JPH01244864A - Ink jet system recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To confine contamination by ink and sticking of a scale only to a sheet member and to remove irregularity of density, by a method wherein a Joule's heat supply means is composed of a body in which a plurality of recording electrodes arranged along a width direction of a film are buried, and of a sheet state member of a two layer structure consisting of a high resistance layer interposed between the body and the film and arranged on the body side, and of an electrode layer arranged on the film side. CONSTITUTION:A Joule's heat supply means 15 for jetting ink toward recording paper is equipped with a body 16 composed of an insulating material arranged opposed to a film 12, and a plurality of recording electrodes 17 arranged along a width direction of the film 12 are buried in the body 16. A sheet state member 19 is interposed between the body 16 and the film 12, and the sheet state member 19 consists of a two layer structure in which a high resistance layer 20 composed of, for instance, polyester or the like arranged on the body 16 side and an electrode layer 21 of good thermal conductivity of, for instance, copper or the like arranged on the film 12 side are laminated.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention [Objective of the Invention] (Industrial Field of Application) The present invention relates to an inkjet recording device, and in particular a recording device that uses heat power to record ink supplied to a large number of small holes formed in a film. The present invention relates to an improvement of an inkjet recording device that performs recording by ejecting ink toward a medium.

(Prior Art) Recording methods for printing and recording on paper etc. are classified into impact methods and non-impact methods. Non-impact type recording devices essentially have advantages over impact type recording devices, such as lower noise and miniaturization.

Incidentally, non-impact type recording apparatuses are further classified into several types, including inkjet recording type recording apparatuses. This inkjet recording device basically forms dots on the recording medium by ejecting ink particles from a nozzle and colliding with the recording medium, and has the special advantage of being able to easily perform color recording. It is equipped with However, there was a problem in that the nozzles were easily clogged and the recording device lacked stability.

For this reason, an inkjet recording apparatus having a structure shown in FIG. 6 has recently been proposed, which can significantly reduce clogging. FIG. 6 is a perspective view schematically showing the main parts of the inkjet recording apparatus. 6th
In the recording apparatus shown in the figure, a film 3 is moved in the direction of six arrows in proximity to a recording surface 2 of a recording medium 1 such as paper.
is located. This film 3 is provided with a large number of small holes 4 having a diameter of several tens of micrometers and arranged at a pitch of several tens of micrometers.

An ink supply mechanism, for example, an ink supply rod 5, for contacting the film 3 and supplying ink to each of the small holes 4 is disposed on the opposite side of the film 3 from the recording medium 1. The film 3 is located on the opposite side of the recording medium 1 with the film 3 centered on the running direction of the film 3, and in front of the ink supply rod 5 with respect to the running direction of the film 3. A thermal head 6 is arranged to be in contact with. On the contact surface of the thermal head 6 with the film 3, a large number of heating elements are provided at a predetermined pitch along the width direction of the film 3. The ink supply rod 5 and the thermal head 6 are controlled to move in the same direction as the running direction of the film 3 at a speed slower than the running speed of the film 3.

According to the recording apparatus configured as described above, the ink supply rod 5 supplies and fills each small hole 4 of the film 3 with ink, and the thermal head 6 applies heat power to the ink filled in each small hole 4 of the film 3. The ink particles 7 collide with the recording surface 2 of the recording medium 1 in the form of dots, thereby performing recording. In other words, since a large number of heating elements are installed along the width direction of the film 3 at the contact portion of the thermal head 6 with the film 3, if a desired heating element among these is driven based on recorded information, Only the ink filled in the small holes 4 of the film 3 passing over the driven heating element collides with the recording surface 2 as ink particles 7. In this case, only the ink corresponding to the dot image can be used for recording through the small holes 4 provided in the film 3. The thermal head 6 used in this recording II performs the same operation as the thermal head in a known thermal transfer type recording device, and the film 3 functions in a manner corresponding to the ink ribbon in the same recording device.

However, the inkjet recording HM with the above configuration
However, there were the following problems.

Since the thermal head having a large number of 01 heating elements is in direct contact with the ink, the thermal head itself is contaminated by the ink. Further, ink evaporated on the thermal head accumulates as scale on the heating element, impeding heat transfer to the ink.

If the thermal head becomes contaminated or scales adhere to it in this way, recording will be hindered. Therefore, in order to remove scale etc. from the tip of the head, 2! ! There are problems in that the expensive thermal head itself must be replaced with a new one if it requires sloppy maintenance or is severely contaminated by scale.

(2) In the recording device, the film 3 is supplied by the ink supply rod 5.
When supplying and filling ink to the small holes 4, ink also adheres to the surface of the film 3 on the side of the ink supply rod 5 other than the small holes 4, and this ink is scraped off by the thermal head 6 as the film 3 moves, and the thermal It accumulates near the heating element portion of the head 6. When recording information is given to the thermal head 6 to perform recording, the ink in the small holes 4 of the film 3 on the heating element is ejected according to the recording information, and the ink in the small holes 4 of the film 3 on the heating element is ejected. However, because the film 3 is moving for the next recording and the ink has accumulated near the contact area between the thermal head 6 and the film 3 as described above, the ink quickly disappears onto the heating element. is supplied. However, the amount of ink accumulated in the vicinity of the contact area between the thermal head 6 and the film 3 is relatively small, and when continuous recording such as solid recording is performed, density unevenness may occur due to insufficient supply of ink. In other words, in the recording method described above, when recording, not only the ink in the small holes 4 of the film 3 above the heat generating element but also the ink near the heat generating element are ejected. A certain amount of ink pooling near the contact area between the thermal head 6 and the film 3 is necessary, but when recording with the conventional configuration, the formation of the ink pool necessary for recording may be insufficient and density unevenness may occur. There was sex.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems. It is possible to easily perform maintenance when the supply means becomes contaminated or has scale adhesion, and in addition, the amount of ink accumulated in the vicinity of the contact area between the Joule heat supply means and the film is sufficiently increased to prevent solid recording. It is an object of the present invention to provide a recording device for the Infusiera 1, which is capable of resolving ink supply shortages and performing good recording without density unevenness when performing continuous recording.

[Structure of the Invention (Means for Solving Problem Y!) The present invention provides a film having a large number of small holes and provided to run close to a recording medium, and a film that has many small holes in the film. An inkjet recording apparatus comprising an ink supply mechanism for supplying ink, and a Joule heat supply means disposed in contact with the film and ejecting ink from the film toward the recording medium using heat power,
The Joule heat supply means includes a main body in which a plurality of recording RI poles arranged along the width direction of the film are embedded;
The feature is that the sheet-like member is interposed between the main body and the film and has a two-layer structure consisting of a high-resistance layer disposed on the main body side and an N-pole layer disposed on the film side. This is an inkjet recording device.

Further, in the above configuration, the ink supply mechanism is characterized in that it includes a tubular member in which a plurality of ink supply holes are bored in the axial direction.

(Function) According to the present invention, the Joule heat supply means is interposed between a main body in which a plurality of recording electrodes arranged along the width direction of the film are embedded, and the main body and the film, and the Joule heat supply means is interposed between the main body and the film. By constructing a sheet-like member with a two-layer structure consisting of a high-resistance layer placed on the film side and an electrode layer placed on the film side, the main body in which many recording electrodes are embedded does not come into direct contact with the ink. Since contamination by ink and adhesion of scale are confined only to the sheet member, maintenance for the purpose of cleaning can be significantly simplified. Furthermore, if the scale contamination is severe, only the sheet member needs to be replaced, and there is no need to replace the expensive main body.

Furthermore, between the main body and the film, there is provided a high resistance layer disposed on the main body side and a voltage layer disposed on the film side.
By interposing a sheet-like member having a layered structure, a sufficient amount of ink can be accumulated near the contact portion between the sheet member and the film due to capillary action. As a result, even if printing is performed in such a state (for example, continuous printing such as solid printing), a sufficient amount of ink can be supplied to the printing medium, so that good printing can be achieved without causing density unevenness.

(Embodiments of the Invention) Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an inkjet recording device according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing main parts of the recording device shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a main body of the Joule heat supply means. FIG. 11a and 11b in the figure are pulleys, and these pulleys 11a.

An endless film 12 is pivotally supported between the pulleys 11b and is reciprocated by the rotation of the pulleys 11a and 11b.

This film 12 is provided with a large number of small holes 13 having a diameter of, for example, 10 μm at intervals of 10 μm. The film 12
On the outside of the film 12, a recording paper (not shown) is placed close to the film 12. Further, 148° 14b in the figure is an ink supply rod serving as an ink supply mechanism for contacting the inner surface of the film 12 to supply and fill the small holes 13 of the film 12 with ink. These ink supply rods 14
Inside the film 12 between a and 14b,
Joule heat supply means 15 is disposed in contact with the inner surface of the film 12 and uses heat power to jet ink on the film 12 toward a recording paper (not shown). This supply means 15 includes a main body 1G made of an insulating material and arranged opposite to the film 12. A plurality of recording electrodes 17 are embedded in this main body 16 and arranged along the width direction of the film 12, as shown in FIG. One end of these recording poles 11 is exposed on the front end surface side of the main body 16 facing the film 12 so as to be flush with it, and the other end extends from the lower surface of the main body 1G and is connected to the electrode drive circuit 18, respectively. It is connected. The drive circuit 18 applies a voltage to a desired electrode behind each of the recording electrodes 17 according to the recording pattern.

A sheet-like member 1 is provided between the main body 1G and the film 12.
9 is interposed, and the sheet-like member 19 is separated from the high resistance H20 made of, for example, polyester, fluororesin, polypropylene, polyimide, etc., disposed on the J period main body 161!11, and for example, disposed on the film 12 side. copper,
Electric lfi layer 2 with good thermal conductivity such as nickel or aluminum
It has a 2N structure in which 1 and 1 are stacked. Both ends of the hemlock member 19 of the sea 1 (!, pulleys 22a, 22b 1.
: The electrode layer 21 of the member 19 is wound and grounded through one pulley 22b.

According to such a configuration, the pulleys 22a and 22b of the Joule heat supply means 15 are rotated to reciprocate one member toward the sea 1, and at the same time, the pulleys 11a and 11b are rotated.
by rotating the endless film 12 to the Joule heat supply member 1
When the film 12 moves back and forth around the main body 16 of the film 12, the ink from each supply rod 14a, 14b is applied to the inner surface of the film 12, and the film 12 is moved while being in contact with the ink supply rods 14a, 14b. The large number of small holes 13 are supplied and filled. In this case, some ink is also applied to the inner surface of the film 12 other than the small holes 13.

Small holes 1 filled with ink 23 by movement of film 12
3 is sent onto the Joule heat supply means 15, and when a current flows through a predetermined recording electrode 11 of the main body 16 according to the recording information from the electrode drive circuit 18, one of the high resistance layers 20 of the sheet 1-shaped member The portion sandwiched between the recording electrode 17 and the electrode layer 21 instantaneously generates heat, and the ink 23 in the small holes 13 of the film 12 located above the recording electrode 17 is bubbled onto recording paper (not shown). It is sprayed towards.

At this time, in addition to the ink stored in the small holes 13 of the film 12, the ink accumulated near the contact portion between the Joule heat supply member 15 and the film 12 due to the movement of the film 12 is also jetted. In such ink jetting, since the sheet-like member 19 constituting the Joule heat supply means 15 is interposed between the film 12 and the main body 16, the capillary current is sufficient near the contact portion of the sheet member 19 and the film 12. Namura's ink 24 is stored.

Therefore, by driving a predetermined recording N pole 17 embedded in the main body 16, the film 24 corresponding to the recording electrode 17 is
In addition to the ink in the small holes, a sufficient amount of ink stored near the contact area between the sheet member 19 and the film 12 can also be ejected, so that even in continuous recording, good recording without unevenness in density due to insufficient ink supply can be achieved. can be done. In addition, a large number of recording electrodes 1 in the Joule heat supply member 15
Since the main body 16 in which 7 is buried does not come into direct contact with ink, and any contamination caused by ink or scale remains only on the sheet member, maintenance for the purpose of cleaning can be extremely simplified, and furthermore, contamination by scale can be avoided. In severe cases, only the sheet member 19 needs to be replaced, eliminating the need for expensive replacement of the main body. However, Joule heat supply means 1
While recording the sheet-like member 19 of No. 5, the pulleys 22a, 2
If the reciprocating operation is performed at 2b, it is possible to prevent the adhered ink from sticking as scale due to heat, and maintenance for cleaning can be omitted.

In addition, although the ink supply rod was used as an ink supply mechanism in the said Example, it is not limited to this. For example, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, there are many ink supply holes 31 in the axial direction.
A constant pressure pump 34 is connected to the tubular member 32 via a flexible vibe 33.
Ink supply mechanism 14a', 14 composed of
b' may be arranged between the sheet-like member 19 and the film 12 with the main body 16 of the Joule heat supply means 15 as the center, such that the ink supply hole 31 of the piping member 32 faces toward the distal end side of the main body 16. Ink supply mechanism 14a having such a configuration
According to ', 14b', by supplying ink to the tubular member 32 from the constant pressure pump 34 through the flexible vibe 33, a large number of ink supply holes 31 of the tubular member 32 can be used to create a sufficient gap between the film 12 and the sheet-like member 19. It can supply a large amount of ink.

[Effects of the Invention] As detailed above, according to the present invention, the Joule heat supply means used to foam the ink filled in the small pores of the film with heat power does not cause contamination or buildup of scale. In addition, a sufficient amount of ink can be stored near the contact area between the Joule heat supply means and the film, and the ink can be easily maintained when performing continuous recording such as solid recording. It is possible to provide an inkjet recording apparatus that can eliminate supply shortages and stably perform good recording without density unevenness.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an inkjet recording device according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing the main parts of the recording device of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a main body of the Joule heat supply means. A perspective view, the fourth factor is a schematic diagram showing another embodiment of the present invention, and the fifth factor is a schematic diagram showing another embodiment of the present invention.
This figure is a perspective view showing the ink supply mechanism used in the recording apparatus shown in FIG. 4, and FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the basic configuration of the inkjet type recording %NIi. 12...Film, 13...Small hole, 14a,
14b, 14a'. 14b'... Ink supply mechanism, 15... Joule heat supply member, 16... Main body, 17... Recording electrode, 1
8... Electrode drive circuit, 19... Sheet-like member, 31
... Ink supply hole, 32 ... Tubular member, 34 ...
Constant pressure. Applicant's representative Patent attorney Takehiko Suzue Figure 1 Figure 3

Claims (1)

[Claims] a film having a large number of small holes and provided to run close to a recording medium; an ink supply mechanism for supplying ink to the small holes of the film; and an ink supply mechanism disposed in contact with the film; In the inkjet recording apparatus, the Joule heat supply means includes a plurality of Joule heat supply means arranged along the width direction of the film. a two-layer sheet-like member interposed between the main body and the film, comprising a high-resistance layer disposed on the main body side and an electrode layer disposed on the film side; An inkjet recording device comprising: