JPH0274353A - Ink jet recording apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable execution of easy initialization without recharging a power source, by a construction wherein a printing mode and a reception memory are initialized by turning ON a reset key. CONSTITUTION:A main control element 20 is so connected that it is started by a power source 25, conducts transmission and reception of an information (data) with a host, such as a computer, through an interface 26, and effects input of signals from a sensor 27, an operation panel 28 and a reset key 29, while outputting a control signal to a drive element such as a carriage motor 8, a sheet feed motor 31, an automatic restoration device 10, etc. When the reset key 29 is input ON in an ink jet recording apparatus having the automatic restoration device 10 of a head, an altered printing mode such as a printing speed, a printing pitch, etc. is initialized to a mode at the time when the power source is charged, while a counter of the reception memory is initialized.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to means for initializing a print mode and a reception memory in an inkjet recording apparatus having an automatic head recovery device.

[Conventional technology]

An inkjet recording device performs recording by ejecting ink from a fine orifice formed on the front surface of a head and depositing ink droplets on a sheet.

In this type of recording device, ink thickening and sticking due to evaporation of the ink solvent, and air bubbles entering the ink (1) Ink discharge failure due to dust or paper powder adhering to the orifice (orifice clogging) ) may occur,
In such a case, an automatic ink recovery device is provided to recover the ink properties.

This automatic recovery device is configured so that when the head is at the home position and the orifice surface is sealed with a cap, a suction pump or the like is used to generate negative pressure inside the cap and empty ink is ejected. In order to ensure reliable recording immediately after the power is turned on, a sequence has been adopted that always operates when the power is turned on.

On the other hand, recording devices are equipped with software to initialize the print mode and reception memory, but since the operations are generally complicated, the easiest way to initialize is to turn the power off and on again. It is widely practiced.

[Problem that the invention seeks to solve]

However, with the method of initializing the print mode or reception memory by turning the power on again, the automatic ink recovery device is activated each time, so although the operation is simple, it takes 10 minutes.
There was a problem in that approximately seconds of time and a certain amount of ink were wasted.

An object of the present invention is to provide an inkjet recording device that can solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and can easily initialize the print mode or reception memory without turning the power on again when it is desired to initialize the print mode or reception memory immediately. That's true.

[Means for Solving the Problems] The invention of claim 1 provides an inkjet recording apparatus having an automatic head recovery device, in which a reset key is provided, and by turning on the reset key, the print mode and reception memory are initialized. The above object is achieved by the configuration that makes it possible to

The invention of claim 2 is an inkjet recording apparatus having an automatic head recovery device, in which a set key for initializing the print mode and a clear key for initializing the reception memory are provided separately, and the print mode or the reception memory is initialized. The above object is achieved by a configuration in which keys are operated separately.

The invention of claim 3 is an ink shared recording apparatus having an automatic head recovery device, which utilizes existing key switches provided on an operation panel, etc., and initializes a print mode or a reception memory by a combination of these keys. This configuration achieves the above object without providing a new key.

〔Example〕

The present invention will be specifically described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of an inkjet recording apparatus suitable for carrying out the present invention.

In FIG. 8, a sheet (recording medium) 3 is moved along a guide shaft 4.4 to the front of a sheet (recording medium) 3 that is fed in the direction of the arrow through sheet feeding rollers l and 2 that are installed vertically at a predetermined interval. A carriage 5 is provided, on which 1. (inkjet head) 6 is installed.

This head 6 faces the sheet 3 at a distance of, for example, Q, about 3 mm.

An ink ejection port consisting of a fine orifice is formed on the front surface of the head 6.

The carriage 5 is reciprocated in the direction of the arrow by a carriage motor 8 via a belt transmission mechanism 9.

During recording, flying ink droplets are formed from the orifice of the head 6 based on print data in synchronization with the reciprocating movement of the carriage 5, and are attached to the sheet for recording.

After the recording is completed, the head 6 is stopped at the home position HP outside the recording range. At the home position HP, an automatic recovery device 10 is provided which seals the orifice surface of the head 6 with a cap and causes ink to be ejected emptyly through the orifice using a suction pump or the like.

After recording is completed, the head 6 is hermetically protected (capped) by the automatic recovery device 10, and when the power is turned on again, an ink recovery operation is automatically performed prior to recording.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a control system of an ink shared recording apparatus according to the first aspect of the invention.

In FIG. 1, the main control unit 20 of the recording device includes an MPU (arithmetic processing unit) 21 and a ROM 22 that stores programs and the like.
, RAM 23 that takes in print data, command information, etc.
It is composed of an input/output boat 24 and the like.

The main control unit 20 is activated by a power supply 25, exchanges information (data) with a host such as a computer via an interface 26, and receives signals from various sensors 27, an operation panel 28, and a reset key 29. At the same time, it is connected to output control signals to drive units such as the carriage motor 8, sheet feed motor 31, head 6, and automatic recovery device 10.

As the sensor 27, for example, a sheet (recording medium)
There are a sheet sensor that detects the presence or absence of the carriage 5, a home position sensor that detects that the carriage 5 is at the home position, an ink sensor that detects the amount of ink remaining, and the like.

When the reset key 29 is turned on manually, the print mode is initialized, the counter is initialized, and the reception memory is cleared.

In this way, an inkjet recording apparatus having an automatic head recovery device IO is configured in which the reset key 29 is provided and the print mode and reception memory are initialized by turning on the reset key. .

FIG. 2 is a flow chart of the operation of the inkjet recording apparatus shown in FIG.

In FIG. 2, when the power is turned on at step 100, initial operations such as detection of the home position HP of the carriage 5 are performed at 101, and then an automatic recovery device for the head 6 is performed at step 102.

When the recovery operation is completed, initial settings such as setting the print mode and clearing the reception memory counter are performed in step 103, and then, in step 104, it is determined whether the printer is online or not.
If online, the data is loaded into the reception memory and printing processing is performed in step 105.

Then, in step 106, it is determined whether or not printing has been completed, and the printing process in step 105 is executed until the printing is completed, and when printing is completed, the process returns to step 104.

On the other hand, when online, it is possible to change printing modes such as printing speed and printing pitch, and perform sheet feeding and automatic head recovery operations using the operation panel 28.

Therefore, in the configuration shown in FIG. 1, a reset key 29 is provided on the operation panel, and if it is determined in step 104 that it is offline, step 1G? If the reset key 29 is turned on while offline, the process returns to Step 7 103.
The changed print mode such as print speed and print pinch is initialized to the mode at power-on, the counter of the reception memory is initialized, and the above-described operation is repeated.

On the other hand, in step 107, the reset key 2 is offline.
If it is determined that 9 remains off, step 108
The process proceeds to step 109 to determine whether or not the operation panel 28 is on. If it is on, the process proceeds to step 109 to execute the process in the mode selected by the operation panel 28, and then returns to step 104.
Return to

If the operation panel 28 is also off in step 108, the process returns directly to step 104, where it is determined whether online or offline, and the above-described operations are repeated.

According to the inkjet recording apparatus having the automatic recovery device IO for the head 6 described above, the reset key 29 for initializing the print mode and reception memory is provided, so when you want to initialize immediately, press the reset key 29. By turning on the inkjet recording device, initialization can be easily and quickly performed without turning on the power again, and there is no need to waste time or ink with unnecessary recovery operations.

FIG. 3 is a control system block diagram of an inkjet recording apparatus according to the second aspect of the invention.

In FIG. 3, the operation panel 28 is separately provided with a reset key 32 for initializing the print mode and a clear key 33 for initializing the reception memory, instead of being initialized at the same time as in FIG. , it is configured such that only one of them can be selectively initialized.

That is, if you turn on the reset key 32 while offline, the print mode such as the changed print speed and print pitch will be initialized to the mode when the power was turned on, and if you turn on the clear key 33 while offline, the print mode will be initialized to the mode when the power was turned on. The counter is cleared and the reception memory is initialized.

The control system in Figure 3 differs from the control system in Figure 1 in the points mentioned above, but all other parts are essentially the same as in Figure 1, and corresponding parts are designated by the same numbers. and their detailed explanation will be omitted.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart of the operation of the control system shown in FIG.

In FIG. 4, the operations from step 100 to step 106, that is, when the power is turned on, initial operations such as detection of the home position HP of the carriage 5 are performed, then an automatic recovery operation of the head 6 is performed, and then When the process is completed, initial settings such as setting the print mode and clearing the reception memory counter are performed in step 103, and when data is received online in the reception memory, printing processing is performed.The operation is explained in Figure 2. is the same as

However, in the control system shown in FIG. 3, the reset key 32 and clear key 33 are provided separately on the operation panel, and the fourth
In the operation shown in the figure, when the reset key 32 is turned on while offline, the changed printing speed and print mode such as print pinch are initialized to the mode when the power is turned on, and when the clear key 33 is turned on while offline. The operation differs from that shown in FIG. 2 in that when turned on, the counter of the reception memory is cleared and the reception memory is initialized.

That is, if the printer is offline in step 104, the process proceeds to step 201, where it is determined whether or not the reset key 32 is on. If it is on, the print mode is initialized in step 202, and the process returns to step 104.

If the reset key 32 remains off in step 201, the process proceeds to step 203, where it is determined whether the clear key 33 is on. If it is on, the receiving memory is initialized in step 204, and the process proceeds to step 104. return.

If it is determined in step 203 that the clear key 33 is off, and if both the reset key 32 and the clear key 33 remain off, the process advances to step 205 and the operation panel 28
is not on, and if it is also off, the process advances to step 206 to process the mode selected by the operation panel 28, and then returns to step 104.
Repeat the same action as above.

According to the inkjet recording '4B explained above with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, the clear key 3 for initializing the print mode is
3 are provided separately, so when you want to initialize immediately, you can turn on both or any of these keys to quickly perform the necessary initialization without having to turn on the power again. An inkjet recording apparatus has been developed that can perform the following steps without wasting time or ink with unnecessary recovery operations.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a control system of an inkjet recording apparatus according to the third aspect of the invention.

In FIG. 5, there is no special reset key provided to initialize the print mode and reception memory.
The print mode and reception memory are initialized by operating a combination of existing key switches on the operation panel 34.

Therefore, the block diagram in FIG. 5 differs from the block diagram in FIG. 1 in that the operation panel 28 and reset key 29 are replaced with the operation panel 34, but all other parts are substantially the same. Corresponding parts are indicated by the same numbers, and detailed explanation thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 6 shows the operation panel 34 in FIG.

In the sixth item 1, a recovery key 3 is provided on the operation panel 34 as a key switch to operate the automatic recovery device 10.
5. Pinch key 36 to set the print pitch, mode key 37 to set the print mode, FF key to feed the sheet by one page 38. LF key 39 to feed the sheet by one line, online/offline An online key 40 for switching is provided.

Furthermore, switch 4 to obtain high definition (high density) image quality
1. A switch 42 for executing high-speed printing. A proportional key 43 for adjusting the number of dots constituting one pixel (l character) is also provided.

In addition, the power lamp 4 can be used as an indicator (or alarm) lamp.
4, an ink presence/absence indicator lamp 45, a sheet presence/absence indicator lamp 46, etc. are provided.

In FIGS. 5 and 6, in an inkjet recording apparatus having an automatic ink recovery device, the print mode or the reception memory is changed by a combination of existing key switches provided on the operation panel 34 etc., without providing a special reset key. is configured to perform initialization.

For example, when the FF key 38 and the LF main key 9 are turned on at the same time while offline, the print mode and reception memory are initialized.

Alternatively, in response to the case where the glue set key 32 and clear key 33 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 are provided, for example, when the mode key 37 and the FF key are turned on simultaneously, the print mode is initialized, and the mode key 37 and the LF main key 9 are turned on at the same time, the reception memory is initialized.

FIG. 7 is a flow chart of the operation of the control system shown in FIG.

In FIG. 7, the operations from step 100 to step 106 are the same as those in FIG. After performing the automatic recovery operation, in step 103, initial settings such as setting the print mode and clearing the reception memory counter are performed, and,
Data is entered into the reception memory online (and then print processing begins).

Therefore, in the control system shown in FIG. 5, the print mode and/or the reception memory are initialized by a combination of key switches on the operation panel 34, and in the embodiment, when the FF key 38 and the LF main key 9 are turned on at the same time when offline, It is configured to perform initialization.

That is, if it is determined in step 104 that the FF key 38 is off-line, the process proceeds to step 301 to determine whether or not the FF key 38 is on, and if it is on, the process further proceeds to step 302 to determine whether or not the LF primary key 9 is on.

If both the FF key and the LF main key 9 are on at the same time, the process returns to step 103 and initializes the changed printing speed, printing mode, etc. to the mode at power-on, and also initializes the reception memory counter. , performs the printing process described above.

If the FF key 38 remains off in step 301,
Proceeding to step 303, the switch on the operation panel 34 determines what is on, and if it is on, the process proceeds to step 304 to process the mode selected on the operation panel 34, and then returns to step 104. , if both remain off, the process returns to step 104 and the above-described operation is repeated.

If the LF main key 9 remains off in step 302, the process proceeds to step 303, where it is determined which key switch on the operation panel 34 is on. In this case, since at least the FF key 38 is on, it is determined whether any other key switches are on, and the process proceeds to step 304.

Processing of the mode selected by the operation panel in step 304 (in this case, at least 1 selected by the FF key 38)
(including sheet feeding for one page), step 1
Return to 04 and repeat the above operation.

According to the inkjet recording apparatus described above with reference to FIGS. 5 to 7, the printing mode and/or the reception memory can be initialized by a combination of existing key switches provided on the operation panel 34. By turning on these keys at the same time when you want to initialize immediately, you can easily and quickly perform the necessary initialization without turning the power on again, and you will not waste time and ink with unnecessary recovery operations. An inkjet recording device that does not cause any damage was obtained.

Furthermore, since the existing key switch is used in this case, there is no need to provide a new reset key or the like (the above effects can be achieved with a simple and inexpensive configuration).

(Effects of the Invention) As is clear from the above description, according to the present invention, in an inkjet recording device having an automatic ink recovery device, printing can be performed by providing a new reset key or by combining existing key switches. Since the configuration is configured to initialize the mode or reception memory, if you want to initialize immediately, you can easily initialize without having to turn the power back on.Moreover, the extra recovery device saves time and ink. An inkjet recording device that does not waste information can be obtained.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the control system of the inkjet recording apparatus according to the invention of claim 1, FIG. 2 is a flowchart of the operation of the control system of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a control system of the inkjet recording apparatus according to the invention of claim 2. 4 is a flowchart of the operation of the control system in FIG. 3, FIG. 5 is a block diagram of the control system of the inkjet recording apparatus according to the invention of claim 3, and FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the operation of the control system in FIG. A front view showing details of the panel, Figure 7 is a flowchart of the operation of the control system in Figure 5,
FIG. 8 is a schematic perspective view of an inkjet recording apparatus suitable for use with the present invention. 6-----・-Hend, 10-------1 automatic recovery device, 20------ Main control section, 28-------1.
-Operation panel, 29...-Reset key, 32. ---
-----1~---Reset key 33-・-------・
-Clear key, 34--...--Operation panel, 37-
−−−−−・Mode key (existing key switch), 3
8------FF key (existing key switch), 3
9---LF key (existing key switch).

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) An inkjet recording apparatus having an automatic head recovery device, characterized in that a reset key is provided, and by turning on the reset key, the print mode and reception memory are initialized. (2) An inkjet recording apparatus having an automatic head recovery device, characterized in that a reset key for initializing a print mode and a clear key for initializing a reception memory are separately provided. (3) An inkjet recording apparatus having an automatic head recovery device, characterized in that the print mode or reception memory is initialized by a combination of existing key switches.