JP4687087B2 - Inkjet recording device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an ink jet recording apparatus having two or more bottom surfaces, each of which is placed as a bottom surface. In particular, an ink jet recording apparatus that reliably flows waste liquid from a cap to a waste liquid tank when the ink jet recording apparatus is installed vertically, horizontally installed, or otherwise. About.

An ink jet recording apparatus performs recording by discharging ink from a recording head to a recording material. The ink jet recording apparatus also performs a flushing operation for ejecting ink from the recording head to the cap in order to adjust the ink meniscus in the recording head, and performs recording by suctioning from the cap side while the cap is attached to the recording head. There is a cleaning operation for discharging ink from the head to the cap. The ink ejected to the cap in the flushing and cleaning is stored as a waste liquid from the cap to the waste liquid tank. This ink jet recording apparatus is usually placed on a flat surface with the widest surface as a bottom surface, but in addition to the bottom surface, a device that is placed with a surface perpendicular thereto as a second bottom surface is known ( For example, see Patent Document 1).
JP-A-11-314432

  In the ink jet recording apparatus described in Patent Document 1, there is a problem that waste liquid flows backward from the waste liquid tank to the cap and leaks from the cap by changing the mounting direction.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, in the first embodiment of the present invention, an ink jet recording apparatus, which is a main body vertical bottom surface that is a bottom surface when placed vertically and a main body horizontal surface that is a bottom surface when horizontally placed. An apparatus main body having a bottom surface, a recording head that performs recording by discharging ink onto a recording material, and an ink discharging direction from the recording head are disposed opposite to each other, and receives ink discharged from the recording head as waste liquid. Vertically equipped with a cap, a waste liquid tube connected to the cap and discharging the waste liquid received by the cap to the outside of the cap, and a hollow waste liquid tank connected to the waste liquid tube and containing the waste liquid flowing into the waste liquid tube In both cases, the cap, the waste liquid tube, and the waste liquid tank are arranged in the apparatus main body at a position in this order from the top. As a result, the waste liquid tank can be disposed at a position lower than the cap in both cases where the ink jet recording apparatus is placed vertically and horizontally. Therefore, when the posture of the ink jet recording apparatus is changed, it is possible to prevent the waste liquid stored in the waste liquid tank from leaking outside from the cap.

  In the ink jet recording apparatus, when the apparatus main body is placed with the other surface as the bottom surface, the cap, the waste liquid tube, and the waste liquid tank may be arranged on the apparatus main body at a position in this order from the top. As a result, even when another surface is placed as the bottom surface, the waste liquid tank can be arranged at a position lower than the cap, and the waste liquid stored in the waste liquid tank is prevented from leaking out from the cap. be able to.

  In the ink jet recording apparatus, the waste liquid tank may be arranged in the vicinity where the main body vertical bottom surface and the main body horizontal bottom surface are adjacent to each other. The waste liquid tank can be arranged at a low position in the apparatus main body regardless of whether the ink jet recording apparatus is placed vertically or horizontally. Therefore, when the posture of the ink jet recording apparatus is changed, it is possible to more reliably prevent the waste liquid stored in the waste liquid tank from leaking outside.

The ink jet recording apparatus further includes a check valve that permits the flow of waste liquid from the cap to the waste liquid tube and prohibits the flow of waste liquid from the waste liquid tube to the cap at a portion where the cap and the waste liquid tube are connected. Also good. Thereby, when the attitude | position of an inkjet recording device is changed, it can prevent more reliably that a waste liquid flows backward from a waste liquid tube to a cap.
In an ink jet recording apparatus, the main body of the apparatus includes an ink tank that contains ink therein and supplies ink from a supply port to the recording head. In the case of vertical installation, the height between the cap and the waste liquid tank is The cap and the waste liquid tank may be arranged in the apparatus main body at a position where the height between the cap and the waste liquid tank in the case of placing is substantially the same.
In the ink jet recording apparatus, the straight line connecting the cap and the waste liquid tank may have an inclination of about 45 degrees with respect to the lateral bottom surface and the side surface of the main body in the case of the vertical placement and the case of the horizontal placement.
Further, in the second embodiment of the present invention, the apparatus main body having a main body vertical bottom surface which becomes a bottom surface when placed vertically and a main body horizontal bottom surface which becomes a bottom surface when horizontally placed, and discharges ink to a recording object. A recording head that performs recording, a cap that is disposed opposite to the direction of ink discharge from the recording head, and that receives ink discharged from the recording head as waste liquid, and a waste liquid that is connected to the cap and received by the cap A waste liquid tube for discharging the waste liquid to the outside of the cap and a hollow waste liquid tank connected to the waste liquid tube and containing the waste liquid flowing into the waste liquid tube. The waste liquid tank is adjacent to the main body vertical bottom surface and the main body horizontal bottom surface. Ink-jet recording characterized in that the straight line connecting the cap and the waste liquid tank has an inclination of about 45 degrees with respect to the lateral bottom and side surfaces of the main body. Location is provided.

  The above summary of the invention does not enumerate all the necessary features of the present invention, and sub-combinations of these feature groups can also be the invention.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described through embodiments of the invention. However, the following embodiments do not limit the invention according to the scope of claims, and all combinations of features described in the embodiments are included. It is not necessarily essential for the solution of the invention.

  FIG. 1 shows a state where an ink jet recording apparatus 30 according to an embodiment of the present invention is placed horizontally. The ink jet recording apparatus 30 shown in FIG. 1 shows a standby state in which it is placed on a stable placement surface 10 such as a desk or table. The ink jet recording apparatus 30 includes a housing 32 having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape and a main body cover 40 that covers three surfaces of the housing 32. Here, the main body cover 40 and the housing 32 define the external features of the ink jet recording apparatus 30, and these are collectively referred to as an apparatus main body 35. With the housing 32 and the main body cover 40, the ink jet recording apparatus 30 has the outline of a hard cover book. The main body horizontal bottom surface 44 corresponding to the back cover of the book is wider than the main body vertical bottom surface 42 corresponding to the back cover of the book.

  An arrow A shown in FIG. 1 indicates a direction in which a recording head 50 to be described later scans the recording material 100. Hereinafter, placing the ink jet recording apparatus 30 with the arrow A in the horizontal direction and the wider surface of the apparatus main body 35 as the bottom surface is referred to as “horizontal placement”. That is, when the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is placed horizontally, it is placed with the main body horizontal bottom surface 44 corresponding to the back cover of the book as the bottom surface. Further, when the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is placed horizontally, a paper feed tray 140 and a bent portion 48 arranged on one side of the paper feed tray 140 are arranged on the upper surface corresponding to the cover of the book. The paper feed tray 140 is bent at the bent portion 48.

  FIG. 2 shows a use state when the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is placed horizontally. As shown in FIG. 2, the housing 32 of the ink jet recording apparatus 30 includes a paper feed port 142 disposed on a surface facing the main body horizontal bottom surface 44 and a paper discharge port disposed on a surface facing the spine of the book. 174. In the use state of the ink jet recording apparatus 30, the paper feed tray 140 is bent upward at the bent portion 48. As a result, the paper feed port 142 provided in the housing 32 is exposed.

  FIG. 3 shows a use state when the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is placed vertically. As shown in FIG. 3, the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is placed with the main body vertical bottom surface 42 corresponding to the spine of a book as the bottom surface. Hereinafter, placing the ink jet recording apparatus 30 with the above-mentioned arrow A in the horizontal direction and the narrower surface of the apparatus main body 35 as the bottom is referred to as “vertical placement”. Thus, the apparatus main body 35 has two bottom surfaces, that is, a main body horizontal bottom surface 44 that is a bottom surface when the device is placed horizontally, and a main body vertical bottom surface 42 that is a bottom surface when the device is placed vertically. In the ink jet recording apparatus 30 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the main body vertical bottom surface 42 and the main body horizontal bottom surface 44 are orthogonal to each other. This corresponds to a state rotated 90 degrees.

  4 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a cross section of the ink jet recording apparatus 30 taken along a plane perpendicular to the arrow A in FIG. 1. FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the ink jet recording apparatus 30 with the casing 32 and the main body cover 40 removed. 2 is a perspective view schematically showing the inside of the ink jet recording apparatus 30. FIG. 4 and 5 both show the horizontal state shown in FIG.

  Here, based on FIG.4 and FIG.5, the structure of each part of the inkjet recording device 30 and the outline of a function are demonstrated below. In addition to the above-described casing 32 and main body cover 40, the ink jet recording apparatus 30 includes a frame 110, and a paper feeding unit 141 that feeds the recording material 100 inserted from the paper feeding port 142 into the housing 32. , A recording unit 160 that performs recording by ejecting ink onto the fed recording material 100, an ink supply unit 130 that supplies ink to the recording unit 160, and the ink ejected from the recording unit 160 is collected as waste liquid. A waste liquid unit 135 and a paper discharge unit 170 that discharges the recorded material 100 on which recording has been performed to the outside of the ink jet recording apparatus 30 are provided.

  The paper feed unit 141 includes a paper feed guide 150 that guides the recording material 100 from the paper feed port 142 to the recording unit 160, and a pair of paper feed driving rollers 144 and a paper feed driven roller disposed in the vicinity of the paper feed port 142. 146. The paper feed guide 150 is a plate-like member that curves from the paper feed port 142 toward the lower side of the recording head 50, and is supported by the frame 110. The paper feed drive roller 144 is rotatably supported by the frame 110. Further, the paper feed driving roller 144 has a substantially D shape in a cross section perpendicular to the rotation axis, and rotates around the rotation axis by a driving force from a motor (not shown). The paper feed driven roller 146 is disposed at a position where the recording material 100 is sandwiched between the paper feed drive roller 144 and is rotatably supported by the frame 110.

  The recording unit 160 includes a recording head 50 that discharges ink to the recording material 100, a guide shaft 52 that is supported by the frame 110 and penetrates the recording head 50, an endless timing belt 54 that is gripped by the recording head 50, And a motor 55 that rotationally drives the timing belt 54. The recording unit 160 further includes a platen 161 arranged to face the ink ejection direction in the recording head 50. The platen 161 extends parallel to the guide shaft 52 and is rotatably supported by the frame 110. The platen 161 is driven in synchronization with the paper feed drive roller 144 by a motor (not shown) that drives the paper feed drive roller 144.

  The ink supply unit 130 removably connects the ink cartridge 120 containing ink therein, and supplies the ink stored in the ink cartridge 120 connected to the cartridge connection unit 131 to the recording head 50. And a supply tube 132.

  The paper discharge unit 170 includes a pair of plate-shaped discharge guide lower 180 and paper discharge guide upper 182 that guide the recording material 100 from the position facing the recording head 50 to the paper discharge port 174, and the paper discharge guide lower 180 side. And a paper discharge driven roller 172 disposed to face the paper discharge drive roller 171. The paper discharge driving roller 171 is rotatably supported by the frame 110. Further, the paper discharge drive roller 171 is driven in synchronization with the paper feed drive roller 144 by a motor (not shown) that drives the paper feed drive roller 144. The paper discharge driven roller 172 is disposed at a position where the recording medium 100 is sandwiched between the paper discharge driving roller 171 and is rotatably supported by the frame 110.

  The waste liquid part 135 includes a cap 60 disposed outside the platen 161 in the longitudinal direction of the platen 161, a waste liquid tube 70 connected to the cap 60, a waste liquid pump 72 that holds a part of the waste liquid tube 70, a waste liquid A waste liquid tank 80 connected to the tube 70;

  In the above configuration, the ink jet recording apparatus 30 performs recording on the recording material 100 as follows. First, when the recording material 100 is inserted from the paper supply port 142, the paper supply driving roller 144 and the paper supply driven roller 146 sandwich the recording material 100. In this state, the paper feed driving roller 144 is driven to rotate, whereby the paper feed driven roller 146 is rotated with the paper feed drive roller 144. As a result, the paper feed driving roller 144 and the paper feed port 142 feed the recording material 100 along the paper feed guide 150 in the direction of arrow B in the figure.

  When the recording material 100 is fed between the recording head 50 and the platen 161, the motor 55 rotates the timing belt 54, so that the timing belt 54 moves the recording head 50 in the longitudinal direction of the main body vertical bottom surface 42. Reciprocate along. As a result, the recording head 50 records on the recording material 100 by ejecting ink onto the recording material 100 while reciprocating on the recording material 100. After the recording head 50 reciprocates once with respect to the recording material 100, the paper feed driving roller 144 and the paper feeding driven roller 146 feed the recording material 100 by a very small amount. Recording is further performed on the recording material 100 by ejecting ink onto the recording material 100 while reciprocating on the recording material 100. By repeating this, the recording head 50 can perform recording by ejecting ink over one surface of the recording material 100.

  When the paper feed driving roller 144 and the paper feed driven roller 146 further feed the recording material 100, the recording material 100 reaches the gap between the paper ejection driving roller 171 and the paper ejection driven roller 172. The paper discharge driving roller 171 and the paper discharge driven roller 172 sandwich the recording material 100 in this gap. In this state, the paper discharge driving roller 171 is driven to rotate, whereby the paper discharge driven roller 172 rotates with the paper discharge drive roller 171. As a result, the paper discharge driving roller 171 and the paper discharge driven roller 172 convey the recording material 100 between the paper discharge guide lower part 180 and the paper discharge guide upper part 182 and from the paper discharge port 174 to the outside of the ink jet recording apparatus 30. To discharge.

  Note that the direction in which ink is ejected from the recording head 50 is fixed with respect to the ink jet recording apparatus 30, so the mounting surface depends on whether the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is placed vertically or horizontally. When 10 is a reference plane, the direction in which ink is ejected from the recording head 50 is different. In the example shown in FIG. 4, the recording head 50 ejects ink vertically downward when it is placed horizontally with the main body horizontal bottom surface 44 as the bottom surface. At this time, in the case where the main body vertical bottom surface 42 is used as the bottom surface, the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is rotated 90 degrees clockwise in FIG. 4, and the recording head 50 ejects ink in the horizontal direction.

  When the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is in the standby state, the recording head 50 is guided by the guide shaft 52 and retracts to a standby position outside the platen 161 in the longitudinal direction (right side of the platen 161 in FIG. 5). When the recording head 50 comes to this position, the cap 60 covers the lower surface of the recording head 50. Thereby, when the recording head 50 is not used, the ink solvent is prevented from evaporating and the ink is clogged in the recording head 50. When the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is in use and the recording head 50 is cleaned or flushed, the recording head 50 moves to a standby position outside the platen 161 in the longitudinal direction.

  At the time of cleaning, the cap 60 covers the lower surface of the recording head 50 at the standby position. In this state, the waste liquid pump 72 sucks the waste liquid tube 70 to forcibly discharge ink from the recording head 50 to the cap 60. In the case of ink flushing, at the standby position, a signal different from the print signal is given to the recording head 50 to eject ink from the recording head 50 to adjust the ink meniscus in the recording head 50. The cap 60 receives the ink discharged in the cleaning and flushing as waste liquid, and the waste liquid tank 80 stores the waste liquid through the waste liquid tube 70.

  6 is a view of the waste liquid tank 80 and its surroundings as viewed from the right side of the arrow A in FIG. As shown in FIG. 6, the waste liquid tank 80 is disposed in the vicinity where the main body vertical bottom surface 42 and the main body horizontal bottom surface 44 are adjacent to each other. In FIG. 6, the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is shown in a state in which it is placed horizontally with the main body horizontal bottom surface 44 as the bottom surface.

  Further, the waste liquid part 135 further includes a check valve 62. The check valve 62 is disposed at a portion where the cap 60 and the waste liquid tube 70 are connected, and allows the flow of waste liquid from the cap 60 to the waste liquid tube 70 and prohibits the flow of waste liquid from the waste liquid tube 70 to the cap 60. To do.

  6 shows a relative positional relationship among the cap 60, the waste liquid tube 70, and the waste liquid tank 80 in the apparatus main body 35. As shown in FIG. In the horizontally placed state shown in FIG. 6, the cap 60, the waste liquid tube 70, and the waste liquid tank 80 compared in height from the placement surface 10 are arranged in this order from the top. The relationship between the height from the mounting surface 10 is the same as the case where the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is placed vertically, that is, when the main body vertical bottom surface 44 is rotated 90 degrees to the right and the main body vertical bottom surface 44 is used as the mounting surface. does not change

  Regardless of whether the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is placed vertically or horizontally, the cap 60 is always at the highest position in the arrangement of the cap 60, the waste liquid tube 70, and the waste liquid tank 80. Always in the lowest position. Therefore, a flow path from the cap 60 to the waste liquid tank 80 is formed according to gravity. Therefore, regardless of whether the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is placed vertically or horizontally, the waste liquid from the cap 60 surely flows into the waste liquid tank 80, and thereafter, the vertical placement and the horizontal placement are changed. However, it is possible to prevent the waste liquid once stored in the waste liquid tank 80 from flowing backward and leaking out from the cap 60. Further, since the check valve 62 is provided, it is possible to reliably prevent the waste liquid once stored in the waste liquid tank 80 from flowing backward and leaking from the cap 60 to the outside.

  In this case, it is preferable that the straight line B connecting the cap 60 and the waste liquid tank 80 has an inclination of about 45 degrees with respect to the main body vertical bottom surface 42 and the main body horizontal bottom surface 44, respectively. Thereby, the height difference between the cap 60 and the waste liquid tank 80 can be made substantially the same between when the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is placed vertically on the placement surface 10 and when it is placed horizontally, It is possible to more reliably prevent the waste liquid from leaking from the cap 60 when the placement is changed between the horizontal placement and the horizontal placement.

  Further, since the waste liquid tank 80 is disposed in the vicinity where the main body vertical bottom surface 42 and the main body horizontal bottom surface 44 are adjacent to each other, a large drop allowed in the housing is ensured between the waste liquid tank 80 and the cap 60. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent the waste liquid from flowing from the cap 60 into the waste liquid tank 80 and to prevent the waste liquid from flowing backward.

  FIG. 7 is a view of the waste liquid tank 80 and its periphery as viewed from the direction of the paper discharge port 174. FIG. 7 shows the relative positional relationship of the cap 60, the waste liquid tube 70, and the waste liquid tank 80 in the apparatus main body 35 as viewed from the above direction. As described with reference to FIG. 6, the cap 60, the waste liquid tube 70, and the waste liquid tank 80 compared in height from the placement surface 10 are arranged in this order from the top in the horizontally placed state shown in FIG. 7. Further, as shown in FIG. 7, the height relationship from the placement surface 10 is such that the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is placed with the third bottom surface 46 as the bottom surface, that is, FIG. 7 is rotated 90 degrees to the right. The order does not change even when the third bottom surface 46 is the mounting surface.

  Even when the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is placed with the side surface 46 as the bottom surface, the cap 60 is always at the highest position and the waste liquid tank 80 is always the lowest in the arrangement of the cap 60, the waste liquid tube 70 and the waste liquid tank 80. In position. Therefore, a flow path from the cap 60 to the waste liquid tank 80 is formed according to gravity. Accordingly, the waste liquid from the cap 60 surely flows into the waste liquid tank 80 regardless of whether the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is placed vertically, horizontally placed, or when the third bottom face 46 is the bottom face. Even if the placement is changed between the above three, it is possible to prevent the waste liquid once stored in the waste liquid tank 80 from flowing backward and leaking out from the cap 60. Further, since the check valve 62 is provided, it is possible to reliably prevent the waste liquid once stored in the waste liquid tank 80 from flowing backward and leaking from the cap 60 to the outside.

  In this case, it is preferable that the straight line C connecting the cap 60 and the waste liquid tank 80 has an inclination of about 45 degrees with respect to the main body lateral bottom surface 44 and the side surface 46, respectively. Thus, the height difference between the cap 60 and the waste liquid tank 80 can be made substantially the same between when the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is placed horizontally on the placement surface 10 and when the side surface 46 is placed as the bottom surface. It is possible to more reliably prevent the waste liquid from leaking from the cap 60 when the placement is changed.

  Further, since the waste liquid tank 80 is disposed in the vicinity where the main body lateral bottom surface 44 and the side surface 46 are adjacent to each other, a large drop allowed in the housing is ensured between the waste liquid tank 80 and the cap 60. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent the waste liquid from flowing from the cap 60 into the waste liquid tank 80 and to prevent the waste liquid from flowing backward.

  According to the present embodiment, the cap 60, the waste liquid tube 70, and the waste liquid tank 80 are positioned in this order from the top in any of the case where the inkjet recording apparatus 30 is placed vertically and the case where it is placed horizontally. In the placing method, a flow path from the cap 60 to the waste liquid tank 80 is formed according to gravity. Further, since the check valve 62 is provided, the waste liquid once stored in the waste liquid tank 80 flows backward and leaks out from the cap 60 regardless of the placement method of the ink jet recording apparatus 30. Can be prevented.

  Even when the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is placed with the third bottom surface 46, that is, the side surface as the bottom surface, the cap 60, the waste liquid tube 70 and the waste liquid tank 80 are positioned in this order from the top. Even when the third bottom surface 46 is placed, a flow path from the cap 60 to the waste liquid tank 80 is formed according to gravity.

  In addition, in the ink jet recording apparatus 30 shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is placed with the recording head 50 scanning in the horizontal direction and the wider surface of the apparatus main body 35 as the bottom surface. Is set to “horizontal placement” and placing the narrow side as the bottom is called “vertical placement”, but the name of the placement is not limited to this and may be reversed. Further, when the areas of the two bottom surfaces in the apparatus main body 35 are equal, any of them may be “vertically placed” or “landscape placed”.

  In addition, the ink jet recording apparatus 30 shown in FIGS. 1 to 5 can record on the recording material 100 both in the case of portrait placement and in the case of landscape placement, but the embodiment of the present invention is not limited to this. I can't. Recording can be performed on the recording material 100 in one of the portrait orientation and the landscape orientation, but in the other side, recording can be performed on the placement surface 10 but recording on the recording material 100 is not possible. There may be.

  As mentioned above, although this invention was demonstrated using embodiment, the technical scope of this invention is not limited to the range as described in the said embodiment. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications or improvements can be added to the above-described embodiment. It is apparent from the scope of the claims that the embodiments added with such changes or improvements can be included in the technical scope of the present invention.

1 shows a state where an ink jet recording apparatus 30 according to an embodiment of the present invention is placed horizontally. A use state when the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is placed horizontally is shown. A use state when the ink jet recording apparatus 30 is placed vertically is shown. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a cross section of the ink jet recording apparatus 30 cut along a plane perpendicular to the arrow A in FIG. 1. 2 is a perspective view illustrating an outline of the inside of the ink jet recording apparatus 30. FIG. It is the figure which looked at the waste liquid tank 80 and its periphery from the right side of the arrow A of FIG. FIG. 6 is a view of the waste liquid tank 80 and its periphery when viewed from the direction of a paper discharge port 174.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 mounting surface, 30 inkjet recording device, 32 housing | casing, 35 apparatus main body, 40 main body cover, 42 main body vertical bottom face, 44 main body horizontal bottom face, 46 3rd bottom face, 48 bending part, 50 recording head, 52 guide shaft, 54 Timing belt, 55 Motor, 56 feet, 60 cap, 62 Check valve, 70 Waste liquid tube, 72 Waste liquid pump, 80 Waste liquid tank, 100 Recorded object, 110 Frame, 120 Ink cartridge, 130 Ink supply unit, 131 Cartridge connection , 132 supply tube, 135 waste liquid part, 140 paper feed tray, 141 paper feed part, 142 paper feed port, 144 paper feed drive roller, 146 paper feed driven roller, 150 paper feed guide, 160 recording part, 161 platen, 170 Paper discharge unit, 171 Paper discharge drive roller, 172 Paper discharge Moving roller, 174 sheet discharge port, 180 ejection guide under 182 discharge guide on

Claims (6)

An apparatus main body having a main body vertical bottom surface which becomes a bottom surface when vertically placed and a main body horizontal bottom surface which becomes a bottom surface when horizontally placed;
A recording head for recording by discharging ink onto a recording material;
A cap disposed opposite to the direction of ink discharge from the recording head and receiving the ink discharged from the recording head as a waste liquid;
A waste liquid tube connected to the cap and for discharging the waste liquid received by the cap out of the cap;
A hollow waste liquid tank connected to the waste liquid tube and containing a waste liquid flowing into the waste liquid tube;
The cap, the waste liquid tube, and the waste liquid tank both in the case of the vertical placement, in the case of the horizontal placement, and in the case where the main body vertical bottom surface and one surface adjacent to the main body horizontal bottom surface are placed as the bottom surface. Is arranged in the apparatus main body at a position in this order from the highest height from the mounting surface ,
An ink jet recording apparatus in which a flow path through which waste liquid flows according to gravity is formed from the cap to the waste liquid tank . The waste liquid tank, the body longitudinal bottom, the body horizontal bottom surface, and an ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, one surface adjacent to the main longitudinal bottom surface and said body transverse bottom is arranged in adjacent positions. A check valve is further provided for allowing a flow of waste liquid from the cap to the waste liquid tube and prohibiting a flow of waste liquid from the waste liquid tube to the cap at a portion where the cap and the waste liquid tube are connected. The ink jet recording apparatus according to 1 or 2 . The apparatus body includes an ink tank that contains ink therein and supplies ink from a supply port to the recording head.
The height between the waste liquid tank from the cap in the case of every said longitudinal, height and is at the same position between the waste liquid tank from the cap in the case of every said horizontal, the cap and the waste liquid an ink jet recording apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, the tank is disposed in the apparatus main body. In the case of every case and the next place the longitudinal, straight line connecting the said waste liquid tank and the cap, in claim 4, characterized in that it has an inclination of each 4 5 degrees relative to the body next to the bottom and side surfaces The ink jet recording apparatus described. An apparatus main body having a main body vertical bottom surface which becomes a bottom surface when vertically placed and a main body horizontal bottom surface which becomes a bottom surface when horizontally placed;
A recording head for recording by discharging ink onto a recording material;
A cap disposed opposite to the direction of ink discharge from the recording head and receiving the ink discharged from the recording head as a waste liquid;
A waste liquid tube connected to the cap and for discharging the waste liquid received by the cap out of the cap;
A hollow waste liquid tank connected to the waste liquid tube and containing a waste liquid flowing into the waste liquid tube;
The waste liquid tank, the body longitudinal bottom, the body horizontal bottom surface, and one side adjacent to the body longitudinal bottom surface and said body transverse bottom is disposed in adjacent positions,
A straight line connecting said waste tank and the cap, the body longitudinal bottom, the body horizontal bottom surface, and have a slope of each of the four 5 degrees with respect to one surface adjacent to the main longitudinal bottom surface and said body transverse bottom ,
An ink jet recording apparatus in which a flow path through which waste liquid flows according to gravity is formed from the cap to the waste liquid tank .

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