JP5274127B2 - Ink jet recording apparatus and recovery method of ink jet recording apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an inkjet recorder which can reduce a waste ink amount while maintaining the suction recovery performance of an ink channel, and to provide a suction recovery method. <P>SOLUTION: The inkjet recorder is equipped with: a flexible valve, which opens and closes by a pressure, between each of a plurality of ink liquid chambers and each of a plurality of ink channels of a recording head; a pressurizing means for sending the ink to the plurality of ink liquid chambers by pressurizing the ink liquid in a plurality of ink tanks; a negative pressure generating means which generates a negative pressure to the recording head via a cap member; a control means which controls the pressurizing means for each of the plurality of channels; and a suction recovery means which carries out suction recovery of the recording head by the negative pressure generating means. The suction recovery means makes the ink within the ink channel flow to the ink liquid chamber by opening the flexible valve by the pressurizing means, after closing the flexible valve by the negative pressure generating means to accumulate the negative pressure in the ink in the ink liquid chamber for each of the plurality of channels by the control means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&amp;INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an ink jet recording apparatus and a suction recovery method, and more particularly to an ink jet recording apparatus and a suction recovery method that perform suction recovery by generating a negative pressure on a recording head via a cap member.

  In an inkjet recording apparatus, there is an off-carriage tank recording apparatus in which a main ink tank is not mounted on a carriage on which a recording head is mounted. In such a recording apparatus, a main ink tank connected to the recording head via a pipe such as a tube is arranged at a place other than the carriage. The off-carriage tank system does not require a large space on the carriage and can hold a large amount of ink to be supplied to the recording head without imposing a large load on the carriage. Therefore, the off-carriage tank system is suitable for an ink jet recording apparatus having a large capacity ink tank. In this configuration, since the positional relationship between the recording head and the ink tank can be set relatively freely, a negative pressure and a back pressure are often generated using a water head difference. On the other hand, since it is difficult to supply ink at high speed, a method is also used in which an ink tank is pressurized and ink is supplied to a recording head. In many cases, the ink filling or recovery process of the recording head is performed by a method in which the inside of the cap in contact with the recording head is decompressed.

  In the off-carriage tank type, since ink is filled through a tube, the volume that requires maintenance by the suction process increases. In addition, since the gas barrier property of the tube is relatively low among the members forming the ink flow path, moisture evaporation in the tube and bubble intrusion into the tube may occur. In addition, the ink liquid remaining in the tube flow path for a long time evaporates, causing the ink liquid to thicken and the ink flow in the ink flow path to be discontinuous due to air bubbles, so that the ink is not correctly fed to the recording head. There is. In particular, the pigment ink in which the pigment resin is dispersed tends to increase the viscosity of the ink. In addition, when bubbles mixed in the tube flow path move into the nozzles of the recording head, the foaming energy for ejecting ink may not be sufficiently transmitted to the ink, resulting in problems such as non-ejection.

  A tube with an improved gas barrier property is known in order to correct the adverse effects caused by the low gas barrier property. However, even if the gas barrier property of the tube is improved, it is difficult in terms of construction to make the air intrusion into the tube zero.

  In addition, when pigment ink is used, a phenomenon that the pigment resin settles in the ink liquid remaining in the tube for a long time occurs. When the settled pigment ink is used, a gradient of the colorant concentration in the ink is generated, so that the ink consumed first is dark and the ink consumed later becomes thin, which may cause a bad effect on the recording result.

  On the other hand, a method is known in which the ink in the ink flow path is collectively sucked and discarded. Further, a technique is known in which a flexible film-like valve is provided between the ink liquid chamber and the ink flow path, and the negative pressure in the ink liquid chamber is accumulated and released together with the nozzle suction means (for example, , See Patent Document 1). With such a technique, the ink in the ink flow path can be efficiently led out to the recording head, and bubbles can be prevented from entering the recording head.

JP 2006007493 A

  By the way, the degree of fixation and thickening of ink differs depending on the type of ink. In other words, ink is designed with multiple elements such as solvents, additives, and coloring materials, so it has various properties such as those that easily evaporate, those that tend to thicken, and those that easily settle. ing. However, in the above-described technique, since suction is uniformly performed for all ink nozzles, it is necessary to perform a recovery process in accordance with ink having a high degree of ink fixation and thickening. Accordingly, since the ink led out to the recording head is sucked and discarded, the amount of waste ink increases. As a result, a large amount of ink is consumed, and the running cost cannot be reduced.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and provides an ink jet recording apparatus and a suction recovery method capable of reducing the amount of waste ink generated in the recovery process while maintaining the suction recovery performance of the ink flow path. With the goal.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a first nozzle array composed of a plurality of nozzles that eject ink droplets, a second nozzle array, and a first ink capable of storing ink ejected from the first nozzle array. A recording head having a second ink liquid chamber capable of storing ink ejected from the second nozzle row, and the first ink liquid chamber and the first supply tube. The first ink tank to be connected, the second ink tank connected to the second ink liquid chamber via a second supply tube, and the first and second ink tanks are pressurized in common. A pressurizing means, a first valve member that opens a flow path of the first supply tube when pressure is applied from the first supply tube toward the first ink chamber, and the second valve member. From the supply tube toward the second ink liquid chamber The second valve member that opens the flow path of the second supply tube when pressure is applied to the first cap member, the first cap member that can cover the first nozzle row, and the second nozzle row can be covered. A second cap member, suction means capable of controlling the suction operation from the first cap member and the suction operation from the second cap member for each cap member, and the first and second inks An ink jet recording apparatus recovery method comprising: an air communication valve that is commonly connected to a tank and capable of communicating with the atmosphere in the first and second ink tanks, wherein the first and second cap members After covering the first and second nozzle rows, the atmospheric communication valve is opened and the first and second valve members are closed, and the first cap member is not sucked, Second cap part A first step of controlling the suction means so as to suck from a second step, and a second step of closing the atmospheric communication valve to drive the pressurizing means and opening the first and second valve members in this order. It is characterized by performing .

  According to the above configuration, it is possible to increase the number of recovery means only for ink that is likely to evaporate, thicken, or settle. As a result, the number of recovery means can be varied for each ink, and the amount of waste ink generated by recovery can be reduced while maintaining recovery performance.

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

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an ink jet recording apparatus used in this embodiment. A recording head 5 that ejects ink droplets is mounted on a carriage 6. The recording head 5 has a recording head portion provided with a plurality of recording elements for ejecting ink as droplets. Further, the recording head 5 has an ink tank portion (sub tank) for holding ink fed from the main tanks 3C, 3M, 3Y and 3K and for replenishing each recording element with ink.

  Further, the recording head 5 is provided with a connector for transmitting and receiving a signal for driving the recording head portion, and the carriage 6 has a connector holder for transmitting a driving signal and the like to the recording head 5 through the connector. Is provided.

  The carriage 6 is guided and supported by a guide shaft 9, and can reciprocate in the main scanning direction along the direction in which the guide shaft 9 extends. The carriage 6 is moved by the main scanning motor 11 through drive mechanisms such as the motor pulley 12, the driven pulley 18 and the timing belt 10, and the position and amount of movement of the carriage 6 are controlled.

  Before the start of recording, the recording medium 14 is stacked on the auto sheet feeder 15. When recording is started, the paper feed motor 13 is driven, and this driving force is transmitted to the pickup roller 16 via a gear. As a result, the pickup roller 16 rotates, and the recording medium 14 is separated from the auto sheet feeder 15 one by one and fed into the recording apparatus. The fed recording medium 14 is transported by the rotational force of the transport roller 8. The transport roller 8 is rotated by the rotational force generated by the transport motor 24 being transmitted by a gear. Further, the conveying roller 8 and the driven roller 7 are connected by the belt member 22, and the driven roller 7 is rotated by the rotation of the conveying roller 8. The rotation amount and rotation speed of the conveyance roller are detected by confirming the position of a slit carved in the code wheel 23 attached to the conveyance roller by a rotation angle sensor (not shown), and the information is obtained from the conveyance motor 24. It is controlled by being fed back to the control driver. When the recording medium 14 is conveyed between the conveying roller 8 and the driven roller 7, the recording medium 14 is smoothly supported by the platen 19 so as to form a flat recording surface at the discharge port surface. When the recording medium 14 passes below the discharge main port surface, the recording head 5 ejects ink to the recording medium 14 according to a predetermined image signal. The pinch roller 17 and the spur roller 21 are auxiliary rollers for increasing the holding force of the recording medium 14. An ink absorber 20 is provided between the transport roller 8 and the driven roller 7. Since the ink overflowed during borderless recording is absorbed by the ink absorber 20, contamination of the platen can be prevented.

  A suction cap 26 for capping the nozzle is brought into contact with the nozzle in order to prevent the nozzle from drying during non-recording. The suction pump 25 which is a negative pressure generating means is a pump for sucking ink in the nozzles through the suction cap 26.

  The main tanks 3C, 3M, 3Y, and 3K and the recording head 5 are connected by tube-shaped flow paths (tube flow paths) 4C, 4M, 4Y, and 4K for each color. The ink can be supplied from the main tanks 3C, 3M, 3Y and 3K to the recording head 5 through the flow paths 4C, 4M, 4Y and 4K. When supplying ink, the main tanks 3C, 3M, 3Y and 3K are pressurized by the pressurizing pump 1, and ink is fed to the recording head 5 through the tube-shaped flow paths 4C, 4M, 4Y and 4K. The main tank 3 has atmospheric communication valves 2C, 2M, 2Y and 2K for each tank, and the presence or absence of pressurization can be controlled for each flow path.

  FIG. 2 is a detailed view showing the main tank in detail. The pressure pump 1 is used in common for the cyan ink tank 3C, the magenta ink tank 3M, the yellow ink tank 3Y, and the black ink tank 3K. The ink tanks 3C, 3M, 3Y and 3K have ink bags 31C, 31M, 31Y and 31K. Each ink tank is provided with atmospheric communication valves 2C, 2M, 2Y and 2K. Further, gaps 32C, 32M, 32Y and 32K are provided between the ink bags 31C, 31M, 31Y and 31K and the tank wall. The pressurizing pump 1 is connected to the gaps 32C, 32M, 32Y and 32K. Tubes 4C, 4M, 4Y and 4K are connected to the ink bags 31C, 31M, 31Y and 31K and are connected to the recording head 5.

  Here, since the functions of the ink tanks of the respective colors are the same, the cyan ink tank 3C will be described.

  First, the pressurizing pump 1 is pressurized with the atmospheric communication valve 2C closed. Then, the air in the gap 32C between the ink bag 31C, which is an ink container that contains ink, and the ink tank 3C, which is a container that covers the ink container, is pressurized and compresses the ink bag 31C. By pressing the ink bag 31C, the ink inside is sent to the recording head 5 through the tube 4C. Here, when the atmosphere communication valve 2C is opened, the air in the gap 32C between the ink bag 31C and the ink tank 3C becomes atmospheric pressure, so the ink bag 31C is not pressurized.

  In the recording apparatus of this embodiment, since the atmosphere communication valve can be controlled to open and close for each ink tank, the presence or absence of pressurization for each ink tank can be controlled. In addition, you may provide the pressure detection means 35C, 35M, 35Y, and 35K for each ink tank or supply path. Based on the output results of the pressure detection means 35C, 35M, 35Y and 35K, it can be used as a supply pressure adjustment or as a timing trigger at the time of cleaning.

  FIG. 3 is a detailed view showing the carriage 6 in detail. The carriage 6 has sub tanks 6C, 6M, 6Y, and 6K that serve as ink liquid chambers that hold ink and supply ink to the recording head 5 for each ink color. The sub tanks 6C, 6M, 6Y and 6K are necessary for maintaining a negative pressure in the recording head and supplying an appropriate ink. The sub tanks 6C, 6M, 6Y and 6K are provided with tube flow paths 4C, 4M, 4Y and 4K through which ink is fed from the main tanks 3C, 3M, 3Y and 3K.

  Next, the interior of the sub tank (ink liquid chamber) will be described in detail.

  FIG. 4 is a detailed view showing details of the cyan sub tank 6C. A recording nozzle 51 is provided in the sub tank 6C. The interior of the sub tank 6C is configured to maintain a negative pressure by the spring bag 52 and the spring 53 biased in the direction of expanding the spring bag. The tube 4C connected to the ink bag 32C of the main tank 3C is connected to the sub tank 6C by a joint 56. A flexible valve (choke valve) 54 is provided at a port to which ink is supplied, and the valve opens when pressurized from the tube 4C side. Further, in order to make the amount of ink in the sub tank appropriate, a supply restriction valve 57 is provided. When the ink is consumed and the spring 53 contracts, the lever is pushed in the direction of the arrow in the figure to open the supply restriction valve 57. Then, the ink is introduced into the sub tank, and the supply restriction valve 57 is closed when the sub tank is filled with ink.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an outline of the recording head 5 as viewed from the nozzle side of the present embodiment. Each nozzle of C, M, Y and K is arranged on one chip 101. The nozzle hole interval of each nozzle row is 600 dpi. The cap 26 that comes into contact is sized to cover the chip 101.

  The recording head 5 of the present embodiment is an ink jet recording head that discharges ink using thermal energy, and includes a plurality of electrothermal transducers for generating thermal energy. Specifically, thermal energy is generated by a pulse signal applied to the electrothermal transducer, and film boiling occurs inside the ink liquid by this thermal energy. Further, the ink is discharged from the ejection port using the foaming pressure of film boiling. Recording is performed by discharging.

  Next, the recovery sequence used in this embodiment will be described.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a recovery sequence used in this embodiment. In the present embodiment, an ink jet recording apparatus using cyan (C), magenta (M), yellow (Y), and black (K) inks will be described. Of these four inks, the black (K) ink is an ink that easily evaporates, adheres, thickens, or settles.

  When cleaning is started (S60), the pressurization of the pressurizing pump 1 is turned off (S61). Next, the air communication valves of all the ink tanks are opened to make the pressure in the flow path equal to the atmospheric pressure (S62). Next, suction is performed by the suction pump 25 (S63). Since the inside of the flow path is not pressurized, the suction causes the negative pressure in the sub tanks 6C, 6M, 6Y and 6K to increase and the choke valve 54 is closed. At this time, the negative pressures in the sub tanks 6C, 6M, 6Y and 6K are accumulated.

  Next, the air communication valves 2C, 2M, and 2Y of the ink tanks 3C, 3M, and 3Y other than the black ink tank 3K that is to be restored intensively are opened (S64). In this state, the pressurization pump 1 is driven to perform pressurization (S65). At this time, since the cyan, magenta, and yellow main tanks 3C, 3M, and 3Y communicate with the atmosphere, only the black main tank 3K is pressurized. When pressure is applied, the choke valve 54 is opened (S66). Then, the ink in the black tube channel flows all at once to the sub tank. At this time, since the negative pressure in the sub-tank is accumulated, the ink fixed or thickened in the ink flow path is likely to flow. Next, the pressurizing pump is turned off, the pressurization is stopped (S67), the 3K atmospheric communication valve 2K is opened, and the pressure in the flow path is made equal to the atmospheric pressure (S68). Then, suction is performed by the suction pump 25 in order to discard the thickened ink that has flowed into the sub tank (S69). At this time, since the internal pressure of the flow path is atmospheric pressure and the drive of the pressurizing pump 1 is turned off, the choke valve 54 is closed again. Next, in order to recover pressure and choke, the 3K atmospheric communication valve 2K is closed (S70). Since the choke valves for cyan, magenta and yellow sub-tanks 6C, 6M and 6Y remain closed, ink in the tube flow path is not further sucked.

  After the processes from step S65 to S70 are repeated a required number of times (N times), the atmosphere communication valves 2C, 2M and 2Y are closed (S71). Thereafter, the ink tank is pressurized (S72). At this time, since the air communication valves 2C, 2M, 2Y, and 2K of all the ink tanks are closed, all the ink tanks 3C, 3M, 3Y, and 3K are pressurized. Then, the choke valve 54 is opened, and the ink is supplied to the inks 3C, 3M, 3Y and 3K to the sub tank (S73). Thereafter, the nozzle liquid chamber is filled with ink by suction with the suction pump 25 (S74). At this time, suction is performed by the suction pump 25 while pressurization is performed by the pressurization pump 1, so that the choke valve 54 is not closed.

  As described above, in addition to the cyan, magenta and yellow inks, the recovery in the black tube flow path can be performed a plurality of times, and only the ink that easily evaporates, adheres, thickens or settles can be recovered. . That is, it is not necessary to perform the same number of times of recovery for all the inks, and the amount of ink that is discarded can be reduced as compared with the case where the inks of all the colors are performed multiple times. In the present embodiment, only black ink is sucked a plurality of times. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and other colors may be sucked a plurality of times, or only other colors may be sucked a plurality of times. Suction may be set independently.

  In the present embodiment, the atmosphere communication valve is provided in the ink tank, but it may be provided in the ink flow path.

  In the present embodiment, the choke valve is provided in the ink flow path in the sub tank, but may be provided in the ink flow path in the tube.

(Second Embodiment)
In the first embodiment, the inkjet recording apparatus has been described in which the nozzle is one chip and the cap for capping the nozzle is one, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the present invention can also be applied to an inkjet recording apparatus provided with a plurality of nozzle tips and caps.

  In this embodiment, an ink jet recording apparatus will be described as an example in which the nozzle has two chips and the cap for capping the nozzle is two.

  FIG. 7 is a configuration diagram showing the entire inkjet recording apparatus of the present embodiment. Unlike the first embodiment, there are two caps 27 and 28 for capping the nozzle, and the rest is the same as the recording apparatus of the first embodiment.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an outline of the recording head 5 as viewed from the nozzle side of the present embodiment. The C and M nozzles are arranged on one chip 201, and the Y and K nozzles are arranged on one chip 202. The nozzle hole interval of each nozzle row is 600 dpi. The abutting cap 27 covers the chip 201, and the cap 28 covers the chip 202.

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a recovery sequence used in the present embodiment. In this embodiment, since there are two caps, it is possible to set whether to perform suction for each cap. In this embodiment, a case where only black ink is desired to be recovered will be described.

  When cleaning is started (S90), the pressurization of the pressurizing pump 1 is turned off (S91). Next, the atmospheric communication valves 2Y and 2K of the yellow ink tank and the black ink tank to be recovered are opened, and the pressures in the flow paths of the yellow ink and the black ink are made equal to the atmospheric pressure (S92). Only the cap 28 that is in contact with the yellow nozzle and the black nozzle is sucked by the suction pump 25 (S93). By this suction, the negative pressure in the sub-tanks 6Y and 6K increases and the choke valve 54 is closed. Next, the air communication valve 2K of the black ink tank 3K is closed while the air communication valve 2Y of the yellow ink tank 3Y is kept open (S94). In this state, the pressurization pump 1 is driven to perform pressurization (S95). Then, since the yellow ink tank 3Y is in air communication, only the black ink tank 3K is pressurized. When pressure is applied, the choke valve 54 is opened (S96). Then, the ink in the black tube channel flows all at once to the sub tank. At this time, since the negative pressure in the sub-tank is accumulated, the ink fixed or thickened in the ink flow path is likely to flow. Next, the pressure pump is turned off to stop the pressurization (S97), and the air communication valve 2K of the black ink 3K is opened to make the pressure in the flow path equal to the atmospheric pressure (S98). Then, suction is performed by the suction pump 25 in order to discard the thickened ink that has flowed into the sub tank (S99). At this time, since the internal pressure of the flow path is atmospheric pressure and the drive of the pressurizing pump 1 is turned off, the choke valve 54 is closed again. Next, in order to recover the black ink by applying pressure, the 3K atmospheric communication valve is closed (S100).

  After the processes from step S95 to S100 are repeated a predetermined number of times (N times), the atmosphere communication valve 2Y is closed (S101). Thereafter, the ink tank is pressurized (S102). At this time, all the ink tanks 3C, 3M, 3Y and 3K are pressurized because the atmosphere communication valves 2C, 2M, 2Y and 2K of all the ink tanks are closed. Then, the 3Y and 3K choke valves 54 closed by the suction are opened, and the inks 3Y and 3K are supplied to the sub tanks (S103). At this time, since the ink tanks 3C and 3M are not sucked, the choke valve 54 remains open. Thereafter, the suction pump 25 sucks only the cap 28 that is in contact with the yellow nozzle and the black nozzle, thereby filling the yellow and black nozzle liquid chambers with ink (S104). At this time, suction is performed by the suction pump 25 while pressurization is performed by the pressurization pump 1, so that the choke valve 54 is not closed.

  During the above sequence, the ink tanks 3C and 3M that are not sucked by the suction pump 25 are kept free from pressure, so that the atmosphere communication valve is kept closed but the sub tank is not burdened by communicating with the atmosphere. Also good. With the above configuration, cyan and magenta nozzles are not recovered, only black and yellow nozzles are recovered, and black can be recovered in the tube flow path a plurality of times. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the amount of ink that is discarded rather than performing recovery for all colors multiple times.

  In the present embodiment, only the black ink in one chip is sucked a plurality of times. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and other colors including other chips may be sucked more than once, or only other colors may be sucked more than once. Suction may be set independently for each color ink.

(Third embodiment)
In the second embodiment, the nozzle has two chips, and there are two caps for capping the nozzle, and the atmosphere communication valve is provided for each flow path of each ink tank. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Absent. That is, it is possible to control the pressurization of a plurality of ink flow paths with a common air communication valve, and to vary the presence / absence and number of times of choke recovery for each cap.

  In the present embodiment, the relationship between the nozzle and the cap is the same as in the second embodiment.

  FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing the ink jet recording apparatus of the present embodiment. In the above-described embodiment, the main tanks 3C, 3M, 3Y and 3K have the atmospheric communication valves 2C, 2M, 2Y and 2K for each tank, and the presence or absence of pressurization can be controlled for each flow path. It was. However, the atmosphere communication valve 2 of the recording apparatus according to the present embodiment is commonly used in combination with the ink tanks 3C, 3M, 3Y, and 3K.

  FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a recovery sequence used in this embodiment. In this embodiment, since there are two caps, it is possible to set whether to perform suction for each cap. In the present embodiment, a case where only yellow ink and black ink corresponding to the chip 202 are desired to be recovered will be described.

  When cleaning is started (S110), the pressurization of the pressurizing pump 1 is turned off (S111). Since the atmospheric communication valve for the yellow ink tank 3Y and the black ink tank 3K to be recovered is common to all ink tanks, the atmospheric communication valve 2 is opened, and the pressure in the flow path of each of the yellow ink and the black ink is increased. It is made equal to the atmospheric pressure (S112). At this time, since the atmosphere communication valve is common to all the ink tanks, the pressure inside the flow path of cyan ink and magenta ink also becomes atmospheric pressure. Only the cap 28 that is in contact with the yellow nozzle and the black nozzle is sucked by the suction pump 25 (S113). By this suction, the negative pressure in the sub-tanks 6Y and 6K increases and the choke valve 54 is closed. Next, the atmosphere communication valve 2 is closed (S114). In this state, the pressurization pump 1 is driven to perform pressurization (S115). When pressure is applied, the choke valve 54 is opened (S116). Then, the ink in the yellow and black tube flow paths flows to the sub tank at a stroke. At this time, since the negative pressure in the sub-tank is accumulated, the ink fixed or thickened in the ink flow path is likely to flow. Next, the pressurization pump is turned off to stop the pressurization (S117), the atmospheric communication valve 2 is opened, and the pressure in the flow path is made equal to the atmospheric pressure (S118). Then, suction is performed by the suction pump 25 in order to discard the thickened ink that has flowed into the sub tank (S119). At this time, since the drive of the pressurizing pump 1 is turned off, the choke valve 54 is closed again. Next, the atmospheric communication valve 2 is closed to pressurize and recover the choke (S120).

  After the processes from step S115 to S120 are repeated a predetermined number of times (N times), the ink tank is pressurized (S121). At this time, since the atmosphere communication valve 2 is closed, all the ink tanks 3C, 3M, 3Y and 3K are pressurized. Then, the 3Y and 3K choke valves 54 closed by the suction are opened, and the inks 3Y and 3K are supplied to the sub tanks (S122). At this time, since the ink tanks 3C and 3M are not sucked, the choke valve 54 remains open. Thereafter, ink is filled into the yellow and black nozzle liquid chambers by sucking only the cap 28 that is in contact with the yellow nozzle and the black nozzle by the suction pump 25 (S123). At this time, suction is performed by the suction pump 25 while pressurization is performed by the pressurization pump 1, so that the choke valve 54 is not closed.

  With the above configuration, only the cap 28 that is in contact with the yellow nozzle and the black nozzle is sucked by the suction pump 25. Therefore, the cyan and magenta nozzles corresponding to the chip 201 are not recovered, only the black and yellow nozzles corresponding to the chip 202 are recovered, and the recovery can be performed a plurality of times. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the amount of ink that is discarded rather than performing recovery for all colors multiple times.

  In the present embodiment, only the yellow ink and the black ink corresponding to the chip 202 are sucked a plurality of times. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the ink corresponding to the other chip may be sucked a plurality of times, or may be sucked a plurality of times independently for each chip. That is, any recovery process may be performed for each combination of channels divided into at least two or more of the ink channels.

1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an ink jet recording apparatus used in a first embodiment of the present invention. It is detail drawing which shows the main tank of 1st Embodiment of this invention in detail. It is detail drawing which shows the carriage of 1st Embodiment of this invention in detail. It is detail drawing which shows the detail of the cyan sub tank of 1st Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an outline of a recording head viewed from a nozzle side according to the first embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart which shows the recovery sequence of 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the whole inkjet recording device of 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the outline of the recording head seen from the nozzle side of 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the recovery sequence of 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the inkjet recording device of 3rd Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the recovery sequence of the 3rd Embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Pump 5 Recording head 6 Carriage 3C, 3M, 3Y, 3K Main tank 4C, 4M, 4Y, 4K Tube flow path 6C, 6M, 6Y, 6K Sub tank 25 Suction pump 26 Suction cap 54 Choke valve

Claims (14)

A first nozzle row and a second nozzle row comprising a plurality of nozzles for discharging ink droplets, a first ink liquid chamber capable of storing ink discharged from the first nozzle row, and the second nozzle row A recording head including a second ink liquid chamber capable of storing ink discharged from the first ink tank; a first ink tank connected to the first ink liquid chamber via a first supply tube; A second ink tank connected to the second ink liquid chamber via a second supply tube; a pressurizing means for commonly pressurizing the inside of the first and second ink tanks; and the first supply tube. A first valve member that opens the flow path of the first supply tube when pressure is applied from the inside toward the first ink liquid chamber; and the second ink liquid chamber from within the second supply tube. By applying pressure in the direction of A second valve member that opens the flow path of the supply tube; a first cap member that can cover the first nozzle row; a second cap member that can cover the second nozzle row; A suction means capable of controlling a suction operation from one cap member and a suction operation from the second cap member for each cap member; and the first and second ink tanks, and is connected in common. And an air communication valve capable of communicating with the atmosphere in the second ink tank, and a recovery method for an ink jet recording apparatus,
After covering the first and second nozzle rows with the first and second cap members,
In a state where the atmosphere communication valve is opened and the first and second valve members are closed, the suction means is sucked from the second cap member without sucking from the first cap member. A first step to control;
A second step of closing the atmospheric communication valve and driving the pressurizing means to open the first and second valve members;
A method for recovering an ink jet recording apparatus, wherein the steps are performed in this order. The method for recovering an ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first step and the second step are repeated a plurality of times. 3. The recovery of an ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the ink stored in the first ink tank and the ink stored in the second ink tank are different types. 4. Method. 4. The ink jet recording apparatus recovery method according to claim 1, wherein the first and second valve members are flexible valves. 5. The pressurizing unit supplies ink from each ink tank to each ink chamber by pressurizing air between an ink container containing ink in each ink tank and a container covering the ink container. The method for recovering an ink jet recording apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4. 6. The method for recovering an ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the ink liquid chamber has a negative pressure generating means using a spring. The method for recovering an ink jet recording apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the first and second ink tanks are arranged at positions different from the recording head. A first nozzle row and a second nozzle row comprising a plurality of nozzles for discharging ink droplets, a first ink liquid chamber capable of storing ink discharged from the first nozzle row, and the second nozzle row A recording head including a second ink liquid chamber capable of storing ink discharged from
A first ink tank connected to the first ink chamber via a first supply tube;
A second ink tank connected to the second ink liquid chamber via a second supply tube;
Pressurizing means for commonly pressurizing the inside of the first and second ink tanks;
A first valve member that opens a flow path of the first supply tube by applying pressure from the inside of the first supply tube toward the first ink liquid chamber;
A second valve member that opens the flow path of the second supply tube when pressure is applied from the second supply tube toward the second ink liquid chamber;
A first cap member capable of covering the first nozzle row;
An ink jet recording apparatus having a second cap member capable of covering the second nozzle row,
A suction means capable of controlling the suction operation from the first cap member and the suction operation from the second cap member for each cap member;
An atmospheric communication valve connected in common to the first and second ink tanks and capable of communicating with the atmosphere in the first and second ink tanks;
After covering the first and second nozzle rows with the first and second cap members,
In a state where the atmosphere communication valve is opened and the first and second valve members are closed, the suction means is sucked from the second cap member without sucking from the first cap member. Control means for controlling the first operation to be controlled and the second operation for closing the atmospheric communication valve to drive the pressurizing means and opening the first and second valve members in this order;
An ink jet recording apparatus characterized that you have a. 9. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein the control unit repeats the first operation and the second operation a plurality of times . The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 8 or 9, wherein the ink stored in the first ink tank and the ink stored in the second ink tank are different types . The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the first and second valve members are flexible valves . The pressurizing unit supplies ink from each ink tank to each ink chamber by pressurizing air between an ink container containing ink in each ink tank and a container covering the ink container. The inkjet recording apparatus according to any one of claims 8 to 11. The ink jet recording apparatus according to any one of claims 8 to 12, wherein the ink liquid chamber includes a negative pressure generating means using a spring. 14. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the first and second ink tanks are arranged at positions different from the recording head.

Images