JPH08224935A - Recording device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Abstract] [Purpose] To provide a recording apparatus that can be further miniaturized and has improved portability. The recording head 1 is slidably supported by a guide shaft 3 and a guide rail 4, and is mounted on a carriage 2 whose surface with respect to the moving direction is inclined with respect to the main scanning direction of a recording medium. The movement is performed by fixing a part of the timing belt 7 wound around the pulley 6 on the carriage 2 by the carriage motor 5 held by the chassis 50 and changing the rotation direction of the carriage motor 5. The guide shaft 3 and the guide rail 4 are held by the chassis 50.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to the arrangement of internal mechanisms of recording devices.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A recording device such as a printer, a copying machine or a facsimile machine drives an energy generator of a recording head on the basis of image information transferred, so that a dot pattern is formed on a recording sheet such as paper or a plastic thin plate. It is configured to record the image.

These recording devices can be classified into an ink jet system, a wire dot system, a thermal system, a laser beam system, etc. depending on the recording system, and have a recording means over the entire recording width depending on the structure of the recording mechanism. There are two types: full-multi type, which moves the paper in the sub-scanning direction for recording, and serial type, which performs the main scanning and moves the paper in the sub-scanning direction to perform recording. it can. Among them, the serial type recording apparatus is currently widespread because it does not require a wide recording means and is inexpensive.

The structure of the recording apparatus is usually a printer unit which is a mechanical part, and a recording unit which converts an input print signal into a signal corresponding to a recording head and drives a main scanning motor and a sub scanning motor. It consists of a main electric board for controlling the process, a control panel for the operator to operate the keys, and an exterior for covering them.

In recent years, personal computers have been reduced in size and weight with an emphasis on portability. Along with this, a portable recording device has been devised, which is being made smaller and lighter in the recording device.

FIG. 15 is a perspective view showing an example of the configuration of a conventional recording apparatus that emphasizes portability as described above.

In a conventional recording apparatus as shown in FIG. 15, a power switch 511 for supplying power to a main electric board (not shown) of the recording apparatus and a control panel for an operator (not shown) to perform a key operation. 512, a sheet insertion port 517 for inserting a sheet (not shown), a sub-scanning or roller 515 for conveying the sheet, a recording head 519 for recording, a carriage 520 for mounting the recording head 519 and for main scanning, It is mainly composed of a paper cover 514 and an upper cover 518 that cover them.

[0008]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional recording apparatus, no mechanical parts are arranged in the space near the scanning range of the carriage, and the shape of the carriage is a substantially rectangular parallelepiped, so that it is efficient. The parts were not placed properly. Therefore, there is a problem that the recording apparatus becomes large in size, which is contrary to the purpose of improving portability.

The present invention has been made in view of the problems of the above-described conventional technique, and an object of the present invention is to provide a recording apparatus which can be further miniaturized and which is improved in portability. .

[0010]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides a conveying roller for conveying a recording medium to a recording start position, a driving means for rotating the conveying roller, and a recording signal according to a recording signal. In a recording apparatus including a recording head for ejecting ink from a plurality of dot forming means rows, and a carriage that carries the recording head and reciprocates in the sub-scanning direction of the recording medium, the carriage is The surface with respect to the moving direction has an inclination with respect to the main scanning direction of the recording medium, and the driving means includes a recording device inner wall surface facing the inclined surface of the carriage and a scannable range of the carriage. It is characterized by being provided in a space formed between them.

Further, the recording head is characterized in that the respective dot forming means rows are arranged with an inclination with respect to the main direction of the recording medium.

Further, the drive means is arranged so that the drive is transmitted from a wide side to a narrow side of a space formed between the inner wall surface of the recording device facing the inclined surface of the carriage and the scannable range of the carriage. It is characterized by being installed.

Further, the recording head of the ink jet recording apparatus is characterized by being provided with an electrothermal converter for generating thermal energy as an energy generating element for giving the energy for ejection to the ink.

Further, the recording head of the ink jet recording apparatus is characterized in that the ink is ejected from the ejection port by utilizing the film boiling generated in the ink by the thermal energy applied by the electrothermal converter.

[0015]

According to the present invention constructed as described above, the surface of the carriage with respect to the moving direction is inclined with respect to the main scanning direction of the recording medium, and the driving means is opposed to the inclined surface of the carriage. Since the drive is transmitted from the wide side to the narrow side of the space formed between the carriage and the scannable range of the carriage, the space shape is suitable for the parts to be disposed, and there is no waste of parts. There is no space.

Further, since each dot forming means array of the recording head is arranged so as to be inclined with respect to the main direction of the recording medium, the number of nozzles driven at the same time is reduced, and the ink ejected at one time is reduced. The quantity is small.

[0017]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of an ink jet recording apparatus according to this embodiment, and FIGS. 2 and 3 are schematic sectional views of the ink jet recording apparatus according to this embodiment.

First, the structure and operation of the carriage portion in this embodiment will be described.

In this embodiment, the recording head 1 is mounted on a carriage 2 slidably supported by a guide shaft 3 and a guide rail 4, and the carriage 2 is moved by a pulley 6 by a carriage motor 5 held by a chassis 50. It is performed by fixing a part of the timing belt 7 wound around the carriage 2 to the carriage 2 and changing the rotation direction of the carriage motor 5. The guide shaft 3 and the guide rail 4 are held by the chassis 50.

The recording head 1 is an ink jet head element (not shown) having a function of ejecting ink, and an ink tank 1 for supplying ink to the head element.
c is integrated, a recording head capable of color printing and a recording head dedicated to black printing are prepared, and can be attached to and detached from the carriage 2 according to the user's preference. When consumed, only the ink tank 1c can be attached to and detached from the recording head 1. In addition, ink is ejected onto the recording paper 8 from a plurality of ejection ports arranged in a row, based on a signal from a control circuit (not shown).

The recording head 1 is mounted on the carriage 2 as described above, and records an ink image on the recording sheet 8 conveyed by the conveying roller 52.

An inkjet recording method is preferably used as a recording method in this apparatus. The ink jet recording system is provided with a liquid ejection port for ejecting and ejecting a recording ink liquid as flying droplets, a liquid channel communicating with the ejection port, and a part of this liquid channel. And a discharge energy generating means for supplying discharge energy for forming flying droplets in the liquid. Then, the ejection energy generating means is driven according to the image signal to eject ink droplets to form an image.

As the discharge energy generating means, for example, a method of using pressure energy generating means such as an electromechanical converter such as a piezo element, or electromagnetic energy for irradiating and absorbing electromagnetic waves such as laser into ink liquid to generate flying droplets is used. There are a method using a generating means, a method using a thermal energy generating means such as an electrothermal converter, and the like. Among them, the method of using the heat energy generating means such as the electrothermal converter is preferable because the ejection ports can be arranged at a high density and the recording head can be made compact.

In this embodiment, a bubble jet recording method which is one of the ink jet recording methods is used as the recording means.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory view of the constitution of the recording means (recording head) 1 of the ink jet recording apparatus in this embodiment, and FIG. 9 is an explanatory view of the bubble jet recording principle in this embodiment.

In the recording head shown in FIG. 8, on the heater board 232, an electrothermal converter (ejection heater) 233 and an electrode 234 such as aluminum for supplying electric power to the electrothermal converter 233 are formed on a silicon substrate. It is set up. The heater board 232 is configured by bonding a top plate 236 having a partition wall for partitioning the liquid passage 35 of the recording liquid.

Ink supplied from an ink cartridge (not shown) through a conduit (not shown) is supplied from a supply port 238 provided in the top plate 236 to the common liquid chamber 2 in the recording head 1.
39, each liquid passage 235 from the common liquid chamber 239.
Be guided inside. Ink ejection ports 2 are provided in these liquid paths 235.
40 is formed, and the ejection ports 240 are formed at a predetermined pitch in the recording paper conveyance direction with respect to the recording paper 8 (see FIG. 1) of the recording head 1.

Here, the principle of ink ejection in the bubble jet recording method will be described with reference to FIGS. 9 (a) to 9 (g).

In the steady state, as shown in FIG. 9A, the surface tension and the external pressure of the ink 241 filled in the liquid passage 235 are balanced at the ejection port. Ink 241 in this state
In order to fly, the electrothermal converter 2 in the liquid path 235
33 is energized to cause a rapid temperature rise in the ink 241 in the liquid passage 235 over nucleate boiling. Then, FIG. 9
As shown in (b), the ink 241 adjacent to the electrothermal converter 233 is heated to generate minute bubbles (bubbles), the ink in the heated portion is vaporized to cause film boiling, and FIG.
Bubbles 242 grow rapidly as shown in FIG.

When the bubble 242 grows to the maximum as shown in FIG. 9D, the ink droplet is pushed out from the ejection port in the liquid passage 235, and the ink droplet is ejected onto the recording paper 8 (see FIG. 1) at the speed. The ink image is recorded by flying. Electrothermal converter 2
When the power supply to 33 is completed, as shown in FIG.
The grown air bubbles 242 are cooled and contracted by the ink 241 in the liquid path 235, and further, as shown in FIG. 9F, the ink contacts the surface of the electrothermal converter 233 and is rapidly cooled,
The bubble 242 disappears or shrinks to an almost negligible volume. When the bubble 242 contracts, as shown in FIG.
As shown in (g), ink is supplied from the common liquid chamber 239 into the liquid passage 235 by a capillary phenomenon, and the ink is prepared for the next energization. Therefore, an ink image is recorded on the recording paper 8 (see FIG. 1) by synchronizing with the movement of the carriage 2 (see FIG. 1) and energizing the electrothermal converter 233 according to both signals.

Here, as described above, the ejection openings, which are the row of dot forming means, are formed at a predetermined pitch with respect to the recording paper conveyance direction, but the angle A with respect to the conveyance perpendicular direction (see FIG. 10). )have.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of a head nozzle angle in ink jet recording, FIG. 11 is a driving explanatory diagram when there is no head nozzle angle in ink jet recording, and FIG. 12 is a diagram when a head nozzle angle is present in ink jet recording. It is a drive explanatory view.

In FIGS. 11 and 12, the left side shows the dot arrangement of the print result, and the right side shows ON / OFF of the heater of each nozzle of the recording head and elapsed time.

For example, in the case of printing vertical ruled lines, if the nozzles of the recording head have no angles, all the nozzles are turned on at the same time as shown in FIG. 11, but if there are angles, the heaters are sequentially heated according to the movement of the carriage. Is turned on, the number of nozzles driven at the same time is reduced, and the instantaneous power consumption is reduced and the instantaneous ink supply is reduced, and the cross-sectional area of the supply channel can be reduced, which contributes to downsizing of the apparatus.

Next, the structure and operation of the paper feeding unit in this embodiment will be described.

In FIGS. 1 to 3, the recording paper 8 is the pressure plate 5.
The release lever 51A, which is integrally formed with the right end portion of No. 1, is stacked on the upper surface of the pressure plate 51 with its right end aligned with the left side wall. The pressure plate 51 is rotatable about the shaft portion 51B with respect to the chassis 50 and is biased by a pressure plate spring 67 so that pressure is applied to the pickup rubber 54. The pressure plate 5
In the initial state, 1 is the cam portion 53 of the feeding roller shaft 53.
Since it is pushed down by A, there is a gap between the pressure plate 51 and the pickup rubber 54, and the recording paper 8 can be set.

Here, the leading end of the set recording paper 8 is held by hitting the lower part of the elastic body 55 whose lower part is fixed to the base 15. Therefore, the paper feed stack part is the base 15
And the lower part is formed by the elastic body 55 fixed to the base.

When a paper feed motor (not shown) is rotated by a feeding command from a controller (not shown), the rotation is transmitted by a gear train (not shown), and the pickup rubber 5
4 rotates in the direction of arrow A, the cam portion 53A comes off, the pressure plate 51 is pulled up by the pressure plate spring 67, and the recording paper 8 loaded on the pressure plate 51 is pressed against the pickup rubber 54 provided on the feeding roller shaft 53. It The feeding roller shaft 53
A pickup rubber 54 having a large friction coefficient is fitted on the pressure plate 51 such that the outer diameter thereof is larger than the maximum outer diameter of the feeding roller shaft 53. A separation pad 56, which is a friction member for preventing slippage of the No. 8, is fixed.

Therefore, when the paper feed roller shaft 53 is further rotated, the recording paper 8 pushed forward by the frictional force of the pickup rubber 54 is fixed to the base 15 by the elastic body 5 whose lower portion is fixed.
5 is bent, and the resistance force of the elastic body 55 causes the uppermost recording paper 8 to be separated and fed one by one. Therefore, the elastic body 55 serves as a separating means and is held by the base 15.

Next, the structure and operation of the carrying section in this embodiment will be described.

In FIG. 1 to FIG. 3, the separated and fed recording paper 8 is held below the carriage 2 while being sandwiched by a conveyance roller 52 whose both ends are supported by a chassis 50 and a pinch roller 57 provided on the base 15. , Base 1
5 is conveyed above. This is generally called a platen portion, and is provided with ribs that guide the recording paper, ribs that support the recording paper from below when it is bent, and the like. The recording paper 8 is rotated in the opposite direction to the paper discharge direction before being conveyed below the carriage 2, and the conveyance roller 52 and the pinch roller 5 are rotated.
After being abutted against 7 and aligned at the front end, the transport roller 52 rotates in the forward direction and is transported below the carriage 2.

In this state, by driving the carriage motor 5, the carriage 2 is scanned in a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction of the recording paper 8, and ink is ejected from the recording head 1 on the carriage 2 in response to a recording command. As a result, the printing operation on the recording paper 8 is executed.

The pinch roller 57 will be described here with reference to FIG.

The pinch roller 57 is rotatably held by a pinch roller holder 58, and the pinch roller holder 58 is rotatable with respect to the base 15 about a shaft portion 58A. The pinch roller spring 59 is interposed between the base 15 and the pinch roller holder 58 and presses the pinch roller 57 against the transport roller 52.

Next, the structure and operation of the paper discharge unit in this embodiment will be described.

1 to 3, the recording paper 8 printed below the carriage 2 (below the recording head 1) is further fed by the conveying roller 52 and the pinch roller 57, and reaches the paper discharge roller 60 and the spur 61. Here, the paper discharge roller 60 is formed integrally with the paper discharge roller shaft 60A and has an elastic force. The discharge roller shaft 60A is supported by the base 15, and the discharge roller spring 62 causes the spur 61 to move.
The discharge roller 60 provided so as to be opposed to is pressed against the spur 61. The spur 61 is rotatably held by a spur holder 63, and the spur holder 63 is fixed to the guide rail 4 fixed to the chassis 50. The discharge roller spring 62 is set to have a low load. This is so that the paper discharge roller side (paper discharge roller shaft 60A) can move up and down according to the paper thickness even if the paper thickness varies depending on the paper type.

Further, the urging force of the paper discharge roller spring 62 is determined so as to move up and down according to the behavior of the recording paper 8 even when the recording paper 8 is wavy (cockling) due to printing.

Therefore, the pinch roller 57 and the paper discharge roller 60 are biased by the pinch roller spring 59 and the paper discharge roller spring 62, respectively, to the conveyance roller 52 and the spur 61 which are fixed to the chassis 50, and ,
Since the pinch roller 57 and the paper discharge roller 60 move up and down in accordance with the paper thickness and the behavior of the recording paper 8, the distance between the recording head 1 and the recording paper 8 becomes constant, and the paper interval adjusting lever and the like which are conventionally required are unnecessary. Becomes

The spur 61 is driven to rotate with respect to the paper feed roller 60 and can eject the recording paper. Further, the paper discharge roller 60 has two stages so as to prevent rubbing recording paper such as postcards and envelopes or curled recording paper from being rubbed by the recording head 1 when the paper is conveyed and discharged. .

Next, the drive transmission of the discharge roller 60 will be described. The drive transmission unit of the paper discharge roller 60 is held by the base at the left end of the base 15 that is away from the paper path. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the drive is transmitted from the paper discharge idle roller 65, which is pressed against the conveying roller 52 by the idle roller spring 64, to the paper discharge roller 60 via the idle gear train 66. Here, when the transport roller 52 rotates in the feeding direction (direction of arrow A), the drive of the sheet discharge idle roller 65 is transmitted to the idle gear train 66, and the sheet discharge roller 60 rotates. When the transport roller 52 rotates in the reverse direction (arrow B direction), the paper discharge idle roller 65 moves in a direction away from the idle gear train 66 (direction C), and drive transmission with the idle gear train 66 is not performed. As described above, the paper ejection roller 60 and the paper ejection drive transmission unit are also held by the base 15.

Next, the structure and operation of the pump mechanism portion in this embodiment will be described.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view of the pump mechanism portion of the ink jet recording apparatus in this embodiment.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of the pump mechanism portion of the ink jet recording apparatus in this embodiment, (a).
Is a side view, and (b) is a top view.

4 and 5, the cap member 9 made of an elastic material capable of sealing the recording head 1 is made of chlorinated butyl rubber or another appropriate material having elasticity. The cap member 9 is integrally held by the cap holder 10. The cap holder 10 is rotatably held by the arm portion 11A extending integrally from the cylinder 11. The cylinder 11 has a piston (not shown) inside, and by driving the piston shaft 13, negative pressure is generated in the cylinder 11.

Further, the cap 9 is provided with a joint portion 9A integrally formed with the cap 9, and the joint portion 9A is press-fitted into the joint portion 11B provided in the cylinder 11 with a tightening margin, so that the cylinder 11
And the cap 9 are joined in a sealed state.

Next, a method for pressing and releasing the cap 9 from the recording head 1 will be described.

As described above, the cap 9 integrally held by the cap holder 10 is hermetically joined to the cylinder 11, and the cap holder 10 is rotatable relative to the cylinder 11 on the cylinder arm 11A. Held in.

Here, as shown in FIG. 5, a cap spring 14 is installed below the cap holder 10 between the base 15 and the cap holder 10, and the cap holder 10 is always urged toward the recording head. There is. Here, the cylinder 11 is rotatably supported by the base 15 on the cylinder axis. Therefore, the cylinder 11 and the cap 9 are given a rotational force about the cylinder axis by the cap spring 14. Further, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, the cylinder 11 is integrally formed with a cylinder controller 11C, and the tip of the cylinder controller 11C is a cam portion 16A of a pump cam gear 16 rotatably held by a base 15. Is in contact with. Therefore, the rotation of the cylinder 11 is controlled by the pump cam gear 16 through the cylinder controller 11C.
Will be controlled by the cam portion 16A. That is, the cylinder control unit 11C moves up and down along the cam portion 16A of the pump cam gear 16 to move the cylinder 1
The cap 9 enables the recording head 1 to perform capping and capping release via the recording head 1.

The pump cam gear 16 and the drive transmission portion held by the base 15 are provided at the right end of the base 15 avoiding the paper path. Pump cam gear 16
Is selectively connectable to the LF gear 17 press-fitted to the transport roller 52, and the driving force of a paper feed motor (not shown) is transmitted to the LF gear 17 via a gear train (not shown).
After that, when the clutch operation is performed by the movement of the carriage 2, the driving force transmitted to the LF gear is transmitted to the pump cam gear 16.

FIG. 13 is an explanatory view of the gear arrangement of the recovery section of the ink jet recording apparatus in this embodiment, and FIG.
FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of a clutch mechanism.

The clutch operation will be described with reference to FIGS. 13 and 14.

An LF gear 17 having a press-fitted shaft mounted on the conveying roller 52 and a slide gear 132 concentrically and slidably provided on the conveying roller 52 are provided so as to be separated from and in contact with the LF gear 17. There is.

Between the LF gear 17 and the slide gear 132, there is a pressing member composed of a coil-shaped slide spring 141 arranged so as to be concentric with the transport roller shaft, and there is always a direction in which the slide gear 132 and the LF gear are separated from each other. I am biased.

On the surfaces of the slide gear 132 and the LF gear facing each other, a rotation transmitting portion, that is, a friction plate or a plurality of teeth capable of meshing with each other are arranged at equal intervals on the circumference.

The slide gear 1 of the pump cam gear 16
The angular range in the vicinity of facing 32 is thickly formed, and a part of the tooth carved on the outer periphery in this angular range extends to the one end from the vicinity of the width direction and has a notch of a predetermined length extending in the radial direction. Parts.

In FIG. 14, the slide gear 132 is provided concentrically and slidably on the conveying roller shaft, and is separated from the LF gear 17 by the urging force of the slide spring 141, so that it receives the driving force. However, it is pushed by the carriage 2 and meshes with the pump gear. However, since the portion of the pump cam gear 16 that meshes with the LF gear 17 is missing (missing teeth), it does not receive the driving force of the LF gear 17. Carriage 2 is more LF gear 17
When moved in the direction, the slide gear 132 further moves toward the LF gear 17 side due to the biasing force of the slide spring,
The slide gear 132 and the LF gear 17 come into contact with each other. On the mutual contact surfaces (opposite axes of each other), the tooth portions 13 that mesh with each other
2a and 17a are provided, whereby the slide gear 132 rotates as the LF gear 17 rotates. Even if the slide gear 132 moves toward the LF gear 17, the meshing between the slide gear 132 and the pump cam gear 16 is not released, so that the rotation of the slide gear 132 causes the pump cam gear 16 to rotate.

The pump cam gear 16 is engaged with the cylinder cap gear 18, and the boss 18A (see FIG. 4) provided on the inner wall of the cylinder cap gear 18 is further attached to the piston shaft 13 (see FIG. 4). By fitting in the groove (not shown), the rotational movement of the pump cam gear 16 can be converted into the linear movement of the piston shaft 13 (see FIG. 4).

As described in the carriage section, the nozzles of the recording head 1 (see FIG. 1) have an angle A.
Since the outer wall of the apparatus is substantially parallel to the recording medium conveyance direction, the carriage also has an angle with respect to the outer wall of the apparatus. That is, when the carriage 2 moves to the right end in FIG. 13, there is a gap having an angle with the outer wall of the apparatus,
The upper part of the figure is wider and the lower part is narrow.

The gear train transmitted from the LF motor to the cylinder in accordance with this gap becomes thinner as it goes downward in the figure. That is, the virtual line of the gear thickness and the nozzle angle A are substantially parallel.

As described above, in the pump mechanism section, the cap 9 can be pressed against the recording head 1 by being held by the base 15 and by interposing the cap spring 14 between the base 15 and the cap holder 10. Becomes Therefore, when the recording head is capped at the time of non-recording to prevent the nozzle from drying, and when a discharge failure occurs due to bubbles generated in the nozzle or dust adhering to the nozzle section, the pump section is activated during the capping operation,
By sucking ink from the nozzle portion of the recording head 1,
The discharge can be normalized.

Next, the waste ink absorber will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 4.

The waste ink sucked from the recording head 1 through the cap 9 by the above-mentioned pump mechanism portion enters the cylinder 11, and is discharged from the cylinder end portion 11D by the movement of the piston (not shown). Cylinder end 11D
Is inserted into the base 15 and is rotatably held by the base 15.

Since the other end of the cylinder 11 is rotatably held by the base 15 via the cylinder cap gear 18 as described above, the entire pump mechanism portion is rotatably held by the base 15. .

Cylinder end 11D from which waste ink is discharged
A cylinder absorber 19 is inserted in the cylinder absorber 19. The cylinder absorber 19 is formed of foam sponge, and a material having a good ink transfer property is selected. This is because the waste ink in the cylinder 11 is required to be efficiently discharged to the outside.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the cylinder absorber 19 is sandwiched between the waste ink absorbers 20 to 22 inside the base 15 and is in a pressure contact state. Therefore, the waste ink in the cylinder is transferred from the cylinder absorber 19 to the waste ink absorber 20.
~ 23.

Here, the waste ink absorbers 20 to 23 are selected from materials having a high ink holding ability. For example, it is a laminated sheet of paper or an absorber containing a polymer absorber. The waste ink absorbers 20 to 23 are held inside the base as shown in FIG. 2, but the base 15 has a pinch roller 57 and a paper discharge roller 60, and the cross section thereof is not uniform.

Further, the waste ink absorbers 20 to 23 are made by a punching mold in which pulp material is brought in more than the cost and absorbing performance. Therefore, a plurality of waste ink absorbers are housed in the base 15 in order to efficiently arrange the waste ink in the base and secure a large waste ink capacity.

In this embodiment, the waste ink absorber is 4
It is a sheet-fed mechanism (20, 21, 22, 23), and a cylinder absorber 19 is arranged in pressure contact with it between the absorber 20, the absorber 21, and the absorber 22.

As described above, since the cylinder absorber 19 is fixed by being sandwiched between the waste ink absorbers 20 to 23, the cylinder absorber 19 is prevented from coming off from the cylinder 11, and the waste ink leakage is prevented. I'm out.

Further, since the cylinder absorber 19 is sandwiched between the waste ink absorbers 20 to 22, the cylinder absorber 19 is
And the waste ink absorbers 20 to 22 have a large contact area, and the advantage is that the propagating property of the waste ink is improved.

Next, a method for holding the waste ink absorber will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 6.

As described above, the waste ink absorber is composed of four sheets and is housed in the base 15. However, if it is handled as a base unit, it will fall off from the base 15 as it is. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 2, after the waste ink absorber is housed in the base 15, the waste ink seal 2
It is configured to cover with 4. Waste ink sticker 24
Is made of a transparent polyethylene sheet so that the waste ink absorber accommodated inside the base can be seen when viewed from the back side of the base 15.

FIG. 6 is a schematic bottom view of the ink jet recording apparatus in this embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 6, the length at the end of the waste ink absorber is changed stepwise, so that the absorber 20, the absorber 21, the absorber 2 when viewed from the waste ink seal side.
2. The absorber 23 and the cylinder absorber 19 are configured so that they can be visually checked. The absorber 20 has holes 20.
There is A, and the cylinder absorber 19 inside can be confirmed.

As described above, by making the waste ink seal 24 transparent, all the absorbers can be seen from the outside in the unit state. Therefore, the absorbers are properly incorporated, or there is no shortage of the absorbers. You will be able to confirm.

Next, the structure of the printer unit of the ink jet recording apparatus in this embodiment will be described.

FIG. 7 is a unit explanatory view of the ink jet recording apparatus in this embodiment. As mentioned above,
The base 15 holds a pump mechanism portion, a pinch roller portion, a sheet discharge portion, a waste ink absorber, and further holds a paper feed stack portion, a separating means, and a drive transmission portion, and serves as a base unit as a whole.

The chassis unit is composed of a transport roller 52 fixed to the chassis 50, a carriage guide shaft 3, a paper feed roller 53, a carriage 2, and a guide rail 4 holding a spur 61.
As the printer unit, the base unit and the chassis unit are combined together. Here, the boss 15A provided on the base 15 is aligned with the fitting groove 50A provided on the chassis 50, and the chassis unit is rotated about the boss 15A as a center of rotation, whereby the claw portion provided on the base 15 is provided. 15B is fitted in the hole 50B of the chassis, and the base unit and the chassis unit are combined to form a printer unit as shown in FIG.

At this time, as described above, the pinch roller 57 held on the side of the base unit is spring-biased by the transport roller 52, and the paper discharge idle roller 65 is also spring-biased by the transport roller 52, so that the discharge roller 52 is discharged. Paper roller 60 is spur 6
1, the cap 9 is spring-biased by the recording head 1 (see FIG. 1) mounted on the carriage 2.

Therefore, since all the contact portions of the base unit with respect to the chassis unit are spring-biased, it is possible to improve the positional accuracy and the assemblability of the units when the units are connected. In the above embodiment, the present invention has been described using the printer in which the inkjet recording head is mounted on the carriage.
This carriage has a scanner unit that can be mounted on the carriage so as to be compatible with the ink jet recording head by providing the same outer shape as the ink jet recording head, and image information that can be read from the original sheet supported by the platen. The configuration described in the present invention can be preferably used even in a processing device. The present invention is particularly applicable to an inkjet type recording head and a recording device that perform recording by forming flying droplets by utilizing thermal energy among inkjet recording types.
It has an excellent effect.

Regarding its typical structure and principle, see, for example, US Pat. Nos. 4,723,129 and 4740.
What is done using the basic principles disclosed in 796 is preferred. This method can be applied to both the so-called on-demand type and continuous type, but especially in the case of the on-demand type, liquid (ink)
By applying at least one drive signal to the electrothermal converter arranged corresponding to the sheet or liquid path in which is stored, which corresponds to the recorded information and causes a rapid temperature rise exceeding nucleate boiling. , It is effective because it generates heat energy in the electrothermal converter and causes film boiling on the heat-acting surface of the recording head, resulting in the formation of bubbles in the liquid (ink) corresponding to this drive signal on a one-to-one basis. Is. The liquid (ink) is ejected through the ejection openings by the growth and contraction of the bubbles to form at least one droplet. It is more preferable to make the driving signal into a pulse shape because bubbles can be grown and contracted immediately and appropriately, and thus a liquid (ink) with excellent responsiveness can be ejected.

As the pulse-shaped drive signal, those described in US Pat. Nos. 4,463,359 and 4,345,262 are suitable. If the conditions described in US Pat. No. 4,313,124 of the invention relating to the rate of temperature rise of the heat acting surface are adopted, more excellent recording can be performed.

As the constitution of the recording head, in addition to the combination constitution of the ejection port, the liquid passage, and the electrothermal converter (the linear liquid passage or the right-angled liquid passage) as disclosed in the above-mentioned specifications, The present invention also includes configurations using US Pat. No. 4,558,333 and US Pat. No. 4,459,600, which disclose a configuration in which a heat acting portion is arranged in a bending region.

In addition, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 59-123670 discloses a structure in which a common slit is used as a discharge portion of an electrothermal converter for a plurality of electrothermal converters, and a pressure wave of thermal energy is absorbed. The present invention is also effective as a configuration based on Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 59-138461, which discloses a configuration in which an opening corresponds to a discharge portion.

Further, as a full line type recording head having a length corresponding to the width of the maximum recording medium that can be recorded by the recording apparatus, the length can be increased by combining a plurality of recording heads as disclosed in the above specification. The present invention can exert the above-mentioned effects more effectively, although it may have a configuration that satisfies the above requirement or a configuration as one recording head integrally formed.

In addition, by being attached to the apparatus main body, it can be electrically connected to the apparatus main body and can be supplied with ink from the apparatus main body by a replaceable chip type recording head or the recording head itself. The present invention is also effective when a cartridge-type recording head provided with an ink tank is used.

Further, it is preferable to add recovery means for the recording head, preliminary auxiliary means, etc., which are provided as a configuration of the recording apparatus of the present invention, because the effects of the present invention can be further stabilized. If you list these specifically,
Capping means, cleaning means, pressurizing or sucking means for the recording head, preheating means using an electrothermal converter or another heating element or a combination thereof, and a preliminary ejection mode for performing ejection other than recording It is also effective to perform stable recording.

Further, the recording mode of the recording apparatus is not limited to the recording mode of only the mainstream color such as black, but the recording head may be integrally formed or a plurality of combinations may be used. The present invention is also extremely effective for a device provided with at least one of full colors by color mixing.

In the embodiment of the present invention described above,
Although the ink is described as a liquid, it is an ink that solidifies at room temperature or lower and softens at room temperature, or is a liquid, or the ink itself is 30 ° C. or higher and 70 ° C. or lower in the above-mentioned inkjet method. Since the temperature is generally adjusted within the range to control the temperature of the ink so that the viscosity of the ink is within the stable ejection range, it is sufficient that the ink is in a liquid state when the use recording signal is applied.

In addition, the temperature rise due to thermal energy is positively prevented by being used as energy for changing the state of the ink from the solid state to the liquid state, or the ink is solidified in a standing state for the purpose of preventing evaporation of the ink. In some cases, such as ink that is liquefied by applying heat energy according to a recording signal and ejected as a liquid ink, or one that has already started to solidify when it reaches a recording medium. The use of an ink having a property of being liquefied only by heat energy is also applicable to the present invention. In such a case, the ink is disclosed in JP-A-54-5684.
No. 7 or JP-A-60-71260, a mode in which the porous sheet is opposed to the electrothermal converter in the state of being held as a liquid or solid in the recess or through hole of the porous sheet. Also good. In the present invention, the most effective one for each of the above-mentioned inks is to execute the above-mentioned film boiling method.

In addition, as a form of the recording apparatus according to the present invention, in addition to a recording apparatus provided integrally or separately as an image output terminal of information processing equipment such as a word processor or a computer, a copying apparatus combined with a reader, and It may take the form of a facsimile machine having a transmission / reception function.

[0103]

Since the present invention is configured as described above, it has the following effects.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, the surface of the carriage in the moving direction is inclined with respect to the main direction of the recording medium, and the driving means is opposed to the inclined surface of the carriage. Since the structure is provided in the space formed between the wall surface and the scannable range of the carriage, the space shape becomes suitable for the parts to be arranged, and there is no wasted space where no parts exist. As a result, further miniaturization is possible, portability is improved, and product distribution is made more efficient.

According to the second aspect of the invention, since the dot forming means array of the recording head is arranged so as to be inclined with respect to the main direction of the recording medium, the number of nozzles to be driven at the same time is reduced and the power consumption is reduced. In addition, the amount of ink ejected at one time can be reduced, the cross-sectional area of the ink supply path can be reduced, and the device can be downsized.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, the drive means is provided with an inner wall surface of the recording device facing the slope of the carriage.
Since the drive is arranged to be transmitted from the wide side to the narrow side of the space formed between the carriage and the scannable range, the same effect as that of the first aspect can be obtained.

According to the fourth aspect of the invention, since the recording head is provided with the electrothermal converter for generating thermal energy for ejecting ink, it is possible to eject ink with excellent responsiveness.

According to the fifth aspect of the invention, the recording head has a function of ejecting the ink from the ejection port by utilizing the film boiling generated in the ink by the thermal energy applied by the electrothermal converter. The same operation as in item 4 is performed.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of an inkjet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an inkjet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an inkjet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a pump mechanism portion of the inkjet recording apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

5A and 5B are enlarged views of a pump mechanism portion of an inkjet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 5A is a side view and FIG. 5B is a top view.

FIG. 6 is a schematic bottom view of an inkjet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of a unit of an inkjet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a configuration explanatory diagram of a recording unit of the inkjet recording apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram of a bubble jet recording principle in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of a head nozzle angle in inkjet recording.

FIG. 11 is a drive explanatory diagram when there is no head nozzle angle in inkjet recording.

FIG. 12 is a drive explanatory diagram when there is a head nozzle angle in inkjet recording.

FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram of a gear arrangement of a recovery unit of the inkjet recording apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram of a clutch mechanism of the inkjet recording apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a perspective view showing a configuration example of a conventional recording apparatus that places importance on portability.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Recording Head 1c Ink Tank 2 Carriage 3 Guide Shaft 4 Guide Rail 5 Carriage Motor 6 Pulley 7 Timing Belt 8 Recording Paper 9 Cap 9A Joint Part 10 Cap Holder 11 Cylinder 11A Cylinder Arm Part 11B Cylinder Joint Part 11C Cylinder Control Part 11D Cylinder End Part (ink waste part) 13 Piston shaft 14 Cap spring 15 Base 15A Boss 15B Claw part 16 Pump cam gear 16A Cam 17 LF gear 17a Teeth part 18 Cylinder cap gear 18A Boss 19 Cylinder absorber 20, 21, 22, 23 Waste ink Absorber 20A Hole 24 Waste ink seal 50 Chassis 50A Fitting groove 50B Hole 51 Pressure plate 51A Release lever 51B Shaft part 52 Conveyor roller 53 Feed roller shaft 53A Cam part 54 Pickup Roller 55 Elastic Body 56 Separation Pad 57 Pinch Roller 58 Pinch Roller Holder 58A Shaft 59 Pinch Roller Spring 60 Paper Ejection Roller 60A Paper Ejection Roller Shaft 61 Spurs 62 Ejection Roller Spring 63 Spurs Holder 64 Idle Roller Spring 65 Ejection Idle Roller 66 idle gear train 67 pressure plate spring 90 nozzle part 132 slide gear 132a tooth part 141 slide spring 232 heater board 233 electrothermal converter 234 electrode 235 liquid path 236 top plate 238 supply port 239 common liquid chamber 240 ink discharge port 241 ink 242 bubble

Front page continuation (72) Inventor Hiroyuki Inoue 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Hitoshi Nakamura 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Takeshi Iwasaki 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Akira Kida 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (72) Invention Person Hideaki Kawakami 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc.

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A conveying roller for conveying a recording medium to a recording start position, a driving means for rotating the conveying roller, and a recording head for ejecting ink from a plurality of dot forming means rows according to a recording signal. A recording device having the carriage on which the recording head is mounted and which reciprocates in the sub-scanning direction of the recording medium, wherein the carriage has a surface with respect to the moving direction in the main scanning direction of the recording medium. The recording apparatus has an inclination with respect to the carriage, and the driving unit is provided in a space formed between an inner wall surface of the recording apparatus facing the inclined surface of the carriage and a scannable range of the carriage. 2. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recording head is arranged such that each of the dot forming means rows is inclined with respect to a main direction of the recording medium. Recording device. 3. The recording apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the driving unit includes a space formed between an inner wall surface of the recording apparatus facing an inclined surface of the carriage and a scannable range of the carriage. A recording apparatus, which is arranged so that a drive is transmitted from a wide side to a narrow side. 4. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recording head of the ink jet recording apparatus generates thermal energy as an energy generating element for giving energy for ejection to ink. A recording apparatus comprising an electrothermal converter for 5. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recording head of the inkjet recording apparatus causes film boiling that occurs in ink due to thermal energy applied by the electrothermal converter. A recording apparatus characterized in that ink is ejected from an ejection port by utilizing the ink.