JP2001105616A - Ink jet printing head and ink jet printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the scattering of bonded ink scum to the side surface of a printing head due to wiping and to perform wiping effectively at a high speed. SOLUTION: Ink absorbers 15, 17 are provided in the contact places with a wiper 23 on both sides of the nozzle surface 13 of a printing head 11. Slits, grooves, uneven parts or holes are provided in the ink absorbers 15, 17 and, by the capillary phenomenon, ink trapping function or ink scraping function possessed by them, the ink absorbers 15, 17 absorb ink scum effectively.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a print head for an ink jet printer, and more particularly to a structure of a print head in which a wiping blade wipes ink from an ink discharge surface (nozzle surface).

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an ink jet printer is provided with a wiping mechanism for wiping a flat nozzle surface with a wiper blade (hereinafter referred to as a wiper) as one of mechanisms for cleaning an ink discharge surface, that is, a nozzle surface of a print head. I have. For the wiper, an elastic material such as rubber or a flexible material such as felt is used. FIG. 1 simply shows a conventional print head wiping process.

The print head 1 and the wiper 3 are configured to move relatively. As shown in FIG.
When the print head 1 moves in the direction of the arrow, the tip of the wiper 3 first strikes the side surface of the print head 1 as shown in FIG. 3B, and then the tip of the wiper 3 as shown in FIG. The portion is bent to wipe off dirt on the nozzle surface 7, and then, as shown in FIG.
Of the print head 1 comes out of the print head 1. Next, the print head 1 moves in the direction opposite to the arrow, and the wiper 3 wipes the dirt on the nozzle surface 7 from the direction opposite to the previous direction. This is repeated several times.

[0004]

However, FIG. 1 (a)
As shown in FIG. 5, when the wiping step is started, if the ink residue 5 wiped off in the previous step remains attached to the wiper 3, the wiper 3 is placed on the side of the print head 1 as shown in FIG. When hit, the ink residue 5 adheres to the side surface of the print head 1 as shown in FIG. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 3C, the wiper 3 advances while wiping the ink residue 5 'on the nozzle surface 7, and finally, when the wiper 3 comes off from the print head 1 as shown in FIG. By the rebound of 3, the wiped ink residue 5 'is scattered around.

In addition, the ink residue 5 adhering to the side surface of the print head 1 may adhere again to the wiper 3 in the next wiping step. In this case, the wiper 3 is
Since the nozzle surface 7 is wiped in a state in which is adhered, there is a possibility that a sufficient cleaning function cannot be exhibited.

Further, there is a possibility that the ink residue 5 attached to the side surface of the print head 1 hangs down and stains the paper being printed. Further, since the side surface of the print head 1 is generally subjected to a rough surface finish, the ink residue 5 attached to the side surface of the print head 1 crawls up the side surface of the print head 1 and is disposed at the base of the head due to a capillary phenomenon. There is also a risk of flowing into a circuit board or the like that has been used.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to cause ink scum adhering to the side of a print head to flow to other parts or to be dropped by a cleaning operation of a wiper. It is an object of the present invention to provide a print head that is free from ink droplets and that does not cause the ink residue attached to the side surface of the print head to reattach to the wiper or the ink residue attached to the wiper to scatter.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, an ink jet print head according to the present invention comprises a front part of a print head which abuts a wiper before the wiper enters a nozzle face, and a wiper coming out of the nozzle face. An ink absorber is provided at one or both of the rear portions of the print head that comes into contact with the ink absorber. And at least one of the front and rear ink absorbers is
It has a slit that carries ink from the portion in contact with the wiper to another portion by capillary action. Alternatively, at least one of the front and rear ink absorbers has an uneven portion, a groove, or a slit on the surface of the portion that comes into contact with the wiper, for scraping ink from the wiper. Alternatively, at least one of the front and rear ink absorbers has a slit or a hole for trapping ink at a portion in contact with the wiper.

According to the present invention, the ink absorbers at the front and rear portions of the print head absorb and retain the ink residue adhering to the wiper, so that the ink residue travels along the side surface of the print head to the circuit board or the wiper. The danger of ink splattering due to the rebound is reduced. In addition, the wiper is cleaned after the ink residue is removed, and then enters the next wiping step, thereby increasing the cleaning effect.

A slit provided in the ink absorber;
The grooves, uneven portions, holes, and the like enhance the ink absorbing ability of the ink absorber, so that wiping can be performed efficiently.

In the case of a color inkjet print head, a plurality of groups of inkjet nozzles having different ink colors exist on the nozzle surface. It is desirable that such a color print head also includes an ink absorber that partitions between a plurality of nozzle groups on the nozzle surface, in addition to the entire or rear ink absorber. Thereby, mixing of different inks is prevented.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of the ink jet print head according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 2 shows an ink jet print head and a wiping mechanism according to one embodiment of the present invention.

A blade-shaped wiper 23 made of an elastic material such as rubber or a flexible material such as felt is provided near a predetermined position for cleaning the print head 11.
Is arranged. When performing wiping, the print head 11 reciprocates relatively to the wiper 23 in a direction indicated by an arrow A so as to pass through the position of the wiper 23. The wiper 23 is fixed to the tip of the wiper holder 21, and the height of the wiper 23 can change as shown by the arrow B. Normally, even when the wiper 23 is at a low position and the print head 11 passes the position of the wiper 23, the wiper 23 does not touch the print head 11. At the time of wiping, the wiper 23 is at a high position, and when the print head 11 passes through the position of the wiper 23, the wiper 23 bends and wipes the nozzle surface 13 on the lower surface of the print head 11 while bending.

Of the side surfaces surrounding the nozzle surface 13 of the print head 11, two surfaces perpendicular to the movement direction indicated by the arrow A (that is, two surfaces that come into contact with the wiper 23 when the print head 11 moves, Hereinafter, the front of the print head 11,
Ink absorbers 15, 17 made of a material that easily absorbs ink, such as porous resin, felt, or non-woven fabric, are attached to the rear surfaces 14 and 16, respectively. The ink absorbers 15 and 17 extend over the entire width of the front surface 14 and the rear surface 16 of the print head 11 and have a height from the lower end where the front surface 14 and the rear surface 16 contact the nozzle surface 13 to a height position where the upper end of the wiper 23 reaches. Over a range,
Is provided. In other words, the ink absorbers 15, 17
Is provided so as to cover an area of the front surface 14 and the rear surface 16 of the print head 11 that comes into contact with the wiper 23. Therefore, the wiper 23 is moved to the front 1 of the print head 11.
There is no direct contact between 4 and rear surface 16.

The ink absorbers 15 and 17 respectively include:
A plurality of slits 19 are formed. These slits 19 are cut vertically upward from the lower end desired for the nozzle surfaces 13 of the ink absorbers 15 and 17, and are arranged over the entire width of the ink absorbers 15 and 17. The upper ends of the slits 19 stop short of the upper ends of the ink absorbers 15 and 17, and therefore, the ink absorbers 15 and 17
Are connected over the entire width without being separated by slits.

FIG. 3 shows a wiping process of the print head 11.

As shown in FIG. 1A, at the start of wiping, even if the ink residue 25 adheres to the wiper 23, as shown in FIG.
First, the ink scrap 25 is absorbed by the ink absorber 15 by contacting the ink absorber 15 in front of the print head 11 and rubbing the surface of the wiper 23 with the ink absorber 15.

Since the ink residue 25 is thus absorbed by the ink absorber 15, the nozzle surface 13 can be wiped with a clean wiper 23 having no ink residue, as shown in FIG. Therefore, a good cleaning effect is exhibited. The wiper 23 collects the ink residue 25 ′ while wiping the nozzle surface 13, and thereafter rubs against the ink absorber 17 when the ink residue 25 comes out of the nozzle surface 13 as shown in FIG. 'Is absorbed by the ink absorber 17. Finally, as shown in FIG. 5E, when the wiper 23 separates from the print head 11, it rebounds, but since the ink residue 25 'has already been removed, there is no risk that the ink residue 25' will scatter.

In the above process, the ink absorbed by the ink absorbers 15 and 17 is retained in the ink absorbers 15 and 17, so that the ink drips down or flows down the side of the head to a circuit board or the like. The likelihood is reduced. As shown in FIG.
A plurality of longitudinal slits 1 are provided in the ink absorbers 15 and 17.
Since the 9 are arranged over the entire width, these slits 19 facilitate the diffusion of the ink through the ink absorbers 15, 17 by capillary action. That is, the ink absorbers 15 and 17 mainly come into contact with the wiper 23 at the lower end and near the lower end, so that the ink is absorbed at the lower end and near the lower end. The slit 19 effectively carries the ink upward from the lower end portion or the vicinity of the lower end by utilizing the capillary phenomenon. Therefore, the ink is the ink absorber 1
Since it is difficult for the ink absorbers 15 and 17 to collect and concentrate on the local portions of the ink absorbers 15 and 17, the ink absorber 1
The ink absorbing ability and ink holding ability of 5, 17 are improved.

In the following, some embodiments of the ink jet print head in which the shape of the ink absorber is varied will be described with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 4 shows the same ink absorber 15, 1 having a plurality of slits 19 in the vertical direction as shown in FIG.
7 is shown. The slit 19 is provided for the ink absorber 15, 1
Although the ink does not reach the upper end of 7, the ink is prevented from seeping out from the upper ends of the ink absorbers 15 and 17 through the slits and traveling along the side of the head to the upper circuit board.

In the print head 31 shown in FIG. 5, a plurality of longitudinal slits 39 extend completely from the lower end to the upper end through the ink absorbers 35 and 37 completely. In other words, the ink absorbers 35 and 37 are formed by arranging a plurality of separated columnar sub-ink absorbers 35 ′ and 37 ′ on the front and rear surfaces of the print head 31 over the entire width thereof through the slits 39 therebetween. It is constituted by doing. The slit 39 reaches the upper ends of the ink absorbers 35 and 37. If the ink absorbers 35 and 37 themselves have sufficient ink absorbency, the ink passes through the slits and passes through the ink absorbers 15 and 37.
There is almost no danger of seeping out from the upper end of the head and traveling along the head side to the upper circuit board.

The ink absorbers shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 improve the ink absorbing ability by the capillary action of the slits, so that the ink can be rapidly absorbed. Therefore, the ink can be favorably absorbed even when the wiper is in contact with the ink absorber for a short time, so that it is easy to increase the wiping speed and shorten the cleaning time.

The ink absorbers 45, 4 shown in a sectional view in FIG.
Numeral 7 is provided with a plurality of laterally extending grooves or a plurality of concave and convex portions on the surface thereof, particularly on the front surface where the wiper contacts. Further, the ink absorbers 55, 5 and 5 shown in a sectional view in FIG.
Numeral 7 is provided with a plurality of laterally extending grooves or a plurality of uneven portions on the lower surface to which the wiper 23 contacts. Also,
The ink absorbers 65 and 67 shown in the cross-sectional view of FIG. 8 are provided with a plurality of laterally extending grooves or a plurality of uneven portions on both the front surface and the lower surface of the wiper 23. The ink absorbers 75 and 77 shown in the sectional view of FIG.
A plurality of slits 79 having a V-shaped cross section extending in the lateral direction are provided on a surface such as a front surface or a lower surface on which the light is applied.
The plurality of grooves, the gaps between the plurality of uneven portions, or the plurality of slits improve the ink absorbing ability of the ink absorber, and the corners of the grooves, uneven portions, or slits scrape ink from the wiper. Improve ability.

As shown in FIG. 10A, the ink absorber 85 shown in FIG. 10 has a plurality of laterally extending slits 86 on the front surface where the wiper contacts.
The ends of the outer frame surfaces 85a, 85a of the ink absorber 85
b, 85c, and 85d, the outer frame surfaces 85a, 8
5b, 85c, and 85d. As shown in FIG. 6B (a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB in FIG. 7A), the slit 86 is cut deep from the surface of the ink absorber 85 until it reaches the surface of the print head 81 on the back side. . An ink absorber 96 shown in FIG. 11 (FIG. 11 (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line CC of FIG. 11 (a)) has a plurality of deep circular holes (square holes) reaching the surface of the print head 81 on the front surface of the wiper. 96). These deep slits and holes quickly trap ink adhering to the wiper,
After the trap, the ink is absorbed inside the ink absorbers 85 and 95. Accordingly, the ink is removed from the wiper faster than the ink absorbing speed of the ink absorber, so that the wiping speed can be easily increased. Further, the slits and holes have a function of diffusing the ink into the entire ink absorber by a capillary phenomenon, thereby increasing the ink absorbing ability.

Next, variations of the arrangement of the ink absorber with respect to the print head will be described with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 12 shows a print head 101 in which ink absorbers 105 and 107 are arranged on both side surfaces (front and rear surfaces). The lower surfaces of the ink absorbers 105 and 107 may be flush with the nozzle surface 103, may slightly protrude from the nozzle surface 103 within a range where the wiper bends, or may be slightly receded. Further, the lower surfaces of the ink absorbers 105 and 107 may be parallel to the nozzle surface 103 or may be slightly inclined as long as the wiper bends.

In the print head 111 shown in FIG. 13, the ink absorber 1 is provided on both sides of the nozzle 119 on the nozzle surface 113.
15, 117 are embedded. In the print head 121 of FIG. 14, ink absorbers 125 and 127 are adhered to the nozzle surface 123 at positions on both sides of the nozzle 129.
Although the lower surfaces of the ink absorbers 115, 117, 125, and 127 project from the nozzle surfaces 113 and 123, both surfaces can be flush with each other in the case of embedding in FIG.

In the print head 131 shown in FIG. 15, support members 134 and 13 are provided at positions slightly away from the front and rear surfaces.
6 has ink absorbers 135 and 137 attached thereto.

FIG. 16 shows a print head 141 for color printing. The print heads 141M and 141 for each color such as magenta (M), cyan (C), and yellow (Y).
1C, 141Y, ink absorbers 145, 1
47, 149 and 151 are arranged. In other words,
An ink absorber 145 at the front and rear of the print head 141;
151 as well as the nozzle surface 143
Another ink absorber 1 is also provided at a position between the nozzle rows (not shown) of three colors M, C, and Y on M, 143C, and 143Y.
47 and 149 are provided. The ink absorbers 147 and 149 for separating the print heads for each color (that is, for separating the nozzle rows for each color) have the function of removing ink residue from the wiper, and the ink adhering to the nozzle surface of each color head. It also has the function of preventing it from mixing with inks of different colors.

The embodiment described above is an example for describing the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the invention. It is. For example, the shape of the ink absorber is shown in FIGS.
The shape is not limited to the one provided with slits, irregularities, holes, etc. as shown in FIG. 11, and various other shapes can be adopted as long as the shape can effectively absorb the ink of the wiper. Further, the arrangement variation of the ink absorber is also shown in FIG.
The arrangement is not limited to the arrangement shown in FIGS. 2 to 16, and may be arranged at any position as long as the ink attached to the wiper can be effectively wiped and absorbed.
It is possible to combine the shapes shown in FIGS. 4 to 11 in a combined manner, or to combine the arrangements shown in FIGS. 12 to 16 in a combined manner. Further, the ink absorber on the front surface and the ink absorber on the rear surface of the print head can be different in shape and arrangement.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of a conventional print head wiping process.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a print head and a wiper according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a wiping step of the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the ink absorber of the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an ink absorber according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of an ink absorber according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of an ink absorber according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view of an ink absorber according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a sectional view of an ink absorber according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view and a sectional view of an ink absorber according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view and a sectional view of an ink absorber according to a seventh embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a sectional view showing the arrangement of the ink absorber according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a sectional view showing the arrangement of an ink absorber according to an eighth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a sectional view showing the arrangement of an ink absorber according to a ninth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a sectional view showing the arrangement of an ink absorber according to a tenth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a sectional view showing the arrangement of an ink absorber according to an eleventh embodiment of the present invention.

[Description of Signs] 11, 31, 41, 51, 61, 81, 91, 101,
111, 121, 131, 141 Print head 15, 17, 35, 37, 45, 47, 55, 57, 6
5,67,75,77,85,95,105,107,
115, 117, 125, 127, 135, 137, 1
45, 147, 149, 151 Ink absorber 23 Wiper 25, 25 'Ink residue 19, 39, 79, 86 Slit 96 Circular hole

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. An ink jet print head used in an ink jet printer, wherein a nozzle surface is wiped with a wiper during cleaning, wherein a front portion of the print head which abuts before the wiper enters the nozzle surface, and wherein the wiper is a nozzle. An ink absorber is provided on at least one of the rear portions of the print head that comes in contact with the print head after coming off the surface, and at least one of the front and rear ink absorbers has a capillary tube from a portion in contact with the wiper to another portion. An ink jet print head that has a slit that carries ink by a phenomenon. 2. An ink jet print head used in an ink jet printer, wherein a nozzle surface is wiped with a wiper during cleaning, wherein a front portion of the print head which abuts before the wiper enters the nozzle surface, and wherein the wiper is a nozzle. An ink absorber is provided on at least one of the rear portions of the print head that comes into contact with the print head after the surface has come off, and at least one of the front and rear ink absorbers forms an ink from the wiper on a surface of a portion that comes into contact with the wiper. Ink jet print head having an uneven portion, a groove or a slit for scraping off. 3. An ink jet print head used in an ink jet printer, wherein a nozzle surface is wiped with a wiper during cleaning, wherein the front portion of the print head abuts before the wiper enters the nozzle surface, and the wiper is a nozzle. An ink absorber is provided on at least one of the rear portions of the print head that comes in contact with the print head after coming off the surface, and at least one of the front and rear ink absorbers is used to trap ink in a portion that comes into contact with the wiper. An ink jet print head having slits or holes. 4. An ink jet print head used in an ink jet printer, wherein a plurality of groups of ink jet nozzles having different ink colors are provided on a nozzle face, and the nozzle face is wiped with a wiper during cleaning, wherein the wiper enters the nozzle face. Front contacting before,
And an ink absorber provided on at least one of the rear portions where the wiper comes into contact with the nozzle surface after coming off the nozzle surface, and another ink absorber provided on the nozzle surface to partition the plurality of nozzle groups. Ink jet print head provided. 5. An ink jet print head, comprising: a wiper for wiping a nozzle surface of the print head, wherein the print head comes into contact with the wiper before the wiper enters the nozzle surface, and wherein the wiper is a nozzle surface. An ink absorber is provided on at least one of the rear portions that come into contact with the wiper, and at least one of the front and rear ink absorbers carries ink from a portion in contact with the wiper to another portion by capillary action. An inkjet printer with slits. 6. An ink jet print head, comprising: a wiper for wiping a nozzle surface of the print head, wherein the print head comes into contact with the wiper before the wiper enters the nozzle surface, and the wiper includes a nozzle surface. An ink absorber is provided on at least one of the rear portions that come into contact with the wiper, and at least one of the front and rear ink absorbers is used to scrape ink from the wiper on a surface of a portion that comes into contact with the wiper. An ink jet printer having an uneven portion, a groove or a slit. 7. An ink jet print head, comprising: a wiper for wiping a nozzle surface of the print head, wherein the print head comes into contact with the wiper before the wiper enters the nozzle surface, and wherein the wiper is a nozzle surface. An ink absorber is provided on at least one of the rear portions that come into contact with the wiper after being removed, and at least one of the front and rear ink absorbers has a slit or a hole for trapping ink at a portion that comes into contact with the wiper. Have an inkjet printer. 8. An ink jet print head having a plurality of groups of ink jet nozzles having different ink colors on a nozzle face, and a wiper for wiping a nozzle face of the print head, wherein the print head has a wiper on the nozzle face. The front part that abuts before entering,
And an ink absorber provided on at least one of the rear portions where the wiper comes into contact with the nozzle surface after coming off the nozzle surface, and another ink absorber provided on the nozzle surface to partition the plurality of nozzle groups. Inkjet printer.