Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
  • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
  • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
  • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
  • B41J2/01—Ink jet
  • B41J2/015—Ink jet characterised by the jet generation process
  • B41J2/04—Ink jet characterised by the jet generation process generating single droplets or particles on demand
  • B41J2/045—Ink jet characterised by the jet generation process generating single droplets or particles on demand by pressure, e.g. electromechanical transducers
  • B41J2/04501—Control methods or devices therefor, e.g. driver circuits, control circuits
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
  • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
  • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
  • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
  • B41J2/01—Ink jet
  • B41J2/015—Ink jet characterised by the jet generation process
  • B41J2/04—Ink jet characterised by the jet generation process generating single droplets or particles on demand
  • B41J2/045—Ink jet characterised by the jet generation process generating single droplets or particles on demand by pressure, e.g. electromechanical transducers
  • B41J2/04501—Control methods or devices therefor, e.g. driver circuits, control circuits
  • B41J2/04541—Specific driving circuit
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
  • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
  • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
  • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
  • B41J2/01—Ink jet
  • B41J2/015—Ink jet characterised by the jet generation process
  • B41J2/04—Ink jet characterised by the jet generation process generating single droplets or particles on demand
  • B41J2/045—Ink jet characterised by the jet generation process generating single droplets or particles on demand by pressure, e.g. electromechanical transducers
  • B41J2/04501—Control methods or devices therefor, e.g. driver circuits, control circuits
  • B41J2/0455—Details of switching sections of circuit, e.g. transistors
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
  • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
  • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
  • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
  • B41J2/01—Ink jet
  • B41J2/015—Ink jet characterised by the jet generation process
  • B41J2/04—Ink jet characterised by the jet generation process generating single droplets or particles on demand
  • B41J2/045—Ink jet characterised by the jet generation process generating single droplets or particles on demand by pressure, e.g. electromechanical transducers
  • B41J2/04501—Control methods or devices therefor, e.g. driver circuits, control circuits
  • B41J2/04555—Control methods or devices therefor, e.g. driver circuits, control circuits detecting current
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
  • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
  • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
  • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
  • B41J2/01—Ink jet
  • B41J2/015—Ink jet characterised by the jet generation process
  • B41J2/04—Ink jet characterised by the jet generation process generating single droplets or particles on demand
  • B41J2/045—Ink jet characterised by the jet generation process generating single droplets or particles on demand by pressure, e.g. electromechanical transducers
  • B41J2/04501—Control methods or devices therefor, e.g. driver circuits, control circuits
  • B41J2/0458—Control methods or devices therefor, e.g. driver circuits, control circuits controlling heads based on heating elements forming bubbles

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a recording head including a plurality of recording elements, and a recording device including the recording head.
• FIG. 11 shows an example of a heater drive circuit in such an ink jet head.
• time-division driving in which a plurality of heaters are driven in a time-division manner to eject ink is generally performed.
• a plurality of heaters is divided into a plurality of blocks composed of heaters arranged adjacent to each other, and driving is performed so that two or more heaters are not driven simultaneously in each block. Time-sharing eliminates the need to supply large amounts of power at once by suppressing the total current flowing through the heater.
• the blocks to be accommodated are divided into l to m. That is, in block 1, the power supply lines from the power supply pad 1104, a heater 1101 "110 1 are connected in common to lx, each NMOS transistor 1102 u ⁇ l 10 2 i x, supply 1 104 and the ground 1104 Are connected in series with each of the corresponding transistors 1101 u to 101 lx , and each of the transistors 1101 administratto 1101 lx is supplied from the control circuit 1105 to the corresponding NMOS transistor 1102 u. when to l 102 control signal to the gate of lx is applied, the current through the corresponding heater is heated by the flow from the power supply wiring by the NMOS transistors ll OS ⁇ ll OS i x is turned on.
• FIG. 12 is a timing chart showing the timing for energizing and driving each block of the heater drive circuit shown in FIG.
• the control signal VGl ⁇ VGx are timing signals for driving the first to X-th heater 1101 u ⁇ l 101 lx belonging to the block 1. That, VGl ⁇ VGx shows the waveform of the signal input to the block of the click 1 NMOS transistor ll O Su ll O 2 lx control terminal (gate one g), when the high level, the corresponding NMO S transistor 1 102 Turns on and turns off the corresponding NMOS transistor when it is at low level.
• each of I hl to I hx indicates a current value flowing through each of the heaters 1101 ⁇ to ⁇ 101 x .
• the number of heaters energized and driven in each block can be controlled so as to always be one or less. There is no need to supply a large current to the heater.
• FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a layout example of a heater substrate (a substrate constituting a recording head) on which the heater drive circuit of FIG. 11 is formed.
• This Figure 13 FIG. 11 shows a layout of power supply lines connected from power supply pads 1104 to blocks 1 to m shown in FIG.
• the power supply wiring 1 3 0 1 i to 1 3 0 1 m is individually supplied from the power supply pad 1 1 0 4 to the blocks 1 to m , and the power supply wiring 1 3 0 2 to ⁇ 3 0 is supplied from the power supply pad 1 1 0 4. 2 m is connected.
• the heater substrate has many heaters and their driving circuits formed on the same semiconductor substrate. For this reason, low-cost MOS-type semiconductor processes that enable high-density and small-sized devices, have simple manufacturing processes, and are used for the formation of drive circuits over the night are used. Furthermore, since it is necessary to reduce the cost by increasing the number of heater substrates that can be obtained from one wafer, it is also required to reduce the size of the heater substrate.
• the energy input to the heater is too small, the ejection of the ink becomes unstable, and if it is excessive, the durability of the heater will be reduced. Therefore, in order to perform high-quality recording, it is desirable that the energy input to the heater be constant. However, as described above, when the fluctuation of the voltage applied to the heater is large, the durability of the heater is reduced, and the ink ejection becomes unstable.
• the voltage drop in the common wiring varies depending on the number of heaters driven simultaneously. In order to stabilize the energy input to each heater against such fluctuations in voltage drop, the energy input to each heater is adjusted by the voltage application time.
• the voltage drop in the common wiring increases due to the increase in the number of heaters driven at the same time, the time for applying the voltage during the heater drive increases, making it difficult to drive the heater at high speed. ing.
• FIG. 14 shows a heater driving circuit described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-191913.
• constant current sources Trl4 to Tr (n + 13)
• switching elements Ql to Qn
• the constant current source circuits and switching elements required for the same number as the number of heaters occupy the majority of the area of the heater substrate, so reducing the area of this part is important for suppressing the cost of the heater substrate. Since the current flowing through the heater is as high as 50 mA to 200 mA, it may not be possible to reduce the transistor size in order to suppress the voltage drop due to the parasitic resistance of the transistor. In addition, by shortening the wiring from the heater to the switching element and the constant current circuit, the board area can be reduced.Therefore, the constant current source circuit and the switching element should be arranged at the same pitch as the arrangement pitch of the light. Is valid.
• the present invention has been made in view of the above conventional example, and the feature of the present invention is that even if the number of simultaneous driving of the recording elements increases, high-speed and stable recording is possible, and the area of the heater substrate is increased. It is an object of the present invention to provide a recording head in which cost increase is suppressed without increasing, and a recording apparatus provided with the recording head.
• each recording element is driven by a constant current, and the constant current value can be adjusted so that uniform energy can be applied to each recording element.
• Another object of the present invention is to provide a recording device provided with a storage device.
• FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram showing an example of a heater drive circuit provided in the print head according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 2 is an equivalent circuit diagram of a drive circuit per heater according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 3 is a timing chart illustrating the operation timing of the circuit of FIG.
• FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram showing an example of a heater drive circuit provided in the recording head according to the second embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 5 is a characteristic diagram of the NMOS transistor used in this embodiment.
• FIG. 6 is a circuit diagram showing conditions for measuring characteristics of the NMOS transistor according to the second embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 7 is a circuit diagram showing an example of a heater drive circuit provided in the recording head according to the third embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 8A is a characteristic diagram of the NMOS transistor according to the second embodiment
• FIG. 8B is a circuit diagram showing the characteristic measurement conditions of the NMOS transistor.
• FIG. 9 is a circuit diagram showing an example of a head drive circuit provided with a recording head according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 10 is a circuit diagram showing an example of a heater drive circuit provided in a recording head according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 11 is a circuit diagram showing a conventional heater drive circuit.
• FIG. 12 is a timing chart of a signal for operating a conventional heater drive circuit.
• FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a wiring layout of a heat sink substrate.
• FIG. 14 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of a conventional heater drive circuit.
• FIG. 15 is an external perspective view illustrating the outline of the configuration of the inkjet recording apparatus according to the present embodiment.
• FIG. 16 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration of the inkjet recording apparatus according to the present embodiment.
• FIG. 17 is a schematic perspective view showing the configuration of the recording head according to the present embodiment.
• the “heater substrate” used below does not indicate a simple substrate made of a silicon semiconductor, but a substrate provided with each element, wiring, and the like.
• “on the heater substrate” means not only the surface of the heater substrate but also the surface of the element substrate and the inside of the element substrate near the surface.
• the term “built-in” according to the present embodiment is not a word indicating simply arranging each separate element on a substrate, but is a method for manufacturing each semiconductor element. It indicates that it is integrally formed and manufactured on a heat sink substrate by a process or the like.
• FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram illustrating a configuration of a heater drive circuit provided on a heater substrate of an inkjet recording head according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
• 101 ⁇ to 101 lx indicate heaters (heat resistances) for printing, and when each heater is energized to generate heat, ink droplets are emitted from each corresponding nozzle. Discharged. That is, in a recording head using this heater substrate, ejection ports (nozzles) for ejecting ink are provided corresponding to the respective heaters.
• these heaters 101 ul to 101 lx are divided into blocks 1 to m, and each block is provided with X heaters and corresponding heaters.
• X NMOS transistors are included.
• One 02 "to 102 lx are each NMOS transistors for turning on Z off the power supply to the corresponding heater.
• 103 u ⁇ l 03 lx is provided a constant current source, corresponding to each heater.
• These each of the constant current source 103 u ⁇ l 03 lx, NMOS transistors 102 ⁇ ⁇ 02 lx, respectively and heat Isseki group 101 1: ⁇ ⁇ 101 are connected in series to each 1Kai, each current source 103u ⁇ l 03 1 ⁇ outputs a constant current to the connection terminal The magnitude of this constant current value is adjusted by a control signal from the reference current circuit 105.
• 104 is a control circuit, which corresponds to the recording data to be recorded.
• the reference current circuit 105 outputs a control signal 110 to the constant current sources 103 administratto 103 1 ⁇ , and the constant current generated by each constant current source Controlling the value.
• 106 and 107 are power supply pads connected to a power supply unit (not shown) outside the substrate. Electric power for driving the heater is supplied through these power supply pads.
• Each of 108 and 109 is a power supply line for supplying electric power for driving the heater from each of the power supply pads 106 and 107 to the blocks 1 to m.
• Fig. 2 is a diagram showing an equivalent circuit of a circuit including one heater, one NMOS transistor, and one constant current source.
• Fig. 3 shows the drive signal and the timing explaining the current flowing through each heater. This is a chart.
• a signal VG is a recording signal corresponding to an image signal supplied from the control circuit 104 in FIG.
• the configuration of the control circuit 104 may be a circuit that controls an image signal such as a shift register and a latch.
• the signal VC is a control signal supplied from the reference current circuit 105 to the constant current source 203, and corresponds to the control signal 110 in FIG. 1.
• the constant current source 203 (the constant current in FIG. source 103 1] L ⁇ 103 corresponding to 1Kai) by the emitted electrostatic current values are controlled.
• the power supply VH indicates a voltage source for driving the heater 201.
• the NMOS transistor 202 ideally operates as a switch between the drain and source terminals.
• the signal level of the signal VG is high, the NMOS transistor 202 turns on (short circuit between the drain and source). It is assumed that it is turned off at the mouth level (open between the drain and source).
• a voltage between the terminals is applied to the constant current source 203, a constant current set by the control signal VC flows between the terminals (from the top to the bottom in the figure).
• FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the generation timing of the signal VG and the waveform of the current flowing to the heater 201 at that time.
• the signal VG is at a low level during a period up to a time tl. In this period, since the output of the constant current source 203 and the heater 201 are cut off, no current flows through the heater 201. Next, during the period from the time t1 to the time t2, the signal VG goes to the high level, the current flows between the source and the drain of the NMOS transistor 202, and the output current of the constant current source 203 becomes high. Flows to Then, after time t2, the signal VG becomes low level, and the power supply to the heater 201 is cut off.
• the current supply time to the heater 201 is controlled by the pulse width of the signal VG, and the magnitude of the current Ih flowing through the heater 201 is controlled by the control signal VC of the constant current source 203.
• the current flowing through the sun 201 is represented by numeration values I1 to I3 corresponding to the control signal VC.
• the constant current value I (11 to 13) determined by the control signal VC flows through the light source 201 during a period from time t1 to time t2 according to the pulse width of the signal VG.
• the ink existing in the nozzle (flow path) provided corresponding to the heater 201 is heated and foamed, and the ink is ejected from the nozzle corresponding to the heater, so that a predetermined pixel (dot) is formed. Recorded.
• the source and the drain are short-circuited when the NMOS transistor 202 is on.
• the NMOS transistor 202 is on, there is a resistance between the source and the drain.
• the output current of the constant current source is applied to the heater as it is, so that the same operation as the above description of driving the heater is performed. .
• FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example in which the constant current source 103 of FIG. 1 of the first embodiment described above is constituted by NMOS transistors 401 n to 401 lx . Portions common to FIG. Is omitted.
• NMOS transistor 401 'to 401 drains of lx are connected to the NMOS transistor 102 u ⁇ l 02 lx each source for Suitchin grayed.
• NMOS transistor 401 U ⁇ 401 lx gates of the reference current circuit 105 are connected.
• the control signal 110, the value of the current flowing through the respective heaters are more controlled NMOS transistor 401 u ⁇ 401 lx gate voltage by Ri controlled by a control signal 110 from the reference current circuit 105 .
• FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a typical static characteristic example of the NMOS transistor used for the NMOS transistors 401 n to 401 lx
• FIG. 6 shows the bias conditions thereof.
• FIG. 5 shows the characteristics of the drain current Id when the drain voltage Vds is changed with the gate voltage Vg being a parameter. Dray in Figure 5
• the gate voltage Vg and the drain voltage Vds of the NMOS transistors 401 u to 401 lx in FIG. 4 are set so as to operate in a region where the drain current Id does not change much with the change in the drain voltage Vds (saturation region, etc.). I do.
• I do As a result, it is possible to obtain an output current that does not largely depend on the drain voltages Vds of the NMOS transistors 401 1 to 401 lx .
• the on-resistance characteristic which is the current-voltage characteristic between the source and drain of the NMOS transistors 401 u to 401 lx , can be controlled by the gate voltage V g, that is, the control signal 110. By controlling this on-resistance value, A desired constant current can be supplied to each heater.
• FIG. 7 shows that the drains of the NMOS transistors 401 administratto 401 lx shown in FIG. 4 are further connected to the sources of the NMOS transistors 701 u to 701 lx , and two NMOS transistors are cascaded in series to form a constant current source 203 ( 5 is a circuit diagram showing an example in which FIG. 2 is formed.
• parts common to FIGS. 1 and 4 described above are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted. The case of two stages will be described, but the present invention can of course be applied to a case of more stages.
• each gate of the NMOS transistors 701 u to 701 lx is also connected to the reference current circuit 105.
• the NMOS transistors 701 u to 701 lx operate as gate-grounded transistors, and fix the drain voltage of the NMOS transistor AO ln O lx by the potential between the gate and the source of the NMOS yo iu Yoi.
• the reference current circuit 105 connects the NMOS transistors 401 n to 401 to the drain voltage V As to the region in behavior of the saturation region or the like with little change in the drain current Id with respect to a change in ds, the control signal 111, which sets the gate voltage of NMOS 701 u ⁇ 701 lx.
• the source voltage of the MOS transistors 701 u to 701 lx can be suppressed to a small potential change between the gate and the source by fixing the gate voltage with respect to the voltage fluctuation of the drain of the NMOS transistors 701 u to 701 lx. it can.
• the fluctuation of the power supply voltage NM the fluctuation of the on-resistance value and the wiring resistance value of the switching NMOS transistors 102 n to l 02 lx compared to the circuit of FIG. Fluctuations in the drain voltage of the NMOS transistors 401 u to 401 lx operating as a constant current source can be suppressed.
• Figure 8 A is a diagram showing a current output characteristic example of the NMOS transistor 701 U ⁇ 701 lx and the NMOS transistor 401 u ⁇ 401 1 circuit portion of lx 7,
• FIG. 8B is a diagram illustrating the bias conditions.
• FIG. 8A shows a case where a constant voltage is applied to the gate of the NMOS transistor 701 in FIG. 8B and the drain voltage of the NMOS transistor 701 is changed in parallel with the gate voltage of the NMOS transistor 401. It shows the output current value.
• the change in the output current with respect to the change in the drain voltage of the NMOS transistor 701 is smaller than that in FIG.
• FIG. 9 is a circuit diagram illustrating the circuit of FIG. 4 with a specific configuration example of the reference current circuit 105 added.
• the reference current circuit 105 constitutes a current mirror circuit that outputs a current from the drains of the NMOS transistors 401 administratto 401 lx based on the NMOS transistor 901.
• the NMOS transistor 901 has a gate and a drain that are diode-connected.
• the reference current source 902 Is connected.
• the gate of the NMOS transistor 901 is commonly connected to the gate of the NMOS transistor 401: ⁇ to 01 lx .
• the gate size of the NMOS transient scan evening 901 and NMOS transistor 401 u ⁇ 401 lx are equal, a gate voltage of the NMOS transistor 901 and the NMOS transistor 40 1 u ⁇ 401 lx become equal, the reference current equal current by a reference current source 902 Output from the drains of the NMOS transistors 401 u to 401 lx . If the gate sizes of NMOS transistor 901 and NMOS transistor 4011 : L to 401 lx are different, it is proportional to the reference current corresponding to the gate size ratio of NMOS transistor 901 and NMOS transistor 401 administratto 401 lx. A constant output current is obtained.
• FIG. 10 is a circuit diagram showing the circuit of FIG. 7 with a specific configuration example of the reference current circuit 105 added.
• the gates of the NMOS transistors 701 u to 701 lx are connected to the gate of the NMOS transistor 1001 of the reference current circuit 105.
• NMO S transistor evening 1001, gate and drain are Daio one de connection, in which can grant a constant voltage to the NMOS transistor 701 " ⁇ 701 lx gate.
• the NMOS transistor 1001 and NMOS Tran register 701 " ⁇ 701 lx gate first source voltage is substantially equal to this, the drain voltage of the NMOS transistor 901 and NMOS transistors 401 ⁇ 401 lx be equal.
• the reference current from the reference current source 902 depends on the drain voltages of the NMOS transistors 701 u to 701 lx. Instead, it is accurately mirrored by the output currents of the NMOS transistors 401 u to 401 lx .
• a constant current source circuit for supplying a constant current to the heater and a switching circuit for controlling the current application time can be configured using the NMOS transistor.
• a constant current can be supplied when the heater is driven, and the current value of the constant current can be adjusted and controlled. Thus, uniform energy can be applied to each heater.
• circuit configurations of FIGS. 1, 4, 7, 9, 10 and the like in each of the above embodiments may be formed on one element substrate.
• the reference current circuit may be a circuit provided outside the element substrate, it is preferable that the reference current circuit is formed on the same element substrate.
• FIG. 15 is an external perspective view showing an outline of a configuration of an ink jet recording apparatus 1 which is a typical embodiment of the present invention.
• an ink jet recording apparatus (hereinafter, referred to as a recording apparatus) is generated by a carriage motor M 1 on a carriage 2 equipped with a recording head 3 for performing recording by discharging ink according to an ink jet system.
• the driving force is transmitted from the transmission mechanism 4, the carriage 2 is reciprocated in the direction of arrow A, and, for example, a recording medium P such as recording paper is fed through the paper feeding mechanism 5 'and conveyed to the recording position.
• recording is performed by ejecting ink from the recording head 3 onto the recording medium P.
• the carriage 2 is moved to the position of the recovery device 10, and the ejection recovery processing of the recording head 3 is performed intermittently.
• the ink cartridge 6 for storing the ink to be supplied to the recording head 3 is installed.
• the ink cartridge 6 is detachable from the carriage 2.
• the recording device 1 shown in Fig. 15 is capable of color recording, so that the carriage 2 contains magenta (M), cyan (C), yellow (Y), and black ( ⁇ ) inks, respectively. It has four ink cartridges. Each of these four ink cartridges is independently removable.
• the carriage 2 and the recording head 3 are designed so that the joint surfaces of the two members are properly contacted to achieve and maintain the required electrical connection.
• the recording head 3 performs recording by selectively discharging ink from a plurality of discharge ports by applying energy according to a recording signal.
• the recording head 3 of this embodiment employs an ink-jet method in which ink is ejected using thermal energy, has an electrothermal converter for generating thermal energy, and is applied to the electrothermal converter.
• the electrical energy is converted into thermal energy, and the thermal energy is applied to the ink.
• the ink is ejected from the ejection port using the pressure change caused by bubble growth and shrinkage caused by film boiling caused by applying the thermal energy to the ink.
• the electrothermal converter is provided corresponding to each of the discharge ports, and discharges ink from the corresponding discharge port by applying a pulse voltage to the corresponding electrothermal converter in accordance with a recording signal.
• the carriage 2 is connected to a part of the drive belt 7 of the transmission mechanism 4 for transmitting the drive force of the carriage motor Ml, and the arrow A along the guide shaft 13
• the guide is slidably guided in the direction. Therefore, the carriage 2 reciprocates along the guide shaft 13 by the forward and reverse rotation of the carriage motor Ml.
• a scale 8 is provided to indicate the absolute position of the carriage 2 along the movement direction of the carriage 2 (the direction of arrow A).
• the scale 8 uses a black PET printed on a transparent PET film at a required pitch, one of which is fixed to the chassis 9 and the other is supported by a panel panel (not shown). Sa Have been.
• the printing apparatus 1 is provided with a platen (not shown) opposed to the discharge port surface on which the discharge port (not shown) of the recording head 3 is formed.
• a recording signal is applied to the recording head 3 to eject ink, thereby performing recording over the entire width of the recording medium P conveyed on the platen.
• reference numeral 14 denotes a conveying roller driven by the conveying motor M2 to convey the recording medium P
• reference numeral 15 denotes a recording medium P applied to the conveying roller 14 by a spring (not shown).
• a pinch roller 16 is in contact with the pinch roller 16, a pinch roller holder rotatably supporting the pinch roller 15, and 17 is a transport roller gear fixed to one end of the transport roller 14. Then, the transport roller 14 is driven by the rotation of the transport mode M2 transmitted to the transport roller gear 17 via an intermediate gear (not shown).
• reference numeral 20 denotes a discharge roller for discharging the recording medium (sheet) P on which an image has been formed by the recording head 3 to the outside of the recording apparatus, and the rotation of the conveyance mode M2 is transmitted. It is adapted to be driven.
• the discharge port L20 is brought into contact with a spur roller (not shown) which presses the recording medium P with a panel (not shown).
• 22 is a spur holder for rotatably supporting the spur roller.
• the recording apparatus 1 has a desired position (outside the recording area) outside the range of the reciprocating movement (outside the recording area) for the recording operation of the carriage 2 on which the recording head 3 is mounted.
• a recovery device 10 for recovering the ejection failure of the recording head 3 is provided.
• the recovery device 10 includes a capping mechanism 11 1 for capping the discharge port surface of the recording head 3 and a wiping mechanism 12 2 for cleaning the discharge port surface of the recording head 3.
• the ink is forcibly ejected from the ejection port by a suction means (suction pump or the like) in the recovery device in conjunction with the ink jetting, thereby increasing the viscosity of the ink or air bubbles in the ink flow path of the recording head 3.
• An ejection recovery process such as removal of the ink is performed.
• the ejection opening surface of the recording head 3 is cabbed by the cabbing mechanism 11, thereby protecting the recording head 3 and preventing evaporation and drying of the ink.
• the wiping mechanism 12 is arranged in the vicinity of the capping mechanism 11 and wipes ink droplets adhered to the ejection opening surface of the recording head 3.
• the capping mechanism 11 and the wiping mechanism 12 make it possible to keep the ink ejection state of the recording head 3 normal.
• FIG. 16 is a block diagram showing a control configuration of the printing apparatus shown in FIG.
• the controller 600 includes an MPU 601, a program corresponding to a control sequence described later, a ROM 602 storing required tables, and other fixed data, control of a carriage mode Ml, and control of a transfer mode M2.
• AS IC special-purpose integrated circuit
• reference numeral 610 denotes a combination (or a reader for reading images, a digital camera, or the like) serving as a supply source of image data, and is generally called a host device. Image data, commands, status signals, and the like are transmitted and received between the host device 610 and the recording device 1 via the interface (IZF) 611.
• Reference numeral 62 denotes a group of switches. The power switch 621, the print switch 62 for instructing the start of printing, and the ink for the recording head 3 for maintaining good ink ejection performance. It consists of a switch for receiving command input from the operator, such as a recovery switch 623 for instructing the start of processing (recovery processing).
• a position sensor 631 such as a photo hood for detecting the home position h
• a temperature sensor 632 provided at an appropriate place of the recording device for detecting the environmental temperature. This is a group of sensors for detecting the device status.
• 640 is a carriage motor driver for driving a carriage motor Ml for reciprocally scanning the carriage 2 in the direction of arrow A, and 640 is for driving a transport motor M2 for transporting the recording medium P. It is a transport motor driver.
• FIG. 17 is a schematic perspective view showing the configuration of a recording head cartridge including the recording head according to the present embodiment.
• a recording head cartridge 1200 in this embodiment includes an ink tank 130 that stores ink and an ink supplied from the ink tank 130 according to recording information.
• the recording head 3 has a recording head 3 ejected from a nozzle, and the recording head 3 employs a so-called cartridge system which is removably mounted on the carriage 2.
• the recording head cartridge 1200 is reciprocally scanned along the carriage axis, and a color image is recorded on a recording sheet.
• ink tanks such as black, light cyan (C), light magenta (LM), Cyan, magenta and yellow Color independent ink tanks are provided, each of which is detachable from the recording head 3.
• the recording head cartridge 1200 here shows a form in which the ink tank 1300 can be attached to and detached from the recording head.
• the recording head cartridge integrated with the recording head is shown. It may be one cartridge.
• Fig. 17 shows a case where six colors of ink are used.However, as shown in Fig. 15, printing is performed using four colors of ink, for example, black, cyan, magenta and yellow. May be. In this case, independent ink tanks for each of the four colors may be detachably attached to the recording head 3.
• a device including one device for example, a copying machine, a facsimile machine, etc.
• the present invention is not limited to this, and can be applied to, for example, a thermal head.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Microelectronics & Electronic Packaging (AREA)
• Particle Formation And Scattering Control In Inkjet Printers (AREA)

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• 2002
  • 2002-11-29 JP JP2002348724A patent/JP2004181678A/ja active Pending
• 2003
  • 2003-11-28 KR KR1020087017036A patent/KR20080081970A/ko not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 2003-11-28 WO PCT/JP2003/015225 patent/WO2004050370A1/ja active Application Filing
  • 2003-11-28 EP EP03812334A patent/EP1579997A4/de not_active Withdrawn
  • 2003-11-28 AU AU2003302652A patent/AU2003302652A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2003-11-28 KR KR1020057009613A patent/KR20050087811A/ko active Search and Examination
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