JP5720768B2 - Printing device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a printing apparatus that performs printing by discharging ink onto a recording medium.

Conventionally, as this type of technology, for example, UV (ultraviolet) ink that is cured by ultraviolet rays is discharged onto a recording medium to perform printing, and at the same time, the discharged UV ink is irradiated with ultraviolet rays, whereby the UV ink is recorded on the recording medium. There are inkjet printing devices that cure above.
In such an ink jet printing apparatus, for example, when ink mist is generated during ink ejection, a high voltage is applied to the needle electrode to polarize the ink mist, and the polarized ink mist is electrostatically applied. Some are removed by adsorption (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2007-55002 A

However, in the above prior art, since a high voltage is applied to the needle-like electrode to polarize the ink mist, it is necessary to provide a large power supply device capable of generating a high voltage. As a result, the apparatus configuration becomes large and complicated.
The present invention has been made in view of the above-described conventional technology, and an object thereof is to provide a printing apparatus capable of realizing an ink mist removing mechanism with a relatively simple configuration.

A printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a recording head that ejects ink toward a recording medium, a light irradiation unit that irradiates and cures the ink attached to the recording medium, and the light irradiation unit. A heat-dissipating part capable of dissipating heat generated by the heat-dissipating part, a fan generating an airflow capable of cooling the heat-dissipating part, and a suction port disposed between the recording head and the light irradiation part, comprising a duct, which can be guided to the heat dissipation portion without being exposed directly to the light irradiation unit and a mist and air in the ink generated in the recording head around sucked from the suction port by a fan.
In the printing apparatus according to the embodiment of the invention, the heat dissipating unit includes a base and a plurality of fins, the light irradiation unit includes an LED, and the LED sandwiches the base and the plurality of the plurality of LEDs. The heat generated by the LED is transmitted to the plurality of fins through the base and radiated through the plurality of fins.
In the printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the duct can guide the air sucked from the suction port by the fan so as to flow between the plurality of fins.
A printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is an inkjet printing apparatus that performs printing by ejecting photocurable ink from a recording head of a head unit onto a recording medium that moves relative to the head unit. The head unit includes a head holding unit that holds the recording head on a surface facing the recording medium, and a light irradiation unit that irradiates the photocurable ink discharged from the recording head with light that cures the photocurable ink. And a cooling fan for cooling the light irradiation unit, wherein the head holding unit has a suction port formed on a surface facing the recording medium and a discharge port in a region where the cooling fan sucks air. It is characterized by comprising a duct formed.

According to such a configuration, air in the duct is sucked into the cooling fan from the discharge port, so that air around the recording head flows into the duct from the suction port. Therefore, even if ink mist is generated during ink ejection, air containing ink mist drifting around the recording head can be sucked in the duct. That is, the cooling fan can also be used for ink mist removal, and the ink mist removal mechanism can be realized with a relatively simple configuration.

Also, a fin-type heat sink that is disposed adjacent to the head holding unit and absorbs and diffuses the heat of the light irradiation unit, and attached to the outer periphery of the heat sink, adsorbs the ink mist of the photocurable ink. A filter that allows only air to pass therethrough, and the cooling fan sucks air between the fins of the heat sink and causes air to flow between the fins through the filter to forcibly convection the air between the fins. The exhaust port of the duct may be formed on a surface of the head holding portion facing the filter.

Specifically, the heat sink includes a base in contact with the light irradiation unit, and a plurality of fins standing perpendicular to the base, and the cooling fan has the fins with respect to the heat sink. Arranged on the standing side, sucks air between the fins of the heat sink, and the filter is attached to the outer periphery composed of the whole of the plurality of fins sandwiched between the base and the cooling fan Is mentioned.

According to such a configuration, when the air discharged from the discharge port of the duct passes through the filter, the ink mist contained in the air can be adsorbed to the filter and collected.
Further, the filter may be characterized in that the portion of the heat sink that contacts the other surface is finer than the portion of the heat sink that contacts the surface facing the discharge port.
According to such a structure, more air can be made to flow between fins from the surface facing the discharge port, and the air in the duct can be efficiently sucked from the discharge port side.

Further, the head holding portion includes a protruding portion protruding toward the recording medium along the edge portion at an edge portion far from the recording head among edge portions of the suction port. But you can.
According to such a configuration, the ink mist can be blocked by the protruding portion, the concentration of the ink mist contained in the air sucked by the duct can be increased, and as a result, the ink mist can be sucked efficiently.

And a medium feeding mechanism that conveys the recording medium in a medium conveying direction; and a head scanning mechanism that reciprocates the head unit along a head scanning direction that intersects the medium conveying direction. The cooling fan is disposed adjacent to each end in the head scanning direction of the head holding unit, and the duct is formed inside each head scanning direction end of the head holding unit with the recording head interposed therebetween. And when the head unit reciprocates,
Control means for lowering the number of rotations of the cooling fan on the moving direction side of the head unit to be lower than the number of rotations of the cooling fan on the opposite side to the moving direction may be provided.
According to such a configuration, when the head unit moves, the concentration of the ink mist near the suction port on the side opposite to the moving direction of the head unit increases, but the ink mist flows in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the head unit. Thus, the concentration of the ink mist can be further increased. As a result, the ink mist can be efficiently sucked through the suction port on the opposite direction side.

A medium feeding mechanism for conveying the recording medium in a medium conveying direction; and a head scanning mechanism for reciprocating the head unit along a head scanning direction that intersects the medium conveying direction. The cooling fan is disposed adjacent to each end in the head scanning direction of the head holding unit, and the duct is formed inside each head scanning direction end of the head holding unit with the recording head interposed therebetween. And a closing means for closing the duct on the moving direction side of the head unit when the head unit reciprocates.
According to such a configuration, when the head unit moves, the concentration of the ink mist near the suction port on the side opposite to the moving direction of the head unit increases, but the ink mist flows in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the head unit. Thus, the concentration of the ink mist can be further increased. As a result, the ink mist can be efficiently sucked through the suction port on the opposite direction side.

It is a block diagram which shows schematic structure of UV inkjet printing apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of a head unit. It is a block diagram which fractures | ruptures a carriage and shows the structure of a duct. It is a block diagram which shows the attachment state of a filter. It is a block diagram which shows the modification of the attachment state of a filter. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the characteristic of a filter. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the modification of a head unit. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of a plate. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the head unit of 2nd Embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the head unit of 3rd Embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the head unit 4 of 4th Embodiment.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
<First Embodiment>
<Configuration>
FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing a schematic configuration of the UV inkjet printing apparatus 1.
As shown in FIG. 1, the UV inkjet printing apparatus 1 of this embodiment is a serial head type inkjet printing apparatus, and includes a medium feeding mechanism 2, a head scanning mechanism 3, a head unit 4, and a controller 5.

The medium feeding mechanism 2 includes a stage 7 capable of holding a printing object (recording medium 6) such as glass or IC on the upper surface, and a feed for conveying the stage 7 in a predetermined medium conveying direction (+ Y direction in FIG. 1). A shaft 8 is provided. Then, when a conveyance command that instructs conveyance of the recording medium 6 is output from the controller 5, the medium feeding mechanism 2 causes the stage 7 to hold the recording medium 6 and causes the feed shaft 8 to convey the stage 7 in the medium conveyance direction. Thus, the recording medium 6 is conveyed by a certain distance in the medium conveying direction. Here, examples of the fixed distance for transporting the recording medium 6 include a transport direction width (print width) of the recording head 12 described later.

The head scanning mechanism 3 is arranged above the medium feeding mechanism 2 and reciprocates the head unit 4 along the head scanning direction (the + X direction and the −X direction in FIG. 1) perpendicular to the medium conveyance direction. 9 is provided. When the reciprocating command for instructing the reciprocation of the head unit 4 is output from the controller 5, the head scanning mechanism 3 reciprocates the head unit 4 with respect to the head scan shaft 9 every time the recording medium 6 is conveyed in the print width. As a result, the head unit 4 reciprocates above the recording medium 6. During the reciprocation of the head unit 4, the head unit 4 is moved by the width in the head scanning direction (head width) of the recording head 12, which will be described later.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram showing the configuration of the head unit 4.
As shown in FIG. 2, the head unit 4 includes a carriage 10 and a light source unit 11 disposed at an adjacent position of each end of the carriage 10 in the head scanning direction.
The carriage 10 has its left side faced in the -X direction, its right side faced in the + X direction, and its front face in the direction opposite to the medium carrying direction with reference to the position facing the carriage 10 in the medium carrying direction. It is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape.

Two recording heads 12 extending in the medium transport direction are arranged in parallel at the center of the lower surface of the carriage 10. That is, the carriage 10 holds the recording head 12 on the surface facing the recording medium 6. The recording head 12 includes a plurality of ink ejection holes for ejecting UV ink droplets downward. When the print command for instructing the ejection of droplets is output from the controller 5, the recording head 12 is placed in an arbitrary ink ejection hole every time the head unit 4 moves over the recording medium 6. An image corresponding to the print command is printed on the recording medium 6 by appropriately discharging liquid droplets to the opposite positions of 6.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram showing the configuration of the duct 13 by breaking the carriage.
As shown in FIG. 3, a suction port 14 is formed on the lower surface of the carriage 10 inside each of the head scanning direction ends of the carriage 10 with the recording head 12 interposed therebetween.
A discharge port 15 is formed on the side surface of the carriage 10, and a duct 13 that connects the lower surface and the side surface of the carriage 10 is disposed. That is, the duct 13 has the suction port 14 on the surface facing the recording medium 6 and is positioned at a position facing the side surface of the heat sink 17 described later (the surface facing the filter 18), that is, the cooling fan 20 described later is air. A discharge port 15 is provided in a region where the air is sucked. Here, suction port 1
4 is formed wider than the width of the recording head 12 in the medium conveyance direction, and the size of the opening of the suction port 14 is set so that the flow velocity at the suction port 14 is increased. It is formed narrower than the size of the opening of the outlet 15. The duct 13 draws ink mist drifting below the carriage 10 when the ink discharge holes are discharging droplets, so that the air in the duct 13 is sucked from the discharge port 15 side. Inhale from.

A filter capable of adsorbing UV ink or a member capable of adsorbing UV ink is attached to the inner surface of the duct 13.
Similarly to the carriage 10, the light source unit 11 is directed to the -X direction, the right side surface is directed to the + X direction, and the front surface is directed to the light source unit 11 in the medium conveyance direction. It is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape directed in the direction opposite to the medium conveyance direction.

A plurality of LEDs 16 for irradiating ultraviolet rays for curing the UV ink downward are disposed on the lower part of the light source unit 11, that is, on the entire lower surface of the light source unit 11. And LED1
6, the UV ink discharged onto the recording medium 6 is cured by always irradiating ultraviolet rays to the opposite portion of the upper surface of the recording medium 6 when the head unit 4 reciprocates above the recording medium 6.
A fin-type heat sink 17 that absorbs and diffuses heat generated from the LEDs 16 is disposed in the middle portion of the light source unit 11. The heat sink 17 includes a base in contact with the upper end of the LED 16 and a plurality of fins standing perpendicular to the base. The heat sink 17 has a substantially prismatic outer shape with a plurality of fins.

FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram showing a state where the filter 18 is attached.
As shown in FIG. 4, a filter 18 that adsorbs ink mist and passes only air is wound around the outer periphery of the side surface of the heat sink 17. Further, the heat sink 17 includes a filter fixing jig 19 having a rectangular tube shape whose inner circumference is slightly larger than the outer circumference of the side surface of the heat sink 17 and in which the central portion of the portion facing the side surface is hollowed out. After the filter 18 is wound around the outer periphery of the side surface of the heat sink 17, the filter fixing jig 19 is attached to the filter 18.
It is fixed to the heat sink 17 by being put on the heat sink 17 together. That is, the filter 18 is attached to the heat sink 17 in a replaceable manner.
Further, the filter 18 allows air to flow from the surface facing the discharge port 15 of the duct 13, so that when the air discharged from the discharge port 15 of the duct 13 passes through the filter 18, ink mist contained in the air is removed. It is adsorbed by the filter 18 and collected.

FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram showing a modification of the attached state of the filter 18.
The filter fixing jig 19 is not limited to a rectangular tube. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, among the four side surfaces of the heat sink 17, only the portion facing the three side surfaces may be provided, and the portion facing the remaining one side surface may be in an open state.
FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the characteristics of the filter 18.
Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the filter 18 has finer portions in contact with other side surfaces than the portion in contact with the side surface on the carriage 10 side of the heat sink 17. And
The filter 18 allows more air to flow in from a portion of the heat sink 17 in contact with the side surface on the carriage 10 side, that is, a surface facing the discharge port 15 of the duct 13, so that the cooling fan 20 causes the air in the duct 13 to flow. Suction can be performed more efficiently from the discharge port 15 side.

A heat sink 17 is disposed above the light source unit 11, that is, above the heat sink 17.
A cooling fan 20 is arranged for sucking air between the fins and discharging it upward. And
The cooling fan 20 sucks the air between the fins of the heat sink 17, so that the filter 1
The air between the fins is forced to flow through the fins 8 to force convection between the fins, and the heat sink 17 and the LED 16 are cooled. Further, the cooling fan 20 sucks air between the fins of the heat sink 17 when UV ink is being ejected, so that the heat sink 1
The air in the duct 13 is sucked from the discharge port 15 side of the duct 13 through the filter 18 in contact with the side surface of the 7 carriage 10 side. That is, by providing the carriage 10 with the duct 13 in which the suction port 14 is formed on the surface facing the recording medium 6 and the discharge port 15 is formed in the region where the cooling fan 20 sucks air, the cooling fan 20 is set to the ink. The ink mist removal mechanism can be realized with a relatively simple configuration.

Here, as the cooling fan 20, a fan having a larger power than that used only for cooling the LED 16 is used.
When a printing operation instructing printing of an image to be printed (printed image) is performed by the user, the controller 5 outputs a conveyance command to the medium feeding mechanism 2 and outputs a reciprocation command to the head scanning mechanism 3. In addition, a print command corresponding to the print image is output to the recording head 12.

<Specific operation>
Next, the operation of the present embodiment will be described based on a specific situation.
First, as shown in FIG. 1, it is assumed that the user performs a printing operation on the controller 5 after setting the recording medium 6 on the stage 7. Then, the controller 5 outputs a conveyance command to the medium feeding mechanism 2 and outputs a reciprocation command to the head scanning mechanism 3. The recording medium 6 is conveyed by the print width in the medium conveyance direction by the medium feeding mechanism 2 and the head scanning mechanism 3, and the head unit 4 reciprocates once above the recording medium 6 each time the recording medium is conveyed by the printing width. .

Further, the controller 5 outputs a print command to the recording head 12. Then, each time the head unit 4 moves above the recording medium 6 by the head width by the recording head 12, an arbitrary ink discharge hole appropriately discharges a droplet to a position opposite to the upper surface of the recording medium 6,
An image corresponding to the print command is printed on the recording medium 6. Further, when the head unit 4 is reciprocating by the LED 16, the UV ink discharged to the recording medium 6 is cured by constantly irradiating ultraviolet rays to the opposite location on the upper surface of the recording medium 6.

At this time, air between the fins of the heat sink 17 is sucked in by the cooling fan 20, and the filter 18 that contacts the side surface of the heat sink 17 on the carriage 10 side as shown in FIG.
Through the air, the air in the duct 13 is sucked from the outlet 15 side of the duct 13. Then, air containing ink mist drifting below the carriage 10 is sucked from the suction port 14 side of the duct 13, and the ink mist is adsorbed to the filter 18 facing the discharge port 15 of the duct 13.

That is, the present inventor needs to have a large power supply device capable of generating a high voltage when an ink mist removing mechanism using a high voltage is applied to the inkjet printing apparatus.
I discovered that the device configuration would be large and complex.
On the other hand, by removing the ink mist by providing the carriage 10 with a duct 13 in which a suction port 14 is formed on the surface facing the recording medium 6 and a discharge port 15 is formed in a region where the cooling fan 20 sucks air. It was found that the mechanism can be realized with a relatively simple configuration.

As described above, in this embodiment, the head unit 4 in FIG. 2 constitutes the head unit described in the claims, and similarly, the recording head 12 in FIG. 2 constitutes the recording head, and the carriage 10 in FIG. 2 constitutes a light irradiation part, the cooling fan 20 in FIG. 2 constitutes a cooling fan, the duct 13 in FIG. 2 constitutes a duct, and the heat sink 17 in FIG. Constitutes a heat sink, and the filter 18 of FIG. 2 constitutes the filter.

<Action and effect>
(1) As described above, in the present embodiment, the duct 13 having the suction port 14 formed in the surface facing the recording medium 6 and the discharge port 15 formed in the region where the cooling fan 20 sucks air is provided. It was provided inside the carriage 10. Therefore, the air in the duct 13 is sucked into the cooling fan 20 from the discharge port 15, so that the air around the recording head 12 is discharged from the suction port 14 to the duct 1.
3 flows in. Therefore, even if ink mist is generated during ink ejection, air including ink mist drifting around the recording head 12 can be sucked by the duct 13. That is, the cooling fan 20 can also be used for ink mist removal, and the ink mist removal mechanism can be realized with a relatively simple configuration.

FIG. 7 is a configuration diagram showing a configuration of a modified example of the head unit, and FIG.
It is a block diagram which shows the structure of 2. FIG.
In the present embodiment, an example in which the carriage 10 is formed by one component has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, a carriage main body 21 in which the recording head 12 is arranged and a solid plate 22 in which a duct 13 is formed are provided.
The carriage 10 may be formed by arranging the solid plate 22 so as to sandwich the frame. As shown in FIG. 8, the solid plate 22 is formed by cutting the duct 13 in a solid plate-like member.

Moreover, the air between the fins of the heat sink 17 is sucked by the cooling fan 20, and the heat sink 17 is cooled to cool the LED 16, and the discharge port 15 of the duct 13 is formed on the side surface of the heat sink 17. However, it is not limited to this. For example, without providing the heat sink 17, the air between the LEDs 16 is sucked by the cooling fan 20, and the LED 16
The LED 16 may be cooled directly with air flowing in between. When the LED 16 is directly cooled, a flow path connecting the LED 16 and the cooling fan 20, that is, the LED 16.
You may form the suction inlet 14 of the duct 13 in the flow path through which the air inhaled from flows.
Further, although an example has been shown in which the cooling fan 20 is always in an operating state when UV ink is ejected, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, when the airflow generated by the cooling fan 20 affects the UV ink ejection curve, the cooling fan 20 is stopped or the number of revolutions of the cooling fan 20 is reduced at the moment when UV ink is ejected. May be.

Furthermore, in the present embodiment, an example in which the present invention is applied to configure a serial head type ink jet printing apparatus is shown, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, while ejecting ink from the recording head 12 of the carriage 10 provided over the entire width of the recording medium 6,
A line head type inkjet printing apparatus that conveys the recording medium 6 in a direction perpendicular to the carriage 10 and prints on the recording medium 6 can also be configured.
Moreover, although the example which prints with the UV ink hardened | cured by ultraviolet irradiation was shown, it is not restricted to this. For example, the ink may be cured by irradiation with light other than ultraviolet rays such as electron beams, X-rays, visible rays, and infrared rays. In addition, when using the ink hardened | cured with light other than an ultraviolet-ray, it replaces with LED16 and uses the light source which irradiates the light.

(2) A filter 18 that adsorbs ink mist and allows only air to pass through is replaced with a heat sink 17.
The discharge port 15 of the duct 13 was formed on the surface of the carriage 10 facing the filter 18. Further, air between the fins of the heat sink 17 is sucked by the cooling fan 20 and air is introduced between the fins through the filter 18 so that the air between the fins is forcibly convected. Therefore, when the air discharged from the discharge port 15 passes through the filter 18, the ink mist contained in the air can be adsorbed and collected by the filter 18.
(3) Furthermore, the filter 18 has a finer portion in contact with the other surface than the portion in contact with the surface of the heat sink 17 facing the discharge port 15. Therefore, a large amount of air can be caused to flow between the fins of the heat sink 17 from the surface facing the discharge port 15, and the cooling fan 20 can efficiently suck the air in the duct 13 from the discharge port 15 side.

Second Embodiment
Next, 2nd Embodiment of this invention is described based on drawing.
<Configuration>
FIG. 9 is a configuration diagram showing the configuration of the head unit 4 of the second embodiment.
In the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 9, a plate protruding toward the recording medium 6 along the edge portion of the edge portion of the suction port 14 of the duct 13 at the edge portion far from the recording head 12. 23 is different from the first embodiment.
That is, the plate 23 is a plate member extending along the medium conveyance direction, and the upper end is fixed to the edge portion of the suction port 14 far from the recording head 12 along the edge portion, and the lower end is the recording head. It is inclined to the 12 side (the center side of the carriage 10).

<Action and effect>
As described above, in this embodiment, the plate 23 protruding toward the recording medium 6 along the edge portion is disposed on the edge portion of the duct 13 far from the recording head 12. Therefore, the ink mist can be blocked by the plate 23, the concentration of the ink mist contained in the air sucked by the duct 13 can be increased, and as a result, the ink mist can be sucked efficiently.
Incidentally, in the case where the edge portion of the duct 13 is not provided with the plate 23, the ink mist diffuses over a wide area, and the concentration of the ink mist contained in the air sucked by the duct 13 is lowered. Inhalation efficiency may be reduced.

<Third Embodiment>
Next, 3rd Embodiment of this invention is described based on drawing.
<Configuration>
FIG. 10 is a configuration diagram showing the configuration of the head unit 4 of the third embodiment.
In the third embodiment, as shown in FIG. 10, when the head unit 4 reciprocates, the rotation speed of the cooling fan 20 on the moving direction side of the head unit 4 is set to the rotation of the cooling fan 20 on the opposite side to the moving direction. The point which made it lower than a number differs from the said 1st Embodiment.

That is, when the head unit 4 moves in the right direction on the basis of the position facing the head unit 4 in the medium conveyance direction, the number of rotations of the right cooling fan 20 is predetermined by the controller 5. Lower than the reference speed. Further, when the head unit 4 moves in the left direction, the controller 5 reduces the rotational speed of the cooling fan 20 on the left side from the reference rotational speed. At this time, the rotation speed of the cooling fan 20 opposite to the moving direction of the head unit 4 is maintained at a predetermined reference rotation speed.
As described above, in the present embodiment, the medium feeding mechanism 2 in FIG. 1 constitutes the medium feeding mechanism described in the claims, and similarly, the head scanning mechanism 3 in FIG. 1 constitutes the head scanning mechanism. The controller 5 constitutes a control means.

<Action and effect>
Thus, in the present embodiment, the head unit 4 is reciprocated when the head unit 4 reciprocates.
The rotational speed of the cooling fan 20 on the moving direction side is set to be lower than the rotational speed of the cooling fan 20 on the opposite side to the moving direction. Therefore, when the head unit 4 moves, the concentration of ink mist near the suction port 14 on the opposite side to the moving direction of the head unit 4 increases, and the ink mist flows in the opposite direction to the moving direction of the head unit 4. The concentration of ink mist can be further increased. As a result, the suction port 1 on the side opposite to the moving direction of the head unit 4
4, the ink mist can be sucked in efficiently.
Incidentally, in the case where the number of rotations of the cooling fan 20 is always constant, the ink mist flows in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the head unit 4, but the cooling fan 20 on the moving direction side of the head unit 4 Ink mist also flows in the moving direction of the head unit 4.
For this reason, the concentration of ink mist in the vicinity of the suction port 14 on the side opposite to the moving direction of the head unit 4 is lowered, and as a result, the ink mist suction efficiency may be lowered.

<Fourth embodiment>
FIG. 11 is a configuration diagram showing the configuration of the head unit 4 of the fourth embodiment.
In the fourth embodiment, as shown in FIG. 11, each duct 13 includes a shutter 24 that closes the suction port 14. When the head unit 4 reciprocates, the suction port 14 of the duct 13 on the moving direction side of the head unit 4 is provided. The difference from the first embodiment is that the shutter 24 is closed.
Then, when the head unit 4 moves to the right with reference to the position facing the head unit 4 in the medium conveyance direction, the suction port 14 of the left duct 13 is opened by the shutter 24 by the controller 5. The suction port 14 of the right duct 13 is closed by the shutter 24. When the head unit 4 moves leftward, the suction port 14 of the right duct 13 is opened by the shutter 24 while the suction port 14 of the left duct 13 is closed by the shutter 24 by the controller 5. .

Here, the shutter 24 is formed in each suction port 14 by a flat plate slightly larger than the suction port 14 of the duct 13, and covers the lower surface of the suction port 14 when the suction port 14 is closed,
When the suction port 14 is opened, it slides away from the recording head 12.
As described above, in the present embodiment, the medium feeding mechanism 2 in FIG. 1 constitutes the medium feeding mechanism described in the claims, and similarly, the head scanning mechanism 3 in FIG. 1 constitutes the head scanning mechanism. The controller 5 and the shutter 24 in FIG. 11 constitute a closing means.

<Action and effect>
Thus, in the present embodiment, the head unit 4 is reciprocated when the head unit 4 reciprocates.
The suction port 14 of the duct 13 on the moving direction side is closed with a shutter 24 (set to a closed state). Therefore, when the head unit 4 moves, the concentration of ink mist near the suction port 14 on the opposite side to the moving direction of the head unit 4 increases, and the ink mist flows in the opposite direction to the moving direction of the head unit 4. The concentration of ink mist can be further increased. As a result, the ink mist can be efficiently sucked through the suction port 14 on the opposite direction side.

By the way, in the case where the suction port 14 of the duct 13 is always open, the ink mist flows in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the head unit 4, but the cooling fan 20 on the moving direction side of the head unit 4 Ink mist also flows in the moving direction of the head unit 4.
For this reason, the concentration of ink mist in the vicinity of the suction port 14 on the side opposite to the moving direction of the head unit 4 is lowered, and as a result, the ink mist suction efficiency may be lowered.
In the present embodiment, the duct 13 is closed by closing the suction port 14 of the duct 13.
Although the example which makes a closed state was shown, it is not restricted to this. For example, the discharge port 15 of the duct 13 may be closed, or the middle part of the duct 13 may be closed.

1 is an inkjet printing apparatus, 2 is a medium feeding mechanism, 3 is a head scanning mechanism, 4 is a head unit, 5 is a controller, 6 is a recording medium, 7 is a stage, 8 is a feed axis, 9 is a head scanning axis, and 10 is a carriage. , 11 is a light source unit, 12 is a recording head, 13 is a duct, 14 is a suction port, 15 is a discharge port, 16 is an LED, 17 is a heat sink, 18 is a filter,
19 is a filter fixing jig, 20 is a cooling fan, 21 is a carriage body, 22 is a solid plate, 23 is a plate, and 24 is a shutter.

Claims (3)

A recording head for ejecting ink toward the recording medium;
A light irradiation section for irradiating and curing the ink attached to the recording medium;
A heat radiating part capable of radiating heat generated by the light irradiation part;
A fan that generates an air flow capable of cooling the heat dissipating part;
Said recording head and has a arranged inlet between the light irradiation unit, the fan by the light irradiating unit and a mist and air in the ink generated in the recording head around sucked from the suction port A duct that can be led to the heat radiating part without being directly touched,
A printing apparatus comprising:   The heat dissipating part has a base and a plurality of fins, the light irradiation part has an LED, and the LED is disposed on the recording medium side opposite to the plurality of fins with the base interposed therebetween. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein heat generated by the LED is transmitted to the plurality of fins through the base and radiated through the plurality of fins.   The printing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the duct is capable of guiding air sucked from the suction port by the fan so as to flow between the plurality of fins.

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