JPH08132665A - Colored solid particle-flying type recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To provide an image recorder which can record at a high speed with a simple structure and has quick-drying properties, no stain at a front surface and no penetration to a rear surface. CONSTITUTION: The dispersion supply unit 4 of a printer 1 supplies a suitable quantity of dispersion 2 in which many colored solid particles charged with positive polarity are dispersed to the front surface of an insulating tape 3. The front surface of the tape 3 is coated with a material which has extremely strong hydrophilic property to the dispersion 2, and uniformly adhered with the dispersion 2 of sufficient quantity for printing. A tape driver 9 stepwisely drives the tape 3 in synchronization with the printing operation of the printer 1 in the direction of an arrow A. A particle forming unit 6 disposed at the downstream of the moving direction of the tape 3 applies a negative high voltage to an aggregate electrode 6a in contact with the rear surface of the tape 3 to aggregate the particles in the dispersion 2 to form a particle group 5a. Further, a particle flying unit 7 disposed at the downstream applies a positive high voltage to a flying electrode 7a in contact with the rear surface of the tape 3 to give a flying force to the group 5a. The group 5a becomes a particle droplet 5b to be flown to an opposite negative electrode 7b to shoot a recording member 8, thereby forming a print dot.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a solid color particle flying type recording apparatus for recording by recording solid color particles held on a belt-shaped member toward a recording member by an electric field.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a so-called ink jet type recording apparatus has been put into practical use as an image recording apparatus. This is, for example, using an ink in which a dye is dissolved in a conductive solvent, containing this ink in a closed container, applying a pressure pulse or thermal energy to this container member, and a nozzle provided in the container. The recording is performed by ejecting ink from the mouth. However, with this method, when trying to perform so-called line scan recording, in which the width of the recording material such as paper (main scanning direction) is recorded at one time, it is necessary to have the number or size of nozzle openings according to the recording density or recording dot size. Therefore, it is difficult to realize such a recording head with the current technology. Therefore, in this type, serial scanning is mainly performed in which the recording head itself moves in the main scanning direction and mechanically scans. As described above, since the scanning printing depends on the accuracy of the mechanical operation, there is a problem that the deterioration of the image quality is unavoidable and it is difficult to increase the printing speed.

Several techniques have been proposed as methods for solving this problem and enabling line scanning. One is a so-called magnetic inkjet recording device.
In this method, magnetic ink is arranged in the vicinity of the magnetic electrode array, and ink swelling due to a magnetic field is used to form an ink ejection waiting state corresponding to a pixel, and magnetic ink is ejected by an electrostatic field. This method enables high-speed recording because electronic scanning is possible.

In addition, there is a so-called flat ink jet type recording apparatus. In this method, conductive ink is placed in a slit-shaped ink reservoir parallel to the electrode array, and the ink is ejected according to the electric field pattern formed between the counter electrode and the electrode array via the recording paper. This eliminates the need for a fine orifice for accumulating ink, and has the advantage of improving clogging of ink.

Another example is a so-called thermal electrostatic ink jet type recording apparatus. In this method, conductive ink is placed in a slit-shaped ink reservoir parallel to the electrode array and the heating element array, electric energy is applied between the counter electrode and the electrode array through the recording paper, and the heating element heat energy. Is applied to eject ink in a region to which both energies are applied.

[0006]

However, the above-mentioned magnetic ink jet method is an original characteristic of ink jet because it is not easy to select an ink due to the nature of the magnetic ink and it is difficult to color it in a bright color. It has a drawback that it is not suitable for colorization.

Further, the above-mentioned flat ink jet system is
The voltage applied for ejecting the ink is high, and the charge is injected from the electrode to the ink, so that the insulation between the electrode and the ink cannot be performed. Therefore, the distance between the electrodes cannot be narrowed too much. Therefore, it is difficult to increase the resolution. Further, the electrode array needs to be driven in a time-division manner in order to prevent voltage leakage between the adjacent and neighboring electrodes, so that there is a drawback that the speed cannot be increased.

Further, the above-mentioned thermal electrostatic ink jet system has a drawback that it requires a means for generating / supplying two energies of electric energy and heat energy and means for controlling each timing, which complicates the construction.

Further, since the plane ink jet system and the thermal electrostatic ink jet system are provided with slit-shaped ejection ports and do not have independent ejection ports for each pixel, a line scanning recording head having a recording member width is constructed. Despite the fact that it has the advantage of being easy, in addition to the above-mentioned drawbacks, there are other problems such as the spatial frequency dependence of the growth rate of the ink, and the existence of a minimum limit value of the electric field and temperature required for the ink growth. Is also pointed out. In addition, there are drawbacks in practical use of the device, such as a narrow gap between slits of the order of 100 μm and a narrow gap between opposing electrodes (or recording members) of several hundred μm or less.

In the above-mentioned conventional method, since the droplets of the conductive ink are caused to fly to the recording member by the electric field or the like for recording, depending on the recording member, the lateral spread may occur. The bleeding and the instability of the density due to the penetration to the back side occur and the resolution cannot be improved easily. In addition, due to the same thing, color recording has drawbacks such as back stain. Therefore, when it is put into practical use, it is necessary to prepare a special paper in order to protect these drawbacks. Therefore, there is a problem that the recording member is expensive and its management is troublesome.

Further, a high level of design is required for the device configuration, high-speed recording, multi-channel recording head, etc., and as a result, there is a limitation that it can be applied only to applications utilizing its advantages.

The object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an image recording apparatus that is structurally simple, is capable of high-speed recording, is instantly dry, and has neither bleeding on the front surface nor penetration into the back surface.

[0013]

The structure of a solid colored particle flying type recording apparatus according to the present invention will be described below. The solid colored particle flying type recording apparatus of the present invention supplies a belt-shaped member configured to be movable while holding a dispersion liquid in which solid colored particles are dispersed on the surface, and the above-mentioned dispersion liquid to the surface of the belt-shaped member. A supply unit, a particle group forming unit located downstream of the supply unit in the moving direction of the belt, for giving a cohesive force to the solid colored particles in the dispersion to form a solid colored particle group, and the particle group forming unit. Recording is performed on a particle flying unit located downstream of the belt in the moving direction of the belt and imparting a flying force to the solid colored particle group, and a flying destination of the solid colored particle group flying by the flying force given by the particle flying unit. And a transport means for transporting the member.

The particle group forming means includes, for example, a first electrode disposed in proximity to the back surface of the belt-shaped member, and the first electrode sandwiching the belt-shaped member. A first counter electrode facing each other, and a power source for generating a cohesive electric field for applying a predetermined potential between the first counter electrode and the first electrode, and the particle flying means are, for example, as described in claim 3. A second electrode disposed near the back surface of the belt-shaped member, a second counter electrode facing the second electrode with the belt-shaped member interposed therebetween, the second counter electrode and the second electrode And a power supply for generating a flying electric field for applying a predetermined potential therebetween.

[0015]

According to the present invention, the supply means supplies the dispersion liquid in which the solid colored particles are dispersed to the surface of the belt-shaped member, and the belt-shaped member moves while holding the dispersion liquid on the surface. The particle group forming means gives a cohesive force to the solid colored particles in the dispersion to form a solid colored particle group, and the particle flying means gives a flying force to the solid colored particle group. Then, the conveying means conveys the recording member to the flying destination of the solid colored particle group.

As a result, it is possible to realize image recording which is structurally simple, enables high-speed recording, is instantly dry, and has neither bleeding on the front surface nor penetration into the back surface.

[0017]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a side view schematically showing the configuration of a printing unit in a recording apparatus (solid colored particle flying recording apparatus) according to the first embodiment. In the figure, the printing unit 1 supplies the dispersion liquid 2 to the insulating tape 3 (belt-shaped member) which holds the dispersion liquid 2 and conveys (moves) it to the right as indicated by an arrow A in the drawing. The dispersion liquid supply unit 4 (supply means) is provided. The dispersion liquid supply unit 4 manages the concentration of the dispersion liquid 2 and supplies an appropriate amount of the dispersion liquid 2 to the insulating tape 3. In the figure, the dispersion liquid 2 is shown pouring from the dispersion liquid supply unit 4 onto the surface of the insulating tape 3 for convenience of explanation, but in reality, a structure in which an endless insulating tape is immersed in a dispersion liquid storage tank or the like is adopted. To be done. Further, as shown in the same figure, the structure is such that the dispersion liquid 2 is poured into the insulating tape 3 from above, and the overflowing dispersion liquid 2 is collected by preparing a saucer on the lower side, and the collected dispersion liquid 2 is pumped. It may be configured to circulate in the supply unit 4.

Further, in the printing section 1 of the same figure, the particle group 5a (solid colored particle group) is located further downstream in the transport direction of the insulating tape 3 to give a cohesive force to the solid colored particles in the dispersion liquid 2. The particle forming portion 6 (particle group forming means) for forming the particles, and the flying particle group 5 in the formed particle group 5a located on the downstream side of the particle forming portion 6 in the transport direction of the insulating tape 3.
Particle flight unit 7 (particle flight means) that gives flight power as b
Is provided. Further, a transport mechanism (not shown) that transports the recording member 8 is disposed at the flight destination of the flying particle group 5b.

Further, the printing section 1 is provided with a tape drive section 9 for driving the insulating tape 3 in the transport direction. The tape drive unit 9 drives the insulating tape 3 stepwise in synchronization with the printing operation of the printing unit 1.

The above-mentioned particle forming portion 6 includes an aggregating electrode 6a (first electrode) arranged in proximity to the back surface of the insulating tape 3,
A counter positive electrode 6b (first counter electrode) that faces the aggregating electrode 6a with the insulating tape 3 interposed therebetween, and a power source 6c for generating an aggregating electric field that applies a predetermined potential between the counter positive electrode 6b and the aggregating electrode 6a. It is configured.

The particle flying portion 7 is opposed to a flying electrode 7a (second electrode) arranged in proximity to the back surface of the insulating tape 3 and opposite to the flying electrode 7a with the insulating tape 3 interposed therebetween. It is composed of a negative electrode 7b (second counter electrode) and a flying electric field generating power supply 7c for applying a predetermined potential between the counter negative electrode 7b and the flying electrode 7a.

Although not shown in particular, a recovery / replenishing mechanism for recovering the remaining dispersion liquid 2 and supplying solid colored particles (toner), the insulating tape 3 is cleaned, and the dispersion liquid 2 is reapplied. Therefore, the dispersion liquid 2 is repeatedly used, and a print head control system is provided.

The surface of the above-mentioned insulating tape 3 is coated with a material having an extremely strong affinity for the dispersion liquid 2. For example, even if the insulating tape 3 dipped in the dispersion liquid storage tank is pulled up, its surface is A sufficient amount of the dispersion liquid 2 is uniformly adhered to the. Further, the thickness of the layer of the dispersion liquid 2 adhered is sufficiently secured by the surface tension of the dispersion liquid 2. And
A material having a non-affinity for the dispersion liquid 2 is applied to both end portions of the insulation tape 3 that are not involved in recording (formation of the particle group 5a) to be described later.
Do not spill from both ends of the. However, the same result can be obtained by providing bank-shaped protruding bands at both ends of the insulating tape 3.

Further, the viscosity of the dispersion liquid 2 is relatively strong, and therefore the insulating tape 3 does not necessarily need to be conveyed in a flat state as shown in FIG.
Alternatively, it can be inverted and conveyed in a curved shape.

Here, the above-mentioned dispersion liquid 2 will be described. The dispersion liquid 2 includes a carrier liquid, solid colored particles 5 dispersed in the carrier liquid, a charge control agent and a fixing agent dissolved in the carrier liquid.

For the solid colored particles 5, a pigment made of, for example, carbon black is used for black, and an inorganic or organic pigment is used for color. Their particle size is 0.1
It is about 0.5 μm.

The carrier liquid comprises an isoparaffin-based, carbon tetrachloride-based, petroleum-based insulating liquid such as fluorinated chlorinated ethylene and siloxane, or an olefin-based insulating liquid.
It has a high resistance of about 0 ⁸ to 10 ¹⁴ Ωcm and dissolves a fixing agent and a charge control agent as a solvent.

The charge control agent is composed of linseed oil having a polar group that is soluble in the carrier liquid and has an electron-donating or electron-accepting polar group, various organic metal salts, synthetic resins, and the like. Adsorb to the solid colored particles 5 to determine the charge polarity and charge amount of the solid colored particles 5, that is, to give the solid colored particles 5 a charge of a predetermined polarity. Along with this, the solid colored particles 5 are dispersed as a dispersion medium.

The fixing agent is made of polystyrene, silicon, alkyd resin or the like, and adheres to the surface of the solid colored particles 5 and flies onto the recording member 8 together with the solid colored particles 5, and the solid colored particles 5 evaporate and dry the carrier liquid. Is fixed on the recording member.

The above-mentioned constitution of the dispersion liquid 2 is similar to the liquid developer in electrophotography (wet PPC) in principle. Further, in this example, the solid colored particles 5 are positively charged, but the solid colored particles 5 may be negatively charged. In this case, the solid colored particles 5 are applied to each electrode to form an electric field described later. The voltage direction may be opposite to that of this embodiment.

The operation of the present embodiment having the above configuration will be described below. 2 (a) and 2 (b) show a change state of the solid colored particles 5 in the dispersion liquid 2 in the particle forming part 6. In the figure (a), the insulating tape 3 is moving stepwise, and at the timing when this step moving is stopped, the aggregating electrode 6a of the particle forming part 6 arranged close to the back surface of the insulating tape 3 A predetermined negative potential is applied from the cohesive electric field generating power supply 6c, and a predetermined positive potential is also applied from the cohesive electric field generating power supply 6c to the counter positive electrode 6b facing the cohesive electrode 6a with the insulating tape 3 interposed therebetween. Is applied.

As a result, the aggregating electrode 6a and the counter positive electrode 6 are
An electric field is formed between b and by this electric field, the positively charged solid colored particles 5 in the dispersion liquid 2 aggregate around the aggregation electrode 6a and aggregate to form an aggregate.

This aggregate grows to form a particle group 5a as shown in FIG. At this time, the negatively charged solvent 2a around the particle group 5a is pulled up by the opposing positive electrode 6b as shown by the arrow B in the figure, and rises. Due to this rise, the dispersion liquid 2 moves from all directions toward the particle group 5a as indicated by arrows C and C ', and new solid colored particles 5 are supplied to the particle group 5a. In addition, the rise of the liquid surface of the dispersion liquid 2 as described above promotes the growth of the particle group 5a. Then, at the timing when the particle group 5a has grown sufficiently, the voltage supply from the power source 6c for generating the agglomeration electric field to the particle forming portion 6 is stopped.

FIG. 3 (a) is a diagram showing the state of the dispersion liquid 2 and the particle group 5a on the insulating tape 3 conveyed from the particle forming unit 6 to the particle flying unit 7, and FIG. 3 (b) is Particle flight section 7
The electric field formation state in FIG.

When the voltage supply to the particle forming portion 6 is stopped as described above, the raised liquid surface of the dispersion liquid 2 returns to its original state and becomes flat, as shown in FIG. 3 (a). Two
At the interface of, the particle groups 5a that have grown sufficiently and become large remain in a state of protruding from the liquid surface.

In this state, the insulating tape 3 is attached to the particle flying portion 7
Move to and stop. In the particle flying unit 7, the flying electrode 7a is provided between the flying electrode 7a arranged close to the back surface of the insulating tape 3 and the opposing negative electrode 7b that faces the flying electrode 7a with the insulating tape 3 in between. Is applied from the flying electric field generating power supply 7c. By applying this high voltage, an electric field is generated between the flying electrode 7a and the counter negative electrode 7b.

At this time, paying attention to the interface between the dispersion liquid 2 and air, the individual solid colored particles 5 dispersed in the dispersion liquid 2 by itself in the electric field have a diameter smaller than that of the particle group 5a. Since it is small, it can be ignored as it does not project from the liquid surface, and on the other hand, the sufficiently growing particle group 5a projects from the interface. In general, a toner such as the solvent or the solid colored particles 5 that constitutes the dispersion liquid 2 has a higher relative dielectric constant than air. Therefore, as described above, the particle group 5a protruding into the air from the surface of the dispersion liquid 2 is As shown in FIG.
Are concentrated, and the electric field works stronger than the surroundings.

Here, the ratio of the Coulomb force applied to the particle group 5a of the solid colored particles 5 and the surface tension of the interface of the dispersion liquid 2 will be considered. As described above, the particle group 5a concentrated on the interface is positively charged. And the Coulomb force is determined by the strength of the electric field and the amount of electric charge. The amount of electric charge is the number of solid colored particles 5 in the particle group 5a. This number is proportional to the cube of the radius when the particle group 5a is viewed as a sphere. on the other hand,
The surface tension is proportional to the cross-sectional area of the particle group 5a. That is, the surface tension is proportional to the square of the radius when the particle group 5a is viewed as a sphere. Therefore, the ratio of the Coulomb force applied to the particle group 5a and the surface tension at the interface of the dispersion liquid 2 is "(radius cube):
(Radius square) ”, and the larger the particle group 5a, the larger the Coulomb force. Therefore, by adjusting the conditions such as the high voltage to be applied, that is, the strength of the electric field and the surface tension of the dispersion liquid 2, only the particle group 5a is selectively selected by the Coulomb force due to the electric field and the charge of the particle group 5a. Try to separate it from the interface of. That is, the surface tension of the dispersion liquid 2 cannot be shaken off with the solid colored particles 5 alone, but the surface tension can be shaken off when the particles 5a are aggregated. In this way, it is possible to selectively fly only the particle group 5a of the solid colored particles 5 from the dispersion liquid 2 toward the counter negative electrode 7b. That is, the particle group 5 a flies toward the recording member 8.

In the first embodiment described above, the particle group 5a (5b) is formed on the insulating tape 3 so that the particle group 5a (5b) flies alone. The method is not limited to this, and the aggregation electrode 6a or the flying electrode 7 is used.
By providing a plurality of a's, a plurality of particle groups formed on the insulating tape 3 can be made to fly simultaneously.

FIGS. 4 (a), (b), and (c) exemplify three configurations centering on a particle forming portion and a particle flying portion for simultaneously flying a plurality of particle groups. In each of the figures (a), (b), and (c), a plan view is shown on the left and a side view is shown on the right.

In FIG. 7A, the particle forming section 6-1 is provided with four aggregating electrodes, and the particle group 5a for four dots is formed at one time in the width direction of the insulating tape 3-1. Then, the insulating tape 3-1 is conveyed in the right direction (horizontal direction in the drawing) indicated by the arrow D in the drawing, and the four flying electrodes of the particle flying portion 7-1 located downstream of the insulating tape 3-1 also cause 4 as indicated by arrow d in the figure
The individual particle groups 5a are configured to fly toward the facing negative electrode. In this configuration, the insulating tape 3-1 needs to have a tape width such that four particle groups 5a can be formed.

FIG. 6 (b) shows an example in which four particle groups 5a are made to fly toward the opposite negative electrode at once by using the insulating tape 3-2 having a width capable of forming one particle group 5a. Is. The insulating tape 3-2 in FIG. 3B is conveyed in the downward direction (longitudinal direction in the drawing) indicated by the arrow E in the drawing. The particle forming unit 6-2 includes one aggregating electrode and sequentially forms the particle group 5a on the insulating tape 3-2 dot by dot. The particle flying unit 7-2 on the downstream side is provided with four flying electrodes, and as shown by an arrow e in the figure, the four particle groups 5a formed on the insulating tape 3-2 are opposed to the negative electrode. It is configured to fly at once.

Further, FIG. 6C shows that in the structure of FIG. 6B, the particle forming portion 6-3 is provided with four aggregating electrodes,
An example is shown in which four particle groups 5a are formed at one time. In this case, the moving distance of the insulating tape 3-2 in one step is
The movement distance for four steps in the configuration of FIG. Therefore, printing can be performed at a higher speed.

4A, 4B, and 4C, the moving direction of the recording member is the same in any case. That is, in any case, four print dots are printed in the same direction on the recording member in the same direction. In addition, the above-mentioned flight control for the four (4 dot) particle groups 5a, that is, the control "printing / non-printing" corresponding to the image data does not actually control the flight itself, but is not shown. The control unit controls the voltage application to the aggregating electrode of the particle forming unit 6-1 (or 6-2, 6-3) to selectively control the formation of the 4-dot particle group 5a. Therefore, the particle flying unit 7
In -1 (or 7-2), all four flying electrodes are simultaneously driven. Even in this case, the particle group 5a flies only from the dot position where the particle group 5a is formed, and the particle group 5a
The particle group 5a does not fly from the dot position where the dots are not formed. As a result, desired dots can be printed on the recording member.

The control of the print dots is not performed by selectively forming the particle group 5a by the particle forming section 6-1 (or 6-2, 6-3) as described above, but by the particle forming section 6-. 1 (or 6-2, 6-3), a voltage is applied to all the aggregating electrodes to form four particle groups 5a.
In (or 7-2), the four flying electrodes can be selectively driven to fly the particle group 5a corresponding to a desired print dot.

As described above, since the viscosity of the dispersion liquid 2 used in the present invention is relatively strong, it is possible to convey the insulating tape 3 in an inclined state or by reversing the direction into a curved shape. Even if the insulating tape 3 is bent, the dispersion 2 is not interrupted at the curved portion and does not flow down on the insulating tape 3.

FIG. 5 (a) is another example of the transporting form of the insulating tape 3 in the particle flying portion 7 (7-1, 7-2) utilizing such characteristics of the dispersion liquid. b) and (c) are diagrams for explaining the principle of the operation in which the solid colored particles of the dispersion liquid 2 concentrate in the tip of the curved portion in that case. The transporting mode of the insulating tape 3 shown in the figure is the particle forming unit 6 (6-1, 6).
-2, 6-3) is also applicable.

In the example of the particle flying unit 7, FIG.
As shown in (a), the transport direction of the insulating tape 3 is reversed at the projecting end of the curved portion facing the flying electrode 7a and the tape surface is curved, so that the dispersion liquid surface 2b moves from the positive electrode (flying electrode 7a) side. It has a shape protruding toward the negative electrode (opposing negative electrode 7b) side.

In this state, first, a predetermined high voltage having the flying electrode 7a as a positive electrode is applied between the flying electrode 7a and the counter negative electrode 7b from the flying electric field generating power supply 7c, and the flying electrode 7a and the counter negative electrode 7b. An electric field indicated by electric lines of force 11 in the figure is generated therebetween. Due to the electric field, the solid colored particles in the dispersion liquid 2 which are positively charged are positive electrodes (flying electrodes 7a).
It moves in the dispersion liquid 2 in a direction away from the negative electrode (a counter negative electrode 7b) and reaches the dispersion liquid surface 2b.

The moving direction of the solid colored particles 5 thus reaching the dispersion liquid surface 2b is changed by the surface tension of the dispersion liquid 2 as shown in FIG. That is, the Coulomb force acting on the solid colored particles 5 in the same figure (b) indicated by the black arrow H directed in the direction of the counter negative electrode 7b and the surface tension indicated by the black arrow J directed inward at the surface of the dispersion liquid surface 2b and directed inward. The solid colored particles 5 receive the synthetic force, that is, the force indicated by the white arrow K directed in the direction of the diagonally opposite negative electrode 7b along the dispersion liquid surface 2b.
It moves on b in the direction of the counter negative electrode 7b.

Then, as shown in FIG. 3C, the solid colored particles 5 are formed on the curved portion of the insulating tape 3, that is, on the dispersion liquid surface 2b.
The particles 5a of the solid colored particles 5 are concentrated on the curved portion 2c of FIG. 3 to grow, and the Coulomb force described in FIG. 3 overcomes the surface tension to facilitate the flight of the particles 5a.

FIG. 6 is a schematic sectional view of a printing portion in the second embodiment in which the insulating tape 3 is curved and conveyed as described above. In the same figure, the same components as those shown in FIG. 1 are shown with the same numbers as in FIG. In the printing unit 10 shown in FIG. 6, the wedge-shaped flying electrode 7a of the particle flying unit 7 also serves as a guide member for the insulating tape 3.
The insulating tape 3 slides in contact with the side surface of the flying electrode 7a, is conveyed upward from the lower left direction in the figure, is curved and inverted at the tip of the flying electrode 7a, and is conveyed in the lower right direction in the figure. The other configurations and functions of the counter negative electrode 7b, the insulating tape 3, the dispersion liquid 2, the dispersion liquid supply unit 4, the recording member 8, and the tape drive unit 9 are the same as those in FIG. Although not shown in particular, the dispersion liquid 2 is repeatedly used by collecting the residual dispersion liquid 2 and replenishing the solid colored particles with a collecting and replenishing mechanism, and cleaning the insulating tape 3 and re-coating the dispersion liquid 2. It is similar to the case of FIG. 1 in that a circulation utilization mechanism, a control system for the print head, etc. are provided.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the lines of electric force of the flying electrodes 7a in the second embodiment. As shown in the figure, on the surface of the wedge-shaped flying electrode 7a which is the positive electrode, the line of electric force 1
The direction of 1 is perpendicular to the electrode surface as shown by the dashed arrow P in the figure, but when it is separated from the electrode surface, it is bent by the influence of the counter negative electrode 7b which is a negative electrode in the direction of the counter negative electrode 7b. . Therefore, at the dispersion liquid surface 2b, it is inclined toward the counter negative electrode 7b side with respect to the direction perpendicular to the liquid surface shown by arrow Q in the figure. Therefore, also in this case, as in the case shown in FIG. 5, the Coulomb force acting on the solid colored particles 5 acts so as to collect the solid colored particles 5 at the curved portion of the insulating tape 3, that is, at the tip of the flying electrode 7a.

Next, FIG. 8 (a) shows an example of the structure in the case of performing the multi-dot printing in the second embodiment,
FIG. 2B shows a top view of the curved portion. The structure of the printing part shown in FIG. 6A is the insulating tape 3 having the structure shown in FIG.
The tape drive unit 9, the dispersion liquid 2, the dispersion liquid supply unit 4, the wedge-shaped flying electrode 7a, the counter negative electrode 7b, and the recording member 8 are further provided with a plurality of control electrodes 15 and on / off of the plurality of control electrodes 15. A control switch 14 is added. The control electrodes 15 are arranged in a pair with the curved portion (curved portion 2c of the dispersion liquid surface) of the insulating tape 3 at the tip of the flying electrode 7a interposed therebetween.

In the top view (viewed from the counter negative electrode 7b) of the same figure (b), four sets of control are arranged with the curved portion 2c interposed so that four print dots can be formed simultaneously. Electrode pair 15
-1 to 15-4 are shown. In the control electrode pair 15 (15-1 to 15-4) shown in this figure, the control electrode pairs 15-1 and 15-3 corresponding to the print dots are turned off, and the control electrode pair 15- corresponding to the non-print dots is formed. A negative voltage is applied to 2, 15-4. As a result, an electric field is formed in the curved portion 2c facing the turned-on control electrode pairs 15-2 and 15-4 in a direction perpendicular to the direction from the flying electrode 7a to the counter negative electrode 7b. Formation of group 5a is prevented. That is, print dots are not formed. on the other hand,
The particle group 5a is formed only in the curved portion 2c facing the pair of control electrodes 15-1 and 15-3 which are turned off. That is, print dots are formed. In this way, the formation of the four print dots is selectively controlled by the four control electrode pairs 15. Then, the particle group 5a formed by such control flies toward the recording member 8 by the voltage applied to the flying electrode 7a.

In any of the above embodiments, the dispersion liquid holding surface of the insulating tape 3 is formed into a flat surface, and the dispersion liquid 2 is formed.
Is held over the entire surface of the insulating tape 3, the dispersion liquid 2 need not be held over the entire surface of the insulating tape 3, and may be held in a plurality of lines at right angles to the conveying direction of the insulating tape 3.

FIG. 9 is a side sectional perspective view showing another example of the surface shape of such an insulating tape. As shown in the figure, a large number of grooves 16 are formed on the surface of the insulating tape 3-4 at right angles to the conveying direction of the insulating tape 3-4, and the dispersion liquid 2 is held in these grooves, respectively. ing. Even if the aggregation and the formation of the electric field for flight are synchronously performed according to the positions of these grooves 16, a good printing result can be obtained.

[0058]

As described above in detail, according to the present invention, since the dispersion liquid is held on the insulating tape and conveyed to form the print dots and fly to the recording member, the print head does not need a nozzle. Therefore, printing inconveniences such as nozzle clogging are eliminated. Similarly, since the print head has no nozzles, the print head can be easily processed and the density of print dots can be increased. Also,
Since the dispersion liquid is conveyed by the insulating tape, the amount of the solvent associated with the solid colored particles can be reduced, so that the flying particle group, that is, the liquid component associated with the printing dots, becomes small, and therefore, a high-quality image without bleeding can be obtained.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view schematically showing a configuration of a printing unit in a recording apparatus (solid colored particle flying recording apparatus) according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a change state of solid colored particles in a dispersion liquid in a particle forming part.

FIG. 3A is a diagram showing a state of a dispersion liquid and a particle group on an insulating tape conveyed from a particle forming portion to a particle flying portion,
(b) is a diagram showing an electric field formation state in a particle flying portion.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a configuration example centering on a particle forming unit and a particle flying unit that simultaneously fly a plurality of particle groups.

5 (a) is a diagram showing another example of the transportation form of the insulating tape in the particle flying portion, and FIGS. 5 (b) and 5 (c) show the principle of the operation in which the solid colored particles concentrate at the tip of the curved portion. It is a figure explaining.

FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a printing unit that bends and conveys the insulating tape of the second embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing electric lines of force of a flying electrode 7a in a second embodiment.

FIG. 8A is a diagram showing a configuration example when performing multi-dot printing according to the second embodiment, and FIG. 8B is a top view of a curved portion thereof.

FIG. 9 is a side cross-sectional perspective view showing another example of the surface shape of the insulating tape.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 and 10 printing part 2 dispersion liquid 2a solvent 2b dispersion liquid surface 2c curved part 3, 3-1, 3-2, 3-4 insulating tape 4 dispersion liquid supply part 5a particle group 5b flying particle group 5c aggregate 6, 6 -1, 6-2, 6-3 Particle formation part 6a Aggregation electrode 6b Opposite positive electrode 6c Aggregation electric field generation power supply 7, 7-1, 7-2 Particle flight part 7a Flight electrode 7b Opposite negative electrode 7c Flight electric field generation Power supply 8 Recording member 9 Tape drive part 11 Electric force line 14 Switch 15 (15-1, 15-2, 15-3, 15-4) Control electrode 16 Groove

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁶ Identification number Office reference number FI Technical display location B41J 2/065 2/095 G03G 15/05 B41J 3/04 103 F 104 B G03G 15/00 115

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A belt-shaped member configured to be movable while holding a dispersion liquid in which solid colored particles are dispersed on a surface, a supply unit for supplying the dispersion liquid to the surface of the belt-shaped member, and the supply unit. A particle group forming means which is located on the downstream side in the moving direction of the belt and applies a cohesive force to the solid colored particles in the dispersion liquid to form a solid colored particle group; and a moving direction of the belt rather than the particle group forming means. Particle flying means located on the downstream side for giving a flying force to the solid colored particle group, and carrying means for carrying the recording member to the flying destination of the solid colored particle group flying by the flying force given by the particle flying means. A solid colored particle flying type recording apparatus comprising: 2. The particle group forming means includes a first electrode disposed in the vicinity of the back surface of the belt-shaped member, and a first counter electrode facing the first electrode with the belt-shaped member interposed therebetween. ,
The solid colored particle flying recording apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a power source for generating an agglomeration electric field that applies a predetermined potential between the first counter electrode and the first electrode. 3. The particle flying means comprises a second electrode arranged in proximity to the back surface of the belt-shaped member, and a second counter electrode facing the second electrode with the belt-shaped member interposed therebetween. The solid colored particle flying type recording apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a flying electric field generating power source for applying a predetermined potential between the second counter electrode and the second electrode.