary discharge from all discharge ports, preliminary discharge from only discharge ports near the end of each discharge section, and preliminary discharge from all discharge ports in this order. It is. In a more preferred embodiment, the preliminary ejection operation having the above-described characteristics is performed after the suction recovery.

More specifically, a recording head having an ejection section for ejecting at least yellow, magenta, and cyan inks is used. After suction, preliminary ejection from all color (yellow, magenta, cyan) nozzles, and ejection of each color are performed. Pre-discharge only from discharge ports near the end of the unit, preliminary discharge from all color nozzles, preliminary discharge only from the discharge ports near the end of each color discharge unit, and preliminary discharge from all color nozzles .

The technical background of the present invention will be described briefly. When a multi-color integrated recording head is sucked, there is no problem that ink sucked out from the nozzles enters the nozzles of other colors due to uncontrollable factors such as irregular flow of ink in the cap. Occurs in the rules. After the suction is performed, the ejection port surface is usually wiped with an elastic wiper to remove ink or the like remaining on the ejection port surface of the head. Ink is pushed in. These appear on the image as discoloration (hereinafter referred to as mixed color) at the start of writing of each color after recovery.

Therefore, in order to prevent this color mixture, it is desirable to reduce the amount of preliminary discharge as much as possible. Based on this viewpoint, a means for eliminating the color mixture after suction of the multi-color integrated recording head with a smaller amount of ink consumption is studied. As a result, it has been found that it is effective to combine the preliminary ejection from all the nozzles and the preliminary ejection from only a few nozzles at the end portions, and repeat the combination.

Thus, it is possible to provide an ink jet recording apparatus that can eliminate discoloration at the start of writing of each color after recovery with less ink consumption.

(Embodiment 7) FIG. 24 is a schematic sectional view of an ink jet recording head mounted on an ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention.

Twenty-four nozzles for ejecting yellow ink (hereinafter, referred to as yellow nozzle row), twenty-four nozzles for ejecting magenta ink (hereinafter, referred to as magenta nozzle row), and twenty-four nozzles for ejecting cyan ink (hereinafter, referred to as magenta nozzle row) Less than,
This is called a cyan nozzle row. ), And 64 nozzles for ejecting black ink (hereinafter, referred to as black nozzle rows) are arranged in a single row, and there is an interval equivalent to 8 nozzles between each color nozzle row. Each color nozzle row receives ink supply from a common liquid chamber of each color, and ink is supplied to each common liquid chamber from a tank of each color.

In the present recording head, approximately 40 ng of ink droplets can be continuously ejected at a maximum of 6.25 kHz, and approximately 40 ng of ink droplets can be ejected at a maximum of 6.25 kHz.

FIG. 25 shows a suction recovery sequence of the recording apparatus of this embodiment. After capping, suction, and wiping, preliminary ejection of 1,000 shots at 6.25 kHz from all color (yellow, magenta, and cyan) nozzles is performed, and then, from the six nozzles at the end of each color nozzle row.
2000 preliminary discharges are performed at 25 kHz, then 500 preliminary discharges are performed from all the color nozzles at 6.25 kHz, and then 1000 preliminary discharges are performed at 6.25 kHz from the end six nozzles of each color nozzle row. Then, 2,000 preliminary discharges are performed from all the color nozzles at 6.25 kHz, and the preliminary discharge operation of the color after the suction is completed.

FIG. 27 shows a preliminary ejection pattern of the above-mentioned color to facilitate understanding.

Black is 6.25 kHz from all nozzles.
To perform the preliminary ejection of 900 shots, and terminate the preliminary ejection after the suction. In the present embodiment, the black preliminary discharge is performed after the color preliminary discharge is completed, but may be performed simultaneously with the color preliminary discharge.

According to the study of the present inventors, the degree of color mixture is more remarkable at the end portion than at the center portion of each color nozzle row. This is probably due to the large amount of ink that penetrates the nozzles at the end located closer to the nozzles of the other colors, and that the ink near the wall of the common liquid chamber is closer than the ink near the center of the common liquid chamber. It is considered that there are two reasons that the ink of another color that has entered is difficult to be discharged because it is difficult to move.

Therefore, by increasing the number of preliminary discharges from the nozzles near the ends rather than from the nozzles near the center of each color nozzle row, it is possible to eliminate color mixing with a small amount of ink consumption. In addition, preliminary discharge from the nozzle near the end,
By repeating and repeatedly performing the preliminary ejection from all the nozzles, color mixing can be effectively eliminated with a smaller total ink consumption. Although this mechanism is not always clear, the flow of ink in the common liquid chamber for each color differs between when all nozzles are used and when the end nozzles are used, and this change is repeated to eliminate color mixing more efficiently. It seems to be.

Further, in order to enhance the effect of the preliminary ejection only from the end nozzle, the preliminary ejection only from the end nozzle is required.
Driving conditions that increase the discharge amount may be used.

In addition, the preliminary ejection conditions may not be the same for all colors, but the preliminary ejection conditions may be changed depending on the color. For example, the preliminary ejection amount of yellow, which is more conspicuous, may be larger than other colors.

Using the recording apparatus of this embodiment, a test for printing on recording paper after the suction recovery operation was repeated 100 times, but no discoloration (color mixture) occurred at the start of writing.

Also, in the case where the preliminary ejection using all the nozzles is performed at 2 kHz as the suction recovery sequence and the other preliminary discharges are performed in the same manner as in the above-described embodiment, printing is performed on the recording paper after the suction recovery operation. The test was repeated 100 times, but no discoloration (color mixture) occurred at the start of writing.

Further, as a modification of the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIG. 26, as a suction recovery sequence, after capping and suction, wiping is performed, and color preliminary discharge is performed in the same manner as in the above-described embodiment. , Black preliminary ejection was performed.

The black preliminary discharge is performed from all nozzles.
Preliminary ejection of 200 shots was performed at 25 kHz.
300 preliminary discharges are performed from the nozzles at 6.25 kHz, and then 200 preliminary discharges are performed at 6.25 kHz from all the nozzles.

Using this recording apparatus, the test of printing on the recording paper after the suction recovery operation was repeated 100 times, but no discoloration (color mixture) occurred at the writing start portion.

As described above, according to the present invention, when a multicolor integrated ink jet recording head is suction-recovered, discoloration at the start of writing of each color after recovery is reliably prevented with a small amount of ink consumption. Thus, an ink jet recording apparatus that can perform the operation can be obtained.

(Modification of Embodiment) The present invention provides an excellent effect particularly in a recording head and a recording apparatus using thermal energy among ink jet recording methods.

The typical configuration and principle are described, for example, in 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 applicable to both so-called on-demand type and continuous type. In particular, in the case of the on-demand type, liquid (ink)
By applying at least one drive signal corresponding to the recorded information and providing a rapid temperature rise exceeding nucleate boiling to an electrothermal transducer arranged corresponding to the sheet or liquid path in which , Heat energy is generated in the electrothermal transducer, and the film is boiled on the heat-acting surface of the recording head.
As a result, the liquid (ink) corresponding one-to-one to this drive signal
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 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. If the conditions described in U.S. 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 of the discharge port, the liquid path, and the electrothermal converter (linear liquid flow path or right-angled liquid flow path) as disclosed in the above-mentioned specifications, U.S. Pat. No. 4,558,333 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,558,333 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. 459600 is also included in the present invention. In addition, JP-A-59-123670 discloses a configuration in which a common slit is used as a discharge portion of an electrothermal transducer for a plurality of electrothermal transducers, and an aperture for absorbing a pressure wave of thermal energy is provided. The effect of the present invention is also effective when the configuration is based on Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 138461/1984, which discloses a configuration corresponding to the discharge unit.

[0199]

As described above, when a plurality of arbitrary heads each having an ID as the discrimination information of the head itself are mounted on the recording apparatus, the information from the electric contact portion of the head is read. By detecting and optimizing the recovery operation for each type of head, suction recovery conditions suitable for the head are set, so that wasteful consumption of ink can be eliminated. In addition, it is possible to efficiently eliminate the preliminary ejection that eliminates color mixing when using a color head cartridge by repeating all ejections and ejection at the nozzle end, and to recover to a normal state without wasteful ink consumption. Can be.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the entire recording apparatus.

FIG. 2 is a front, plan, and side view of a BK head.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of a carriage unit.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a state in which a BK head or a color head is mounted on a carriage unit.

FIG. 5 is a front, plan, and side view of a color head.

FIG. 6 is a front, plan, and side view of a black ink tank for a color head.

FIG. 7 is a front, plan, and side view of a color ink tank for a color head.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a state when an ink tank is mounted on a color head.

FIGS. 9A and 9B are views showing a state when an ink tank of a color head is removed. FIGS.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are diagrams showing a state when a color head is removed from a carriage unit.

11A is a diagram showing a configuration of a suction pump, FIG.
(B) is an explanatory view of a piston shaft, and (c) is a view showing a configuration of a rubber member.

FIG. 12A is a diagram illustrating a suction operation, and FIG.
Is a diagram for explaining the operation when discharging the sucked ink.

FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a state where the head cartridge is capped by the suction pump.

FIGS. 14A, 14B, 14C, and 14D are diagrams for explaining three-stage suction; FIGS.

FIG. 15 shows an example of a negative pressure waveform of a suction operation performed when replacing a color head.

FIG. 16 shows an example of a negative pressure waveform of a suction operation performed when replacing a tank of a color head.

FIG. 17 is a schematic diagram of the state of the preliminary ejection operation of the present invention.

FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 19A is a schematic diagram illustrating a state of ink filling after preliminary ejection before suction, and FIG. 19B is a schematic diagram illustrating a state of ink filling after preliminary ejection before suction.

FIG. 20 is a flowchart showing a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 21 is a schematic diagram illustrating an ink-separated state of the multicolor integrated cartridge.

FIG. 22 is a flowchart showing a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 23 is a schematic diagram illustrating a state in which ink is separated.

FIG. 24 is a schematic sectional view for explaining a head cartridge mounted on a recording apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 25 is a flowchart showing an embodiment of a recovery sequence according to the present invention.

FIG. 26 is a flowchart showing an embodiment of a recovery sequence according to the present invention.

FIG. 27 is a conceptual diagram for explaining the operation of the recording apparatus based on the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Recording device 2 Paper supply part 30-37 Transport part 41 Paper discharge part 5 Carriage part 50 Carriage 56 Flexible board 51 Head holder 503 Carriage contact surface 6 Cleaning part 60 Pump 61 Cap 7 Black head cartridge 70 Nozzle part 72 Base plate 73 Ink tank 74 Guide 78 Head contact surface 90 Suction pump 91 Cylinder 92a Piston shaft 92b Flange 92c Notch portion 93 Rubber member 94 Sealing rubber 95 Cap 96 Ink outlet 97 Cap suction passage 98 Ink 101 Color head 103 Housing constituting head 104 Middle plate 106 Ink supply tube 107 Ink outlet tube 108 Elastic plate 109 Filter 110 BK tank mounting portion 111 Color tank mounting portion 112 Notch 13 front plate 120 head unit 201 black ink tank 202 housing for ink storage 203 lid member 204 knob 205 opening for air communication 206 ink container 207 ink deriving member 208 opening for ink supply 209 support member 212 guide rib 214 inclined portion 215 Supply port rib 321 Color ink tank 322 Housing for storing ink 323 Cover member 324 Knob 325 Opening for air communication 326 Ink container, 327 Ink lead-out member 328 Ink for ink supply 329 Support member 334 Inclined portion 335 Rib portion 336 337 T-shaped partition member

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of front page (72) Inventor Hidehiko Kanda 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Canon Inc. (56) References JP-A-6-31935 (JP, A) JP-A-4 −218049 (JP, A) JP-A-6-206320 (JP, A) JP-A-6-166184 (JP, A) JP-A-3-274166 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. . ^7, DB name) B41J 2/165 B41J 2/175 B41J 2/18 B41J 2/185

Claims (11)

(57) [Claims] 1. A recording head for forming an image by ejecting ink to a recording medium at a predetermined position on a carriage at at least one replacement position set along a main scanning direction. Attaching and detaching means, an electric contact portion provided on the carriage for sending an electric signal to the recording head mounted by the attaching and detaching means, and one cap for covering a nozzle of the recording head An ink jet recording apparatus comprising: suction recovery means connected to the cap for sucking ink from the nozzles; and a wiper blade rubbing the surface of the recording head, wherein the recording head is mounted on the carriage. The recording head may be a black head or a plurality of recording heads depending on electrical information obtained through the electrical contact portion. It is determined whether or not the nozzle for ejecting the ink is an integrated color head, and the conditions of the suction operation by the suction recovery means are changed based on the identification information. When the color head is identified, the suction operation is preceded by the suction operation. And ejecting, by preliminary ejection, ink larger than the volume of the liquid chamber in the recording head for ejecting ink of each color, and performing a plurality of preliminary ejections from nozzles ejecting at least a relatively thin ink after the suction operation. An ink jet recording apparatus which performs a preliminary discharge operation in which discharge is performed only for a plurality of end nozzles and discharges for a plurality of all nozzles in that order, and the preliminary discharge operation is completed after discharging a plurality of all nozzles. 2. The color head according to claim 1, wherein the color head integrally includes a nozzle group that discharges black ink and a nozzle group that discharges a plurality of color inks, and is performed prior to the suction operation of the color head. An ink jet recording apparatus, wherein a preliminary discharge performed after a preliminary discharge and a suction operation is performed only for each nozzle group that discharges color ink. 3. The color head according to claim 1, wherein the color head is an integrated head in which nozzle groups for ejecting black, magenta, cyan, and yellow inks are arranged on the same plane or on a straight line. Inkjet recording device. 4. A recording head for forming an image by ejecting ink on a recording medium at a predetermined position on a carriage at at least one replacement position set along the main scanning direction. Attaching and detaching means, an electric contact portion provided on the carriage for sending an electric signal to the recording head mounted by the attaching and detaching means, and one cap for covering a nozzle of the recording head An ink jet recording apparatus comprising: suction recovery means connected to the cap for sucking ink from the nozzles; and a wiper blade rubbing the surface of the recording head, wherein the recording head is mounted on the carriage. The recording head may be a black head or a plurality of recording heads depending on electrical information obtained through the electrical contact portion. A plurality of nozzles for discharging the ink are identified as an integrated color head, the conditions of the suction operation by the suction recovery means are changed based on the identification information, and when the color head is identified, the plurality of nozzles are identified. A plurality of suction forces or suction negative pressures of a suction operation are performed on the nozzles in combination, and ink of a volume equal to or larger than a liquid chamber volume in a recording head that discharges ink of each color is discharged by preliminary discharge prior to the suction operation. multiple onset of all the nozzles eject the preliminary ejection from the nozzles for discharging at least a relatively thin ink after suction operation, a plurality onset
An ink jet recording apparatus, which performs a preliminary discharge operation in which discharge is performed only in the end nozzles and a plurality of all nozzles are discharged in that order, and the preliminary discharge operation is completed after discharging all of the plurality of nozzles. 5. The color head according to claim 4, wherein a group of nozzles for discharging magenta, cyan, and yellow inks or a group of nozzles for discharging black, magenta, cyan, and yellow inks are on the same plane or on the same straight line. Wherein the suction operation performs two or more different suction operations in conjunction with each other. 6. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 4, wherein a plurality of different suctions in the suction operation are sequentially switched from a high suction negative pressure to a low suction negative pressure. 7. The suction operation according to claim 5, wherein a plurality of different suction operations in the suction operation are performed by dividing a piston stroke of a pump serving as the suction unit into a plurality of operations and repeating the operation and stop. Inkjet recording apparatus. 8. The suction device according to claim 7, wherein the plurality of different suction operations in the suction operation are performed by dividing the piston stroke of the pump serving as the suction means into three stages and repeating the operation and stop, thereby sequentially reducing the suction negative pressure. An ink jet recording apparatus wherein the suction is performed by gradually decreasing the suction amount from a high negative pressure to a low negative pressure. 9. An ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a wiping operation condition for each of the recording heads is changed based on the identification information. 10. The wiping operation condition according to claim 9, wherein the wiping operation condition includes a predetermined temperature, an environmental temperature, a difference between an environmental temperature and the temperature of the recording head, and a printing mode. An ink jet recording apparatus, wherein a value based on the identification information is added to a value and set. 11. The recording head is provided for each of a plurality of nozzles for ejecting ink and a corresponding nozzle, and causes a state change in the ink to cause the ink to be ejected from the nozzle based on the state change. The inkjet recording apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 10, further comprising: a thermal energy generating unit configured to generate thermal energy used for forming droplets.