JP3832565B2 - Carriage support device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a carriage supporting device which has the same level of PG precision as a carriage supporting device by a carriage guide shaft, even at a lower cost. SOLUTION: A first carriage guide plate 2, as it has a Z-shaped cross-sectional surface shape, is operated so as to be bent by about 90 degrees each side in opposite directions, and constitutes three surfaces in parallel with a main scanning direction X. The central surface of the three surfaces in parallel with the main scanning direction X becomes a first position regulating surface 21 regulating PG and supporting a carriage 51. This first position regulating surface 21 is that of high degree flatness since an arcuation is compensated by the bending operation in the opposite directions. A first guide part 11 set in the carriage 51 slidably contacts the first position regulating surface, and PG is regulated, which enables high-precision PG regulation.

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a recording apparatus that performs recording by reciprocating a carriage on which a recording head is mounted in a main scanning direction to convey recording paper in a sub scanning direction.
[0002]
[Prior art]
A conventional recording apparatus includes a carriage guide shaft that supports a carriage, and the carriage is supported by the carriage guide shaft. FIG. 4 is a side view showing a conventional carriage support device using a carriage guide shaft.
[0003]
The carriage guide shaft 65 has a metal cylindrical shape. The carriage 51 is pivotally supported by a carriage guide shaft 65 that is inserted into a bearing portion 64 that forms a circular hole provided in the carriage 51. A driving force from a rotational driving force source such as a motor is transmitted to the belt receiving portion 63 via an endless belt (not shown), and reciprocates in the main scanning direction.
[0004]
The carriage guide shaft 65 supports the carriage 51 so that the carriage 51 can reciprocate in the main scanning direction, and the recording surface of the recording paper P conveyed in sliding contact with the recording head 62 mounted on the carriage 51 and the platen 52. (So-called paper gap, hereinafter referred to as PG). On the other hand, the carriage 51 is supported by the frame member 8 by the guide portion 66, and the parallelism of the head surface of the recording head 62 is regulated.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
As is well known, the above-mentioned PG is a very important factor that greatly affects the recording quality, and the recording quality is greatly changed if the PG is slightly changed from the specified value. The conventional carriage support device that pivotally supports the carriage 51 on the carriage guide shaft 65 has high PG accuracy, and PG is maintained almost constant, so that the recording quality is improved by slightly changing PG from the specified value. There is very little risk of decline. Therefore, it is also widely used in recording apparatuses capable of performing high-quality recording in recent years.
[0006]
On the other hand, it can be said that it is effective to reduce the cost of the recording apparatus by mounting the carriage supporting apparatus at a lower cost than the carriage supporting apparatus using the carriage guide shaft 65 as the price of the recording apparatus is reduced.
[0007]
However, among the known carriage support devices, it can be said that there are almost no low-cost carriage support devices that have the same level of PG accuracy as the carriage support device using the carriage guide shaft 65. .
[0008]
The present invention has been made in view of such a situation, and the problem is that the recording apparatus has a PG accuracy of the same level as a carriage support device using a carriage guide shaft and a low cost carriage support device. Is to provide.
[0009]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
To achieve the above object, the invention described in claim 1 of the present application includes a carriage mounted with a recording head and reciprocating in the main scanning direction, and bending in opposite directions so as to have a Z-shaped cross-sectional shape. A carriage support device of a recording apparatus, comprising: a first carriage guide plate formed and having three surfaces parallel to the main scanning direction, wherein the recording paper is conveyed in the sub-scanning direction to perform recording, The first carriage guide plate is disposed integrally with the main frame of the recording apparatus so that the Z-shaped central surface is parallel to the head surface of the recording head, and the Z-shaped central surface is And a first position restricting surface for supporting the carriage by restricting a distance between the head surface of the recording head and the recording surface of the recording paper, the carriage having a first guide portion, Guide section The first carriage guide plate is slidably contacted with the first position regulating surface and reciprocated in the main scanning direction, and any one of the Z-shaped outer surfaces of the first carriage guide plate is sub-scanned by the carriage. A second position restricting surface that restricts the position in the direction, and the carriage has a second guide portion, and the second guide portion sandwiches the second position restricting surface, The carriage support device is characterized in that it is slidably contacted with the second position regulating surface and reciprocates in the main scanning direction.
[0010]
When a flat metal plate is bent in one direction, the single metal plate having two surfaces formed at different angles is bent so as to warp in the direction opposite to the bending direction. . Therefore, one of the two surfaces is then bent in a direction opposite to the bending direction of the first bending process so that the cross section becomes a Z shape. Then, the central surface of the three surfaces formed by the two bending processes becomes a highly flat surface in which the bending due to the bending process described above is offset by the bending processes in the two opposite directions.
[0011]
Here, the Z-shaped bending process referred to here indicates a bending process in which the bending due to the bending process is offset by bending in opposite directions. Thus, for example, a crank-like shape bent in opposite directions at an angle of approximately 90 degrees, a bending process with a bending angle greater than 90 degrees, or a bending process with a bending angle smaller than 90 degrees may be used. Even if it exists, the surface with very high flatness by which the bending by bending was offset was obtained, and it is contained in the Z-shaped bending process of Claim 1 of this application.
[0012]
Therefore, the first position regulating surface that supports the carriage as a so-called PG defining surface that regulates the distance between the head surface of the recording head and the recording surface of the recording paper is bent by two bending processes in opposite directions. Therefore, the PG can be regulated with high accuracy. The first carriage guide plate constituting the first position regulating surface is formed integrally with the main frame, and the parts of the carriage guide shaft mounting device such as the carriage guide shaft and bush can be reduced. Cost reduction is possible.
[0013]
As a result, according to the carriage support device of the first aspect of the present invention, a low-cost carriage support device having the same level of PG accuracy as the carriage support device using the carriage guide shaft can be realized.
[0014]
In the first aspect of the present invention, the carriage has a first guide portion, and the first guide portion reciprocates in the main scanning direction in sliding contact with the first position regulating surface. It is a carriage support device characterized by moving.
[0015]
As described above, the first guide portion provided on the carriage reciprocates in the main scanning direction in sliding contact with the first position regulating surface, so that the first guide portion of the recording head mounted on the carriage is reciprocated. The PG between the head surface and the recording surface of the recording paper is regulated with high accuracy.
[0016]
As a result, according to the carriage support device of the first aspect of the present invention, the first guide portion provided on the carriage reciprocates in the main scanning direction in sliding contact with the first position regulating surface. As a result, the above-described effects can be obtained.
Furthermore, as described above, the first position restricting surface is a surface with extremely high flatness in which the bending due to the bending described above is offset by bending in two opposite directions. The two outer surfaces are also surfaces having high flatness. Therefore, according to the carriage support device of the first aspect of the present invention, the outer surface of the first position restriction surface is used as the second position restriction surface for restricting the position of the carriage in the sub-scanning direction. Therefore, it is possible to obtain an operational effect that the position of the carriage in the sub-scanning direction can be regulated with high accuracy.
Further, since the second guide portion provided on the carriage is in sliding contact with the second position restriction surface while the second position restriction surface is sandwiched, the second guide portion performs sub-scanning of the carriage with high accuracy. It becomes possible to regulate the position in the direction.
[0017]
The invention according to claim 2 of the present application is the carriage support device according to claim 1, wherein the first guide portion is in sliding contact with a vicinity of a center line in the sub-scanning direction of the first position regulating surface. It is.
[0018]
The vicinity of the first position restricting surface on the center line in the sub-scanning direction is a portion having a particularly high flatness in the first position restricting surface, and the first guide portion is in sliding contact with the portion. High PG regulation is possible.
[0019]
Thus, according to the carriage support device according to the second aspect of the present invention, the first guide portion is in sliding contact with the vicinity of the first position regulating surface near the center line in the sub-scanning direction. It becomes possible to improve the effect by the invention as described in 1 above.
[0026]
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect, the carriage includes a third guide portion, and the first guide portion and the third guide portion include the first guide portion. The carriage supporting device is characterized in that, in a state where the position regulating surface is sandwiched, the carriage is slidably contacted with the first position regulating surface and reciprocates in the main scanning direction.
[0027]
In this way, in addition to the first guide portion, the third guide portion is provided on the carriage, and the first guide portion and the third guide portion sandwich the first position regulating surface. It is possible to regulate the position in the vertical direction.
[0028]
Thus, according to the carriage supporting device according to the invention described in claim 3 of the present application, in addition to the function and effect of the invention described in claim 1 or 2 of the present application, the position of the carriage in the vertical direction is regulated. It is possible to prevent the recording quality from being deteriorated by the PG being changed by the acting vibration or the like.
[0029]
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in any one of the first to third aspects, the recording apparatus is formed by bending in opposite directions so as to have a Z-shaped cross-sectional shape, and the main scanning is performed. A second carriage guide plate having three surfaces parallel to the direction, wherein the second carriage guide plate has the Z-shaped center surface parallel to the head surface of the recording head. A third position where the Z-shaped central surface regulates a distance between the head surface of the recording head and the recording surface of the recording paper and supports the carriage; The carriage support device is characterized by being a regulating surface.
[0030]
As described above, in addition to the first position restriction surface, the second carriage guide plate having the third position restriction surface having the same flatness as that of the first position restriction surface is integrated with the discharge frame. Since PG is regulated by two surfaces, the first position regulating surface and the third position regulating surface, in addition to PG, the parallelism between the head surface of the recording head and the recording surface of the recording paper is also It becomes possible to regulate with high accuracy.
[0031]
Thereby, according to the carriage support device concerning the invention of Claim 4 of this application, in addition to the operation effect by the invention of any one of Claims 1-3 of this application, more stable PG regulation of high accuracy The effect that it becomes possible is obtained.
[0032]
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the fourth aspect of the present invention, the carriage includes a fourth guide portion, and the fourth guide portion is in sliding contact with the third position regulating surface to perform the main scanning. A carriage support device that reciprocates in a direction.
[0033]
As described above, the fourth guide portion provided on the carriage is in sliding contact with the third position regulating surface, so that the PG and the recording head are formed by the two guide portions of the first guide portion and the fourth guide portion. The parallelism between the head surface and the recording surface of the recording paper can be regulated with high accuracy.
[0034]
Thus, according to the carriage supporting device of the fifth aspect of the present invention, when the carriage reciprocates in the main scanning direction, the fourth guide portion provided on the carriage is the third position regulating surface. The effect of the invention according to claim 4 of the present application can be obtained.
[0035]
A sixth aspect of the present invention is an ink jet recording apparatus including the carriage support device according to any one of the first to fifth aspects.
According to the ink jet recording apparatus according to the sixth aspect of the present invention, in the ink jet recording apparatus, it is possible to obtain the function and effect of the invention according to any one of the first to fifth aspects of the present invention.
[0036]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view showing an embodiment of an ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a side view thereof.
[0037]
The recording apparatus 50 is provided with a carriage 51 that moves in the main scanning direction X as recording means for performing recording on the recording paper P. A recording head 62 that performs recording by ejecting ink onto the recording paper P is mounted on the carriage 51. A platen 52 that defines the gap between the head surface of the recording head 62 and the recording paper P is provided facing the recording head 62. Then, the recording head 62 ejects ink onto the recording paper P while conveying the carriage 51 in the main scanning direction X and intermittently conveying the recording paper P between the carriage 51 and the platen 52 in the sub-scanning direction Y. Thus, recording is performed on the recording paper P.
[0038]
The paper feed tray 58 is configured to feed recording paper P such as plain paper or photo paper, for example, and is provided with an ASF (auto sheet feeder) for automatically feeding the recording paper P. Yes. The ASF is an automatic paper feed mechanism having two paper feed rollers 57 provided on a paper feed tray and a separation pad (not shown). The sheet feeding roller 57 is rotationally controlled by a rotational driving force such as a stepping motor, and has a D-shaped outer shape when viewed from the side.
[0039]
One of the two paper feed rollers 57 is disposed on one side of the paper feed tray 58, the other paper feed roller 57 is attached to a recording paper guide 59, and the recording paper guide 59 is a recording paper. The paper feed tray 58 is provided so as to be slidable in the direction of the arrow indicated by the symbol A in accordance with the width of P. When a plurality of recording sheets P placed on the sheet feeding tray 58 are fed by the rotational driving force of the sheet feeding roller 57 and the frictional resistance of the separation pad, the plurality of recording sheets P are fed at a time. Without being automatically fed one sheet at a time.
[0040]
Then, the recording paper P automatically fed by the ASF is downstream of the sub-scanning direction Y, which is the recording execution area side, by the recording paper transporting means disposed downstream of the paper feeding roller 57 in the sub-scanning direction Y. Toward the end, the paper is intermittently conveyed by a predetermined paper feed amount.
[0041]
As recording paper conveying means for intermittently conveying the recording paper P in the sub-scanning direction Y, a conveyance driving roller 53 and a conveyance driven roller 54 are provided. The conveyance driving roller 53 is rotationally controlled by a rotational driving force such as a stepping motor, and the recording paper P is conveyed in the sub-scanning direction Y by the rotation of the conveyance driving roller 53. A plurality of transport driven rollers 54 are provided and are individually urged by the transport driving roller 53, and the recording paper P is in contact with the recording paper P when the recording paper P is transported by the rotation of the transport driving roller 53. Rotates following the transport of
[0042]
Further, a paper detector 61 according to a known technique in the prior art is disposed between the paper feed roller 57 and the conveyance drive roller 53. The paper detector 61 is provided with a self-returning behavior to a standing posture, and has a lever pivotally supported so as to protrude into the conveyance path of the recording paper P so that it can be rotated only in the recording paper conveyance direction. The detector is configured to detect the recording paper P by rotating the lever when the tip of the lever is pressed against the recording paper P. The paper detector 61 detects the start end position and the end position of the recording paper P fed from the paper feed roller 57, determines a recording area according to the detected position, and executes recording.
[0043]
On the other hand, a discharge driving roller 55 and a discharge driven roller 56 are provided as means for discharging the recorded recording paper P. The paper discharge driving roller 55 is rotationally controlled by a rotational driving force such as a stepping motor, and the recording paper P is discharged in the sub-scanning direction Y by the rotation of the paper discharge driving roller 55. The paper discharge driven roller 56 is a toothed roller having a plurality of teeth around it and sharply sharpened so that the tip of each tooth makes point contact with the recording surface of the recording paper P. The plurality of paper discharge driven rollers 56 are individually urged by the paper discharge driving roller 55, and come into contact with the recording paper P when the recording paper P is discharged by the rotation of the paper discharge driving roller 55. Rotates following the paper discharge.
[0044]
In such an ink jet recording apparatus, the carriage 51 on which the recording head 62 is mounted is supported by the carriage support device according to the present invention so as to be able to reciprocate in the main scanning direction. PG (paper gap), which is the distance between the head surface of the recording head 62 and the recording surface of the recording paper P that is slidably contacted with the platen 52 and conveyed to the sub-scanning walk Y, moves the carriage 51 back and forth in the main scanning direction. Even during the operation, the carriage support device is regulated so as to always maintain a constant interval.
[0045]
FIG. 3 is a side view showing a carriage support device according to the present invention.
The carriage 51 includes a carriage body 6 and a cover 7. A recording head 62 is mounted on the bottom of the carriage body 6. Various ink cartridges (not shown) are mounted inside the carriage body 6, and ink is ejected from the recording head 62 onto the recording paper P. The carriage 51 is reciprocated in the main scanning direction X by a driving force from a rotational driving force source such as a motor being transmitted to the belt receiving portion 63 via an endless belt (not shown).
[0046]
A first carriage guide plate 2 is integrally disposed on the main frame 5 of the ink jet recording apparatus 50. The first carriage guide plate 2 is bent by about 90 degrees in opposite directions so as to have a Z-shaped cross-sectional shape, thereby forming three surfaces parallel to the main scanning direction X. The central surface of the three surfaces parallel to the main scanning direction X is a first position restricting surface 21 that restricts PG and supports the carriage 51.
[0047]
As described above, the first position restricting surface 21 is a surface having high flatness in which bending due to bending is offset by bending in two opposite directions. And since the 1st guide part 11 provided in the carriage 51 is slidably contacted with this 1st position control surface and PG is controlled, PG regulation with high precision is attained.
[0048]
The two surfaces adjacent to the first position restricting surface 21 formed on the first carriage guide plate 2 have high flatness like the first position restricting surface, and one of them. Is a second position regulating surface 22 that regulates the position of the carriage 51 in the sub-scanning direction Y. Since the second position regulating surface 22 is sandwiched between the second guide portions 12 provided on the carriage 51, the position regulation of the carriage 51 in the sub-scanning direction Y is achieved. It is possible to prevent the recording quality from being deteriorated due to the posture of 62 being inclined in the sub-scanning direction Y. Of course, another surface indicated by reference numeral 23 can be used as the second position restricting surface, and the same effect can be obtained.
[0049]
The carriage 51 is provided with a third guide portion 13. The 3rd guide part 13 is provided in the position which opposes the 1st guide part 11 on both sides of the 1st position control surface 21 like illustration. The carriage 51 is supported by the first position restriction surface 21 with the first guide portion 11 and the third guide portion 13 sandwiching the first position restriction surface 21. Accordingly, the carriage 51 is regulated by the first position regulating surface 21 having a high flatness, and the vertical position indicated by the symbol Z is also regulated, so that the higher accuracy can be achieved. PG can be regulated.
[0050]
On the other hand, the second carriage guide plate 4 is formed integrally with the paper discharge frame 3 on which the paper discharge driven roller 56 is disposed. The second carriage guide plate 4 is bent by about 90 degrees in opposite directions so as to have a Z-shaped cross-sectional shape, thereby forming three surfaces parallel to the main scanning direction X. The central surface of the three surfaces parallel to the main scanning direction X is a third position restricting surface 41 that supports the carriage 51 by restricting the PG of the carriage 51 together with the first position restricting surface.
[0051]
Similar to the first position restriction surface, the third position restriction surface 41 is a surface having high flatness in which bending due to bending is offset by bending in two opposite directions. And the 4th guide part 14 provided in the carriage 51 is slidably contacted with this 3rd position control surface 41, and PG is controlled.
[0052]
Therefore, in the carriage 51, the PG is regulated by the first position regulating surface 21, the third position regulating surface 41, and the two highly flat position regulating surfaces, so that the PG can be regulated with higher accuracy. It will be. As shown in the drawing, the first guide portion and the fourth guide portion are provided on the upstream side and the downstream side in the sub-scanning direction Y with the recording head 62 interposed therebetween, so that the carriage 51 is more stable. Thus, the parallelism of the head surface of the recording head 62 can be regulated with high accuracy.
[0053]
In this manner, according to the carriage support device shown in the embodiment, the first carriage guide plate 2 and the second carriage guide plate 4 support the carriage 51 while regulating PG with high accuracy. Is possible.
[0054]
In addition, as another embodiment, there is a case where the second carriage guide plate is not provided, and even in that case, the present invention can be implemented and the effects of the present invention can be obtained. .
[0055]
It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the invention described in the claims, and these are also included in the scope of the present invention. Needless to say.
[0056]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention, in the recording apparatus, a low-cost carriage support device can be achieved while having the same level of PG accuracy as a carriage support device using a carriage guide shaft.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view showing an embodiment of an ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a schematic side view showing an embodiment of an ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a side view showing a carriage support device according to the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a side view showing a conventional carriage support device using a carriage guide shaft.
[Explanation of symbols]
2 First carriage guide plate 3 Paper discharge frame 4 Second carriage guide plate 5 Main frame 6 Carriage body portion 7 Cover portion 11 First guide portion 12 Second guide portion 13 Third guide portion 14 Fourth Guide portion 21 First position restricting surface 22 Second position restricting surface 41 Third position restricting surface 51 Carriage 52 Platen 62 Recording head P Recording paper

Claims (6)

A recording head is mounted and a carriage that reciprocates in the main scanning direction and a first surface having three surfaces parallel to the main scanning direction are formed by bending in opposite directions so as to have a Z-shaped cross-sectional shape. A carriage support device of a recording apparatus, comprising a carriage guide plate, and performing recording by conveying the recording paper in a sub-scanning direction,
The first carriage guide plate is disposed integrally with the main frame of the recording apparatus so that the Z-shaped central surface is parallel to the head surface of the recording head, and the Z-shaped central surface is Is a first position regulating surface that regulates the distance between the head surface of the recording head and the recording surface of the recording paper and supports the carriage,
The carriage has a first guide portion, and the first guide portion reciprocates in the main scanning direction in sliding contact with the first position regulating surface,
In the first carriage guide plate, any one of the Z-shaped outer surfaces serves as a second position regulating surface that regulates the position of the carriage in the sub-scanning direction,
The carriage has a second guide portion, and the second guide portion is in sliding contact with the second position restricting surface in the main scanning direction with the second position restricting surface sandwiched therebetween. A carriage support device that reciprocates.   2. The carriage support device according to claim 1, wherein the first guide portion is in sliding contact with a vicinity of a center line in a sub-scanning direction of the first position regulating surface.   3. The carriage according to claim 1, wherein the carriage includes a third guide portion, and the first position restricting surface is sandwiched between the first guide portion and the third guide portion. A carriage support device, wherein the carriage support device slides in contact with the first position regulating surface and reciprocates in the main scanning direction.   4. The second recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recording apparatus is formed by bending in opposite directions so as to have a Z-shaped cross-sectional shape, and has two surfaces parallel to the main scanning direction. Carriage guide plate, and the second carriage guide plate is disposed integrally with the discharge frame of the recording apparatus so that the Z-shaped central surface is parallel to the head surface of the recording head. The center surface of the Z shape is a third position regulating surface that regulates the distance between the head surface of the recording head and the recording surface of the recording paper and supports the carriage. Carriage support device.   5. The carriage according to claim 4, wherein the carriage has a fourth guide portion, and the fourth guide portion reciprocates in the main scanning direction in sliding contact with the third position regulating surface. Carriage support device.   An ink jet recording apparatus comprising the carriage support device according to claim 1.

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