JP3733968B2 - Ink droplet ejection device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an ink droplet ejecting apparatus that ejects ink to form an image on a recording medium.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there is an ink jet type recording apparatus that can easily make multiple gradations and colors. Among these recording apparatuses, a drop-on-demand type ink droplet ejecting apparatus that ejects printing ink is becoming widespread due to good ejection efficiency and low running cost.

  As a drop-on-demand type ink ejecting apparatus, for example, there is a shear mode type ink droplet ejecting apparatus using a piezoelectric material described in JP-A-63-247051 (Patent Document 1). 23 and 24 show an example of this type of ink droplet ejecting apparatus.

  A print head 600 constituting an ink droplet ejecting apparatus includes a bottom wall 601, a top wall 602, and a shear mode type actuator wall 603 sandwiched between the walls 601 and 602. The actuator wall 603 is bonded to the top wall 602 and is polarized in the direction of arrow 609 and is made of a piezoelectric material upper wall 605, and is bonded to the bottom wall 601 and is polarized in the direction of arrow 611 and is made of a piezoelectric material lower wall 607. It consists of. Two adjacent actuator walls 603 are paired to form an ink chamber 613 therebetween, and an air chamber 615 is formed between the adjacent pair of actuator walls 603.

  A nozzle plate 617 having a nozzle 618 is fixed to one end of each ink chamber 613, and an ink supply source (not shown) such as an ink cartridge is connected to the other end via a manifold 626. The manifold 626 includes a front wall 627 having an opening communicating with each ink chamber 613 and a rear wall 628 that seals between the walls 601 and 602, and is provided between the walls 627 and 628 from the ink supply source. The supplied ink is distributed to each ink chamber 613.

  Electrodes 619 and 621 are provided on both side surfaces of each actuator wall 603. That is, an electrode 619 is provided on the actuator wall 603 on the ink chamber 613 side, and an electrode 621 is provided on the actuator wall 603 on the air chamber 615 side and the outer peripheral side of the print head 600. Each electrode 619 provided in each ink chamber 613 is connected to the drive circuit 21. The drive circuit 21 generates a drive signal as will be described later based on the control of the control circuit 22 and applies it to each electrode 619. The other electrode 621 is connected to the ground 623.

  When the drive circuit 21 applies a voltage to the electrode 619 of each ink chamber 613, each actuator wall 603 undergoes a piezoelectric thickness slip deformation in the direction of increasing the volume of the ink chamber 613. An example of this operation is shown in FIG. When a predetermined voltage E (V) is applied to the electrode 619 of one ink chamber 613, an electric field in the direction of arrows 631, 631 perpendicular to the polarization direction is generated on the actuator walls 603, 603 on both sides of the ink chamber. Then, the actuator walls 603 and 603 are deformed by the piezoelectric thickness in the direction in which the volume of the ink chamber 613 is increased. At this time, the pressure in the ink chamber 613 including the vicinity of the nozzle 618 decreases.

  The application of the voltage E (V) is maintained for the one-way propagation time T of the pressure wave in the ink chamber 613. In the meantime, ink is supplied from the aforementioned ink supply source. The one-way propagation time T is the time for the pressure wave of the ink in the ink chamber 613 to propagate one way in the longitudinal direction of the ink chamber 613. The length L of the ink chamber 613 and the ink in the ink chamber 613 are in the ink. Based on the speed of sound a, T = L / a.

  According to the pressure wave propagation theory, when the one-way propagation time T elapses from the application of the voltage E, the pressure in the ink chamber 613 is reversed and turned to a positive pressure, but the electrode 619 of the ink chamber 613 is applied to this timing. The applied voltage is returned to 0 (V). Then, the actuator walls 603 and 603 return to the state before deformation shown in FIG. 23, and pressure is applied to the ink. At that time, the pressure turned positive and the pressure generated by the return of the actuator walls 603 and 603 are added together, and a relatively high pressure is generated in the vicinity of the nozzle 618 in the ink chamber 613, and the ink is discharged from the nozzle 618. Is injected. The ejected ink adheres to the surface of a recording medium such as printing paper, and an image is formed on the recording medium.

  Those described in JP-A-9-29960 (Patent Document 2), JP-A-9-29961 (Patent Document 3) and JP-A-9-48112 (Patent Document 4) previously proposed by the applicant of the present application. Is a canceling operation that substantially cancels the residual pressure wave vibration of the ink in the ink chamber 613 after the ejection operation to generate the pressure wave vibration in the ink in the ink chamber 613 and eject the ink from the nozzle 618 is completed as described above. Execute. Specifically, one pulse is added after the driving waveform for main injection. This canceling operation is performed by once setting the voltage applied to the electrode 619 to the voltage E (V) at a predetermined timing and then returning it to 0 (V) to increase or decrease the volume of the ink chamber 613. By this canceling operation, the residual pressure wave vibration in the ink chamber 613 converges early, preventing the residual pressure wave vibration from causing an accidental drop in which ink is undesirably ejected from the nozzle 618 and the next print command. It is possible to shift to the processing for early. Therefore, a more accurate image can be formed on the recording medium and the printing speed can be improved satisfactorily.

  Further, the one described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-202858 (Patent Document 5) proposed by the present applicant performs an ejection operation for ejecting ink from the nozzle 618 at a predetermined cycle timing, and then performs the predetermined cycle. When there is no print command at the next cycle timing corresponding to the timing, the cancel operation is executed, and when there is a print command at the next cycle timing, the cancel operation is not executed. In other words, if there is no print command at the next cycle timing corresponding to the predetermined cycle timing, an accidental drop may occur, so a canceling operation is performed, and a good image free from stains due to ink scattering is formed. So that If there is a print command at the next cycle timing, the residual pressure wave vibration in the ink chamber 613 is positively used, and the pressure generated by the print command at the next cycle timing is used. By adding the wave vibration to generate a large pressure wave vibration and ejecting a large ink droplet from the nozzle 618, the print density is increased so that a thick and clear image is formed.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 63-247051 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-29960 JP-A-9-29961 JP 9-48112 A JP-A-10-202858

  By the way, the execution / non-execution of the canceling operation as described above is not only selectively switched between the case where there is no print command and the case where there is no print command at the next (later) cycle timing corresponding to the predetermined cycle timing. By selectively switching between the case where there is no print command and the case where there is no print command at the previous cycle timing corresponding to the cycle timing, it becomes possible to effectively suppress the meniscus vibration of the ink, and the droplet ejection speed and ejection can be reduced. It is considered that ink droplets having a desired volume can be obtained stably, and the print quality can be further improved.

  In addition, since the viscosity and other characteristics of the ink vary depending on the temperature conditions and use conditions of the apparatus, it is desirable that the selective switching can be performed arbitrarily and easily even in response to the variation. Furthermore, it is desired that the stop pulse for performing the canceling operation can be reliably generated from the preceding and subsequent print data histories with a simple configuration, and the restriction on the print waveform when performing the canceling operation is relaxed. It was.

  The present invention has been made to satisfy the above requirements, and its purpose is to switch the print waveform based on print data supplied back and forth corresponding to one actuator and the temperature of the apparatus. It is to improve the printing quality.

In order to achieve the above object, an ink droplet ejecting apparatus of the present invention includes an ink chamber filled with ink and a print head having an actuator for ejecting ink from the ink chamber, and a pulse clock corresponding to each printing cycle. Generating means, a plurality of storage means for storing the print data supplied before and after corresponding to one actuator, the print data output from each of the plurality of storage means, and the temperature of the apparatus A data generating means for generating a data signal including additional pulse data for canceling operation for canceling residual pressure wave vibration in the ink chamber corresponding to the pulse clock, and the pulse clock based on the data signal. A circuit that selectively generates a drive signal for the actuator and outputs the drive signal to the actuator. .

In the above configuration, preferably, the means for generating the pulse clock generates a plurality of pulse clocks corresponding to each printing cycle, and the circuit for outputting the drive signal to the actuator is generated by the data generation means. The plurality of pulse clocks are selectively generated as the drive signals according to the data signals and output to the actuators to drive the actuators.
Also preferably, the data generating means generates said additional pulse data and the ejection pulse data for injection operation for ejecting ink as the data signal.
Alternatively, it said print data, said and said data signal data generating means has generated, the ink may further include an injection pulse data and the data transfer means for transferring the said additional pulse data for injection operation to inject.
More preferably, a control circuit having means for generating the pulse clock, the storage means and the data generating means, and a drive circuit having a circuit for outputting the drive signal to an actuator are connected via a harness cable. Yes.
More preferably, the data signal includes an injection Parusude data to which the additional pulse data is added, wherein the drive circuit, and the said ejection pulse data and said additional pulse data and serial input corresponding to the ink chamber parallel The plurality of pulse clocks corresponding to each printing cycle are converted and the drive signal is selectively generated by the ejection pulse data and the additional pulse data.
A control circuit for serially transferring the print data, and a drive circuit having a circuit for converting the serially transferred print data into parallel, the data generating means, and a circuit for outputting the drive signal to an actuator, a harness It can also be set as the structure connected via the cable.

The ink droplet ejecting apparatus of the present invention includes an ink chamber filled with ink, a print head having an actuator for ejecting ink from the ink chamber, a control circuit for outputting print data, and an output of the control circuit. And a drive circuit for generating a drive signal for driving the actuator. The control circuit corresponds to one means for generating a plurality of pulse clocks corresponding to each printing cycle and one actuator. A plurality of storage means for storing the print data supplied before and after each other, and the residual pressure wave vibration in the ink chamber is canceled based on the print data output from each of the plurality of storage means and the temperature of the apparatus. and a data generating means for generating a data signal is additional pulse data for canceling the operation of the data signal and A print data output from one of the serial storage means, and outputs each corresponding to the plurality of pulse clock, the driving circuit selectively said pulse clock based with the print data into the data signal And generating the drive signal and outputting it to the actuator.

Preferably, in the above configuration, the driving circuit includes a switching circuit that selectively outputs the print data and the data signal, and the print data and the data signal that are output from the switch circuit. A gate circuit for selectively outputting a plurality of pulse clocks corresponding to the above to the actuator.
Preferably, the control circuit and the drive circuit are connected via a harness cable, and the print data and the data signal are serially transferred from the control circuit and converted in parallel by the drive circuit.

  Preferably, the storage means comprises three storage means for storing predetermined print data, immediately preceding print data, and immediately following print data.

  Preferably, the data generation means performs a logical operation of the plurality of print data and a control signal that indicates an arbitrary combination of the print data.

  According to the present invention, since the data signal for driving the actuator is generated based on the print data output from each of the plurality of storage means and the temperature of the apparatus, for example, the print data disappears during the continuous printing. In such a case, it is possible to switch the printing waveform appropriately according to the temperature of the apparatus and perform the ejection stably.

  Further, a plurality of pulse clocks are generated corresponding to each printing cycle, and the plurality of pulse clocks are selectively output to the actuator by the data signal generated by the data generation means, and the actuator is driven relatively. It is possible to perform injection stably with a simple configuration.

  Further, since the storage means is composed of three storage means for storing predetermined print data, print data immediately before and print data immediately after the print data, print data immediately before and immediately after one print data can be stored together with the temperature of the apparatus. It can be used to generate a data signal, and the injection can be stabilized more appropriately.

  Hereinafter, an ink ejecting apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Since the mechanical configuration of the print head 600 in the ink ejecting apparatus of each embodiment is the same as that shown in FIGS.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of an ink jet printer common to the respective embodiments including the ink ejecting apparatus of the present invention. The guide rod 501 and the guide member 502 are bridged between the printer frame side plates 503. The carriage 504 is slidably supported by the guide rod 501 and the guide member 502, fixed to the belt 505, and driven and reciprocated by a carriage motor (CR motor) 506. The belt 505 is wound around two pulleys 507 arranged near both ends of the guide rod 501 and the guide member 502. One pulley 507 is connected to the drive shaft of the CR motor 506.

  A print head unit 508 including a print head 600 and a drive circuit 21 including a one-chip IC described later is attached to the carriage 504. The drive circuit 21 is connected to a control circuit 22 (FIG. 2) of the printer apparatus body via a flexible harness cable. An ink cartridge 509 as an ink supply source that supplies ink to each nozzle 618 of the print head 600 is detachably mounted on the rear portion of the print head unit 508. A transport mechanism LF that transports the printing paper P is disposed at a position facing the print head 600. The transport mechanism LF transports the printing paper P at a right angle to the traveling direction of the carriage 504 by the rotation of the platen roller 511 that is rotated by driving a transport motor (LF motor) 510. A roller shaft 512 of the platen roller 511 is rotatably supported on the printer frame side plate 503.

  A maintenance / recovery mechanism RM that performs maintenance / recovery of the ink ejection operation of the print head 600 is provided on the side of the transport mechanism LF. The maintenance / recovery mechanism RM includes a suction mechanism 513 and a cap 514. The suction mechanism 513 is generated when the print head 600 is in use because the ink is dried, bubbles are generated inside the ink head, or ink droplets are attached to the outer surface of the nozzle plate 617 of the nozzle 618. In order to eliminate the ejection failure, the cap 514 is brought into close contact with the nozzle plate 617 and ink is sucked from the nozzles 618. The cap 514 also serves to prevent the ink from drying by covering the outer surface of the nozzle plate 617 when the ink jet printer is not used.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an electrical configuration of the ink jet printer including the ink ejecting apparatus according to the first embodiment.

  The control system of the ink jet printer includes a microcomputer 11, ROM 12, and RAM 13 having a one-chip configuration. The microcomputer 11 includes an operation panel 14 for a user to give a printing instruction, a motor drive circuit 15 for driving a CR motor 506, a motor drive circuit 16 for driving an LF motor 510, and a recording medium. A paper sensor 17 for detecting the leading edge of the printing paper P, an origin sensor 18 for detecting the origin position of the carriage 504, a position sensor 19 for detecting the traveling position of the carriage 504, and the like are connected.

  The print head 600 is driven by the drive circuit 21, and the drive circuit 21 is controlled by the control circuit 22. That is, as shown in FIG. 24, each electrode 619 provided in each ink chamber 613 of the print head 600 is connected to the drive circuit 21. Based on the control of the control circuit 22, the drive circuit 21 generates a drive signal suitable for the print head 600 and applies it to each electrode 619.

  The microcomputer 11 is connected to the ROM 12, RAM 13, and control circuit 22 via an address bus 23 and a data bus 24. The microcomputer 11 generates a print timing signal TS and a control signal RS in accordance with a program stored in advance in the ROM 12 and transfers the signals TS and RS to the control circuit 22. The control circuit 22 and the drive circuit 21 constitute a control device in the claims.

  The control circuit 22 is constituted by a gate array and is print data for forming the print data on a recording medium based on the print data stored in the image memory 25 in accordance with the print timing signal TS and the control signal RS. The transfer data DATA, the transfer clock TCK synchronized with the transfer data DATA, the strobe signal STB, and the print clock ICK are generated, and the signals DATA, TCK, STB, and ICK are transferred to the drive circuit 21. Further, the control circuit 22 causes the image memory 25 to store print data transferred from an external device such as a personal computer 26 via the Centronics interface 27. The control circuit 22 generates a Centronics data reception interrupt signal WS based on the Centronics data transferred from the personal computer 26 or the like via the Centronics interface 27 and transfers the signal WS to the microcomputer 11. To do. The signals DATA, TCK, STB, and ICK are transferred via a harness cable 28 that connects the control circuit 22 of the printer apparatus main body and the drive circuit 21 on the carriage 504.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the internal configuration of the drive circuit 21. Here, the drive circuit 21 in the case of driving a 64-channel multi-nozzle head in which 64 ink chambers 613 of the print head 600 are provided is illustrated. The drive circuit 21 includes a serial-parallel converter 31, a data latch 32, an AND gate 33, and an output circuit 34. The serial-parallel converter 31 is composed of a 64-bit shift register, receives transfer data DATA transferred serially from the control circuit 22 in synchronization with the transfer clock TCK, and transfers the data in accordance with the rise of the transfer clock TCK. By converting the data DATA into the parallel data PD0 to PD63, serial-parallel conversion of the transfer data DATA is performed.

  The data latch 32 latches each of the parallel data PD0 to PD63 according to the rising edge of the strobe signal STB transferred from the control circuit 22. The 64 AND gates 33 respectively AND the parallel data PD0 to PD63 output from the data latch 32 and the print clock ICK transferred from the control circuit 22, and each parallel data PD0 to PD63. The drive data A0 to A63 are generated as a result of the logical product of. The 64 output circuits 34 generate drive signals suitable for the print head based on the drive data A0 to A63, respectively, and output the drive signals to the electrodes 619 of the ink chambers 613 of the print head 600. Incidentally, if the print head 600 is not 64 channels, the bit length of the serial-parallel converter 31 and the number of each of the AND gate 33 and the output circuit 34 should be the same as the number of channels of the print head 600. Good.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of main parts inside the control circuit 22 (gate array). Here, as in the case of the drive circuit 21, a case where the print head 600 is a 64-channel multi-nozzle head is illustrated. The control circuit 22 includes a data setting circuit 41, a serial-parallel conversion unit (conversion unit) 42, a first shift register 43, a second shift register 44, and a transfer data generation unit 45 that constitute three data storage units. (Additional pulse data generating means) and a controller circuit 47 are provided. The data setting circuit 41 reads the print data stored in the image memory 25 in parallel, and outputs the print data to the 64-bit serial-parallel conversion circuit 42 according to the setting command MS.

  The serial-parallel conversion circuit 42 receives and holds the print data Ch0 to Ch63 of each channel of the data setting circuit 41 in parallel according to the serial-parallel conversion control signal SPC, and follows the rise of the shift clock (not shown). Then, serially output from the serial output terminal OUT one bit at a time from the head print data Ch0. As a result, parallel-serial conversion of the print data is performed, and simultaneously, print data sequentially output from the serial output terminal OUT is output (A) to the transfer data generation unit 45, and the first shift register 43 having a 64-bit length is also provided. To the serial input terminal IN1.

  The first shift register 43 serially inputs and holds the print data Ch0 to Ch63 serially output from the serial-parallel conversion circuit 42 according to the first shift register control signal SRC1, and in accordance with the rising edge of the shift clock. Each print data is serially output from the serial data output terminal OUT bit by bit from the head data Ch0 and output (B) to the transfer data generation unit 45. The data is also switched by switching the first shift register control signal SRC1. Is again input to the serial input terminal IN2.

  The second shift register 44 serially inputs and holds the print data Ch0 to Ch63 serially output from the first shift register 43 in accordance with the second shift register control signal SRC2, and in accordance with the rise of the shift clock, Each print data is serially output (C) to the transfer data generation unit 45 from the serial output terminal OUT bit by bit sequentially from the head data Ch0.

  The transfer data generation unit 45 functions as additional pulse data generation means, and print data Ch0 to Ch0 output serially from the serial-parallel conversion circuit 42, the first shift register 43, and the second shift register 44, respectively. Ch63 is input, and the logical product of the three print data is obtained in accordance with the transfer data control signal PAT [7-0]. That is, the output (A) of the serial-parallel conversion circuit 42 becomes the ejection data immediately after the one dot, the output (B) of the first shift register 43 becomes the ejection data of that dot, and the second shift register 44. The output (C) becomes the ejection data immediately before the dot, and a predetermined logical operation is performed based on these three ejection data. The transfer data control signal PAT [7-0] may be appropriately determined according to the temperature condition and the use condition. Transfer data DATA (D) is output from the transfer data generation unit 45 to the drive circuit 21.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the transfer data DATA (D) cancels the ejection pulse data FD for the ejection operation for ejecting ink from the nozzles 618 of the print head 600 and the residual pressure wave vibration in the ink chamber 613. Stop pulse data SD for canceling operation is included. The controller circuit 47 generates the signals MS, SPC, SPC1, and SPC2 for controlling the circuits 41 to 44 and 45 in accordance with the print timing signal TS and the control signal RS transferred from the microcomputer 11. At the same time, a transfer data control signal PAT [7-0], a strobe signal STB synchronized with the transfer data DATA, a transfer clock TCK, and a print clock ICK are generated.

  If the print head 600 is not 64 channels (the number of ink chambers), the bit length of each serial-parallel conversion circuit 42 and shift registers 43 and 44 may be the same as the number of channels of the print head 600. In the drive circuit 21, each parallel data PD <b> 0 to PD <b> 63 output from the serial-parallel converter 31 that performs serial-parallel conversion of the transfer data DATA corresponds to each ink chamber 613 of the print head 600. . Therefore, in the control circuit 22, each bit of the transfer data DATA and each print data Ch <b> 0 to Ch <b> 63 correspond to each ink chamber 613 of the print head 600. That is, a drive signal applied to the electrode 619 of each ink chamber 613 is generated according to each bit of the transfer data DATA and each print data Ch0 to Ch63, and the ejection of ink from the nozzles 618 in the ejection operation and the cancellation operation is controlled. Is done.

  FIG. 5 shows an example of a logic circuit constituting the transfer data generation unit 45. This logic circuit is composed of eight AND circuits and one OR circuit that receives the output of the AND circuit, and the transfer data control signal PAT [ 7-0] and data A, B, and C (B is the 1-dot data, A is the data immediately after the dot, and C is the data immediately before the dot) are input to the transfer data generation unit 45 described above. Is done. To each AND circuit, each data A, B, C is input via the inverting input terminal so as to generate all combinations of the data A, B, C, and the transfer data control signal PAT. One of [7-0] is input. Accordingly, by appropriately selecting the contents of the transfer data control signals PAT7 to PAT0, any one of the print data A, B, and C is output, or based on any combination of the print data A, B, and C. Output signals. FIG. 5B shows all combinations of the print data A, B, and C and the transfer data control signal PAT [7-0] indicating the combination. For example, by setting PAT7 to “1”, an additional pulse (stop pulse) signal is generated only when the print data A, B, and C are “1, 1, 1” in combination, and the transfer data is output from the output terminal of the OR circuit. Output as DATA (D). “1” indicates that there is an ejection dot, and “0” indicates that there is no ejection dot. In PAT0 to PAT7, the logic level “H” is indicated by “1” and the logic level “L” is indicated by “0”.

  Next, the operation of the ink ejecting apparatus of the present embodiment configured as described above will be described. FIG. 6 is a time chart of the print clock ICK, strobe signal STB, and transfer data DATA. The transfer data DATA includes stop pulse data SD and ejection pulse data FD, and the stop pulse data SD and ejection pulse data FD are transferred one by one at every predetermined printing cycle timing. The strobe signal STB and the print clock ICK are transferred at every predetermined print cycle timing corresponding to the stop pulse data SD and the ejection pulse data FD of the transfer data DATA.

  At the timing of each printing cycle, a canceling operation is possible after the end of the ejection operation. That is, as shown in FIG. 6, when the (n−1) th printing is performed at a certain printing cycle Tm−1 and the nth printing is performed at the next printing cycle Tm, each printing cycle Tm−1, At Tm, after the ejection pulse clock ICKf corresponding to the ejection pulse data FD is transferred, the stop pulse clock ICKs corresponding to the stop pulse data SD is transferred as the print clock ICK.

  In the printing cycle Tm-1, the transfer data DATA is transferred with the ejection pulse data FDn for the nth print after the stop pulse data SDn-1 for the (n-1) th print is transferred. . In the printing cycle Tm, the transfer data DATA is transferred with the ejection pulse data FDn + 1 for the (n + 1) th printing after the stop pulse data SDn for the nth printing is transferred. In the printing cycle Tm−1, the strobe signal STB is transferred to the n−1 after the strobe signal STBfn−1 corresponding to the ejection pulse data FDn−1 (not shown) for the (n−1) th printing is transferred. A strobe signal STBsn-1 corresponding to the stop pulse data SDn-1 for the second printing is transferred. Then, in the printing cycle Tm, the strobe signal STB is the strobe signal corresponding to the stop pulse data SDn for the nth printing after the strobe signal STBfn corresponding to the ejection pulse data FDn for the nth printing is transferred. Signal STBsn is transferred.

  That is, in the printing cycle Tm−1, the print clock ICK is transferred to the n−th after the ejection pulse clock ICKfn−1 corresponding to the ejection pulse data FDn−1 (not shown) for printing is transferred. A stop pulse clock ICKsn-1 corresponding to the stop pulse data SDn-1 for the first printing is transferred. In the printing cycle Tm, the printing clock ICK corresponds to the stop pulse data SDn for the nth printing after the ejection pulse clock ICKfn corresponding to the ejection pulse data FDn for the nth printing is transferred. The stop pulse clock ICKsn is transferred.

  Hereinafter, the operation of the drive circuit 21 will be described with reference to FIG. When the logic level of the print clock ICK is “H”, the output of each AND gate 33 of the drive circuit 21 is determined according to the output state of the data latch 32, that is, the content of the transfer data DATA. In addition, when the logic level of the print clock ICK is “L”, the output of each AND gate 33 of the drive circuit 21 is prohibited regardless of the output state of the data latch 32 and becomes the logic level “L”. That is, the print clock ICK serves as an enable signal when each AND gate 33 generates the drive data A0 to A63.

  Therefore, when the logic level of the print clock ICK is “H”, and the transfer data DATA output from the data latch 32, that is, the logic level of the parallel data PD0 to PD63 is “H”, the parallel data is input. The logic level of the drive data generated by the gate 33 also becomes “H”, and the output circuit 34 to which the drive data is input generates a drive signal and outputs it to the electrode 619 of the corresponding ink chamber 613 of the print head 600. When the logical level of the transfer data DATA, that is, the parallel data PD0 to PD63 output from the data latch 32 is “L”, the parallel data is input even if the logical level of the print clock ICK is “H”. The logic level of the drive data generated by the AND gate 33 is “L”, and the output circuit 34 to which the drive data is input does not generate a drive signal.

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 23, when the ejection pulse clock ICKfn of the print clock rises at the timing t1 in the print cycle Tm in the presence of the transfer data DATA, as described in FIG. Thus, an electric field is generated, the volume of the ink chamber 613 increases, and the pressure in the ink chamber 613 including the vicinity of the nozzle 618 decreases. Thereafter, while ink flows into the ink chamber 613, the pressure due to the pressure wave vibration generated by the increase in volume increases to a positive pressure, and reaches a peak in the vicinity of the point where the one-way propagation time T elapses. .

  The pulse width of the ejection pulse clock ICKfn is set to be the same as the one-way propagation time T. Therefore, the ejection pulse clock ICKfn falls at the timing t2 after the one-way propagation time T has elapsed. Then, the volume of the ink chamber 613 decreases, and the pressure generated thereby and the positively-turned pressure are added together, and a relatively high pressure is generated in the vicinity of the nozzle 618 in the ink chamber 613, and the ink is discharged from the nozzle 618. An ink ejecting operation is performed to eject the ink. The ejected ink adheres to the surface of the printing paper P, and an image is formed on the printing paper P.

  Thereafter, when the stop pulse clock ICKsn rises in the presence of the transfer data DATA at a timing t3 before the pressure in the ink chamber 613 changes from positive to negative, the pressure that is still positive rapidly decreases. When the stop pulse clock ICKsn falls at timing t4 after the pressure has turned negative, the pressure that has turned negative rapidly increases. For this reason, the vibration of the pressure wave is canceled, and a canceling operation in which the vibration rapidly converges is executed. When the pressure wave vibration is canceled in this way, ink is prevented from being undesirably ejected from the nozzle 618, and the process for the next print command can be shifted to an early stage. Therefore, it is possible to form a more accurate image on the printing paper P, shorten the printing cycle, and improve the printing speed satisfactorily.

  The pulse width W of the stop pulse clock ICKsn is set to 0.5 times the one-way propagation time T. The stop pulse clock ICKsn cancels the pressure wave oscillation as described above, and the pulse width W is set to a short value greatly different from an odd multiple of the one-way propagation time T. Therefore, the stop pulse clock ICKsn. Therefore, ink is not ejected from the nozzle 618. Further, the time d from the timing t2 when the injection pulse clock ICKfn falls to the timing tM between the rise timing t3 and the fall timing t4 of the stop pulse clock ICKsn is set to 2.5 times the one-way propagation time T. ing. In the ink ejection operation and the cancellation operation, the voltage of the drive signal generated by the output circuit 34 is the same.

  FIG. 7 is a time chart of a section in which stop pulse data SDn-1 is transferred as transfer data DATA at the timing of the printing cycle Tm-1 shown in FIG. FIG. 8 is a time chart of a section in which the ejection pulse data FDn is transferred as the transfer data DATA at the timing of the printing cycle Tm−1 shown in FIG. 6.

  Hereinafter, the operation of the stop pulse data transfer period of the control circuit 22 will be described with reference to FIG. In the same transfer section, the serial-parallel conversion circuit 42 inputs the print data Ch0n + 1 to Ch63n + 1 for the (n + 1) th print from the data setting circuit 41 in parallel, and sequentially starts from the first print data Ch0n + 1 as the shift clock rises. One bit is serially output from the serial output terminal OUT. The first shift register 43 stores print data Ch0n to Ch63n for the nth print. The first shift register 43 serially outputs from the serial output terminal OUT one bit at a time from the head print data Ch0n in accordance with the rise of the shift clock. The second shift register 44 stores print data Ch0n-1 to Ch63n-1 for the (n-1) th print. The second shift register 44 serially outputs one bit at a time from the head print data Ch0n-1 sequentially from the serial output terminal OUT as the shift clock rises. Here, the first shift register 43 inputs the print data Ch0n + 1 to Ch63n + 1 serially output from the serial-parallel conversion circuit 42 to the serial input terminal IN1. The second shift register 44 inputs the print data Ch0n to Ch63n serially output from the first shift register 43 to the serial input terminal IN.

  In the transfer data generation unit 45, the three serial outputs and the transfer data control signal are input, and a predetermined logical operation is performed. Now, the transfer data control signal PAT [7-0] = [0,0,0,0,1,0,0,0] (Here, each data corresponds to the input terminal in the figure in order from the top) By setting “1” only for PAT3, “1” is output from the AND gate corresponding to PAT3 only when A = 0, B = 1, and C = 1. That is, the transfer data DATA (D) is “1” for a dot (B) that has an ejection dot in the front (C) and no ejection dot in the rear (A), and a stop pulse can be added.

  Next, the operation of the injection pulse data transfer section of the control circuit 22 will be described with reference to FIG. In the same transfer section, when the transfer of the stop pulse data is completed, the print data Ch0n + 1 to Ch63n + 1 are stored in the first shift register 43, and are stored as the shift clock rises. Serial output is performed from the serial output terminal OUT bit by bit sequentially from the first print data Ch0n + 1. The print data Chn + 1 serially output from the serial output terminal OUT is input again to the serial input terminal IN2. By setting the transfer data control signal PAT [7-0] = [1,1,0,0,1,1,0,0], regardless of the states of A and C, PAT7 and PAT6 shown in FIG. , PAT3, and PAT2 output data corresponding to B from one of the AND gates. Thereby, serial output (B) is output as ejection pulse data as transfer data DATA (D).

  As described above in detail, in the control circuit 22 of the ink ejecting apparatus of the present embodiment, for the nth print in the print cycle Tm, the print for the print data for the (n + 1) th print in the corresponding next print cycle. When there is no command and there is a print command for print data for the (n-1) th print in the previous print cycle, stop pulse data is generated and a canceling operation is executed. For the n-th print, stop pulse data is not generated and the canceling operation is not executed for combinations other than those described above for print data print commands before and after the n-th print.

  Thus, according to the present embodiment, execution / non-execution of the canceling operation can be reliably switched between when there is no print command and when there is no print command at the next cycle timing and at the next cycle timing, When the execution / non-execution of the canceling operation is selectively switched, the control circuit 22 can accurately control the voltage application operation to the electrode 619c of each ink chamber 613 of the print head 600 by the drive circuit 21. . Note that the execution / non-execution switching of the canceling operation, that is, the addition condition of the stop pulse can be arbitrarily changed without being limited to the above combination. In particular, in the present invention, the content of the transfer data control signal PAT [7-0] is appropriately changed according to the temperature condition and use condition of the apparatus, and the same as described in JP-A-9-48112, A stop pulse signal can be added or omitted. This change of the logical operation expression can be dealt with by changing the logic circuit of the control circuit 22 or storing the pattern of the desired transfer data control signal in the ROM 12 and RAM 13. The transfer data control signal stored in the RAM 13 can be rewritten from an external device 26 such as a personal computer.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, the ink ejection that can selectively switch the execution / non-execution of the canceling operation by configuring the control circuit 22 only as described above while the drive circuit 21 remains the same. A device can be obtained. As described above, the drive circuit 21 constituted by a one-chip IC constitutes the print head unit 508 together with the print head 600, and the print head unit 508 is attached to the carriage 504. The drive circuit 21 is connected via a cable 28. Therefore, if only the control circuit 22 is replaced without changing the print head unit 508, this embodiment can be realized, and the cost required for remodeling can be kept low.

  Next, an ink ejecting apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of an ink jet printer including the ink ejecting apparatus according to the present embodiment. The basic configuration including the microcomputer 11, the control circuit 22, the drive circuit 21, and the like is the same as that of the above embodiment. It is the same. The main difference between the present embodiment and the first embodiment is that, in the present embodiment, the control circuit 22 is stored in the image memory 25 in accordance with the print timing signal TS and the control signal RS. Based on the print data, the ejection pulse data FD for the ejection operation for ejecting ink from the nozzles 618 of the print head 600 when the print data is formed on the recording medium, the residual pressure wave vibration in the ink chamber 613 described above. A stop pulse data SD for canceling operation to cancel and a switching signal KS for switching each data FD, SD are generated and output to the drive circuit 21. Further, the microcomputer 11 outputs to the control circuit 22 a transfer data control signal PAT [7-0] that can be changed as needed to control the data FD, SD, and the data FD, SD. This is because the switching is performed by the drive circuit 21.

  That is, FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing the internal configuration of the drive circuit 21. In this embodiment, two serial-parallel converters 31A and 31B are provided. One serial-parallel converter 31A is composed of a 64-bit length shift register, and receives the injection pulse data FD serially transferred from the control circuit 22 in synchronization with the transfer clock TCK, and at the rising edge of the transfer clock TCK. Therefore, the injection pulse data FD is converted into parallel data FPD0 to FPD63, thereby performing serial-parallel conversion of the injection pulse data FD. The other serial-parallel converter 34 is composed of a 64-bit length shift register, and receives the stop pulse data SD transferred serially in synchronization with the transfer clock TCK from the control circuit 22, and at the rising edge of the transfer clock TCK. Therefore, the stop pulse data SD is converted into the parallel data SPD0 to SPD63, thereby performing serial-parallel conversion of the stop pulse data SD.

  Each of the 64 switching circuits 35 is switched to one of the nodes A and B according to the switching signal KS transferred from the control circuit 22, and when switched to the node A, the serial-parallel converter 33 When the output (parallel data FPD0 to FPD63 of injection pulse data) is selected and the node B is switched, the output of the serial-parallel converter 34 (parallel data SPD0 to SPD63 of stop pulse data) is selected and selected The output is output to the data latch 32. The configurations of the data latch 32, the AND gate 33, and the output circuit 34 are the same as those in the above embodiment.

  FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing the main configuration of the inside of the control circuit 22, and is a data setting circuit 41, a serial-parallel conversion circuit 42, a first shift register 43, a second shift register 44, a transfer data generation unit 45, and a controller circuit. The basic configuration of 47 is the same as that of the above embodiment. The difference from the above embodiment is that, in this embodiment, the serial-parallel conversion circuit 42 outputs print data sequentially output from the serial output terminal OUT to the serial-parallel converter 31A of the drive circuit 21. (FD). The first shift register 43 inputs the print data from the serial output terminal OUT to the transfer data generation unit 45 and the second shift register 44 without inputting the print data to its own serial input terminal IN2.

  The transfer data generation unit 45 is based on the outputs (A, B, C) from the serial-parallel conversion circuit 42, the first shift register 43 and the second shift register 44, and the transfer data control signal PAT [7-0]. Stop pulse data (SD) is generated. The transfer data control signal PAT [7-0] may be input from the controller circuit 47 as in the above embodiment, but is input from the microcomputer 11 in the present embodiment. The internal configuration of the transfer data generation unit 45 is the same as that in FIG.

  The controller circuit 47 generates a switching signal KS in addition to the strobe signal STB, the transfer clock TCK, and the printing clock ICK, and outputs the switching signal KS to the driving circuit 21 as in the above embodiment.

  Next, the operation of the ink ejecting apparatus according to the second embodiment configured as described above will be described with reference to FIG. The print clock ICK and the strobe signal STB are the same as in the above embodiment.

  In the present embodiment, the ejection pulse data FDn for the nth printing and the stop pulse data SDn-1 for the (n-1) th printing are simultaneously transferred in the printing cycle Tm-1. In the printing cycle Tm, the ejection pulse data FDn + 1 for the (n + 1) th printing and the stop pulse data SDn for the nth printing are simultaneously transferred.

  That is, in the printing cycle Tm−1, the print clock ICK is transferred to the n−th after the ejection pulse clock ICKfn−1 corresponding to the ejection pulse data FDn−1 (not shown) for printing is transferred. A stop pulse clock ICKsn-1 corresponding to the stop pulse data SDn-1 for the first printing is transferred. In the printing cycle Tm, the printing clock ICK corresponds to the stop pulse data SDn for the nth printing after the ejection pulse clock ICKfn corresponding to the ejection pulse data FDn for the nth printing is transferred. The stop pulse clock ICKsn is transferred.

  The switching signal KS is transferred in correspondence with the strobe signal STB. In each printing cycle Tm−1, Tm, the switching signal KS causes each switching circuit 35 of the drive circuit 21 to be switched when each strobe signal STBsn−1, STBsn corresponding to each stop pulse data SDn−1, SDn is transferred. Switching to the node B side, otherwise switching each switching circuit 35 to the node A side. For this reason, when the switching circuit 35 is switched to the node A side according to the switching signal KS, the data latch 32 outputs the output of the serial-parallel converter 31A (parallel data FPD0 to FPD63 obtained by converting the injection pulse data FD into parallel data). When the switching circuit 35 is switched to the node B side, the output of the serial-parallel converter 31B (parallel data SPD0 to SPD63 obtained by parallel conversion of the stop pulse data SD) is latched. Therefore, when the ejection pulse data FDn-1 (not shown) for the n-1th printing is latched in the data latch 32, the serial-parallel converter 34 has the n-1th printing for the printing. Stop pulse data SDn-1 is stored, and the serial-parallel converter 33 stores the ejection pulse data FDn for the n-th printing. After the (n-1) th injection pulse data FDn-1 is output, the corresponding stop pulse data SDn-1 is output, and then the nth injection pulse data FDn is output.

  The data latched by the data latch 32 is output to the print head 600 in synchronization with the print clock ICK, and the ejection operation and the canceling operation are performed as in the above embodiment.

  A time chart of the control circuit 22 is the same as FIG. In this case, at the timing of the printing cycle Tm shown in FIG. 12, a time chart of a section in which ejection pulse data FDn + 1 and stop pulse data SDn are transferred as transfer data is obtained.

  13 and 14 show a third embodiment. This embodiment is a slightly modified version of the second embodiment, and two data latches 32A and 32B are provided corresponding to the two serial-parallel converters 31A and 31B. One of the data latches 32A and 32B is selectively output to the AND gate 33.

  FIG. 14 is a time chart of the print clock ICK, strobe signal STB, ejection pulse data FD, stop pulse data SD, and switching signal KS in the third embodiment. In the printing cycle Tm-1, the ejection pulse data FDn for the nth printing and the stop pulse data SDn for the nth printing are transferred simultaneously. In the printing cycle Tm, the ejection pulse data FDn + 1 for the (n + 1) th printing and the stop pulse data SDn + 1 for the (n + 1) th printing are transferred at the same time. In this embodiment, as shown by the broken line in FIG. 11, the injection pulse data FDn is the output (B) of the first shift register 43 of the control circuit 22.

  Further, in the printing cycle Tm-1, the strobe signal STB is a strobe signal STBn corresponding to the ejection pulse data FDn-1 (not shown) and stop pulse data SDn-1 (not shown) for the (n-1) th printing. -1 is transferred. In the printing cycle Tm, the strobe signal STBn corresponding to the ejection pulse data FDn and the stop pulse data SDn for the nth printing is transferred as the strobe signal STB. The switching signal KS is transferred in correspondence with the print clock ICK.

  In each printing cycle Tm−1, Tm, each switching circuit 35 of the driving circuit 21 switches the switching signal KS when each stop pulse clock ICKsn−1, ICKsn corresponding to each stop pulse data SDn−1, SDn is transferred. The node B is switched to the node B side, and otherwise, the node A is switched to the node A side according to the switching signal KS. When each switching circuit 35 is switched to the node A side, each AND gate 33 of the drive circuit 21 outputs the output of the serial-parallel converter 31A latched in the data latch 32A (the injection pulse data FD is converted into parallel data). Each parallel data FPD0 to FPD63) is input. When each switching circuit 35 is switched to the node B side, each AND gate 33 has an output of the serial-parallel converter 31B latched by the data latch 32B (each parallel obtained by converting the stop pulse data SD into parallel). Data SPD0 to SPD63) are input.

  Therefore, the data latched in the data latches 32A and 32B is output to the print head 600 in synchronization with the print clock ICK, and the ejection operation and the canceling operation are performed as in the above embodiment. Since the time chart of the section in which the injection pulse data FDn and the stop pulse data SDn are transferred is also the same as described above, the description thereof is omitted.

  As described above, in the control circuit 22 of the present embodiment, the ejection pulse data FDn for the nth printing and the stop pulse data SDn for the nth printing are generated simultaneously. The data FDn and SDn are simultaneously transferred to the drive circuit 21, and the serial-parallel converters 31A and 31B simultaneously generate parallel data FPD0 to FPD63 and SPD0 to SPD63 obtained by serial-parallel conversion of the data FDn and SDn. The The parallel data FPD0 to FPD63 and SPD0 to SPD63 are output to the data latches 32A and 32B, respectively, and are simultaneously latched according to the strobe signal STB. Then, each of the parallel data FPD0 to FPD63 and SPD0 to SPD63 once latched in each of the data latches 32A and 32B by each switching circuit 35 switched according to the switching signal KS corresponding to the print clock ICK is ANDed to each AND. Output to the gate 33 and drive data A0 to A63 are generated in accordance with the print clock ICK.

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 14, the time interval between the timing t5 at which the stop pulse clock ICKsn-1 corresponding to the stop pulse data SDn-1 falls and the timing t1 at which the ejection pulse clock ICKfn corresponding to the ejection pulse data FDn rises. Can be shortened. Further, it is possible to shorten the time interval between the timing t2 when the ejection pulse clock ICKfn corresponding to the ejection pulse data FDn falls and the timing t3 when the stop pulse clock ICKsn corresponding to the stop pulse data SDn rises. Therefore, according to this embodiment, it is possible to further shorten the timings of the printing cycles Tm−1 and Tm as compared with the second embodiment, and it is possible to improve the printing speed more favorably.

  FIG. 15 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of an ink jet printer including the ink ejecting apparatus according to the fourth embodiment. The basic configuration including the microcomputer 11, the control circuit 22, the drive circuit 21, etc. This is the same as the first embodiment. The main difference between this embodiment and the first embodiment is that in this embodiment, an additional pulse for canceling operation is generated by the control circuit 22 and transferred to the drive circuit 21. Instead, the drive circuit 21 generates a switching signal for switching the combination of print data, instead of the generation of the drive circuit 21 and the transfer data control signal for determining the condition for performing the canceling operation. Is output to

  That is, FIG. 15 differs from FIG. 2 in that a switching signal KS (combination instruction signal) for switching the combination of print data is provided as a condition for adding a canceling operation from the control circuit 22 to the drive circuit 21. It is output. Further, the additional pulse generation for the canceling operation is performed by the drive circuit 21 as will be described in detail below. Others are the same as described above, and a description thereof will be omitted.

  FIG. 16 is a block diagram showing the internal configuration of the drive circuit 21. The drive circuit 21 includes an AND gate 33, an output circuit 34, a data latch 32, three serial-parallel converters 31A, 31B, 31C, and 64 pulse data generation circuits 36.

  The first serial-parallel converter 31A is composed of a 64-bit length shift register, receives transfer data DATA transferred serially from the control circuit 22 in synchronization with the transfer clock TCK, and follows the rise of the transfer clock TCK. The transfer data DATA is converted into each parallel data, thereby performing serial-parallel conversion of the transfer data DATA. The second serial-parallel converter 31B is composed of a 64-bit length shift register, and sequentially transfers the transfer data DATA input from the first serial-parallel converter 31A from the top data in accordance with the rising edge of the transfer clock TCK. Serially output bit by bit. The third serial-parallel converter 31C is composed of a 64-bit shift register, and serially inputs the transfer data DATA output serially from the second serial-parallel converter 31B in accordance with the rising edge of the transfer clock TCK. By converting the data DATA to each parallel data, serial-parallel conversion of the transfer data DATA is performed.

  The 64 pulse data generation circuits 36 are composed of logic circuits and function as additional pulse data generation means. Each serial-parallel converter 31A is in accordance with the switching signal KS transferred from the control circuit 22. By performing a logical operation from the output (each parallel data) of ˜31C, the injection pulse data for the injection operation and the stop pulse data for the canceling operation are generated. The switching signal is a signal for instructing a condition for generating a stop pulse, that is, a combination of data before and after the printing pulse, and may be appropriately determined according to a temperature condition and a use condition.

  The data latch 32 latches each stop pulse data or each ejection pulse data according to the rise of the strobe signal STB transferred from the control circuit 22 and outputs each latched data to each AND gate 33. Each of the 64 AND gates 33 takes the logical product of each stop pulse data or each ejection pulse data and the print clock ICK transferred from the control circuit 22, and for each stop pulse data or each ejection pulse data. Each drive data that is the result of the logical product is generated.

  Each of the 64 output circuits 34 generates a drive signal suitable for the print head based on each drive data, and outputs the drive signal to the electrode 619 of each ink chamber 613 of the print head 600.

  Incidentally, each parallel data output from each serial-parallel converter 31A-31C corresponds to each ink chamber 613 of the print head 600. Therefore, each stop pulse data or each ejection pulse data output from each pulse data generation circuit 36 also corresponds to each ink chamber 613 of the print head 600.

  The internal configuration of each pulse data generation circuit 36 is the same as in FIG. This pulse data generation circuit 36 receives a switching signal KS having an equivalent function as a signal for instructing a combination of print data for determining a condition for executing the canceling operation, instead of the transfer data control signal described above. . The AND circuit of FIG. 5 inputs data corresponding to the same ink chamber 613 among the parallel data output from the serial-parallel converters 31A to 31C, and, similarly to the first embodiment, And the switching signal KS (this is indicated by PAT [7-0]). Stop pulse data and ejection pulse data are output to the output terminal of the OR circuit. That is, each pulse data generation circuit 36 outputs each stop pulse data or each injection pulse data according to the switching signal KS. The switching signal PAT [7-0] outputs any data among the data A, B, and C by appropriately selecting the contents as in the first embodiment, or the data A, A signal based on any combination of B and C can be output.

  Next, the operation of the ink ejecting apparatus according to the fourth embodiment configured as described above will be described. FIG. 17 is a time chart of the print clock ICK, strobe signal STB, transfer data DATA, and switching signal PAT [7-0]. The transfer data DATA is transferred at every predetermined printing cycle timing. The stop pulse data and the ejection pulse data generated by each generation circuit 36 are transferred at each timing of a predetermined printing cycle corresponding to the strobe signal STB and the printing clock ICK.

  At the timing of each printing cycle, the transfer data DATA is serially transferred between the serial-parallel converters 31A to 31C in accordance with the rising edge of the transfer clock, and is shifted bit by bit in each serial-parallel converter. That is, if the parallel data output from the second serial-parallel converter 31B is the ejection pulse data for the n-th printing after the transfer data of one printing cycle is transferred, the first serial-parallel Each parallel data output from the converter 31A is ejection pulse data for the (n + 1) th printing, and each parallel data output from the third serial-parallel converter 31C is an ejection pulse for the (n-1) th printing. It becomes data. The switching signal PAT [7-0] is transferred corresponding to the strobe signal. In one printing cycle, after the ejection pulse clock ICKf corresponding to the ejection pulse data for printing one dot is transferred, the printing clock is stopped corresponding to the stop pulse data for printing that dot. Pulse clocks ICKs are transferred. In addition, STBf for injection pulse data and STBs for stop pulse data are continuously transferred to the strobe signal.

  In the pulse data generation circuit 36, the three outputs A, B, and C and the switching signal PAT [7-0] are input, and a logical operation is performed. By setting the switching control signal PAT [7-0] = [1,1,1,1,0,0,0,0] and setting PAT7,6,5,4 to "1", the states of B and C Regardless of which, the data corresponding to A from the one corresponding to PAT 7, 6, 5, 4 is output as the injection pulse data from the OR circuit, that is, the same data stored in the first serial-parallel converter 31A. Is done. After the strobe signal STBf for the ejection pulse rises and the ejection pulse data is latched in the data latch 32, the contents of the first to third serial-parallel converters 31A to 31C are shifted so that the contents of the previous A are changed to B and B After the contents of C become C and the new transfer data becomes A, the switching control signal PAT [7-0] = [0,0,0,0,1,0,0,0] is set, and only PAT3 is “1”. Thus, only when A = 0, B = 1, and C = 1, “1” is output from the AND gate corresponding to PAT3. That is, the transfer data DATA (D) is “1” for a dot (B) that has an ejection dot in the front (C) and no ejection dot in the rear (A), and a stop pulse can be added. The stop pulse data synthesized by the pulse data generation circuit 36 is latched by the data latch 32 at the rising edge of the strobe signal STBs.

  Each AND gate 33 of the drive circuit 21 outputs a drive signal to the print head 600 in the state of the data latch 32 and the print clock ICK as in the above embodiment.

  According to the present embodiment, an ink ejecting apparatus that can selectively switch between execution and non-execution of the canceling operation by configuring only the drive circuit 21 as described above while the control circuit 22 remains the same. Obtainable.

  FIG. 18 shows a fifth embodiment, which is a slightly modified version of the fourth embodiment. In the present embodiment, three data latches 32A, 32B, 32C are provided corresponding to the three serial-parallel converters 31A, 31B, 31C. Each data latch 32A, 32B, 32C latches each parallel data output of each serial-parallel converter 31A, 31B, 31C in accordance with the rise of the strobe signal (STB) transferred from the control circuit 22. Each of the 64 pulse data generation circuits 36 performs a logical product of the switching signal KS transferred from the control circuit 22 and each parallel data output of each of the data latches 32A, 32B, and 32C, and performs injection for the injection operation. Pulse data and stop pulse data for canceling operation are generated and output to the AND gate 33. The pulse data generation circuit 36 is the same as that shown in FIG.

  Hereinafter, the operation of the drive circuit 21 will be described with reference to FIG.

  The serial-parallel converters 31A to 31C perform the same operation as that of the above embodiment, and the data latches 32A to 32C receive the print data output from the serial-parallel converters 31A to 31C at the rising edge of the strobe signal. Latch. Each pulse data generation circuit 36 sets the switching signal to PAT [7-0] = [1,1,0,0,1,1,0,0], so that the data corresponding to B becomes the ejection pulse data. Is output. Then, the AND gate 33 performs a logical operation with the ejection pulse clock of the print clock ICK and outputs it to the print head 600.

  Subsequently, the contents of the data latches 32A to 32C are maintained as they are, and the switching signal is switched to PAT [7-0] = [0,0,0,0,1,0,0,0]. Similarly, by setting “1” only to PAT3, “1” is output from the AND gate corresponding to PAT3 only when A = 0, B = 1, and C = 1. Then, the AND gate 33 performs a logical operation with the stop pulse clock of the print clock ICK and outputs it to the print head 600.

  As described above, according to the ink ejecting apparatus of the fifth embodiment, the parallel data output from the serial-parallel converters 31A to 31C are temporarily latched in the data latches 32A to 32C. Then, the ejection pulse data and the stop pulse data output from the pulse data generation circuit 36 are switched by the switching signal corresponding to the print clock and sent to the AND circuit 31. Therefore, the time interval between the timing when the stop pulse falls in the print clock ICK and the timing when the ejection pulse rises, and the time interval between the timing when the ejection pulse falls and the timing when the stop pulse rises can be shortened. The timing of each printing cycle can be shortened compared with the fourth embodiment, and the printing speed can be improved more favorably.

  Next, a sixth embodiment of the present invention will be described. The schematic electrical configuration of the ink jet printer according to the sixth embodiment is the same as that shown in FIG. 2, and the drive circuit 21 is the same as that shown in FIG.

  FIG. 20 shows a configuration of main parts inside the control circuit 22 (gate array). The control circuit 22 receives the first register 52, the second register 53, and the third register 54, which constitute three data storage means, and serial outputs from these registers, and receives a stop pulse (SP for canceling operation). ) An SP data generation unit 56 (additional pulse data generation means) that generates data, a data transfer unit 55, and a controller circuit 57 are provided. The print data stored in the print data area 25a of the image memory 25 is sequentially read in the registers 52 to 54 in units of 1 byte in the print direction, and the print data n (B), The third register 54 captures print data n−1 (C), and the first register 52 captures print data n + 1 (A). Here, the print data n is data of the one dot at a predetermined timing, the print data n + 1 is the ejection data immediately after the one dot, and the print data n−1 is the ejection data immediately before the one dot. . Each of the registers 52, 53, 54 outputs (A, B, C) the print data to the SP data generation unit 56 in accordance with the register control signal.

  The SP data generation unit 56 has the same configuration as that of FIG. 5 of the first embodiment, and includes a logic circuit. The print data n (B) from the second register 53 and the print data from the third register 54 n-1 (C) and the print data n + 1 (A) from the first register 52 are fetched and logically calculated together with the SP data control signal PAT [7-0] from the controller unit 57, and a stop pulse (SP) is obtained. Generate. The SP data n (D) generated by the SP data generation unit 56 is stored in the SP data area 25b of the image memory 25.

  The data transfer unit 55 alternately reads the print data stored in the print data area 25a of the image memory 25 and the SP data stored in the SP data area 25b, and serially outputs the transfer data DATA. The transfer data DATA includes ejection pulse data for an ejection operation that ejects ink from the nozzles 618 of the print head 600 and stop pulse data for an offset operation that cancels out residual pressure wave vibration in the ink chamber 613. It is. The controller circuit 57 controls the registers 52 to 54, the SP data generation unit 56, the data transfer unit 55, and the image memory 25 in accordance with the print timing signal TS and the control signal RS transferred from the microcomputer 11. A register control signal, an SP data control signal, a data transfer control signal, and a memory address signal are generated, and a transfer data control signal, a strobe signal STB synchronized with the transfer data DATA, a transfer clock TCK, and a print clock ICK are generated.

  Next, the operation of the ink ejecting apparatus according to the sixth embodiment configured as described above will be described. The time chart of the print clock ICK, the strobe signal STB, and the transfer data DATA is the same as that in FIG. 6 of the first embodiment, and a description thereof is omitted. FIG. 21 shows an image map example of the print data area 25a of the image memory 25, and FIG. 22 shows an image map example of the SP data area 25b of the image memory 25. In the figure, black indicates that there are ejection dots, and white indicates that there are no ejection dots. The print data is processed for 8 columns (0 to 7) simultaneously in units of 1 byte. The case where the immediately preceding dot data n-1 (C) and the immediately following dot data n + 1 (A) are described with respect to the printing dot data n (B) for one byte in the vertical direction will be described.

  Now, the SP data control signal PAT [7-0] is set to [0,0,0,0,1,0,0,0] and only PAT3 is set to “1”, so that A = 0 and B = 1. , C = 1 only, “1” is output from the AND gate corresponding to PAT3. That is, stop pulse data (SP data) to be added is created for a dot (B) that has an ejection dot immediately before (C) and no ejection dot immediately after (A), and is stored in the SP data area 25b. . In other cases, no stop pulse data is stored in the same area. The SP data created in the case of the print data of FIG. 21 is as shown in FIG. The data transfer unit 55 reads the print data and SP data from the image memory 25 based on the data transfer control signal, and outputs the print data and SP data to the drive circuit 21 as transfer data DATA.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 6 of the first embodiment, the drive circuit 21 inputs print data to the serial-parallel converter 31 for the number of ink chambers of the print head in accordance with the transfer clock TCK, and the strobe signal STB. Are latched in the data latch 32, ANDed with the print clock ICK, and output to the print head. Similarly, stop pulse (SP) data is input and output to the print head.

  As described above, according to the sixth embodiment, the drive circuit 21 remains the same, and the execution / non-execution of the canceling operation is selectively switched by configuring only the control circuit 22 as described above. Thus, an ink ejecting apparatus capable of achieving the above can be obtained.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to said each embodiment, A various deformation | transformation is possible as follows.

  (1) In each of the above embodiments, only one print pulse corresponding to the ejection pulse data is generated at the timing of each print cycle. However, a plurality of print pulses may be generated. In this case, the number of print pulses corresponding to the ejection pulse data is equal to the number of ink droplets ejected from the nozzles 618. Therefore, as the number of printing pulses corresponding to the ejection pulse data is increased, the number of ejected ink droplets is also increased, and the printing density is increased, so that a thick and clear image can be obtained.

  (2) In each of the above embodiments, the width of the ejection pulse clock in the print clock corresponding to the ejection pulse data is set to be the same as the one-way propagation time T, but is set to be approximately an odd multiple of the one-way propagation time T. Also good.

  (3) In each of the above embodiments, the width of the stop pulse clock in the print clock corresponding to the stop pulse data is set to 0.5 times the one-way propagation time T, but ink is ejected from the nozzle 618 by the print clock. The pulse width may be set to any value as long as it is not performed and the canceling operation is reliably performed.

  (4) In each of the above embodiments, the time from the timing at which the injection pulse clock falls to the intermediate timing between the timing at which the stop pulse clock rises and falls is set to 2.5 times the one-way propagation time T. However, any value may be set as long as the canceling operation is performed reliably.

  (5) In each of the above embodiments, the voltage of the drive signal generated by the output circuit 34 is the same in the ink ejection operation and the cancellation operation, but the voltage of the drive signal generated by the output circuit 34 in the cancellation operation is A voltage lower than that in the ink ejection operation or a negative voltage may be used. In each of the embodiments described above, ink is ejected by changing the volume of the ink chamber 613 by piezoelectric deformation of the lower wall 607 and the upper wall 605 of the actuator wall 603, but either the lower wall 607 or the upper wall 605 is ejected. May be formed of a material that is not piezoelectrically deformed, and ink may be ejected by deforming one of the other in accordance with the other piezoelectric deformation. In each of the above embodiments, the air chambers 615 are provided on both sides of the ink chamber 613. However, the ink chambers 613 may be adjacent to each other without providing the air chamber 615.

  (6) In the above embodiments, the print head 600 is applied to a printer that reciprocates with the carriage 504. However, the print head 600 may be applied to a so-called line printer in which the print head 600 is fixed to the printer body.

  (7) In each of the above embodiments, the present invention is applied to a printer that receives data from a personal computer and performs a printing operation. However, the present invention may be applied to a word processor, a facsimile, or the like that incorporates an ink droplet ejection device as a printing mechanism.

1 is a perspective view illustrating a schematic configuration of an ink jet printer including an ink ejecting apparatus according to an embodiment. 1 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of an ink jet printer including an ink ejecting apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a drive circuit 21 in FIG. 2. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control circuit 22 in FIG. 2. FIG. 5 is a circuit diagram of a transfer data generation unit 45 in FIG. 4. 4 is a time chart for explaining the operation of the ink ejecting apparatus according to the embodiment. 4 is a time chart for explaining the operation of the ink ejecting apparatus according to the embodiment. 4 is a time chart for explaining the operation of the ink ejecting apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an electrical configuration of an ink jet printer including an ink ejecting apparatus according to a second embodiment. FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a drive circuit 21 in FIG. 9. FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control circuit 22 in FIG. 9. 9 is a time chart for explaining the operation of the ink ejecting apparatus according to the second embodiment. FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a drive circuit of an ink ejecting apparatus according to a third embodiment. 9 is a time chart for explaining the operation of the ink ejecting apparatus according to the third embodiment. FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating an electrical configuration of an ink jet printer including an ink ejecting apparatus according to a fourth embodiment. FIG. 16 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a drive circuit 21 in FIG. 15. 9 is a time chart for explaining the operation of the ink ejecting apparatus according to the fourth embodiment. FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a drive circuit of an ink ejecting apparatus according to a fifth embodiment. 10 is a time chart for explaining an operation of an ink ejecting apparatus according to a fifth embodiment. The block diagram which shows the structure of the control circuit 22 of 6th Embodiment. The figure which shows the image map of the printing data area | region of the image memory by 6th Embodiment. The figure which shows the image map of SP data area | region of the image memory by 6th Embodiment. FIG. 25 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of a print head of a conventional form and an ink ejecting apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and is a cross-sectional view taken along line XX in FIG. 24. FIG. 24 is a sectional view taken along line YY in FIG. 23. FIG. 24 is a cross-sectional view for explaining the operation of the print head of FIG. 23.

Explanation of symbols

613 ... Ink chamber 603 ... Actuator wall 21 ... Drive circuit 22 ... Control circuit 25 ... Image memory 31, 31A, 31B, 31C ... Serial-parallel converter (storage means)
36 ... Pulse data generation circuit (data generation means)
42. Serial-parallel converter (storage means)
43, 44 ... shift register (storage means)
45. Transfer data generation unit (data generation means)
52, 53, 54 ... registers (storage means)
56 ... SP data generation unit (data generation means)

Claims (12)

A print head having an ink chamber filled with ink and an actuator for ejecting ink from the ink chamber;
Means for generating a pulse clock corresponding to each printing cycle;
A plurality of storage means for storing print data supplied before and after corresponding to one actuator;
A data signal including additional pulse data for canceling operation that cancels residual pressure wave vibration in the ink chamber corresponding to the pulse clock based on the print data output from each of the plurality of storage means and the temperature of the apparatus. Data generating means for generating
An ink droplet ejecting apparatus comprising: a circuit that selectively generates the pulse clock based on the data signal as a drive signal for the actuator and outputs the drive signal to the actuator.   The means for generating the pulse clock generates a plurality of pulse clocks corresponding to each printing cycle, and the circuit for outputting the drive signal to the actuator uses the data signals generated by the data generation means to generate the plurality of pulses. The ink droplet ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a clock is selectively generated as the drive signal and output to the actuator to drive the actuator. Said data generating means, the ink droplet ejecting apparatus according to claim 2 for generating said additional pulse data and the ejection pulse data for injection operation for ejecting ink as the data signal. And the print data, it said and said data signal data generating means has generated, according to claim 1, further comprising data transfer means for transferring the ejection pulse data and said additional pulse data for injection operation for ejecting ink Ink droplet ejection device.   The control circuit having the means for generating the pulse clock, the storage means and the data generation means, and the drive circuit having a circuit for outputting the drive signal to the actuator are connected via a harness cable. Or the ink droplet ejecting apparatus according to 2; Wherein the data signal includes an injection Parusude data to which the additional pulse data is added, wherein the drive circuit, and the ejection pulse data and said additional pulse data to the serial input to parallel conversion corresponding to said ink chamber, said The ink droplet ejecting apparatus according to claim 5, wherein a plurality of the pulse clocks corresponding to each printing cycle are selectively generated in the drive signal by the ejection pulse data and the additional pulse data.   A control circuit that serially transfers the print data; a storage circuit that converts the serially transferred print data into parallel; a drive circuit that includes a circuit that outputs the drive signal to the actuator; The ink droplet ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the ink droplet ejecting apparatus is connected to the ink droplet ejecting apparatus. A print head having an ink chamber filled with ink and an actuator for ejecting ink from the ink chamber;
A control circuit for outputting print data;
An ink droplet ejecting apparatus comprising: a drive circuit that generates a drive signal for driving the actuator based on an output of the control circuit;
The control circuit includes means for generating a plurality of pulse clocks corresponding to each printing cycle, a plurality of storage means for storing print data supplied before and after corresponding to one actuator, Data generating means for generating data signals as additional pulse data for canceling operation for canceling the residual pressure wave vibration in the ink chamber based on the print data output from each of the storage means and the temperature of the apparatus. And outputting the data signal and the print data output from one of the storage means corresponding to the plurality of pulse clocks, respectively.
Wherein the driving circuit, the print data and the data signal and the ink droplet ejection device to be output to the actuator to produce selectively the drive signal the pulse clock based on.   The drive circuit includes a switching circuit that selectively outputs the print data and the data signal, and a plurality of pulses corresponding to the respective printing cycles by the print data and the data signal output from the switching circuit. The ink droplet ejecting apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising a gate circuit that selectively outputs a clock to the actuator.   The control circuit and the drive circuit are connected via a harness cable, and the print data and the data signal are serially transferred from the control circuit and converted in parallel by the drive circuit. Ink droplet ejection device.   The ink droplet ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the storage unit includes three storage units that store predetermined print data, print data immediately before and print data immediately after the print data. The ink droplet ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the data generation unit performs a logical operation of the plurality of print data and a control signal that indicates an arbitrary combination of the print data.

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