JPH06210843A - Ink jet recording apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To inform abnormality to an operator by preventing the return of a carrier to a home position by the interference of a housing and a lever when the movement of the carrier to the home position is indicated in a state of forgetting to return the lever and detecting that the carrier is not returned by a home position detector to emit an alarm. CONSTITUTION:An ink jet recording apparatus is equipped with a carrier loaded with an ink jet recording head cartridge to move the same, an attaching and detaching means enabling the attachment and detachment of the cartridge on the carrier 203 and a means allowing the lever 205 or 205 provided to the attachment and detachment means to interfere with a housing 400 during the moving operation of the carrier 203 to the home position HP when the carrier 203 is scanned in such a state that the lever 204 or 205 is not placed at a receiving position and judging such a state that the carrier does not return to the home position HP to emit an alarm.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an inkjet recording device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional ink jet recording apparatus, when the replacement lever used when performing the replacement work at a predetermined cartridge replacement position is not stored at a predetermined position after the replacement work, the lever position is changed. It is configured to notify the user of the abnormality by detecting the state with a detection sensor, or to record in an incomplete state without issuing any warning even if the lever is not stored in the specified position. It is configured to perform an operation.

[0003]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional device, there is a drawback that the device becomes large-sized or the cost increases because the sensor is attached to notify the abnormality. Furthermore, if no warning is issued, the electrical connection to the head cartridge becomes incomplete, causing a defective recording operation, or the lever is accidentally damaged when the recording device is stored. was there.

The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and it is possible to reduce the size and cost of the apparatus, and at the same time, the recording operation may be defective or the operation section may be damaged due to carelessness. It is an object of the present invention to provide an inkjet recording device capable of preventing the above.

[0005]

An ink jet recording apparatus provided by the present invention has a constitution shown in the following (1) to (3).

(1) In an ink jet recording apparatus having a carrier for mounting and moving an ink jet recording head cartridge, and an attaching / detaching means capable of attaching / detaching the cartridge on / from the carrier, the attaching / detaching means is provided. When the carrier is scanned without placing the operation unit in the storage position, the operation unit and the enclosure are interfered with each other during the movement operation of the carrier to the home position, and it is determined that the home position cannot be returned and a warning is issued. A device provided with means (hereinafter referred to as a first recording device).

(2) In an ink jet recording apparatus having a carrier for mounting and moving an ink jet recording head cartridge, and an attaching / detaching means capable of attaching / detaching the cartridge on the carrier, the attaching / detaching means is provided. When the carrier is scanned without placing the operation unit at the storage position, a unit is provided for issuing a warning by determining the mounting state of the recording head cartridge when the carrier is returned to the home position (hereinafter referred to as the second Recording device).

(3) In an ink jet recording apparatus having a carrier for mounting and moving an ink jet recording head cartridge, and an attaching / detaching means capable of attaching / detaching the cartridge on / from the carrier, the attaching / detaching means is provided. When the carrier is scanned without placing the operating unit in the storage position, the operating unit and the enclosure interfere with the movement of the carrier, and the force causes the operating unit to be automatically stored ( Hereinafter referred to as the second recording device).

[0009]

[Action]

(1) According to the first recording apparatus, when the operation unit is forgotten to be stored and the carrier is instructed to move to the home position,
It is possible to prevent the carrier from returning to the home position by the interference between the housing and the operation unit, and to notify the operator of the abnormality by issuing a warning by detecting that the carrier has not returned to the home position.

(2) According to the first recording apparatus, when the operation section is forgotten to be stored and an abnormality is instructed to the home position of the carrier, the state is detected if the head cartridge is not electrically connected. Then, a warning is issued to notify the operator of the abnormality.

(3) According to the first recording apparatus, when the operation unit is forgotten to be stored and the carrier is instructed to move to the home position, the lever automatically returns due to the interference between the housing and the operation unit. can do.

[0012]

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

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, a carrier 203 is equipped with a head cartridge 202 in which a recording head 200 constituting a recording unit and an ink tank 201 are connected. One end of the carrier 203 on the recording head 200 side is fitted to a lead screw 213 rotatably attached to the chassis 1 so as to be slidable in the axial direction, and the other end of the carrier 203 has a guide. Is provided, and the guide is slidably fitted in the guide rail 2 formed on the chassis 1 in parallel with the axial direction of the lead screw 213. The carrier 203 is configured to be capable of reciprocating in its axial direction as the lead screw 213 rotates while keeping its posture always constant.

That is, the lead screw 213
As shown in the figure, a lead screw gear 257 fixed to the left end of the screw meshes with a pinion gear 256 fixed to the output shaft of the carrier motor 255, and is formed spirally on the lead screw 213 at a predetermined pitch. The lead pin 209 (FIG. 5) attached to the carrier 203 is fitted into the guide strip 268 (FIG. 4) formed. Therefore, when the lead screw 213 rotates with the forward rotation and the reverse rotation of the carrier motor 255, the carrier 203
Moves back and forth. Details of scanning the carrier 203 will be described later.

Reference numeral 211 denotes a flexible cable for transmitting a print signal from the electric circuit described later to the recording head 200, which is positioned and held on the pinch roller frame 11 by the flexible cable holder 16.

The recording head 200 is driven in synchronism with the reciprocating movement of the carrier 203 to eject ink in accordance with a recording signal, thereby recording one line on the recording material 3. That is, the recording head 200 is used for ejecting a liquid by ejecting a minute liquid ejection port (orifice), a liquid passage and an energy acting portion provided in a part of the liquid passage, and a liquid in the acting portion. And an energy generating means for generating the generated energy.

A recording method using a piezo element or the like as an energy generating means for generating such energy, a recording method of irradiating electromagnetic waves such as a laser to generate heat, and ejecting liquid by the action of the heat generation, or a heating resistor. There is a recording method using an energy generating unit that heats the liquid by an electrothermal converter such as a heating element having the above to eject the liquid.

Among them, in the recording head used in the ink jet recording method for ejecting a liquid by thermal energy, the liquid ejection ports for ejecting the recording liquid to form droplets can be arranged at a high density. It is possible to record at high resolution. Among them, the recording head using the electrothermal converter as the energy generating means,
It can be easily made compact, and the advantages of IC technology and micro processing technology, which have been significantly improved in technology and reliability in the recent semiconductor field, can be fully utilized, high-density mounting is easy, and manufacturing cost is also high. It is advantageous because it is cheap.

When one line is recorded by scanning the carrier 203, the recording material 3 is conveyed by one line by the conveying means to perform recording on the next line.
Is carried by a rotary pair of the transport roller 4 and the pinch roller 8 that is in pressure contact with the transport roller 4, and a rotary pair of the discharge roller 7 and the spur 6 that is in contact with the discharge roller 7.

To explain this concretely, the recording material 3 whose recording surface faces the ejection opening surface of the recording head 200 is
The pinch roller 8 makes pressure contact with the conveying roller 4, and the conveying roller 4 is appropriately rotated by the paper feed motor 5 to convey the recording roller 4 to the recording position as needed. After recording, the recording material 3 is pressed against the discharge roller 7 by the spur 6 and is discharged and conveyed outside the apparatus by the rotation of the discharge roller 7.

The conveyance roller 4 and the paper discharge roller are driven by the paper feed motor 5, and the driving force is transmitted by the reduction gear train 15.

The position of the rotating shaft of the spur 6 that contacts the recording surface of the recording material 3 is fixed, and the contact position between the spur 6 and the recording material 3 changes regardless of the thickness of the recording material 3. On the other hand, the discharge roller 7 contacting the non-recording surface side of the recording material 3 corresponds to the change of the thickness of the recording material 3 due to the deformation of the discharging roller 7 depending on the thickness of the recording material 3. It is like this. Specifically, the discharge roller 7 is made of thin rubber,
It is formed in a conical shape and deforms with a restoring force in the radial direction.
Therefore, deformation is performed according to the pressure contact force to the spur 6 and the thickness of the recording material 3. The same effect can be obtained by forming the discharge roller 7 from a material having a large elastic deformation, such as a porous sponge or a resin or rubber having a very low hardness. Further, the entire discharge roller 7 may be pressed against the spur 6 by a spring or the like. Therefore, the distance between the recording head 200 and the recording material 3 can be maintained at a predetermined amount regardless of the thickness of the recording material 3, and stable conveyance can be performed. A paper sensor 14 detects the presence or absence of the recording material 3.

Next, the pressing structure of the pinch roller 8 which is a driven rotating body for pressing the recording material 3 against the discharge roller 4 which is a driving rotating body will be described.

In FIG. 2, pinch rollers 8 are fitted with mold bearings at both ends, and the ends of pinch roller springs 9 which are spring members are bent and inserted into the pinch rollers 8 to be supported. The pinch roller spring 9
Is the pinch roller frame 11 and the pinch roller holder 10
Is supported so as to be freely rotatable around the illustrated shaft portion 9a. Also, the shaft portion 9 of the pinch roller spring 9
The center of a is bent in a U shape, and forms a lever portion 9b.

The operation means for changing the pressing force of the pinch roller spring 9 by the pinch roller spring 9 is composed of a release angle 12 slidable on the pinch roller frame 11.
And push up the pinch roller spring 9 by operating this angle to generate a twist in the shaft portion 9a,
The repulsive force pushes the pinch roller 8 against the conveying roller 4. Further, the pressing force is released by eliminating the twist.

That is, in the state of FIG. 3, the lever portion 9 is provided by the cam portion 12a provided on the release angle 12.
b is pressed and the shaft portion is twisted (elastically deformed), and the pinch roller 8 is pressed against the transport roller 4.
On the other hand, when the release angle 12 is slid in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 3, the state shown in FIG. 2 is reached, the cam portion 12a is lowered, the lever of the pinch roller 8 is lowered, and the shaft portion 9a is restored to eliminate the twist. The pressing force of the pinch roller 8 against the transport roller 4 becomes small.

As a result, the jammed recording material 3 can be easily pulled out even if the pinch roller 8 is not completely separated from the conveying roller 4. Release angle 1
The slide lever 2 is slid to the left and right by rotating the release lever 13. The release lever 13 is pivotally supported by the pinch roller frame, and the opposite side of the lever with respect to the rotary shaft has a long hole.
There are 2 handle parts. Then, by rotating the release lever 13, the release angle 12 moves in parallel.

FIG. 4 is a view showing a lead screw mechanism for feeding the carrier 203 to the recording material 3.
Only the functionally necessary members are shown.

In the lead screw 213 slidably engaged with the carrier bearing A 228 and the carrier bearing B 229 provided on the carrier 203, the right end of the lead screw 213 is connected to the chassis 1 via the adjusting spring 250.
Rotatably coupled to.

The left end is rotatably connected to the recovery system plate 271 via a bearing 251. Carrier 203
A guide portion (not shown) slidably engages with the guide rail 2 to prevent the carrier 203 from rotating and guide it.

A plurality of guide strips 268 are formed on the lead screw 213, and a lead pin 209 is slidably fitted to one of the guide strips 268, so that the carrier 203 is parallel to the axial direction of the lead screw 213. Drive in the B direction. FIG. 5 is an enlarged sectional view of the carrier bearing A 228 portion of FIG. The lead pin 209 is a pin whose one end is processed into a spherical shape, and has a carrier bearing A228 and a carrier bearing B229.
, And is slidably fitted in a hole formed in the main body of the carrier 203 perpendicularly to the axial direction of the lead screw 213,
The spherical portion is slidably fitted with the lead screw 213,
The lead screw 213 is detachably attached to the main body of the carrier 203 from the other end, so that the lead screw 213
Biased in the direction.

A stopper 269 is formed above the lead pin spring 210 in the sliding direction of the lead pin 209 so as to prevent the lead pin 209 from coming off from the guide strip 268.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged view of the end portion of the lead screw. Recording head 200 on carrier 203 and recording material 3
Is determined by the distance of the lead screw 213 supporting the carrier 203 from the recording material 3. The lead screw 213 has its left end positioned by the recovery system plate 271 and its right end based on the left end. A first elongated hole 252 that is perpendicular to the recording material 3 is formed in the chassis 1 so that can be adjusted to be parallel to the recording material 3.

The adjusting spring 250 is parallel to the recording material 3 in a state where the adjusting spring 250 is attached to the chassis 1, and regulates the operation of the right end of the lead screw 213 in the vertical direction with respect to the recording material 3. A second long hole 253 is formed.

The right end of the lead screw 213 is supported by the first elongated hole 252 and the second elongated hole 253.
The lead screw 213 is adjusted to be parallel to the recording material 3 by moving the adjustment spring 250, on which the 53 is formed, perpendicularly to the recording material 3 (in the direction of the arrow in the drawing).

The lead screw 21 is attached to the adjusting spring 250.
3 A spring 250a for urging the right end toward the left end is also integrally formed. The adjustment spring 250 is fixed to the chassis 1 with screws 254.

FIG. 7 shows the left end of the lead screw 213 in which a clutch mechanism for transmitting the driving force of the carrier motor 255 to the recovery system via the lead screw 213 is formed.

A carrier motor 255 is connected to the recovery system plate 271. A pinion gear 256 (FIG. 1) is fixed to the shaft of the carrier motor 255, meshes with a lead screw gear 257 fixed to the lead screw 213, and the lead screw 213 is rotated forward and backward by the forward and reverse rotation of the carrier motor 255. Then, the lead pin 209 slidably in contact with the guide strip 268 of the lead screw 213 moves the carrier 203 along the guide strip 268. Recovery system plate 271
A control gear 102 is incorporated in the.

An initial lock 258, a clutch plate 260, a clutch gear 259, and a return spring 261 are provided at the left end of the lead screw 213.

The initial lock 258 is fixed to the lead screw 213. The clutch gear 259 is fitted to the lead screw 213 so as to be slidable in the axial direction, and a part thereof enters the inside of the initial lock 258.

That is, the clutch gear 259 is formed with projections 262 at two positions on the circumference at asymmetrical positions, and the projections 262 can move only in the axial direction into the recesses 263 formed in the initial lock 258 in the same phase as the projections 262. Fits in.

A flange 267 is provided on the end surface of the clutch gear 259 on the lead screw gear 257 side.
Trigger teeth 259 a for giving a rotation trigger to the control gear 102 are formed on 67.

A gear is formed on the outer periphery of the control gear 102, and when the lead screw 213 is incorporated in the recovery system plate 271, the lead screw 21
3 is in a position where it meshes with the upper clutch gear 259. However, during the recording operation, the part of the control gear 102 on the outer periphery where a part of the gear is cut faces the clutch gear 259, and the control gear 102 moves to the clutch gear 259.
Will never engage.

A side gear 102h having several teeth is formed on the side surface of the notched portion of the gear. The side gear 102h is operated by the clutch gear 259 by an operation described later.
Meshes with the trigger tooth 259a of the control gear 10
2 is given a rotation trigger.

Initial lock 258 and clutch gear 2
A clutch plate 260 is inserted between 59 and 59. Further, the lead screw gear 257 is fixed to the lead screw 213. The return spring 261 is located between the clutch gear 259 and the lead screw gear 257, and keeps the clutch gear 259 always in the initial lock 2 position.
Pushed to the 58 side.

On the circumference of the initial lock 258, an idle groove 264 having the same shape as the strip of the lead screw 213 is formed, and is connected to only the strip for guiding the lead pin 209 by the connecting groove 265.

When the carrier motor 255 is normally rotated, the carrier 203 advances in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 4, and when the carrier motor 255 is reversely rotated, it advances in the direction of arrow B.

The HP sensor 2 is provided on the recovery system plate 271.
70 (FIG. 1) is attached and the carrier motor 255
The carrier 203 is scanned by the rotation of the
By detecting the point where the shield plate 230 (FIG. 1) formed on the HP sensor passes the HP sensor, it can be used as a reference point for the recording operation and the recovery operation described later.

FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the clutch mechanism that transmits the driving force of the carrier motor 255 to the recovery system.

When the carrier motor 255 is rotated in the reverse direction from the state shown in FIG. 8A, the lead pin 209 moving the carrier 203 is moved from the guide line 268 of the lead screw 213 to the initial groove 2 via the connecting groove 265.
58 into the idle groove 264.

At this time, as shown in FIG. 8b, the carrier bearing A
The end portion 228 pushes the clutch plate 260, and the clutch plate 260 pushes the clutch gear 259 and is pushed to a position where it meshes with the control gear 102. At this time, the gear teeth on the control gear 102 side corresponding to the gear portion of the clutch gear 259 are notched, and the control gear 102 does not rotate.

When the carrier motor 255 is further rotated in the reverse direction, the trigger teeth 25 of the clutch gear 259 as shown in FIG.
9a meshes with the side gear 102h of the control gear 102, rotates the control gear 102, and the teeth of the control gear 102 mesh with the clutch gear 259.

A flange 267 is formed on the clutch gear 259. When the clutch gear 259 and the control gear 102 mesh with each other, the flange 267 of the clutch gear 259 engages with the side surface of the control gear 102.
It continues to mesh with the control gear 102. When the carrier motor 255 is further rotated in the reverse direction, the recovery operation is started.

After the recovery operation is completed, the carrier motor 255 is rotated in the forward direction to control the control gear 102 and the clutch gear 2.
Upon returning to the meshing start position of 59, the control gear 102 and the flange 267 of the clutch gear 259 are disengaged, and the clutch gear 259 tries to return to the original position by the urging of the return spring 261. Clutch gear 25
The clutch plate 260 fitted to the carrier 9 is also pushed in the same manner, and the carrier 2 in contact with the clutch plate 260
The carrier bearing A 228 of No. 03 is similarly pushed.

When it is further rotated forward, the lead pin 209 for guiding the carrier 203 is locked with the initial lock 258.
From the circumferential idler groove 264, via the connecting groove 265, the lead screw 213 is pushed out to the guide strip 268 side.

That is, the carrier 203 is brought into a scannable state by the rotation of the carrier motor 255.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a recovery mechanism of the recording apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, a cap 10 for capping the ejection port surface of the recording head 200.
1, a pump unit 150 for sucking ink from the ejection port surface through the cap 101 and sending it to the waste ink absorber, and further the cap 101.
Of the known cam and gear mechanism for moving the nozzle back and forth with respect to the discharge port surface, transmitting the driving force to the pump unit 150, and operating the wiping mechanism for wiping the ink adhering to the discharge port surface. The control gear 102 of a part is comprised. And, to the control gear 102, via the clutch gear 259 described above,
The rotational driving force of the carrier motor 255 is transmitted.

Next, the structure in which the recovery means is driven by the rotation of the control gear 102 will be described.

The control gear 102 is provided with a cap opening / closing cam 102a and a wiping operation cam (not shown). And this control gear 102
As shown in FIGS. 10 and P11, the plunger 1 described later is used.
The gear 15 meshes with the stroke gear 103 that reciprocates, and the control gear 102 rotates,
The stroke gear 103 rotates and the plunger 115 reciprocates.

Further, in FIG. 10, reference numeral 104 denotes a blade for wiping the ink ejection port surface of the recording head 200 to clean the ink ejection port surface. The blade 104 is made of rubber such as HNBR or urethane, and is used for the blade mounting groove 10 of the blade slider 105.
5a is attached by inserting one end so as to slide. Incidentally, as shown in FIG. 12, the blade mounting groove 105a
Is provided with a projection 105b having a sharp tip for preventing the blade from coming off in a part of the blade protruding direction. Therefore, even when a force to pull out the blade 104 is applied during wiping, the blade 104 is not disturbed and pulled out by the protrusion 105b.

The blade slider 105 is provided with a through hole 105c so as to be movable along a slide shaft 106 parallel to the ejection port surface of the recording head. Since the blade slider 105 reciprocates along the slide shaft 106, the blade slider 105 reciprocates. In 104, the amount of penetration of the recording head 200 to the ejection port surface is always constant at any position on the ejection port surface, and the ejection port surface is uniformly wiped.

The reciprocating movement of the blade slider 105 is performed by the blade link 107, and the projection 107a of the blade link 107 pushes the wall 105a of the blade slider 105 to reciprocate. The blade link 107 is the control gear 102
The movement is controlled by a wiping operation cam (not shown) formed on the.

When the ejection port surface of the recording head 200 is wiped by the movement of the blade slider 105, the ink adhered to the blade 104 is removed by the blade cleaner 10.
8 and the blade 104 is always kept clean. That is, the blade 104, which has moved in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 10 by the wiping operation, also wipes the entire discharge port surface, and then touches the blade cleaner 108 as well. At that time, the ink on the blade 104 is absorbed by the blade cleaner 108.

The blade 104 is the blade cleaner 1
If you touch 08 at all times, due to the creep phenomenon of rubber,
The blade 104 is deformed, and the original performance cannot be exhibited. Therefore, after the blade 104 comes into contact with the blade cleaner 108 by the wiping operation cam of the control gear 102, the blade 104 is moved in the direction opposite to the arrow A direction in the drawing to move the blade 104 to the blade cleaner 1.
It is separated from 08 so that an external force is not applied to the blade 104.

Furthermore, when the blade link 107 is controlled while always following both the forward rotation and the reverse rotation of the carrier motor 255 while following the wiping operation cam of the control gear 102, the blade link 107 is controlled by the rotation angle of the control gear 102. The movement of is uniquely determined. That is, the position of the blade 104 is controlled only by the angle of the control gear 102. In this case, if the wiping operation is performed when the carrier motor 255 rotates in the reverse direction to enter the recovery means, then the normal rotation of the carrier motor 255 causes the wiping operation to be performed even when the carrier motor 255 exits the recovery means. . Therefore, the ejection port surface is wiped by both surfaces of the blade 104. However, since the front and back sides of the blade 104 can be formed when cutting the tip of the blade 104, the wiping can be essentially performed only on one side. If the wiping is performed on the side opposite to the side that can be used for wiping, printing failure occurs. I will end up.

Therefore, in this embodiment, this problem is solved as follows. First, as shown in FIG. 1, a part of the shield plate 230 is provided with an inclination so that when the carrier 203 enters the recovery means, the shield plate 230 rotates the blade stopper 109 in the direction of arrow B in FIG. A series of operations thereafter will be described with reference to FIG.

When the lead pin 209 of the carrier 203 completely enters the idle groove 264, the blade stopper 10
9 rotates to the position shown in FIG. 13 (a) and stops.

Then, the control gear 102 starts to rotate, and as described above, the blade link 107 starts to rotate in the direction C in the figure as shown in FIG. 13B.

The blade link 1 up to the position shown in FIG. 13 (c)
When 07 rotates and continues to rotate, blade link 1
The spring hooking portion 107b of 07 starts rotating the blade stopper 109 in the direction of arrow D.

Further, the blade link 10 is shown in FIG. 13 (d).
When 7 rotates, the blade stopper 109 separates from the spring hooking portion 107b of the blade link 107 and rotates in the direction of arrow E in the figure. However, since its rotation is stopped by the shield plate 230, it rotates to the position shown in FIG. 13E and the blade stopper 109 stops.

After that, the carrier motor 255 rotates in the forward direction, the blade link 107 is disengaged from the wiping cam of the control gear 102, and the tensile force of the blade spring 110 causes the blade link 110 to rotate in the direction of arrow F in the figure, as shown in FIG. The rotation is stopped by the blade stopper 109 as shown.

Finally, when the carrier 203 is completely removed from the recovery means, the blade link 109 rotates as shown in FIG. 13 (f), so that the blade link 107 rotates and the blade 104 moves in the direction of arrow A in FIG. In the opposite direction, it reaches the highest point and waits.

In this way, the wiping locus of the blade 104 is changed depending on whether the carrier 203 enters or leaves the recovery means, and the wiping is not performed on the opposite surface of the blade 104.

Further, 111 is a carrier stopper, which is provided to prevent the carrier 203 from slipping out to the recording position due to dropping or vibration. Carrier stopper 1
The carrier hook spring 112 constantly applies a rotational force in the direction of arrow G in FIG. 10, and the protrusion 11c of the control gear 102 retracts the carrier 11 from the carrier hook 231.

Here, the operation will be described. When the lead pin 209 of the carrier 203 enters the idling groove 264 position and the control gear 102 starts to rotate, the protrusion 102c of the control gear 102 causes the carrier stopper 1 to move.
11, the carrier stopper 111 rotates in the direction of arrow G in FIG. 10 and is caught by the carrier hook 231. Therefore, in the standby state where recording is not performed, the carrier stopper 111 is hooked on the carrier hook 231.
The carrier 203 is prevented from slipping out to the recording position.

Further, the carrier stopper 111 also serves to prevent the control gear 102 from coming off the shaft like an E ring.

Next, the pump unit 150 has a plunger pump structure as shown in FIG.

In FIG. 11, reference numeral 113 denotes a cylinder, which has a cylindrical cylinder portion 113a and a portion (not shown) for guiding a plunger 115, which will be described later. Forming a road. 11
Reference numeral 3b is a cap lever receiver, which is formed so that a cap lever seal, which will be described later, is fitted therein. Further, 113c is an ink suction port, which is opened at a predetermined position. Reference numeral 113d is an integrally formed ink discharge tube, and the front end portion is inserted into the waste ink absorber. Reference numeral 113e denotes a parallel pin for opening and closing the cap, which is a cam 1 for opening and closing the cap of the control gear 102.
When the parallel pin 113e is pressed by 02a, the cylinder 113 rotates and the cap 101 moves to the recording head 200.
The opening / closing operation is performed so as to closely contact with and separate from the discharge port surface of.

FIG. 14 shows the relationship between the cap opening / closing cam 102a of the control gear 102 and the cap opening / closing operation.
Will be explained.

A switching sheet 102d is attached to the cap opening / closing cam 102a, whereby the cap opening / closing operation can be changed by the forward and reverse rotations of the carrier motor 255.

In this embodiment, as described later, the cap 1
Since the ink is preliminarily ejected into the carrier 01, the ink accumulated in the cap 101 during the recording is stored in the carrier 2
It is necessary to suck the ink in the cap 101 once into the cylinder 113 before 03 enters the recovery means and caps.

Then, when the control gear 102 starts to rotate due to the reverse rotation of the carrier motor 255, the parallel pin 113e inserted in the cylinder 113 first causes the cam 10 to move.
Pass 2e surface. In the figure, the closer the cam is to the center of the control gear 102, the more the cap 101 is opened.
Therefore, in this case, suction can be performed with the cap 101 open (this suction is referred to as empty suction).

Next, when the control gear 102 has finished rotating, the suction operation has been completed, and normal rotation has started, this time the parallel pin 113e passes through the surface of the cam 102f, and the cap 101 closes for the first time after the control gear 102 starts rotating. It will be. Normally, it is on standby with this cap closed.

When recording is then started, the carrier motor 255 rotates in the normal direction and the control gear 102 rotates in the direction of arrow H in the figure.

However, when suction is started, the carrier motor 255 rotates in the reverse direction and the control gear 102 rotates in the direction opposite to the arrow H. In this case, since the parallel pin 113e passes through the surface of the cam 102f, suction can be performed with the original cap 101 closed.

By thus providing the switching sheet 102d, two suction operations, that is, the original suction and the empty suction, are realized by one control gear.

During recording, the parallel pin 113e is inserted into the notch 102g provided on the cam surface, and the control gear 10 is driven by the frictional force of the cap spring 114.
I'm trying to prevent 2 from rotating. If the control gear 102 rotates during recording, the recovery operation will start in the case of improper recording, and normal recording will be impossible.

The plunger 115 is formed with an operating shaft 115a, a piston receiver 115b, a piston retainer 115c, and a pump seal retainer 115d, and a groove 115e serving as an ink flow passage is formed continuously with the operating shaft 115a. A part of this groove is fitted in the guide portion (not shown) of the cylinder 113 described above, and stops the rotation of the plunger 115. A lead groove 115f for controlling the reciprocating motion of the plunger 115 is formed on the operating shaft 115a, and a protrusion (not shown) formed on the inner surface of the stroke gear 103 is fitted in the lead groove 115b. Therefore, when the stroke gear 103 is rotated in one direction by the reverse drive of the carrier motor 255, the plunger 11
5 strokes in the direction of arrow I in FIG. 11, and the forward rotation of the carrier motor 255 causes the stroke gear 103 to rotate in the other direction.
Stroke in the direction.

A piston 116 made of a rubber material such as NBR is attached to the plunger 115.
The outer diameter of the piston 116 is larger than the inner diameter of the cylinder 113 by a predetermined amount.
When inserted in, it is designed to be compressed appropriately.
As a result, when the plunger 115 strokes in the direction of arrow I in FIG. 11, a negative pressure is generated to suck the discharged ink in the recording head 200, and when the plunger 115 strokes in the direction of arrow J, the sucked discharged ink is discharged from the discharge ink pipe 113d. Discharge to absorber.

A pump seal 1 is attached to the plunger 115.
17 is attached. The pump seal 117 is made of a rubber material such as silicon or NBR, and its inner diameter is set to be slightly smaller than the outer diameter of the plunger 115 so that a predetermined pressure contact force with the plunger 115 can be obtained. Can be reciprocated by being pushed by the pump seal retainer 115d and the piston receiver 115b of the plunger 115. It should be noted that the surface of the cylinder 113 and the plunger 115 is coated with lubrication coating.
The sliding force with and may be reduced. Further, rubber having self-lubricating property may be used for the purpose of eliminating grease in the cylinder.

In FIG. 11, reference numeral 118 denotes a cap lever, an ink guide (not shown) urges the cap lever seal 119, and the other rotating shaft 118a is attached to the hole 113f of the cylinder 113 by a snap fit. And is rotatable. The cap lever seal 119 is press-fitted with the ink guide of the cap lever 118 and further press-fitted with the cap lever receiver 113b of the cylinder 113.

The cap 101 is an elastic member such as a chlorinated butyl rubber having an annular shape in cross section and is attached to the cap attaching portion 118b of the cap lever 118. As shown in FIG. 15, this attachment method effectively utilizes the elasticity of rubber, and the ring is expanded and attached to the attachment portion 118b of the cap lever having a shape that follows the inclination of the diaper of the cap 101. . The cap 101 once attached cannot be removed by normal use.

Reference numeral 120 denotes a preliminary discharge pad, which is made of a polymer absorbent like the blade cleaner 108 and is mounted on the cap lever 118. The preliminary ejection pad is for absorbing the preliminary ejection ink that ejects the ink separately from the normal recording operation during recording in order to prevent the ink on the ejection port surface from drying.

Reference numeral 121 denotes a pump absorber, which is a polymer absorber that serves to reliably transfer the waste ink in the cylinder to the waste ink absorber.

FIG. 16 shows a timing chart of the recovery means by the rotational driving force of the carrier motor 255. In this figure, the carrier 203 enters the recovery means, and the trigger teeth 259a of the clutch gear 259 are the control gear 1
The time when the control gear 102 starts rotating after meshing with 02 is set to 0 pulse of the carrier motor 255.

In this embodiment, the carrier motor 255 is 24
By rotating 0 steps (5 rotations) forward and backward,
All recovery operations are performed, and the clutch gear 259, the control gear 102, and the stroke gear 103 start to rotate simultaneously with the rotation of the carrier motor 255. The plunger 115 is the stroke gear 103.
Since the reciprocating motion is controlled by, the carrier motor 255 starts to move simultaneously with the rotation, and the reciprocating motion corresponds to the rotation of the carrier motor 255.

As described above, the movement of the blade 104 is partly changed by the forward and reverse rotations of the carrier motor 255.

Further, as described above, when the recovery operation is started by the reverse rotation from the 0 pulse of the carrier motor 255, the cap 101 remains open so that the idle suction can be performed by the switching sheet 102d as described above. 115 moves.

FIG. 17 is a schematic perspective view showing the head cartridge portion and the carrier portion of the recording apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, 200 is a recording head that ejects ink by an electric signal, 201 is an ink tank that stores ink and supplies it to the recording head 200, 2
Reference numeral 03 designates a carrier provided in the recording apparatus main body for holding and scanning the recording head 200 and the ink tank 201, and 20
4 is a head lever for holding and releasing the recording head, 20
Reference numeral 5 is an ink tank lever for attaching / detaching the ink tank 201, 207 is a head holder spring for fixing the recording head 200 to the carrier 203, and 208 is a tank case holding the ink tank 201. The head cartridge portion and the carrier portion of the recording apparatus are configured by

FIG. 18 is a schematic perspective view showing the recording head 200 and the ink tank 201 of the recording apparatus according to the embodiment of the invention. In the figure, 220 is an ink supply hole that serves as a passage for supplying ink from the ink tank 201 to the recording head, 221 is an ink supply hole for supplying ink from the ink tank 201 to the recording head 200, and 22.
Reference numeral 2 denotes a coupling claw for guiding and holding the recording head 200 and the ink tank 201 when they are integrated, 22
Reference numeral 3 is a coupling claw guide groove that engages with the coupling claw 222, and reference numeral 232 is a head tab for facilitating the taking-out operation when the recording head 200 is taken out from the carrier, and these parts constitute the head cartridge 202.

The recording head 200 includes a substrate on which a plurality of electrothermal conversion elements for generating thermal energy used for ejecting ink and a drive circuit for driving the electrothermal conversion element are formed, and the plurality of substrates on the substrate. Discharge ports and liquid passages corresponding to each of the electrothermal conversion elements, and a top plate for forming a common liquid chamber communicating with each liquid passage are stacked, and further, the drive circuit is connected to the main body of the recording apparatus. Electrical contacts are provided to provide signals. Further, a sensor for detecting the state of the head from the recording apparatus main body can be arranged inside the recording head 200. Specifically, a temperature detection sensor for detecting the temperature in the vicinity of the electrothermal conversion element, an ink Ink remaining amount detection sensor that detects when ink is exhausted from the common liquid chamber described above,
Alternatively, a head type determination sensor that identifies the type of the head cartridge when using while exchanging objects having different types of ink or head in the head cartridge,
Etc. The printing apparatus main body can judge the signals from these sensors and control the signals applied to the electrothermal conversion elements in the previous period to optimize the printing state. Then, the recording head configured as described above is mounted on the recording apparatus so that the ejection port surface on which the ejection ports are arranged faces the recording medium.

The ink tank 201 is a tank for appropriately supplying ink to the recording head 200 in order to supplement ink consumed by recording while holding ink.
When the ink tank 201 alone exists, it is sealed by a sealing means (not shown) so that the ink does not leak from the ink supply hole 221. The sealing means is automatically or manually opened when integrated with the recording head 200 to form an ink flow path. The sealing means can be realized by, for example, a mechanism in which a metal ball is pressed against a rubber stopper by a spring. In addition, a mechanism may be provided to introduce atmospheric air from the outside according to the ink volume that decreases due to ink consumption. Furthermore, by having a mechanism inside that keeps the pressure of the ink supplied to the recording head slightly negative,
It can also improve printing quality and prevent ink leakage.

In this embodiment, the ink tank 201
A flexible bag (not shown) is provided inside, and ink is stored in the bag and is connected to the ink supply hole 221. The remaining space in the ink tank 201 is filled with air, but the air pressure is adjusted by a pressure control valve (not shown) in the recording operation state, and more specifically, a negative pressure state within a predetermined range is maintained. It is generated and retained.

Alternatively, in order to realize the above-mentioned pressure adjusting mechanism with a simpler mechanism, a sponge-like ink absorber may be placed inside the ink tank 201 so that the ink absorber holds ink. In this case, since a force to hold the ink acts due to the capillary phenomenon of the ink absorber itself, a negative pressure state can be automatically generated and held when the ink is taken out from there.
Further, in this case, the ink tank 201 is provided with an atmosphere communication port for taking in only the volume of the used ink from the outside of the ink tank 201.

The recording head 200 and the ink tank 201 are used on the recording apparatus in the recording operation in the state of the integrated head cartridge 202. Next, a method of integrating the both will be described.

Since the recording head 200 and the ink tank 201 are basically integrated by connecting the ink supply hole 220 and the ink supply hole 221, this portion leaks ink or gas in the ink flow path. It is designed to prevent intrusion. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 21, a system using a rigid pipe and an elastic stopper is adopted. That is, the ink supply hole 220 is formed in a cylindrical shape by a molding member, and the ink supply hole 221 facing the ink supply hole 220 is a member formed of a rubber material and having a cylindrical hole. The outer diameter of the ink supply hole 220 is made slightly larger than the inner diameter of the ink supply hole 221.
Then, when the ink supply hole 220 is press-fitted into the ink supply hole 221, the ink supply hole 221 is brought into close contact with and integrated with the ink supply hole 220 while slightly deforming in the radial direction.

The connecting portion is not limited to a combination of a rigid body and an elastic body and may be any one having a sealing function. For example, a combination of a mold pipe and a mold hole may cause a slight deformation of the mold. It may be sealed by utilizing the elasticity of the above, or may be composed of a rubber seal member having no holes and a needle-like pipe.

In order to integrate the recording head 200 and the ink tank 201, it is sufficient to connect the ink supply hole 220 and the ink supply hole 221 as described above, but an unexpected external force is applied when the head cartridge 202 is handled. In this embodiment, the coupling claw 222 and the coupling claw guide groove 223 make the coupling stronger so that the coupling claw 222 and the coupling claw guide groove 223 will not come off easily in case of being integrated or become a guide that can be easily integrated. I am trying. That is, the coupling claw 222, which is integrally molded with the ink supply hole 220 and can be elastically deformed,
A protrusion is provided at the tip, and while engaging with the coupling claw guide groove 223 while elastically deforming by the height of this protrusion, the groove provided at the back of the coupling claw guide groove 223 becomes deeper. The engagement is completed when the projection of the coupling claw 222 reaches the open portion.

Further, the coupling claw 222 also serves as a guide so that the ink supply hole 220 and the ink supply hole 221 can be easily aligned when the recording head 200 and the ink tank 201 are connected. That is, the coupling claw 222
Is longer than the ink supply hole 220, and the coupling claw 222 contacts the ink tank 201 before the ink supply hole 220 contacts the ink supply hole 221. Here, the tip of the coupling claw 222 is cut out obliquely, and the oblique portion can be easily engaged with the coupling claw guide groove as a guide in the direction of arrow a in FIG. Also, the coupling claw 2
The projection provided at the tip of 22 is also cut out obliquely to serve as a guide in the direction of arrow b in FIG. 18 to facilitate easy engagement.

In this embodiment, the coupling claw is provided on the recording head side, but it is not restricted by this, and the ink tank 201 side or the recording head 200 and the ink tank 2 are provided.
No. 01 can also be provided (see FIG. 47).

Next, the recording head 200 is attached to the carrier 203.
The method of connecting mechanically and electrically to the. FIG. 19 is a cross-sectional view showing the connection portion of the recording head 200 to the carrier 203 as seen from the direction of FIG. 17a, and FIG. 20 is a schematic perspective view showing the mounting sequence. In the figure, reference numeral 225 is a fixing pin 225 fixed to the carrier 203 and engaged with a hole provided in the recording head 200 to perform positioning in the directions of arrows a and b in FIG.
19A is a stopper that receives the recording head 200 that is pressed in the direction of FIG.
00a is a flexible cable for electrically connecting with 00, 211a is a positioning hole a provided in the flexible cable 211, and 211b is a flexible cable 21.
The positioning holes b and 212 provided in 1 are sandwiched between the flexible cable 211 and the carrier 203 to elastically support the flexible cable 211, and 212a is the flexible cable pad 2.
The positioning holes a and 212b provided in the 12 are the positioning holes b and 2 provided in the flexible cable pad 212.
Reference numeral 12c is an ink barrier for preventing ink from entering the contact portion, 227 is a head contact portion provided in the recording head 200 and electrically connected to a heater portion in the recording head 200, and 227a is provided in the head contact portion 227. The positioning holes a and 227b are used for the head contact portion 2
The positioning holes b and 227c provided in the stopper 27 are provided in the stopper 2
It is a stopper contact position where the end face of 26 abuts.

The recording head 200 has a head holder spring 20.
7 is pressed in the direction a through a lever (not shown), and its position is uniquely determined by the engagement between the hole provided in the recording head 200 and the positioning pin 225 and the interference with the stopper 226. In this way, the recording head 200 and the carrier 203 are mechanically connected.

Further, a plurality of electrical contacts are provided at opposite positions on the head contact portion 227 provided on the recording head 200 and the end surface of the flexible cable 211, and by pressing these with a predetermined pressure. The recording apparatus main body and the recording head 200 are electrically connected. At this time, since it is necessary to press-contact a plurality of electrical contacts at one time, a flexible cable pad 212 made of an elastic material is put in the pressing part in order to press-contact them uniformly. The material of the flexible cable pad 212 is, for example, silicon rubber, and has a plurality of protrusions at positions corresponding to the above-described electrical contacts so that the stress of pressing is concentrated on the contacts. Furthermore, the above-mentioned electrical contacts provided on the flexible cable 211 may be formed in a protruding shape in order to further concentrate the stress when pressed and to ensure the connection.

The reaction force generated when pressed is the head holder spring 20 that presses the recording head 200.
Since it is configured to be much smaller than the force of 7, the position of the recording head 200 will not be displaced by the reaction force from the flexible cable pad 212.

Further, the carrier 203, the flexible cable pad 212, the flexible cable 211, the head contact portion 227 and the head cartridge 203.
Are required to be accurately positioned with respect to each other in order to obtain a reliable electrical connection and good recording quality. For that reason, they are configured as follows.

That is, with reference to the two positioning pins 225 of the carrier 203, one positioning pin 225 is used.
Is commonly fitted to the positioning hole a212a, the positioning hole a211a and the positioning hole a227a, and the other positioning pin 225 is commonly fitted to the positioning hole b212b, the positioning hole b211b and the positioning hole b227b. The position in the 20b direction is determined.

Further, the position of the recording head 200 in the direction of FIG. 20c can be accurately determined by pressing the end face of the stopper 226 from the direction of FIG. 19a until the end face of the stopper 226 comes into contact with the stopper abutting place 227c of the head contact portion 227.

Further, if ink enters between the electrical contact surface, that is, between the flexible cable 211 and the head contact portion 227 for some reason, there is a possibility of electrical short circuit, so it is necessary to prevent this. is there. Therefore, in this embodiment, a part of the flexible cable pad 212 is formed into a protrusion to form an ink barrier 212c, which is pressed against the end surface of the recording head 200 to prevent the invasion of ink from the ejection port of the head 200. .

In the present embodiment, the electrical or mechanical coupling portion is provided on the recording head side, but it is not restricted to this and the ink tank 201 side or the recording head 200 side and the ink tank 201 side is provided. It may be provided on both sides, or the electrical coupling part and the mechanical coupling part may be separately provided on either side.

Next, a method of handling the recording head 200 and the ink tank 201, that is, a case of replacing the ink tank 201 that has run out of ink with a new ink tank 201, or a case of replacing the recording head 200 that has become unusable for some reason The method will be described.

As a first form, the fixing of the recording head 200 and the carrier 203 is released, and the recording head 200 and the ink tank 201 are taken out from the carrier 203 in an integrated state, and then removed from the carrier 203 (hereinafter , Off-carrier state), the recording head 200 and the ink tank 201 are separated or integrated.

FIG. 22 shows the carrier 203 to the recording head 2.
00 is a schematic perspective view of the ink tank 201 taken out as a unit. In this case, the head lever 2
By rotating 04 from the state of FIG. 17 in the direction of FIG. 22a and raising it to such a position, the head lever 20
A cam provided in No. 4 releases the pressing force of the head holder spring 207 on the recording head 200 by moving the shaft provided on the lever pressing the recording head 200.

At this time, the tank case 208 in the carrier 203 moves while the protrusions thereof are engaged with the end surface of the ink tank 201 on the recording head 200 side, so that the recording head 200 and the ink tank 201 remain integrated. 22
Move in b direction. This disengages the positioning pin 225 from the hole of the recording head 200, so that the recording head 200 and the ink tank 201 can be moved together in the direction of FIG. 22c and can be taken out of the carrier to be in an off-carrier state. Can be done. At this time, pinch the head tab 232 attached to the recording head 200,
The entire head cartridge 202 can be easily taken out by lifting. In addition, this head tab 2
32 is made of a flexible material (for example, polyester), and the surface in contact with the flexible cable 211 is formed of at least an electrically insulating member. And
At the time of recording, the head tab 232 is interposed between the head lever 205 and the flexible cable 211 to protect the flexible cable 211 and electrically insulate it from the outside. After the off-carrier state, it is possible to separate the recording head 200 and the ink tank 201 by applying a force in a direction opposite to the coupling direction at the time of integration. Then, the one to be replaced is replaced with a new one, and the two are integrated by the above-described integration method and housed in the carrier 203 in the reverse order, whereby the replacement work is completed.

The head lever 2 is used in this embodiment.
Although the pressing force of the recording head 200 is released by using 04, the lever for pressing the recording head 200 may be directly moved without being restricted by this. Further, although the head holder spring 207 is used to press the recording head as a fixing method, the recording head is not restricted by this and may be fixed using a latch hook having a spring property.

When the first mode is adopted, there are the following effects. In other words, if either the print head or the ink tank needs to be replaced, only the one that needs to be replaced need be replaced, thus improving the economic efficiency.

As a second embodiment, the recording head 200 and the ink tank 201 are separated on the carrier while the recording head 200 and the carrier 203 are fixed (hereinafter,
There is a method of removing only the ink tank 201 (on-carrier state).

FIG. 23 shows the recording head 2 on the carrier 203.
00 is a schematic perspective view showing a state in which the ink tank 201 is separated from 00. In this case, by rotating the tank lever 205 from the state of FIG. 17 in the direction of FIG. 23a and raising it to such a position, the cam (not shown) provided on the tank lever 205 causes the tank case 208 to move to the position shown in FIG.
Move in the direction. The protrusion provided on the tank case 208 engages with the end surface of the ink tank 201 on the recording head 200 side to move the ink tank 201 in the direction of FIG. 23b.
At this time, the recording head 200 is fixed in the same manner as in the state of FIG. 17, and since it does not move together with the ink tank 201, the engaging portion between the recording head 200 and the ink tank 201 can be disengaged and separated. Furthermore, the ink tank 201 can be removed from the carrier 203 by moving it in the direction of FIG. 23c.

Further, when mounting the ink tank 201, the ink tank 201 is inserted into the tank case 208 and the tank lever 205 is operated in the reverse order. As a result, the tank case 208 presses the end portion of the ink tank 201, so that the pressure can connect the recording head 200 and the ink tank 201.

At this time, when the recording head 200 is elastically pressed by the head holder spring 207 as in this embodiment, the head may be unfixed due to the force applied during separation. Therefore, it is preferable to configure as follows. FIG. 24 shows a schematic plan view showing how the force is applied. In the figure, the recording head 200 is moved by the head holder spring 207 by the force of f1 to the carrier 203.
Has been pressed. Further, since the recording head 200 and the ink tank 201 are separated, a force of f2 is required to disengage the engagement between the coupling claw 222 and the coupling claw guide groove 223 and the engagement between the ink supply hole 220 and the ink supply hole 221. Suppose there is. At this time, by setting the magnitude of the force to be f1> f2, it is possible to prevent the recording head 200 from being unfixed during the separation operation.

The tank lever 2 is used in this embodiment.
Although the force corresponding to f2 is used for the separation using 05, the ink is not restrained by this, and the ink tank 201 is directly held and pulled in the direction b in FIG. 23 to separate the recording head 200 and the ink tank 201. It may be configured as follows.

When the second mode is adopted, the following effects are obtained in addition to the case of the first mode. That is, by appropriately designing the cam shape of the tank lever 205, the drawing speed at the time of separation can be controlled, and ink can be prevented from scattering from the ink supply hole 220 or the ink supply hole 221.

Further, since it is not necessary to directly hold the recording head 200 by hand, the vicinity of the ink ejection port of the recording head 200 is not touched by hand, and it is possible to prevent unnecessary contamination that adversely affects printing.

Further, since the portion of the ink tank 201 to which a force is applied is specified, it is only necessary to make the structure capable of withstanding the force. Therefore, the other portion can be made thin and lightweight, and the internal volume can be increased. There is.

Next, the ink tank 201 is loaded into the carrier 20.
The prevention of erroneous insertion when inserting into the tank case 208 in the No. 3 will be described. The ink tank 201 is shown in FIGS.
As shown in FIG. 2, there are an end face having an ink supply port 221 for connecting to the recording head 200 and an end face not having the ink supply port 221.
Further, it is necessary to regulate the insertion direction to some extent depending on the directions of the coupling claw 222 and the coupling claw guide groove 223. Therefore, in this embodiment, the insertion direction is regulated by providing a convex shape on the tank case 208 side and a concave shape on the ink tank 201 side.

FIG. 48 is a schematic perspective view showing the structure of the tank case 208. In the figure, reference numeral 208 a denotes a tank case end projection that protrudes inside the tank case 208 at a position where the ink tank 201 is inserted, and 208 b denotes a case where the end portion of the tank case 208 is restricted and the ink tank 201 is inserted into the carrier 203. It is a tank case end for pressing the ink tank 201, and a tank case 208 is constituted by these respective parts. Further, the tank case end protrusion 208a has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape having a height H2, a length W2, and a thickness T2. The shape is not limited to the substantially rectangular parallelepiped.

FIG. 49 is a schematic perspective view of the ink tank 208 as viewed from the side opposite to the side on which the recording head 200 is attached. In the figure, 201a is an ink tank 2.
This is an ink tank slit cut toward the inside of 01. The ink tank slit 201a is a substantially rectangular parallelepiped slit having a height H1, a length W1, and a gap T2. The shape is not limited to the substantially rectangular parallelepiped.

The insertion direction is restricted by the tank case end projection 208a and the ink tank slit 201a. When the ink tank 201 is inserted in the correct direction, the tank case end protrusion 208a fits into the ink tank slit 201a and the tank case 208 is inserted.
It can fit inside. However, when the ink tank 201 is inserted in the wrong direction, the tank case end protrusion 2
08a interferes with the outer shape of the ink tank 201, and the ink tank 201 cannot be fitted to the regular position. As a result, the operator notices that the ink tank 201 has been inserted in the wrong insertion direction, so that damage or failure of the machine due to forced insertion in the wrong direction can be prevented.

Next, dimensional restrictions on the tank case 208 and the ink tank 201 will be described. FIG. 50 is a schematic plan view showing dimensions required for the tank case 208 and the ink tank 201. In the figure, position O is the center of rotation of the ink tank 201 when it is rotated on the side opposite to the recording head 200 (direction of arrow c), and position A is the ink tank 20.
1 is the lower corner on the side opposite to the recording head 200, position B is the upper corner on the side of the tank case end 208b that contacts the ink tank 201, length L1 is the distance from position O to position A, and length L2 is from position O. It is the distance to the position B.

FIG. 51 is a schematic front view showing dimensions required for the tank case 208 and the ink tank 201. In the figure, length T3 is the distance from the side surface of the ink tank 201 to the ink tank slit 201a, and length T4 is the inner side surface of the tank case 208 and the tank case end projection 2
08a, the length T5 is the width of the ink tank 201, and the length T6 is the inner width and length T of the tank case 208.
7 is the ink tank slit 201 from the side opposite to T3
Tank case 2 with distance to a and length T8 opposite T4
08 is the distance from the inner surface to the tank case end protrusion 208a.

In FIG. 50, by setting (length L1) <(length L2), it is possible to take out the conventional ink tank 201 that can only be pulled out straight upward by rotational movement. The operability can be improved. However, if the length L2 is set too large, the operability is improved, but the carrier 203 becomes large, which in turn leads to an increase in size of the apparatus. Therefore, it is desirable that the length L2 further satisfy the following relationship. (Length L2) <(Length in main scanning direction of ink tank 201) × 2 Further, the relationship between the depth of the tank case end projection 208a and the length of the ink tank slit 201a is (length W1)> (length W2 ), The end portion of the ink tank 201 is connected to the tank case end 20 regardless of whether or not there is a protrusion for preventing incorrect insertion.
Since it can be pressed by 8b, a stable pressing force is always applied, and the mounting operation of the ink tank 201 and the recording head 200 is smooth. The relationship between the length H1 and the length H2 will be described later.

In FIG. 51, in order for the ink tank 201 to enter the tank case 208 (length T5) <
(Length T6), but when the ink tank 201 is further inserted, the ink tank 201 is attached to the tank case end protrusion 208a.
The following formula must be satisfied in order to allow smooth insertion without interference. That is, (length T2) + (length T4) <(length T1) + (length T
3) And (length T2) + (length T8) <(length T1) + (length T
By setting 7), the tank case end protrusion 208a can be smoothly inserted into the ink tank slit 201a.

Next, dimensional restrictions on the head cartridge 202 and the carrier 203 will be shown. FIG. 52 is a schematic front view showing the dimensions required for the head cartridge 202 and the carrier 203. In the figure, 208c is a tank case protrusion that is at the end of the tank case 208 and engages with the end of the ink tank 201, and 206c is the head holder 2.
The head holder protrusion at the end of 06, which presses the recording head 200, position O is the upper end of the tank case 208, which is the center of rotation in FIG.

The figure shows a state in which the head cartridge 202 is being mounted (or removed) in the carrier 203, and the head cartridge 202 is indicated by an arrow C.
It is inserted and removed vertically while rotating up to θ ° in the direction. Alternatively, it is also possible to insert and remove by only moving in the vertical direction without involving a rotating operation.

Considering the case of inserting / removing with rotation in FIG. 52, H1 and H2 described in FIG. 50 are considered.
If the relationship of (length H1) × cos θ> (length H2) is satisfied, the tank case end protrusion 208a and the ink tank 201 do not interfere with each other when the head cartridge 202 is inserted and removed.

When the head cartridge 202 is inserted or removed, if ink is accumulated near the ink ejection port of the recording head 200, the ink may adhere to the contact portion of the flexible cable 211 and cause an electrical short. There is a nature. Therefore, it is desirable to arrange the gap d between the tip of the recording head 200 and the flexible cable 211 so as to be 0 or more even during the insertion / removal operation. During the insertion / removal operation, the tank case protrusion 208c and the head holder protrusion 206a can pass only the shaded portion of the recording head 200 in FIG. 52, so that the distance Lo from the position O to the contact surface of the flexible cable 211 is , The relationship between the length Lh of the recording head 200 in the main scanning direction is (length Lo) − (length Lh)> 0, and the height Ho of the position O and the maximum height Hc of the contact surface of the flexible cable 211 are set. By setting the relationship of (length Ho) + (length Lh) × sin θ> (length Hc), it is possible to prevent ink adhesion.

Next, the sliding portion between the carrier 203 and the guide rail 2 will be described. 53 is a schematic front view of the carrier 203 as seen from the paper discharge side, and FIG. 54 is a side view thereof. In the figure, 233 is an upper part of the carrier rib provided on the side of the carrier 203 on the paper discharge side, 234 is a lower part of the carrier rib, and 235 is abutting the guide rail 2 and sliding to move the carrier in the main scanning direction. Above the carrier sliding portion that serves as a guide, 236 is below the carrier sliding portion that serves as a guide when moving with a slight gap.

The upper carrier ribs 233 and the lower carrier ribs 234 face the guide rails 2 with a slight clearance, and normally do not come into contact with each other. However, since the carrier rib upper portion 233 is provided over substantially the entire length of the side surface of the carrier 203, it serves to reinforce the side surface of the carrier 203.

As described above, in order to support the own weight of the carrier 203 when only the normal recording operation is performed, only the upper carrier sliding portion 235 and the lower carrier sliding portion 236 are sufficient. However, when the tank lever 205 is operated when the ink tank 201 is replaced, or when the head lever 204 is operated when the head cartridge 202 is replaced, a load far exceeding its own weight is applied as an operating force. The upper part 234 and the carrier sliding part lower part 236 may be damaged. In order to receive a large load, it is sufficient to increase the contact area of the carrier sliding portion upper portion 235 and the carrier sliding portion lower portion 236. However, such a configuration increases the contact resistance, and a slight inclination of the carrier 203 causes the carrier to move. The gap between the sliding portions above the sliding portion 235 and below the carrier sliding portion 236 becomes too narrow, which causes a failure such as galling with the guide rail 2. Therefore, in this embodiment,
A carrier rib is provided at a position with a gap slightly larger than the gap of the sliding portion, and an excessive load is applied to the carrier 203.
When the carrier is deformed, the upper carrier rib 233 or the lower carrier rib 234 abuts the guide rail 2 and receives a load, thereby preventing the carrier 203 from being damaged.

With the above structure, it is possible to realize a sliding portion that can withstand a large load while reducing the contact area during recording operation. Therefore, it is possible to reduce sliding resistance and improve reliability. You can

FIG. 25 is a diagram showing the positional relationship of the automatic paper feeder with respect to the inkjet recording device according to the present invention.

Here, reference numeral 300 is an automatic paper feeder, which is fixed to the ink jet recording apparatus in the positional relationship shown in FIG.

FIG. 26, FIG. 27 and FIG. 28 show a structural example of the automatic feeding unit according to the present invention. 26 is an external perspective view, FIG. 27 is a plan view, and FIG. 28 is a sectional view.

Here, reference numeral 301 denotes a main holder, which supports all the components of the automatic paper feed unit, and further fixes the automatic paper feed unit to the ink jet recording apparatus.

Reference numeral 302 denotes a separation roller for separating the recording materials one by one by rotation and feeding them to the paper feeding section of the ink jet recording apparatus. A separation gear 303 and a separation ratchet 304 are fixed, and a separation shaft 305 is provided. It is rotatably supported around the center. The separation shaft 305 is fixed to the separation holder 306, and the separation holder 306 is rotatably held by the main holder shaft 307 with respect to the main holder 301. Reference numeral 308 denotes a separation spring, which is a convex portion 306a of the separation holder 306 and the main holder 3
28, the separation holder 306 is rotated clockwise in FIG. 28 to press the separation roller 302 against the separation pad 316. The pressing force of the separation spring 308 is set within the range of 10 to 50 gf in this embodiment. In the following description, it is assumed to be 10 gf.

Reference numeral 309 denotes a spare roller for feeding the loaded recording material to the separation roller 302, which is fixed to the spare roller shaft 311 and together with the spare roller gear 311a fixed to the spare roller shaft 311. It is rotatably supported by 310. The auxiliary roller holder 310 is rotatably held by the main holder shaft 307 with respect to the main holder 301.

The auxiliary roller 309 is driven by the idler gear 312 at the same peripheral speed as the separation roller 302.

Reference numeral 313 is a spare roller spring, and like the separation holder 306, a spare roller holder 310 is provided.
28 is rotated in the clockwise direction in FIG. 28 to press the auxiliary roller 309 toward the paper holder 317 side.
The pressing force of the spare roller spring 313 is not limited so much as the spare roller 309 can reliably feed the recording material 3, but in this embodiment, a good result is obtained at 20 gf or more. In the following explanation, it is assumed that 50
gf.

Reference numeral 314 is a separation pressure arm, and the separation pressure arm spring 3 is centered around the main holder shaft 307.
15, the separation holder 306 is rotated clockwise in FIG. 28 via the convex portion 306a of the separation holder 306,
The separation roller 302 is pressed against the separation pad 316.
Separation roller 302 by separation pressure arm spring 315
Since the pressing force of No. 1 affects the separation performance, it has to be carefully determined, but in this example, good results were obtained at 20 gf or more. In the following description, it is assumed to be 100 gf.

In FIG. 28, reference numeral 316 is a separating pad for separating and holding the stacked recording materials, and 317 is a paper holder for stacking and holding the recording materials.

Reference numeral 318 denotes a cam shaft, which is an automatic paper feeding motor 3
It is rotationally driven from 23 via a reduction gear 324 and a gear 318a. On the cam shaft 318, the switch cam 3 for turning on and off the paper feeding initial sensor 320a via the switch arm 319 together with the gear 318a.
18b, a gear 318c for transmitting the rotation of the cam shaft 318 to the separation roller 302, and a claw portion 310a provided on the preliminary roller holder 310, in relation to the preliminary roller holder 310.
A preparatory roller holder cam 318d for moving up and down and a separation pressure cam 318e for moving up and down the separation pressure arm 314 are integrally provided.

Drive gear 321 and clutch disc 322
Are integrally formed and are rotatably and slidably held with respect to the separation shaft 305.
It is pressed toward the separation ratchet 304 side by 26.
Further, a trapezoidal cam 321a is integrally formed on the drive gear 321, and a trapezoidal cam 306b is also integrally formed on the separation holder 306. The rotation of the drive gear 321 moves the drive gear 321 and the clutch disc 322 in the axial direction of the separation shaft 305. , The engagement between the clutch disc 322 and the separation ratchet 304 is controlled, and the transmission of the drive from the automatic paper feed motor 323 to the separation roller 302 is controlled. The gear ratio of the gear 318c provided on the cam shaft 318 and the drive gear 321 is 1: 1, and the rotation phases of the cam shaft 318 and the drive gear 321 are the same.

The release lever 325 is the main holder 30.
1, the release lever 325 has a cam shape at one end, and the separation holder 306 can be moved up and down by engaging with one end of the separation shaft 305. On of the paper switching sensor 320b
You can do f.

Returning to FIG. 25, reference numeral 328 is a center line of the separation roller 302 and the auxiliary roller 309 at right angles to the separation shaft 305, which coincides with the traveling direction of the recording material 3. The left guide 317a is provided on the paper holder 317, and guides the left end surface of the recording material 3 at a fixed position with respect to the recording position. The distance L between the center line 328 and the left guide 317a is set and fixed to 1/2 or less of the minimum width of the recording material 3 used in this inkjet recording apparatus. In this embodiment,
The minimum recording material 3 is the vertical direction of the postcard, and the width 1 of the recording material 3
It is set to 45 mm with respect to 00 mm.

A detailed description relating to the operation of the mechanical section of the automatic sheet feeder having the above-mentioned configuration will be given below.

29, 30, and 31 are explanatory views of the operation according to an embodiment of the automatic paper feeder to which the present invention is applied. 29 and 30 illustrate changes in operation over time, and FIG. 31 illustrates operation of the release mechanism.

In FIG. 29, (1) shows a state before the recording material is loaded. (A) Clutch disc 322 and separation ratchet 304
Is separated by the trapezoidal cam 321a and the trapezoidal cam 306b, so that the separation roller 302 is separated from the drive source. (B) Since the separation pressure arm 314 and the separation pressure cam 318e are not in contact with each other, the pressure of the separation pressure arm spring 315 causes the separation roller 302 to separate the separation roller 302 via the separation pressure arm 314, the protrusion 306a, and the separation holder 306.
Pushing against. Since the separation spring 308 is also similar, the separation pressure arm spring 31 is attached to the separation roller 302.
5 and the pressure of the separation spring 308 (10 + 100 =
110gf) is added. (C) Since the spare roller holder cam 318d and the claw portion 310a of the spare roller holder 310 are in contact with each other, the spare roller 309 is separated from the paper holder 317 together with the spare roller holder 310 against the pressure of the spare roller spring 313. is there. (D) Since the switch arm 319 is in the concave portion of the switch cam 318b, the sheet feeding initial sensor 320a is off.

(2) is a state in which the recording material 3 is loaded. The automatic sheet feeder is not operating between (1) and (2). (B) The recording material 3 is loaded from the right side of the drawing, but the separation roller 302 is pressed against the separation pad 316 by the pressure (11 gf) of the separation pressure arm spring 315 and the separation spring 308, so that the recording material 3 is separated. It stops at the contact point between the roller 302 and the separating pad 316, and becomes the state shown in the figure.

(3) is a state in which the automatic paper feeding motor 323 starts to rotate and the cam shaft 318 rotates counterclockwise by 20 degrees. (A) The trapezoidal cam 321a and the trapezoidal cam 306b are disengaged by rotation, and the clutch spring 326 presses the clutch disc 322 against the separation ratchet 304.
The separation roller 302 starts to rotate by the rotation of the automatic paper feeding motor 323. (B) Since the separation pressure cam 318e and the separation pressure arm 314 are not in contact with each other, the separation roller 302 is separated by the separation pressure arm spring 315 and the separation spring 308.
It starts rotating clockwise while being pressed (110 gf). Therefore, the recording material 3 is separated by the action of the separating pad 316 and the separating roller 302 so that only the uppermost one is separated to the left,
It is fed. (C) Since the spare roller holder cam 318d and the claw portion 310a of the spare roller holder 310 are disengaged, the spare roller 3
09 is pressed (50 gf) against the recording material 3 by the auxiliary roller spring 313 via the auxiliary roller holder 310, and further rotated clockwise by the separation gear 303, the idler gear 312, and the auxiliary roller gear 311 a to separate the recording material 3. The recording material 3 is conveyed leftward so that the contact point between the roller 302 and the separation pad 316 is surely reached. (D) The paper feed initial sensor 320a is turned on by the switch arm 319 and the switch cam 318b.

(4) is a state in which the cam shaft 318 is further rotated counterclockwise. The difference here is that in (C), the auxiliary roller holder cam 318d and the claw portion 310a come into contact with each other, and the auxiliary roller 309 performs recording. The recording material 3 is conveyed in a state of being separated from the material 3. At this point, the recording material 3 reaches the contact point between the conveying roller 4 and the pinch roller 8 and the conveyance is hindered. However, since the conveying force of the auxiliary roller 309 is reduced, the recording material 3 is bent. No
The waist of the recording material 3 allows the separation roller 302 and the recording material 3 to slide.

(5) is a state in which the cam shaft 318 is further rotated counterclockwise, and in this state, the automatic paper feeding section is temporarily stopped and the ink jet recording apparatus is in a recording state. (A) Clutch disc 322 and separation ratchet 304
Since they are separated from each other, the separation roller 302 is completely cut off from the driving side and is rotatably held with respect to the separation shaft 305. (B) Since the separation pressure cams 318e and 314 are in contact with each other, the separation pressure arm 314 and the convex portion 306a are separated from each other. Therefore, the pressing force of the separation pressure arm spring 315 is applied to the separation roller 3
02, the separating roller 302 presses the separating pad 316 only by the separating spring 308 (10 gf).
Has been done. (C) The spare roller 309 is separated from the recording material 3.

In this state, since the pressing force of the separation roller 302 is small (10 gf) and the preliminary roller 309 is also separated from the recording material 3, the recording material 3 can be drawn into the ink jet recording apparatus side with a small force. Has become.

When the recording is further progressed from the state of (5) and the recording is completed and the recording material 3 comes out of the automatic sheet feeding section, the automatic sheet feeding motor 323 is driven to proceed to the state of (2) and 1 The operation of the second time is ended, and the next sheet is prepared.

FIG. 30 is a sequence diagram of the operation according to the present invention, and points (1) to (5) in the lower stage correspond to the states (1) to (5) in FIG.

Returning to FIG. 25, the center line 328 is the recording material 3
Since the recording material 3 is set to be always on the left side of the center in the width direction, when the recording material 3 is conveyed by the separation roller 302 and the auxiliary roller 309, the recording material 3 always has a clockwise moment M. It is being transported while receiving it. Therefore, the trailing edge of the recording material 3 is conveyed while being pressed against the left guide 317a, and the recording material 3 is guided to the recording portion along the left guide 317a without being bent.

FIG. 31 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the release mechanism of the automatic paper feed unit. FIG. 31A shows the use state of the automatic paper feed unit, and one end of the release lever 325 sets the paper feed switching sensor 320b to the on state. Further, since the separation roller 305 is not in contact with the separation shaft 305, the separation roller 302 is pressed against the separation pad 316. That is, the paper feed switching sensor 320b
When is on, it indicates that the automatic paper feeder is in a usable state.

(B) shows a state in which a recording material such as an envelope which is not suitable for automatic paper feeding is used, and the user rotates the release lever 325 counterclockwise so that the automatic paper feeding portion is not used. Create a state. In that state,
The separation shaft 305 is pulled up by the cam portion provided on the release lever 325, and the separation roller 302 is separated by the separation pad 316.
Fixed away from. Therefore, the recording material inserted from the right side of FIG. 31 directly reaches the conveying roller 4 and the pinch roller 8. Further, in this state, since the paper feed switching sensor 320b is in the off state, it can be detected that the automatic paper feed unit is not in use.

The above is the description of the operation of the mechanical section according to the embodiment of the present invention.

A control example of this embodiment will be shown below. FIG. 32 is a flowchart showing an example of initial sequence control of the automatic paper feeding unit.

When power is turned on, START is set. First, in step S1, the paper feed initial sensor 320a is on or of
It is determined whether it is f. If it is off, the initial state, that is, FIG.
Since it is in the state (1) of 9, the sequence is ended and the next sheet feeding command is prepared. If the paper feed initial sensor 320a is turned on in step S1, the process proceeds to step S2, the automatic paper feed motor 323 is rotated in the reverse direction, and when the paper feed initial sensor 320a is turned off in step S1, the initial state is set, and therefore the sequence is changed. finish.

Next, FIG. 33 is a flow chart showing a control example for executing automatic paper feeding. STA at the time of feeding instruction
Let it be RT. First, in step S3, if the paper feed switching sensor 320b is off, the process proceeds to step S9, and the control unit determines that the automatic paper feed unit is not in use, and the hand feed mode is set.

If the paper feed switching sensor 320b is turned on in step S3, the process proceeds to step S4, where the automatic paper feed motor 323 is rotated in the forward direction and rotated by the cam shaft 318 by 320 degrees, and then the automatic paper feed motor 323 is stopped. .
That is, the state is (5) in FIG.

Next, in step S5, the state of the PE sensor 14 on the ink jet recording apparatus side is detected. If it is off here, the paper feeding operation is not performed correctly, so the process proceeds to step S10, and the control unit determines that there is an error (feeding failure or no paper). If it is on, the process proceeds to step S6 to start the recording operation.

Next, in step S7, the PE sensor 14 is searched for a state in which it is turned off.
8, the automatic paper feed motor 323 is rotated in the forward direction to rotate the cam shaft 318.
Rotate 40 degrees to stop. That is, in the state of (2) in FIG. 29, END is set here, and the next sheet feeding command is prepared.

Next, the configuration and electric circuit of the information processing apparatus incorporating the recording apparatus of this embodiment will be described.

FIG. 34 is a schematic perspective view showing the outer appearance of an information processing apparatus 400 incorporating the recording apparatus of this embodiment.

In the figure, 401 is a printer section, and 40
Reference numeral 2 denotes a keyboard unit having keys for inputting characters, numbers and other characters, keys for giving various commands, 403 a display unit having a display, 404
Is an external storage device such as a floppy disk, 406 is a printer opening opened in a casing for operating the printer unit 401 from the outside, and 407 is a printer that closes the printer opening unit 406 when it is not necessary to operate the printer unit 401. It is a lid.

The carrier of the printer unit 401 is in a state where the lead pin 209 is inserted in the idle groove 264 of the above-mentioned initial lock 258 during the non-printing operation (hereinafter, this position is referred to as the home position), and the head is opened from the printer opening 406. The lever 204 and the tank lever 205 cannot be operated. This is to prevent the ink ejection surface of the recording head 200 from being damaged by the cap 101 when the recording head 200 is attached / detached at the home position. Therefore, when replacing the recording head 200 or the ink tank 201, the position at which the carrier 203 can be moved from the home position and the head lever 204 or the tank lever 205 can be operated through the printer opening 406 (hereinafter this position is called the replacement position). To come to
In order to move the carrier 203 to the exchange position, it may be moved by inputting a key for controlling the printer unit 401 of the keyboard unit 402, or it may be controlled to move at a predetermined timing according to a software instruction. May be.

When the replacement work of the recording head 200 and the ink tank 201 at the replacement position is completed, the control key of the keyboard unit 402 may be pressed to return to the home position, as described above. It may be controlled to return to the home position at a predetermined timing according to a software command. Further, when an operation of moving to the exchange position is performed during the printing operation, it is possible to continuously return to the printing operation from the exchange position.

However, as in this embodiment, the levers can be operated only from the printer opening 406, and when the other part of the carrier operation range is covered, the levers are operated to raise the levers. If an instruction to move from the exchange position is given as it is, it will interfere with the casing of the information processing apparatus 400, and will hinder the subsequent printer operation.

Then, as in this embodiment, the carrier 203
When there is no place for mounting the sensor on the upper side or when the increase in the apparatus cost is disliked, it is possible to avoid an obstacle to the printer operation by the following method.

FIG. 55 shows the information processing apparatus 4 in a state in which the levers are raised when the carrier 203 is in the exchange position.
00 is a cross-sectional view of the printer unit of FIG. FIG. 6A is a diagram showing a state in which the head lever 204 is raised, and FIG. 6B is a diagram showing a state in which the tank lever 205 is raised. In the figure, the broken line indicated by HP indicates the home position of the carrier 203, and the hatched portion indicates the cross section of the casing of the information processing device 400.

As shown in FIG. 55 (a), the head lever 20
Considering the case of returning to the home position with No. 4 raised, it is possible to return to the home position with the head lever 204 kept raised as shown in FIG. 56 (a). However, if the printing operation is started from this state, it interferes with the casing of the information processing apparatus 400 at the position C shown by the broken line in FIG. 56A, which hinders the subsequent recording operation.

Considering a case where the tank lever 205 is raised and the home position is to be returned as shown in FIG. 55 (b), the tank lever 205 and the information processing apparatus are at the position shown in FIG. 56 (b). The housing of 400 interferes with the housing, the home position cannot be returned, the initial operation cannot be performed, and the subsequent recording operation is hindered.

Therefore, in this embodiment, it is checked whether or not the levers are securely stored by the procedure shown in the flowchart of FIG.

In step S70, the keyboard section 402 as described above.
The replacement work end process is started by the input of the control key or by a software command. In S71, the carrier motor 255 is driven to move the carrier 203 in the direction to move it from the exchange position to the home position. If the carrier motor 255 is a pulse motor, a predetermined pulse is generated, and if it is an AC or DC motor, it is energized for a predetermined time, and then it is determined whether the carrier 203 is at the home position by the signal of the HP sensor 270. .

If it is detected that the home position has not been returned, the process proceeds to S75, where the tank lever 20
5 and the casing of the information processing device 400 interfere with each other, and the carrier 2
It is determined that 03 is unable to return to the home position, and it is determined that the tank lever 203 has not been housed and is an error. The subsequent operation will be described later.

When it is detected in S72 that the carrier 203 is in the home position, the process proceeds to S73, in which it is determined whether the recording head 200 is mounted.
Whether or not the recording head 200 is mounted is determined by, for example, measuring the resistance value of a resistor provided in the recording head.
Since it can be determined that is not connected, it can be easily determined electrically.

If it is determined that the recording head 200 is attached, it is determined that the replacement work termination process has been completed normally, the process proceeds to S74, and this process is terminated.

If it is detected in S73 that the recording head 200 is not mounted, the process proceeds to S76, in which the head lever 204 is not housed and the recording head 200 is not normally fixed, or the head lever 204 is securely attached. However, it is determined that the recording head 200 is not mounted yet. Since the recording operation cannot be performed normally in either case, it is determined that there is an error.

If it is determined in S75 that there is an error,
If it is determined that there is an error in S76 and S76, it is impossible to perform the subsequent printing operation, so the user is reminded to pay attention to the operation of the levers or the recording head 200 is mounted again. Then, the information processing device 4
00, the buzzer is smoothed, the display unit 4
A warning is issued by displaying a message at 03. After issuing the warning, an error is generated in S78, and the present process is terminated. After that, the user can move the carrier 203 to the replacement position again and repeat the replacement work to avoid the error.

Also, in cases other than the above, for example, when the head lever 204 is halfway closed and stopped, the carrier 20 is determined by the determination in S72.
Since it can be determined that 3 has not returned to the home position, it can be detected that the lever is not properly housed.

By determining that the levers of the carrier are not housed as described above, the following effects can be obtained.

That is, there is no need to provide a sensor for detecting the storage of the levers on the carrier, and there is an effect that the device cost can be reduced and the device can be downsized. Also, because the storage confirmation processing of the levers is performed before starting the recording operation,
If it is necessary to operate the levers while recording one page,
The recording result up to that point can be continuously recorded without causing any trouble during the recording operation after the replacement operation by the user to cause abnormal recording, and the reliability is improved.

In the example of FIGS. 55 to 57, the carrier 203
When the levers of were not reliably stored, this was detected by whether the movement of the carrier was normal and the user was allowed to store the lever again, but by configuring as follows, It can also be configured to automatically store the levers.

As an example, FIG. 58 shows a series of diagrams showing the operation when the tank lever 205 is automatically stored. Like FIG. 55 and FIG. 56, this figure is a schematic cross-sectional view of the printer section as seen from the front of the information processing apparatus 400.

[0206] Figure (a) is a view showing movement from the exchange position to the home position in the direction A of the figure, and Figure (b) is a view further moving in the direction A,
FIG. 6C is a diagram in which the storage of the tank lever 205 is completed.

In FIG. 58A, as the carrier 203 moves in the direction A, the tank lever 205 and the casing of the information processing device 400 come into contact with each other. Then the tank lever 2
A moment is added to 05, and it starts to rotate in the B direction in the figure. When moving further in the direction A, the tank lever 2
Although 05 also continues to rotate in the B direction, when it reaches the position shown in FIG. 9B, the tank lever 205 is not contacted with the casing of the information processing device 400, and the moment is not applied to the tank lever 205.

However, with this state, the tank lever 205
The uppermost point and the casing of the information processing device 400 are always in contact with each other during scanning of the carrier 203, which is not preferable. Therefore, in the case of this example, the tank lever 205
The tank lever spring 2 is attached to the tank lever 205 so that the rotational force acts in the direction B in FIG.
37 is hung. By the action of the tank lever spring 237, the tank lever 205 becomes the tank lever stopper 2
It is retracted until it hits 38, and the state shown in FIG.

However, the means for retracting the tank lever 205 is not limited to the tank lever spring 237, and may be constituted by using a cam and a cam follower.
Means such as magnets may be used.

At the position of the tank lever 205 shown in FIG. 14C, the carrier 203 can be smoothly scanned without coming into contact with the casing of the information processing apparatus 400.

With the above-mentioned structure, the following effects can be obtained. That is, even if the user forgets to store the levers or performs an insufficient operation, the levers are automatically stored by the movement of the carrier, and the reliability is improved.

FIG. 35 is a block diagram showing the electric circuit configuration of the information processing apparatus according to this embodiment. In the figure, reference numeral 501 is a controller that performs main control, and 502
Is a CPU in the form of a microcomputer for executing a certain procedure, 503 is a RAM provided with an area for expanding text data and image data, an area for work, etc.
Reference numeral 04 is a ROM storing fixed data such as a program corresponding to the above procedure and other font data, and 505 is a C
Create an execution cycle of PU502 or printer unit 4
Reference numeral 506 is a timer that creates a timing necessary for the recording operation by 01, and 506 is an interface unit that connects a signal from the CPU 502 and a peripheral device. Also, 507
Reference numeral 508 is a controller of the printer unit 401, and 508 is the presence / absence of the recording head 200, the type, the recording head 200
Output value of the sensor that detects the temperature of the ink tank 201
A head detection unit that detects information of the print head such as an output of a sensor that detects the presence or absence of ink in the inside, 509 is a line buffer for storing print data of the print head 200, 5
Reference numeral 10 is a head driver for sending a print signal or electric power to the print head 200, and 511a, b, and c are carrier motor 255, paper feed motor 5, and automatic paper feed motor 32, respectively.
3, the motor driver 512 sends out signals and electric power necessary for driving the home position sensor 27.
0, paper sensor 14, paper feed initial sensor 320
a, a sensor detection unit that detects the output of sensors such as the paper feed switching sensor 320b. Further, 404 is an external storage device such as an FDD, HDD, or RAM card, and 4
Reference numeral 05 denotes an external interface for communicating with another information processing apparatus or for directly connecting to an internal bus and controlling peripheral devices. Although not included in the block diagram of the figure, there is another power supply unit for supplying power to the above electric circuit, which includes, for example, a rechargeable battery, a disposable dry battery, or an information processing device. There is a converter for AC power supply when the main body is fixed and used.

Recording is performed on the recording material (paper) 3 by the recording device section with the above-described electric circuit configuration. The outline of the recording operation control sequence will be described below with reference to the flowcharts of FIG.

FIG. 36 is a flow chart for explaining the processing when the power of the recording apparatus or the information processing apparatus is turned on and off. S1 is in the power-off state, and the timer 50
Functions other than the operation of 5 (FIG. 35) are stopped.
The operation is started from the power-off state by a power-on signal, that is, the power switch is turned on. In the recording apparatus, the power-on process of S2 is first executed. When S2 ends, the process next proceeds to S3 and the power is turned on.
The recording operation and the like are performed in the power-on state.
When a power-off signal is detected in the power-on state, the process proceeds to S4 and power-off processing is executed. When S4 ends, the process proceeds to S1 and the power is turned off. Therefore, when the power is turned on and off, a predetermined process is performed to turn the power on and off. When the temporary stop signal is detected in the state of S3, the process proceeds to S5 and the temporary stop process is executed. The pause signal means that the user is operating the device, for example, when the display unit 403 shown in FIG. 34 is folded on the keyboard unit 403 in a power-on state or when the battery is replaced. The signal is output by means for detecting an action such as that performed during non-operation, for example, a sensor for detecting opening / closing of the display unit 403, a sensor for detecting attachment / detachment of a battery, or the like. Further, the temporary stop process is a process performed to prevent damage or failure of the device when the device is used differently from the basic use, and will be described in detail later. When the temporary stop process ends in S5, the process proceeds to S6, and the temporary stop state is set. In the suspended state, the functions other than the necessary parts are stopped or the power is turned off. When the temporary stop release signal is detected in the temporary stop state, the process proceeds to S7 and the temporary stop release processing is performed.
The temporary stop release signal is a signal paired with the temporary stop signal, for example, when the display unit 403 changes from a closed state to an open state, or when the battery is removed from the attached state. Etc. is a signal indicating that the device has returned to the operable state. In addition, with the pause cancellation processing,
This is a process for returning to the state before the suspension, and the details will be described later. As a result, even when the user carelessly opens and closes the display unit 403 during operation of the device or attaches or detaches the battery, it is possible to return to the original state. When the suspension canceling process is completed in S7, the process proceeds to S3 and returns to the power-on state. For the temporary stop signal, it may be possible to select whether or not to perform the temporary stop processing when the signal is detected. For example, when it is better to close the display unit 403 because the recording device handles paper during operation, the device setting should be selected so that the pause process is prohibited when the display unit 403 is opened and closed. can do.

FIG. 37 is a flow chart for explaining the S2 power-on process. First, in S11, home position initialization, that is, the position of the carrier 203 is determined. Specifically, after the carrier motor 255 is driven and the position at which the output of the home position sensor 270 switches is set to the reference position of the carrier 203, the carrier motor is driven to set the ejection port of the recording head 200 to the cap 1.
The capping state is set by 01. Then S1
Proceed to step 2 and perform automatic paper feed initialization. Specifically, in order to eliminate the backlash of the paper feed drive mechanism, the paper feed motor 5 is driven in the reverse direction and the forward direction by a predetermined amount, and the automatic paper feed motor is driven until the paper feed initial sensor 320a detects the initial position. . Next, in S13, the time from the last ejection or suction of the recording head 200 to the present is measured by the advancing timer 505, and if the interval is a predetermined time n or more, S14.
The next recording head is recovered, and if not, the process proceeds to S15. In S14, as recovery processing of the recording head 200, ejection of the recording head 200 into the cap 101, cleaning of the ejection opening of the recording head 200 by the blade 104, and recording head 2 by the pump unit 150 are performed.
The ink is sucked from 00. By the recovery process, the recording head 200 is left unused for a long time, and as a result, it is possible to prevent inadequate ink ejection due to an increase in viscosity due to evaporation of ink at the ejection port of the recording head 200. After completion of S14, it is checked in S15 whether the paper sensor detects the presence of paper. If paper is present, the process proceeds to S16. If there is no paper, the process proceeds to S17. In S16, the detected paper is discharged. That is, the paper sensor 14
After detecting that there is no paper, the paper feed motor 5 is driven in the forward direction up to a predetermined amount. Next, in S17, the power-on process ends.

FIG. 38 is a flow chart for explaining the S4 power off process. First, in S21, the recording head 2
If 00 is in the capping state, the process proceeds to S22 if it is not in the capping state, and proceeds to S23 if it is in the capping state. In S22, the carrier motor 255 is driven to bring the recording head 200 into the capping state. Next, in S23, the power of the recording apparatus is turned off and the function is stopped. In the present process, even if the recording head 200 is not in the capping state, that is, even if the power switch is turned off during the execution of recording, etc., the recording head 200 is surely capped and then the power is turned off. This prevents the ejection failure from occurring due to the increase in the viscosity due to the evaporation of ink when the outlet portion is exposed to the atmosphere.

FIG. 39 is a flow chart for explaining the S5 temporary stop processing. First, in S31, it is checked whether or not there is a process currently being executed, and if there is a process being executed, S32 is executed.
If not, proceed to S33. In S32, the process currently being executed is executed by a predetermined amount. Specifically, the process is executed until the recording of the line being executed is completed if the recording is being executed, and until the operation is completed if the paper feeding or the automatic paper feeding operation is being executed. If the paper discharge process is in progress, the process is immediately stopped. Next, in S33, the current state is stored and stored. That is, if there is an interrupted process, the interrupted state is displayed on the display unit 403.
The state of an operation panel (not shown), an online state, an offline state, or a power saving mode for battery power supply, if any, is stored in the memory. Then S34
The recording head 200 is put into a capping state.
If you are already capped, do nothing. Then S
Turn to 35 and turn off power to unnecessary portions in the temporary stop state. Next, the process proceeds to S36 and the S5 temporary stop process is ended. Even if a pause signal is detected during printing in this process, the recording head 200 is reliably capped to prevent the recording head 200 from being left uncapped and causing ejection failure.

FIG. 40 is a flow chart for explaining the S7 temporary stop processing. First, in S41, a predetermined portion is initialized. Specifically, the position determination of the carrier 203, the rattling of the paper feed motor 5, the initial position setting of the automatic paper feed mechanism, and the like are performed in S11 and S12.
Next, in S42, the pre-pause state stored in S33 is checked. Next, in S43, the process of returning to the state before the temporary stop is performed. Specifically, if there is any interrupted process, the process is completed and the states of the display unit 403 and the operation panel are restored. Proceed to next S44, and the S7 temporary stop canceling process ends. Therefore, even if the recording apparatus is temporarily suspended during processing, it is possible to continue the processing after the restoration and before the temporary stop.

FIG. 41 is a flow chart for explaining the processing in the S3 power-on state. First, in S51, various errors are checked and error processing is performed. Specifically, for example, when there is no paper in the recording device, the recording head 20
0, the ink tank 201 is not attached, the ink is not in the ink tank 201, a paper jam is detected during the recording process, the temperature of the recording head 200 is abnormally increased, and a scanning error of various motors is detected. When the error is detected, an error is displayed on the display unit 403 or the operation panel or a buzzer sounds to warn. Then S52
Check the key operation and command reception from the keyboard section 402, the operation panel, the external interface section 405, etc., and perform the corresponding processing. Specifically, when the paper feed key is pressed, the paper is inserted, discharged, and the paper is fed by a predetermined amount according to the situation. When the online key is pressed, or when an online or offline command is received, the error status is checked and the online status and offline status are processed. If a command related to recording or the like is received, the corresponding process is performed. Further, when a key input for replacing the recording head 200 or the ink tank 201 or the absence of ink in the ink tank 201 is detected, the carrier motor 255 is driven to move the carrier 203 to a position where replacement is easy. After the replacement is completed, the carrier motor 255 is driven to move the recording head 201 to the cap 101.
To the recording head 2 by the pump unit 150.
Ink is sucked from the discharge port of 00. Ink tank 20
1 is replaced with the recording head 200 and the ink tank 20.
Even when air is mixed in the middle of the ink flow path between the first and the second recording heads, the mixed air is sucked into the recording head 20.
Therefore, it is possible to prevent the ejection failure due to the air mixing of the recording head 200 from occurring. Next, in S53, a corner recording process is performed. Details will be described later.
Next, the process proceeds to S54, and if the power-off signal is checked and the power-off signal is detected, the process proceeds to the above-described power-off process of S4, and if not detected, the process returns to S51.

FIG. 42 is a flow chart for explaining the S53 recording process. First, in S61, it is checked whether or not a command for executing recording, for example, a paper feed command or the reception of data to be recorded is received. If there is a recording command, S62
If not, the process proceeds to S69 to end this process. In S62, the online state is checked. If it is in the online state, the process proceeds to S63, and if it is in the offline state, the process proceeds to S69 to end this process. In S63, a process for starting recording is performed. Specifically, the temperature of the recording head 200 is adjusted by the heater in the recording head 200, the ejection is adjusted by ejecting the recording head 200 out of the recording area, and the carrier motor 2 is used.
The home position sensor measures the amount of misalignment of 55 during forward / reverse scanning, and corrects misalignment during bidirectional recording.
To do. Next, in step S64, it is checked whether the sheet is fed normally. If the sheet is not inserted at the recording position in the automatic sheet feeding state, the automatic sheet feeding motor 323 is driven to feed the sheet. Next, in S65, recording is performed in units of one line. Specifically, the carrier motor 255 is driven to drive the recording head 200.
The ink is ejected to perform recording, and when one line of recording is completed, a predetermined amount of paper is fed and the process proceeds to S66. In S66, an error check is performed. If there is an error, the process proceeds to S68, and if there is no error, the process proceeds to S67. The error check is, for example, the detection of the lower end of the paper, the detection of the paper jam, the detection of the presence or absence of ink, the scanning error of various motors, etc. The detected error is processed in S51 described above. S6
At 7, the reception of a command indicating the end of recording, for example, a paper discharge command, is checked. If the recording is completed, the process proceeds to S68, and if the recording is not completed, the process returns to S65 to continue the recording. In S68, a recording end process is performed.
Specifically, the paper is discharged, the recording head 200 is capped, and the like. Next, the process proceeds to S69, and the S53 recording process is ended.

The embodiments of the flexible cable of the present invention will be specifically described below with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 43 (a) is a diagram showing a flexible cable according to the present invention. In the figure, 1000 is a flexible cable, on which a conductor pattern necessary for the device is printed. The thickness and width of the conductor pattern are determined by the current capacity, allowable voltage drop value, etc. required for each conductor pattern. It is advantageous that the conductor pattern thickness is thin in order to improve the folding endurance characteristics of the flexible cable. It is necessary to widen the conductor pattern width, which increases the width of the flexible cable.

1001a is a flexible cable 100
0 is the moving side, 1001b is the fixed side, and the flexible cable fixed side 1001b is the contact part 10.
01c is provided. Flexible cable moving side 1001a and flexible cable fixed side 1001
Two flexible cable splits 1 with width Wd between b
It is divided into 001d and 1001e. The bent portion 1001f on the flexible cable moving side 1001a and the bent portion 10 on the flexible cable fixed side 1001b.
By bending the flexible cable 1000 at 01 g and stacking it, the width of the flexible cable 1000 becomes the width Wd at the divided portion, and can be made smaller than the width Wo of the flexible cable moving portion 1001a. Although the figure shows an example in which the width is divided into two, a smaller width can be obtained by further dividing. Positioning holes 1001h, 1001h ′, 1001i, and
1001i ′ is provided and positioning holes 1001h,
1001h 'and the positioning holes 1001i, 1001i' are spaced apart by a predetermined distance d.

FIG. 43B shows the flexible cable 10.
It is a figure which shows the apparatus using 00. In the figure, 100
Reference numeral 2 denotes a moving portion, which is arranged so as to be movable in the direction of the arrow in the figure. The moving unit 1002 is equipped with a recording head in the case of a printer and a sensor in the case of a scanner. 100
3 is a fixed part, and a positioning pin 1003a is provided on the fixed part.
Is provided. 1001a uses the flexible cable 1000 of FIG. 1001 (a) in a folded and superposed state, and the flexible cable moving side 1001a
(FIG. 43A) is connected to the moving unit 2. In addition, flexible cable positioning holes 1001h and 1001
h ', 1001i, 1001i' are positioning pins 100
It is inserted in 3a and is fixed to the fixed portion 3 by the fixing member 4. As described above, the positioning holes 1001h and 1001
Since h ′ and 1001i and 1001i ′ are separated by the distance d, the bending positions of the flexible cable dividing portions 1001d and 1001e are displaced by the distance l. The thickness of the flexible cable 1000 is the bending height h
If it is sufficiently smaller than, then l will be approximately equal to d / 2. Therefore, since the flexible cable dividing portions 1001d and 1001e have different bending positions, the bending portions do not receive a force from the other flexible cable, and the bending durability performance is similar to that when there is no bending.

However, if the interval l between the bending positions is made larger than necessary, the size of the apparatus becomes large. It is desirable that the distance l between the bending positions is equal to or less than the bending height h, that is, the distance d between the flexible cable positioning holes is equal to or less than twice the bending height h.

As described above, the flexible cable is divided into a plurality of pieces, they are used by overlapping, and the divided flexible cables are arranged so that the bending positions are different, whereby the current capacity and voltage drop of the conductor pattern of the flexible cable are reduced. The width and bending height of the flexible cable can be made small without lowering the bending durability, and the device can be downsized.

Although FIG. 43 shows an example in which the flexible cable is divided into two, three or more flexible cables may be provided, and the positioning holes of the flexible cable are provided at predetermined intervals in the longitudinal direction of the flexible cable.

[Other Embodiments] FIG. 44 (a) is a diagram showing another embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, 101
0 is a flexible cable.

1010a is a flexible cable 100
0 is the moving side, 1010b is the fixed side, and the flexible cable fixed side 1010b is the contact part 10
10c is provided. Flexible cable moving side 1010a and flexible cable fixed side 1010
Two flexible cable splits 1 with width Wd between b
It is divided into 010d and 1010e. The bent portion 1010f on the flexible cable moving side 1010a and the bent portion 10 on the flexible cable fixed side 1010b.
By bending and stacking the flexible cable 1000 with 10 g, the width of the flexible cable 1000 becomes the width Wd ′ at the divided portion and can be made smaller than the width Wo ′ of the flexible cable moving portion 1010a. Although the figure shows an example in which the width is divided into two, a smaller width can be obtained by further dividing. In addition, the flexible cable dividing portions 1010d, 1
010e has positioning notches 1010h, 1010
h ′, 1010i, 1010i ′ are provided, and the positioning holes 1010h, 1010h ′ and the positioning hole 1010 are provided.
i and 1010i ′ are arranged at the same position in the width direction of the flexible cable.

FIG. 44B shows the flexible cable 10.
It is a figure which shows the apparatus using 10. In the figure, 102
Reference numeral 0 is a moving unit, which is arranged so as to be movable in the direction of the arrow in the figure. The moving unit 1020 is equipped with a recording head in the case of a printer and a sensor in the case of a scanner. Reference numeral 30 denotes a fixed portion, and positioning pins 1030a, 1
030b are arranged at a distance d '.

Reference numeral 1010 is the flexible cable 1010 of FIG. 44 (a), which is used by bending and stacking the flexible cable 1010.
(A)) is connected to the moving unit 20. Also, flexible cable positioning notches 1100h, 1100
h ′ is inserted into the positioning pin 1030a, and flexibourg cable positioning notches 1100i and 1100i ′ are inserted into the positioning pin 1030b and fixed to the fixing portion 1030 by the fixing member 1040. As described above, since the positioning pins 1030a and 1030b are separated by the distance d ', the bending positions of the flexible cable dividing portions 1100d and 1100e are displaced by the distance l'. When the thickness of the flexible cable 1100 is sufficiently smaller than the bending height h ', l'is approximately equal to d' / 2. Therefore, the flexible cable dividing unit 110
Since 0d and 1100e have different bending positions, the bending portion does not receive a force from the other flexible cable, and the bending durability is similar to that without bending.

In FIG. 44, the case where the flexible cable is divided into two has been described, but the flexible cable may be divided into three or more. It is provided in.

In this embodiment, the flexible cable for electrically connecting the moving portion and the fixed portion has been described.
The same applies to a flexible cable that electrically connects members that move relative to each other.

As described above, according to the present invention, the flexible cable is divided into a plurality of layers, and the flexible cables are arranged so that the bending positions of the divided flexible cables are different from each other. The width of the flexible cable and the bending height can be reduced without lowering the bending endurance performance properly and the downsizing of the device can be achieved.

The present invention is particularly effective in an ink jet recording head and a recording apparatus for recording by forming flying droplets by utilizing thermal energy among the ink jet recording systems.

Regarding its typical structure and principle, see, for example, US Pat. Nos. 4,723,129 and 4740.
What is done using the basic principles disclosed in 796 is preferred. This method can be applied to both the so-called on-demand type and the continuous type, but especially in the case of the on-demand type, liquid (ink)
By applying at least one drive signal to the electrothermal converter arranged corresponding to the sheet or liquid path in which is stored, which corresponds to the recorded information and causes a rapid temperature rise exceeding nucleate boiling. , It is effective because it generates heat energy in the electrothermal converter and causes film boiling on the heat-acting surface of the recording head, resulting in the formation of bubbles in the liquid (ink) corresponding to this drive signal on a one-to-one basis. Is. The liquid (ink) is ejected through the ejection openings by the growth and contraction of the bubbles to form at least one droplet. It is more preferable to make the driving signal in a pulse shape, because bubbles can be grown and contracted immediately and appropriately, and thus a liquid (ink) with excellent responsiveness can be achieved.

As the pulse-shaped drive signal, those described in US Pat. Nos. 4,463,359 and 4,345,262 are suitable. If the conditions described in US Pat. No. 4,313,124 of the invention relating to the rate of temperature rise on the heat acting surface are adopted, more excellent recording can be performed.

As the constitution of the recording head, in addition to the combination constitution of the discharge port, the liquid passage, and the electrothermal converter (the straight liquid passage or the right-angled liquid passage) as disclosed in the above-mentioned specifications, The present invention also includes configurations using US Pat. No. 4,558,333 and US Pat. No. 4,459,600, which disclose a configuration in which the heat acting portion is arranged in a bending region.

In addition, JP-A-59-123670, which discloses a structure in which a common slit is used as a discharge portion of the electrothermal converter for a plurality of electrothermal converters, and pressure waves of thermal energy are absorbed. The present invention is also effective as a configuration based on Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 59-138461, which discloses a configuration in which an opening corresponds to a discharge portion.

Further, as a full line type recording head having a length corresponding to the width of the maximum recording medium which can be recorded by the recording apparatus, the length can be increased by combining a plurality of recording heads as disclosed in the above-mentioned specification. The present invention can exert the above-mentioned effects more effectively, although it may have a configuration that satisfies the above requirement or a configuration as one recording head integrally formed.

In addition, by being attached to the apparatus main body, it can be electrically connected to the apparatus main body and can be supplied with ink from the apparatus main body by a replaceable chip type recording head or the recording head itself. The present invention is also effective when a cartridge-type recording head provided with an ink tank is used.

Further, it is preferable to add recovery means, preliminary auxiliary means, etc. to the recording head provided as the constitution of the recording apparatus of the present invention because the effects of the present invention can be further stabilized. Specific examples thereof include capping means, cleaning means, pressurizing or suctioning means for the recording head, an electrothermal converter or a heating element other than this, preheating means by a combination thereof, and recording. It is also effective to perform a stable recording by performing a preliminary discharge mode in which another discharge is performed.

Further, the recording mode of the recording apparatus is not limited to the recording mode of only the mainstream color such as black, but the recording head may be integrally formed or a plurality of combinations may be used. The present invention is also extremely effective for a device provided with at least one of full colors by color mixing.

In the embodiments of the present invention described above, the ink is described as a liquid, but it is an ink that solidifies at room temperature or lower and that softens at room temperature, or is a liquid, or the above-mentioned liquid. In the inkjet method, the temperature of the ink itself is generally adjusted within a range of 30 ° C. or higher and 70 ° C. or lower to control the temperature of the ink so that the viscosity of the ink is within a stable ejection range. It may be in a liquid form.

In addition, the temperature rise due to thermal energy is positively prevented by using it as the energy for changing the state of the ink from the solid state to the liquid state, or the ink is solidified in a standing state for the purpose of preventing evaporation of the ink. In some cases, such as ink that is liquefied by applying heat energy according to a recording signal and ejected as a liquid ink, or one that has already started to solidify when it reaches a recording medium. The use of an ink having a property of being liquefied only by heat energy is also applicable to the present invention. In such a case, the ink is disclosed in JP-A-54-56847.
No. 6 or JP-A-60-71260, the porous sheet may have a configuration in which it is opposed to the electrothermal converter in the state of being held as a liquid or solid in the recess or through hole of the porous sheet. Good. In the present invention,
The most effective one for each of the above-mentioned inks is to execute the above-mentioned film boiling method.

In addition, as a form of the recording apparatus according to the present invention, in addition to a recording apparatus provided integrally or separately as an image output terminal of information processing equipment such as a word processor or a computer, a copying apparatus combined with a reader or the like, May take the form of a facsimile machine having a transmission / reception function.

[0247]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Since it is possible to notify the user of an error in forgetting to store the operation part of the carrier as an error by detecting the return to the home position of the carrier or the fact that the head cartridge has not been installed. Since the storage device can be automatically stored, it is not necessary to provide a storage detection sensor or the like of the operation unit, and the device can be downsized and the cost can be reduced. Further, it is possible to prevent the operation portion from being damaged due to carelessness, and reliability is improved. In addition, during the replacement work during the recording operation, the subsequent recording operation can be reliably guaranteed, and the reliability is improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing a first embodiment of the recording apparatus.

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view showing a pinch roller pressure release state of the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view showing a pinch roller pressure contact state of the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a diagram of a lead screw mechanism according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged sectional view of a carrier bearing A 228 portion of the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged view of the end portion of the lead screw of the first embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a left end view of the lead screw 213 in which the clutch mechanism of the first embodiment is formed.

FIG. 8 is an operation explanatory view of the clutch mechanism of the first embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a meshing diagram of a clutch gear and a control gear of the first embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a detailed view of the recovery device according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a detailed view of the pump unit of the first embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a schematic perspective view showing a mounted state of the blade of the first embodiment.

FIG. 13 is an operation explanatory view of the blade stopper of the first embodiment.

FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram of a cap opening / closing cam of the first embodiment.

FIG. 15 is an enlarged sectional view of the cap of the first embodiment.

FIG. 16 is a timing chart of the recovery means of the first embodiment.

FIG. 17 is a schematic perspective view showing a carrier portion of the first embodiment.

FIG. 18 is a schematic perspective view showing the head cartridge portion of the first embodiment.

FIG. 19 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a partially enlarged view of the carrier portion of the first embodiment.

FIG. 20 is a schematic perspective view showing a method of connecting the carrier portion and the head cartridge portion of the first embodiment.

FIG. 21 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a head cartridge connecting portion of the first embodiment.

FIG. 22 is a schematic perspective view showing the exchange system of the first mode of the first embodiment.

FIG. 23 is a schematic perspective view showing a second mode of exchange method according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 24 is a schematic plan view showing how a force is applied in the first embodiment.

FIG. 25 is an overall perspective view showing an automatic paper feeding unit of the first embodiment.

FIG. 26 is an enlarged perspective view showing the automatic paper feeding unit of the first embodiment.

FIG. 27 is a plan view of the automatic paper feeding unit according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 28 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the automatic paper feeding unit according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 29 is an explanatory diagram of a mechanism of an automatic paper feeding unit according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 30 is an example of an operation sequence diagram of the automatic paper feeding unit of the first embodiment.

FIG. 31 is a sectional view illustrating the release mechanism of the automatic paper feeding unit according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 32 is a flowchart showing a control procedure of the automatic paper feeding unit of the first embodiment.

FIG. 33 is a flowchart showing a control procedure of the automatic paper feeding unit of the first embodiment.

FIG. 34 is a schematic perspective view showing an information processing device incorporating the recording device of the first embodiment.

FIG. 35 is a block diagram showing an electric circuit configuration of an information processing apparatus incorporating the recording apparatus of the first embodiment.

FIG. 36 is a flowchart showing power-on / off processing of an information processing apparatus incorporating the recording apparatus of the first embodiment.

FIG. 37 is a flowchart showing a power-on process of the information processing apparatus incorporating the recording apparatus of the first embodiment.

FIG. 38 is a flowchart showing a power-off process of the information processing apparatus incorporating the recording apparatus of the first embodiment.

FIG. 39 is a flowchart showing a pause process of the information processing device incorporating the recording device of the first embodiment.

FIG. 40 is a flowchart showing a pause canceling process of the information processing apparatus incorporating the recording apparatus of the first embodiment.

FIG. 41 is a flowchart showing a power-on process of the information processing apparatus incorporating the recording apparatus of the first embodiment.

FIG. 42 is a flowchart showing a recording process of an information processing apparatus incorporating the recording apparatus of the first embodiment.

43 (a) and (b) are explanatory views of an embodiment of the flexible cable of the present invention.

44 (a) and (b) are modified examples of FIG. 43.

FIG. 45 is an explanatory diagram of a conventional flexible cable.

FIG. 46 is a conventional explanatory view relating to the cleaning of the present invention.

FIG. 47 is a schematic perspective view showing another example of the head cartridge portion of the first embodiment.

FIG. 48 is a schematic perspective view showing a state where the ink tank is removed from the carrier of the first embodiment.

FIG. 49 is a schematic perspective view of the ink tank of the first embodiment as viewed from the side opposite to the recording head mounting side.

FIG. 50 is a schematic front view showing the size of the tank case of the first embodiment.

FIG. 51 is a schematic plan view showing the sizes of the tank case and the ink tank of the first embodiment.

FIG. 52 is a schematic front view showing the sizes of the carrier and the head cartridge of the first embodiment.

FIG. 53 is a schematic front view of the carrier unit according to the first embodiment viewed from the paper discharge side of the recording apparatus.

FIG. 54 is a schematic side view of the carrier sliding portion according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 55 is a schematic sectional view showing a case where the carrier of the first embodiment is in the exchange position.

FIG. 56 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a case where the lever storage of the first embodiment is in an error state.

FIG. 57 is a flowchart of a carrier exchange work ending process according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 58 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing another aspect of the embodiment of FIGS. 55 and 56.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Chassis 2 Guide Rail 3 Recording Material 4 Conveying Roller 5 Paper Feed Motor 6 Spur 7 Discharging Roller 8 Pinch Roller 9 Pinch Roller Spring 10 Pinch Roller Holder 11 Pinch Roller Frame 12 Release Angle 13 Release Lever 14 Paper Sensor 15 Reduction Gear Train 101 Cap 102 Control gear 102a Cap opening / closing cam 102b Wiping operation cam 102c Protrusion 102d Switching sheet 102e Cap opening cam 102f Cap closing cam 102g Notch 102h Side gear 103 Stroke gear 104 Blade 105 Blade slider 105a Blade mounting groove 105b Protrusion 105c Through hole 105d wall 106 slide shaft 107 blade link 107a protrusion 107b spring hook portion 108 blade Cleaner 109 Blade stopper 110 Blade spring 111 Carrier stopper 112 Carrier hook spring 113 Cylinder 113a Cylinder part 113b Cap lever receiver 113c Ink suction port 113d Discharged ink tube 113e Parallel pin 114 Cap spring 115 Plunger 115a Operating shaft 115b Piston receiver 115c Piston holder 115d Pump Seal retainer 115e groove 115f Lead groove 116 Piston 117 Pump seal 118 Cap lever 119 Cap lever seal 120 Preliminary discharge pad 121 Pump absorber 122 Bearing 150 Pump unit 200 Recording head 201 Ink tank 201a Ink tank slit 202 Head cartridge 203 Carrier 204 Head lever 205 tonnes Lever 206 Head holder 206 Head holder protrusion 207 Head holder spring 208 Tank case 208a Tank case end protrusion 208b Tank case end 208c Tank case protrusion 209 Lead pin 210 Lead pin spring 211 Flexible cable 211a Positioning hole a 211b Positioning hole b 212 Flexible cable pad 212a Positioning hole a 212b positioning hole b 212c ink barrier 213 lead screw 213a positioning hole a 213b positioning hole b 220 ink supply hole 221 ink supply hole 222 coupling claw 223 coupling claw guide groove 225 positioning pin 226 stopper 227 head contact portion 227a positioning hole a 227b Positioning hole b 227c Stopper contact location 228 Carry Bearing 1 229 Carrier bearing 2 230 Shielding plate 231 Carrier hook 232 Head tab 233 Carrier rib upper 234 Carrier rib lower 235 Carrier sliding part upper 236 Carrier sliding part lower 237 Tank lever spring 238 Tank lever stopper 250 Adjustment spring 251 Bearing 252 First Slotted hole 253 Second slotted hole 254 Screw 255 Carrier motor 256 Pinion gear 257 Lead screw gear 258 Initial lock 259 Clutch gear 260 Clutch plate 261 Return spring 262 Protrusion 263 Recess 264 Idling groove 265 Contact groove 267 Flange 268 Guide strip 269 Stopper 270 HP sensor 271 Recovery plate 301 Main holder 302 Separation roller 303 Separation gear 304 Separation ratchet 305 Separation shaft 3 6 Separation Holder 307 Main Holder Shaft 308 Separation Spring 309 Spare Roller 310 Spare Roller Holder 311 Spare Roller Shaft 312 Idler Gear 313 Spare Roller Spring 314 Separation Pressure Arm 315 Separation Pressure Arm Spring 316 Separation Pad 317 Paper Holder 318 Cam Shaft 319 Switch Arm 320a Supply Paper initial sensor 320b Paper feed switching sensor 321 Drive gear 322 Clutch disc 323 Automatic paper feeding motor 324 Speed reducer 325 Release lever 326 Clutch spring 400 Information processing device 401 Printer unit 402 Keyboard unit 403 Display unit 404 External storage device 405 External interface 406 Printer Opening 407 Printer lid 501 Controller 502 CPU 503 RAM 504 ROM 505 Timer 506 Interface section 507 Controller 508 Head detection section 509 Line buffer 510 Head driver 511 Motor driver 512 Sensor detection section

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. An inkjet recording apparatus having a carrier for mounting and moving an inkjet recording head cartridge, and an attaching / detaching means for enabling attachment / detachment of the cartridge on the carrier, an operation provided on the attaching / detaching means. A means for scanning the carrier without placing a part in the storage position, causing the operation part and the enclosure to interfere with each other during the movement operation of the carrier to the home position, and issuing a warning by judging the state where the carrier does not return to the home position. An inkjet recording apparatus comprising: 2. An ink jet recording apparatus having a carrier for mounting and moving an ink jet recording head cartridge, and an attaching / detaching means capable of attaching / detaching the cartridge on / from the carrier. An ink jet recording apparatus, characterized in that, when the carrier is scanned without placing a part in a storage position, a warning is issued by determining a mounting state of the recording head cartridge when the carrier is returned to a home position. . 3. An inkjet recording apparatus having a carrier for mounting and moving an inkjet recording head cartridge, and an attaching / detaching means capable of attaching / detaching the cartridge on / from the carrier, the operation provided on the attaching / detaching means. When the carrier is scanned without placing the unit in the storage position, the operation unit and the enclosure interfere with the movement of the carrier, and the operation unit is automatically stored by the force. Inkjet recording device.