JPH0781117A - Recorder and recording control method - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a recorder which enables an energy amount applied to a resistor contained in a recording head to be automatically optimized and its recording control method. CONSTITUTION:A measuring part for measuring a resistance value of a recording head 101 is composed of a constant current circuit 108, an amplifier 108, and an A/D converter 109. A correction coefficient generating part 110 obtains a correction coefficient of the measuring part by measuring a reference resistance 107 of which a resistance value is known by using the measuring part. Then, a resistance value of dummy resistance 102 is measured by using the measuring part, and corrected with the preliminarily obtained correction coefficient. A head rank classifying part 112 determines a head rank of the recording head on the basis of the corrected resistance value. A recording pulse generating part 114 sets an energy amount to be applied to a main heater 103 on the basis of the head rank.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a recording apparatus and a recording control method having a recording head having a plurality of resistors and recording by the thermal energy generated through each of the resistors.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Printers can be roughly classified into two types, page printers and serial printers, depending on the recording method. The page printer is a method of recording one pixel at a time, as represented by an LBP (laser beam printer). Further, the serial printer uses a recording head in which recording element groups are arranged in the paper feeding direction (direction orthogonal to the head moving direction), and a plurality of recording elements of this recording head are driven simultaneously or by dividing into several blocks. It is a method of recording.

As a recording head used in a serial printer, generally, an ink jet system using a piezo element, an ink jet system for forming flying droplets by utilizing thermal energy for recording, a thermal transfer system, a heat sensitive system,
Some are configured by the dot impact method, the daisy wheel method, etc. In the above-mentioned serial printer, the ink jet method, the thermal transfer method, and the heat-sensitive method, in which flying droplets are formed by utilizing thermal energy for recording, perform a recording operation by heating a heating element (resistor). It is a thing. The ink jet method for forming flying droplets by utilizing thermal energy for recording will be described in detail below.

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view for explaining a recording mechanism of an ink jet type recording element (nozzle) for recording by forming flying droplets by utilizing thermal energy. In the figure, 201 is a nozzle of the main body of the recording head, and 202 is ink. A heater 203 heats the ink and is formed of a resistance film. Reference numeral 204 is a paper as a recording medium, and 205 is a bubble generated by heating the ink 202 with the heater 203. Reference numeral 206 denotes an ejected ink droplet, and 207 denotes an ink attached on the paper 204.

Next, the recording operation will be described with reference to FIG.

When a pulsed voltage is applied to the heater 203 from a recording head drive circuit (not shown) while the nozzle 201 is filled with the ink 202, the heater 203 heats up (FIG. 11A). Therefore, the ink 202 in contact with the heater 203 is locally rapidly heated and vaporized, and foams to generate bubbles 205. At this time, the ink in front of the heater 203 is pushed forward by the energy of expansion of the bubble 205, and becomes an ink droplet 206, which is ejected out of the nozzle 201 (FIG. 11B). In this way, the ink droplets 206 are attached to the paper 204 to record characters or images (FIG. 11C).

At this time, if the ink droplets 206 are not ejected stably, unevenness in density or the like will occur on the printed matter, leading to deterioration of the printing quality (degradation of image quality). Therefore, in order to perform high quality recording, it is desirable that the ink droplets 206 are always stably ejected. However, the stability of the ejected ink droplet 206 is greatly affected by the drive waveform of the recording element that is applied to eject the ink. Among them, the amount of heat energy generated by driving the heater 203 is important. The amount of heat energy at this time is Pw = V × V / R in the case of constant-current compression drive, where V: heater drive voltage R: heater resistance value.

Among the three parameters that determine the amount of heat energy, the heater resistance value R generally varies by ± 10% when the resistance film is formed. Conventionally, the following method has been used to suppress the influence of this variation. That is, a dummy heater is built in the print head separately from the ejection heater 203, and the resistance value of the dummy heater is measured. Then, it is classified into a plurality of ranks (head ranks) based on the measured resistance value of the dummy heater, and the amount of input heat energy is adjusted according to each head rank. Specifically, the ejection stability of the ink droplets 206 is maintained by varying the pulse width of the pulsed voltage or current to be applied and optimizing the ejection energy.

In order to classify the head ranks, the resistance value of the dummy heater is measured by a resistance measuring machine in the process of assembling into the form of the recording head unit, or after assembling, and the head rank is judged based on the measurement result. , The head rank data according to the head rank was given to the head unit.

[0010]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional example, in the process of assembling the recording head unit, the process of measuring the resistance value of the dummy heater and the process of applying the head rank data corresponding to the head rank to the head unit. Was required, which caused an increase in manufacturing cost. Further, in the classification of head ranks, there is a limit to the number of classifications, and the pulse width of the applied pulsed voltage or current is roughly variable, and sufficient optimization cannot be realized.
In addition, since the step of measuring the resistance value of the dummy heater and the step of assigning the ID corresponding to the head rank to the head unit are different, there is a possibility that an error in giving the head rank data may occur.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and provides a recording apparatus and a recording control method capable of automatically optimizing the amount of energy applied to a resistor of a recording head. The purpose is to do.

[0012]

In order to achieve the above object, a recording apparatus according to the present invention has a plurality of resistors, and a recording head for recording by thermal energy generated through each of the resistors. A recording device having a measuring means for measuring a resistance value of the recording head, the resistance value of the recording head is measured by using a measuring part for measuring the resistance value of the recording head, and generating means for generating correction information for correcting the measuring part. A measuring unit that measures the resistance value of the recording head using the measuring unit; a correcting unit that corrects the measured value obtained by the measuring unit based on the correction information; and a measurement that is corrected by the correcting unit. Setting means for setting the amount of energy applied to the recording head based on the value.

Further, the recording control method of the present invention which achieves the above object, has a plurality of resistors, and a recording head having a recording head for recording by thermal energy generated through each of the resistors. A measuring step for measuring a resistance having a known resistance value using a measuring part for measuring the resistance value of the recording head, and generating correction information for correcting the measuring part; A measurement step of measuring the resistance value of the recording head using, a correction step of correcting the measurement value obtained by the measurement step based on the correction information,
A setting step of setting the amount of energy applied to the recording head based on the measurement value corrected by the correction step.

[0014]

With the above configuration or process, the correction information of the measuring section is obtained by measuring the resistance of which the resistance value is known by using the measuring section for measuring the resistance value of the recording head. Next, the resistance value of the recording head is measured using this measuring unit, and correction is performed using the correction information obtained in advance. The corrected resistance value is used as the resistance value of the recording head, and the amount of energy applied to the recording head is set based on the resistance value.

[0015]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

<Embodiment 1> In this embodiment, an example in which the present invention is applied to an ink jet type serial printer (hereinafter referred to as a printer) for forming flying droplets by utilizing thermal energy for recording will be described. To do.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram for explaining the arrangement for head rank classification in the printer of the first embodiment.
In the figure, reference numeral 101 denotes an inkjet head (hereinafter referred to as a recording head) of an inkjet system that forms flying droplets by utilizing thermal energy and performs recording. Reference numeral 102 is a dummy heater for detecting the generation state of the resistance film forming the recording head 101, and 103 is a main heater for ejecting ink. A main heater drive transistor 104 supplies a drive current to the main heater 103. In FIG. 1, only one main heater 103 and one drive transistor 104 are shown, but in an actual head, at least as many nozzles as the recording head (for example, 64 nozzles) are arranged. Further, in this example, the dummy heater 1 is provided in the recording head 101.
An example in which one 03 is provided will be described, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a plurality of dummy heaters may be provided in the recording head 101.

Reference numeral 105 in the drawing denotes a constant current circuit for supplying a constant current Ib, and the current value Ib is calculated by Ib = VCC × (1−R3 / (R2 + R3)) / R1. However, in general, the power supply voltage V
CC has an error of about ± 5%, and the constant current value Ib also contains an error of about the same, as can be seen from the above calculation formula.

Reference numeral 106 denotes a switch, which is a constant current circuit 10
The dummy heater 10 is used as the supply destination of the current Ib output from
Switching between 2 and reference resistance 107 is performed. 10
Reference numeral 7 is a reference resistance, which has a known high-precision resistance value. 1
Reference numeral 08 denotes an amplifier, which amplifies the voltage value generated by applying the current Ib to the reference resistor 107 or the dummy heater 102. 109 is an 8-bit output A / D (analog /
It is a (digital) converter, and converts the voltage value amplified by the amplifier 108 into a digital value. The constant current circuit 105, the switch 106, the reference resistor 107, the amplifier 108, and the A /
A resistance value detection unit is configured with the D converter 109. That is, when the measured resistance value is r, E = Ib × r, and the resistance value is read by replacing with the voltage E.

Reference numeral 110 denotes a correction coefficient generator which detects an error included in the constant current circuit 105 and generates a correction coefficient for correcting the resistance measurement value of the dummy heater 102. When the resistance value of the reference resistor 107 whose resistance value is known in advance is Rref and the theoretical value of the output current from the constant current circuit 105 is Iref, the correction coefficient k is k = theoretical voltage / measured voltage = (Rref × Iref) / (Rref * Ib) = Iref / Ib.

Reference numeral 111 denotes a detection value correction unit, which corrects the actually measured voltage value of the dummy heater 102 with a correction coefficient to obtain the resistance value of the dummy heater 102. Here, when the resistance value of the dummy heater 102 in the recording head 101 is Rh, it is calculated by Rh = (measured voltage / Iref) * k = ((Rh * Ib) / Iref) * (Iref / Ib). .

Reference numeral 112 denotes a head rank classification unit, which ranks the recording heads 101 according to the resistance value of the dummy heater 102 after correction, which is obtained by the detection value correction unit 111. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a head rank classification table in the first embodiment. According to this classification table 200,
The rank of the head is classified according to the resistance value of the dummy heater, that is, the film formation state of the resistance film forming the heater. The head rank classification unit 112 refers to the classification table 200 as shown in FIG. 2 to determine the head rank of the recording head 101. As a method of determining the head rank by the head rank classifying unit 112, a method of obtaining by an arithmetic expression such as I = (Rh-256) / 6 (where I is rounded down to the decimal point or less), head rank = I + 1 may be used. It is possible. Here, 256 is the minimum resistance value of rank 1, and 6 is the resistance value width of each rank.

Reference numeral 113 is a signal line indicating the head rank determined by the head rank classification unit 112. A recording pulse generator 114 generates a recording pulse for pulse-driving the main heater 103. Reference numeral 115 denotes a host I for communicating with a host computer such as a personal computer.
/ F (interface) control unit. Reference numeral 116 denotes a printer control unit, which controls the basic operation of the entire printer, such as mechanical control of a motor (not shown) and print timing control (ejection trigger signal generation, print position control, etc.). The printer control unit 116 includes an MPU (micro processing unit), a ROM (read only memory), a RAM (random access memory), a GA (not shown).
(Gate array), SW (switch), display element and the like. The classification table 200 (FIG. 2) described above is stored in the ROM.
It is stored in.

Reference numeral 117 denotes an activation SW (switch) for performing head rank correction, which is a switch which can be used only at the time of factory shipment or at the time of repair and is normally hidden so as not to be touched by general users. 118 is a memory element,
The correction coefficient obtained by the correction coefficient generator 110 is stored.
The storage element 118 is composed of, for example, an EEPROM (electrical erasable read only memory) or the like. Reference numeral 119 is a signal line for providing the correction coefficient generator 110 with the true resistance value of the reference resistor 107 that is the target of correction coefficient generation. The true resistance value of the reference resistor 107 is stored in advance in the ROM of the printer control unit 116.

The operation of this embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG. The operation of this embodiment is roughly classified into a correction coefficient generating operation and a read value correcting operation.

[Correction Coefficient Generating Operation] First, the correction coefficient generating operation will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating the procedure of the correction coefficient generating operation according to the first embodiment.

When the head rank correction start switch 117 is pressed, the printer controller 116 causes the switch 1
06 is set as shown in FIG. Therefore, the constant current Ib for measuring the resistance value is supplied from the constant current circuit 105 to the reference resistor 107 (steps S11 and S12).
The voltage value at one end of the reference resistor 107 at that time is the amplifier 10
It is input to the A / D converter 109 via 8 and converted into a digital value, and the resistance value of the reference resistor 107 is obtained from the obtained voltage value (step S13).

The output value of the A / D converter 109 (measurement value of the reference resistance) and the printer control unit 11 via the signal line 119.
The correction coefficient generating means 110 calculates the correction coefficient k based on the true resistance value of the reference resistor 107 given by 6 (step S14). This correction coefficient k is stored in the storage element 118.
To be stored (step S15). Then switch 1
The correction coefficient generating operation is completed by switching 06 to the contact opposite to the illustrated contact.

[Reading Value Correction Operation] Next, the reading value correction operation will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a flow chart for explaining the read value correction operation and the recording pulse width setting operation procedure of the first embodiment.

Before the recording operation, the resistance value of the dummy heater 102 in the recording head 101 is measured at any time. That is, the current Ib output from the constant current circuit 105 is passed through the switch 106 to the dummy heater 102 (step S21), and the voltage at one end of the dummy heater 102 is amplified by the amplifier 108. The voltage value amplified by the amplifier 108 is converted into a digital value by the A / D converter 109, and then the detected value correction unit 1
11 is input and converted into a resistance value (step S2
2). Next, the correction coefficient k stored in the storage element 118
The detection value correction unit 111 corrects the read resistance value of the dummy heater 102 based on the above (step S23), and inputs it to the head rank classification unit 112 based on the result. The head rank classification unit 112 determines the head rank by referring to the classification table 200 (step S24). Then, the recording pulse generator 114 sets the recording pulse width of the recording pulse generator 114 according to the determined head rank (step S25).

[Recording Pulse Width Setting Operation] Next, a specific example of varying the pulse width and optimizing the ejection energy will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a state of the recording pulse when the constant voltage driving is performed. The pulse width of this pulse is varied according to the detected head rank to optimize the ejection energy and maintain the ejection stability of the ink droplet 206.

The amount of energy per unit time at this time is represented by P = V × V / R. Since the head resistance of the head of rank 1 is small, the amount of energy per unit time is large according to the above equation. Therefore, the pulse width is reduced to suppress the ejection energy and the energy is optimized. On the contrary, since the head rank 16 head has a large heater resistance value,
The amount of energy per unit time becomes small. Therefore, by increasing the pulse width, the ejection energy is increased and the ejection energy is optimized. The ejection energy can be optimized for other head ranks by changing the pulse width in the same manner. Further, although a single pulse (single pulse) has been described here, it is clear that the same applies to multi-pass driving such as double pulse.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the circuit configuration of the recording pulse generating section 114 for generating the recording pulse as shown in FIG. 5 according to the result of the head rank classifying section 112. 5 in the figure
Reference numeral 01 is data indicating the recording pulse width for the head determined to be head rank 1, and similarly 502 and 503 are recording pulse width data for the head determined to be head rank 2 and head rank 16, respectively. Similar data exist for the head ranks 3 to 15, but they are omitted in the figure. Reference numeral 504 is a selector, and the pulse width data 501, 502, 50
One data is selected from 3 and other pulse width data (not shown). Reference numeral 505 is a counter, and 506 is a flip-flop. Reference numeral 507 is a trigger signal for generating a heat pulse, which is generated by the printer control unit 116.

Next, the operation of the circuit configuration shown in FIG. 6 will be described. The head rank is notified by the signal line 113 from the head rank classification unit 112. The selector 504 outputs pulse width data 501, 502, 5 according to the head rank.
03 and one of the other pulse width data (not shown) is loaded into the counter 505. The ejection trigger signal 507 issued from the printer controller 116 acts on the flip-flop 506, and the counter 505 starts the counting operation at the same time as the start of the heat pulse as shown in FIG. 5 (that is, the time when the signal transits from LOW to HIGH). To do. Then, the counter 505 corresponding to the pulse width T
When counting with, the RC (ripple carry) signal of the counter 505 is issued. This RC signal acts on the flip-flop 506 to terminate the heat pulse as shown in FIG. 5 (ie the signal transitions from HIGH to LOW state). At the same time, the counter 505 stops counting and is reset.

By repeating the above operation, recording is performed with appropriate ejection energy.

<Second Embodiment> In the first embodiment, the reference resistor 107 is used.
Although the correction coefficient is generated by measuring the resistance value of the dummy resistor in the second embodiment, the resistance value of the dummy resistor in the print head is measured in advance and the correction coefficient is generated using the resistance value. The case will be described.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram for explaining the arrangement for head rank classification in the printer of the second embodiment.
Note that, in FIG. 7, the same reference numerals are given to the configurations having the same functions as those in FIG. 1, and the description thereof is omitted here.

Reference numeral 602 denotes a dummy heater whose true resistance value is known in advance by a resistance value measuring device (not shown) or the like.
The true resistance value is stored in the printer control unit 116 in advance as in the first embodiment. 601 is a recording head,
A dummy heater 602 having a known resistance value is provided. Examples of such a recording head include a jig head in a factory or a standard head in a market service.

The operation of the second embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG. Also in the second embodiment, the operation is roughly divided into a correction coefficient generating operation and a read value correcting operation, as in the first embodiment.

The correction coefficient generating operation will be described. With the recording head 601 equipped with the dummy heater 602 attached, the correction coefficient generating operation is started in which the switch 117 for starting the head rank correction is pushed down. The constant current circuit 105 outputs a constant current Ib for resistance value measurement,
It is poured into the dummy heater 602. The voltage value at one end of the dummy heater 602 at this time is amplified by the amplifier 108 and converted into a digital value by the A / D converter 109. The output of the A / D converter 109 is the correction coefficient generator 110.
Entered in. On the other hand, the printer controller 116 also inputs the true resistance value of the dummy heater 602 to the correction coefficient generator 110. The correction coefficient generation unit 110 calculates a correction coefficient based on the values of both and stores it in the storage element 118.
Thus, the correction coefficient generating operation is completed.

Since the read value correcting operation is the same as that of the first embodiment, its explanation is omitted.

In the second embodiment, the dummy heater 60 is used.
The true resistance value of 2 is assumed to be stored in the printer control unit 116 in advance, but the true resistance value is not limited to this. For example, the true resistance value of the dummy heater 602 may be measured by a resistance value measuring device in advance, and the measured value may be given to the correction coefficient generating unit 111 from an external device such as a host computer. Specifically, the true resistance value can be obtained from an external device by a host I / O by an operation such as an assembly worker in a factory or an automatic device such as a jig, or a service person in a market service.
It is supplied to the printer control unit 116 via the F control unit 115, and is further supplied from the printer control unit 116 to the correction coefficient generating means via the signal line 119.

As described above, according to the second embodiment, the reference resistor 107 and the switch 106 for supplying a constant current to the reference resistor 107 are unnecessary, and the structure is simplified.

<Embodiment 3> In Embodiment 3, a method of using both the ink discharge main heater and the head rank detection dummy heater will be described.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating a part of the configuration for head rank classification in the printer of the third embodiment. The parts not shown are the same as in FIG. With reference to this drawing, a method of using the ink discharge main heater and the head rank detection dummy heater in the third embodiment will be described.

In the figure, reference numeral 701 is a recording head in the third embodiment. Reference numeral 704 is a combined heater which is a feature of this embodiment. Reference numerals 702 and 703 denote heater driving transistors when the dual-purpose heater 704 is used as a main heater.

The operation will be described below with reference to FIG. 8. Since the correction coefficient generating operation is similar to that of the first embodiment, it is omitted in this section, and the operation of measuring the resistance value of the dual-purpose heater 704 will be described.

When the switch 106 is in the illustrated state and the heater driving transistors 702 and 703 are not in operation, the constant current Ib is supplied from the constant current circuit 105. The head rank is determined by performing the same operation as in the first embodiment using the voltage at one end of the dual-purpose heater 704 at this time.

However, in the third embodiment, it is assumed that the switch 106 is in contact with the contact opposite to that shown in the drawing during the recording operation, that is, in the state where the heater driving transistors 702 and 703 are operating.

<Embodiment 4> In the recording apparatus of Embodiment 4, when determining the head rank, if the measured resistance value does not correspond to any head rank, the fact is notified.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram for explaining the arrangement for head rank classification in the printer of the fourth embodiment.
The same reference numerals as those in the first embodiment are attached to the configurations having the same functions as those in the first embodiment, and the description thereof is omitted here. 801 in the figure
Is a signal line for outputting a detection error to the printer control unit 116 when the head mounted on the printer does not correspond to any head rank.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a head rank classification table 200 'in the fourth embodiment. In the fourth embodiment, in order to detect an error outside the range of the head rank 1 to the head rank 16, the classification table 200 ′ used in the head rank classification unit 112 is provided with a non-rank item. That is, when performing head rank classification, FIG.
By operating the classification table as shown in (1), it is also detected that the head rank is not applicable. Then, the fact that it is out of the head rank is input to the printer control unit 116, and the operator is notified by a display or the like.

Although this embodiment has been described based on the first embodiment, it can be similarly applied to the second and third embodiments.

As described above, according to the above-mentioned embodiments, it is possible to automatically obtain the correction coefficient for correcting the error peculiar to each printer. Therefore, even when an unspecified recording head 101 is mounted, it is possible to detect the film formation state of the resistive film with high accuracy without depending on the measurement error peculiar to the printer body. Then, based on this detection result, optimum drive is performed according to each recording head, and high-precision / high-quality recording can be realized.

Therefore, the present invention is particularly effective for a recording head exchange type printer.

Further, by automatically detecting the film forming state of the resistance film of the head and automatically performing optimum recording control in the printer, the head factory and the printer factory can
It is possible to improve processes such as head rank classification work and printer recording parameter adjustment work, which also contributes to cost reduction.

Further, according to the fourth embodiment, by providing the head rank classification unit with the out-of-rank detection function, it is possible to detect the abnormality of the head itself or the abnormality of the mounting of the head.

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

With regard to its typical structure and principle, for example, US Pat. Nos. 4,723,129 and 4740 are applicable.
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 continuous type, but especially in the case of the on-demand type, liquid (ink)
By applying at least one drive signal to the electrothermal transducer arranged corresponding to the sheet or liquid path in which is stored, which corresponds to the recorded information and gives a rapid temperature rise exceeding nucleate boiling. Since the electrothermal converter is caused to generate heat energy to cause film boiling on the heat-acting surface of the recording head, as a result, bubbles in the liquid (ink) corresponding to the drive signal in a one-to-one relationship can be formed. It is valid. 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 this drive 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, excellent recording can be performed.

As the constitution of the recording head, in addition to the combination constitution of the ejection port, the liquid passage, and the electrothermal converter (the linear liquid passage or the right-angled liquid passage) as disclosed in the above-mentioned respective specifications. A configuration using US Pat. No. 4,558,333 or US Pat. No. 4,459,600, which discloses a configuration in which the heat-acting surface is arranged in a bending region, may be used.

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 a pressure wave of thermal energy is absorbed. It is also possible to adopt a configuration based on Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 59-138461, which discloses a configuration in which the opening corresponds to the ejection 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. Either of the structure satisfying the requirement or the structure as one recording head integrally formed may be used.

In addition, by being mounted on 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. Alternatively, a cartridge type recording head provided with an ink tank may be used.

Further, it is preferable to add recovery means for the recording head, preliminary auxiliary means, etc., which are provided as a constitution of the recording apparatus of the present invention, because the effect of the present invention can be further stabilized. . Specific examples thereof include capping means, cleaning means, pressurizing or suctioning means for the recording head, preheating means using an electrothermal converter or another heating element or 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. Alternatively, the device may be provided with at least one of full-color mixed colors.

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, it is common to control the temperature of the ink itself within a range of 30 ° C to 70 ° C to control the temperature of the ink so that the viscosity of the ink is within a stable ejection range. It is sufficient that the ink is liquid.

In addition, the temperature rise due to thermal energy is positively prevented by being used as 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-54-5684.
No. 7 or JP-A-60-71260, a mode in which the porous sheet 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. May be 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 this embodiment, an ink jet type printer for forming flying droplets by utilizing thermal energy for recording is described, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a conventional example is used. As described above, the present invention can be easily applied to a printer that records by using a resistance film such as a thermal transfer method or a heat sensitive method, regardless of the method.

The present invention may be applied to a system composed of a plurality of devices or an apparatus composed of a single device. Further, it goes without saying that the present invention can be applied to the case where it is achieved by supplying a program to a system or an apparatus.

[0071]

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to automatically optimize the amount of energy applied to the resistor of the recording head.

[0072]

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration for head rank classification in a printer according to a first exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a head rank classification table according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of a correction coefficient generating operation according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a read value correction operation and a recording pulse width setting operation procedure according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a state of a recording pulse when constant voltage driving is performed.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a circuit configuration of a recording pulse generating unit that generates the recording pulse as shown in FIG. 5 according to a result of a head rank classifying unit 112.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration for head rank classification in the printer according to the second exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating a part of a configuration for head rank classification in a printer according to a third exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration for head rank classification in a printer according to a fourth exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a head rank classification table 200 ′ according to the fourth embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view for explaining a recording mechanism of an inkjet-type recording element (nozzle) that performs recording by forming flying droplets by using thermal energy.

[Explanation of symbols]

 101 BJ Head 102 Dummy Heater 103 Main Heater 105 Constant Current Circuit 107 Reference Resistor 108 Differential Amplifier 109 A / D Converter 110 Correction Coefficient Generation Unit 111 Detected Value Correction Unit 112 Head Rank Classification Unit 114 Recording Pulse Generation Unit 115 Host I / F Control unit 116 Printer control unit 117 Startup SW

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (72) Sohei Tanaka, 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (72) Norifumi Koitabashi, Inventor 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Kya Non Inc. (72) Inventor Hiroshi Uemura 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc.

Claims (16)

[Claims] 1. A recording apparatus having a plurality of resistors, the recording head performing recording by the thermal energy generated through each of the resistors, the recording apparatus comprising: Generating means for measuring a resistance whose resistance value is known using a measuring part and generating correction information for correcting the measuring part; and measuring means for measuring the resistance value of the recording head using the measuring part. Correction means for correcting the measurement value obtained by the measurement means based on the correction information, and setting means for setting the amount of energy applied to the recording head based on the measurement value corrected by the correction means. A recording device comprising: 2. The measuring means measures the resistance value of a resistor provided for measuring the resistance value of the recording head as the resistance value of the recording head using the measuring section. The recording device according to 1. 3. A storage unit for storing the correction information generated by the generation unit, wherein the correction unit corrects the measurement value obtained by the measurement unit based on the correction information stored by the storage unit. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: 4. The rank setting means for ranking the recording heads based on the measured values corrected by the correction means, and the resistor according to the ranks during the recording operation of the recording heads. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising pulse width switching means for switching a pulse width of a drive pulse applied to the recording medium. 5. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the resistance having a known resistance value used in the generating means is a resistance arranged inside the recording apparatus. 6. The correction means for mounting the recording head equipped with a resistor having a known resistance value, measuring the resistance value of the resistor using the measuring section, and correcting the measuring section. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, which generates information. 7. The measuring means measures one or a plurality of resistance values of a plurality of resistors of the recording head as a resistance value of the recording head by using the measuring section. The recording device according to claim 1. 8. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising head attachment / detachment detection means for detecting attachment / detachment of the recording head based on a resistance value of the recording head measured by the measuring means. 9. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising abnormality detecting means for detecting abnormality of the recording head based on a resistance value of the recording head measured by the measuring means.
The recording device according to 1. 10. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, in the generating means, a resistance value of the resistance having a known resistance value is held in a memory. 11. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the generating unit is provided with a resistance value of a resistor having a known resistance value from an external device. 12. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recording head is an inkjet recording head that ejects ink to perform recording. 13. The recording head is a recording head that ejects ink by using thermal energy, and is an inkjet recording head that includes a thermal energy converter for generating thermal energy to be applied to the ink. Item 12. The recording device according to item 12. 14. The recording head according to claim 13, wherein the thermal energy applied by the thermal energy converter causes a state change in the ink, and the ink is ejected from the ejection port based on the state change. The recording device described. 15. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a determination unit that determines a mounting state of the recording head based on a measurement result of the measurement unit. 16. A recording control method comprising a recording head having a plurality of resistors, the recording head performing recording by thermal energy generated through each of the resistors, for measuring a resistance value of the recording head. Generating step of measuring resistance having a known resistance value by using the measuring section and generating correction information for correcting the measuring section; and measuring step of measuring the resistance value of the recording head using the measuring section. A correction step of correcting the measurement value obtained by the measurement step based on the correction information, and a setting step of setting the amount of energy applied to the recording head based on the measurement value corrected by the correction step. A recording control method comprising: