JP6556021B2 - Liquid ejection device and method for replacing the liquid ejection head - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a liquid discharge apparatus capable of replacing a liquid discharge head and a method for replacing the liquid discharge head.

  For example, a liquid ejection apparatus that records on a recording medium by ejecting liquid from an ejection port provided in the liquid ejection head holds the liquid to be ejected from the ejection port in, for example, a tank, and is held in the tank The liquid is supplied to the liquid discharge head. A typical example of the liquid ejecting apparatus is an ink jet recording apparatus. The ink jet recording apparatus holds a recording liquid, which is a liquid to be ejected, in a recording liquid tank, for example, and discharges the ink provided to the ink jet recording head, which is a liquid ejecting head. The recording liquid is discharged from the outlet. The ink jet recording head is also simply called a recording head. In an ink jet recording apparatus, for example, a recording head is mounted on a carriage, and recording is performed on the recording medium by discharging a recording liquid from the recording head while moving the carriage relative to the recording medium.

  In an inkjet recording apparatus, a tube supply system that enables recording on a large amount of recording medium while reducing the replacement frequency of the recording liquid is known as one of the recording liquid supply systems to the recording head. In the tube supply method, the recording liquid is supplied through a flexible tube from a recording liquid tank provided in the apparatus main body to a recording head that reciprocates relative to the apparatus main body. In addition to fixing means for mounting and fixing the recording head on the carriage, the inkjet recording apparatus using the tube supply method requires a joint mechanism as a flow path connecting portion for connecting the recording liquid supply tube to the recording head. Become. Here, the ink jet recording apparatus has been described as an example, but the tube supply method can be applied to a liquid ejecting apparatus other than the ink jet recording apparatus, and in that case, a joint for connecting the liquid supply tube to the liquid ejecting head. A mechanism is required.

  In an ink jet recording apparatus, since it may be necessary to replace the recording head in order to maintain recording quality, the recording head may be replaced by a user. However, when the user himself / herself replaces the recording head, there is a possibility that the replacement will not be performed in the correct procedure, or the user may perform an erroneous operation at an unintended timing. For example, when a recording medium such as printing paper is jammed inside the ink jet recording apparatus, the user opens the apparatus cover to try to eliminate the jamming, and erroneously operates the joint mechanism operation unit at that time. It is possible. When such an erroneous operation is performed, the recording liquid filled in the recording liquid supply system such as the recording liquid supply tube may scatter, and the recording liquid such as ink may adhere to the user or the printed matter. In some cases, a significant amount of recording liquid leaks from the recording liquid supply system, which may damage or break the components of the ink jet recording apparatus and the recording head.

  Patent Document 1 discloses an ink jet recording apparatus in which leakage of a recording liquid and damage to a machine body are reduced when a recording head is replaced by providing a mechanical interlock mechanism that prevents an erroneous operation during replacement or removal of the recording head. doing. The ink jet recording apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 is capable of supplying ink from an ink storage unit via an ink channel unit and a channel coupling unit to the recording head, and the channel coupling unit is coupled to the recording head. It is configured so that it can be disconnected. In this ink jet recording apparatus, by adopting a mechanism capable of mechanically restricting the operation of the flow path connecting portion, the operator carelessly records the flow path connecting portion while ink is being supplied. The head cannot be removed.

JP 2012-511146 A

  The technique described in Patent Document 1 can reduce recording liquid leakage and damage to the machine body due to erroneous operation of recording head replacement, but requires a mechanical interlock mechanism, and thus an inkjet that does not include such a mechanism. Not applicable to recording devices. In addition, since the operation of the flow path connecting portion is regulated by the interlock mechanism, a complicated procedure is required for replacing the recording head, and even if the recording head replacement is really necessary, the procedure is performed. If it is not implemented, the recording head cannot be replaced, which is not convenient. The technique described in Patent Document 1 can be applied to liquid ejection apparatuses other than the ink jet recording apparatus, and can realize reduction of liquid leakage and damage to the machine body due to erroneous operation of liquid ejection head replacement. However, even when the technique of Patent Document 1 is applied to a general liquid ejecting apparatus, there still remains a problem that a mechanical interlock mechanism is required and the convenience is not good.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a liquid that can prevent liquid leakage and the like without using a special mechanical mechanism and without impairing the convenience of replacing the liquid discharge head, thereby preventing erroneous operation during replacement of the liquid discharge head. It is an object of the present invention to provide an ejection device and a method for replacing the liquid ejection head.

  A liquid ejection apparatus according to the present invention includes a carriage that is movable with respect to a recording medium, a liquid ejection head that is replaceably mounted on the carriage, a liquid tank that stores liquid ejected from the liquid ejection head, A liquid flow path for supplying liquid from the liquid tank to the liquid discharge head, an air communication path communicating with the liquid tank, a blocking means for blocking at least one of the air communication path and the liquid flow path, and a first operation by the user. The first detection means for detecting, the second detection means for detecting the second and third operations by the user, and the replacement required state in which the liquid ejection head must be replaced when the first operation is detected If the replacement is necessary, a process for making the liquid discharge head replaceable is executed. If the replacement is not necessary, the second operation is detected and the user is prompted. Waiting a third operation by executing the processing for prompting the operation of the blocking means Te has a control means for executing processing for an exchange ready liquid discharge head after detecting a third operation, the.

  The liquid discharge head replacement method of the present invention includes a carriage that is movable with respect to a recording medium, a liquid discharge head that is replaceably mounted on the carriage, and a liquid that contains liquid discharged from the liquid discharge head. Method of replacing liquid discharge head in liquid discharge apparatus having tank, liquid flow path for supplying liquid from liquid tank to liquid discharge head, atmospheric communication path communicating with liquid tank, and blocking means for blocking atmospheric communication path The step of determining whether or not the liquid discharge head needs to be replaced when the first operation by the user is detected, and replacing the liquid discharge head when the result of the determination indicates that the replacement is necessary If it is determined that the state is not necessary and the replacement is not necessary, after the second operation by the user is detected, the user operates the blocking means. And a step of waiting for the third operation by the user after the step of executing the process of urging the operation of the shut-off means, and making the liquid discharge head replaceable after detecting the third operation. .

  According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent an erroneous operation in replacing the liquid discharge head and reduce liquid leakage without using a special mechanical mechanism and without impairing the convenience of replacing the liquid discharge head. become.

It is a perspective view which shows the outline | summary of a liquid discharge apparatus. It is a perspective view which shows the outline | summary of a liquid supply path | route. It is a schematic diagram showing a height relationship between a liquid tank and a liquid discharge head in the liquid discharge apparatus. It is a perspective view which shows the liquid discharge apparatus at the time of replacement | exchange of a liquid discharge head. It is a perspective view which shows the outline | summary of a valve unit. It is a perspective view which shows operation | movement of the internal components of the valve unit at the time of valve closing operation. It is a block diagram which shows the whole system containing a liquid discharge apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the process in 1st Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the process in 2nd Embodiment.

  Next, modes for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The same reference numerals denote the same members or corresponding parts throughout the drawings. Here, as an example, it is assumed that the liquid ejecting apparatus is configured as an ink jet recording apparatus that performs recording by ejecting a recording liquid such as ink onto a recording medium. Accordingly, the liquid discharge head is an ink jet recording head, and includes an ink jet head cartridge, an ink jet head, an ink jet cartridge, an ink cartridge, a pen cartridge, and the like. Of course, the liquid ejection apparatus according to the present invention is not limited to the ink jet recording apparatus.

  1A and 1B show a liquid ejection apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 1A is a perspective view showing an appearance, and FIG. 1B is a perspective view showing an outline of an internal mechanism portion. As shown in FIG. 1A, the liquid ejection device 11 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped outer shape by the housing 30. On the upper surface of the housing 30, an access door 31 for accessing an internal mechanism portion, particularly the liquid discharge head 13, and an openable and closable paper feed tray cover 34 are provided. FIG. 1A shows a state where both the access door 31 and the paper feed tray 34 are closed. Furthermore, an operation display unit 32 is provided on the upper surface of the housing 30 to display information for the user and to input a command for the liquid ejection apparatus 11 from the user. The operation display unit 32 includes a display element such as an LED (light emitting diode) and an input element such as a push button. In particular, the input element includes a resume button 36 which is a push button.

  FIG. 1B shows the liquid ejection apparatus 11 with the housing 30 removed. The liquid ejection device 11 includes a liquid ejection head 13 that is exchangeably held by the carriage 12, a liquid flow path 14 that supplies the liquid to be ejected to the liquid ejection head 13, and a plurality of liquids that contain the liquid to be ejected. A liquid tank 15. The liquid tank 15 can be replenished with liquid as will be described later, and the upper surface of the liquid tank 15 is covered with an openable tank cover 33. A valve unit 24 described later is also provided adjacent to the liquid tank 15. Further, the liquid ejection device 11 is provided with a paper feed roller (not shown), a transport roller 16 and a paper discharge roller (not shown) as a configuration for feeding and transporting a recording medium. The carriage 12 is guided by a rail 18 attached to the chassis 17 of the liquid ejection device 11, is driven by a carriage motor described later, and reciprocates in the X direction in the drawing. Thereby, the carriage 12 can move relative to the recording medium. On the other hand, the liquid tank 15 is fixed to the chassis 17.

  FIG. 2 shows only components constituting the liquid flow path from the liquid tank 15 to the liquid discharge head 13 in the liquid discharge apparatus 11 shown in FIG. Here, it is assumed that the liquid ejecting apparatus 11 is an ink jet recording apparatus, and the liquid to be ejected is a recording liquid of each color, specifically, four color recording liquids of black ink, cyan ink, magenta ink, and yellow ink. is there. Therefore, four liquid tanks 15 are provided: a black tank 151, a cyan tank 152, a magenta tank 153, and a yellow tank 154. Each liquid tank 15 is provided with a tube constituting the liquid flow passage 14 and a tube forming an air communication passage 25 for communicating the inside of the liquid tank 15 with the atmosphere. The other end of the atmosphere communication path 25 is an atmosphere opening 23 (see FIG. 3) opened to the atmosphere. The liquid discharge head 13 is mounted on the carriage 12 and reciprocates in the X direction shown in the figure, whereas the liquid tank 15 is fixed to the chassis 17, so that the tube constituting the liquid flow path 14 is reciprocated by the carriage. It must have the length and flexibility to follow. A liquid inlet 21 is provided as an opening above each liquid tank 15, and a tank cap 22 is attached to the liquid inlet 21. The user can inject liquid into the liquid tank 15 as necessary by opening the tank cover 33 and removing the tank cap 22.

  A valve having a valve for blocking communication of liquid or air between the liquid tank 15 and the liquid discharge head 13 in the liquid flow passage 14 and between the liquid tank 15 and the atmosphere opening 23 in the atmosphere communication passage 25. A unit 24 is provided. As the valve unit 24, there are provided a black side valve unit 24 (right side in the figure) and a color side valve unit 24 (left side in the figure). The black side valve blocks the ink flow path and the atmosphere communication path 25 connected to the black tank 151. On the other hand, the color side valve unit 24 blocks the ink flow path and the atmosphere communication path 25 connected to each of the cyan tank 152, the magenta tank 153, and the yellow tank 154. In the figure, two liquid ejection heads 13 are provided, namely, a black liquid ejection head 13 (right side in the figure) and a color liquid ejection head 13 (left side in the figure). Black ink is supplied to the black liquid discharge head 13, and cyan ink, magenta ink, and yellow ink are supplied to the color liquid discharge head 13.

  FIG. 3 shows the positional relationship between the liquid tank 15 and the liquid discharge head 13, particularly in the vertical direction. In the liquid discharge apparatus, in order to prevent the liquid from flowing down from the discharge port 51 provided in the liquid discharge head 13 and dripping down, a negative pressure (in the direction of drawing toward the liquid multiple discharge head side) is applied to the liquid surface at the discharge port 51. Pressure). Therefore, in this liquid ejection device 11, the gas-liquid exchange position 52 of the liquid tank 15 is provided at a position lower by H in the figure than the ejection port 51 of the liquid ejection head 13. That is, a configuration is adopted in which a negative pressure is applied to the discharge port 51 by a water head difference corresponding to the height H. Hm in the figure indicates a water head between the discharge port 51 and the liquid level in the accommodating portion 54 in the liquid tank 15. In addition, a space called a buffer chamber 53 is provided below the liquid tank 15. The buffer chamber 53 can store the ejected ink when the air in the liquid inlet 21 and the liquid storage portion 54 of the liquid tank 15 expands due to atmospheric pressure fluctuation or temperature change. Through this, liquid is prevented from leaking from the liquid tank 15.

  FIG. 4 illustrates a procedure for replacing the liquid ejection head 13 in the liquid ejection apparatus 11. When replacing the liquid discharge head 13, the user can access by opening the access cover 31 and the paper feed tray cover 34 provided on the housing 30 of the liquid discharge apparatus 11 and opening the access cover 31. Open the tank cover 33. By opening the tank cover 33, the supply of liquid to the liquid discharge head 13 is blocked by the valve unit 24 as will be described below, and the air flow in the atmosphere communication path 25 is also blocked. The user accesses the inside of the liquid ejecting apparatus 11 through the opening by the access cover 31 and replaces the liquid ejecting head 13 in a state where the supply of the liquid is shut off. In addition, since the cover plate 35 is provided so as to cover the carriage 12 at both ends of the reciprocating range of the carriage 12 (on the back side of each liquid tank 15 in FIG. 4), when the carriage 12 is at this position, the user The carriage 12 cannot be operated. When the carriage 12 is at both ends of the reciprocating movement range, the liquid discharge head 13 cannot be replaced.

  Next, the configuration of the valve unit 24 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5A is a perspective view showing the valve unit 24, and FIG. 5B is an exploded perspective view of the valve unit 24. The valve unit 24 is configured to sandwich a tube 81 that constitutes the liquid flow path 14 and the atmosphere communication path 25, and includes a holding member 82, a displacement member 83, and a cam member 84. The holding member 82 holds the tube 81. The displacement member 83 is movable in the Z direction in the figure and can crush the tube 81 to close the tube 81. The cam member 84 has a cam surface that rubs against the displacement member 83 and a lever-shaped locking portion 86 (FIG. 6). When the locking portion 86 is fitted to the tank cover 33, the tank cover 33 is locked. When the user opens the tank cover 33, the tank cover 33 rotates around its end, but the cam member 84 is movable in the direction of rotation of the tank cover 33. The cover member 85 covers the valve unit 24, is fixed to the holding member 82, and supports the cam member 84 rotatably.

  6A and 6B show an operation in which the valve unit 24 closes the liquid flow passage 14 and the atmosphere communication passage 25. FIG. 6A shows the valve open state, and FIG. 6B shows the transition from the valve open state to the valve closed state. A process is shown, (c) has shown the valve obstruction | occlusion state. Since the cam member 84 is locked to the tank cover 33 by the locking portion 86, the direction of the locking portion 86 in FIG. 6 indicates the direction of the tank cover 33. In addition, an angle θ in the figure indicates an angle formed by the tangential plane of the cam surface and the Z direction at a position where the cam surface of the cam member 84 and the displacement member 83 are in contact with each other. As shown in FIG. 6A, when the displacement member 83 is in a valve open state where the tube 81 is not crushed, the tank cover 33 is in a substantially horizontal state. When the tank cover 33 is opened as shown in FIG. 4 from this state, the cam member 84 rotates counterclockwise in FIG. As a result, as shown in FIG. 6B, the convex portion of the cam surface of the cam member 84 with respect to the rotation center comes into contact with the displacement member 83, and the displacement member 83 is displaced in the −Z direction. The tube 81 is crushed. When the tank cover 33 is completely opened, as shown in FIG. 6C, the cam member 84 further rotates and the displacement member 83 further displaces toward the tube 81, whereby the tube 81 is sufficiently crushed. Thus, both the liquid flow passage 14 and the atmosphere communication passage 25 are closed. When the opened tank cover 33 is closed, the cam member 84 rotates clockwise in FIG. 6, so that the displacement member 83 is displaced in the + Z direction, and the tube 81 returns to its original shape. . By returning the tube 81 to its original shape, liquid and air can flow through the liquid flow passage 14 and the atmosphere communication passage 25, respectively. In the liquid ejection device 11, the liquid flow path 14 and the atmosphere communication path 24 can be shut off in conjunction with the opening and closing of the tank cover 33 in this manner, so that liquid can be supplied to the liquid tank 15 and the liquid ejection head 13 can be replaced. It is possible to prevent leakage of liquid at the time. Therefore, the tank cover 33 and the valve unit 24 correspond to a blocking means that blocks at least one of the atmosphere communication path 25 and the liquid flow path 14 in cooperation.

  Next, the configuration of the control system of the liquid ejection device 11 will be described with reference to FIG. The liquid discharge apparatus 11 configured as an ink jet recording apparatus discharges liquid from the discharge port of the liquid discharge head 13 in accordance with recording data from an external host computer 214. In the host computer 214, a printer driver 2141 is installed as software. The printer driver 2141 executes a process of collecting print information such as a print image and print image quality as print data and communicating with the liquid ejecting apparatus 11 when the execution of the print operation is instructed by the user.

  The liquid ejection apparatus 11 is provided with an interface (I / F) unit 213 that is connected to the host computer 214 and exchanges recording data and the like. The interface unit 213 is connected with an MPU (microprocessor unit) 201. Yes. The MPU 201 is a processor that controls the operation of each unit of the liquid ejecting apparatus 11, data processing, and the like, and functions as a control unit. Connected to the MPU 201 are a ROM (Read Only Memory) 202, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 203 functioning as a storage unit, a liquid ejection head driver 207, a carriage motor driver 208, a transport motor driver 209, and an operation display unit 32. Furthermore, a signal indicating the open / closed state of the access cover 31 is input to the MPU 201 from a sensor 210 provided on the housing 30 at a position where the access cover 31 abuts. The ROM 201 stores programs and data executed by the MPU 201, and in particular, a program for executing image processing is stored as the image processing unit 2021. The RAM 203 temporarily stores data used for processing executed by the MPU 201 and data received from the host computer 214. The liquid ejection head driver 207 generates a signal for driving each ejection energy generating element (not shown) in the liquid ejection head 13 under the control of the MPU 201 and drives the liquid ejection head 13. The carriage motor driver 208 controls the carriage motor 204 that drives the carriage 12 under the control of the MPU 201. The transport motor driver 209 drives and controls the paper feed roller, the transport roller 16, and the discharge roller under the control of the MPU 201.

  Next, on the premise of the above-described configuration, problems to be solved by the present invention will be described. In the liquid ejection apparatus 11 described above, the liquid ejection head 13 and the liquid tank 15 are connected by a tube 81, and a liquid such as a recording liquid exists in the tube 81 during normal operation. In addition, when a problem occurs in the liquid discharge head 13 and recording cannot be performed normally, the user needs to replace the liquid discharge head 13. However, if the liquid discharge head 13 is removed without blocking at least one of the atmosphere communication path 25 and the liquid flow path 14 in a situation where the liquid is present in the tube 81, the reverse flow of the liquid in the liquid flow path 14 or the liquid There is concern about leakage. If a liquid leak occurs, the aircraft may be damaged. Moreover, since it is necessary to fill the liquid flow path 14 again with the liquid backflow after that, it leads to wasteful consumption of the liquid, resulting in a disadvantage for the user. As a solution to this problem, there is a method of realizing erroneous operation prevention by replacing the liquid discharge head with a mechanical interlock configuration, but it is not easy to realize with the configuration of the liquid discharge apparatus 11 described above. Hereinafter, replacement of the liquid discharge head is also simply referred to as “head replacement”. Moreover, regarding the case where at least one of the atmosphere communication path 25 and the liquid flow path 14 for preventing liquid leakage is blocked, a case where the atmosphere communication path 25 is blocked will be described as an example.

  Therefore, in the liquid ejection device 11, in response to a plurality of user operations for head replacement, the carriage 12 is moved to a position different from the head replacement position, thereby prompting the user to shut off the atmosphere communication path 25. Like that. Here, when the user performs a blocking operation, the atmospheric communication path 25 is blocked before the carriage 12 is moved to the head replacement position, and the problem of preventing liquid leakage due to an erroneous operation is solved. However, requiring the user to perform a plurality of operations even in a situation where the liquid ejection device 11 itself does not operate properly unless the head is exchanged leads to a decrease in convenience. The situation in which the liquid ejection device 11 itself does not operate normally unless the head is replaced is a case where the liquid ejection device 11 as a whole has an error, for example, the liquid ejection head 13 is not attached. In such a case, even if the liquid is not supplied into the tube 81 and the liquid discharge head 13 is removed, there is no fear of liquid leakage or the like, so that the operation of the carriage 12 in response to a plurality of user operations is performed. There is no need to prompt the air communication passage 25 to be shut off. Conversely, if the user is requested to perform a complicated operation in order to prompt the air communication path 25 to be shut off, the convenience of the liquid ejection device 11 for the user is deteriorated. In the embodiment described below, this problem is solved, and an erroneous operation related to head replacement is prevented without providing a special mechanical configuration such as an interlock structure.

  Hereinafter, as a first embodiment, the replacement of the liquid ejection head 13 in the liquid ejection apparatus 11 described above will be described in detail. Here, a method for preventing liquid leakage by prompting the user to shut off the atmosphere communication path 25 by the operation of the carriage 12, and a method for replacing the liquid ejection head when it is not necessary to prompt the shut-off operation of the atmosphere communication path 25, Will be described in order. The case where the head replacement is necessary described here is an error when the liquid ejection head 13 is not attached or when the liquid ejection head 13 cannot be recognized on the MPU 201 side due to a failure of the liquid ejection head 13 or the like. Refers to the state. A state in which the head needs to be replaced is called a replacement required state. Here, the head replacement includes mounting a new liquid discharge head 13 on the carriage 12 when the liquid discharge head 13 is not mounted. In a state where replacement is necessary, the liquid discharge apparatus 11 does not operate normally, including operations that do not use the liquid discharge head 13 such as a scanning operation, unless the liquid discharge head is mounted or replaced. Need to be done. On the other hand, when the user replaces the head when the replacement is not necessary, an erroneous operation is performed by prompting the user to perform the shut-off operation of the atmosphere communication path 25 as a response to a plurality of user operations. Prevents liquid leakage due to As an example of exchanging the liquid ejection head in a state that is not necessary to be replaced, for example, the liquid ejection device 11 does not cause an error, but some abnormality occurred in the liquid ejection head, leading to problems such as undischarge. There are cases.

  First, a method for preventing an erroneous operation in head replacement without using a special mechanical configuration will be described. Here, a plurality of user operations are required to make the head replaceable, and the operation of the carriage 12 in response thereto prompts the user to shut off the atmosphere communication path 25, thereby preventing erroneous operations. . FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the replacement process of the liquid ejection head 13.

  In replacement of the liquid discharge head 13 when the liquid discharge apparatus 11 operates normally, in step 501, the user first performs an operation of opening the access cover 31 (see FIG. 4). This is the first operation performed by the user. Since the sensor 210 detects that the access cover 31 has been opened, the MPU 201 starts the processing shown in FIG. Therefore, the sensor 210 corresponds to a first detection unit that detects a first operation by the user. At this time, since the carriage 12 is not operated, the carriage 12 is positioned as a home position at the right end (position on the back surface of the right liquid tank 15 in FIG. 4) within the moving range of the carriage 12 that reciprocates. . Since this position is a position covered with the cover plate 35 as shown in FIG. 4, the user cannot operate the carriage 12, and therefore the liquid ejection head 13 may be removed carelessly. Is low. Since the opening / closing of the access cover 31 is detected by the sensor 210, when the carriage 12 exists at a position where the user can operate when the access cover 31 is opened, the carriage 12 is temporarily retracted to a position where the user cannot operate. You may let them.

  In step 502, the MPU 201 determines whether an error requiring head replacement is occurring. Here, since it is assumed that a normal operation is performed, the process proceeds to step 503 as it is, and the MPU 201 waits for a user operation. The user operation here is, for example, a long press (for example, 5 seconds or more) of a specific button (for example, the resume button 36) among the buttons provided on the operation display unit 32. This long press of the button is a second operation by the user. If the MPU 201 determines in step 503 that the second operation has been performed, in step 504, the MPU 201 notifies the user of the opening timing of the tank cover 33, that is, prompts the user to shut off the atmosphere communication path 25. The first operation is executed. The first operation here is to move the carriage 12 on which the liquid ejection head 13 is mounted to the left end of the reciprocating movement range. The MPU 201 drives the carriage motor 204 by the carriage motor driver 208 so as to move the carriage 12. As described above, the left end within the movement range of the carriage 12 is also a position where the user cannot operate the carriage 12. The movement operation of the carriage 12 is performed in order to prompt the user to open the tank cover 33 that shuts off the liquid flow path 14 and the atmosphere communication path 25 even in a configuration in which the display capability of the operation display unit 32 is poor. is there. Also in this first operation, the carriage 12 is moved to a position that cannot be operated by the user in order to prevent the liquid ejection head 13 from being removed before the atmospheric communication path 25 is blocked. In another example, the MPU 201 may display a message or the like using the LED or the liquid crystal display element of the operation display unit 32 instead of the movement operation with respect to the carriage, and prompt the user to perform a blocking operation. Alternatively, the MPU 201 may display a message on a display device (not shown) connected to the host computer 214 via the printer driver 2141 of the host computer 214 to prompt the user to perform a blocking operation.

  Subsequently, in step 505, the user confirms that the operation for blocking the atmosphere communication path 25 is prompted by the movement of the carriage 12, etc., and opens the tank cover 33 to block the ink flow path 14 and the atmosphere communication path 25. To do. In order to receive the notification that the tank cover 33 has been opened, the MPU 201 waits for a user operation in step 506. The user operation here is, for example, to press and hold a specific one of the buttons provided on the operation display unit 32 (for example, the resume button 36). The long press is to keep pressing the button for a certain time (for example, 5 seconds) or longer. This long press of the button is a third operation by the user. If it is determined in step 506 that the third operation has been performed, in step 507, the MPU 201 moves the carriage 12 to a position where the user can operate the carriage 12, that is, a position where the user can replace the head. Move. When the carriage 12 moves to a position where the head can be replaced, the user replaces the liquid ejection head 13, thereby completing the replacement of the liquid ejection head 13 in the liquid ejection apparatus 11 of the present embodiment. In the liquid ejecting apparatus 11, the user performs the first to third operations in order so that the ink flow path 14 and the atmosphere communication path 25 are blocked before the carriage 12 moves to a position where the head can be replaced. It is possible to suppress erroneous operations during replacement.

  Next, a method for replacing the liquid ejection head 13 when there is no concern about liquid leakage and the head needs to be replaced will be described. When there is a concern such as liquid leakage, as described above, a plurality of user operations are required, and an erroneous operation is suppressed by prompting the user to open the tank cover 33. On the other hand, when there is no concern about liquid leakage or the like, there is no need to prompt the user to shut off each of the liquid flow passage 14 and the atmospheric communication passage 25, so the user can easily replace the liquid discharge head 13 with a simple procedure. Let If there is no concern about liquid leakage and the head needs to be replaced, steps 501 and 502 are executed in the same manner as described above. In step 502, the MPU 201 determines that an error requiring head replacement occurs, and immediately transitions to step 507 to move the carriage 12 to a position where head replacement is possible. In a state where the head needs to be replaced, the user moves the carriage to a position where the head can be replaced simply by opening the access cover 31, and the user can easily replace the head with only one operation of opening the access cover 31. Can be done.

  In the above description, the first operation performed by the user is to open the access cover 31, but the first operation is not limited to this. When the liquid ejection device 11 includes, for example, an openable / closable scanner unit or an ADF (auto document feeder), an operation for opening the scanner unit or the ADF may be a first operation. The buttons used for the second and third operations correspond to second detection means for detecting the second and third operations by the user. However, the second detection means is not limited to the resume button 36, and a button dedicated to head replacement may be provided on the operation display unit 32 for use. Furthermore, a user operation on the host computer 214 may be handled as the second and third operations by the printer driver 2141 installed in the host computer 214.

  Next, as a second embodiment, a configuration that further suppresses an erroneous operation during head replacement will be described. In the liquid ejection device 11 of the present embodiment, a timeout time is set in addition to a plurality of user operations in the first embodiment. With this timeout time, when a user who wants to replace the head performs a part of the operation and then leaves the subsequent operation, the state is changed again to the state where the operation is necessary from the first stage. Thereby, in 2nd Embodiment, the misoperation by head replacement | exchange is further suppressed. FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing processing in the second embodiment. The process shown in FIG. 9 is obtained by adding steps 601 to 605 to the process shown in FIG.

  As in the case of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 8, in step 501, the first operation by the user, that is, the process starts when the access cover 31 is opened. In step 502, the MPU 201 determines whether an error that requires head replacement is occurring. If an error that requires head replacement has occurred, the process proceeds to step 507, and if normal operation is being performed, step MP507 is performed. 503. When the MPU 201 waits for the second operation by the user in step 503 and determines that the second operation has been performed, the MPU 201 prompts the user to open the tank cover 33 by moving the carriage 12 or the like in step 504. The first operation is executed. When returning from step 605, which will be described later, due to a time-out, the position of the carriage 12 is at the left end of the reciprocating movement range of the carriage 12, and in this case, the carriage 12 is moved to the home position side as the first operation. Move. The MPU 201 starts a timer simultaneously with the execution of the first operation for time-out determination. In step 505, the user opens the tank cover 33 in order to block the liquid flow passage 14 and the atmosphere communication passage 25.

  Next, the MPU 201 waits for a third operation by the user in order to receive a notification that the tank cover 33 has been opened. In the second embodiment, in step 601 following step 505, the MPU 201 determines whether or not a first timeout period (for example, 10 minutes) set in advance has elapsed. If the first time-out period has not elapsed, the MPU 201 determines whether the third operation has been performed in Step 506. If the third operation has not been performed, the MPU 201 returns to Step 601, and the third operation is performed. If so, the process proceeds to step 507. On the other hand, if the first timeout period has already elapsed in step 601, the process of the MPU 201 returns to step 503. In other words, if the user does not perform the third operation even after a predetermined time-out period has elapsed after prompting the user to block the atmosphere communication path 25 in response to the user's second operation, The process transitions to a state immediately before the state of waiting for the operation 2. This causes the user to re-execute from the second operation. In this case, since the user may not have opened the tank cover 33 yet, in this case, after waiting for the second operation from the user in step 503, the first operation is executed in step 504. Wait for the third operation.

  If an error that requires head replacement has not occurred and the third operation is performed in step 506, or if it is determined in step 502 that an error that requires head replacement is occurring, then step 507 is performed. Is executed. In step 507, as a second operation, the MPU 201 moves the carriage 12 to a position where the user can operate the carriage 12, that is, a position where the user can replace the head. Here, the user performs head replacement, but the MPU 201 starts a timer simultaneously with the execution of the second operation for time-out determination. In step 602, the MPU 201 determines whether or not the timer has exceeded a preset second timeout period (for example, 10 minutes). If the second timeout period has not elapsed, the MPU 201 determines in step 603 whether a predetermined termination condition is satisfied. The termination condition is a condition that the processing for head replacement may be terminated. For example, the liquid discharge head driver 207 detects that the head has been replaced, or the access cover 31 is closed. This is because the sensor 210 has detected this. When head replacement is detected or when it is detected that the access cover 31 is closed, the termination condition is satisfied, and this is not subject to timeout processing, so the MPU 201 performs processing related to head replacement as it is. Exit as it is. On the other hand, when the time-out occurs in step 602, the end condition is not satisfied within a predetermined time-out period, and the MPU 201 determines again in step 604 whether an error requiring head replacement is occurring. To do. If an error that requires head replacement continues, the process proceeds to step 603 where the MPU 201 confirms again whether an end condition is satisfied. Eventually, when an error that requires head replacement occurs continuously, it circulates in steps 602, 604, and 603, and the carriage 12 at the head replacement position does not move, so the user can perform head replacement as it is. It will be. When the head replacement is completed or the access cover 31 is closed, the head replacement process is completed. On the other hand, if an error that requires head replacement has not occurred in step 604, the MPU 201 returns the carriage 12 to the home position in step 605 to allow the user to re-execute from the second operation. Return to step 503. Here, the carriage 12 is moved to the home position so that the position of the carriage 12 cannot be operated by the user from the head replacement position.

  In the second embodiment, a time-out control is introduced, and when the user does not perform a predetermined operation for a certain time or more, the user performs an operation again, thereby further correcting an erroneous operation related to head replacement. Can be suppressed. On the other hand, when an error that requires head replacement has occurred, the user can replace the head without losing convenience by moving the carriage 12 to the head replacement position without performing time-out control. .

  In the liquid ejecting apparatus 11 of each embodiment described above, the user is prompted to perform the liquid supply shut-off operation, for example, by moving the carriage to a position other than the head replacement position without using a special mechanical mechanism. Can do. Thereby, it is possible to prevent an erroneous operation of replacing the liquid discharge head and to reduce liquid leakage. Further, when the head needs to be replaced, the convenience of the user in the head replacement can be improved by enabling the head replacement without prompting the liquid supply shut-off operation.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Liquid discharge apparatus 12 Carriage 13 Liquid discharge head 14 Liquid flow path 24 Valve unit 25 Atmospheric communication path 30 Housing 31 Access door 33 Tank cover 36 Resume button 201 MPU
210 Sensor

Claims (8)

A carriage movable relative to the recording medium;
A liquid discharge head mounted to be exchangeable with respect to the carriage;
A liquid tank for storing liquid discharged from the liquid discharge head;
A liquid flow path for supplying the liquid from the liquid tank to the liquid discharge head;
An atmospheric communication path communicating with the liquid tank;
Blocking means for blocking at least one of the atmosphere communication path and the liquid flow path;
First detecting means for detecting a first operation by a user;
Second detection means for detecting second and third operations by the user;
When the first operation is detected, it is determined whether or not the liquid discharge head needs to be replaced. When the replacement is necessary, the liquid discharge head is replaced. When the replacement is not necessary, a process for urging the user to operate the blocking means after detecting the second operation and waiting for the third operation is performed. Control means for executing processing for making the liquid discharge head replaceable after detecting an operation;
A liquid ejection apparatus having   When the control means does not detect the third operation even after a predetermined first time-out period has elapsed after executing the process for making the liquid discharge head replaceable, the control means sets the time-out as the time-out. The liquid ejection device according to claim 1, wherein the liquid ejection device transitions to a state immediately before detecting the operation of 2.   If the control means does not satisfy the end condition of the process even after a predetermined second time-out period has elapsed after executing the process for prompting the operation of the shut-off means, is the replacement necessary state? The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 2, wherein if it is determined whether the replacement is not necessary, the state transits to a state immediately before the second operation is detected as a timeout. An access cover for accessing the inside of the liquid ejection device;
The first detection means is a sensor for detecting opening and closing of the access cover, the first operation is to open the access cover, and the second detection means is for operating the liquid ejection device. The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the liquid ejecting apparatus is a button pressed by the user, and the second and third operations are both long presses of the button.   The process for prompting the operation of the shut-off means is that the liquid discharge head cannot be replaced from the first position where the liquid discharge head cannot be replaced within the carriage movement range, and the first The liquid ejecting apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the liquid ejecting apparatus is a process of moving the carriage to a second position different from the position.   6. The liquid according to claim 5, wherein the process of making the liquid discharge head replaceable is a process of moving the carriage to a position within the movement range of the carriage where the liquid discharge head can be replaced. Discharge device. A carriage movable with respect to the recording medium, a liquid discharge head mounted to be exchangeable with respect to the carriage, a liquid tank for storing liquid discharged from the liquid discharge head, and the liquid tank from the liquid tank A method of replacing a liquid discharge head in a liquid discharge apparatus, comprising: a liquid flow path for supplying the liquid to the discharge head; an atmosphere communication path communicating with the liquid tank; and a blocking means for blocking the atmosphere communication path.
Determining whether the liquid ejection head must be replaced when the first operation by the user is detected;
As a result of the determination, when the replacement is necessary, the step of making the liquid discharge head replaceable;
As a result of the determination, when the replacement is not necessary, a step of prompting the user to operate the blocking means after detecting a second operation by the user;
A step of waiting for a third operation by the user after the step of executing a process for urging the operation of the shut-off means, and making the liquid discharge head replaceable after detecting the third operation;
A method of replacing a liquid ejection head having After the step of prompting the operation of the shut-off means, if the third operation is not detected even if a predetermined first time-out time elapses, the state immediately before the step of prompting the operation of the shut-off means as a time-out is set. A transition process;
After the step of making the liquid discharge head replaceable, if the end condition is not satisfied even after a predetermined second time-out time has elapsed, it is determined whether the replacement is necessary. When not in the exchange-necessary state, a step of transitioning to a state immediately before the step of prompting the operation of the blocking means as a timeout;
The liquid discharge head replacement method according to claim 7, further comprising:

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