JPH10272780A - Nozzle protection member for inkjet recording device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Problem] To provide a nozzle protection member of an ink jet recording apparatus which does not leave paste on a nozzle surface and does not adversely affect ejection. SOLUTION: The nozzle protector 1 is a substantially U-shaped member whose main body is made of hard plastic, and has a plate-shaped base 2 and a first arm 3 erected on one end of the base 2. And a second arm 4 erected on the other end of the base 2. A total of four caps 6 are attached to the inner surface of the base 2 at positions corresponding to the nozzle surfaces 23 of the respective injection nozzles 21. The cap 6 is made of rubber and includes a lid 6a and a rib 6b erected from the lid 6a.
Is formed in a rectangular ring shape so as to surround the outer periphery of the.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to a nozzle protection member for an ink jet recording apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In general, an ink jet printer is known as an ink jet recording apparatus for performing recording such as printing by ejecting ink onto a recording medium such as paper. In this inkjet printer, a recording head for ejecting ink is incorporated in a recording head unit, and the recording head unit is mounted on a carriage. Then, an ink cartridge containing ink is provided so as to be exchangeable with respect to the recording head unit, and the ink is supplied to the recording head from the exchanged ink cartridge.

[0003] In the ink jet printer having the above-described structure, at the time of shipment from a factory or at the time of storage, in order to smoothly introduce the ink at the start of use without generating bubbles in the ink, FIG. As shown,
A channel (not shown), which is an ink flow path inside the recording head P1, that is, inside the ejection nozzle P2, and the manifold P
3 is filled with a preservative solution having the same characteristics as the ink except for the dye and pigment of the ink.

[0004] Then, for the purpose of preventing the leakage of the preservative solution and protecting the nozzle surface P4 of the injection nozzle P2, the nozzle surface P
4, a peelable seal P5 is attached. An ink supply path sealing member P6 is attached to the mounting side of the ink cartridge.

[0005]

However, since the above-mentioned seal P5 is stuck on the nozzle face P4 by gluing, when the seal P5 is peeled off, the nozzle face P
In some cases, glue may remain on the injection holes (not shown) that are open to the nozzle 4, and as a result, the injection may be adversely affected. That is, if the paste adheres to the ejection holes, normal ejection cannot be performed, and a suitable recording operation may not be performed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a nozzle protection member for an ink jet recording apparatus which does not leave a residue on a nozzle surface and does not adversely affect ejection.

[0007]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ink jet recording method for protecting an ink ejection side of an ejection nozzle of a recording head which ejects ink onto a recording medium to perform recording. A nozzle protection member that is detachably attached so as to cover the ink ejection side before use of the recording apparatus, and includes a cap that hermetically covers an ink ejection hole provided on the ink ejection side while maintaining a predetermined space. A nozzle protection member for an ink jet recording apparatus.

In the present invention, since the ink jetting holes provided on the ink jetting side are not covered with a conventional seal but are covered with a predetermined space by a cap, the ink jetting hole is used when the seal is peeled off. No problem due to adhesion). That is, since the ejection side is sealed with the cap without using a seal, it is possible to perform suitable printing or the like without affecting the ejection.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the cap is made of an elastic rubber material. Therefore, as long as the ink ejection side is covered with the cap, the ink ejection side can be easily and sufficiently airtight, so that the leakage of the preservation liquid and the drying of the ink at the ink ejection holes of the preservation liquid can be prevented. Can be.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the cap has a plate-like lid and a rib standing upright from the lid and surrounding the periphery of the ink ejection hole. Since the lid keeps a predetermined space from the ink ejection hole by the ribs, the cap can keep the predetermined space and airtight without directly contacting the ink ejection hole.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the nozzle protection member is
A plurality of caps arranged according to the positions of the plurality of injection nozzles are provided on the surface of the hard plate-shaped member. Therefore, one nozzle protection member (for example, a nozzle protector) can cover the ink ejection side of a plurality of ejection nozzles at once.

[0012]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments (embodiments) of a nozzle protecting member of an ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The nozzle protection member of the present embodiment (hereinafter referred to as a nozzle protector) is shipped from a factory.
It is mounted on the recording head side of the recording head unit to protect the nozzle surface, but is removed when used.

A) First, a recording head unit to which the nozzle protector of this embodiment is attached will be described with reference to FIG. Recording head unit 17 shown in FIG.
Is mounted on a carriage (not shown) of the jet printer, and a recording head 18 for performing recording such as printing is provided at a front portion (right side in FIG. 1) of the recording head unit 17. I have.

The recording head unit 17 performs a recording operation by discharging ink droplets of a plurality of colors (four colors) of ink (cyan c, magenta m, yellow y, and black b) onto recording paper as a recording medium. The recording head 18 has a plurality (four) of ejection nozzles 21y and 21 for ejecting each color ink.
m, 21c and 21b (collectively referred to as 21).
A large number (for example, 64) of injection holes 24 are opened on the nozzle surface 23 of each injection nozzle 21.

When the ink jet printer is used, the rear part of the recording head unit 17 (left side in FIG. 1)
Next, the four cartridges 22y, 22m, 22c, 22b (22
) Are removably mounted.

B) Next, the nozzle protector of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 2, the nozzle protector 1 is a substantially U-shaped member whose main body is made of hard plastic, and has a plate-shaped base 2 and a second base provided at one end of the base 2. One arm 3,
A second arm 4 erected on the other end of the base 2.

On the inner surface of the base 2, each injection nozzle 2
A plurality of caps 6 (four in total) are attached to the positions corresponding to one nozzle surface 23, respectively. The cap 6 is made of an elastic material such as rubber (for example, butyl rubber) and, as shown in FIG. The rib 6b is formed in a square ring shape so as to surround the outer periphery of all the injection holes 24 of each nozzle surface 23.

As shown in FIG. 2, inside the distal end side of the first arm 3, a first protrusion engaging with a first concave portion 7 (see FIG. 1) provided on a side surface of the recording head unit 17 is provided. A part 8 is formed. The distal end side of the first arm 3 is bent outward to form a finger hook 9. On the other hand, also on the inner side on the distal end side of the second arm 4, similarly to the first convex portion 8, a second concave portion (not shown) provided on the other side surface of the recording head unit 17 is engaged. The projection 11 is formed.

C) Next, a state in which the nozzle protector 1 having the above-described structure is attached to the recording head unit 17 will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG.
The ejection nozzles 21 of each color provided on the recording head 18
This is an actuator formed by shaving a material that is a piezoelectric element, and has a large number of ink passages called channels 41 formed therein.

All of the channels 41 communicate with a manifold 42 on the ink inflow side (the right side in FIG. 4), and a filter 43 for removing dust and the like is provided on the ink inflow side of the manifold 42. Have been. Further, the cartridge 22 is provided on the outer edge of the filter 43.
Member 4 made of an elastic material such as rubber used for connection of
4 are provided.

At the time of shipment, the channel 41 and the manifold 42 are filled with a preservative liquid, and the ejection side is provided with the nozzle protector 1 and sealed with the cap 6 while the cartridge 22 is mounted. FIG.
Is sealed by a sealing member 40. At the time of shipment, the recording head unit 17 is not mounted on the carriage 8.

The cap 30 is provided with the injection hole 24 at the time of shipment.
The nozzle surface 23 is hermetically covered at predetermined intervals so that the preservation solution does not leak from the nozzle hole 23. I have. FIGS. 5 and 6 show a state in which the nozzle protector 1 is mounted on the recording head unit 17. The nozzle protector 1 is mounted so as to cover the ejection side of the recording head 18. 4 is fixed so as to sandwich the side surface of the recording head unit 17. That is, the first and second projections 8 and 9 of the arms 3 and 4 are fitted into the respective recesses 7 on the side surface of the recording head unit 17 so that the nozzle protector 1
Fixed to

As described above, in this embodiment, since the nozzle face 23 of the injection nozzle 21 is covered and sealed by the cap 6 of the nozzle protector 1, there is no need to use a conventional sheet. Therefore, there is no ejection failure due to the adhesion of the paste when the sheet is peeled off, so that good recording can be realized.

Further, since four caps 6 are arranged in the nozzle protector 1 in correspondence with the respective ejection nozzles 21, only one nozzle protector 1 is attached to the recording head unit 17, and all the ejections are performed. Nozzle 2
All of the caps 6 can be covered at once.

Further, the mounting of the nozzle protector 1 is extremely easy since it is only necessary to push the arms 3 and 4 along the side surface of the recording head unit 17. Moreover,
Since the cap 6 is made of rubber, airtightness can be ensured only by covering the cap 6 so as to cover the nozzle surface 23. Thereby, leakage and drying of the storage solution can be prevented.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it is needless to say that the present invention can be implemented in various modes without departing from the gist of the present embodiment. For example, in the above-described embodiment, an inkjet printer has been described.
The present invention can be applied to various other recording devices such as a fax.

[0027]

As described above in detail, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the ink jetting holes provided on the ink jetting side are covered with caps while maintaining a predetermined space, instead of the conventional seal. Therefore, no glue remains when the seal is peeled off. Therefore, it is possible to perform suitable printing or the like without affecting the ejection.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, since the cap is made of a rubber-like material having elasticity, the ink ejecting side can be easily and sufficiently airtight as long as the ink ejecting side is covered with the cap. be able to. Therefore, it is possible to effectively prevent the leakage of the storage liquid and the drying of the ink in the ink ejection holes of the storage liquid.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the cap has the lid and the rib. Therefore, since the lid keeps a predetermined space from the ink ejection hole by the rib, the cap can keep the ink ejection hole in the predetermined space and airtight. In the invention of claim 4, the nozzle protection member includes a plurality of caps arranged according to the positions of the plurality of injection nozzles,
Since it is provided on the surface of the hard plate-shaped member, one nozzle protection member can cover the ink ejection side of a plurality of ejection nozzles at once.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a recording head unit.

2A and 2B show a nozzle protector, wherein FIG. 2A is a plan view and FIG. 2B is a rear view.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a cap.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing a state in which a nozzle protector is mounted on the recording head unit, in a cutaway manner.

5A and 5B show a state in which a nozzle protector is mounted on the recording head unit, wherein FIG. 5A is a plan view, FIG. 5B is a front view, and FIG. 5C is a bottom view.

6A and 6B show a state in which a nozzle protector is mounted on a recording head unit, FIG. 6A is a left side view thereof, and FIG.
Is a right side view thereof, and (c) is a rear view thereof.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of a conventional technique.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Nozzle protector 6 ... Cap 6b ... Rib 17 ... Recording head unit 18 ... Recording head 21 ... Injection nozzle 22 ... Ink cartridge 23 ... Nozzle surface 41 ... Channel 42 ... Manifold

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. An ink jet recording apparatus comprising a recording head for ejecting ink onto a recording medium for recording by ejecting ink to protect the ink ejecting side of the recording medium before use thereof. A nozzle protection member for an ink jet recording apparatus, comprising: a cap for hermetically covering an ink ejection hole provided on the ink ejection side while maintaining a predetermined space. 2. The nozzle protection member according to claim 1, wherein the cap is made of an elastic rubber material. 3. The cap according to claim 1, wherein the cap includes a plate-shaped lid and a rib erected from the lid and surrounding the ink ejection hole. Nozzle protection member for an ink jet recording apparatus. 4. The hard disk according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of caps arranged in accordance with the positions of the plurality of injection nozzles are provided on a surface of a hard plate-shaped member. A nozzle protection member for the ink jet recording apparatus according to the above.