JP2011240580A - Fluid ejecting apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to use a linear member as an absorbing member for receiving a fluid, and to prevent contamination of a recording medium by quickly moving the head and the absorbing member when flushing the absorbing member. Provided is a fluid ejecting apparatus capable of reducing the flushing time.
A fluid ejecting apparatus of the present invention includes a traveling mechanism that causes an absorbing member to travel from one side to the other side of the nozzle row, and the traveling mechanism is disposed in a non-recording area, and the absorbing member is disposed in the non-recording area. A sending rotator that feeds out the unwound state from the wound state, a winding rotator that winds up the absorbing member sent out from the sending rotator, and a first portion of the absorbing member that is sent out from the sending rotator. A guide unit that guides the absorbing member with respect to the winding rotary body so that the second part wound around the winding rotary body is wound around and is similar to the winding state of the absorbing member with respect to the sending rotary body, It has.
[Selection] Figure 5

Description

  The present invention relates to a fluid ejecting apparatus.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an ink jet printer (hereinafter referred to as “printer”) is widely known as a fluid ejecting apparatus that ejects ink droplets onto a recording paper (medium). In such a printer, the ink is thickened or solidified due to evaporation of the ink from the nozzles of the recording head, dust adheres, and air bubbles are mixed, resulting in clogging of the nozzles and printing failure. There was a problem of being. Therefore, in such a printer, a flushing operation for forcibly ejecting the ink in the nozzle is performed separately from the ejection to the recording paper.

  Generally, in a scanning type printer, the recording head is moved to an area other than the recording area to perform a flushing operation. However, in a printer having a line head with a fixed recording head, the recording head is moved during the flushing operation. I can't let you.

  Therefore, for example, a method of ejecting ink toward an absorbing material (absorbing member) provided on the surface of a conveying belt that conveys recording paper has been considered (Patent Document 1). In this technique, an opening that allows insertion of the nozzle forming surface of the recording head is formed in a part of the conveying belt, and the surface facing the nozzle forming surface of the flushing belt that is not formed with the opening is the flushing. It is formed as an ink receiving part at the time.

  In the case of the above technique, the recording operation is performed on the recording paper on the conveying belt facing the nozzle forming surface with the recording head inserted into the opening provided in the flushing belt, and the flushing is performed. The operation is performed on the portion where the opening is not formed by rotating the flushing belt after raising the recording head to bring the nozzle forming surface out of the opening.

  However, if flushing is performed on a planar absorbent material, the mist-like ink may be scattered due to the wind pressure accompanying the ejection of ink droplets, and the recording paper or the conveyor belt may be soiled.

  Therefore, a linear absorbent material is used, and the linear absorbent member (absorbent material) is disposed between the line head and the recording paper (recording medium), and ink is ejected and flushed toward this. Thus, it is conceivable that the ink is received by the absorbing member. In this case, since there is a limit to the amount of ink that can be received with respect to this absorbing member, when the ink is received to some extent, the absorbing member is moved, flushed toward a new area of the absorbing member, and ink is received again. It is possible to make it.

JP 2007-62339 A

  Until now, it was based on not moving the recording head during the flushing operation. However, since the distance between the nozzle forming surface and the recording paper is very narrow, the recording head is raised as in the technique of Patent Document 1 described above. Better. However, in this technique, since the flushing belt must be moved after raising the recording head, it takes time for the flushing operation.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to use a linear absorbent member that receives fluid to prevent the recording medium (recording paper) from being stained and One object of the present invention is to provide a fluid ejecting apparatus that can shorten the flushing time by quickly moving the head and the absorbing member during flushing.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the fluid ejecting apparatus of the present invention has a nozzle row composed of a plurality of nozzles arranged in a direction intersecting with the conveyance direction of the recording medium, and fluid that ejects fluid from the nozzle row A fluid ejecting apparatus including an ejecting head, which extends along a nozzle row and is provided so as to be movable from one side to the other side of the nozzle row and absorbs fluid ejected from the nozzle And a traveling mechanism that causes the absorbing member to travel from one side of the nozzle row to the other side, and the traveling mechanism is disposed in the non-recording area and is wound from the state where the absorbing member is wound up. A sending rotator that is sent out by unwinding, a winding rotator that winds up the absorbing member sent from the sending rotator, a first portion of the absorbing member that is sent out from the sending rotator, and the winding rotator Second taken Position and is hooked around, according to the position of the absorbing member to be delivered from the delivery rotary member, characterized by comprising a guide portion for guiding the position of the absorbing member with respect to the winding rotary member, a.

  In the fluid ejecting apparatus of the present invention, the absorbing member can be guided with respect to the take-up rotary body by the above-described guide portion so as to be similar to the winding state of the absorbent member with respect to the delivery rotary body. As a result, the absorbing member can be uniformly wound around the winding rotary member. For example, when winding the absorbing member around the winding rotary member, if the winding member is freely wound, the absorbing member is wound non-uniformly around the winding rotary member, which causes waste in the winding capacity of the absorbing member. By providing the guide portion as in the present invention, it is possible to wind up a sufficient amount without wasting the winding capacity of the absorbing member of the winding rotary body.

  In addition, the guide portion is movable along the shaft portion parallel to the central axis of the delivery rotator and the take-up rotator and the axial direction of the shaft portion, and the first portion and the second portion of the absorbing member are laid around. It is preferable to have a rotating part.

According to the present invention, since the first portion and the second portion of the absorbing member are wound around the rotating portion, the absorption sent out from the sending rotator by the tension of the absorbing member sent out from the sending rotator. The rotating part moves along the shaft part to the position of the member (first part). Along with this, the position of the absorbing member (second part) relative to the winding rotary body changes in the axial direction, so that the absorbing member (second part) can be wound around the entire axial direction of the winding rotary body. Become.
Thereby, it winds automatically so that it may be in the winding state similar to an upstream sending rotary body with respect to a downstream winding rotary body, without performing special drive.

  The traveling mechanism includes a reversing roller for reversing the traveling direction of the absorbing member between the feeding rotating body and the winding rotating body on the traveling path of the absorbing member, and the absorbing member is moved from one side of the nozzle row to the other side. It is preferable to be configured so as to travel toward one side again by the reversing roller and to extend along a nozzle row different from the nozzle row after traveling toward the opposite side.

  According to the present invention, the feeding rotary body and the winding rotary body can be centrally located on one side of the nozzle row, whereby the fluid ejecting apparatus can be reduced in size. Moreover, it can comprise so that absorption of the injected fluid may be performed with respect to two different nozzle rows by one traveling mechanism. In addition, since the distance between the guide portion and the sending rotator or the take-up rotator is reduced, the tension of the absorbing member is prevented from being lowered, and the guide portion can be moved (swinged) smoothly.

  In addition, a first auxiliary roller that is disposed closer to the delivery rotator than the rotating part and supports the first part, and a second auxiliary roller that is disposed closer to the winding rotator than the rotating part and supports the second part, And a holding member that holds the rotating portion, the first auxiliary roller, and the second auxiliary roller in a state in which the rotation axes thereof are parallel to each other, and the holding member has the rotating portion as a fulcrum and the first auxiliary roller and the second auxiliary roller. It is preferable to be configured to swing so as to change the position of each other up and down.

  According to the present invention, the first auxiliary roller is provided in the vicinity of the feeding rotary body, and the second auxiliary roller is provided in the vicinity of the winding rotary body, thereby supporting the absorbing member at a position closer to the sending rotary body and the winding rotary body. It becomes possible to do. Thereby, since it can transmit to a rotation part, without reducing the tension | tensile_strength of an absorption member, rocking | fluctuation of a holding member can be performed favorably and an absorption member can be wound up more reliably with respect to a winding rotary body. Is possible.

  Moreover, it is preferable that the guide part is located in the middle of a sending rotary body and a winding rotary body.

  According to the present invention, since the guide portion is located at an intermediate position between the delivery rotator and the take-up rotator, the tension of the absorbing member wound around the delivery rotator without any special drive. It becomes possible to move a guide part by.

  Moreover, it is preferable that a rotation part has a 1st roller by which the 1st site | part of an absorption member is spanned, and a 2nd roller by which the 2nd site | part of an absorption member is spanned.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent the first part that is the same as a new part and the second part that has been used from coming into contact with each other in the rotating portion, so that the fluid absorbed in the second part is the first. It can prevent moving to the site. Thereby, the sufficient demand amount of the fluid in the 1st site | part of an absorption member is securable.

1 is a perspective view illustrating an overall configuration of a printer according to a first embodiment. The schematic structure perspective view of a head unit. FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration perspective view of a recording head constituting the head unit. The schematic structure perspective view of a cap unit. The top view which shows schematic structure of a flushing unit. It is a schematic diagram which shows an example of an absorption member, (a) Sectional drawing, (b) Plan view. The side view which shows schematic structure around a guide part. The top view of FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows the modification in a guide roller. The side view which shows the principal part in the printer of 2nd Embodiment. The top view of FIG.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In each drawing used for the following description, the scale of each member is appropriately changed to make each member a recognizable size.
In this embodiment, an ink jet printer (hereinafter simply referred to as a printer) is illustrated as the fluid ejecting apparatus.

[First Embodiment]
FIG. 1 is an embodiment of a fluid ejecting apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration perspective view of a printer.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the printer 1 includes a head unit 2, a transport device 3 that transports a recording paper (recording medium), a paper feeding unit 4 that supplies the recording paper, and a recording paper printed by the head unit 2. Is provided with a paper discharge unit 5 that discharges the ink and a maintenance device 10 that performs maintenance processing on the head unit 2.

  The conveying device 3 is a recording paper in a state where a predetermined interval is provided between the recording head (fluid ejection head) 21 (21A, 21B, 21C, 21D, 21E) constituting the head unit 2 and the nozzle surface 23. Is configured to hold. The transport device 3 includes a driving roller unit 31, a driven roller unit 32, and a transport belt unit 33 including a plurality of belts that are looped between the roller units 31 and 32. Further, a holding member 34 that holds the recording paper is provided on the downstream side in the transport direction of the recording paper in the transport device 3 (on the paper discharge unit 5 side) and between the paper discharge unit 5.

The drive roller unit 31 is connected to a drive motor (not shown) at one end side in the rotation axis direction, and is configured to be rotationally driven by the drive motor. And the rotational power of this drive roller part 31 is transmitted to the conveyance belt part 33, and the conveyance belt part 33 is rotationally driven. A transmission gear is installed between the drive roller unit 31 and the drive motor as necessary. The driven roller unit 32 is a so-called free roller, and supports the transport belt unit 33 and rotates by being driven by the rotational drive of the transport belt unit 33 (drive roller unit 31).
The paper discharge unit 5 includes a paper discharge roller 51 and a paper discharge tray 52 that holds recording paper conveyed by the paper discharge roller 51.

  The head unit 2 is configured by unitizing a plurality (five in the present embodiment) of recording heads 21A to 21E. From each nozzle 24 (see FIG. 3) of each recording head 21A to 21E, A plurality of colors of ink (for example, black B, magenta M, yellow Y, and cyan C inks) are ejected. These recording heads 21 </ b> A to 21 </ b> E (hereinafter sometimes referred to as recording head 21) are unitized by being attached to the attachment plate 22. That is, in the head unit 2 according to the present embodiment, a plurality of recording heads 21 are combined, so that the effective print width of the head unit 2 is substantially equal to the horizontal width of the recording paper (width orthogonal to the transport direction). The line head module is configured. In addition, each structure itself in each recording head 21A-21E is made common.

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration perspective view of the head unit.
As shown in FIG. 2, the head unit 2 has the recording heads 21 </ b> A to 21 </ b> E arranged in an opening 25 formed in the mounting plate 22. Specifically, the recording heads 21 </ b> A to 21 </ b> E are screwed to the back surface 22 b side of the mounting plate 22, so that the nozzle surface 23 protrudes from the front surface 22 a side of the mounting plate 22 through the opening 25. It has been done. The head unit 2 is mounted on the printer 1 by fixing the mounting plate 22 to a carriage (not shown).

  The head unit 2 in the present embodiment is configured to be movable between a recording position and a flushing position (direction indicated by an arrow in FIG. 1) by a carriage. Here, the recording position is a position that faces the conveying device 3 and performs recording on the recording paper. On the other hand, the maintenance position is a position retracted from the transport device 3 and a position facing the maintenance device 10. Maintenance processing (suction processing, wiping processing) for the head unit 2 is performed at this maintenance position.

FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view of a recording head (fluid ejecting head) constituting the head unit.
As shown in FIG. 3, the recording heads 21 </ b> A to 21 </ b> E (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as the recording head 21) constituting the head unit 2 are formed with a plurality of nozzle rows L each including a plurality of nozzles 24. A head main body 25A having a nozzle surface 23 and a support member 28 to which the head main body 25A is attached are configured.

  Each of the recording heads 21A to 21E has nozzle rows (L (Y), L (M), and L (C) corresponding to four colors (yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (Bk)). ), L (Bk)), and therefore, four nozzle rows L are formed. In each nozzle row (L (Y), L (M), L (C), L (Bk)), these nozzle rows (L (Y), L (M), L (C), L (Bk)) Are arranged in a horizontal direction intersecting the recording paper conveyance direction. Specifically, they are arranged in a horizontal direction perpendicular to the recording paper conveyance direction.

  The recording heads 21A to 21E are arranged such that the nozzle rows corresponding to the same color in the arrangement direction of the recording heads 21A to 21E are one row. In addition, for each nozzle row (L (Y), L (M), L (C), L (Bk)) in each of the recording heads 21A to 21E, two rows are formed for each color, for a total of 8 rows. Also good. In that case, it is preferable that the two nozzle rows provided for each color are arranged in a staggered manner.

  The support member 28 has overhang portions 26, 26 formed on both sides of the nozzle surface 23 in the longitudinal direction, and the overhang portions 26, 26 are used to screw the recording head 21 to the back surface 22 b of the mounting plate 22. Through-holes 27 are formed. Thus, the plurality of recording heads 21 are attached to the attachment plate 22 to constitute the head unit 2 (see FIG. 1).

  The maintenance device 10 includes a cap unit 6 that performs a suction process on the head unit 2 and a flushing unit 11 that receives ink ejected by a flushing operation.

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of the cap unit.
As shown in FIG. 4, the cap unit 6 performs maintenance processing on the head unit 2, and a plurality (five in the present embodiment) of cap units 61 </ b> A to 61 </ b> E corresponding to the recording heads 21 </ b> A to 21 </ b> E are unit. It is constituted by having been made. The cap unit 6 is disposed at a location outside the recording area of the head unit 2.

  Each of the cap portions 61A to 61E (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as the cap portion 61) is provided corresponding to each of the recording heads 21A to 21E, and is provided on the nozzle surface 23 of each of the recording heads 21A to 21E. It is comprised so that contact | abutting is possible. Under such a configuration, the cap portions 61A to 61E are in close contact with the nozzle surfaces 23 of the recording heads 21A to 21E, respectively, thereby performing a suction operation for discharging ink (fluid) from the nozzles 24 of the nozzle surfaces 23. Can be done well.

  Each of the cap portions 61A to 61E wipes the cap main body 67, a seal member 62 that is provided in a frame shape on the upper surface of the cap main body 67, and contacts the recording head 21, and the nozzle surface 23 of the recording head 21. A wiping member 63 used during the wiping process, and a housing portion 64 that integrally holds the cap body 67 and the wiping member 63.

  Two holding portions 65 (one not shown) for holding the housing portion 64 on the base member 69 are formed at the bottom of the housing portion 64. These holding portions 65 are arranged at diagonal positions in the housing portion 64 in plan view. Each holding portion 65 is formed with a through hole 65b into which a screw for screwing and fixing the housing portion 64 to the base member 69 is inserted.

FIG. 5 is a bottom view showing a schematic configuration of the flushing unit.
As shown in FIG. 5, the flushing unit 11 includes a plurality of absorbing members 12 that absorb ink droplets (fluid) discharged during the flushing operation, and a support mechanism 9 that supports these absorbing members 12. ing.
The absorbing member 12 is a linear member that absorbs ink droplets ejected from each nozzle 24, and two absorbing members 12 are provided for one head unit 2 in this embodiment. Each absorbing member 12 is arranged in a state extending along the corresponding nozzle row (L (Y), L (M), L (C), L (Bk)), and each nozzle surface 23. And the recording paper conveyance area (conveyance surface).

The absorbing member 12 is formed of, for example, a thread material, and a member that can efficiently absorb and hold (receive) ink is preferably used. Specifically, SUS304, nylon, nylon with hydrophilic coating, aramid, silk, cotton, polyester, ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene, polyarylate, zylon (trade name), or a composite fiber containing a plurality of these Thus, the absorbent member 12 can be formed.
More specifically, the absorbent member 12 can be formed by twisting or bundling fiber bundles formed from fibers or composite fibers.
FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of the absorbing member 12, where (a) is a cross-sectional view and (b) is a plan view. As shown in these drawings, the absorbent member 12 is formed, for example, by twisting two fiber bundles 12a formed from fibers.

  Further, as other examples, a linear member in which a plurality of fiber bundles made of SUS304 are twisted together, a linear member in which a plurality of fiber bundles made of nylon are twisted together, or a fiber bundle made of nylon with a hydrophilic coat applied A linear member in which a plurality of fiber bundles made of aramid are twisted together, a linear member in which a plurality of fiber bundles made of silk are twisted together, and a plurality of fiber bundles made of cotton are twisted together A linear member in which fiber bundles made of Berryma (trade name) are bundled, a linear member in which fiber bundles made of Soarion (trade name) are bundled, and a fiber bundle made of Hamilon 03T (trade name) A bundled linear member, a linear member in which a fiber bundle made of Dyneema Hamiron DB-8 (trade name) is bundled, a linear member in which a fiber bundle made of Vectran Hamilon VB-30 is bundled, Linear member bundled with fiber bundles made of Milon S-5 Core Kevlar Sleeve Polyester (trade name), Linear member bundled with fiber bundles made of Hamilon S-212 Core Cabble Sleeve Polyester (trade name), Hamilon SZ A linear member in which fiber bundles made of -10 core zylon sleeve polyester (trade name) are bundled, and a linear member in which fiber bundles made of Hamilon VB-3 Vectran (trade name) are bundled are suitable as the absorbent member 12 Used.

The absorbent member 12 using nylon fibers is made of nylon that is widely used as a general-purpose water thread, and therefore is inexpensive.
The absorbent member 12 using metal fibers made of SUS material is excellent in corrosion resistance and can absorb various inks. Also, the absorbent member 12 has high wear resistance compared to a resin and can be used repeatedly.

The absorbent member 12 using ultra high molecular weight polyethylene fibers has high cutting strength and chemical resistance, and is resistant to organic solvents, acids, and alkalis. Thus, since the absorbent member 12 using the ultra high molecular weight polyethylene fiber has a high cutting strength, it can be pulled with a strong tension and can be prevented from bending. For this reason, for example, when the absorption capacity is increased by increasing the diameter of the absorbing member 12, or when the diameter of the absorbing member 12 is not increased, printing is performed by reducing the distance from the heads 21A to 21E to the conveyance area of the recording paper. Accuracy can be improved. Further, the absorption member 12 using a xylon or aramid fiber can be expected to have the same effect as the absorption member 12 using an ultra high molecular weight polyethylene fiber.
The absorbent member 12 using cotton fibers is excellent in ink absorbability.

In such an absorbing member 12, since the dropped ink is held in the trough portions 12b (see FIG. 6) formed between the fibers and between the fiber bundles 12a by surface tension, the ink is absorbed and received.
Further, a part of the ink dripped onto the surface of the absorbing member 12 directly permeates the inside of the absorbing member 12, and the rest of the ink travels through the valley 12b formed between the fiber bundles 12a. Then, a part of the ink that has penetrated into the absorbing member 12 gradually moves in the extending direction of the absorbing member 12 inside the absorbing member 12, and is dispersed and held in the extending direction of the absorbing member 12. The ink that travels along the valley 12b of the absorbent member 12 gradually penetrates into the interior of the absorbent member 12 while traveling along the valley 12b, and the rest remains in the valley 12b. Distributed and held in the current direction. That is, the ink dropped on the surface of the absorbing member 12 does not stay in the portion where all of the ink is dropped over the long term, but is dispersed and absorbed around the dropped portion.

The material for forming the absorbent member 12 actually installed in the printer 1 is ink-absorbing property, retention ink property, tensile strength, ink resistance, moldability (amount of flaking and fraying), twisting property, cost, etc. Is selected as appropriate.
The ink absorption amount of the absorbing member 12 is the sum of the ink amount that can be held between the fibers of the absorbing member 12 and the ink amount that can be held in the valley portion 12b. For this reason, the material for forming the absorbing member 12 is selected so that the ink absorption amount is sufficiently larger than the ink amount discharged by flushing in consideration of the replacement frequency of the absorbing member 12 and the like.

The amount of ink that can be held between the fibers of the absorbing member 12 and the amount of ink that can be held in the valley 12b can be defined by the capillary force in the fiber gap depending on the contact angle between the ink and the fiber and the surface tension of the ink. . That is, the gap between the fibers is increased by forming using thin fibers, and the surface area of the fibers is increased as a whole, so that even if the cross-sectional area of the absorbent member 12 is the same, the absorbent member 12 has a larger amount. Ink can be absorbed. Therefore, in order to increase the gaps between the fibers, microfibers (ultrafine fibers) may be used as the fibers forming the fiber bundle 12a.
However, the ink holding force of the absorbing member 12 is reduced by increasing the gap between the fibers and reducing the capillary force. For this reason, it is necessary to set the gap between the fibers so that the ink holding force in the absorbing member 12 does not drip when the absorbing member 12 moves.

  Further, the thickness of the absorbing member 12 is, for example, about 5 to 75 times the diameter (nozzle diameter) of the nozzle 24 (nozzle diameter). In a general printer, the gap between each nozzle surface 23 and the recording paper in each recording head 21A to 21E is about 1 mm to 2 mm, and the nozzle diameter is about 0.02 mm. Therefore, if the diameter of the absorbing member 12 is 0.5 mm or less, the absorbing member 12 can be disposed between the nozzle surfaces 23 and the recording paper without being in contact with each other. Even if the error is taken into account, the ejected ink droplet can be reliably captured. Therefore, it is preferable that the absorbing member 12 has a thickness (diameter) of about 0.2 mm to 0.5 mm, that is, about 10 to 25 times the nozzle diameter. The cross-sectional shape of the absorbing member 12 is not necessarily circular, and may be a polygon or the like. Here, since it is difficult to make the absorption member into a complete circle, the circle includes a substantially circle.

  Further, the length of the absorbing member 12 is preferably sufficient for the effective print width of the head unit 2. In the printer 1 of this embodiment, as described later, the used (ink-absorbed) region of the absorbing member 12 is wound up sequentially, and the ink is absorbed in almost the entire region of the absorbing member 12. The whole structure is replaced. Therefore, the length of the absorbing member 12 is preferably about several hundred times the effective printing width of the head unit 2 so that the replacement period of the absorbing member 12 can be practically used.

The absorbent member 12 having such a configuration is supported by a support mechanism 9 as shown in FIG.
The support mechanism 9 is disposed in a non-recording area, and includes a travel mechanism 13 that travels the absorbing member 12 in one direction, and a moving mechanism 14 that moves the absorbing member 12 quantitatively. These are provided on both sides of the head unit 2, that is, on one side and the other side in the arrangement direction of the recording heads 21. In FIG. 5, a part of the head unit 2 is omitted, and only two recording heads 21 are shown. The recording heads 21 constituting the head unit 2 have a total of 8 rows, 2 for each color of the nozzle rows L (Y), (M), (C), and (Bk). Show.

  The travel mechanism 13 includes a support substrate 15A having a delivery reel (feeding rotary body) 16 and a winding reel (winding rotary body) 17 of the same type on both sides of the head unit 2, and a reverse roller 89 (89a, 89b), the absorbing member 12 held on the delivery reel 16 is arranged along the nozzle row L of the recording head 21 from one side (the supporting substrate 15A side) to the other. After traveling toward the side (support substrate 15B side), the reversing roller 89 is circulated so as to travel toward one side again, and is taken up by the take-up reel 17.

  The absorbing member 12 is mechanically and uniformly wound around the delivery reel 16 in the axial direction and the radial direction. In the present embodiment, as in the winding state of the absorbing member 12 with respect to the delivery reel 16, a guide portion 70 for causing the absorbing member 12 to be wound around the take-up reel 17 is further provided.

  The present embodiment includes a resistance member (not shown) that imparts rotational resistance to the delivery reel 16 and is configured to mechanically apply back tension. By providing the delivery reel 16 with a mechanical back tension, the absorption member is prevented from being sent out more than necessary. In addition, instead of providing a separate resistance member, a rotation resistance may be applied to the delivery reel 16 by an existing member.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, moderate tension can be given with respect to the absorption member sent out from a sending rotary body. Thereby, without requiring a special drive source, the absorbing member is stretched around the rotating portion without being bent, and the moving or swinging of the rotating body in the axial direction is surely performed.

  The support substrate 15A has a delivery reel 16, adjustment levers 18 and 18, tension springs 19 and 19, a first sensor 36, a second sensor 37, an inspection rotating body 20, a detection unit 41, rollers 42, 43, and 46c, a winding. A take-up reel 17, a take-up motor 17A, and a guide unit 70 are provided.

The delivery reel 16 is obtained by winding the absorbing member 12 in a predetermined length in advance, and is sent out to the head unit 2 side by unwinding the absorbing member 12 from this state.
The take-up reel 17 takes up the absorbing member 12 fed from the feed reel 16.
A predetermined tension is applied to the absorbing member 12 spanned between the delivery reel 16 and the take-up reel 17 by adjusting levers 18 and 18 provided so as to be rotatable about the rotation axes of the reels 16 and 17. Yes. The adjusting levers 18 and 18 are long and thin plate-shaped, and can be rotated in forward and reverse directions. The other end side is rotated in the direction indicated by the arrow by the tension springs 19 and 19 composed of coil springs connected to one end side. It is so energized.

  A first sensor 36 and a second sensor 37 are provided on both sides of one end portion of the adjustment levers 18, that is, on both sides in the rotational direction thereof, at positions where they can contact the one end portion. The first sensor 36 and the second sensor 37 are provided to maintain the tension of the absorbing member 12 within a predetermined range. When the first sensor 36 is turned on when the adjusting lever 18 comes into contact, the winding is performed. The driving of the motor 17A is stopped, and when it is turned off, the winding motor 17A is driven. On the other hand, when the second sensor 37 is turned on, the driving of the winding motor 17A is stopped, and when the second sensor 37 is turned off, the winding motor 17A is driven.

  The absorbing member 12 unwound from the delivery reel 16 is circulated around the roller 18a on the other end side of the adjustment lever 18, and the absorbing member 12 is rotated before the rotating member 20 for inspection. Has been circulated. The inspection rotating body 20 is formed by integrally forming the rotating plate 20a and the roller 20b with the same rotation axis, and a hole for generating pulses formed in the outer peripheral portion of the rotating plate 20a along the circumferential direction. 40 is detected by the detection unit 41, and the running length of the absorbing member 12 is detected by detecting the rotation speed of the roller 20b.

  The absorbent member 12 that has circulated the roller 20b of the rotating body 20 for inspection circulates the roller 18a, and then circulates the roller 42 to pass the side facing the nozzle surface 23 of each recording head 21 of the head unit 2, It goes to the support substrate 15B. Here, the absorbing member 12 is arranged in a state extending along the corresponding nozzle row L.

  The support substrate 15B is provided with a reversing roller 89 for reversing the traveling direction of the absorbing member 12 that moves from the support substrate 15A side toward the support substrate 15B side. The reversing roller 89 includes a pair (a plurality) of rollers 89a and 89b capable of adjusting the interval, the roller 89a corresponds to the roller 42 on the support substrate 15A side, and the roller 89b corresponds to the roller 43 on the support substrate 15A side. Are arranged.

  The roller 42 and the roller 89a are arranged so as to be located on a straight line parallel to the extending direction P of the nozzle row L, and the roller 43 and the roller 89b are also arranged so as to be located on a straight line. In addition, the roller 42 and the roller 43 provided on the support substrate 15 </ b> A are a plurality of the positions of the absorbing member 12 that circulate around these rollers (locations in the direction R perpendicular to the extending direction P) formed in the recording head 21. Of the nozzle rows L (eight rows in this embodiment), the nozzle rows L are arranged so as to have the same interval as the pitch between the adjacent nozzle rows L, L.

  Therefore, the rollers 89a and 89b arranged corresponding to the rollers 42 and 43 are also arranged at the same interval as the pitch between the adjacent nozzle rows L and L in positions where the absorbing member 12 is positioned. The rollers 89a and 89b, the roller 42, and the roller 43 are configured such that their intervals can be finely adjusted by a known method.

  The moving mechanism 14 moves the absorbing member 12 in a direction R intersecting the extending direction P of the nozzle row L, thereby causing the absorbing member 12 to face the nozzle 24 and eject ink droplets (fluid) ejected from the nozzle 24. ) It is moved between a flushing position to be absorbed and a retreat position where the ink droplet ejected from the nozzle 24 is retreated from the flight path. Further, the moving mechanism 14 of the present embodiment is configured to move each absorbing member 12 from a position facing a certain nozzle row L to a position facing a different nozzle row L.

  The moving mechanism 14 is constituted by a pair of moving mechanism portions 14A and 14B provided on the support substrates 15A and 15B. The movement mechanism portions 14A and 14B operate in synchronization with each other, whereby the support substrates 15A and 15B are operated. Are simultaneously moved in the direction R by the same length.

  As described above, the guide unit 70 is for guiding the winding position of the absorbing member 12 with respect to the take-up reel 17 so as to be the same as the winding state of the absorbing member 12 with respect to the sending reel 16. And the take-up reel 17.

FIG. 7 is a side view showing a schematic configuration around the guide portion, and FIG. 8 is a plan view of FIG. 7 is a view of FIG. 8 as viewed from the D direction.
As shown in FIG. 7, the guide portion 70 is a guide shaft 71 that stands perpendicular to the substrate surface of the support substrate 15A so as to be parallel to the rotation shafts 16a and 17a of the delivery reel 16 and the take-up reel 17. (Shaft portion) and a guide roller 72 (rotating body) that is loosely fitted to the guide shaft 71 and is rotatably provided, and a position at which the tangent lines of the delivery reels 16 and 17 cross each other. Located in the vicinity.

  A first portion 12A of the absorbing member 12 immediately after being sent out from the delivery reel 16 and a second portion 12B of the absorbing member 12 immediately before being taken up by the take-up reel 17 are wound around the guide roller 72, respectively. The first portion 12 </ b> A and the second portion 12 </ b> B of the absorbing member 12 are stretched so as to be adjacent in the axial direction of the guide roller 72.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 8, the guide shaft 71 of the guide portion 70 is provided with a stopper 73 for restricting the movement of the guide roller 72, and the engagement state of the guide roller 72 with respect to the guide shaft 71 is maintained. is there. The guide roller 72 moves in the vertical direction (axial direction) along the guide shaft 71 within an arbitrary range between the stopper 73 and the support substrate 15A. The guide roller 72 is configured to be slidable up and down while rotating with respect to the guide shaft 71. The tension of the absorbing member 12 is used for the power, and no special drive source is provided.

  In FIG. 5, the absorbent member 12 immediately after being sent out from the delivery reel 16 goes around the side surface of the guide roller 72 on the take-up reel 17 side of the guide roller 72 and heads toward the inspection rotating body 20. Further, the absorbent member 12 immediately before being taken up by the take-up reel 17 goes around the side surface of the guide portion 70 on the side of the delivery reel 16 of the guide roller 72 and then moves toward the take-up reel 17. Due to such a suspended state, in this embodiment, the guide roller 72 rotates clockwise around its rotation axis in synchronization with the absorption member 12 being scanned in one direction.

  The guide roller 72 slides in the axial direction so as to follow the position in the axial direction of the absorbing member 12 unwound from the delivery reel 16, and changes the winding position of the absorbing member 12 wound up on the winding reel 17. Thereby, it is comprised so that winding thickening accompanying winding can be absorbed when the guide roller 72 slides.

  Then, after the absorbing member 12 unwound from the delivery reel 16 is circulated around the roller 42, the side facing the head unit 2 is allowed to pass through to reach the roller 89 a in the reversing roller 89. The absorbing member 12 in the forward path also extends along the nozzle row L.

  Further, after the roller 89a is circulated, the side opposite to the head unit 2 is again passed through the roller 89b and reaches the roller 43 on the support substrate 15A side, so that the absorbing member 12 in the return path also has a nozzle row. It extends along L.

Further, the absorbing member 12 that has circulated around the roller 43 circulates around the roller 46 c provided on the adjustment lever 18, and is further wound around the take-up reel 17 via the guide portion 70.
At this time, in this embodiment, the guide roller 72 in the guide portion 70 slides in the axial direction following the position of the absorbing member 12 fed from the feed reel 16 side. That is, as shown in FIG. 7, when the absorbent member 12 is delivered from the lower side of the delivery reel 16, the guide roller 72 rotates along with the travel of the first part and the second part of the absorbent member 12, and the winding is performed. The reel 17 is wound from below. Here, the delivery position of the absorbing member 12 on the delivery reel 16 and the winding position of the absorbing member 12 on the take-up reel 17 substantially coincide with each other in the axial direction.

  Then, as the absorbing member 12 is sequentially delivered from the delivery reel 16 and the delivery position is raised (to the support substrate 15A side), the guide roller 72 is lifted by the tension of the absorbent member 12, and thereby the winding is taken up. The winding position on the reel 17 side is also raised.

  On the surface of the take-up reel 17 that winds up the absorbing member 12 while rotating, an absorbing member layer having a uniform thickness in the axial direction is formed. Each time the guide roller 72 reciprocates along the axial direction, a new absorbent member layer is formed so as to cover the surface of the radially inner absorbent member layer. In this way, the absorbing member 12 on the delivery reel 16 side is wound up to the take-up reel 17 side.

  According to the present embodiment, when the guide roller 72 in the guide portion 70 reciprocates in the axial direction, the absorbing member 12 is wound on the take-up reel 17 side in a winding state similar to that on the feed reel 16 side.

  In the winding of the absorbing member 12, as the absorbing member 12 is wound on the take-up reel 17 side, a phenomenon occurs in which the surface of the absorbing member layer expands in the radial direction partially (for example, in the central portion) in the axial direction. Sometimes. When the absorbing member 12 is wound around the take-up reel 17 for free, such a phenomenon occurs, and fluctuations in the rotation speeds of the take-up reel 17 and the delivery reel 16 become severe.

  When winding with the back tension applied to the absorbing member 12, the number of rotations of the reel depends on the winding length of the absorbing member. Therefore, the reel diameter in the winding direction of the absorbing member 12 does not want to be changed. As the diameter of the reel increases, correction is performed by reducing the number of revolutions of the motor. However, if the diameter varies in the axial direction, desired winding cannot be performed. For example, if the absorbing member is concentrated and wound only in a part (center part) in the axial direction, the diameter of the part is enlarged and the winding amount is reduced.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, the reel 16 and the reel 16 are fed to a substantially intermediate position so that the absorbing member is wound around the downstream reel 18 in the same winding state as the upstream reel 16. A guide portion 70 for reflecting (transferring) the winding state on the reel 16 side to the take-up reel 17 is provided. As described above, the guide portion 70 guides the winding position of the absorbing member 12 relative to the take-up reel 17 up and down so as to follow the sending position of the absorbing member 12 on the sending reel 16 side, so that the entire axial direction is uniform. The absorbent member 12 can be wound with a diameter. In this way, the guide member 70 can make the winding (winding and lowering) of the absorbing member 12 to the winding reel 17 side uniform in the axial direction and the radial direction.

  If another mechanism for guiding the absorbing member 12 in the axial direction of the reel 17 is provided, the apparatus becomes complicated and expensive. However, according to the configuration of the present embodiment, the guide shaft is loosely fitted to the guide shaft. Since the guide portion 70 having the guide roller is provided, it can be easily implemented with a relatively simple configuration and the cost can be reduced.

  A new absorbent member 12 is appropriately wound on the delivery reel 16, and the used absorbent member 12 is wound on the take-up reel 17. By absorbing the absorbing member 12 to a certain extent evenly in the entire axial direction of the winding reel 17, the absorbing member 12 is sequentially wound up by the rotation of the reel 17. In this embodiment, the winding speed and winding length of the absorbing member 12 are optimized.

  Since the supply reel 16 is not driven by a motor and is given rotational resistance, the tension of the absorbing member 12 is generated. Therefore, the guide roller 72 is unwound from the side of the supply reel 16 by the tension of the absorbing member 12. It will move to the vicinity of the position. As described above, in a state where the absorbing member 12 is regularly and uniformly wound around the upstream-side delivery reel 16, the guide roller 72 can be smoothly moved up and down without performing a special drive. The absorbing member 12 is automatically wound around the take-up reel 17.

For example, when the absorbent member is wound on the take-up reel, if the absorbent member is wound up freely without restricting the winding position of the absorbent member, the absorbent member is wound non-uniformly on the take-up reel. However, by providing the guide portion 70 as in the present embodiment, a sufficient amount can be wound without wasting the winding capacity of the absorbing member 12 in the winding reel. It becomes possible to take. Since the guide roller 72 serves as a guide for winding the absorbing member 12 around the take-up reel 17 on the downstream side, the absorbing member 12 is wound up so as to follow the position of the guide roller 72.
In this way, the absorbing member 12 is wound on the take-up reel 17 substantially uniformly, and a winding state is obtained in which there is no bias in the axial direction and the radial direction.

In addition, the structure in the guide part 70 is not restricted to what was mentioned above.
For example, in the present embodiment, both the first part and the second part of the absorbing member 12 are wound around the guide roller 72. The first part of the absorbing member 12 is in a new state immediately after being sent out from the delivery reel 16, but the second part is in a state where ink droplets ejected from the nozzles by the flushing process are absorbed. And the second part may come into contact with each other and the first part may become dirty. For this reason, it is necessary to avoid each part contacting on the guide roller 72 as much as possible.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 9A, a flat contact prevention portion 75 that prevents contact of each part of the absorbing member 12 may be provided in the central portion of the guide roller 72 in the axial direction. The first part 12A and the second part 12B of the absorbing member 12 are bridged on both sides (up and down) of the contact preventing part 75 in the axial direction.
In addition, the contact prevention part 75 may be a different body from the guide roller 72, and may be formed integrally.

Further, as shown in FIG. 9B, a guide portion 70 having a pair of free rollers 76 and 77 that rotate freely with respect to the guide shaft 71 may be provided. Then, the first part 12A and the second part 12B of the absorbent member 12 are wound around the free roller 76 (first roller) and the free roller 77 (second roller), respectively, so that a new first part 12A is obtained. And the used second part 12B are prevented from touching each other, and it is possible to prevent the ink absorbed on the second part 12B side from getting into the new first part 12A. Thereby, the demand amount of the ink in the absorption member 12 is securable.
In addition, in such a structure, it is preferable that the side surface (surface which the absorption member 12 contacts) of the free rollers 76 and 77 is made into the curved surface dented to an internal diameter side. Thereby, the spanning state of the absorbing member 12 with respect to the rollers 76 and 77 is reliably maintained.

[Second Embodiment]
FIG. 10 is a side view showing the main part of the printer of the second embodiment, and FIG. 11 is a plan view of FIG.
As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the printer of this embodiment has a pair of auxiliary rollers 83 and 84 that guide the absorbing member 12 at positions closer to the delivery reel 16 and the take-up reel 17 than the guide rollers 82. The guide part 80 comprised as mentioned above is provided.

  The guide unit 80 includes a guide shaft 81 erected at an intermediate position between the delivery reel 16 and the take-up reel 17, a guide roller 82 loosely fitted to the guide shaft 81, and a guide roller 82. It has a first auxiliary roller 83 arranged at a position near the delivery reel 16 and a second auxiliary roller 84 arranged at a position closer to the delivery reel 16 than the guide roller 82.

  And the 1st auxiliary roller 83 and the 2nd auxiliary roller 84 were arranged in the top part (center) vicinity of the roller holding part 85 of each other by roller holding part 85 which presents a plane shape substantially U character. The first auxiliary roller 83 is provided on one end side, and the second auxiliary roller 84 is provided on the other end side. Here, a guide roller 82 is disposed at a position where the tangent lines of the delivery reel 16 and the take-up reel 17 intersect with each other, and the auxiliary roller 83 and the take-up reel are located on the tangent lines of the reels 16 and 17 and in the vicinity of the delivery reel 16. An auxiliary roller 84 is disposed in the vicinity of the reel 17.

  The roller holding portion 85 is connected to the guide shaft 81 via the connecting portion 86 and is held so as to be rotatable around the shaft about the guide roller 82. That is, by rotating in the horizontal plane around the guide shaft 81, the first auxiliary roller 83 and the second auxiliary roller 84 on both end sides are moved toward or away from the delivery reel 16 and the take-up reel 17. Is configured to move.

  On the other hand, the guide shaft 81 that supports the guide roller 82 and the roller holding portion 85 is connected to the guide shaft 81 so as to support both ends of the guide shaft 81 in the axial direction. 79 is provided.

  The guide body 87 including the guide roller 82, the roller holding portion 85 (the first auxiliary roller 83 and the second auxiliary roller 84), and the connecting member 79 swings (rotates) with respect to the device fixing portion 88. Held possible.

  As illustrated, a bearing portion 90 is provided between the device fixing portion 88 and the connecting member 79 in the guide body 87. The bearing portion 90 is installed on the device fixing portion 88 side so that its central axis is perpendicular to the guide roller 82, and the guide body 87 is rotated in a vertical plane with respect to the device fixing portion 88. It is to hold.

  That is, the guide body 87 has the bearing portion 90 as a fulcrum, and the positions of the first auxiliary roller 83 and the second auxiliary roller 84 in the roller holding portion 85 on both sides thereof are in the axial direction of the delivery reel 16 and the take-up reel 17. The roller holding portion 85 tilts (oscillates) so as to be displaced vertically along each other.

  The center positions of the guide roller 82 and the auxiliary rollers 83 and 84 in the axial direction coincide with each other. The auxiliary rollers 83 and 84 are of the same type and are configured to be smaller than the diameter of the guide roller 82.

  Further, the guide unit 80 of the present embodiment is configured so that the roller holding unit 85 rotates in the horizontal direction following the outermost diameter of the delivery reel 16 including the wound absorbent member 12 even if the outermost diameter changes. It has become. Similarly, the reel diameter on the downstream side take-up reel 17 is also followed. That is, since the roller holding portion 85 is rotatably supported with respect to the guide shaft 81, the reels 16 and 17 are wound around the delivery reel 16 and the take-up reel 17, respectively. Depending on the amount of the absorbent member 12, it can be moved closer or further away.

  That is, since most of the absorbing member 12 is wound on the delivery reel 16 side at the beginning of use, the roller holding portion 85 is in a state of being rotated on the take-up reel 17 side. When the winding amount of the absorbing member 12 on the reel 16 side decreases and the outermost diameter decreases, the roller holding portion 85 is configured to gradually rotate toward the delivery reel 16 side.

  And the guide part 80 of such a structure will rock | fluctuate the guide body 87 so that the auxiliary rollers 83 and 84 of the both sides may move up and down, if the variation | change_quantity of the absorption member 12 in each reel 16 and 17 becomes the same. The winding position of the absorbing member 12 with respect to the winding reel 17 acts so as to change in the axial direction.

  10 and 11, the absorbent member 12 immediately after being sent out from the delivery reel 16 is engaged with the side surface of the first auxiliary roller 83 in the guide portion 80, circulates around the side surface of the guide roller 82, and the inspection described above. It heads for the rotary body 20 (FIG. 5). Further, after the absorbing member 12 that has traveled a position facing the head unit 2 and reached the guide roller 82 circulates around the side surface of the guide roller 82, travels toward the second auxiliary roller 84, and engages with the side surface Then, it is taken up by the take-up reel 17.

  Due to such a suspended state of the absorbing member 12, in this embodiment as well, the guide roller 82 is centered on the rotation axis in synchronism with the traveling of the absorbing member 12 in one direction as in the previous embodiment. Rotate. Further, the first auxiliary roller 83 and the second auxiliary roller 84 are also rotated around the reels 16 and 17 as the absorbing member 12 travels. The rotation directions of the auxiliary rollers 83 and 84 are the same as those of the guide roller 82.

  Then, in the guide portion 80 having the above-described configuration, the absorbing member 12 is sequentially sent out from the sending reel 16, and the sending position of the absorbing member 12 with respect to the sending reel 16 changes in the axial direction (for example, on the support substrate 15A side). The guide body 87 (roller holding portion 85) tilts (rotates) with the guide roller 82 as a fulcrum by the tension of the absorbing member 12, and the first auxiliary roller 83 side gradually rises. On the other hand, the second auxiliary roller 84 provided on the side opposite to the first auxiliary roller 83 gradually descends due to the tilting of the roller holding portion 85. As a result, the winding position of the absorbing member 12 with respect to the winding reel 17 is also gradually lowered.

  A layer of the absorbing member 12 that is uniformly wound in the axial direction is formed on the surface of the take-up reel 17 that winds the absorbing member 12 while rotating. The guide body 87 (roller holding portion 85) swings so that the first auxiliary roller 83 and the second auxiliary roller 84 move up and down with the guide roller 82 as a fulcrum, whereby the surface of the layer of the absorbing member 12 on the radially inner side A new layer of the absorbent member 12 is formed so as to cover. In this way, the absorbing member 12 on the delivery reel 16 side is wound up to the take-up reel 17 side.

  On the delivery reel 16 side, a new absorbent member 12 is wound mechanically with a predetermined length and with regularity. At the initial stage of use, a large number of absorbent members 12 are absorbed in the radial direction of the delivery reel 16. The layer of the member 12 is in a laminated state. When the absorbing member 12 is sequentially sent out from the delivery reel 16 as described above, the radial thickness of the sending reel 16 gradually decreases. Depending on the amount of winding of the absorbing member 12, the guide roller 82 and the delivery reel The position with the outer diameter of 16 will change.

  That is, the length of the absorbing member 12 from the delivery reel 16 until reaching the guide roller 82 becomes longer than the relationship between the delivery reel 16 and the guide roller 82 in the initial state, and the take-up reel 17 On the other hand, the function of guiding the absorbing member 12 is also impaired. Therefore, in order to prevent the tension applied to the absorbing member 12 from being lowered, it is necessary to appropriately adjust the rotation speeds of the delivery reel 16 and the take-up reel 17.

  Since there is a concern that the guide unit 80 does not act effectively if the delivery reel 16 or the take-up reel 17 is separated from the guide roller 82, in this embodiment, a pair of guide rollers 82 provided on both sides of the guide roller 82 is used. Among the first part and the second part of the absorbing member 12 that are circulated by the guide roller 82, the auxiliary rollers 83 and 84 further support the vicinity of the feeding position and the winding position from the reels 16 and 17. . Thereby, the absorbing member 12 can be supported at a position closer to the reels 16 and 17 than in the previous embodiment.

According to the configuration of this embodiment, the tension of the absorbing member 12 can be transmitted to the guide roller 82 without reducing the tension of the absorbing member 12. Therefore, since the absorbing member 12 can be wound substantially uniformly in the axial direction and the radial direction on the take-up reel 17 on the downstream side, the outer diameter of the central portion in the axial direction becomes extremely large as compared with others. It is possible to prevent occurrence of a bias such that the absorbing member 12 is intensively wound around the location.
Therefore, the absorbing member 12 can be taken up more uniformly in the axial direction and the radial direction of the take-up reel 17.

  Further, according to the guide portion 80 in the present embodiment, the guide body 87 is swung and rotated in the horizontal direction, whereby the center position between the reels 16 and 17, that is, the reels 16 and 17. The guide roller 82 can be reliably moved to a position where the distance from the outermost diameter of 17 is the same. As a result, the winding position of the absorbing member 12 with respect to the winding reel 17 can be accurately adjusted, and the absorbing member 12 fed from the feeding reel 16 is wound without any gap in the axial direction of the winding reel 17. It will be.

  The preferred embodiments according to the present invention have been described above with reference to the drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the structure where the absorption member 12 followed in parallel with a nozzle row was demonstrated, in this invention, the extension direction of the absorption member 12 and the extension direction of a nozzle row are necessarily completely parallel. There is no need to do so. In other words, in the present invention, extending along the nozzle row is not limited to a state of being completely parallel to the nozzle row, but within a range where the absorbing member 12 can receive ink droplets (fluid) during flushing. If it is.

In the embodiment, the configuration in which the present invention is applied to a line head type printer has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and can also be applied to a serial printer.
In the above-described embodiment, the configuration in which the absorbing member 12 always moves between the head and the recording paper (medium) has been described. However, in the present invention, when the absorbing member 12 is retracted, the absorbing member 12 comes off from just below the head. Alternatively, a configuration may be adopted in which it is moved to a region (for example, the side of the head).

  In the above embodiment, the fluid ejecting apparatus of the present invention is applied to an ink jet printer. However, the fluid ejecting apparatus may be applied to a fluid ejecting apparatus that ejects or discharges fluid other than ink. That is, the present invention can be applied to various fluid ejecting apparatuses including a fluid ejecting head that ejects a minute amount of liquid droplets. In addition, a droplet means the state of the fluid discharged from the said fluid ejecting apparatus, and shall include what pulls a tail in granular shape, tear shape, and thread shape. The fluid here may be a material that can be ejected by the fluid ejecting apparatus.

  For example, it may be in the state when the substance is in a liquid phase, such as a liquid state with high or low viscosity, sol, gel water, other inorganic solvents, organic solvents, solutions, liquid resins, liquid metals (metal melts ) And a fluid as one state of the substance, as well as particles in which functional material particles made of solid substances such as pigments and metal particles are dissolved, dispersed or mixed in a solvent. In addition, as a typical example of the fluid, there is an ink as described in the above embodiment. Here, the ink includes general water-based inks and oil-based inks, and various fluid compositions such as gel inks and hot-melt inks.

  As a specific example of the fluid ejecting apparatus, for example, a fluid containing a material such as an electrode material or a color material used for manufacturing a liquid crystal display, an EL (electroluminescence) display, a surface emitting display, or a color filter in a dispersed or dissolved form. It may be a fluid ejecting apparatus for ejecting, a fluid ejecting apparatus for ejecting a bio-organic matter used for biochip manufacturing, a fluid ejecting apparatus for ejecting a fluid used as a precision pipette, a printing apparatus, a microdispenser, or the like.

  In addition, transparent resin liquids such as UV curable resins to form fluid injection devices that inject lubricating oil onto precision machines such as watches and cameras, micro hemispherical lenses (optical lenses) used in optical communication elements, etc. A fluid ejecting apparatus that ejects a liquid onto the substrate, or a fluid ejecting apparatus that ejects an etching solution such as acid or alkali to etch the substrate or the like may be employed.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Printer (fluid ejecting head), 2 Head unit, 6 Cap unit, L Nozzle row, 10 Maintenance apparatus, 11 Flushing unit, 12 Absorbing member, 13 Traveling mechanism, 16 Sending reel, 16a Rotating shaft, 21 Recording head (fluid ejecting) Head), 23 nozzle surface, 24 nozzle, 61 cap part, 70 guide part, 71 guide shaft, 72 guide roller, 73 stopper, 75 contact prevention part, 76 free roller, 77 free roller, 79 connecting member, 80 guide part, 81 Guide shaft, 82 Guide roller, 83 1st auxiliary roller, 84 2nd auxiliary roller, 85 Roller holding part, 86 Connection part, 87 Guide body, 88 Device fixing part, 89 Reversing roller, 90 Bearing part

Claims (6)

A fluid ejecting apparatus having a nozzle array including a plurality of nozzles arranged in a direction intersecting a conveyance direction of a recording medium, and including a fluid ejecting head that ejects fluid from the nozzle array,
A linear absorbent member that extends along the nozzle row and is movably provided from one side of the nozzle row toward the other side, and absorbs the fluid ejected from the nozzle;
A traveling mechanism for traveling the absorbing member from one side of the nozzle row toward the other side,
The traveling mechanism is disposed in a non-recording area,
A sending rotator that feeds out the absorbent member from the wound state;
A winding rotator that winds up the absorbing member delivered from the delivery rotator;
A first part sent out from the delivery rotator and a second part taken up by the take-up rotator of the absorbing member are wound around, and are similar to the winding state of the absorption member with respect to the delivery rotator. A fluid ejecting apparatus comprising: a guide portion that guides the absorbing member with respect to the winding rotary body. The guide part is
A shaft portion parallel to a central axis of the delivery rotary body and the winding rotary body;
2. The fluid ejection according to claim 1, further comprising: a rotating portion that is movable along an axial direction of the shaft portion and on which the first portion and the second portion of the absorbing member are wound. apparatus. The traveling mechanism is
A reversing roller for reversing the traveling direction of the absorbing member between the feeding rotating body and the winding rotating body on the traveling path of the absorbing member;
The absorbent member is made to travel from one side to the other side of the nozzle row, and then again goes to the one side by the reverse roller and extends along a nozzle row different from the nozzle row. The fluid ejection device according to claim 1, wherein the fluid ejection device is provided. The guide part is
A first auxiliary roller that is disposed closer to the delivery rotary body than the rotating part and supports the first part;
A second auxiliary roller that is disposed on the winding rotary body side of the rotating portion and supports the second portion;
A holding member that holds the rotating portion, the first auxiliary roller, and the second auxiliary roller in a state in which the rotation axes thereof are parallel to each other;
The said holding member is comprised so that it might rock | fluctuate so that the position of a said 1st auxiliary | assistant roller and a said 2nd auxiliary | assistant roller might be changed up and down mutually with the said rotation part as a fulcrum. The fluid ejection device according to any one of the above.   5. The fluid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the guide portion is located in the middle between the feeding rotary body and the winding rotary body. The rotating part is
A first roller around which the first part of the absorbent member is wound;
The fluid ejecting apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a second roller around which the second portion of the absorbing member is wound.

Images