JP4807062B2 - Liquid ejecting apparatus and maintenance method thereof - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a liquid ejecting apparatus used as an ink jet recording apparatus that forms dots on a recording medium by ejecting ink droplets from nozzles mainly corresponding to print data, and includes bubbles contained in liquid discharged from an outlet. The present invention relates to a liquid ejecting apparatus capable of smoothly absorbing and recovering liquid that has disappeared and discharged, and a maintenance method thereof.

  As a liquid ejecting apparatus that ejects liquid onto a target, an ink jet printer (hereinafter simply referred to as a printer) that ejects ink onto a recording medium is known. In this printer, in order to reduce ink ejection failure, cleaning is performed as appropriate to eject thickened ink from ejection nozzles that eject ink.

  In this cleaning, after the nozzle forming surface on which the nozzle is formed is sealed with a cap, a space (in the cap) that is airtight between the nozzle forming surface and the cap is sucked by a suction pump. In other words, in the cleaning, a space having a negative pressure is formed on the ink ejection direction side, and the ink having increased viscosity is ejected from the nozzles using the negative pressure.

  In such cleaning, ink ejected from the nozzle is generally sucked by a suction pump and then discharged to an ink recovery unit as a liquid recovery unit. The ink recovery unit contains an ink absorber that absorbs ink. Then, the ink discharged from the suction pump is collected by absorbing ink discharged from the ink absorber (hereinafter simply referred to as discharged ink).

  However, when cleaning exceeding the absorption capacity of the ink absorber is performed, the inside of the ink recovery unit is filled with the discharged ink, and finally, the discharged ink overflows from the ink recovery unit, causing a problem of contaminating the inside of the printer.

Therefore, conventionally, such an ink recovery unit has been proposed to appropriately process the recovered discharged ink without overflowing (for example, Patent Document 1). The collection unit described in Patent Document 1 is detachably attached to the printer and can store the amount of collected ink (ink collection amount). Based on the amount of ink collected, when the ink collecting unit is full of discharged ink, the collected ink can be processed by taking out the ink collecting unit, and contamination in the printer due to leakage of discharged ink. Can be avoided.
JP 2001-341327 A

  However, the above-described discharged ink contains a large amount of air in the cap at the same time as the thickened ink. Therefore, the following problems occur in the ink recovery unit as described above.

  As shown in FIG. 6, a large amount of fine bubbles 103 are discharged into the ink recovery unit 101 together with the thickened ink from the opening of the discharge tube 102 for discharging the discharged ink. Since these bubbles 103 are not easily absorbed by the ink absorber 104 in the ink recovery unit 101, they are accumulated on the discharge tube 102 side of the ink absorber 104 and eventually overflow from the recovery unit 101.

  As a result, when the recovery unit 101 is taken out of the printer, the bubbles 103 near the discharge tube 102 are scattered, causing a problem of contaminating the inside of the printer. In addition, since some of these bubbles 103 thicken and solidify without disappearing, the opening of the introduction tube 102 and the ink absorber 104 may be clogged, leading to poor ink recovery.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and a liquid ejecting apparatus that can eliminate bubbles contained in a liquid discharged from a discharge port and smoothly absorb and recover the discharged liquid. The purpose is to provide the maintenance method.

  In order to achieve the above object, a liquid ejecting apparatus of the present invention includes an ejecting head that ejects liquid supplied from a liquid cartridge from a nozzle, a sealing unit that seals a nozzle forming surface of the ejecting head, and the sealing. A suction means for sucking liquid and gas in a space formed by the means and the nozzle forming surface, a recovery means for recovering the liquid discharged from the discharge port of the suction means, and a suction means for the recovery means. The gist of the present invention is to provide a defoaming flow path for defoaming by ejecting fluid at a predetermined timing toward the vicinity where the discharge port is open.

  In order to achieve the above object, a maintenance method for a liquid ejecting apparatus according to the present invention includes: an ejection head that ejects liquid supplied from a liquid cartridge from a nozzle; and a sealing unit that seals a nozzle forming surface of the ejection head; In a liquid ejecting apparatus comprising: suction means for sucking liquid and gas in a space formed by the sealing means and the nozzle forming surface; and recovery means for recovering liquid discharged from the discharge port of the suction means A gist of the present invention is a maintenance method, in which a fluid is ejected at a predetermined timing toward the vicinity where the discharge port of the suction unit is open with respect to the recovery unit and the bubbles are eliminated.

  According to the liquid ejecting apparatus and the maintenance method thereof of the present invention, even if a large amount of foam is discharged together with the liquid from the discharge port, a predetermined amount is provided toward the vicinity where the discharge port of the suction unit is open with respect to the recovery unit. Since the fluid is jetted at the timing and defoamed, the foam disappears quickly, and the foam accumulates and solidifies to prevent clogging of the absorber inside the outlet and the recovery means and poor liquid recovery. It is possible to prevent surrounding pollution due to accumulation of water. In this way, it is possible to avoid a decrease in the absorption capacity of the absorber due to bubbles, and the liquid discharged from the discharge port of the suction means can be smoothly absorbed into the absorber.

  In the present invention, when the defoaming flow path is connected to a pump unit provided in the apparatus main body and injects a fluid sent from the pump unit, the pump unit originally provided in the apparatus main body is used. Since defoaming is unnecessary, it is not necessary to add extra equipment to the apparatus for defoaming, and the apparatus is not complicated and large, and it is advantageous in terms of cost.

  In the present invention, when the pump unit is a pressurizing pump that applies pressure to the liquid cartridge and sends the liquid from the liquid cartridge toward the ejection head by the action of the pressure, the liquid is ejected from the liquid cartridge. Defoaming is performed using the pressure pump provided in the device to send liquid toward the head, so there is no need to add extra equipment to the device for defoaming, and the device is also complicated and large This is advantageous in terms of cost.

  In the present invention, when the first switching means for switching between the liquid replenishment state applied to the liquid cartridge and the defoaming state applied to the defoaming flow path is provided for the pressure of the pressure pump, By operating the first switching means to switch from the liquid replenishment state to the defoaming state, defoaming at a predetermined timing can be performed easily and reliably.

  In the present invention, when the first switching means is controlled to switch from the liquid replenishment state to the defoaming state when the suction operation for sucking the liquid from the ejection head in the suction means is completed, the liquid is sucked and discharged. When liquid and foam are discharged from the outlet, the foam disappears surely and quickly, so it is possible to reliably prevent liquid recovery failure due to the accumulation and solidification of the foam, and the surrounding contamination due to the accumulation of foam. Can be prevented.

  In the present invention, when the pump unit is a suction pump for performing suction in the suction unit, the foam unit uses the suction pump for sucking the liquid from the ejection head to eliminate the bubbles. There is no need to add extra equipment to the apparatus, and the apparatus is not complicated, large, and advantageous in terms of cost.

  In the present invention, when the suction pump includes a second switching means for switching between a suction operation for sucking the liquid from the ejection head and a defoaming operation for sucking and defoaming the antifoaming liquid, By operating the second switching means to switch from the suction operation to the defoaming operation, the defoaming at a predetermined timing can be performed easily and reliably.

  In the present invention, when the second switching means is controlled to switch from the suction operation to the defoaming operation when the suction operation by the suction pump is finished, the liquid and the bubbles are discharged from the discharge port by sucking the liquid. Sometimes, the bubbles are surely and quickly disappeared, so that liquid collection failure due to the accumulation and solidification of the bubbles can be surely prevented, and surrounding contamination due to the accumulation of bubbles can also be surely prevented.

  In the present invention, the suction operation by the suction means includes a suction operation performed at the time of initial filling in which the apparatus is initially filled with a liquid, a suction operation performed at the time of replacing the liquid cartridge, and a suction performed at the time of reloading the liquid cartridge. In the case of at least one of the operation and the suction operation executed at the time of cleaning the ejection head, in the suction such as initial filling, replacement of the liquid cartridge, reloading, cleaning of the ejection head, a large amount of liquid is discharged from the discharge port. Since the bubbles are discharged, the effect of reliably eliminating the bubbles and reliably preventing liquid recovery failure and surrounding contamination is remarkable.

  In the present invention, when the amount of fluid ejected to the collecting means is controlled according to the amount of foam in the collecting means, for example, when the amount of foam is large, the amount of fluid to be ejected is increased. In this case, the bubbles can be surely eliminated, and when the amount of bubbles is small, the amount of fluid to be ejected can be reduced and unnecessary processing can be omitted to improve efficiency.

  Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of an ink jet printer as a liquid ejecting apparatus embodying the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of an ink jet printer main body 1 provided in a case (not shown) of an ink jet printer.

  The printer main body 1 is provided with ink cartridge portions 2a to 2d as main tanks. Each of the ink cartridge portions 2a to 2d is provided with an ink cartridge 15 (see FIG. 2) as a liquid cartridge, a holder and a guide plate (not shown), and are arranged in a non-printing area.

  The ink cartridge portions 2a to 2d correspond to the number of inks used, and in this embodiment, four ink cartridge portions 2a to 2d are provided. An ink pack 16 (see FIG. 2) in which ink is stored is provided inside the ink cartridge portions 2a to 2d, and ink is supplied from the ink pack 16 to the sub tanks 5a to 5d via the supply tubes 4a to 4d. Is configured to be replenished.

  The sub tanks 5a to 5d are provided on the carriage 3 corresponding to the number of inks. In the present embodiment, a total of four sub tanks 5 a to 5 d are mounted on the carriage 3. The sub-tanks 5a to 5d are mounted on the lower surface of the carriage 3 with ink replenished via the replenishing tubes 4a to 4d, and a recording head 30 (jet head) that ejects ink supplied from the ink cartridge 15 from the nozzles. (See FIG. 2).

  The carriage 3 on which the sub-tanks 5a to 5d are mounted is driven by a carriage motor 6 and guided by a scanning guide member 8 via a timing belt 7, and the longitudinal direction of the paper feeding member 9, that is, the width direction of the recording paper. It is configured to be reciprocated in the main scanning direction.

  On the other hand, a cap member 10 as a sealing means, a suction pump 11 (see FIG. 2), and a waste liquid tank 12 are arranged in a non-printing area on the movement path of the carriage 3. The cap member 10 is made of a flexible material such as rubber. When the carriage 3 moves to the non-printing area, the cap forming member 30 seals the nozzle forming surface 30a of the recording head 30. For this reason, the cap member 10 functions as a lid that prevents drying of the nozzle openings of the recording head during the pause period of the printer main body 1.

  The bottom surface of the cap member 10 is connected to the suction pump 11 via a tube 13 (see FIG. 2). The cap member 10 and the suction pump 11 are configured so that negative pressure generated by the suction pump 11 acts on the recording head 30 and ink can be discharged from the recording head 30 side. Further, a wiping member 14 made of an elastic material such as rubber is disposed on the printing region side of the cap member 10 so that the nozzle forming surface 30a of the recording head 30 can be wiped and cleaned as necessary. Yes.

  FIG. 2 schematically shows the configuration of the ink flow path of the printer main body 1.

  This figure shows the ink cartridge 15, the ink pack 16, the sub tank 5, the supply tube 4, and the supply tube 29 that constitute a flow path corresponding to one color for convenience.

  The ink cartridge 15 is filled with ink as a liquid. In the present embodiment, the printer main body 1 includes a number of ink cartridges 15, ink packs 16, sub tanks 5, replenishment tubes 4, and the like corresponding to each color of ink. The replenishment tube 4 and the supply tube 29 constitute a liquid supply path.

  As shown in the drawing, the ink pack 16 is accommodated in the ink cartridge 15 as described above, and the ink pack 16 is formed of a flexible member. A pressure chamber R is formed in a space between the ink pack 16 and the ink cartridge 15, and an introduction hole 17 for allowing air to flow into the pressure chamber R is formed in the ink cartridge 15.

  A pressure detector 19, a pressure regulating valve 20, and a pressurizing pump 21 are connected to the introduction hole 17 via a pressurizing tube 18. The pressurizing tube 18, the pressure detector 19, the pressure regulating valve 20, and the pressurizing pump 21 constitute a pressurizing unit. The pressurizing tube 18, the pressure detector 19, the pressure adjusting valve 20, and the pressurizing pump 21 are controlled by a pressurizing unit control means (not shown). One pressure detector 19 and one pressure regulating valve 20 are provided in the printer main body 1.

  The pressurized air generated by the pressurizing pump 21 is supplied to the pressure regulating valve 20 and is introduced into the pressure chamber R of the ink cartridge 15 via the pressure detector 19. The pressure detector 19 has a function of detecting the air pressure generated by the pressure pump 21 and controlling the drive of the pressure pump 21 so that the air pressure applied to each ink cartridge 15 is maintained within a predetermined range. ing.

  The pressure regulating valve 20 has a function of releasing the pressure and maintaining the air pressure applied to each ink cartridge 15 within a predetermined range when the air pressure pressurized by the pressure pump 21 reaches an excessive state. is doing. The pressure regulating valve 20 prevents the ink cartridge 15 and the like from being damaged by the pressurized air sent from the pressure pump 21 when any trouble occurs in the control system of the pressure detector 19 and the pressure pump 21. Acts like

  Therefore, when the ink supply is started, the pressurizing pump 21 operates, and the pressurized air from the pressurizing pump 21 passes through the pressure adjusting valve 20 and the pressure detector 19. If the air pressure at this time is larger than the predetermined range, a signal for stopping the operation of the pressurizing pump is output. If the air pressure is within the predetermined range, the pressurized air flows into the pressure chamber R, the ink pack 16 is pressurized, and the ink is supplied to the sub tank 5.

  The ink replenished from the ink cartridge 15 is temporarily stored in the sub tank 5. An air hole 22 is formed at the uppermost portion of the sub tank 5 in the direction of gravity, and the pressure in the sub tank 5 is maintained at atmospheric pressure. Moreover, the float member 23 is attached inside the sub tank 5, and the permanent magnet 24 is being fixed to the one end part. A substrate 25 is provided outside one side surface of the sub tank 5 facing the permanent magnet 24, and magnetoelectric conversion elements 26 a and 26 b typified by Hall elements are provided on the substrate 25. These magnetoelectric conversion elements 26a and 26b are arranged so as to be able to detect the dose of magnetic force generated by the permanent magnet 24, and output an electrical signal proportional to the detected magnetic dose.

  When the amount of ink in the sub tank 5 decreases, the position of the float member 23 moves downward in the direction of gravity. With this movement, the magnetic dose received by the magnetoelectric conversion elements 26a and 26b from the permanent magnet 24 changes. Therefore, a change in the electrical signal output from the magnetoelectric conversion elements 26 a and 26 b can be detected as a decrease in the ink amount in the sub tank 5.

  When the ink amount decrease signal is output, the supply valve 27 is opened, and the ink is supplied to the sub tank 5. When the amount of ink in the sub tank 5 reaches a predetermined capacity, the replenishment valve 27 is closed by an electrical signal from the magnetoelectric transducers 26a and 26b, and no further ink is replenished to the sub tank 5. .

  The ink temporarily stored in the sub tank 5 is supplied to the recording head 30 mounted on the lower surface of the carriage 3 through the supply valve 28 and the supply tube 29. The ink supplied to the recording head 30 is ejected from nozzles formed on the nozzle formation surface 30 a of the recording head 30.

  As described above, the tube 13 and the suction pump 11 are connected to the cap member 10 that seals the nozzle forming surface 30a, and the discharge pipe 31 is connected to the suction pump 11. The tube 13, the suction pump 11, and the discharge pipe 31 function as a suction unit of the present invention that sucks ink and air in a space formed by the cap member 10 and the nozzle forming surface 30a.

  The discharge port 32 of the discharge pipe 31 opens toward the recovery port 33 of the waste liquid tank 12 as a recovery means, and the ink discharged from the discharge port 32 is recovered by the waste liquid tank 12.

  The waste liquid tank 12 is filled with an absorber 34 that absorbs liquid, and the collected ink can be held by an absorbent material. The absorber 34 is formed of a porous material made of a polymer material, and a concave portion 35 for preventing scattering is formed in a portion corresponding to the opening of the recovery port 33. On the other hand, a frame-shaped protrusion 36 for preventing scattering is provided upright at the opening edge of the recovery port 33 of the waste liquid tank 12.

  The printer main body 1 is provided with a defoaming flow path 37 that ejects fluid at a predetermined timing toward the vicinity where the discharge port 32 of the suction means is opened with respect to the waste liquid tank 12. It has been. The injection port 38 of the defoaming flow path 37 opens toward the recovery port 33 of the waste liquid tank 12 and is surrounded by the recess 35 on the upper surface of the absorber and the frame-shaped protrusion 36 at the opening edge of the recovery port 33. The fluid is ejected into the space, and the bubbles discharged from the discharge port 32 of the suction means are lost.

  The defoaming flow path 37 is connected to a first switching valve 39 provided in a tube further downstream of the pressure regulating valve 20 provided on the downstream side of the pressurizing pump 21. Thereby, it is connected to the pressurizing pump 21 which is a pump unit provided in the printer main body 1, and the air sent from the pressurizing pump 21 is ejected as a fluid. As described above, the pressurizing pump 21 is a pump for applying air pressure to the ink cartridge 15 and sending ink from the ink cartridge 15 toward the recording head 30 by the action of the air pressure.

  The first switching valve 39 switches between a liquid replenishing state in which the air pressure of the pressurizing pump 21 is applied to the ink cartridge 15 and a defoaming state in which the air pressure is applied to the defoaming flow path 37. Functions as a means.

  With the configuration as described above, the first switching valve 39 is switched at a predetermined timing, and the foam accumulated in the recovery port 33 of the waste liquid tank 12 is jetted from the defoaming flow path 37 to be defoamed. At this time, a scattering-preventing recess 35 is formed in a portion corresponding to the opening of the recovery port 33 of the absorber 34, and a scattering-preventing frame-like protrusion is formed at the opening edge of the recovery port 33 of the waste liquid tank 12. Since 36 is formed, when the bubbles are eliminated by jetting air, it is possible to prevent the fine droplets generated by the bubbles from being scattered and contaminating the surroundings. In addition, since air can be injected and defoamed in a state where bubbles are accumulated to some extent in the concave portion 35, it is not necessary to frequently switch the first switching valve 39, and the efficiency of the defoaming process is improved.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a system configuration of the printer main body 1.

  In the figure, a host computer 44 has a built-in printer driver 45, and the size of the recording paper, monochrome / color printing selection, and recording mode are input by an input device (not shown) on the utility of the printer driver 45. Selection, font data, and print commands can be input. The utility of the printer driver 45 is configured so that a cleaning start command can be input.

  In response to the input of the print command, the printer driver 45 sends print data that is liquid ejection data to the print control means 46. Further, the print control means 46 generates bitmap data based on the print data, generates a drive signal by the head drive means 48 and inputs it to the piezoelectric vibrator, and ejects ink droplets from the recording head 30. Yes. At this time, the paper feed control means 52 controls the movement of the recording paper in the sub-scanning direction by controlling a paper feed motor (not shown) according to an instruction from the print control means 46. Further, the carriage control means 47 controls the carriage motor 6 which is a pulse motor in accordance with an instruction from the print control means 46 to control the carriage 3 to reciprocate in the main scanning direction.

  The head driving unit 48 functions as a driving unit, and receives a flushing command signal from the maintenance control unit 49 in addition to a driving signal based on print data, and outputs a driving signal for flushing to the recording head 30. . By this flushing operation, ink unrelated to printing is ejected from the nozzles to the cap member 10 serving as a flushing box, thereby discharging the thickened ink near the nozzles and restoring the ejection characteristics of the recording head 30.

  Here, the mechanism by which the discharge capacity of the nozzles is reduced will be described. During printing, the nozzle surface of the recording head 30 is released from the cap member 10 and is moved back and forth by the carriage 3. If the ink is not ejected in such a state, the solvent evaporates from the ink present in the nozzle opening, the viscosity gradually increases, and the ejection capacity decreases. Further, nozzles that frequently eject ink droplets during printing are supplied with new ink one after another and clogging does not occur so much, but nozzles that have few opportunities to eject ink droplets tend to clog. Therefore, as the nozzle discharge amount is small and the idle time is long, the thickening proceeds, and the degree thereof varies from nozzle to nozzle.

  In this example, the case has been described in which the liquid ejected by the ejection head is ink, and the ejection capability of the nozzle is reduced due to the increased viscosity of the ink. However, the mechanism by which the ejection characteristics are degraded varies depending on the type of liquid to be ejected. In some cases, the present invention is applicable not only to ink but also to an apparatus that ejects various liquids as long as the lowered nozzle ejection characteristics can be recovered by liquid ejection.

  The carriage control unit 47 performs movement control for reciprocating the carriage 3 in the main scanning direction during the printing operation, and also moves the carriage to a flushing position other than the printing area at a predetermined flushing timing, thereby moving the recording head 30 to the cap member 10. The movement control is performed so as to move to a position where the flushing operation is performed while facing each other.

  Further, the carriage control means 47 performs movement control for moving the recording head 30 to the position of the cap member 10 when the apparatus is powered off or when a suction operation is performed.

  In this suction operation, when the printer main body 1 is left without being used, even if the nozzle forming surface 30a is sealed with the cap member 10, the leaving time (not shown) is measured by a leaving timer (not shown). If the time from the previous power-off to the current power-on) is long, the solvent gradually evaporates from the ink present in the nozzle openings, the viscosity of the ink increases, and the discharge capacity decreases. For power on. In addition, if the printing operation is continued, bubbles remaining in the flow path may gradually accumulate in the upstream portion of the filter, so this is performed for cleaning that periodically removes the bubbles by forced suction. Sometimes.

  In addition, when the printer main body 1 is used for the first time, when the ink cartridge 15 is first mounted, it is executed at the time of the initial filling operation for first filling the flow path such as the recording head 30 and the sub tank 5. Also, when the ink cartridge 15 is replaced or when the used ink cartridge 15 is once removed and reloaded, air is mixed into the flow path of the recording head 30 along with the replacement or reloading, and normal ejection is performed. This is executed to forcibly suck out the mixed bubbles from the recording head 30 and remove them.

  As described above, the suction operation is performed at various timings at the time of initial filling, replacement of the ink cartridge 15, reloading of the ink cartridge 15, and cleaning, but suction conditions differ depending on the situation that causes suction. In some cases, the maintenance operation selecting means 50 selects a plurality of maintenance conditions prepared in advance and gives a maintenance condition command to the maintenance control means 49. Reference numeral 51 denotes a cleaning command switch 51 disposed on an operation panel or the like of the apparatus. When the user recognizes a printing failure state, for example, the maintenance command selection unit 50 and the maintenance control unit 49 are operated by operating this. Thus, a manual cleaning operation is performed.

  The suction operation is controlled by the maintenance control means 49 as follows. That is, the carriage 3 is moved to a position where the carriage 3 faces the cap member 10, and the cap member 10 is raised by, for example, a cam mechanism by an operation of a maintenance motor (not shown) to seal the nozzle forming surface 30a of the recording head 30 with the cap member 10. The cap member 10 is sucked by the action of the suction pump 11 driven by the maintenance motor, and ink or the like is forcibly discharged from the nozzle.

  After performing the suction for a predetermined time selected by the maintenance operation selecting means 50, the suction pump 11 is driven by the valve mechanism (not shown) while the cap member 10 is opened to the atmosphere to perform empty suction, and the inside of the cap member 10 The ink remaining in the space is discharged.

  Thereafter, when the cap member 10 is lowered, since ink is attached to the nozzle forming surface 30a in this state, the wiping member 14 is raised to a position where the tip of the wiping member 14 can contact the nozzle forming surface 30a by driving the maintenance motor. After that, the movement of the carriage 3 is controlled so that the ink attached to the nozzle forming surface 30a is wiped off by the wiping member 14.

  On the other hand, due to the suction of ink from the recording head 30 and the empty suction in the cap member 10, fine bubbles formed by mixing ink and air are discharged from the discharge port 32. The ink is absorbed by the absorber 34 of the waste liquid tank 12, but the bubbles are not quickly absorbed and accumulate in the recess 35 of the recovery port 33 of the waste liquid tank 12.

  When the suction operation for sucking ink from the recording head 30 in the suction means is completed, the maintenance control means 49 causes the first switching valve 39 to set the pressure of the pressurizing pump 21 to the ink cartridge 15. Control is performed to switch from the liquid replenishment state to be applied to the defoaming state to be applied to the defoaming flow path 37.

  By switching the first switching valve 39, the air pressure of the pressurizing pump 21 is applied to the defoaming flow path 37, and the air is injected from the injection port 38 toward the recess 35 of the recovery port 33 where the bubbles of the waste liquid tank 12 are accumulated. Then, the bubbles accumulated here are repelled to become ink and are quickly absorbed by the absorber 34.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of the maintenance operation of the printer main body 1.

  This flowchart shows a recovery processing operation that is performed when the operation power is turned on (ON) in the printer main body 1. When the operating power is turned on to the printer main body 1, the initialization operation of the recording apparatus is executed in step S1. In this initialization operation, for example, it is determined whether or not the ink supply path is initially filled with ink, or whether or not the black ink cartridge and the color ink cartridge are loaded.

  When these initialization operations are completed, the status confirmation of the ink cartridge is executed in step S2. This status check is a cartridge loading mode when an ink cartridge is loaded in the recording apparatus, that is, the initial filling of the recording apparatus with ink for the first time, the normal replacement of the ink cartridge, or the reloading of the used ink cartridge. It is identified based on whether it is in a state (cartridge loading form determination step).

  In step S3, the maintenance operation selecting unit 50 refers to, for example, a recovery operation table prepared in advance, and determines whether or not a cleaning operation is necessary based on the time measured by a not-shown timer and the time measured by the cumulative print timer. Determine.

  As a result, if it is determined that the cleaning operation is necessary (Y), in step S4, the maintenance operation selecting means 50 determines whether the status of the ink cartridge 15 is initial filling, normal replacement of the ink cartridge 15, or used ink cartridge 15 The condition of the suction operation is selected depending on whether the state is reloaded or the cleaning operation.

  Then, the process proceeds to step S5, and the suction operation corresponding to the selected processing mode is executed.

  At this time, in the status confirmation of the ink cartridge 15 in step S2, for example, if it is confirmed that it is initial filling, strong suction is executed in step S5. In executing this strong suction, a control signal is sent from the maintenance operation selecting means 50 to the maintenance control means 49, and the suction pump 11 is driven at a high speed to execute strong suction, for example, so that it remains in the ink flow path. The bubble discharge effect can be enhanced.

  Further, in the status confirmation of the ink cartridge 15 in step S2, if it is confirmed that the ink cartridge 15 has been normally replaced, normal suction is executed in step S5. The normal suction is performed mainly for discharging the thickened ink in the recording head 30. At this time, the suction pump 11 is driven at a normal speed to discharge the thickened ink from the recording head 30. An operation is made.

  Further, in the status confirmation of the ink cartridge 15 in step S2, if it is confirmed that the used ink cartridge 15 has been reloaded, strong suction is executed in step S5. This strong suction can increase the effect of discharging bubbles remaining in the ink flow path by, for example, driving the suction pump 11 at high speed to execute strong suction.

  At the end of the suction operation in step S5, the idle timer is reset to zero and restarted to count up the elapsed time again. Also, the cumulative print timer is reset to zero.

  When the suction operation ends, the process proceeds to step S6, and the defoaming operation is executed. In this defoaming operation, the first switching valve 39 is switched from the ink cartridge 15 side to the defoaming flow path 37 side, the air pressure of the pressurizing pump 21 is applied to the defoaming flow path 37, and the waste liquid tank is discharged from the ejection port 38. Air is jetted toward the concave portion 35 of the recovery port 33 in which 12 bubbles are accumulated, and the bubbles accumulated therein are quickly removed.

  After air injection for a predetermined time, the first switching valve 39 is switched from the defoaming flow path 37 side to the ink cartridge 15 side to restore the ink supply state. The air injection time at this time can be adjusted by the switching timing of the first switching valve 39. Accordingly, the amount of fluid ejected to the waste liquid tank 12 can be controlled in accordance with the amount of foam in the waste liquid tank 12.

  For example, it is possible to control the maintenance control means 49 to change the air injection time according to the suction condition selected in step S4. For example, it is possible to control such that the air injection time is relatively long during strong suction and the air injection time is relatively short during normal suction.

  At this time, instead of changing the amount of air to be injected according to the suction conditions, a sensor for detecting bubbles is provided in the waste liquid tank 12, and the amount of air to be injected is changed by actually detecting the amount of bubbles by sensing. You can also In addition, as a method of controlling the amount of air to be injected, the air amount is controlled by changing the flow rate of air injected from the defoaming flow path 37 using a flow rate control valve or the like instead of changing the air injection time. You can also

  On the other hand, in step S3, the maintenance operation selecting means 50 refers to the maintenance operation table, and no cleaning operation is required based on the time measured by the idle timer and the time measured by the cumulative print timer (N), that is, the area of the flushing operation If it is determined, the process proceeds to step S7, where a flushing operation for a predetermined number of shots as a recovery process step is executed, and the recovery operation of the ink ejection capability of the recording head is completed.

  According to this embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.

  That is, even if a large amount of bubbles is discharged from the discharge port 32 together with the ink, the fluid, that is, air is ejected at a predetermined timing toward the vicinity where the discharge port 32 of the suction means is open to the waste liquid tank 12. Since the foam disappears, the foam disappears quickly, and the foam accumulates and solidifies, thereby preventing clogging of the discharge port 32 and the absorber 34 in the waste liquid tank 12 and poor ink recovery, and surroundings due to the accumulation of foam. Can also prevent contamination. In this way, it is possible to avoid a decrease in the absorption capacity of the absorber 34 due to bubbles, and the ink discharged from the discharge port 32 of the suction means can be smoothly absorbed by the absorber 34.

  The defoaming flow path 37 is connected to a pump unit provided in the printer main body 1 and ejects the fluid sent from the pump unit. Since bubbles are generated, it is not necessary to add extra equipment to the apparatus for defoaming, and the apparatus is not complicated and large, and it is advantageous in terms of cost.

  The pump unit is a pressure pump 21 that applies pressure to the ink cartridge 15 and sends ink from the ink cartridge 15 toward the recording head 30 by the action of the pressure. Since the defoaming is performed using the pressurizing pump 21 provided in the apparatus for sending ink toward the recording head 30, it is not necessary to add extra equipment to the apparatus for defoaming. It is advantageous in terms of cost without increasing complexity and size.

  In addition, since the first switching valve 39 is provided to switch between a liquid replenishing state in which the pressure of the pressurizing pump 21 is applied to the ink cartridge 15 and a defoaming state in which the pressure is applied to the defoaming flow path 37. By operating the first switching valve 39 to switch from the liquid replenishment state to the defoaming state, defoaming at a predetermined timing can be easily and reliably performed.

  Further, in order to control the first switching valve 39 to switch from the liquid replenishment state to the defoaming state when the suction operation for sucking ink from the recording head 30 in the suction means is completed, the ink is sucked and the discharge port 32 is sucked. When the ink and bubbles are discharged from the water, the bubbles disappear reliably and promptly, so that the collection of bubbles and solidification prevents ink collection failure reliably, and the surrounding contamination due to the accumulation of bubbles is also ensured. Can be prevented.

  The suction operation by the suction means is performed at the time of initial filling when the printer main body 1 is initially filled with ink, the suction operation performed at the time of replacing the ink cartridge 15, and the reloading of the ink cartridge 15. At least one of the suction operation and the suction operation executed when the recording head 30 is cleaned. Since bubbles are discharged together with a large amount of ink, the effect of reliably eliminating the bubbles and reliably preventing ink recovery and surrounding contamination is remarkable.

  Further, since the amount of fluid ejected to the waste liquid tank 12 is controlled in accordance with the amount of foam in the waste liquid tank 12, for example, when the amount of foam is large, the amount of fluid to be ejected is increased. If the amount of foam is surely eliminated and the amount of foam is small, it is possible to reduce the amount of fluid to be ejected, omit unnecessary processing, and improve efficiency.

  FIG. 5 shows a second embodiment of the present invention.

  In this example, the defoaming flow path 37 for injecting air by the air pressure of the pressurizing pump 21 is not provided, but the pump unit of the printer body 1 to which the defoaming flow path 37 is connected sucks in the suction means. This is an example of a suction pump 11 for performing.

  That is, a second switching valve 41 connected to the defoaming liquid tank 40 containing the defoaming liquid is provided in the middle of the flow path from the cap member 10 to the suction pump 11, and the second switching valve 41 is switched. Thus, in the suction pump 11, the suction operation for sucking ink from the recording head 30 and the defoaming operation for sucking the defoaming liquid from the defoaming liquid tank 40 and defoaming are switched.

  In this example, the suction operation executed at the time of initial filling in which the printer body 1 is initially filled with ink, the suction operation executed at the time of replacing the ink cartridge 15, the suction operation executed at the time of reloading the ink cartridge 15, When any one of the suction operations performed when cleaning the recording head 30 is completed, the second switching valve 41 is switched from the suction operation to the defoaming operation, and bubbles in the waste liquid tank 12 accumulate from the discharge port 32. A defoaming liquid is discharged toward the recess 35 of the recovery port 33, and the bubbles accumulated here are quickly defoamed.

  After the defoaming liquid is discharged for a predetermined time, the second switching valve 41 is switched from the defoaming liquid tank 40 side to the cap member 10 side to restore the state where the suction operation is possible. The discharge amount of the antifoaming liquid at this time can be adjusted by the suction time of the suction pump 11. The maintenance control means 49 can also control to change the discharge amount of the defoaming liquid according to the suction conditions of the suction operation for sucking and discharging the ink from the recording head 30. For example, it is possible to perform control such as relatively increasing the discharge amount of the antifoaming liquid during strong suction and relatively decreasing the discharge amount of the antifoaming liquid during normal suction.

  At this time, instead of changing the amount of air to be injected according to the suction conditions, a sensor for detecting bubbles is provided in the waste liquid tank 12, and the amount of air to be injected is changed by actually detecting the amount of bubbles by sensing. You can also Moreover, as a method of controlling the discharge amount of the antifoaming liquid, it can be controlled by the driving time of the suction pump 11 or can be controlled by the rotation speed.

  According to this embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.

  That is, since the pump unit is the suction pump 11 for performing suction by the suction means, the foam is removed using the suction pump 11 for sucking ink from the recording head 30. There is no need to add extra equipment to the apparatus, and the apparatus is not complicated, large, and advantageous in terms of cost.

  Further, since the suction pump 11 includes the second switching valve 41 for switching between the suction operation for sucking ink from the recording head 30 and the defoaming operation for sucking and defoaming the defoaming liquid, the second pump valve 11 is provided. By operating the switching valve 41 to switch from the suction operation to the defoaming operation, the defoaming at a predetermined timing can be performed easily and reliably.

  Further, when the suction operation by the suction pump 11 is finished, the second switching valve 41 is controlled to switch from the suction operation to the defoaming operation, so that the ink and the bubbles are discharged from the discharge port 32 by sucking the ink. In addition, since the bubbles are surely and quickly disappeared, it is possible to surely prevent the ink from being poorly collected due to the accumulation and solidification of the bubbles, and to reliably prevent the surrounding contamination due to the accumulation of bubbles.

  Other than that, it is the same as that of the said 1st Embodiment, and there exists the same effect.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to said each embodiment, It is the meaning including the following modifications.

  The cap raising / lowering means for raising and lowering the cap member 10 may have a mechanism that moves both in the vertical direction and in the horizontal direction, that is, a configuration that moves up and down obliquely as in the related art.

  In each of the embodiments described above, the recording head 30 can be applied to a liquid ejecting apparatus that uses a piezoelectric vibrator as a pressure generating element that is a driving element that ejects liquid, or a liquid ejecting type that uses a heating element. It can also be applied to a device.

  In addition, a program for causing a computer device to execute the maintenance method of the present invention can be provided by being recorded on a recording medium or can be provided via a communication network.

  In addition, as a typical example of the liquid ejecting apparatus, there is an ink jet recording apparatus provided with the above-described ink jet recording head for image recording. However, the present invention is an example of another liquid ejecting apparatus such as a liquid crystal display. Device with color material ejection head used for color filter production, device with electrode material (conductive paste) ejection head used for electrode formation such as organic EL display, surface emitting display (FED), etc., used for biochip production The present invention can be applied to various liquid ejecting apparatuses such as an apparatus having a biological organic matter ejecting head and an apparatus having a sample ejecting head as a precision pipette.

FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view of a printer main body according to the present embodiment. It is a schematic diagram which shows the flow path of the ink of the said printer. FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram illustrating a system configuration of the printer. It is a flowchart which shows the maintenance operation | movement of the said printer. It is a functional block diagram which shows the system configuration | structure of the printer of 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure explaining a prior art example.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Printer main body, 2a-2d Ink cartridge part, 3 Carriage, 4 Supply tube, 4a-4d Supply tube, 5 Sub tank, 5a-5d Sub tank, 6 Carriage motor, 7 Timing belt, 8 Scanning guide member, 9 Paper feed Member, 10 Cap member, 11 Suction pump, 12 Waste liquid tank, 13 Tube, 14 Wiping member, 15 Ink cartridge, 16 Ink pack, 17 Introduction hole, 18 Pressurizing tube, 19 Pressure detector, 20 Pressure adjusting valve, 21 Pressure pump, 22 Air hole, 23 Float member, 24 Permanent magnet, 25 Substrate, 26a, 26b Magnetoelectric conversion element, 27 Supply valve, 28 Supply valve, 29 Supply tube, 30 Recording head, 30a Nozzle formation surface, 31 Discharge pipe, 32 discharge port, 33 recovery port, 34 absorption Body, 35 recess, 36 frame-like protrusion, 37 defoaming flow path, 38 injection port, 39 first switching valve, 40 defoaming liquid tank, 41 second switching valve, 44 host computer, 45 printer driver, 46 printing control Means, 47 Carriage control means, 48 Head drive means, 49 Maintenance control means, 50 Maintenance operation selection means, 51 Cleaning command switch, 52 Paper feed control means, 101 Ink collection unit, 101 collection unit, 102 introduction tube, 102 discharge tube , 103 Bubbles, 104 Ink absorber

Claims (3)

An ejection head that ejects liquid supplied from a liquid cartridge from a nozzle;
A pressure pump for applying air pressure to the liquid cartridge and sending liquid from the liquid cartridge toward the ejection head by the action of the pressure;
Sealing means for sealing the nozzle forming surface of the ejection head;
Suction means for sucking liquid and gas in a space formed by the sealing means and the nozzle forming surface;
Recovery means for recovering the liquid discharged from the outlet of the suction means;
The air of the pressure pump, a defoaming state of defoaming shines injection toward the vicinity of the discharge port is opened in the suction means to said collecting means, liquid supply given to the liquid cartridge Switching means for switching between states ,
A liquid ejecting apparatus, wherein the switching means is controlled to be switched from a liquid replenishment state to a defoaming state when a suction operation for sucking liquid from the ejection head in the suction means is completed . The recovery means absorbs the liquid and has an absorption member provided with a recess in a portion corresponding to the discharge port of the suction means; the absorption member is accommodated; an opening in the portion corresponding to the recess; and the opening And a tank forming a frame-shaped protrusion around the
  The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the air of the pressurizing pump is ejected toward a space surrounded by the concave portion and the frame-shaped protrusion. An ejection head that ejects liquid supplied from the liquid cartridge from a nozzle; a pressure pump that applies air pressure to the liquid cartridge and sends the liquid from the liquid cartridge toward the ejection head by the action of the pressure; A sealing unit that seals the nozzle forming surface of the ejection head, a suction unit that sucks liquid and gas in a space formed by the sealing unit and the nozzle forming surface, and a discharge port of the suction unit A maintenance method in a liquid ejecting apparatus comprising a collecting means for collecting the liquid to be collected,
After the suction operation of sucking the liquid from the ejection head in the suction means is completed, the discharge port of the suction means is connected to the recovery means from the liquid replenishment state in which the air of the pressure pump is supplied to the liquid cartridge. A maintenance method for a liquid ejecting apparatus, wherein the liquid ejecting apparatus is switched to a defoaming state in which defoaming is performed by ejecting toward the vicinity of the opening.

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