JPH0126452Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] Industrial Application Field The present invention relates to an ink supply device in a recording section of a device such as a printer or a facsimile machine, which records characters, figures, etc. on plain paper using ink.

Conventional Structures and Problems In recent years, various systems and improvements have been proposed for recording apparatuses that use ink (for example, ink-on-demand type recording apparatuses and inject recording apparatuses), and the demand for them has been increasing year by year.

However, in any type of recording device,
Since liquid ink is used, there are various problems.

A conventional ink supply device will be described below.

FIG. 1 shows a sectional view of the main parts of a conventional ink supply device, showing a supply pipe 5 for supplying ink 4 to an orifice portion 3 of a recording head 2 provided opposite to a recording surface 1, and The ink supply device 7 was composed of an ink tank 6 for storing the ink. Conventionally, when performing image recording with the ink supply device 7 as described above, static pressure is applied between the orifice portion 3 of the recording head 2 and the liquid level of the ink 4 in the ink tank 6, and the orifice portion 3 An optimal meniscus for recording is formed, and the ink 4 is ejected from the orifice portion 3 onto the recording surface 1 to make it fly, thereby recording an image.

However, the viscosity of the ink 4 changes due to temperature changes around the outside of the apparatus, causing meniscus fluctuations and ink leakage. This has resulted in major drawbacks such as blurring or blurring of printed characters, greatly reducing the quality of recorded images, or making it impossible to record at all.

Purpose of the invention This invention solves the above conventional problems.
To provide a highly reliable ink supply device capable of always stably maintaining a meniscus suitable for recording even if the ambient temperature outside the device changes.

Structure of the Invention The present invention includes an ink tank for storing ink, an ink supply path for supplying ink from the ink tank to a recording head, an ink level adjustment member movable within the ink in the ink tank, and an ink liquid level adjusting member movable in the ink in the ink tank. By driving the moving means for moving the position adjustment member in the vertical direction, the temperature detecting means for detecting the temperature near the recording head, and the moving means in response to a signal from the temperature detecting means, the ink tank and an ink level control means for adjusting the ink level within the ink tank.

With the above-described configuration, the present invention adjusts the ink level in the ink tank by driving the moving means in response to a signal from the temperature detecting means in response to changes in the ambient temperature outside the device. Even when the outside ambient temperature changes, it is possible to always perform good and stable image recording.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway sectional view showing a schematic configuration of an ink supply device according to an embodiment of the present invention.The configuration and operation thereof will be explained below based on the drawings.

In FIG. 2, reference numeral 10 denotes a recording head section composed of a head main body 9 provided with an orifice section 11, an ink collection member 34, and a head driving means 12, and a first ink tank that stores ink 20. The sub tank 13 and the main tank 14, which is a second ink tank, are connected to each other by an ink supply pipe 155 and an ink recovery pipe 16. Further, the sub-tank 13 is written inside the main tank 14. Pump 1 on the way
The ink supply pipe 17 provided with 8 is for supplying the ink 20 in the main tank 14 to the sub tank 13, and the terminal position on the sub tank 13 side is as follows.
It is provided at a position higher than the opening position of the ink supply pipe 15 connected to the same sub-tank 13.

Also, on the top of the sub-tank 13, there is a sub-tank 1
A sealing lid 21 for sealing the upper opening 19 of No. 3 and an ink level adjusting member 22 are provided. The airtight lid 21 and the ink level adjusting member 22 are integrally provided, and include a female threaded portion 23 provided in a part thereof and an elevating screw 24 driven by an elevating motor 25 provided on the upper part of the main tank 14. It is constructed so that it can be raised and lowered by screwing it into the body.

Note that the sub-tank 13 is provided with an air hole for removing air bubbles and air during ink circulation.

A temperature detection means 28 connected to an ink level control circuit 27 is provided near the recording head 10 . The ink level control circuit 27 is connected to the lifting motor 25, and data on the viscosity change of the ink 20 due to temperature change and the positional relationship of the ink level in the sub-tank 13 is programmed and stored in advance.

Therefore, the ink level adjusting member 22 can be raised and lowered by driving the lift motor 25 so that the ink level is most suitable for the temperature detected by the signal from the temperature detection means 28.

The position detection sensor A29 is a sensor for setting a reference when starting and stopping the ink liquid level adjusting member 22, and the position detection sensor B30 and the slit plate 31
This is to set and detect the position of the ink level adjusting member 22 in accordance with temperature changes.

Furthermore, a sealing gasket 32 is provided on the sealing lid 21 that is provided integrally with the ink level adjusting member 22.

A recording paper 3 is placed at a position facing the recording head section 10.
3 is arranged, and ink 20 is ejected from the orifice 11 of the recording head section 10 to record characters, images, etc.

The recording head section 10 may be of either an inject type or an ink-on-demand type.

The operation of the ink supply device of the embodiment configured as described above will be described below.

When recording on the recording paper 33 by ejecting the ink 20 from the orifice 11 of the recording head section 10, first, at the same time as receiving a recording start signal, the lifting motor 25 is energized, and the ink level adjusting member 22 and the sealing lid 21 are closed. The tank is moved from the S position to the E position as shown in FIG. 3, and the upper opening 19 of the sub tank 13 is sealed with the airtight lid 21. Furthermore, the ink collection member 34
is rotated in the direction of arrow D to connect the ink collection member 34 and the ink collection pipe 16 to the recording head section 1.
An ink circulation path including a zero orifice 11 is formed. Next, the pump 18 is driven and the may tank 14 is
The ink 20 inside is vigorously supplied to the sub tank 13. At this time, the air remaining in the upper part of the sub-tank 13 is pushed out by the ink 20 through the air holes 26. Further, the ink 20 supplied to the sub tank 13 reaches the recording head section 10 via the ink supply pump 15, passes through the orifice 11, and is collected into the main tank 14 by the ink recovery member 34 and the ink recovery pipe 16. It will be cycled again.

At this time, the ink 20 is forcefully flowed into the orifice 11 of the recording head section 10 by the pump 18, so that the ink that has become solidified or has a high viscosity due to drying in the orifice section 11 can be washed away. Therefore, during recording, the orifice 11 can be set in a clean state without clogging.

When the pump 18 is stopped, air enters from the air hole 26 provided in the sub-tank 13, and the sub-tank 1
The liquid level of the ink 20 in the ink supply pipe 17
is lowered to the terminal position and held at the same position. This position is the upper limit of the liquid level at high temperature when liquid level control is performed. (For example, the ink level at 45°C.) Next, the temperature detecting means 28 detects the temperature around the outside of the apparatus, and this detection signal is received by the ink level control circuit 27, and the pre-programmed temperature and ink level are detected. The elevating motor 25 is driven to raise the ink level adjusting member 22 in the direction of arrow A so that the ink level in the sub-tank 13 changes. Therefore, when starting recording, the ink liquid level can be set to be appropriate for the ambient temperature outside the apparatus. Therefore, static pressure due to the head difference H between the orifice 11 of the recording head 10 and the ink liquid level in the sub-tank 13 acts on the ink 20 in the orifice 11.
1, it is possible to always form a meniscus that is optimal for recording.

When recording on the recording paper 33, the ink collection member 34 is rotated in the direction of arrow C, and the ink 20 is removed from the orifice 11 of the recording head section 10 by the head driving means 12 according to the recording image signal.
Image recording is performed by ejecting and flying.

Furthermore, even if the ambient temperature outside the apparatus changes and the viscosity of the ink 20 changes during image recording, by moving the ink level adjusting member 22 up and down in accordance with the change,
The orifice 11 can always form an ink meniscus suitable for recording. Therefore, good image recording can always be performed even if the ambient temperature changes. When recording is completed, the ink level adjusting member 22
may be stopped on the spot, or may be moved to position E and then stopped.

When the next recording signal arrives, the recording operation described above is repeated. Therefore, it is possible to set the standard ink level each time a recording signal is received, and then set the ink level appropriate for the ambient temperature outside the device.
It is possible to perform stable and highly accurate ink level control, that is, stable meniscus control.

Effects of the Invention As described above, according to the present invention, by providing an ink level control means that adjusts the ink level in the ink tank in response to temperature changes outside the device, it is possible to Even if the ink viscosity changes, the ink level can be adjusted with high precision by moving the ink level adjusting member up and down, so the ink level can always be maintained at a stable meniscus at the orifice of the recording head. It is possible to provide a highly reliable ink supply device that can always perform stable, high-quality image recording.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view schematically showing a conventional ink supply device, and FIGS. 2 and 3 are partially cutaway sectional views showing a schematic configuration of an ink supply device according to an embodiment of the present invention. 10...Recording head part, 13...Sub tank,
4...Main tank, 15, 17...Ink supply pipe, 16...Ink recovery pipe, 18...Pump, 20...Ink, 21...Sealing lid, 22...
...Liquid level adjustment member, 25... Lifting motor, 28...
...Temperature detection means.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] an ink tank that stores ink, an ink supply path that supplies ink from the ink tank to the recording head, an ink level adjustment member that is movable within the ink in the ink tank, and an ink level adjustment member that moves the ink level adjustment member up and down. The ink liquid in the ink tank is driven in response to a signal from the temperature detection means, and a temperature detection means for detecting the temperature in the vicinity of the recording head. An ink supply device comprising: an ink level control means for adjusting the ink level.