JP5304039B2 - Liquid ejector - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a liquid ejecting apparatus including a liquid ejecting head such as an ink jet recording head, and more particularly to a liquid ejecting apparatus including a head unit holding member that holds a head unit group in which a plurality of head units are arranged. .

  For example, a liquid ejecting apparatus is an apparatus that includes a liquid ejecting head capable of ejecting liquid and ejects various liquids from the liquid ejecting head. As a typical example of this liquid ejecting apparatus, for example, an ink jet recording head (hereinafter simply referred to as a recording head) as a liquid ejecting head is provided, and liquid ink is recorded on recording paper or the like from a nozzle opening of the recording head. An image recording apparatus such as an ink jet printer that records an image or the like by ejecting and landing on a medium (a target to be ejected) to form dots can be given. In recent years, liquid ejecting apparatuses have been applied not only to this image recording apparatus but also to various manufacturing apparatuses such as a manufacturing apparatus for color filters such as liquid crystal displays.

  An ink jet recording apparatus (printer), which is a kind of liquid ejecting apparatus, includes an ink jet recording head (a type of liquid ejecting head, so-called serial head) that is shorter than the width of a recording medium, and reciprocates in the main scanning direction. A head moving mechanism for moving the recording medium, a recording medium (ejecting object) such as recording paper, a transport mechanism for feeding the recording medium in a direction orthogonal to the main scanning direction, and performing sub-scanning. It is configured to record an image or the like on the recording medium by sequentially repeating the conveyance (sub-scanning) of the recording medium. However, in this method, since the scanning speed of the recording head is limited, for example, when an image is recorded on the entire surface of a relatively large size recording medium such as A2, there is a problem that much time is required. was there.

  For this reason, in recent years, a plurality of head units are arranged in a second direction orthogonal to the first direction (relative feed direction) in which the recording head and the recording medium relatively move (send) and are formed by this head unit group. There has been proposed a printer configured such that the total length of the nozzle group to be handled corresponds to the maximum recording width of the recording medium. According to this configuration, it is not necessary to scan the recording head in the second direction, and an image or the like can be recorded by a relative feeding operation in the first direction between the recording head and the recording medium. The recording time can be shortened compared to

  There has also been proposed a configuration in which a plurality of head units (unit heads) are arranged side by side in a first direction on a holding member (base member) to form one recording head (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In the recording of the above configuration, since the nozzle openings are not provided between the head units, a plurality of recording heads are arranged in a staggered manner so that each head unit is staggered when viewed in the second direction. The nozzle groups of these head units are arranged as a whole so as to be able to handle the maximum width of the recording paper.

  In the printer having such a configuration, when the base member expands or contracts due to a change in environmental temperature or heat generated by the head unit or the like, the distance between the head units fixed to the base member changes, and the ink is originally landed on the recording medium. As a result, the recording quality of an image or the like may be deteriorated.

JP 2007-237441 A

  For this reason, the printer disclosed in Patent Document 1 is configured so that the base member can be adapted to the thermal expansion of the base member by providing the base member with a change absorbing portion for absorbing a change in length due to thermal expansion. Yes.

However, when such a change absorbing portion is provided between the head units in the base member, the strength of the entire base member is reduced, the base member bends downward due to its own weight, and the orientation of the nozzle forming surface of each head unit is There is a risk of changing. In this case, variation occurs in the flying direction of the ink ejected from the nozzle opening of each head unit, and as a result, the image quality of the recorded image or the like is degraded. For example, since the head unit itself expands and contracts due to a temperature change, for example, in a configuration in which a plurality of recording heads are arranged and the head units are arranged in a staggered manner as described above, nozzle rows of adjacent head units are too close to each other. Or the separation of the ink landing positions when viewed in the second direction as shown in FIG. 10 (FIG. 10A) or dense (FIG. 10B) occurs as shown in FIG. In some cases, the image appears as a streak, and the image quality deteriorates.
In addition, it is practically difficult to uniformly manufacture all the shapes of the through holes for forming each change absorbing portion, and there is a problem that the deformability is different at each location. As a result, the spacing between the head units varies, and as a result, there is a risk of dot landing position deviation.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a liquid ejecting apparatus capable of reducing problems during expansion and contraction of a head unit holding member due to a temperature change.

A liquid ejecting apparatus of the present invention has been proposed to achieve the above object, and a head unit capable of ejecting liquid from a plurality of nozzle openings toward a liquid ejecting target;
Head unit holding for holding a head unit group in which the head units are arranged in a plurality of rows in a second direction orthogonal to the first direction, which is a relative feed direction between the jetting object and the head unit during the liquid jetting operation. A member,
A liquid ejecting apparatus comprising a liquid ejecting head comprising:
The head unit holding member includes a base member for holding a head unit group, side wall portions provided at both edges of the base member in the second direction, and a fixing portion provided at an upper portion of each side wall portion. Configured, fixed to the apparatus main body side by the fixing portions provided at both ends in the second direction, and on one side wall portion provided between the one fixing portion and the head unit group in the second direction. The head unit holding member has a flexible portion that is more flexible than other portions.

  According to the above configuration, the head unit holding member has a flexible part that is more flexible than the other part of the head unit holding member between one fixed part in the second direction and one end of the head unit group. Therefore, when the head unit holding member expands or contracts due to a change in the environmental temperature or the heat generation of the head unit itself, the flexible portion is deformed accordingly, so that the other position of the head unit holding member in the second direction is almost the same. As a whole, displacement in one direction in the second direction is allowed without displacement. Thereby, it is possible to suppress the mechanical stress due to expansion and contraction of the head unit holding member from acting on each head unit, and it is possible to prevent problems such as deformation of the nozzle forming surface of each head unit. In addition, since the flexible portion is not formed between the head units, the relative position of each head unit varies as compared with the conventional configuration in which the flexible portion (change absorbing portion) is formed between the head units. Therefore, in a configuration in which a plurality of liquid jet heads are arranged in the first direction and the head units are arranged in a staggered arrangement, the relative positions in the second direction of the nozzle rows of the adjacent head units in the staggered arrangement are also constant. Maintained. Thereby, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of variations in the landing position of the liquid when viewed in the second direction on the ejection target. Furthermore, since the rigidity of the portion where the head unit is mounted in the head unit holding member is ensured, the head unit holding member can be prevented from bending downward due to the weight of the head unit. The direction of the nozzle forming surface of the unit can be made uniform. As a result, it is possible to maintain high accuracy of the liquid landing position with respect to the injection target.

  Moreover, in the said structure, it is desirable to comprise the said flexible part by forming several through-holes which penetrate a plate | board thickness direction.

  In the above configuration, the flexible portion may be configured by a groove-like depression formed along the first direction.

Further, the flexible portion is connected to the side wall portion so as to be rotatable about a rotation shaft provided at one end portion, and is capable of rotating about a rotation shaft provided at the other end portion. It is also possible to comprise by the link member connected with.

The said structure WHEREIN: The said flexible part is comprised by making the thickness of at least one part of said one side wall part thinner than the thickness of the other side wall part provided in the opposite side to this one side wall part. You can also.

The said structure WHEREIN: The said flexible part can also be comprised from the groove-shaped hollow formed along the standing direction of the said side wall part .

  The said structure WHEREIN: The said flexible part can also be formed with the material of Young's modulus lower than the Young's modulus of the other part of the said head unit holding member.

  The said structure WHEREIN: The said flexible part can also be comprised by bending along the 1st direction in the multiple places in the standing direction of the said side wall part.

A plurality of rows of the plurality of liquid jet heads in a first direction;
It is desirable to employ a configuration in which the position of the flexible portion in the head unit holding member of all the liquid ejecting heads is disposed on the same side in the second direction.

  According to the above configuration, the position of the flexible portion in the head unit holding member of all the liquid ejecting heads is disposed on the same side in the second direction, so that the expansion / contraction direction of the head unit holding member is the same for all liquid ejecting heads. And the relative position of the head units of each liquid ejecting head is reduced.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the embodiments described below, various limitations are made as preferred specific examples of the present invention. However, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the following description unless otherwise specified. However, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments. In the present embodiment, an image recording apparatus that is one form of the liquid ejecting apparatus, and more specifically, a length corresponding to the maximum recording width of a recording sheet that becomes an ejection target (or recording medium) at equal intervals between nozzle openings. An ink jet printer (hereinafter referred to as a printer) equipped with a long liquid ejecting head (hereinafter simply referred to as a recording head) arranged in FIG.

  FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a schematic configuration of a printer 1 according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a plan view around a recording head 3 in the printer 1. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. 2, and FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining an arrangement relationship between adjacent recording heads 3 (3a, 3b). The printer 1 of the present embodiment includes a plurality of recording papers 4 in the direction (hereinafter referred to as the second direction Y) orthogonal to the direction of conveyance of the recording paper 4 by the conveyance unit 7 (corresponding to the relative feed direction in the present invention; Paper feed tray 5a and apparatus for storing recording head 3 (a kind of liquid ejecting head of the present invention) configured by arranging head units 11 and recording paper 4 (a kind of ejecting object of the present invention) in a stacked state A sheet feeding unit 5 including a lower sheet feeding cassette 5b provided at a lower portion and a recording sheet 4 fed from these sheet feeding units 5a and 5b are passed under the recording head 3 (3a to 3d) and discharged. A transport unit 7 transported to the paper tray 10 side and a paper discharge tray 10 for holding the recording paper 4 on which recording is performed by the recording head 3 and discharged from the transport unit 7 side are provided, and the recording head 3 is moved in the second direction. Scan to Y Is configured to Ku can record the entire width in the text, images, etc. of the recording area of the recording paper 4.

  In addition, a printer controller 9 responsible for electrical control of each unit is provided inside the housing 2. The printer controller 9 has a drive signal generation circuit (not shown), and outputs a drive signal from the drive signal generation circuit to the head unit 11 of the recording head 3 through a signal cable. Further, although not shown, an ink cartridge (a type of liquid supply source) that stores ink is disposed inside the housing 2. The ink stored in the ink cartridge is supplied (pressure-fed) to each head unit 11 of the recording head 3 through the ink supply tube by pressurizing the ink cartridge by an air pump or the like. It is also possible to employ a configuration in which recording is performed while the recording head 3 is scanned in the second direction Y with respect to the recording paper 4.

  The paper feed tray 5a is configured to be movable in the vertical direction. The upper surface of the recording paper bundle (the upper surface of the uppermost recording paper 4) is always in contact with the pickup roller 6 with a constant pressure. The vertical position is controlled. Then, according to the execution timing of the recording operation by the recording head 3, the recording paper 4 is sequentially pulled out from the top of the recording paper bundle by the pickup roller 6, and separated one by one by the separation roller 12 and the separation pad 13. It is fed to the downstream side. After passing between paper sensors (not shown), the recording paper 4 abuts against the nip portion of the pair of upper and lower registration rollers 14a and 14b. The recording paper 4 from the lower paper feed cassette 5b reaches the nip portion of the registration rollers 14a and 14b after passing through a plurality of intermediate rollers 15. Thereby, the leading edge posture of the recording paper 4 is aligned, and the skew of the recording paper 4 is corrected. Thereafter, the registration rollers 14a and 14b feed the recording paper 4 one by one to the conveying unit 7 side by side with a predetermined timing, and the recording paper 4 reaches the conveying belt 17 of the conveying unit 7. The nip state is released at a predetermined timing.

  The transport unit 7 is stretched between a driving roller 18 rotated by a driving force of a driving motor (not shown), a driven roller 19 disposed upstream of the driving roller 18, and the driving roller 18 and the driven roller 19. The endless conveyor belt 17 is configured by a tension roller 20 that applies tension to the conveyor belt 17 and a presser roller 21. The tension roller 20 is disposed between the driving roller 18 and the driven roller 19, abuts against the conveyor belt 17 from the inside, and applies tension to the conveyor belt 17 by an urging force of an urging member such as a spring. . The pressing roller 21 is disposed directly above the driven roller 19 with the conveyance belt 17 interposed therebetween, and presses the recording paper 4 on the conveyance belt toward the conveyance belt 17 so that the adhesion of the recording paper 4 to the conveyance belt 17 is achieved. Increase.

  The driving roller 18 is configured to rotate the conveying belt 17 by being driven in synchronization with the recording operation of the recording head 3 and to convey the recording paper 4 to the downstream side through the lower side of the recording head 3. ing. Further, the rotation amount of the conveyor belt 17 is detected by a rotary encoder (not shown) disposed at the shaft end portion extended from the driven roller 19. The encoder detection signal is output to the printer controller 9 as an encoder pulse.

  Here, when recording is performed on only one surface of the recording paper 4, the recording is performed from the transport unit 7 to the paper discharge tray 10 after the recording on one surface is completed. On the other hand, when recording is performed on both sides of the recording paper 4, after recording on one side is completed, the recording paper 4 is transported to the paper reversing path R <b> 2 by the flapper 22 disposed downstream of the transport unit 7. After the recording paper 4 reaches the U-turn portion T of the paper reversing path, the conveyance direction is changed, and the recording paper 4 is sequentially sent again to the registration rollers 14a and 14b and the conveyance belt 17 to complete the recording on the other side. After that, the paper is discharged from the transport unit 7 to the paper discharge tray 10.

  As a configuration for improving the adhesion of the recording paper 4 to the conveyance belt 17, a method in which the surface of the conveyance belt is charged by a charging roller (not shown) and the recording paper 4 is adsorbed on the conveyance belt by electrostatic force (electrostatic adsorption method). Alternatively, a known technique such as a method (suction method) in which the recording paper 4 is adsorbed on the conveyance belt by generating a negative pressure between the recording paper 4 and the conveyance belt 17 with a fan (not shown) or the like may be adopted. it can. In addition, a maintenance unit (wiping mechanism, capping mechanism, etc.) is provided inside the housing 2 in order to prevent clogging of the nozzle openings of the recording head 3, etc., all of which have various known configurations. Since it can be employed, its description is omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the recording head 3 is a head unit group in which a plurality of head units 11 (unit heads) are arranged in a second direction Y in a unit holder 24 (a kind of head unit holding member in the present invention). 16 is provided. A plurality of recording heads 3, in this embodiment, four recording heads 3 a to 3 d, have a constant arrangement interval in the first direction X with the head longitudinal direction (unit holder longitudinal direction) aligned in the second direction Y. And attached to the head holder 25 on the printer main body side. Each of the recording heads 3a to 3d includes a pressure chamber communicating with the nozzle opening and pressure generating means (for example, a piezoelectric vibrator, a heating element, etc.) that causes a pressure variation in the ink in the pressure chamber (both shown in the figure). (Not shown), by applying a drive signal from the printer controller 9 to the pressure generating means to drive the pressure generating means, ink (a kind of liquid in the present invention) is ejected from the nozzle openings and landed on the recording paper 4 The recording operation (liquid ejecting operation) is performed.

  A plurality of nozzle openings for ejecting ink are provided in the second direction Y on the nozzle forming surface 26 of each head unit 11 to form a nozzle row 27 (a type of nozzle group, see FIG. 4). Are formed in the first direction X. One nozzle row 27 is composed of, for example, 360 nozzle openings opened at a pitch of 360 dpi. In each head unit 11, one nozzle row 27 corresponds to each ink type, that is, each ink color. In this embodiment, each head unit 11 has a total of four rows corresponding to four colors of ink, cyan ink (C), magenta ink (M), yellow ink (Y), and black ink (K). The nozzle row 27 is formed side by side in the first direction X.

  In the present embodiment, the first recording head 3a and the second recording head 3b are paired, and the third recording head 3c and the fourth recording head 3d are paired. As shown in FIG. 4, the two recording heads 3 forming a pair have the head units 11 alternately arranged in a two-stage zigzag manner at an arrangement interval such that the nozzle openings are arranged at 360 dpi as a whole when viewed in the second direction Y. The layout is like this. Note that the number of head units 11 in one recording head 3 is determined according to the maximum size of the recording paper 4 that the printer 1 can handle.

  As shown in FIG. 3A, the unit holder 24 of each recording head 3 includes a rectangular base plate 30 (corresponding to a base member in the present invention) elongated in the second direction Y, and the longitudinal direction of the base plate 30. (I.e., in the second direction Y) The side wall portions 31a and 31b on both sides erected upward from both edge portions, and extend from the upper ends of the side wall portions 31a and 31b to the side (opposite to the base plate 30 side). It is comprised from the flange parts 32a and 32b. Then, the flange portions 32a and 32b on both sides of the unit holder function as fixing portions in the present invention, and these flange portions 32a and 32b are fixed to the head holder 25 by fastening members 33 such as screws, respectively. The head 3 is held by the head holder 25. The total length W1 in the longitudinal direction of the base plate 30 is designed to be slightly smaller than the inner dimension W2 in the second direction Y of the hollow portion in the center of the head holder, and the base plate 30 is arranged in this hollow portion. ing.

  Further, as the material of the unit holder 24, a material closer to the linear expansion coefficient of each head unit 11 is used (for example, a stainless alloy, particularly a ferritic or martensitic stainless alloy is preferable). In this way, by making the linear expansion coefficient of the unit holder 24 and the linear expansion coefficient of the head unit 11 as close as possible, the difference in the amount of displacement between them when the expansion and contraction occurs due to a temperature change is reduced. Therefore, mechanical stress between the unit holder 24 and each head unit 11 can be suppressed. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent problems such as deformation of the nozzle formation surface 26 due to the mechanical stress reaching the nozzle formation surface 26 of each head unit 11, and eject ink from the nozzle openings of each head unit 11. Variation in the flight direction can be suppressed.

  The unit holder 24 is positioned on the leftmost side in FIG. 3 of the head unit group 16 and one end of the first flange portion 32a in the second direction Y (for example, the left side in FIG. 3) and the head unit group 16. The flexible unit 35 is more flexible than the other part of the unit holder 24 between the head unit 11) and the head unit 11). In the present embodiment, the entire thickness of the first side wall portion 31a is made to function as the flexible portion 35 by making the plate thickness of the first side wall portion 31a thinner than the plate thickness of the second side wall portion 31b. The plate thickness of the first side wall portion 31a can be deformed as the unit holder 24 expands and contracts when the temperature changes, and sufficiently supports the weight of the unit holder 24 with the head unit group 16 mounted thereon. It is desirable to set the thickness within a possible range.

  In this way, by providing the flexible portion 35 only in one of the second directions of the unit holder 24, as shown in FIG. 3B, the unit holder 24 (especially, When the base plate 30) expands and contracts, the flexible portion 35 is deformed accordingly, so that the position of the other (second side wall portion 31b side) in the second direction Y of the unit holder 24 is hardly displaced. As a result, displacement in one direction in the second direction Y is allowed. Thereby, it can suppress that the mechanical stress by the expansion-contraction of the unit holder 24 acts on each head unit 11, and can prevent malfunctions, such as a nozzle formation surface 26 deform | transforming.

  Further, since the flexible portion 35 is not formed between the head units 11, each head unit 11 of each recording head 3 is compared with a conventional configuration in which a flexible portion (change absorbing portion) is formed between the head units. In the configuration in which the plurality of recording heads 3 are arranged and the head units 11 are arranged in a staggered arrangement, the second direction of the nozzle rows of the adjacent head units 11 in the staggered arrangement is reduced. The relative position in Y is also kept constant. In particular, the flexible portions 35 in the unit holders 24 of all the recording heads 3 are arranged on one side in the second direction Y, that is, on the same side, so that the expansion and contraction directions of the unit holders 24 are aligned in all the recording heads 3. The relative position between the head units 11 of each recording head 3 is more reliably reduced. As a result, it is possible to suppress the density of ink landing positions when viewed in the second direction Y on the recording surface of the recording paper 4 and to prevent deterioration in recording quality of a recorded image or the like. Become. Further, since the rigidity of the portion of the unit holder 24 where the head unit 11 is mounted, that is, the base plate 30 is secured, the base plate 30 can be prevented from bending downward due to the weight of the head unit 11. Thereby, the direction of the nozzle formation surface 26 of each head unit 11 can be made uniform, and also in this respect, the accuracy of the ink landing position on the recording paper 4 can be kept high.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a configuration in the second embodiment.
The first embodiment exemplifies a configuration in which the first side wall portion 31a is made the flexible portion 35 by making the overall plate thickness of the first side wall portion 31a thinner than the plate thickness of the second side wall portion 31b. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the thickness of at least a part of the first side wall portion 31a may be made thinner than the thickness of the other second side wall portion 31b to provide flexibility. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, the flexible portion 35 can also be configured by a groove-like depression 36 formed along the rising direction (direction perpendicular to the base plate 30) of the first side wall portion 31a. By appropriately setting the dimensions such as the depth and width of the groove-like recess 36 and the number of formed grooves, the flexible portion 35 is deformed when the unit holder 24 expands and contracts due to a change in environmental temperature. A displacement in one direction in the two directions Y is allowed. Further, the groove-like recess 36 is not limited to the vertical direction perpendicular to the illustrated base plate 30, and can be formed in the lateral direction along the first direction X.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a configuration according to the third embodiment.
In this 3rd Embodiment, the flexible part 35 is comprised by bending along the 1st direction in the several places in the standing direction of the 1st side wall part 31a, and making it a bellows shape. Thus, by bending the first side wall portion 31a in a bellows shape, the flexibility of the first side wall portion 31a is ensured, and the flexible portion 35 is deformed when the unit holder 24 expands and contracts due to a change in environmental temperature. The unit holder 24 is allowed to be displaced in one direction in the second direction Y.

  In addition to the above configuration, as a configuration in which the flexible portion 35 is provided on the first side wall portion 31a, the first side wall portion 31a is formed of a material having a Young's modulus lower than the Young's modulus of other portions of the unit holder 24. Also good. For example, when a stainless alloy is used for the base plate, it is preferable to use an aluminum alloy for the first side wall portion 31a. In this structure, the 1st side wall part 31a produced with a mutually different material and the baseplate 30 are joined by the fastening by a screw | thread, adhesion | attachment by an adhesive agent, or welding.

  Further, as in the fourth embodiment shown in FIG. 7, the flexible portion 35 may be configured by connecting the first side wall portion 31 a and the base plate 30 with a link member 37. The link member 37 is connected to the first side wall 31a so as to be rotatable about a rotation shaft 38a provided at one end, and is rotatable about a rotation shaft 38b provided at the other end. The base plate 30 is connected. With this configuration, when the unit holder 24 expands and contracts due to a change in the environmental temperature, the link member 37 rotates about the respective rotation shafts 38 along with the expansion and contraction. Displacement in one direction Y is allowed.

FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of the fifth embodiment of the present invention.
In each said embodiment, although the example which provided the flexible part 35 in the 1st side wall part 31a was shown, it is not restricted to this. As shown in FIG. 8A, the configuration of the present embodiment is such that, in the base plate 30, one first flange portion 32 a in the second direction Y and the head unit 11 positioned at one end portion of the head unit group 16. By opening a plurality of through-holes 40 penetrating in the thickness direction of the base plate 30 in a region between them, a flexible portion 35 that is more flexible than the other portions of the unit holder 24 is formed. According to this configuration, as shown in FIG. 8B, when the unit holder 24 expands and contracts due to a temperature change, the partition walls separating the through holes 40 are deformed accordingly, so that the unit holder 24 A displacement in one direction in the second direction Y is allowed. Of course, the shape, size, and number of formation of the through hole 40 are not limited to those illustrated, and the flexibility of the flexible portion 35 can be arbitrarily set by changing the shape and number of formation of the through hole 40. be able to.

  Moreover, you may comprise the flexible part 35 by the groove-shaped hollow 41 formed along the 1st direction X instead of the said through-hole 40 like 6th Embodiment shown in FIG. The groove-like recess 41 illustrated in FIG. 9A is set to a depth that is, for example, about half the thickness of the base plate 30 and is a groove that is elongated in the first direction X and is formed over the entire width of the base plate 30. Yes. In this example, the flexible portion 35 is formed by arranging three groove-like depressions 41 in the second direction Y side by side. Of course, the shape, size, and number of grooves 41 are not limited to those illustrated. Also in this configuration, as shown in FIG. 9B, when the unit holder 24 expands and contracts due to a temperature change, each groove-like recess 41 is deformed accordingly, and thus the unit holder 24 in the second direction Y is deformed. Displacement to one side is allowed.

  The arrangement layout of the head units 11 and the number of recording heads 3 are not limited to those exemplified in the above embodiments, and any configuration can be adopted.

  The present invention also relates to an electrode material ejection recording head iochip used for forming electrodes such as a color material ejection head, an organic EL (Electro Luminescence) display, and an FED (Surface Emitting Display) used for manufacturing a color filter such as a liquid crystal display. The present invention can also be applied to other liquid jet heads such as bioorganic jet heads used for manufacturing (biochemical elements) and liquid jet apparatuses including the same.

It is sectional drawing explaining the structure of a printer. FIG. 2 is a plan view around a recording head in a printer. (A), (b) is the sectional view on the AA line in FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining an arrangement relationship between adjacent recording heads. It is a partial expansion perspective view explaining the composition of a 2nd embodiment. It is sectional drawing explaining the structure of 3rd Embodiment. It is a principal part enlarged view explaining the structure of 4th Embodiment. It is a principal part enlarged view explaining the structure in 5th Embodiment. It is a principal part enlarged view explaining the structure in 6th Embodiment. It is a schematic diagram explaining the dispersion | variation in the ink landing position in a conventional structure.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Printer, 3 ... Recording head, 4 ... Recording paper, 7 ... Conveyance unit, 11 ... Head unit, 16 ... Head unit group, 24 ... Unit holder, 25 ... Head holder, 26 ... Nozzle formation surface, 27 ... Nozzle row , 30 ... Base plate, 31 ... Side wall part, 32 ... Flange part, 35 ... Flexible part

Claims (9)

A head unit capable of ejecting liquid from a plurality of nozzle openings toward a liquid ejection target;
Head unit holding for holding a head unit group in which the head units are arranged in a plurality of rows in a second direction orthogonal to the first direction, which is a relative feed direction between the jetting object and the head unit during the liquid jetting operation. Members,
A liquid ejecting apparatus comprising a liquid ejecting head comprising:
The head unit holding member includes a base member for holding a head unit group, side wall portions provided at both edges of the base member in the second direction, and a fixing portion provided at an upper portion of each side wall portion. Configured, fixed to the apparatus main body side by the fixing portions provided at both ends in the second direction, and on one side wall portion provided between the one fixing portion and the head unit group in the second direction. A liquid ejecting apparatus comprising a flexible portion that is more flexible than other portions of the head unit holding member.   The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the flexible portion is configured by forming a plurality of through holes penetrating in a plate thickness direction.   The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the flexible portion is configured by a groove-shaped depression formed along the first direction.   The flexible portion is connected to the side wall portion so as to be rotatable around a rotation shaft provided at one end portion, and is connected to the base member so as to be rotatable around a rotation shaft provided at the other end portion. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the liquid ejecting apparatus is configured by a linked member. The flexible part is configured by making the thickness of at least a part of the one side wall part thinner than the thickness of the other side wall part provided on the side opposite to the one side wall part. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1.   The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the flexible portion is configured by a groove-like depression formed along a standing direction of the one side wall portion.   The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the flexible portion is formed of a material having a Young's modulus lower than that of the other part of the head unit holding member.   The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the flexible portion is configured by bending along the first direction at a plurality of locations in the rising direction of the one side wall portion. A plurality of rows of the plurality of liquid jet heads in a first direction;
9. The liquid ejecting according to claim 1, wherein the position of the flexible portion in the head unit holding member of all the liquid ejecting heads is disposed on the same side in the second direction. 10. apparatus.

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