Patent Grant
8960854
The present invention relates to an inkjet recording apparatus, and in particular to an inkjet recording apparatus capable of preventing nozzle clogging, aligning nozzle positions of line heads precisely and easily and adjusting the number of line heads.
A line head type inkjet recording apparatus is used in many fields because of its capability of high-speed continuous recording of designs or letters based on predetermined image data.
In recent years, in addition to four colored inks of yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K) (called “YMCK”), such an inkjet recording apparatus simultaneously provides value-added special inks, such as an ink having an intermediate color between these colors, a fluorescent color ink or an ink having a weather-resistant agent.
In addition, accordingly, many inkjet recording apparatuses having an increased number of line heads have been developed.
By the way, in an inkjet recording apparatus, generally, the frequencies of respective inks to be used are different largely according to image data. Therefore, for example, an unused special ink might dry and solidify in a nozzle portion of a line head while inkjet recording is being performed using other inks. Then, the nozzle portion clogs up, and it takes time to clear the clogged nozzle.
On the other hand, in order to suppress drying of an ink, for example, such a method is used as temporarily detaching a line head containing an unused ink or moving the same so as to wait in another position.
However, the positions of the nozzles of the line heads need to be finely aligned with a micron unit, and therefore, once the line head is moved, there is the disadvantage that it becomes difficult to perform pitch alignment when the line head is put back to its original position.
It should be noted that as an inkjet recording apparatus capable of preventing the drying of an unused ink, there is a known inkjet recording apparatus including a black print head, a color print head, a black print head cap to close a nozzle of the black print head, a color print head cap formed as a separate member from the black print head cap and closing a nozzle of the color print head, a black cap moving means for moving the black print head cap between a closing position where the nozzle of the black print head is closed and a retracting position where the nozzle is opened, and a color cap moving means for moving the color print head cap between a closing position where the nozzle of the color print head is closed and a retracting position where the nozzle is opened (for example, see the patent literature 1). According to such an inkjet recording apparatus, by capping a nozzle of an unused color print head during ejection of a black ink to perform printing, an ink in the nozzle can be prevented from drying.
PTL 1: Japanese Patent No. 3670428
In the inkjet recording apparatus described in the above patent literature 1, for example, it is impossible to add a line head ejecting the above special ink.
In addition, in the inkjet recording apparatus described in the above patent literature 1, clogging with ink can be suppressed, but it is difficult to align the positions of the nozzle portions of the line heads. That is, generally, when recording is performed with YMCK, it is necessary to align the nozzle positions of the respective colors finely but, in the inkjet recording apparatus described in the above patent literature 1, since a drive system for the black print head and a drive system for the color print head are different from each other, in the case of full-color inkjet recording, there is the possibility of misalignment between the nozzle position of the black print head and the nozzle position of the color print head.
Therefore, an inkjet recording apparatus is desired which is capable of aligning the positions of the nozzles easily after the line head is moved in order to prevent the nozzle portion from being clogged.
In view of these circumstances, the present invention has been made and an object thereof is to provide an inkjet recording apparatus capable of preventing nozzle clogging, aligning the nozzle positions of the line heads precisely and easily and adjusting the number of line heads.
The present inventor has made intensive researches to solve the above problems, has found that the above problems can be solved by providing a second plate in addition to a first plate and driving the first plate, or the first plate and the second plate, by a single drive shaft and has completed the present invention.
A first aspect of the present invention lies in an inkjet recording apparatus including a first plate having a plurality of line heads arranged thereon, a coupling portion jointed to the first plate, a drive device sliding the first plate via the coupling portion from a waiting position in which the line heads wait to a recording position in which recording is performed on a recording medium, and a second plate having at least one line head arranged thereon and being attachable to and detachable from the coupling portion, wherein only the first plate is slidable when the second plate is detached from the coupling portion, and the first plate and the second plate are integrally slidable when the second plate is attached to the coupling portion.
A second aspect of the present invention lies in the inkjet recording apparatus according to the above first aspect, further including a main body frame, and a first rail and a second rail attached to the main body frame, wherein the first plate slides along the first rail, and the second plate slides along the second rail.
A third aspect of the present invention lies in the inkjet recording apparatus according to the above first or second aspect, wherein the second plate and the coupling portion are attached to each other at two points.
A fourth aspect of the present invention lies in the inkjet recording apparatus according to the above first or second aspect, wherein a pair of first coupling pin holes is formed in the coupling portion, a pair of second coupling pin holes is formed in the second plate, and the position of the second plate is determined in relation to the first plate by fitting coupling pins into the corresponding first and second coupling pin holes aligned with each other.
A fifth aspect of the present invention lies in the inkjet recording apparatus according to any one of the above first to fourth aspects, wherein the drive device is composed of a ball screw composed of a nut portion provided to the coupling portion and a screw shaft on which the nut portion slides, and a drive motor rotating the screw shaft.
A sixth aspect of the present invention lies in the inkjet recording apparatus according to any one of the above first to fifth aspects, wherein four line heads containing respective inks of YMCK are arranged on the first plate.
A seventh aspect of the present invention lies in the inkjet recording apparatus according to the above sixth aspect, wherein two rows of heads are arranged for each of the line heads of the first plate.
An eighth aspect of the present invention lies in the inkjet recording apparatus according to any one of the above first to seventh aspects, wherein the waiting position is provided with a cap attachable to nozzle portions of the line heads.
In the inkjet recording apparatus of the present invention, since the second plate having at least one line head arranged thereon is provided in addition to the first plate having a plurality of line heads arranged thereon, the number of the line heads can be adjusted.
For example, such a configuration can be adopted that four line heads containing respective inks of YMCK are arranged on the first plate, while any number of line heads containing a special ink are arranged on the second plate.
In the inkjet recording apparatus of the present invention, since only the first plate slides when the second plate is detached from the coupling portion, and the first plate and the second plate slide integrally when the second plate is attached to the coupling portion, the number of the line heads to be used can be adjusted according to image data.
In addition, the first plate, or the first plate and the second plate can be driven by the same drive shaft. That is, since the drive shaft is one in number, the nozzle position of the line head of the first plate and the nozzle position of the line head of the second plate can be prevented from deviating from each other. In this regard, it is preferred that the second plate is attached at two points to the coupling portion jointed to the first plate. According to this means, it is possible to align the nozzle positions of the line heads more precisely and easily.
In the inkjet recording apparatus of the present invention, when the main body frame, and the first rail and the second rail attached to the main body frame are further included, and the first plate slides along the first rail and the second plate slides along the second rail, it is possible to slide the first plate and the second plate smoothly.
In the inkjet recording apparatus of the present invention, when the position of the second plate is determined in relation to the first plate by fitting the coupling pins into the corresponding first and second coupling pin holes aligned with each other, it is possible align the nozzle positions of the line heads still more precisely and easily.
In the inkjet recording apparatus of the present invention, when two rows of heads are arranged for each of the line heads of the first plate, it is possible to perform high-speed inkjet recording, or to increase resolution.
In the inkjet recording apparatus of the present invention, when the drive device sliding the first plate is composed of the ball screw and the drive motor, it is possible to dispose the first plate in a desired position precisely.
In the inkjet recording apparatus of the present invention, when the waiting position is provided with a cap attachable to nozzle portions of the line heads, it is possible to dispose an unused line head in the waiting position and cover the nozzle portions with the cap. This makes it possible to prevent the ink contained in the line head from drying, thereby preventing the nozzle portions from clogging.
Hereinafter, with reference to the drawings, if necessary, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail. It should be noted that in the Figures, identical elements are denoted by identical reference signs in order to omit repeated description. In addition, positional relations, such as top, bottom, right and left, are based on the drawings, unless otherwise noted. Furthermore, the ratios of dimensions of an element are not limited to those shown in the drawings.
As shown in
Here, as the recording medium 1, a paper, a film, a fabric, a metallic foil, and the like are used, but the recording medium 1 is not limited to these materials.
In addition, the drying machine 3 has a cylindrical dryer, and brings the recording medium 1 after inkjet recording into contact with the surface of the dryer, thereby drying the recording medium 1.
In the inkjet recording apparatus 10, the recording medium introduced thereinto is guided by guide rollers 2 and arrives at the recording unit 4. Then, the recording medium 1 is subjected to inkjet recording by line heads of the recording unit 4.
The recording medium 1 after inkjet recording is guided by another guide roller 2, and arrives at the drying machine 3 and is dried. Thereafter, the recording medium 1 dried is guided by other guide rollers 2 and discharged to the outside.
As shown in
Here, the “waiting position P1” means a position where the line heads is made to wait, and is a position separated from the recording medium 1.
In addition, the “recording position P2” means a position where direct recording on the recording medium 1 is performed, and is a position above the recording medium 1.
The four line heads 11a which contain respective inks of YMCK inks are arranged on the first plate 20a. Therefore, when inkjet recording is performed using only the first plate 20a, full-color recording can be performed using the four colors.
In addition, two rows of heads are arranged for each of line heads 11a of the first plate 20a. That is, two rows of heads are arranged for each color. This makes it possible to double the inkjet recording rate as compared with the inkjet recording rate in the case where each line head has a single row of heads, or makes it possible to double the resolution of inkjet recording.
First sliders 13a are attached to both sides of the first plate 20a so that the first plate 20a slides between the waiting position P1 and the recording position P2 along a pair of first rails 12a attached to the main body frame 5 via the first sliders 13a. This makes it possible for the first plate 20a to slide smoothly to make parallel movement between the waiting position P1 and the recording position P2 without wobbling.
The four line heads 11b which contain special inks are arranged on the second plate 20b.
In the inkjet recording apparatus 10 according to the embodiment, since the inks of YMCK frequently used and the special inks less frequently used are disposed on different plates, the inks of YMCK and the special inks can be managed separately.
Here, it is possible to set any special ink according to the image data. Examples of such a special ink include an ink having an intermediate color of YMCK, a fluorescent color ink, and an ink having a weather-resistant agent. It should be noted that if it is simply desired that the number of inks of YMCK increases, the inks of YMCK may be used instead of the special inks.
Second sliders 13b are attached to both sides of the second plate 20b so that the second plate 20b slides between the waiting position P1 and the recording position P2 along a pair of second rails 12b attached to the main body frame 5 via the second slider 13b. This makes it possible for the second plate 20b to slide smoothly to make parallel movement between the waiting position P1 and the recording position P2 without wobbling.
In the inkjet recording apparatus 10 according to the embodiment, the coupling portion 21 is integrally joined to the first plate 20a.
Then, the second plate 20b is attachable to/detachable from the coupling portion 21.
Here, the second plate 20b is attached to the coupling portion 21 at two points. Therefore, by attaching the second plate 20b to the coupling portion 21, the position of the second plate 20b in relation to the first plate 20a is determined, and it become possible to align the nozzle positions of the line heads of the first plate 20a and the nozzle positions of the line heads of the second plate 20b with each other precisely and easily.
For example, by aligning the respective nozzle positions of the line heads of the first plate 20a and the second plate 20b in a state where the second plate 20b has been preliminarily attached to the coupling portion 21, even if attachment and detachment of the second plate 20b is repeated thereafter, the second plate 20b is positioned when the second plate 20b is attached, so that the nozzle positions of the line heads of the first plate 20a and the second plate 20b are aligned with each other.
In the inkjet recording apparatus 10 according to the embodiment, a pair of first coupling pin holes 22a is formed in the coupling portion 21, and a pair of second coupling pin holes 22b is formed in the second plate 20b.
Then, as shown in
Here, the second coupling pin hole 22b has stepwise-changed diameters, and the coupling pin 23 also has stepwise-changed diameters so as to correspond to the shape of the second coupling pin hole 22b. Therefore, in the inkjet recording apparatus 10, it is easy to position the coupling pins 23 in the first coupling pin holes 22a and the second coupling pin holes 22b.
In the inkjet recording apparatus 10, the coupling portion 21 is provided with a nut portion 31, and a screw shaft 32 is screwed in the nut portion 31.
Referring back to
In the inkjet recording apparatus 10, when the drive motor 33 is driven, the screw shaft 32 rotates, and via the nut portion 31 screwed thereon the coupling portion 21 slides. At this time, according to the direction of rotation of the screw shaft 32, the coupling portion 21 advances or retreats.
In the inkjet recording apparatus 10 according to the embodiment, when inkjet recording is not performed, the first plate 20a and the second plate 20b are disposed in the waiting positions P1.
Here, though not shown in
As shown in
At this time, the four line heads 11a attached to the first plate 20a makes it possible to perform full-color inkjet recording using the respective inks of YMCK. It should be noted that the nozzle portions of the four line heads 11b attached to the unused second plate 20b are covered with the caps in order to prevent drying.
As shown in
In this case, in addition to full-color inkjet recording performed using the respective inks of YMCK by the four line heads 11a attached to the first plate 20a, it becomes possible to perform inkjet recording using the special inks by the four line heads 11b attached to the second plate 20b.
Thus, in the inkjet recording apparatus 10 according to the embodiment, since it is possible to switch between a pattern in which inkjet recording is performed using the first plate 20a and a pattern in which inkjet recording is performed using the first plate 20a and the second plate 20b, the number of line heads used can be adjusted according to the image data.
In addition, since the first plate 20a and the second plate 20b are driven by a single drive shaft, the nozzle position of the line head 11a of the first plate 20a and the nozzle position of the line head 11b of the second plate 20b can be aligned with each other extremely precisely and easily.
As shown in
Then, in the waiting positions P1, the caps 8 can be attached to the nozzle portions of the line heads 11a and 11b.
First, as shown in
Then, the cap 8 is raised and attached to the nozzle portion of the line head 11b.
In the inkjet recording apparatus 10, since the unused line head 11b is disposed in the waiting position P1, and the nozzle portion thereof is covered with the cap, the ink contained in the unused line head 11b can be prevented from drying, so that the nozzle portion can be prevented from clogging.
It should be noted that when the first plate 20a is not used, the caps 8 can be attached to the line heads 11a in the same matter as described above.
In addition, it is possible to slide the first plate 20a and the second plate 20b simultaneously, thereby attaching the caps 8 to the corresponding line head 11a and the line head 11b simultaneously.
Hereinabove, the embodiment of the present invention has been described, but the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment.
For example, the inkjet recording apparatus 10 according to the embodiment is provided with the drying machine 3 heating and drying the recording medium 1 after printing, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a recording medium after printing may be dried by a separate drying machine.
In the inkjet recording apparatus 10 according to the embodiment, the four line heads 11a are arranged on the first plate 20a, but the line heads may be one to three in number, or may be five or more in number. In addition, the four line heads 11a contain respective inks of YMCK, but the present invention is not limited to this.
Similarly, the four line heads 11b are arranged on the second plate 20b, but the line heads may be one to three in number, or may be five or more in number.
In the inkjet recording apparatus 10 according to the embodiment, two rows of heads are arranged for each of the line heads 11a of the first plate 20a, but a single row of head may be arranged, or three or more rows of heads may be arranged.
Further, a row of head is arranged for each of the line heads 11b of the second plate 20b, but two or more rows of heads may be arranged.
In the inkjet recording apparatus 10 according to the embodiment, the coupling portion 21 is integrally jointed to the first plate 20a, but the first plate 20a and the coupling portion 21 may be members separated from each other.
In the inkjet recording apparatus 10 according to the embodiment, the second plate 20b is attached to the coupling portion 21 at two points, but the second plate 20b may be attached thereto at a single point, or may be attached thereto at three or more points.
In the inkjet recording apparatus 10 according to the embodiment, the partial upper face of the second plate 20b is brought into contact with the lower face of the coupling portion 21 (see
Further, by fitting the coupling pins 23 into the first coupling pin holes 22a and the second coupling pin holes 22b, the second plate 20b is attached to the coupling portion 21, but a mechanism for the attaching is not limited to this configuration.
In the inkjet recording apparatus 10 according to the embodiment, the ball screw is used as the drive device, but a linear motor, a common screw shaft, or the like may be used.
In the inkjet recording apparatus 10 according to the embodiment, the waiting position P1 is provided with a cap attachable to the nozzle portion of the line head, but the cap itself may be a member separated therefrom.
Industrial Applicability
The inkjet recording apparatus of the present invention can be used as a line head type inkjet recording apparatus that uses a line head to perform recording on a recording object. According to such an inkjet recording apparatus, the number of line heads can be adjusted, and the nozzle positions of the line heads can be aligned precisely and easily.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012-033646 | Feb 2012 | JP | national |
| Number | Name | Date | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6293650 | Sette et al. | Sep 2001 | B1 |
| 6318840 | Sette et al. | Nov 2001 | B1 |
| 6367910 | Sette et al. | Apr 2002 | B1 |
| 20060028505 | Ikegame | Feb 2006 | A1 |
| 20060103707 | Askeland et al. | May 2006 | A1 |
| 20090189943 | Taira et al. | Jul 2009 | A1 |
| 20090244124 | Kondo | Oct 2009 | A1 |
| 20100245477 | Ohkubo et al. | Sep 2010 | A1 |
| 20110122184 | Kimura et al. | May 2011 | A1 |
| 20110134190 | Mase et al. | Jun 2011 | A1 |
| 20120044296 | Gouch et al. | Feb 2012 | A1 |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20130215198 A1 | Aug 2013 | US |
