Patent Grant
7971958
This invention relates to a printhead maintenance station for an inkjet printer. It has been developed primarily for facilitating removal of ink from a pagewidth inkjet printhead, although it may also be used in other types of printhead.
The following applications have been filed by the Applicant simultaneously with the present application:
The disclosures of these co-pending applications are incorporated herein by reference.
Various methods, systems and apparatus relating to the present invention are disclosed in the following US patents/patent applications filed by the applicant or assignee of the present invention:
The disclosures of these applications and patents are incorporated herein by reference.
Traditionally, most commercially available inkjet printers have a print engine which forms part of the overall structure and design of the printer. In this regard, the body of the printer unit is typically constructed to accommodate the printhead and associated media delivery mechanisms, and these features are integral with the printer unit.
This is especially the case with inkjet printers that employ a printhead that traverses back and forth across the media as the media is progressed through the printer unit in small iterations. In such cases the reciprocating printhead is typically mounted to the body of the printer unit such that it can traverse the width of the printer unit between a media input roller and a media output roller, with the media input and output rollers forming part of the structure of the printer unit. With such a printer unit it may be possible to remove the printhead for replacement, however the other parts of the print engine, such as the media transport rollers, control circuitry and maintenance stations, are typically fixed within the printer unit and replacement of these parts is not possible without replacement of the entire printer unit.
As well as being rather fixed in their design construction, printer units employing reciprocating type printheads are relatively slow, particularly when performing print jobs of full colour and/or photo quality. This is due to the fact that the printhead must continually traverse the stationary media to deposit the ink on the surface of the media and it may take a number of swathes of the printhead to deposit one line of the image.
Recently, it has been possible to provide a printhead that extends the entire width of the print media so that the printhead can remain stationary as the media is transported past the printhead. Such systems greatly increase the speed at which printing can occur as the printhead no longer needs to perform a number of swathes to deposit a line of an image, but rather the printhead can deposit the ink on the media as it moves past at high speeds. Such printheads have made it possible to perform full colour 1600 dpi printing at speeds in the vicinity of 60 pages per minute, speeds previously unattainable with conventional inkjet printers.
A crucial aspect of inkjet printing is maintaining the printhead in an operational printing condition throughout its lifetime. A number of factors may cause an inkjet printhead to become non-operational and it is important for any inkjet printer to include a strategy for preventing printhead failure and/or restoring the printhead to an operational printing condition in the event of failure. Printhead failure may be caused by, for example, printhead face flooding, dried-up nozzles (due to evaporation of water from the nozzles—a phenomenon known in the art as decap), or particulates fouling nozzles.
In our earlier applications U.S. Ser. No. 11/246,676, filed Oct. 11, 2005, we described a maintenance station for a pagewidth printhead, which addresses some of the shortcomings of traditional maintenance stations used for scanning printheads. The maintenance station described relies on a peeling action of a deformable pad, which unblocks nozzles and cleans ink from the ink ejection face of the printhead. We also described several means for cleaning the pad once a maintenance operation has been performed. For example, ink may be cleaned from the pad by suitable positioning of a wicking element or rocking the pad into contact with a squeegee or foam cleaner.
It would be desirable to provide a printhead maintenance station, which combines all the advantages of a pad-cleaning action with efficient removal of ink from the pad once a printhead maintenance operation has been performed. It would further be desirable to provide a printhead maintenance station, which can handle relatively large quantities of ink with each maintenance operation. It would further be desirable to provide a printhead maintenance station suitable for a pagewidth printhead, which may span the width of an A4-sized or wider page.
In a first aspect, there is provided a printhead maintenance assembly for maintaining a printhead in an operable condition, the maintenance assembly comprising:
a maintenance roller having an elastically deformable contact surface for sealing engagement with an ink ejection face of the printhead;
an engagement mechanism for moving the roller between a first position in which the contact surface is sealingly engaged with the face, and a second position in which the contact surface is disengaged from the face; and
a cleaning mechanism for cleaning the contact surface, the cleaning mechanism comprising:
In a second aspect, there is provided a printhead maintenance station for maintaining a printhead in an operable condition, the maintenance station comprising:
a maintenance roller having an elastically deformable contact surface for sealing engagement with an ink ejection face of the printhead, the roller being rotatable and moveable between a first position in which the contact surface is sealingly engaged with the face and a second position in which the contact surface is disengaged from the face; and
In a third aspect, there is provided a printhead cartridge for an inkjet printer, the cartridge being removably receivable in the printer, the cartridge comprising:
a printhead;
an ink delivery system for supplying ink to the printhead; and
a maintenance station for maintaining the printhead in an operable condition, the maintenance station comprising:
a maintenance roller having an elastically deformable contact surface for sealing engagement with an ink ejection face of the printhead, the roller being rotatable and moveable between a first position in which the contact surface is sealingly engaged with the face and a second position in which the contact surface is disengaged from the face; and
an ink removal system for removing ink from the contact surface when the maintenance roller is rotated.
In a fourth aspect, there is provided a method of maintaining a printhead in an operable condition and/or remediating a printhead to an operable condition, the method comprising the steps of:
(i) providing a maintenance roller having an elastically deformable contact surface for sealing engagement with an ink ejection face of the printhead;
(ii) moving the roller into a first position in which a clean part of the contact surface is sealingly engaged with the face, the movement being such that the contact surface progressively contacts the face during engagement;
(iii) moving the roller into a second position in which the contact surface is disengaged from the face, the movement being such that the contact surface peels away from the face during disengagement, thereby providing an inked part of the contact surface;
(iv) rotating the roller such that the inked part of the contact surface is conveyed away from the printhead and cleaned; and
(v) optionally repeating steps (ii) to (iv).
In a fifth aspect, there is provided a method of maintaining a printhead in an operable condition and/or remediating a printhead to an operable condition, the method comprising the steps of:
(i) providing a chassis having mounted thereon:
(ii) moving the chassis towards the printhead such that the contact surface is sealingly engaged with the face;
(iii) moving the chassis away from the printhead such that the contact surface is disengaged from the face;
(iv) rotating the maintenance roller such that ink is removed from the contact surface by the ink removal system; and
(v) optionally repeating steps (ii) to (iv).
In a sixth aspect, there is provided a printhead maintenance assembly for maintaining a printhead in an operable condition, the maintenance assembly comprising:
(a) a printhead having an ink ejection face;
(b) a first roller having an outer surface for receiving ink from the face;
(c) a second roller engaged with the first roller, the second roller being configured for receiving ink from the first roller;
(d) a cleaning pad in contact with the second roller; and
(e) a mechanism for rotating the first and second rollers.
Optionally, the engagement mechanism moves the maintenance roller substantially perpendicularly with respect to the face. This linear motion, together with the curved contact surface of the maintenance roller, provides the desired printhead cleaning and remediation action.
Optionally, the maintenance roller is substantially coextensive with the printhead. This ensures that the entire length of the printhead, which may be a pagewidth printhead, is maintained for use.
Optionally, the contact surface is substantially uniform. The cleaning and remediation action provided by the maintenance roller is optimum when the contact surface is free from any microscopic scratches, pits or indentations, which may harbour small quantities of ink.
Optionally, the maintenance roller comprises a rigid core having an elastically deformable shell, the contact surface being an outer surface of the shell. This type of structure provides the maintenance roller with mechanical stability and minimizes bowing. This is especially important for pagewidth printheads.
Optionally, the shell is comprised of silicone, polyurethane, Neoprene®, Santoprene® or Kraton®. However, any elastically deformable material may also be used.
Optionally, the maintenance roller is offset from the printhead. This arrangement ensures that ink moves towards an edge of the printhead, not towards its centre. Hence, any ink remaining on an edge of the printhead may be readily removed by, for example, a wicking element.
Optionally, a peel zone between the contact surface and the ink ejection face advances and retreats transversely across the face during engagement and disengagement. This arrangement means that ink on the printhead face is moved a minimum distance, and therefore optimizes cleaning efficacy.
Optionally, the maintenance roller is biased towards the first position. This is the resting position for the maintenance roller when the printhead is not in use. Biasing may be achieved by any suitable means, such as springs acting on a chassis supporting the maintenance roller.
Optionally, the peeling disengagement draws ink from the printhead onto the contact surface.
Optionally, the ink removal system comprises a transfer roller engaged with the maintenance roller. A transfer roller obviates the need for an absorbent cleaning pad to be in direct contact with the maintenance roller, thereby avoiding a potentially high-friction engagement between a rubber surface on the maintenance roller with the cleaning pad.
Optionally, the transfer roller has a wetting surface for receiving ink from the contact surface. A wetting surface (i.e. contact angle of <90°) on the transfer roller ensures good ink transfer from the maintenance roller to the transfer roller.
Optionally, the transfer roller is a metal roller, such as a stainless steel roller. Metal is advantageous due to its highly wetting surface characteristics (contact angles approaching 0°), structural rigidity providing support for the maintenance roller, and low frictional engagement with the maintenance roller and/or an absorbent cleaning pad.
Optionally, the transfer roller is positioned distal from the printhead. Such an arrangement ensures ink is removed away from the printhead and minimizes the likelihood of recontamination of the printhead.
Optionally, a cleaning pad is in contact with the transfer roller. An absorbent cleaning pad (e.g. sponge) provides an effective and simple means for removing ink from the transfer roller.
Optionally, the transfer roller and the cleaning pad are substantially coextensive with the maintenance roller and, optionally, the printhead.
Optionally, the maintenance roller, the transfer roller and the cleaning pad are mounted on a chassis, the chassis being reciprocally moveable between the first and second positions.
Optionally, the chassis is contained in a housing, the chassis being moveable relative to the housing.
Optionally, the engagement mechanism comprises at least one engagement arm, a first end of the at least one arm being engageable with a complementary engagement formation of the chassis. The engagement arm imparts linear movement of the chassis, and hence the maintenance roller, between the first and second positions.
Optionally, the chassis comprises at least one lug for complementary engagement with the first end of the at least one engagement arm. Typically, the engagement arm hooks into a lug of the chassis and does not, therefore, form part of the printhead cartridge.
Optionally, the printhead is a pagewidth inkjet printhead.
Preferred embodiments of the invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
Print Engine Pipeline
The printer 2 according to one embodiment of the present invention, receives the document from the external computer system 702 in the form of a compressed, multi-layer page image, wherein control electronics 766 buffers the image (step 710), and then expands the image (step 712) for further processing. The expanded contone layer is dithered (step 714) and then the black layer from the expansion step is composited over the dithered contone layer (step 716). Coded data may also be rendered (step 718) to form an additional layer, to be printed (if desired) using an infrared ink that is substantially invisible to the human eye. The black, dithered contone and infrared layers are combined (step 720) to form a page that is supplied to a printhead for printing (step 722).
In this particular arrangement, the data associated with the document to be printed is divided into a high-resolution bi-level mask layer for text and line art and a medium-resolution contone color image layer for images or background colors. Optionally, colored text can be supported by the addition of a medium-to-high-resolution contone texture layer for texturing text and line art with color data taken from an image or from flat colors. The printing architecture generalises these contone layers by representing them in abstract “image” and “texture” layers which can refer to either image data or flat color data. This division of data into layers based on content follows the base mode Mixed Raster Content (MRC) mode as would be understood by a person skilled in the art. Like the MRC base mode, the printing architecture makes compromises in some cases when data to be printed overlap. In particular, in one form all overlaps are reduced to a 3-layer representation in a process (collision resolution) embodying the compromises explicitly.
Upon receiving the data, a distributor 730 converts the data from a proprietary representation into a hardware-specific representation and ensures that the data is sent to the correct hardware device whilst observing any constraints or requirements on data transmission to these devices. The distributor 730 distributes the converted data to an appropriate one of a plurality of pipelines 732. The pipelines are identical to each other, and in essence provide decompression, scaling and dot compositing functions to generate a set of printable dot outputs.
Each pipeline 732 includes a buffer 734 for receiving the data. A contone decompressor 736 decompresses the color contone planes, and a mask decompressor decompresses the monotone (text) layer. Contone and mask scalers 740 and 742 scale the decompressed contone and mask planes respectively, to take into account the size of the medium onto which the page is to be printed.
The scaled contone planes are then dithered by ditherer 744. In one form, a stochastic dispersed-dot dither is used. Unlike a clustered-dot (or amplitude-modulated) dither, a dispersed-dot (or frequency-modulated) dither reproduces high spatial frequencies (i.e. image detail) almost to the limits of the dot resolution, while simultaneously reproducing lower spatial frequencies to their full color depth, when spatially integrated by the eye. A stochastic dither matrix is carefully designed to be relatively free of objectionable low-frequency patterns when tiled across the image. As such, its size typically exceeds the minimum size required to support a particular number of intensity levels (e.g. 16×16×8 bits for 255 intensity levels).
The dithered planes are then composited in a dot compositor 746 on a dot-by-dot basis to provide dot data suitable for printing. This data is forwarded to data distribution and drive electronics 748, which in turn distributes the data to the correct nozzle actuators 750, which in turn cause ink to be ejected from the correct nozzles 752 at the correct time in a manner which will be described in more detail later in the description.
As will be appreciated, the components employed within the print engine controller 766 to process the image for printing depend greatly upon the manner in which data is presented. In this regard it may be possible for the print engine controller 766 to employ additional software and/or hardware components to perform more processing within the printer unit 2 thus reducing the reliance upon the computer system 702. Alternatively, the print engine controller 766 may employ fewer software and/or hardware components to perform less processing thus relying upon the computer system 702 to process the image to a higher degree before transmitting the data to the printer unit 2.
The CPU subsystem 771 includes a CPU 775 that controls and configures all aspects of the other subsystems. It provides general support for interfacing and synchronizing all elements of the print engine 1. It also controls the low-speed communication to QA chips (described below). The CPU subsystem 771 also contains various peripherals to aid the CPU 775, such as General Purpose Input Output (GPIO, which includes motor control), an Interrupt Controller Unit (ICU), LSS Master and general timers. The Serial Communications Block (SCB) on the CPU subsystem provides a full speed USB1.1 interface to the host as well as an Inter SoPEC Interface (ISI) to other SoPEC devices (not shown).
The DRAM subsystem 772 accepts requests from the CPU, Serial Communications Block (SCB) and blocks within the PEP subsystem. The DRAM subsystem 772, and in particular the DRAM Interface Unit (DIU), arbitrates the various requests and determines which request should win access to the DRAM. The DIU arbitrates based on configured parameters, to allow sufficient access to DRAM for all requestors. The DIU also hides the implementation specifics of the DRAM such as page size, number of banks and refresh rates.
The Print Engine Pipeline (PEP) subsystem 773 accepts compressed pages from DRAM and renders them to bi-level dots for a given print line destined for a printhead interface (PHI) that communicates directly with the printhead. The first stage of the page expansion pipeline is the Contone Decoder Unit (CDU), Lossless Bi-level Decoder (LBD) and, where required, Tag Encoder (TE). The CDU expands the JPEG-compressed contone (typically CMYK) layers, the LBD expands the compressed bi-level layer (typically K), and the TE encodes any Netpage tags for later rendering (typically in IR or K ink), in the event that the printer unit 2 has Netpage capabilities (see the cross referenced documents for a detailed explanation of the Netpage system). The output from the first stage is a set of buffers: the Contone FIFO unit (CFU), the Spot FIFO Unit (SFU), and the Tag FIFO Unit (TFU). The CFU and SFU buffers are implemented in DRAM.
The second stage is the Halftone Compositor Unit (HCU), which dithers the contone layer and composites position tags and the bi-level spot layer over the resulting bi-level dithered layer.
A number of compositing options can be implemented, depending upon the printhead with which the SoPEC device is used. Up to 6 channels of bi-level data are produced from this stage, although not all channels may be present on the printhead. For example, the printhead may be CMY only, with K pushed into the CMY channels and IR ignored. Alternatively, any encoded tags may be printed in K if IR ink is not available (or for testing purposes).
In the third stage, a Dead Nozzle Compensator (DNC) compensates for dead nozzles in the printhead by color redundancy and error diffusing of dead nozzle data into surrounding dots.
The resultant bi-level 5 channel dot-data (typically CMYK, Infrared) is buffered and written to a set of line buffers stored in DRAM via a Dotline Writer Unit (DWU).
Finally, the dot-data is loaded back from DRAM, and passed to the printhead interface via a dot FIFO. The dot FIFO accepts data from a Line Loader Unit (LLU) at the system clock rate (pclk), while the PrintHead Interface (PHI) removes data from the FIFO and sends it to the printhead at a rate of ⅔ times the system clock rate.
In the preferred form, the DRAM is 2.5 Mbytes in size, of which about 2 Mbytes are available for compressed page store data. A compressed page is received in two or more bands, with a number of bands stored in memory. As a band of the page is consumed by the PEP subsystem 773 for printing, a new band can be downloaded. The new band may be for the current page or the next page.
Using banding it is possible to begin printing a page before the complete compressed page is downloaded, but care must be taken to ensure that data is always available for printing or a buffer under-run may occur.
The embedded USB 1.1 device accepts compressed page data and control commands from the host PC, and facilitates the data transfer to either the DRAM (or to another SoPEC device in multi-SoPEC systems, as described below).
Multiple SoPEC devices can be used in alternative embodiments, and can perform different functions depending upon the particular implementation. For example, in some cases a SoPEC device can be used simply for its onboard DRAM, while another SoPEC device attends to the various decompression and formatting functions described above. This can reduce the chance of buffer under-run, which can happen in the event that the printer commences printing a page prior to all the data for that page being received and the rest of the data is not received in time. Adding an extra SoPEC device for its memory buffering capabilities doubles the amount of data that can be buffered, even if none of the other capabilities of the additional chip are utilized.
Each SoPEC system can have several quality assurance (QA) devices designed to cooperate with each other to ensure the quality of the printer mechanics, the quality of the ink supply so the printhead nozzles will not be damaged during prints, and the quality of the software to ensure printheads and mechanics are not damaged.
Normally, each printing SoPEC will have an associated printer unit QA, which stores information relating to the printer unit attributes such as maximum print speed. The cartridge unit may also contain a QA chip, which stores cartridge information such as the amount of ink remaining, and may also be configured to act as a ROM (effectively as an EEPROM) that stores printhead-specific information such as dead nozzle mapping and printhead characteristics. The refill unit may also contain a QA chip, which stores refill ink information such as the type/colour of the ink and the amount of ink present for refilling. The CPU in the SoPEC device can optionally load and run program code from a QA Chip that effectively acts as a serial EEPROM. Finally, the CPU in the SoPEC device runs a logical QA chip (i.e., a software QA chip).
Usually, all QA chips in the system are physically identical, with only the contents of flash memory differentiating one from the other.
Each SoPEC device has two LSS system buses that can communicate with QA devices for system authentication and ink usage accounting. A large number of QA devices can be used per bus and their position in the system is unrestricted with the exception that printer QA and ink QA devices should be on separate LSS busses.
In use, the logical QA communicates with the ink QA to determine remaining ink. The reply from the ink QA is authenticated with reference to the printer QA. The verification from the printer QA is itself authenticated by the logical QA, thereby indirectly adding an additional authentication level to the reply from the ink QA.
Data passed between the QA chips is authenticated by way of digital signatures. In the preferred embodiment, HMAC-SHA1 authentication is used for data, and RSA is used for program code, although other schemes could be used instead.
As will be appreciated, the SoPEC device therefore controls the overall operation of the print engine 1 and performs essential data processing tasks as well as synchronising and controlling the operation of the individual components of the print engine 1 to facilitate print media handling.
Printhead Cartridge and Printer Cradle Assembly Overview
As shown in
The printer cradle 102 is permanently installed in the printer casing with the desired configuration for the product application e.g. L-path, C-path, straight path etc. The printhead cartridge 100 is installed into the cradle 102. As nozzles in the printhead (described below) clog or otherwise fail, the printhead cartridge 100 can be replaced to maintain print quality, instead of replacing the entire printer.
Printer Cradle
The cradle chassis 108 is a pressed metal component 108 that supports the other components within the printer casing to complete the media feed path from the media feed tray to the output tray. Sheets of blank media are guided by the guide molding 110 into the nip between the input drive roller 124 and the sprung rollers 130. The sprung rollers 130 are supported in the sprung roller mounts 138 formed on the guide molding 110 and biased into engagement with the rubberized surface of the drive roller 124. The drive roller 124 is driven by the media feed drive assembly 112.
The media is fed past the printhead (not shown) and into the nip between the spike wheels 132 and the output drive roller 118. The spike wheels 132 are supported in the spike wheel bearing molding 134 and the output drive roller 118 is also driven by the media feed drive assembly 112.
The control electronics for operating the printhead integrated circuits (described below) is provided on the printed circuit board (PCB) 114. The outer face of the PCB 114 has the SoPEC device (not shown) while the inner face has sockets 140 for receiving power and print data from an external source and distributing it to the SoPEC, and a line of sprung PCB contacts 142 for transmitting print data to the printhead IC discussed in greater detail below.
The heatshield 122 is attached to the PCB 114 to cover and protect the SoPEC from any EMI in the vicinity of the printer. It also prevents user contact with any hot parts of the SoPEC or PCB.
The capper retraction shaft 120 is rotatably mounted below the output drive shaft 118 for engagement with the maintenance drive assembly 126. The maintenance drive assembly 126 mounts to the side of the cradle chassis 108 opposite to the media feed drive assembly 112.
Maintenance Drive Assembly
Printhead Cartridge
As shown in
The stiffness of each of the individual sprung contacts 142 is such that each contact presses onto its corresponding pad of the flex PCB 192 with the specified contact pressure. Compressing all the sprung contacts 142 simultaneously requires significant force (up to 100N) but the casing 184 and the fulcrum 186 are in effect a first class lever that gives the user a substantial mechanical advantage. It can be seen from
Printhead Maintenance Station
The printhead maintenance station 500 comprises a maintenance roller 501 having an elastically deformable contact surface 502 for sealing engagement with an ink ejection face 601 of the printhead 600. The maintenance roller 501 comprises an elastically deformable shell 503 mounted about a rigid, stainless steel shaft, which forms a core 504 of the roller. Typically, the shell 503 is comprised of silicone rubber, although it will be appreciated that other elastically deformable or resilient materials, such as polyurethane, Neoprene®, Santoprene® or Kraton® may also be used in place of silicone.
Referring to
Since the contact surface 502 is defined by an outer surface of the maintenance roller 501, it is naturally curved with respect to the ink ejection face 601. As explained in our earlier U.S. application Ser. No. 11/246,689 filed Oct. 11, 2005 (the contents of which is herein incorporated by reference), a curved contact surface 502 provides progressive engagement with and peeling disengagement from the ink ejection face 601, with simple linear movement of the maintenance roller 501 perpendicularly with respect to the ink ejection face. This type of engagement with the ink ejection face 601 allows the maintenance roller 501 to clean flooded ink from the printhead 600 and remediate blocked nozzles in the printhead. Moreover, during idle periods, the contact surface 502 is sealed against the ink ejection face 601, preventing the ingress of particulates and minimizing evaporation of water from ink in the nozzles (a phenomenon generally known in the art as decap).
A detailed explanation of the operating principles of the cleaning/maintenance action is provided in our earlier U.S. application Ser. No. 11/246,689 filed Oct. 11, 2005. However, a brief explanation will be provided here for the sake of clarity.
In
From the foregoing, and referring again now to
It is, of course, possible for the transfer roller 505 to be absent and the cleaning pad 506 to be in direct contact with the maintenance roller 501. Such an arrangement is clearly contemplated within the scope of the present invention. However, the use of a metal transfer roller 505 has several advantages. Firstly, metals have highly wetting surfaces, ensuring complete transfer of ink deposited on the maintenance roller 501 onto the transfer roller 505. Secondly, the metal transfer roller 505, unlike a directly contacted cleaning pad, does not generate high frictional forces on the silicone rubber surface 502 of the maintenance roller. The metal transfer roller 505 can slip relatively easily past the cleaning pad 506, which reduces the torque requirements of the motor 144 driving the cleaning mechanism and preserves the lifetime of the soft silicone rubber 503 on the maintenance roller 501. Thirdly, the rigid metal transfer roller 505 provides support for the maintenance roller 501 and minimizes any bowing. This is especially important for pagewidth printheads and their corresponding pagewidth maintenance stations.
As shown more clearly in
Typically, the chassis 507 is biased towards the first position, wherein the contact surface 502 is sealingly engaged with the ink ejection face 601. This is the normal configuration of the maintenance station 500 when the printhead is not being used to print (e.g. during transport, storage, idle periods or when the printer is switched off).
The chassis 507, together with all its associated components, is contained in a housing 508 having a base 509 and sidewalls 510. The chassis 507 is slidably moveable relative to the housing 508 and generally biased towards the engaged position.
The chassis 507 further comprises engagement formations in the form of lugs 514 and 515, positioned at respective ends of the chassis. These lugs 514 and 515 are provided to slidably move the chassis 507 relative to the printhead 600 by means of the engagement mechanism 520 shown in
The engagement mechanism 520 comprises a pair of engagement arms. In
Referring now to
A typical maintenance operation will now be described with reference to
After a predetermined period of time, the engagement arms (e.g. 521) are actuated to rotate clockwise, thereby sliding the chassis 507 downwards and away from the printhead 600 by abutment of, for example, the cam surface 522 against the lug 515. This sliding movement of the chassis 507 disengages the contact surface 502 from the ink ejection face 601. Due to the curved nature of the contact surface 502, the contact surface is peeled away from the ink ejection face 601 during disengagement. As described earlier, this peeling action deposits ink along a region of the contact surface 502 and generates an inked part of the contact surface.
After disengagement, the drive motor 144 is actuated, which rotates the transfer roller 505 clockwise and the maintenance roller 501 anticlockwise via the gear mechanisms described above. This rotation, together with the wetting nature of the transfer roller 505, transfers ink on the contact surface 502 onto the transfer roller. This ink is, in turn, absorbed by the cleaning pad 506 as the transfer roller 505 rotates past the cleaning pad.
The drive motor 144 is driven until the contact surface 502 is cleaned and ready for the next maintenance cycle. Depending upon the condition of the printhead 600, several maintenance cycles as described above may optionally be required before the printhead is sufficiently remediated for printing.
Ink Cartridge
Mutually Engaging and Actuating Outlet and Inlet Valves
The inlet valve of the printhead cartridge has frusto-conical inlet opening 238 with a valve seat 240 that extends radially inwardly. A depressible valve member 236 is biased into sealing engagement with the valve seat 240 so that the printhead inlet is also normally closed.
As best shown in
Ink Filter and Pressure Regulator
As best shown in
The pressure regulator 196 has a diaphragm 246 with a central inlet opening 248 that is biased closed by the spring 250. The hydrostatic pressure of the ink in the cartridge acts on the upper or upstream side of the diaphragm. As discussed above, the head of ink remains constant during the life of the ink cartridge because it has an inflatable air bag rather than a collapsible ink bag.
On the lower or downstream surface acts the static ink pressure at the regulator outlet 252 and the regulator spring 250. As long as the downstream pressure and the spring bias exceeds the upstream pressure, the regulator inlet 248 remains sealed against the central hub 256 of the spacer 244.
During operation, the printhead (described below) acts as a pump. The ejection actuators forcing ink through the nozzle array lowers the hydrostatic pressure of the ink on the downstream side of the diaphragm 246. As soon as the downstream pressure and the spring bias is less than the upstream pressure, the inlet 248 unseats from the central hub 256 and ink flows to the regulator outlet 252. The inflow through the inlet 248 immediately starts to equalize the fluid pressure on both sides of the diaphragm 246 and the force of the spring 250 again becomes enough to re-seal the inlet 248 against the central hub 256. As the printhead continues to operate, the inlet 248 of the pressure regulator successively opens and shuts as the pressure difference across the diaphragm oscillates by minute amounts about the threshold pressure difference required to balance the force of the spring 250. Accordingly, the pressure regulator 196 maintains a relatively constant negative hydrostatic pressure in the ink. This is used to keep the ink meniscus at each nozzle drawn inwards rather than bulging outwards. A bulging meniscus is prone contact with paper dust or other contaminants which can break the surface tension and wick ink out of the printhead. This leads to leakage and possibly artifacts in any prints.
Resilient Connectors
The pressure regulators 196 are fluidly connected to the printhead 600 via respective resilient connectors 254.
As best shown in
LCP Molding Assembly and Printhead
Each channel 280 runs substantially the full length of the channel molding 266 in order to feed the printhead 600 with one of the five ink colors (CMYK & IR). At the bottom of each channel 280 is a series of ink apertures 284 that feeds ink through to the ink conduits 278 formed in outer surface.
The lid molding 264 also has the rim formation 188 that engages the fulcrum 186 in the printer cradle 102 (see again to
The use of LCP offers a number of advantages. It can be molded so that its coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) is similar to that of silicon. It will be appreciated that any significant difference in the CTE's of the printhead 600 (discussed below) and the underlying moldings can cause the entire structure to bow. However, as the CTE of LCP in the mold direction is much less than that in the non-mold direction (˜5 ppm/° C. compared to ˜20 ppm/° C.), care must be take to ensure that the mold direction of the LCP moldings is unidirectional with the longitudinal extent of the printhead 600. LCP also has a relatively high stiffness with a modulus that is typically 5 times that of ‘normal plastics’ such as polycarbonates, styrene, nylon, PET and polypropylene.
The printhead 600 is shown in
Each printhead IC 74 is configured to receive and print five different colours of ink (C, M, Y, K and IR) and contains 1280 ink inlets per colour, with these nozzles being divided into even and odd nozzles (640 each). Even and odd nozzles for each colour are provided on different rows on the printhead IC 74 and are aligned vertically to perform true 1600 dpi printing, meaning that nozzles 801 are arranged in 10 rows, as clearly shown in
As the printhead is a pagewidth printhead, individual printhead ICs 74 are linked together in abutting arrangement central strip if the LCP channel molding 266. The printhead IC's 74 may be attached to the polymer sealing film (described above) by heating the IC's above the melting point of the adhesive layer and then pressing them into the sealing film, or melting the adhesive layer under the IC with a laser before pressing them into the film. Another option is to both heat the IC (not above the adhesive melting point) and the adhesive layer, before pressing it into the film.
The length of an individual printhead IC 74 is around 20-22 mm. To print an A4/US letter sized page, 11-12 individual printhead ICs 74 are contiguously linked together. The number of individual printhead ICs 74 may be varied to accommodate sheets of other widths.
The printhead ICs 74 may be linked together in a variety of ways. One particular manner for linking the ICs 74 is shown in
The upper surface of the printhead ICs have a number of bond pads 75 provided along an edge thereof which provide a means for receiving data and or power to control the operation of the nozzles 73 from the SoPEC device. To aid in positioning the ICs 74 correctly on the surface of the adhesive layer 71 and aligning the ICs 74 such that they correctly align with the holes 72 formed in the adhesive layer 71, fiducials 76 are also provided on the surface of the ICs 74. The fiducials 76 are in the form of markers that are readily identifiable by appropriate positioning equipment to indicate the true position of the IC 74 with respect to a neighboring IC and the surface of the adhesive layer 71, and are strategically positioned at the edges of the ICs 74, and along the length of the adhesive layer 71.
As shown in
To halve the density of laser drilled holes needed in the sealing film, the holes can be positioned on the silicon walls 78. In this way, one hole supplies ink to two sections of the channel 77.
Following attachment and alignment of each of the printhead ICs 74 to the channel molding, a flex PCB is attached along an edge of the ICs 74 so that control signals and power can be supplied to the bond pads 75 to control and operate the nozzles 801. The flex PCB and its attachment to the bond pads 75 is described in detail in the above mentioned co-pending U.S. application Ser. No. 10/760,254, filed Jan. 21, 2004, incorporated herein by reference. The flex PCB wraps around the bearing surface 282 of the lid molding 264 (see
Ink Delivery Nozzles
One example of a type of ink delivery nozzle arrangement suitable for the present invention, comprising a nozzle and corresponding actuator, will now be described with reference to
Each nozzle arrangement 801 is the product of an integrated circuit fabrication technique. In particular, the nozzle arrangement 801 defines a micro-electromechanical system (MEMS).
For clarity and ease of description, the construction and operation of a single nozzle arrangement 801 will be described with reference to
The ink jet printhead integrated circuit 74 includes a silicon wafer substrate 8015 having 0.35 micron 1 P4M 12 volt CMOS microprocessing electronics is positioned thereon.
A silicon dioxide (or alternatively glass) layer 8017 is positioned on the substrate 8015. The silicon dioxide layer 8017 defines CMOS dielectric layers. CMOS top-level metal defines a pair of aligned aluminium electrode contact layers 8030 positioned on the silicon dioxide layer 8017. Both the silicon wafer substrate 8015 and the silicon dioxide layer 8017 are etched to define an ink inlet channel 8014 having a generally circular cross section (in plan). An aluminium diffusion barrier 8028 of CMOS metal 1, CMOS metal 2/3 and CMOS top level metal is positioned in the silicon dioxide layer 8017 about the ink inlet channel 8014. The diffusion barrier 8028 serves to inhibit the diffusion of hydroxyl ions through CMOS oxide layers of the drive electronics layer 8017.
A passivation layer in the form of a layer of silicon nitride 8031 is positioned over the aluminium contact layers 8030 and the silicon dioxide layer 8017. Each portion of the passivation layer 8031 positioned over the contact layers 8030 has an opening 8032 defined therein to provide access to the contacts 8030.
The nozzle arrangement 801 includes a nozzle chamber 8029 defined by an annular nozzle wall 8033, which terminates at an upper end in a nozzle roof 8034 and a radially inner nozzle rim 804 that is circular in plan. The ink inlet channel 8014 is in fluid communication with the nozzle chamber 8029. At a lower end of the nozzle wall, there is disposed a moving rim 8010, that includes a moving seal lip 8040. An encircling wall 8038 surrounds the movable nozzle, and includes a stationary seal lip 8039 that, when the nozzle is at rest as shown in
As best shown in
The nozzle wall 8033 forms part of a lever arrangement that is mounted to a carrier 8036 having a generally U-shaped profile with a base 8037 attached to the layer 8031 of silicon nitride.
The lever arrangement also includes a lever arm 8018 that extends from the nozzle walls and incorporates a lateral stiffening beam 8022. The lever arm 8018 is attached to a pair of passive beams 806, formed from titanium nitride (TiN) and positioned on either side of the nozzle arrangement, as best shown in
The lever arm 8018 is also attached to an actuator beam 807, which is formed from TiN. It will be noted that this attachment to the actuator beam is made at a point a small but critical distance higher than the attachments to the passive beam 806.
As best shown in
The TiN in the actuator beam 807 is conductive, but has a high enough electrical resistance that it undergoes self-heating when a current is passed between the electrodes 809 and 8041. No current flows through the passive beams 806, so they do not expand.
In use, the device at rest is filled with ink 8013 that defines a meniscus 803 under the influence of surface tension. The ink is retained in the chamber 8029 by the meniscus, and will not generally leak out in the absence of some other physical influence.
As shown in
The relative horizontal inflexibility of the passive beams 806 prevents them from allowing much horizontal movement the lever arm 8018. However, the relative displacement of the attachment points of the passive beams and actuator beam respectively to the lever arm causes a twisting movement that causes the lever arm 8018 to move generally downwards. The movement is effectively a pivoting or hinging motion. However, the absence of a true pivot point means that the rotation is about a pivot region defined by bending of the passive beams 806.
The downward movement (and slight rotation) of the lever arm 8018 is amplified by the distance of the nozzle wall 8033 from the passive beams 806. The downward movement of the nozzle walls and roof causes a pressure increase within the chamber 8029, causing the meniscus to bulge as shown in
As shown in
Immediately after the drop 802 detaches, meniscus 803 forms the concave shape shown in
Another type of printhead nozzle arrangement suitable for the present invention will now be described with reference to
The nozzle arrangement 1001 is of a bubble forming heater element actuator type which comprises a nozzle plate 1002 with a nozzle 1003 therein, the nozzle having a nozzle rim 1004, and aperture 1005 extending through the nozzle plate. The nozzle plate 1002 is plasma etched from a silicon nitride structure which is deposited, by way of chemical vapour deposition (CVD), over a sacrificial material which is subsequently etched.
The nozzle arrangement includes, with respect to each nozzle 1003, side walls 1006 on which the nozzle plate is supported, a chamber 1007 defined by the walls and the nozzle plate 1002, a multi-layer substrate 1008 and an inlet passage 1009 extending through the multi-layer substrate to the far side (not shown) of the substrate. A looped, elongate heater element 1010 is suspended within the chamber 1007, so that the element is in the form of a suspended beam. The nozzle arrangement as shown is a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) structure, which is formed by a lithographic process.
When the nozzle arrangement is in use, ink 1011 from a reservoir (not shown) enters the chamber 1007 via the inlet passage 1009, so that the chamber fills. Thereafter, the heater element 1010 is heated for somewhat less than 1 micro second, so that the heating is in the form of a thermal pulse. It will be appreciated that the heater element 1010 is in thermal contact with the ink 1011 in the chamber 1007 so that when the element is heated, this causes the generation of vapor bubbles in the ink. Accordingly, the ink 1011 constitutes a bubble forming liquid.
The bubble 1012, once generated, causes an increase in pressure within the chamber 1007, which in turn causes the ejection of a drop 1016 of the ink 1011 through the nozzle 1003. The rim 1004 assists in directing the drop 1016 as it is ejected, so as to minimize the chance of a drop misdirection.
The reason that there is only one nozzle 1003 and chamber 1007 per inlet passage 1009 is so that the pressure wave generated within the chamber, on heating of the element 1010 and forming of a bubble 1012, does not effect adjacent chambers and their corresponding nozzles.
The increase in pressure within the chamber 1007 not only pushes ink 1011 out through the nozzle 1003, but also pushes some ink back through the inlet passage 1009. However, the inlet passage 1009 is approximately 200 to 300 microns in length, and is only approximately 16 microns in diameter. Hence there is a substantial viscous drag. As a result, the predominant effect of the pressure rise in the chamber 1007 is to force ink out through the nozzle 1003 as an ejected drop 1016, rather than back through the inlet passage 1009.
As shown in
The collapsing of the bubble 1012 towards the point of collapse 1017 causes some ink 1011 to be drawn from within the nozzle 1003 (from the sides 1018 of the drop), and some to be drawn from the inlet passage 1009, towards the point of collapse. Most of the ink 1011 drawn in this manner is drawn from the nozzle 1003, forming an annular neck 1019 at the base of the drop 1016 prior to its breaking off.
The drop 1016 requires a certain amount of momentum to overcome surface tension forces, in order to break off. As ink 1011 is drawn from the nozzle 1003 by the collapse of the bubble 1012, the diameter of the neck 1019 reduces thereby reducing the amount of total surface tension holding the drop, so that the momentum of the drop as it is ejected out of the nozzle is sufficient to allow the drop to break off.
When the drop 1016 breaks off, cavitation forces are caused as reflected by the arrows 1020, as the bubble 1012 collapses to the point of collapse 1017. It will be noted that there are no solid surfaces in the vicinity of the point of collapse 1017 on which the cavitation can have an effect.
Yet another type of printhead nozzle arrangement suitable for the present invention will now be described with reference to
Turning initially to
Inside the nozzle chamber 501 is a paddle type device 507 which is interconnected to an actuator 508 through a slot in the wall of the nozzle chamber 501. The actuator 508 includes a heater means e.g. 509 located adjacent to an end portion of a post 510. The post 510 is fixed to a substrate.
When it is desired to eject a drop from the nozzle chamber 501, as illustrated in
A suitable material for the heater elements is a copper nickel alloy which can be formed so as to bend a glass material.
The heater means 509 is ideally located adjacent the end portion of the post 510 such that the effects of activation are magnified at the paddle end 507 such that small thermal expansions near the post 510 result in large movements of the paddle end.
The heater means 509 and consequential paddle movement causes a general increase in pressure around the ink meniscus 505 which expands, as illustrated in
Subsequently, the paddle 507 is deactivated to again return to its quiescent position. The deactivation causes a general reflow of the ink into the nozzle chamber. The forward momentum of the ink outside the nozzle rim and the corresponding backflow results in a general necking and breaking off of the drop 512 which proceeds to the print media. The collapsed meniscus 505 results in a general sucking of ink into the nozzle chamber 502 via the ink flow channel 503. In time, the nozzle chamber 501 is refilled such that the position in
Firstly, the actuator 508 includes a series of tapered actuator units e.g. 515 which comprise an upper glass portion (amorphous silicon dioxide) 516 formed on top of a titanium nitride layer 517. Alternatively a copper nickel alloy layer (hereinafter called cupronickel) can be utilized which will have a higher bend efficiency.
The titanium nitride layer 517 is in a tapered form and, as such, resistive heating takes place near an end portion of the post 510. Adjacent titanium nitride/glass portions 515 are interconnected at a block portion 519 which also provides a mechanical structural support for the actuator 508.
The heater means 509 ideally includes a plurality of the tapered actuator unit 515 which are elongate and spaced apart such that, upon heating, the bending force exhibited along the axis of the actuator 508 is maximized. Slots are defined between adjacent tapered units 515 and allow for slight differential operation of each actuator 508 with respect to adjacent actuators 508.
The block portion 519 is interconnected to an arm 520. The arm 520 is in turn connected to the paddle 507 inside the nozzle chamber 501 by means of a slot e.g. 522 formed in the side of the nozzle chamber 501. The slot 522 is designed generally to mate with the surfaces of the arm 520 so as to minimize opportunities for the outflow of ink around the arm 520. The ink is held generally within the nozzle chamber 501 via surface tension effects around the slot 522.
When it is desired to actuate the arm 520, a conductive current is passed through the titanium nitride layer 517 within the block portion 519 connecting to a lower CMOS layer 506 which provides the necessary power and control circuitry for the nozzle arrangement. The conductive current results in heating of the nitride layer 517 adjacent to the post 510 which results in a general upward bending of the arm 20 and consequential ejection of ink out of the nozzle 504. The ejected drop is printed on a page in the usual manner for an inkjet printer as previously described.
An array of nozzle arrangements can be formed so as to create a single printhead. For example, in
The construction of the printhead system described can proceed utilizing standard MEMS techniques through suitable modification of the steps as set out in U.S. Pat. No. 6,243,113 entitled “Image Creation Method and Apparatus”, filed Jul. 10, 1998 to the present applicant, the contents of which are fully incorporated by cross reference.
The integrated circuits 74 may be arranged to have between 5000 to 100,000 of the above described ink delivery nozzles arranged along its surface, depending upon the length of the integrated circuits and the desired printing properties required. For example, for narrow media it may be possible to only require 5000 nozzles arranged along the surface of the printhead to achieve a desired printing result, whereas for wider media a minimum of 10,000, 20,000 or 50,000 nozzles may need to be provided along the length of the printhead to achieve the desired printing result. For full colour photo quality images on A4 or US letter sized media at or around 1600 dpi, the integrated circuits 74 may have 13824 nozzles per color. Therefore, in the case where the printhead 600 is capable of printing in 4 colours (C, M, Y, K), the integrated circuits 74 may have around 53396 nozzles disposed along the surface thereof. Further, in a case where the printhead is capable of printing 6 printing fluids (C, M, Y, K, IR and a fixative) this may result in 82944 nozzles being provided on the surface of the integrated circuits 74. In all such arrangements, the electronics supporting each nozzle is the same.
The manner in which the individual ink delivery nozzle arrangements may be controlled within the printhead cartridge 100 will now be described with reference to
The nozzle control logic 902 is configured to send serial data to the nozzle array core for printing, via a link 907, which may be in the form of an electrical connector. Status and other operational information about the nozzle array core 901 is communicated back to the nozzle control logic 902 via another link 908, which may be also provided on the electrical connector.
The nozzle array core 901 is shown in more detail in
As shown in
A single column N will now be described with reference to
Each of the odd and even data values 936 and 937 is provided as an input to corresponding odd and even dot latches 942 and 943 respectively.
Each dot latch and its associated data value form a unit cell, such as unit cell 944. A unit cell is shown in more detail in
The output of latch 942 is provided as one of the inputs to a three-input AND gate 945. Other inputs to the AND gate 945 are the Fr signal (from the output of multiplexer 940) and a pulse profile signal Pr. The firing time of a nozzle is controlled by the pulse profile signal Pr, and can be, for example, lengthened to take into account a low voltage condition that arises due to low power supply (in a removable power supply embodiment). This is to ensure that a relatively consistent amount of ink is efficiently ejected from each nozzle as it is fired. In the embodiment described, the profile signal Pr is the same for each dot shift register, which provides a balance between complexity, cost and performance. However, in other embodiments, the Pr signal can be applied globally (ie, is the same for all nozzles), or can be individually tailored to each unit cell or even to each nozzle.
Once the data is loaded into the latch 942, the fire enable Fr and pulse profile Pr signals are applied to the AND gate 945, combining to the trigger the nozzle to eject a dot of ink for each latch 942 that contains a logic 1.
The signals for each nozzle channel are summarized in the following table:
As shown in
The dot latches and the latches forming the various shift registers are fully static in this embodiment, and are CMOS-based. The design and construction of latches is well known to those skilled in the art of integrated circuit engineering and design, and so will not be described in detail in this document.
The nozzle speed may be as much as 20 kHz for the printer unit 2 capable of printing at about 60 ppm, and even more for higher speeds. At this range of nozzle speeds the amount of ink that can be ejected by the entire printhead 600 is at least 50 million drops per second. However, as the number of nozzles is increased to provide for higher-speed and higher-quality printing at least 100 million drops per second, preferably at least 500 million drops per second and more preferably at least 1 billion drops per second may be delivered. At such speeds, the drops of ink are ejected by the nozzles with a maximum drop ejection energy of about 250 nanojoules per drop.
Consequently, in order to accommodate printing at these speeds, the control electronics must be able to determine whether a nozzle is to eject a drop of ink at an equivalent rate. In this regard, in some instances the control electronics must be able to determine whether a nozzle ejects a drop of ink at a rate of at least 50 million determinations per second. This may increase to at least 100 million determinations per second or at least 500 million determinations per second, and in many cases at least 1 billion determinations per second for the higher-speed, higher-quality printing applications.
For the printer 2 of the present invention, the above-described ranges of the number of nozzles provided on the printhead 600 together with the nozzle firing speeds and print speeds results in an area print speed of at least 50 cm2 per second, and depending on the printing speed, at least 100 cm2 per second, preferably at least 200 cm2 per second, and more preferably at least 500 cm2 per second at the higher-speeds. Such an arrangement provides a printer unit 2 that is capable of printing an area of media at speeds not previously attainable with conventional printer units.
The invention has been described herein by way of example only. Skilled workers in this field will readily recognize many variations or modifications that do not depart from the spirit and scope of the broad inventive concept.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006201084 | Mar 2006 | AU | national |
The present application is a Continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 11/482,975 filed Jul. 10, 2006, now issued U.S. Pat. No. 7,637,588, which is a Continuation-In-Part of U.S. application Ser. No. 11/246,689 filed on Oct. 11, 2005, now issued U.S. Pat. No. 7,399,057, the entire contents of which are now incorporated by reference.
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| Number | Date | Country | |
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| Child | 12626933 | US |
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| Child | 11482975 | US |
