JPH0411390B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an inkjet recording device, and particularly to an inkjet recording device that prevents ink from drying in its recording head, and also improves printing performance when the recording head becomes clogged due to ink drying or other reasons. The present invention relates to an inkjet recording device equipped with a drying prevention and print recovery means for easily resolving ejection defects such as printing defects and ink non-ejection in inkjet recording.

When an inkjet recording device is installed in a small, portable electronic device such as a calculator, there are various problems associated with carrying it, unlike when installing it in an electronic device such as a data terminal, which is rarely carried. . For example, shocks and vibrations caused when carrying the device, or the receding of the ink meniscus in the nozzle at the tip of the recording head due to tilting of the electronic device, ink leakage from the nozzle, generation of air bubbles, and dust adhesion to the nozzle tip, etc. be. These phenomena cause ink ejection failure, printing failure, or contamination within electronic equipment. Furthermore, if an inkjet recording device is not used for a long period of time, the ink inside the nozzle dries, making it impossible to immediately reuse it.

The purpose of the present invention is to eliminate these drawbacks by providing a capping device that covers the recording head with a cap during transportation and when not in use, to prevent ink from drying out when not in use, and to prevent ink from drying out when ejection failure occurs during reuse. It is an object of the present invention to provide a drying prevention and print recovery device that easily relieves ejection failure by sucking ink from the cap.

An inkjet recording device according to the present invention includes an ink absorber provided inside, a capping means for covering an ejection port for ejecting ink of an inkjet head, and a capping means connected to the capping means, the ejection port being connected to the capping means. a suction means for suctioning ink from the ejection port through the capping means in a covered state; and a discharge ink provided in communication with the suction means for storing ink sucked from the ejection port. The apparatus is characterized by comprising a discharged ink storage part provided with an absorber and opened to the atmosphere.

The present invention will be explained in detail below based on the drawings.

FIGS. 1A and 1B show an embodiment of the inkjet recording apparatus of the present invention. In the figure, numeral 1 is a recording head attached to a carriage 2, and numeral 3 is a nozzle attached to the tip of the recording head 1. Chamfered portions 2A are provided on the left and right outer walls (the upper and lower outer walls in FIG. 1A) of the recording head 1 side of the carriage 2, and the recording head 1
A concave portion 1A is provided by cutting out the tip of the tube.

The drying prevention/print recovery device for an inkjet recording device according to the present invention includes a capping device (generally indicated by a) that can be positioned to cover the tip of the inkjet recording head 1 and prevent the recording head 1 from drying out. ), a suction device (generally indicated by b in FIG. 2) connected to this capping device and applying negative pressure into the capping device; A discharge ink reservoir for collecting ink sucked from the head (shown as c in Figure 2)
It is equipped with

The capping device a includes a cap slide 4 and a manual lever 5 for pressing the slide 4 toward the carriage 2. A deep hole 7 filled with an ink absorber 6 is provided in the cap portion of the cap slide 4 facing the recording head 1, and a passage 6A is provided in the center of the absorber 6. A recess 8 is formed in the cap portion and the tip, facing the carriage 2, into which the chamfered portion 2A thereof can be fitted. A convex elastic cap 9 that covers the absorber 6 and is press-fitted into the recess 1A of the recording head 1 is fitted into the center of the recess. A hole 9A communicating with the passage 6A is provided in the center of the elastic cap 9.
On the other hand, in cap slide 4,
As shown in FIG. 1B, a shaft hole 10 is parallel to the deep hole 7.
is drilled and the shaft 11 is inserted into this shaft hole 10. axis 1
1 is fixed with a snap ring 13 or the like to a cap fixing plate 12 attached to an electronic device in which an inkjet printer is installed. The other end of the shaft 11 is fitted with a boss 14 that engages in the shaft hole 10 and is fixed to the other end of the shaft 11 . Therefore, cap slide 4
shaft hole 1 when moving it toward recording head 1.
0 can slide along the boss 14 in the axial direction of the shaft 11. A compression spring 16 is installed between the shaft hole 10 and the boss 14 so that the cap slide 4 is biased toward the fixed plate 12 during such sliding. Reference numeral 17 denotes a spring locking member for locking the lever 5 when the lever 5 rotates counterclockwise.

As described above, the capping device a can be positioned so as to cover the tip of the recording head 1 when the recording head 1 is not in use, and this capping device a can be positioned so as to cover the tip of the recording head 1 when the recording head 1 is not in use.
It holds ink inside and prevents the ink from drying at the tip of the recording head.

The suction device b that applies negative pressure within the capping device has a suction pump main body and a suction pipe that connects the capping device and the pump main body. Figure 2 shows an example of the suction device b.
Cylindrical suction pump body 2 fixed to pedestal 21
0, the suction pump main body 20 has a large-diameter suction chamber 22 and an annular sealing groove 23 provided at the upper end separated from the suction chamber 22. An opening 20A is made above.
An O-ring 24 is fitted into this sealing groove 23. Inside the pump body 20, a shaft 25 fixed to a pedestal 21 extends upward to near the end of the sealing groove 23. 2
6 is a piston of a suction pump, and this piston 26 has a narrow diameter portion 28 shaped to be able to slide through the opening 20A and the sealing groove 23, and its upper end is fixed to the lever 5 described above. The lower end of the piston 26 has a large diameter portion 27 that fits into the suction chamber 22, and a peripheral portion of the large diameter portion 27 that overhangs the narrow diameter portion 28 passes through the large diameter portion 27 in the axial direction. A passage 29 is opened, and a valve 30 is installed at the lower end of the passage 29 on the side of the suction chamber 22, which opens and closes in response to pressure difference fluctuations at the openings on both sides of the passage 29. Also,
An O-ring 31 is attached to the outer wall of the large diameter portion 27,
A seal is formed between the outer wall and the suction chamber 22.
Furthermore, a recess 32 is cut out in the bottom surface of the large diameter portion 27 of the piston 26 on the suction chamber side, and the recess 32 and the pedestal 2 are connected to each other.
A compression spring 33 is installed between the This spring 33 is for automatically returning the piston 26 upward after the piston 26 is manually pushed downward when necessary. A communication hole 34 is formed in the upper side wall of the suction chamber 22, and a suction pipe 35 is inserted into this hole 34.
Connect. The other end of the suction tube 35 communicates with the passage 6A of the ink suction body 6, as shown in FIG. 1B. Therefore, when the piston 26 is pushed down, the large diameter portion 27 of the piston 26 and the pump body 2
A space 3 in a negative pressure state formed between the upper end of 0
6, the passage 6A is sucked into a negative pressure state from the communication hole 34 via the absorption tube 35.

The discharge ink reservoir c for storing the ink sucked from the recording head by the above-mentioned suction device b is as follows:
The embodiment shown in FIG. 2 has a tank 39 and an absorbent body 40 disposed therein.
One side wall of the lower part of the pump body 20 (the left side wall in FIG. 2) has a hole through which negative pressure can escape when the cavity 36 expands downward, and which can also discharge ink. 37 is bored, and this hole 37 is connected to the tank 39 by a tube 38. The tube 38 opens into the tank 39 at a mouth 41 and absorbs the absorbent body 4.
0, and an opening 43 for releasing negative pressure is formed in the upper surface of the tank. In this way, even if the absorber 40 in the tank 39 swells due to absorption of discharged ink, it does not block the tube opening 41 and can release negative pressure, and even if it swells and increases in outer diameter, it does not deform. It is installed with the space 42 and opening 43 open so that it fits inside the tank 39.

The opening 43 is also effective in evaporating absorbed ink.

Next, the operation of the recording head drying prevention and print recovery device according to the present invention constructed as described above will be explained with reference to FIGS. 3A and 3B and FIG. 4.

3A and 3B show a state in which the lever 5 is manually rotated counterclockwise (in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 1A) and the lever 5 is locked by the locking member 17. 9 is pressed against the recording head 1 to seal its nozzle 3.
At the same time, the nozzle 3 penetrates into the hole 9A and faces the ink absorber 6 at the rear of the cap 9. Since ink is absorbed in this ink absorber 6,
The inside of the hole 9A, and thus the area around the nozzle 3, is always filled with ink vapor, and the tip of the nozzle 3 never dries.

On the other hand, if ink ejection failure occurs due to causes such as receding of the meniscus of the ink liquid level or generation of bubbles in the nozzle 3, the piston 26 should be pushed down as shown in FIG. As a result, negative pressure is generated in the cavity 36, and the tip of the nozzle 3 is sucked by the negative pressure, and the ink is drawn into the nozzle 3.
Discharge outward from the To do this, first, as shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the tip elastic cap 9 of the cap slide 4 is brought into pressure contact with the recording head 1.
In this state, the lever 5 is pushed down so as to slide between the cap fixing plate 12 and the cap slide 4, and the piston 26 is pushed down. At this time, the large diameter portion 27 of the piston 26 and the pump body 20
The space 36 formed between the piston 26 and the upper end of the piston 26 becomes negative pressure due to the volume expansion caused by pushing down the piston 26, so that the inside of the passage 6A connected to this space 36 becomes negative pressure. Further, since the tank (not shown) that supplies ink to the recording head 1 is always open to the atmosphere, the ink in the nozzle 3 is ejected outward from the nozzle 3 due to the pressure difference between the front and rear sides of the nozzle 3. Therefore,
For example, if the meniscus is receding, if there are air bubbles in the nozzle, or if there is dust on the tip, the receding meniscus may be sucked out and return to its normal state. This makes it possible to eliminate the ejection failure. Next, when the piston 26 is released, the piston 2 is compressed by the compression spring 33.
6 returns upward as shown by the arrow in FIG.
At this time, since the valve 30 is made of a film with a thickness of several tens of micrometers, it responds sensitively to fluctuations in the pressure difference between the upper and lower sides, and the valve 30 becomes open, and the ink sucked into the cavity 36 passes through the passage 29. Pump body 2
It accumulates below 0. When the piston 26 is pushed down in the next suction operation, the ink accumulated below the pump body 20 is discharged from the hole 37 through the tube 38 and into the absorber 40 in the tank 39, where it is absorbed. . In the figure, 44 is discharged ink, 45
indicates the absorbed ink portion. Note that by making the line resistance of the passage 29 smaller than the line resistance of the suction tube 35, the ink accumulated in the space 36 can be easily discharged from the passage 29.

If the amount of ink to be suctioned is very small, the discharged ink reservoir c may be provided within the main body of the suction device b. Such an embodiment is shown in FIG. In FIG. 5, the same numbers as those in FIG. 2 indicate similar parts. However, in FIG. 5, the hole 37 functions to release negative pressure, and the suction ink is sucked into the suction body 40.

In addition, the discharge ink reservoir c and the suction device b are connected to the second
As shown in the figure, the two may be constructed integrally without being connected by the tube 38. Such an embodiment is shown in FIG. In FIG. 6, the same numbers as those in FIG. 2 indicate similar parts.

In addition, in the embodiment described above, the carriage 2
The side wall 2A at the tip of the cap slide 4 is chamfered, and the cap slide 4 that comes into contact with the side wall 2A is also provided with a recess 8. Moreover, the recording head 1 is provided with the recess 1A, and the elastic cap 9 is also provided with a convex tip. Even if there is some positional deviation between the recording head 1 and the cap slide 4, the unevenness corrects the positional deviation between the two, and the recording head 1 is reliably sealed by the cap slide 4.

As explained above, according to the inkjet recording device of the present invention, when the inkjet recording device is not used for a long period of time, the recording head 1
Since the nozzle 3 at the tip of the nozzle 3 is covered with a cap slide 4 having an absorber 6 impregnated with ink inside, the tip of the nozzle 3 does not dry out and printing can be performed immediately when reusing it. .
In addition, in the present invention, since the capping device is provided with a nozzle absorption device, when an electronic device with an inkjet printer is carried around, the inkjet printer is not subjected to shock or vibration, and the inkjet printer is tilted, causing the inside of the nozzle to be absorbed. Even if an ejection failure occurs due to the meniscus receding, air bubbles getting in, or dirt adhering, the nozzle suction device will suck the ink inside the nozzle and at the same time eject the previously sucked ink to the outside. By doing so, ejection failure can be easily eliminated. However, by providing the drained ink reservoir, the drained ink can be absorbed without leaking into the electronic device even if the suction device is used more frequently. Furthermore, since the ink reservoir is provided with an opening, it is expected that the absorbed ink will evaporate, and in long-term use, it is possible to absorb an amount of ink that is more than just the volume of absorbed ink. Further, the ink reservoir can be easily replaced by connecting the discharge tube and the ink reservoir or the discharge tube and the suction device using screws or the like (not shown). Moreover, this suction device does not require special equipment such as a motor, solenoid, or pump, so that an inexpensive and highly reliable drying prevention and print recovery device can be provided.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1A is a plan view showing an example of the configuration of a recording head capping device according to the present invention, FIG. 1B is a sectional view taken along the line A-A, and FIG. 2 is an example of the configuration of a nozzle suction device according to the present invention. FIG. 3A is a plan view illustrating the operation of the head capping device of the present invention shown in FIGS. 1A and B, respectively, and FIG. 3B is taken along B-B in FIG. line cross section,
4 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of FIG. 2, and FIGS. 5 and 6 are diagrams showing modifications of the present invention. a ... capping device, b ... suction device, c
...Discharged ink reservoir, 1...Recording head, 1A...
...recessed part, 2...carriage, 2A...chamfered part,
3... Nozzle, 4... Cap slide, 5...
Manual lever, 6... Ink absorber, 6A... Passage, 7... Deep hole, 8... Recess, 9... Elastic cap, 9A... Hole, 10... Shaft hole, 11... Shaft, 1
2... Cap fixing plate, 13, 15... Snap spring, 14... Boss, 16... Compression spring, 17
... Lock member, 20 ... Suction pump body, 20
A...Opening, 21...Pedestal, 22...Suction chamber, 2
3...Sealing groove, 24, 31...O ring, 25...
...Shaft, 26... Piston, 27... Large diameter part, 28
...Small diameter part, 29...Passage, 30...Valve, 32...
... recess, 33 ... compression spring, 34 ... communication hole, 3
5...Suction pipe, 36...Vacancy, 37...Hole, 38
...Tube, 39...Tank, 40...Absorber, 41...Tube mouth, 42...Space, 43
...opening, 44...discharge ink, 45...absorbing ink portion.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. An ink absorber is provided inside, and a capping means for covering an ejection port for ejecting ink of an ink jet head; and a capping means connected to the capping means, and the ejection port is covered by the capping means. a suction means for suctioning ink from the ejection port through the capping means in a covered state; and a discharged ink absorber provided in communication with the suction means and for storing ink sucked from the ejection port. An inkjet recording device comprising: a discharged ink storage section provided with a body and opened to the atmosphere. 2. The inkjet recording device according to claim 1, wherein the discharged ink storage section is provided within the main body of the suction means.