JP7516211B2 - Recording device and detection method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a recording device and a detection method.

In inkjet recording devices, which generally use replaceable ink tanks, it is important to inform the user before recording whether or not there is a risk of ink running out during the recording. In recording devices using a thermal inkjet recording method, a method is known in which the amount of remaining ink is determined by detecting the temperature change in the recording head before and after the heater is driven. As a method for estimating the amount of remaining ink based on the temperature change in the recording head, Patent Document 1 discloses a technology for determining the presence or absence of ink based on the result of comparing the ratio of the amount of temperature change in the recording head when thermal energy is applied to the ink such that ink is not ejected from the recording head to the amount of temperature change in the recording head when thermal energy is applied to the ink such that ink is ejected from the recording head, with a reference value.

Patent No. 3133866

However, in the method of determining the presence or absence of ink based on the temperature change of the print head described in JP-A-2003-133996, the presence or absence of liquid such as ink is determined based on the temperature change when thermal energy is applied to the entire print head, which causes a problem in that it is not possible to identify the areas where liquid is not being supplied to the ejection ports.
An object of the present invention is to provide a printing apparatus and a detection method that can identify a portion where liquid is not being supplied to the ejection ports.

The recording device of the present invention comprises:
A recording apparatus that uses a heater to apply thermal energy to a liquid and ejects the liquid from a plurality of ejection ports,
a discharge port forming member having the plurality of discharge ports;
a substrate on which the ejection port forming member is disposed;
a thermometer for measuring a temperature of the substrate;
a driving unit that drives the heaters corresponding to the plurality of ejection ports in groups of adjacent ejection ports;
a determination unit that determines, for each of the groups in which the heaters are driven, whether or not the liquid is being supplied to the ejection ports belonging to the group based on the temperature measured by the thermometer;
A recording apparatus comprising:

The present invention makes it possible to identify areas where liquid is not being supplied to the ejection port.

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing an inkjet recording apparatus. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the inkjet recording head shown in FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a control system of the inkjet printing apparatus shown in FIG. 1 . 2 is a drive timing chart and a drive block diagram of the heater shown in FIG. 1 . 11 is a graph showing a change in temperature over time due to driving of a heater. 1A and 1B are diagrams illustrating a first example of the state of an inkjet print head in which bubbles have occurred at the 11 is a flowchart illustrating a first example of a process for detecting the presence or absence of ink. 11A and 11B are diagrams illustrating a second example of the state of an inkjet print head in which bubbles have occurred 10 is a flowchart illustrating a second example of a process for detecting the presence or absence of ink.

The liquid ejection head can be mounted on devices such as printers, copiers, facsimiles with communication functions, word processors with printing functions, and industrial recording devices that are combined with various processing devices. Using this liquid ejection head, recording can be performed on various recording media (hereinafter referred to as media), such as paper, thread, fiber, cloth, leather, metal, plastic, glass, wood, and ceramics. The term "recording" used in this specification means not only the application of meaningful images such as characters and figures to a medium, but also the application of meaningless images such as patterns to a medium. In addition, the term "ink" should be interpreted broadly, and means a liquid that is applied to a medium to form an image, design, pattern, etc., process the medium, or treat the ink or medium. Here, the treatment required for the ink or medium refers to, for example, improvement of fixability by solidification or insolubilization of coloring materials in the ink applied to the medium, improvement of recording quality or color development, and improvement of image durability.
Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, components having the same functions are given the same reference numbers in the drawings, and the description thereof may be omitted.
(Inkjet recording device)

FIG. 1A is a schematic perspective view showing an inkjet recording apparatus (liquid ejection apparatus). 100 and 101 are recording heads integrally formed with an ink tank. The recording heads 100 and 101 are liquid ejection head units that can be mounted on an inkjet recording apparatus. The recording heads 100 and 101 are not limited to the ink tank integral recording heads shown in FIG. 1A, and may be configured to be separable from the ink tank. The ink tank on the recording head 100 side contains black ink, and the ink tank on the recording head 101 side contains cyan ink, magenta ink, and yellow ink. The configurations of the recording head 100 and the recording head 101 are the same except for the inks contained therein. The recording heads 100 and 101 are formed with a plurality of ejection openings 102 arranged corresponding to the inks of each color. 103 is a transport roller, and 104 is an auxiliary roller. The conveying roller 103 and the auxiliary roller 104 cooperate to rotate in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 1A while holding down the recording medium P, thereby conveying the recording medium P intermittently in the sub-scanning direction of the arrow Y. Reference numeral 105 denotes a paper feed roller, which not only feeds the recording medium P, but also plays a role of pinching and holding down the recording medium P, similar to the conveying roller 103 and the auxiliary roller 104. Reference numeral 106 denotes a carriage on which the recording heads 100 and 101 can be mounted, and which moves back and forth in the main scanning direction (X1, X2 directions) along the arrow X. When not recording or when performing a recovery operation of the recording heads 100 and 101, the carriage 106 moves to a home position h shown by a dashed line in FIG. 1A and waits. In the recording device of this embodiment, the maximum size of the recording medium that can be recorded is A4 size. Reference numeral 107 denotes a platen, which plays a role of stably supporting the recording medium P at the recording position. Reference numeral 108 denotes a carriage belt for moving the carriage 106 in the main scanning direction.
(Head unit)

Fig. 1(b) is a perspective view of the recording head 100 shown in Fig. 1(a). An inkjet recording head 121 as a liquid ejection head provided in the recording head 100 is electrically connected to a contact pad 124 that connects to an inkjet recording device via a flexible film wiring board 123. The recording head 100 shown in Fig. 1(b) has a configuration in which the inkjet recording head 121 and an ink tank 122 are integrated, but it may also be a separate type in which the ink tank 122 can be separated.
(Inkjet recording head)

2A is a perspective view of the inkjet recording head 121 shown in FIG. 1B. As shown in FIG. 2A, the inkjet recording head 121 shown in FIG. 1B has an inkjet recording head substrate 201 (hereinafter, substrate 201) as a substrate for a liquid ejection head, and an ejection port forming member 204 arranged on the substrate 201. The substrate 201 is provided with a heater 212 that generates thermal energy used to eject ink. The substrate 201 is also provided with a supply port 207 for supplying ink and a terminal (not shown) for electrical connection with an external device such as an inkjet recording device. The ejection port forming member 204 can be made of a cured product of a thermosetting resin such as epoxy resin, and has an ejection port 205 for ejecting liquid and a wall 204a of a pressure chamber 209 communicating with the ejection port 205. The pressure chamber 209 is provided by the ejection port forming member 204 being in contact with the substrate 201 with the wall 204a facing inward. The ejection ports 205 formed in the ejection port forming member 204 are arranged in a row at a predetermined pitch along the supply port 207 formed in the substrate 201. The heaters 212 are provided corresponding to the respective ejection ports 205.
Ink supplied from the supply port 207 is carried to the pressure chamber 209, where the ink undergoes film boiling due to thermal energy generated by the heater 212, generating bubbles. These bubbles cause ink to be ejected from the ejection port 205, thereby performing a recording operation. If bubbles are present at the inlet of the ejection port 205 or at the pressure chamber 209, the bubbles will prevent ink from being supplied to the ejection port 205, making it impossible to perform a normal recording operation. In addition, a thermometer 208 is provided on the substrate 201, and the thermometer 208 measures the temperature of the substrate 201 on which the ejection port forming member 204 is provided. The thermometer 208 is, for example, a diode sensor.

Figure 2(b) is a schematic diagram of the inkjet recording head 121 shown in Figure 2(a) as viewed from the direction A. A plurality of ejection ports 205 are arranged in each of the ejection port arrays 218 and 219. A heater 212 is provided below each of the ejection ports 205 to generate bubbles in the ink and eject the ink from the ejection port 205. In this manner, a plurality of ejection ports 205 are provided to form the ejection port arrays 218 and 219, and a plurality of heaters 212 are provided corresponding to each of the plurality of ejection ports 205. In this embodiment, the number of ejection ports 205 arranged on the ejection port arrays 218 and 219 is 600, the intervals between the ejection ports 205 are 1/600 inch, and the recording pixel density is configured to be 600 dpi.

Figure 3 is a block diagram of the control system of the inkjet recording device shown in Figure 1. The components of the control system shown in Figure 3 can be broadly divided into software control means and hardware processing means. The software control means includes processing means such as an image input unit 303 that accesses the main bus line 305, an image signal processing unit 304, and a CPU 300 that is a central control unit. The hardware processing means includes processing means such as an operation unit 308, a recovery system control circuit 309, a head temperature control circuit 314, a head drive control circuit 316, a carriage drive control circuit 306, and a paper feed control circuit 307.

The carriage drive control circuit 306 is a control circuit for driving the carriage 106 in the main scanning direction.
The paper feed control circuit 307 is a control circuit for transporting the recording medium P in the sub-scanning direction.
The CPU 300 includes a ROM (Read Only Memory) 301, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 302, a determination unit 317, a thermal energy control unit 318, and a drive unit 319. The ROM 301 is a memory that stores preset thresholds and programs. The RAM 302 serves to store values such as conditions and programs read from the ROM 301 so that the CPU 300 can execute them, and serves as a work memory used when the CPU 300 performs a predetermined calculation. These conditions are, for example, recovery conditions for preliminary ejection conditions from the ejection openings 205, and the like, and the CPU 300 provides the recovery conditions read from the RAM 302 to the recovery system control circuit 309, the print heads 100 and 101, and the like. The drive unit 319 provides appropriate printing conditions for input information and drives the heaters 212 in the print heads 100 and 101. The driving unit 319 instructs the head driving control circuit 316 to drive the heaters 212 corresponding to the multiple ejection ports 205 for each group that is divided into groups of ejection ports 205 that are close to each other among the multiple ejection ports 205. This group will be described later. When the determination unit 317 determines the presence or absence of ink, the driving unit 319 instructs the head driving control circuit 316 to drive the heaters 212 to an extent that ink is not ejected from the ejection ports 205. This process may be performed by the thermal energy control unit 318. In this way, the heaters 212 provide ink with a level of thermal energy that does not cause ink to be ejected from the ejection ports 205. The determination unit 317 determines whether ink is supplied to the ejection ports 205 belonging to the group based on the temperature measured by the thermometer 208 for each group in which the driving unit 319 has driven the heaters 212. The determination unit 317 determines whether ink is being supplied to the orifices 205 belonging to the group based on the amount of temperature rise over time measured by the thermometer 208 while the drive unit 319 is driving the heater 212 and the amount of temperature fall over time measured by the thermometer 208 after the drive of the heater 212 is stopped. At this time, the determination unit 317 determines that ink is being supplied to the orifices 205 belonging to the group when the amount of temperature rise is smaller than a first threshold value and the amount of temperature fall is larger than a second threshold value. The thermal energy control unit 318 controls the thermal energy applied to the ink using the heater 212 in accordance with the distance between the thermometer 208 and the group to which the orifice 205 corresponding to the heater 212 driven by the drive unit 319 belongs. At this time, the thermal energy control unit 318 applies greater thermal energy to the ink using the heater 212 as the distance between the thermometer 208 and the group to which the ejection port 205 corresponding to the heater 212 driven by the drive unit 319 belongs increases.

The image input unit 303 receives image data, commands, status signals, etc. transmitted from an external device (host device) connected to the recording device. The recovery motor 310 drives the recording heads 100 and 101, the cleaning blade 311, the cap 312, and the suction pump 313. The cleaning blade 311 and the cap 312 move relative to the recording heads 100 and 101. In order to determine the presence or absence of ink, as described below, when ink droplets are ejected from the recording heads 100 and 101, the ink droplets can be ejected toward the inside of the cap 312. The head temperature control circuit 314 receives a detection signal from a thermistor 315 that detects the ambient temperature of the recording device, and a detection signal from a thermometer 208 such as a diode sensor that detects the temperature of each substrate 201 of the recording heads 100 and 101. Based on the output value of the head temperature control circuit 314, the head drive control circuit 316 drives the heaters 212 of the print heads 100 and 101 to eject ink, pre-eject ink, and adjust the ink temperature for heat retention control. The head drive control circuit 316 also drives the heaters 212 according to instructions from a drive unit 319. When driving the heaters 212, a print signal (DATA), a clock signal (CLK) for transferring the print signal, a drive signal (HE) for driving the heaters 212, and a latch signal (LT) for latching the print signal in a holding circuit are sent from the printing device to the print heads 100 and 101.

4A is a timing chart of a drive signal for driving the heater 212 shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 4B is a block diagram showing a logic circuit for driving the heater 212 shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 4A, a print signal (DATA) is input in synchronization with a clock signal (CLK), and then the signal level of a low active latch signal (LT) is set to a low level, thereby determining a print signal (DATA_LTD). Then, the signal level of a low active drive signal (HE) is set to a low level, thereby applying a drive voltage to the heater 212 selected by the driver, and ink is ejected from the ejection port 205 corresponding to the heater 212. The signal levels of the latch signal (LT) and the drive signal (HE) are at a high level, which is a disabled state, until the input of the print signal (DATA) is completed.
(Method of determining the presence or absence of ink in the ejection port)

The method of detecting the presence or absence of ink in the inkjet recording device of this embodiment will be described below. When a pulse voltage of a certain width is applied to the heater 212 to cause ink to be discharged from the discharge port 205, the thermal energy is transferred on the substrate 201, raising the temperature of the substrate 201 and the ink, and a part of the thermal energy is carried away to the outside of the inkjet recording device together with the discharged ink. Therefore, compared to the case where ink is present in the discharge port 205 and normal discharge is performed, when ink is not present in the discharge port 205 and normal discharge is not performed, the energy given to the substrate 201 is larger by the amount that would be carried away to the outside of the inkjet recording device together with the discharged ink. In addition, after input of thermal energy, the heated substrate 201 dissipates heat through the ink. Therefore, compared to the case where ink is present in the discharge port 205 and normal discharge is performed, when ink is not present in the discharge port 205 and normal discharge is not performed, the substrate 201 maintains its temperature for a long time.

5 is a graph showing the change over time in the output value of the thermometer 208 from when the heater 212 is driven so as to give the ink enough thermal energy that ink is not discharged from all the discharge ports for discharging black ink of the print head 100 until the drive is stopped, with and without ink. Here, the heater is driven for 6,500 shots at a drive frequency of 24 kHz. In the graph shown in FIG. 5, when the heater 212 is driven from time 0 sec to time 0.27 sec, it can be seen that the temperature, which is the output value of the thermometer 208, changes significantly during that time. After the heater 212 is stopped, the maximum head temperature calculated from the output value of the thermometer 208 and the rate of change per unit time of temperature drop are different depending on whether the print head 100 has ink or not. This is because when the print head 100 has ink, the heat capacity is larger by the amount of ink compared to when there is no ink, so the amount of temperature rise per unit time is smaller and the temperature does not rise easily, and the temperature reaches a lower point. Furthermore, when there is ink in the print head 100, the amount of temperature drop per unit time is greater because heat is dissipated through the ink compared to when there is no ink in the print head 100. By carrying out such measurements, the maximum head temperature change immediately after the heater 212 is driven and the amount of temperature drop after driving are determined in advance for the cases when there is no ink in the print head 100 and when there is ink in the print head 100. Using the characteristics obtained in this way, the presence or absence of ink can be detected by detecting the change over time in the temperature measured by the thermometer 208.
Example 1

Figure 6 is a diagram showing a first example of the state of the inkjet recording head 121 in which a bubble occurs in the ejection port 205. As shown in Figure 6, when a bubble 600 occurs in the ejection port 205 or the pressure chamber 209, ink is not supplied to the ejection port 205 arranged in the part where the bubble 600 occurs. Figure 6 shows a case in which the ejection port array 218 arranged in the inkjet recording head 121 is equally divided into a plurality of groups 601, 602, 603, and 604, and the ejection port array 219 is equally divided into a plurality of groups 611, 612, 613, and 614, and a bubble 600 occurs in group 601. Each of the groups 601 to 604 and 611 to 614 has an equal number of ejection ports. In the example shown in Figure 6, since a bubble 600 occurs in group 601, ink is not supplied to the ejection port 205 arranged in group 601. When groups 601-604 and 611-614 are set, their positions are registered, making it possible to recognize which group is located in which position and which outlet belongs to which group.

Figure 7 is a flow chart for explaining a first example of a process for detecting the presence or absence of ink for each group. First, multiple outlets are divided into multiple groups so that the number of outlets is equal (step S101). In the example shown in Figure 6, the outlets arranged in a straight line in the outlet array 218 are divided into one of groups 601 to 604, and the outlets arranged in a straight line in the outlet array 219 are divided into one of groups 611 to 614 so that three adjacent outlets are included in one group. The method of dividing the drive groups evenly is not limited to a method of dividing the outlet array 218 and the outlet array 219 separately, but may also be a method of dividing into groups that straddle the outlet array 218 and the outlet array 219.

After dividing the outlets 205 into a plurality of groups, the CPU 300 selects a group for which the driving unit 319 drives the heater 212 (step S102). Here, the CPU 300 selects the group for which the driving unit 319 drives the heater 212 in order from the group farthest from the thermometer 208. That is, in the example shown in FIG. 6, the CPU 300 first selects groups 601 and 611, then groups 602 and 612, then groups 603 and 613, and finally groups 604 and 614. Next, the driving unit 319 drives the heater 212 corresponding to the outlets 205 belonging to the selected group (step S103). Then, the thermometer 208 measures the change in temperature over time from when the heater 212 is driven to when it is stopped (step S104).

Next, the determination unit 317 determines whether ink is being supplied to the ejection ports belonging to the group based on the change over time in the temperature measured by the thermometer in step S104 (step S105). The specific determination method is as described above. The threshold for determining whether ink is being supplied may be changed based on the attenuation of the temperature information according to the distance between the thermometer 208 and the group that has driven the heater 212. The determination unit 317 stores the determination result in the RAM 302. The CPU 300 determines whether the processing of steps S102 to S105 has been performed for all groups (step S106), and if there is a group for which the processing of steps S102 to S105 has not been performed, the CPU 300 selects the group for which the processing of steps S102 to S105 has not been performed and performs the processing of steps S102 to S105. At this time, it is also possible to assign identification numbers in advance in order from the group farthest from the thermometer 208, and increment the identification numbers to be processed in steps S102 to S105 (step S107). In this way, the processes of steps S102 to S105 are performed sequentially for each group. In this way, the CPU 300 sequentially selects groups located at positions farthest from the thermometer 208, and the driving unit 319 drives the heaters 212 corresponding to the outlets 205 belonging to the selected group, preventing a group that has already been driven and generated heat from being placed between the thermometer 208 and the group to be measured. This makes it possible to prevent a decrease in detection accuracy due to the thermal history of a group that has been driven and generated heat.

When steps S102 to S105 have been performed for all groups, the CPU 300 determines whether or not there is any group to which ink has not been supplied based on the result of step S105 (step S108). If there is a group to which ink has not been supplied, the recovery system control circuit 309 performs recovery processing on the ejection ports 205 and pressure chambers 209 belonging to the corresponding group (step S109). On the other hand, if there is no group to which ink has not been supplied, the process ends.
Example 2

Figure 8 is a diagram showing a second example of the state of the inkjet recording head 121 in which bubbles have occurred in the ejection ports 205. As shown in Figure 8, when bubbles 800 have occurred in the ejection ports 205 or pressure chambers 209, ink is not supplied to the ejection ports 205 arranged in the section in which the bubbles 800 have occurred. Figure 8 shows a case in which the ejection port array 218 arranged in the inkjet recording head 121 is divided into a plurality of groups 801, 802, 803, and 804, and the ejection port array 219 is divided into a plurality of groups 811, 812, 813, and 814, and a bubble 800 has occurred in group 802. Each of the groups 801 to 804 and 811 to 814 has ejection ports in a number corresponding to the distance from the thermometer 208. The ejection ports 205 are divided into groups so that the number of ejection ports belonging to the group increases as the distance from the thermometer 208 increases. In the example shown in Figure 8, since bubbles 800 have occurred in group 802, ink is not supplied to the ejection ports 205 arranged in group 802. When groups 801-804 and 811-814 are set, their positions are registered, making it possible to recognize which group is located in which position and which outlet belongs to which group. In this way, by dividing the number of heaters to be driven according to the distance from the thermometer 208, the attenuation of thermal energy depending on the distance it takes to be transmitted from the driven group to the thermometer 208 is corrected.

Figure 9 is a flow chart for explaining a second example of the process of detecting the presence or absence of ink for each group. First, the ejection ports 205 are divided into a plurality of groups so that the number of ejection ports belonging to each group increases as the distance from the thermometer 208 increases (step S201). In the example shown in Figure 8, the groups 801 and 811, which are the furthest from the thermometer 208, are divided so that each of them contains four ejection ports that are close to each other. The groups 802 and 812, which are the next furthest from the thermometer 208, are divided so that each of them contains three ejection ports that are close to each other. The groups 803 and 813, which are the next furthest from the thermometer 208, are divided so that each of them contains three ejection ports that are close to each other. Furthermore, the groups 804 and 814, which are the closest from the thermometer 208, are divided so that each of them contains two ejection ports that are close to each other. The method of dividing such drive groups is not limited to dividing the ejection port array 218 and the ejection port array 219 separately, but may be a method of dividing into groups that span the ejection port array 218 and the ejection port array 219.

After dividing the outlets 205 into a plurality of groups, the CPU 300 selects a group for which the driving unit 319 drives the heater 212 (step S202). Here, the CPU 300 selects the group for which the driving unit 319 drives the heater 212 in order of distance from the thermometer 208. That is, in the example shown in FIG. 8, the CPU 300 first selects groups 801 and 811, then groups 802 and 812, then groups 803 and 813, and finally groups 804 and 814. The driving unit 319 then drives the heater 212 corresponding to the outlets 205 belonging to the selected group (step S203). The thermometer 208 then measures the change in temperature over time from when the heater 212 is driven to when it is stopped (step S204).

Next, the determination unit 317 determines whether ink is being supplied to the ejection ports belonging to the group based on the change over time in the temperature measured by the thermometer in step S204 (step S205). The specific determination method is as described above. The threshold for determining whether ink is being supplied may be changed based on the attenuation of the temperature information according to the distance between the thermometer 208 and the group that has driven the heater 212. The determination unit 317 stores the determination result in the RAM 302. The CPU 300 determines whether the processing of steps S202 to S205 has been performed for all groups (step S206), and if there is a group for which the processing of steps S202 to S205 has not been performed, the CPU 300 selects the group for which the processing of steps S202 to S205 has not been performed and performs the processing of steps S202 to S205. At this time, it is also possible to assign identification numbers in advance in order from the group farthest from the thermometer 208, and increment the identification numbers to be processed in steps S202 to S205 (step S207). In this way, the processes of steps S202 to S205 are performed sequentially for each group. In this way, the CPU 300 sequentially selects groups located at positions farthest from the thermometer 208, and the driving unit 319 drives the heaters 212 corresponding to the outlets 205 belonging to the selected group, preventing a group that has already been driven and generated heat from being placed between the thermometer 208 and the group to be measured. This makes it possible to prevent a decrease in detection accuracy due to the thermal history of a group that has been driven and generated heat.

When steps S202 to S205 have been performed for all groups, the CPU 300 determines whether or not there is any group to which ink has not been supplied based on the result of step S205 (step S208). If there is a group to which ink has not been supplied, the recovery system control circuit 309 performs recovery processing on the ejection ports 205 and pressure chambers 209 belonging to the corresponding group (step S209). On the other hand, if there is no group to which ink has not been supplied, the process ends.
Example 3

Another example is one that uses the control of the thermal energy control unit 318 shown in FIG. 3. As described above, the thermal energy control unit 318 controls the thermal energy applied to the ink using the heater 212 according to the distance between the thermometer 208 and the group to which the ejection port 205 corresponding to that heater 212 belongs. Specifically, the thermal energy control unit 318 applies more thermal energy to the ink using that heater 212 the greater the distance between the thermometer 208 and the group to which the ejection port 205 corresponding to the heater 212 driven by the drive unit 319 belongs. In this way, by controlling the thermal energy applied to the ink using the heater 212 according to the distance between the group and the thermometer, the attenuation of the thermal energy depending on the distance it takes to transmit from the drive group to the thermometer 208 is corrected.

Although the above description has been given with each component assigned a different function (process), this allocation is not limited to the above. Furthermore, the configuration of the components is not limited to the above-mentioned form, and the above-mentioned form is merely an example.

The processing performed by each of the above-mentioned components may be performed by a logic circuit created according to the purpose. Also, a program describing the processing contents as a procedure may be recorded on a recording medium readable by the CPU 300, and the program recorded on this recording medium may be read and executed by the CPU 300. The recording medium readable by the CPU 300 refers to a removable recording medium such as a floppy (registered trademark) disk, a magneto-optical disk, a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc), a CD (Compact Disc), a Blu-ray (registered trademark) Disc, a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory, as well as memories such as ROM 301 and RAM 302 built into the information processing device and a HDD (Hard Disc Drive). The program recorded on this recording medium is read by the CPU 300, and the same processing as that described above is performed under the control of the CPU. Here, the CPU 300 operates as a computer that executes a program read from a recording medium on which the program is recorded.

102, 205 ejection port 121 inkjet recording head 208 thermometer 212 heater 218, 219 ejection port array 317 determination unit 319 drive unit 601 to 604, 611 to 614, 801 to 804, 811 to 814 group

Claims (10)

A recording apparatus that uses a heater to apply thermal energy to a liquid and ejects the liquid from a plurality of ejection ports,
a discharge port forming member having the plurality of discharge ports;
a substrate on which the ejection port forming member is disposed;
a thermometer for measuring a temperature of the substrate;
a driving unit that drives the heaters corresponding to the plurality of ejection ports in groups of adjacent ejection ports;
a determination unit that determines, for each of the groups in which the heaters are driven, whether or not the liquid is being supplied to the ejection ports belonging to the group based on the temperature measured by the thermometer;
A recording apparatus comprising: 2. The recording apparatus according to claim 1,
The determination unit determines whether or not the liquid is being supplied to the nozzles belonging to the group based on the amount of temperature increase per hour measured by the thermometer when the heater is driven and the amount of temperature decrease per hour measured by the thermometer after the heater is stopped being driven. 3. The recording apparatus according to claim 2,
The determination unit determines that the liquid is being supplied to the ejection ports belonging to the group when the amount of temperature increase is smaller than a first threshold value and the amount of temperature decrease is larger than a second threshold value. 4. The recording apparatus according to claim 1,
a thermal energy control unit that controls the thermal energy applied to the liquid by the heater in accordance with the distance between the group and the thermometer; 5. The recording apparatus according to claim 4,
The thermal energy control unit of the recording apparatus is configured to apply greater thermal energy from the heater to the liquid as the distance between the group and the thermometer increases. 6. The recording apparatus according to claim 1,
The driving section drives heaters corresponding to the ejection openings belonging to the groups in order from the group furthest away from the thermometer. 7. The recording apparatus according to claim 1,
A recording apparatus in which the greater the distance between the group and the thermometer, the greater the number of ejection ports belonging to the group. 8. The recording apparatus according to claim 1,
The driving section drives the heater so as to apply to the liquid a level of thermal energy that does not cause the liquid to be ejected from the ejection opening. 9. The recording apparatus according to claim 1,
A printing apparatus in which the plurality of ejection ports belonging to one group are arranged in a straight line. A detection method for a recording apparatus that performs recording on a medium using a recording head that applies thermal energy to a liquid using a heater and ejects the liquid from a plurality of ejection ports, comprising the steps of:
a process of measuring a temperature of a substrate on which a discharge port forming member having the plurality of discharge ports is disposed;
a process of driving the heaters corresponding to the plurality of ejection ports in groups of ejection ports that are adjacent to each other among the plurality of ejection ports;
and determining whether or not the liquid is being supplied to the ejection ports belonging to each of the groups based on the measured temperature for each of the groups in which the heaters are driven.

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