MXPA00002890A - Printer of color of injection of ink, with format gra - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention pertains to the field of inkjet printers, used for color printing of large format articles. This invention is used to improve the quality and to increase the performance of the printers and comprises successively applying primary colors, suppressing color aberrations when the printing is in a semi-transparent material on both sides, accurately positioning the head when an image is printed on the substrate and eliminate the lines that connect the car to the systems that supply the control signals, air and inks. For this purpose, the carriage with the injection heads moves in one direction along a closed guide rail, which is equipped with a grid pattern for precise positioning, in which the heads will thus deviate from the substrate on both sides , while the information is transmitted from the control unit of the device to the ring, using a radio transceiver. The printer can also be equipped with two substratum systems, independent and parallel, to perform the printing of a side on the two substrates at the same time (Figure

Description

INK INJECTION COLOR PRINTER, WITH LARGE FORMAT Field of the Invention The invention relates to the field of inkjet printers, used for color printing of large format articles, which are used, in particular, in the advertising industry.

Prior Art A specific characteristic of the use of inkjet printers, used for the color printing of large-format articles, is the production of large-sized images (up to tens of square meters) of sufficiently high quality at a cost relatively low, which are obtained by creating highly productive machines with relatively low resolution of the produced images (usually from 18 to 36 lines per inch [7 to 14 lines per centimeter]). Initially, these devices were not distinctive of ordinary printers, which are widely used as documentation devices in personal computers (PCs). One representative of such devices is an ink jet print head and a printer comprising a paper feeder device, a cartridge that executes reciprocal movements along a paper substrate, and a removable injection head, with a reserve of ink, which is mounted on the carriage (EP patent, A2 0400652, 1990, B 41 J 2/07). The head is made in the form of an autonomous unit, which has an electronic unit in which the information relative to the mutual placement of the drawing nozzles in the head enters. These nozzles are used by the PC control program , when the information is fed from the PC to the printer. The process of drawing is carried out by supplying energy to each nozzle of the head, in the form of an electric pulse, which becomes sufficient heat to discharge a portion of the ink from this nozzle. Also, a system is used in this printer to synchronize the position of the head in relation to the substrate and the information which is presented .. From a principal point of view, all the printers operate according to this arrangement, differing only by the method of applying the image (or by means of heat or by means of a hydraulic impact or by means of air discharge, etc.). All the basic elements of these printers are present in the device described in US Pat. No. 4,999,651, 1991, GO D 15/16. IN a color recorder, the ink cartridges are placed on a common car, which performs a reciprocal movement. There are also intermediate work cartridges, in which the level of the ink remains virtually constant, which ensures the highest quality of the images that are reproduced. Likewise, the device contains an electronic unit that maintains the image that is to be reproduced in its memory and controls the modes of operation of the device. The presence of an intermediate unit for storing the information to be applied makes it possible to separate the generation of images on a PC over time (for example, by scanning photographic images and then editing them, or producing images by graphic methods of the machine, etc;) and its transfer to the substrate. Also, the volume of information stored in the device depends only on its own capabilities and there is no way that relates to the PC, which makes it possible to use this device in network systems. The presence of ink cartridges directly on the car, simplifies the construction of the device, while ensuring the possibility of obtaining a greater volume of graphic material without frequently recharging the device. As already mentioned before, the presence of an intermediate service cartridge ensures a constant level of the ink, which promotes an effective operation of the injection elements and a high quality of the images to be reproduced. A device is known which serves to obtain a direct image on one side of a sheet and a mirror image on the other side, which makes it possible to obtain a high quality image on a semi-transparent material (US patent, * A 5376857, 1994, B 41 J 2/045). This device is provided with an ink feeding mechanism with two carriages placed on opposite sides of a substrate. The control of the operation of the device and, in particular, the cars and heads, are carried out with the help of a unit to control and store the direct and mirror images that are formed. By means of a scanner, the information enters a computer, which edits the image and encodes the printing density of each color in the form of pulses of electric current of different width, which control the electric valves of the atomizers. the injection heads of each color, which are in the inkjet printing device. Thus, the density of each color is determined by the width of the pulse generated by the PC. Specific characteristics of the operation of the elements of ink injection of the heads are that the air current that enters the working nozzle of the injection element, consists of two currents: a continuous, which creates a constant stream of air in the nozzle, which ensures that the ink in the supply channel does not dry and hides the formation of parasitic droplets on the end of that channel, and the second controlled with the help of an air valve, which opens an additional air stream , which ensures the supply of ink to the substrate, according to the width of the control pulses. In order to ensure reliable adhesion and drying and to exclude the smearing of the ink, the substrate is heated with spiral heaters, which are mounted below and above the carriages in the direction of movement of the substrate. Sponges are also placed on the carts, these sponges clean rubbing the substrate before applying the ink there, this ensures the removal of foreign contaminants and also the improved application of the ink on the substrate. However, the presence of lines in each movement of the car will be noticed in that construction. These lines consist of a plurality of electrical cables, for the control of the valves in the heads, and tubes for feeding the ink. These lines increase as the width of the substrate increases, along which the car moves, which creates a number of technological difficulties and reduces the reliability of the operation of the device. The reciprocal movement of the carriages supposes the acceleration of the nominal speed, braking and stopping for each work cycle, which reduces the productivity of the device and requires increased power of the impulse mechanisms and the corresponding braking dampers. Also, with the horizontal placement of heads of different colors from the left to the right and from the right to the left, the sequence in which the primary colors are applied is not altered, resulting in the "formation of strips" (by shadows) of the obtained images. There is also a problem of obtaining images from two sides of quality, the solution to this problem has not been found in the prior art. In particular, different heads, placed on different cars, are used to obtain direct and mirror images. It is virtually impossible to ensure its complete identical form in the operation. Therefore, when two-sided images are going to be produced, distortions in color reproduction inevitably occur, and this affects the quality of the article.

Statement of the Invention The problems that are solved in the invention are the following: the liquidation of the lines that connect the car to the systems to supply control signals, air and ink; > ensure the successive application of primary colors; suppression of color aberrations, when printing a semitransparent substrate on both sides; ensure precise application of the ink on the substrate; ensure the possibility of simultaneous printing on one side on two substrates.

In order to achieve the aforementioned technical results, the construction of a color inkjet printer, large format, is proposed, which comprises a substrate feeder system, an ink feeder mechanism, which can be moving along a closed guide rail, relative to the substrate, this makes it possible for the heads to travel around the substrate on two sides, and a control unit of the printer. The trees in the substrate feeder system are placed in a vertical plane, in which tension trees, connected to reversible motors by means of magnetic clutches, are placed up and down the feed shaft provided with a reversible motor. The ink feeder mechanism, movable along the closed guide rail, is provided with at least one carriage, with brushes for supplying electric power, with a receiver that is to be filled with air from an external source by means of a latch Quick release, with a controller provided with a transceiver (transmitter-receiver), and with an optical sensor electrically coupled to the controller. The guide rail is provided with busbars to supply electrical power and with a grid rule to place the carriage exactly. Where, the electrical valves connected to the control unit of the printer, are mounted between the load cartridges, placed on the cart and have a level sensor, and the quick release latches of the system to recharge those cartridges. The quick-release latches are placed in places where the guide rail rotates. In order to increase productivity, there may be two or more such cartridges. The cartridges move at a constant speed, which reduces the energy of the pulse mechanisms and eliminates the need for shock absorbers, since the movement of the cartridges takes place in one direction (for example, in the clockwise direction), it suppresses the problem of "strip formation" in the images obtained, and the color palettes of the direct and mirror images are also the same. In that, the complete autonomy of the cartridge is ensured in its movement over the working sections of the substrates. The printer can have a second substrate feeding system, independent of the first, in which both substrate systems, placed parallel, are covered by the closed guide rail. Thus, an image can be obtained simultaneously on two substrates, which are inside the closed guide rail, this substantially expands the consumer properties of the device and increases its productivity.

Brief Description of the Drawings Figures 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 illustrate the construction of the device. Figure 1 shows a general perspective of a device with a substrate feeder system; Figure 2 shows the mutual positioning of the guide rail, the busbars and the substrate; Figure 3 shows the arrangement of the main units of the ink feeder mechanism; Figure 4 shows a perspective of the quick release connections in the device and Figure 5 shows a general diagram of a device with two substrate feeding systems.

The Best Way to Carry Out the Invention The large-format color inkjet printer (Figure 1) consists of a frame (1), rollers (2) for feeding a carrier, tension shafts (3), a feeder shaft (4), guide rollers (5), pressure rollers (6), a receiver shaft (7), a carriage (8) and a guide rail (9). The tension trees for the substrate are connected to reducers (11), and reversible electric motors (10) by means of magnetic clutches (12). The trees to receive and feed the substrate are connected to reversible electric impulse motors, by means of reducers (not shown in Figure 1). The cartridge (8) (Figure 2) is placed on the closed guide rail (9) to which the copper bus bars (14) are secured by means of the supports (13) made of a non-conductor. The electric current is applied to the busbars. By means of the brushes (15), the electric current is applied to the energy supply of the carriage (not shown in the Figure) and other devices that consume energy. The ink feeder mechanism is shown in Figure 3. An electrical pulse (16) to ensure the movement of the carriage (8), a receiver (17) to store high pressure air, in order to ensure the operation of the elements of injection, a set of heads (18) with injection elements and loading cartridges (19), for storing ink with the level sensors (not shown in Figure 3), A control unit (20) of electrical impulses, an electric controller or (21) for communication on a radio channel with a control unit (not shown in the figure) and to ensure the operation of all the units of the car in the process of developing images, an optical sensor ( 22) to place the carriage in relation to the substrate along a grid rule (23) placed on the guide rail, brush holders (24), which supply energy to the carriage, are placed on the carriage (8) . The diagrams showing the placement of the quick-release connectors used to recharge the cars with air and ink are shown in Figure 4. The air recharging system includes a tube (25), a coupling (26) of the supply with a moving tip (27), placed on the coupling with the possibility of rotating there, a carrier (28) in which a latch (29), of quick release, is secured for the butt connection and disconnection with a tube (30). ), to load the car receiver. In the initial position the carriage (28) is held by a spring (31) secured on the moving tip (27). The ink refill system is adjusted in a similar manner, except that electrical charge valves (33) connected to the ink charging cartridges (19) are mounted on a carrier (32). The latches (34), of quick release are secured to a lower part (outlet) of the electric valves (33) and during the refill are placed opposite to the necks of the cartridges (19) of load and the set of heads with cartridges of ink (18), which are arranged on the carriage (8). The device operates in the following manner. According to the commands from the device control unit, the feed tree (4) moves the substrate through a work stage equal to the width of a line of the image to be produced. When the position of the carriage (8) in the process of its uniform movement is in the non-operative zones of the device (zones I and II, see Figure 2), the recharging of the carriages with air and ink is carried out, and also the information in which it must be reproduced on the substrate, is transmitted on the radio channel. When the controller (21), placed on the carriage, enters the work area in the process of moving the carriage, it performs autonomous control of the process of placing the information (in this case, by the operation of the injection elements) on the substrate. Upon leaving the work area, the device control unit determines the condition of the device, controls the operation of the air recharge and ink systems, performs the movements of the substrates, carries out additional service actions, determines the working capacity of the device, separate test units, carries out a message to the operator about the reproductive system and carries out the subsequent operation cycle. When there is a substrate present, the device, according to the described algorithm, can perform the structuring of the images from two sides, both with the help of a car and with the help of two or more, and where there are two independent systems for feeding the substrate, the device has the possibility of effecting the structuring of images on two substrates. The general diagram of a device with two systems to feed a substrate and with two carts, is shown in Figure 5.

Industrial Applicability The proposed technical solution makes it possible to create large format printers to produce printed articles, in particular, in the production of external advertising objects. The embodiment of this invention improves the quality of a produced article (i.e. the quality of an image) and increases the productivity of the printers by at least two times.

Claims (2)

R E I V I N D I CA C I O N E S

1. A color inkjet printer, with large format, including a substrate feeding system, an ink feed mechanism, which is movable along a guide rail, relative to the substrate, and a control unit of the printer, characterized in that the shafts or shafts, in the substrate feeder system, are placed in a vertical plane, where the tension trees, connected to reversible motors by means of magnetic clutches, are placed above and below the power shaft, provided with a reversible motor, in which the ink feed mechanism, movable along a closed guide rail, is provided with at least one brush carriage, for supplying electrical power, with a receiver that is will fill with air by means of a quick release latch, with a controller provided with a transceiver (transmitter-receiver) and with an optical sensor, electrically coupled to the controlled r, in which the guide rail is provided with bus bars, to supply electrical power, and with a grid rule, to place the car exactly, in which the electric valves, connected to the control unit of the printer, are mounted between the ink loading cartridges, placed on the cart and having a level sensor, and system quick release latches, to refill the ink cartridges and these quick release latches are placed in places where the guide rail rotates .

2. A color inkjet printer according to claim 1, characterized in that it has a second substrate feeding system, independent of the first one, where both substrate feeding systems, placed parallel, are covered by the guide rail closed.