JPH0976485A - Ink jet recording device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce the weight and cost of the unit of an ink jet head as an exchange part by a method wherein a heat sink is provided on a carriage side. SOLUTION: In an ink jet recording device, in which recording is performed by jetting ink against printing paper from the nozzle of an ink jet head 10, a unit 11 containing an ink jet head 10, its driver IC 13 and a board 12 is detachably installed on a carriage 9 travelling along a recording region. Further, a heat sink 18 is provided through leaf springs 19 to the carriage 9 side so as to bring the heat sink 18 in tight contact with the driver IC 13 under the condition that the unit 11 is installed on the carriage 9 and, in addition, bring the board 12 in contact with a signal cable 48, resulting in necessitating neither heat sink nor signal cable on the unit 11.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an ink jet recording apparatus in which an ink jet head can be replaced together with its drive circuit. More specifically, a heat dissipating member for radiating heat generated by the drive circuit is provided in a carriage to simplify replacement parts. The present invention relates to an inkjet recording apparatus which is designed to be realized.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an ink jet recording apparatus has been used in which ink is ejected from a nozzle of an ink jet head onto a recording medium to perform print recording. In this type of inkjet recording apparatus, a carriage movable along a recording area is provided, and an inkjet head and an ink tank for supplying ink to the inkjet head are mounted on the carriage. And by making this inkjet head and ink tank removable, when the ink is used up or the inkjet head fails,
Also, when changing colors, they can be easily replaced.

On the other hand, the ink jet head requires heat countermeasures. In an ink jet head, ink is ejected by pressurizing an ink chamber communicating with a nozzle with a piezoelectric element or the like. Therefore, a driver IC (drive circuit) for driving the piezoelectric element or the like is provided, and this driver IC generates heat. This is because it occurs. If heat measures are insufficient, for example,
The function of the driver IC itself may be impaired, and the heat thereof reduces the viscosity of the ink, changing the ejection characteristics and making it impossible to obtain the desired print quality. Furthermore, the ink dries and solidifies, and it becomes impossible to eject the ink from the nozzles.

Therefore, in the conventional ink jet recording apparatus, a heat radiating member (heat sink) made of metal having good heat conductivity is attached to an ink jet head having a driver IC, as disclosed in, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 5-84911. One unit (inkjet unit) is used as the replacement unit that is detachable from the carriage.

[0005]

However, in recent ink jet recording apparatuses, the number of nozzles of the ink jet head is increasing to improve the recording resolution, and the driving frequency is increasing to increase the recording speed. Therefore, the amount of heat generated by the driver IC significantly increases, and the heat capacity required for the heat sink also increases accordingly. Therefore,
It is necessary to increase the size of the heat sink or to use an expensive material having excellent thermal conductivity and heat dissipation, which further increases the cost. Further, it is not preferable to dispose of the expensive material together with the ink jet unit which is a replacement part in terms of cost and environmental problems.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and the invention of claim 1 provides a heat radiating member on the carriage side, and thus the weight and cost of a unit of an ink jet head which is a replacement part. It is an object of the present invention to provide an ink jet recording apparatus with reduced ink consumption.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the first aspect of the invention, an ink jet which improves heat radiation efficiency by closely contacting a heat radiation member which is a fixed component and a drive circuit which is a heating element provided on the replacement component side. It is an object to provide a recording device.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in addition to the first or second aspect of the invention, the ink jet head, which is a replacement part, and the drive circuit are connected by a wiring pattern on the substrate, and they are supported on the substrate. An object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet recording apparatus that constitutes a unit and has a simple replacement part structure.

According to the invention of claim 4, in addition to the invention of any one of claims 1 to 3, when the unit is mounted on the carriage, the unit is connected to the signal cable on the carriage and at the same time the unit is connected to the heat radiation member. It is an object of the present invention to provide an ink jet recording apparatus in which the drive circuit of (3) is brought into contact with each other to facilitate replacement work.

[0010]

In order to achieve this object, the invention according to claim 1 is an ink jet recording apparatus for ejecting ink from a nozzle of an ink jet head onto a recording medium to perform recording, and the ink jet head and the same. A carriage for detachably mounting a unit including a drive circuit and a heat dissipation member provided on the carriage are provided, and the heat dissipation member is provided at a position in contact with the drive circuit when the unit is mounted on the carriage. It is characterized by being provided.

In addition to the ink jet head and its drive circuit, the unit referred to herein may include an ink tank containing ink to be supplied to the ink jet head.

In this ink jet recording apparatus, when the unit is mounted on the carriage, the drive circuit of the ink jet head comes into contact with the heat dissipation member provided on the carriage.
Therefore, the heat generated by the drive circuit when the inkjet head is driven is transferred to the heat dissipation member and dissipated through the heat dissipation member. This prevents heat damage. When replacing the unit, the heat dissipation member remains on the carriage,
The same heat dissipating member functions similarly for the new unit. Therefore, it is not necessary for the unit to be provided with means for heat dissipation.

The invention according to claim 2 is the ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising pressing means for pressing the heat dissipation member against the drive circuit when the unit is mounted on the carriage. It is characterized by This pressing means can be realized by a spring such as a leaf spring or a coil spring, or rubber.

In this ink jet recording apparatus, when the unit is mounted on the carriage, the heat radiating member is pressed against the drive circuit by the pressing means, so that the heat radiating member and the drive circuit are brought into close contact with each other. This ensures that the heat generated by the drive circuit is transmitted to the heat dissipation member.

The invention according to claim 3 is the ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1 or 2.
The unit is provided with a substrate that supports the inkjet head and a drive circuit thereof, and a wiring pattern that is provided on the substrate and that connects the inkjet head and the drive circuit thereof.

In this ink jet recording device, the ink jet head and the drive circuit are connected by the wiring pattern on the substrate and are supported by the substrate. As a result, the replacement parts are unitized and the structure is simplified.

The invention according to claim 4 is the ink jet recording apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the carriage is movable along a recording area, and the unit and the unit. Is provided with a signal cable having a contact point connectable to the drive circuit, and the heat dissipation member on the opposing surface of.

In this ink jet recording apparatus, when the unit which is a replacement part is mounted on the carriage, the ink jet head and the driving circuit are connected to the signal cable on the carriage, and at the same time, the driving circuit is brought into contact with the heat radiating member. As a result, the replacement work can be easily performed.

[0019]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

In the schematic perspective view of FIG. 1, the ink jet recording apparatus includes a conveying mechanism for conveying a recording medium, for example, a print sheet S by a plurality of rollers 62, and an ink jet head along the recording area of the print sheet S. A carriage mechanism that moves in a direction perpendicular to the transport direction is provided.

The carriage mechanism comprises a carriage 9 slidably supported by a guide rod 64 and a guide rail 66 parallel to the printing paper S. A head unit 11 and an ink tank 30 are detachably mounted on the carriage 9. As will be described later, the head unit 11 is provided with an inkjet head facing downward, that is, in a direction facing the print sheet S, and ejects ink onto the print sheet S to perform print recording. Carriage 9 is CR
It is adapted to be driven by a motor 68 via a belt 70.

A mechanism for attaching the head unit 11 and the ink tank 30 to the carriage 9 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 shows the head unit 11 and the ink tank 3.
The carriage 9 with 0 removed and the head unit 11 which is an integrated unit including the inkjet head 10 are shown. The inkjet head 10 can be attached to and detached from the carriage 9 by detaching the entire head unit 11. The ink tank 30 is not shown in FIG.

The carriage 9 has on its upper surface a flexible signal cable 4 connected to a recording data generator (not shown).
The end of 8 is attached via a pressing means, for example, a backup rubber 17. At the end of the signal cable 48 on the backup rubber 17, a contact 16 for electrical contact with the substrate 12 of the head unit 11 described later is formed. Further, a concave portion 20 opening upward is provided on the upper surface of the carriage 9, and a metal heat sink 18 as a heat radiating member is movably attached inside the concave portion 20. The opening edge 20a of the recess 20 is formed so as to project inward, and when the head unit 11 is removed, the opening edge 20a is locked to the lower protruding edge of the heat sink 18 to prevent the heat sink 18 from coming out. It has become so. In addition to this, the carriage 9 is provided with a hole 9A through which the ink head 10 is inserted when the head unit 11 is attached to the carriage 9.

As the material of the heat sink 18, among metals, aluminum having a high thermal conductivity or an alloy containing it as a main component is suitable. This heat sink 18
It is provided at a position where it contacts the driver IC 13 of the head unit 11 when the head unit 11 is attached to the carriage 9. A pressing means, for example, a leaf spring 19 is provided between the heat sink 18 and the carriage 9 so as to press the heat sink 18 against the driver IC 13 when the head unit 11 is attached.

On the other hand, the head unit 11 has an ink jet head 10, a driver IC 13 provided with a drive circuit for driving the ink jet head 10, and a substrate 12 holding these and provided with a necessary wiring pattern. are doing. The inkjet head 10 and the driver IC 13 are connected to a wiring pattern on the substrate 12.

The wiring pattern on the substrate 12 comes into contact with the contact 16 of the signal cable 48 when the head unit 11 is attached to the carriage 9 and supplies the data signal supplied from the recording data generator to the driver IC 13. Is. The inkjet head 10 has a large number of ejection nozzles that open downward, and the driver IC 1
3 is driven based on the data signal, and ink is selectively ejected from the ejection nozzles.

A tank holding portion 14 for holding the ink tank 30 is attached to the back surface of the substrate 12, and the tank holding portion 14 is provided with an ink receiving port 15 for receiving the ink supplied from the ink tank 30. Has been. It should be noted that the head unit 11 is not provided with a component corresponding to the heat sink 18.

FIG. 3 shows a state in which the head unit 11 is attached to the carriage 9 and the ink tank 30. The ink tank 30 stores ink therein, and an ink sending port 31 that supplies ink to the ink receiving port 15 of the head unit 11 is provided. Head unit 11
As well known, the ink tank 30 and the ink tank 30 are detachably attached to the carriage 9 by independent fixing means (not shown).

Next, the operation of this ink jet recording apparatus will be described.

When the head unit 11 is attached to the carriage 9, the ink jet head 10 as shown in FIG.
Project through the hole 9A. In this state, the inkjet head 10 can face the printing paper S.
At this time, the substrate 12 of the head unit 11 and the contact 16 of the carriage 9 come into contact with each other, and the data signal from the recording data generator can be transmitted to the driver IC 13 via the wiring pattern provided on the substrate 12. Here, the elasticity of the backup rubber 17 presses the substrate 12 and the contact 16 against each other to ensure electrical contact.
At this time, the driver IC 13 of the head unit 11
Comes into contact with the heat sink 18 of the carriage 9, and the heat generated by the operation of the driver IC 13 is transmitted to the heat sink 18. Here, the heat sink 18 and the driver IC 13 are connected to the carriage 9 side and the head unit 11 side.
Although it is originally provided separately on the side, the leaf spring 19 presses the heat sink 18 toward the driver IC 13 to ensure contact.

If the ink tank 30 is further attached to the head unit 11 on the carriage 9 in this state, printing and recording, which is a basic operation of the ink jet recording apparatus, can be performed. The print recording is performed as follows.

That is, the printing paper S is rotated by the rotation of the roller 62.
Inkjet head 10 is used to convey and record lines.
It is sent until it comes to the position where it is faced with and is stopped there. Then, while the carriage 9 is being moved by the CR motor 68, the ink jet head 10 ejects ink according to the print data sent from the print data generating device to perform print recording. When the recording for one line is completed, the roller 62 feeds the printing paper S for one line, and the recording is continued for the subsequent lines.

The control of the ink jet head 10 at the time of such print recording is performed by the driver IC 13 performing various calculations based on the record data transmitted from the record data generator through the signal cable 48 and the contact 16. The driver IC 13 is used in the inkjet head 1.
Although a considerable amount of heat is generated by the arithmetic processing for controlling 0, this heat is transmitted to the heat sink 18 in contact with the driver IC 13, and is dissipated to the atmosphere. Since the contact between the heat sink 18 and the driver IC 13 is ensured by the elastic force of the leaf spring 19, the heat transfer efficiency from the driver IC 13 to the heat sink 18 is high, and the driver IC 13 does not become excessively hot. Therefore, it is possible to prevent such problems that the function of the driver IC 13 itself is impaired, the characteristics of the ink are changed by the heat, the print quality is deteriorated, and print recording becomes impossible.

In this ink jet recording apparatus, as described above, the head unit 11 and the ink tank 30 can be attached to and detached from the carriage 9. When the ink tank 30 becomes empty, the head unit 11 is left as it is and only the ink tank 30 is replaced. When the inkjet head 10 breaks down or the color of the ink to be printed is changed, both the ink tank 30 and the head unit 11 are replaced. That is, the head unit 11 and the ink tank 30 are replacement parts. Here, since the heat sink 18 is not included in the head unit 11 or the ink tank 30 which is a replacement part and is attached to the carriage 9 side, the same one is used as it is after the replacement. The heat sink 18 is made of metal and is heavy, but since it is not included in the replacement parts, the weight of the replacement parts is light and the cost is low.

As described above in detail, in the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present embodiment, the carriage 9 is provided with the heat sink 18 made of a metal having good thermal conductivity, and when the head unit 11 is mounted on the carriage 9, the driver IC is mounted.
The heat generated by the driver IC 13 when printing is recorded is transferred to the heat sink 18 and dissipated to the atmosphere. Therefore, the function of the driver IC 13 itself is not impaired, the characteristics of the ink are changed, the print quality is not deteriorated, and print recording cannot be stopped. Here, the heat sink 18 is attached to the carriage 9 side instead of the head unit 11 or the like, which is a replacement part, and the same heat sink 18 is used as it is even if the head unit 11 or the like is replaced. Also, since it is attached to the side of the carriage 9 and comes into contact with the substrate 12, replacement parts such as the head unit 11 are lightweight. Therefore, an excellent ink jet recording apparatus has been realized which is easy to replace and has a low cost of parts.

Further, since the heat sink 18 is attached to the carriage 9 via the leaf spring 19, when the head unit 11 is mounted on the carriage 9, the heat sink 18 is driven by the leaf spring 19 by the elasticity of the leaf spring 19.
It is pressed against 3 to be in close contact, and the efficiency of heat transfer from the driver IC 13 is good.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and it goes without saying that various improvements and modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the leaf spring 19 is used as the means for pressing the heat sink 18 against the driver IC 13, but a coil spring, rubber or the like may be used instead.

Although the heat sink 18 is provided on the carriage 9 side and the head unit 11 side is not provided with a corresponding one, the heat sink is divided into two and one is provided on the carriage 9 side and the other is provided on the head unit side. It may be provided on the 11 side. Even in this case, all of the heat sinks are superior to the conventional ink jet recording apparatus provided on the head unit side.

[0039]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the invention of claim 1, the heat radiation member is provided on the carriage side,
Therefore, an inkjet recording apparatus is provided in which the weight and cost of replacement parts are reduced.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ink jet recording apparatus in which a heat radiating member which is a fixed part and a drive circuit which is a heating element provided on the side of a replacement part are brought into close contact with each other to improve heat absorption efficiency. Has been done.

According to the third aspect of the invention, the inkjet head and the drive circuit are connected to each other by a wiring pattern on the substrate, and the inkjet head and the drive circuit are supported on the substrate to form a unit to simplify the structure of the replacement part. A recording device is provided.

Further, according to the invention of claim 4, when mounting the unit on the carriage, the ink jet which facilitates the replacement work by connecting the unit to the signal cable on the carriage and at the same time contacting the drive circuit of the unit with the heat dissipation member. A recording device is provided.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an inkjet recording apparatus.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing a configuration of a carriage and a head unit in a separated state.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a carriage and a head unit in a mounted state and also showing an ink tank.

[Explanation of symbols]

 9 Carriage 10 Inkjet Head 11 Head Unit 12 Substrate 13 Driver IC (Drive Circuit) 16 Contact 18 Heat Sink (Heat Dissipating Member) 19 Leaf Spring (Pressing Means) 48 Signal Cable S Printing Paper (Recording Body)

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. An inkjet recording apparatus for performing recording by ejecting ink from a nozzle of an inkjet head onto a recording medium, and a carriage on which a unit including the inkjet head and a drive circuit thereof is detachably mounted. An ink jet recording apparatus, comprising: a heat dissipation member provided on a carriage, wherein the heat dissipation member is provided at a position in contact with the drive circuit when the unit is mounted on the carriage. 2. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a pressing unit that presses the heat dissipation member against the drive circuit when the unit is mounted on the carriage. apparatus. 3. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a substrate that supports the inkjet head and a drive circuit for the inkjet head, the inkjet head and a drive circuit for the inkjet head that are provided on the substrate. An ink jet recording apparatus, wherein the unit is provided with a wiring pattern for connecting the above. 4. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the carriage is movable along a recording area,
An ink jet recording apparatus comprising a signal cable having a contact point connectable to the drive circuit and the heat dissipation member on a surface facing the unit.