JP6579091B2 - Recording head and ink jet recording apparatus provided with the same - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a recording head having an ink discharge nozzle for discharging ink onto a recording medium such as paper, and an ink jet recording apparatus including the recording head.

  2. Description of the Related Art As a recording apparatus such as a facsimile, a copying machine, and a printer, an ink jet recording apparatus that forms an image by ejecting ink is widely used because it can form a high-definition image.

  In such an ink jet recording apparatus, a micro ink droplet (hereinafter referred to as a mist) ejected together with an ink droplet for image recording, or a bounce mist generated when the ink droplet adheres to a recording medium, The ink adheres to the ink ejection surface and solidifies. When the mist on the ink ejection surface gradually increases and overlaps the ink ejection nozzle, the straightness of the ink (flying curve), non-ejection, etc. occur and the printing performance of the recording head decreases.

  Therefore, in order to clean the ink discharge surface of the recording head, a cleaning liquid supply port is provided outside the nozzle region (upstream in the wiping direction of the wiper) of the ink discharge surface where a plurality of ink discharge nozzles are open. A plurality of ink jet recording apparatuses are known. In this ink jet recording apparatus, after supplying the cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid supply port, the wiper is moved along the ink discharge surface from the outside of the cleaning liquid supply port, so that the ink discharge surface is held while the wiper holds the cleaning liquid. Can be wiped. In this way, the recording head recovery process can be performed.

  An ink jet recording apparatus in which a plurality of cleaning liquid supply ports are provided on the ink discharge surface of the recording head is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-151867.

JP 2007-83396 A

  However, in the conventional ink jet recording apparatus, when a necessary amount of cleaning liquid is supplied from a plurality of cleaning liquid supply ports, the cleaning liquids come into contact with each other and become one large droplet. Then, there is a problem that a part of the cleaning liquid falls from the ink ejection surface and a loss occurs in the cleaning liquid.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a recording head capable of cleaning the ink ejection surface while reducing the loss of the cleaning liquid, and the recording head. An ink jet recording apparatus is provided.

  In order to achieve the above object, a recording head according to a first aspect of the present invention is a recording head having an ink ejection surface including an ink ejection area in which a plurality of ink ejection nozzles that eject ink onto a recording medium are opened. A cleaning liquid supply area in which a plurality of cleaning liquid supply ports for supplying a cleaning liquid are opened is provided upstream of the ink discharge area in the wiping direction, in which the wiper wipes the ink discharge surface. The cleaning liquid supply port includes a plurality of supply port groups each including two or more cleaning liquid supply ports, and the supply port groups are arranged independently in the width direction orthogonal to the wiping direction. In the supply port group, the distance between the centers of adjacent cleaning liquid supply ports is the cleaning distance supplied from the cleaning liquid supply port to the cleaning liquid supply region. The distance between the centers of the cleaning liquid supply ports arranged closest to each other is set between the cleaning liquid supply port and the cleaning liquid supply region. Is set to a second distance at which the cleaning liquids supplied to each other are not united.

  According to the recording head of the first aspect of the present invention, the plurality of cleaning liquid supply ports for supplying the cleaning liquid are opened upstream in the wiping direction with respect to the ink discharge region where the plurality of ink discharge nozzles are opened. A cleaning liquid supply region is provided. Thus, after supplying the cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid supply port, the ink discharge surface is held while the cleaning liquid is held by the wiper by moving the wiper along the ink discharge surface from the upstream side in the wiping direction with respect to the cleaning liquid supply port. Can be wiped. For this reason, the ink discharge surface can be cleaned.

  Further, the supply port group composed of two or more cleaning liquid supply ports is arranged independently in the width direction orthogonal to the wiping direction, and in each supply port group, the distance between the centers of the adjacent cleaning liquid supply ports is set. Is set to a first distance at which the cleaning liquids supplied from the cleaning liquid supply ports are united, and between the adjacent supply port groups, between the centers of the cleaning liquid supply ports arranged closest to each other The distance is set to a second distance at which the cleaning liquids supplied from the cleaning liquid supply port do not coalesce. As a result, the cleaning liquid supplied from the plurality of cleaning liquid supply ports can be divided into a plurality (for each supply port group), so that the cleaning liquids are prevented from being united to form large droplets. be able to. For this reason, since the cleaning liquid can be prevented from falling, the loss of the cleaning liquid can be reduced.

  In each supply port group, the cleaning liquids supplied from the cleaning liquid supply ports are unified. As a result, unlike the case where the cleaning liquids supplied from the individual cleaning liquid supply ports constituting each supply port group are not united, the necessary amount of cleaning liquid can be easily secured in each supply port group. can do.

1 is a diagram illustrating a structure of an ink jet recording apparatus including a recording head according to a first embodiment of the invention. The figure which looked at the 1st conveyance unit and recording part of the ink-jet recording device shown in Drawing 1 from the upper part Diagram of the recording head that constitutes the line head of the recording unit View of the recording head viewed from the ink ejection surface View of the recording head and its surroundings seen from diagonally below View of the cleaning liquid supply member of the recording head as seen from diagonally below View of the cleaning liquid supply member of the recording head viewed from below View of supply port group of cleaning liquid supply member of recording head viewed from below FIG. 5 is a diagram of the recording head cleaning liquid supply member as viewed from below, and shows a state in which the cleaning liquid is supplied from the cleaning liquid supply port. View of the recording head and its surroundings viewed from diagonally above The figure which shows the state which has arrange | positioned the maintenance unit under the recording part The figure which shows the state which has arrange | positioned the wiper under the recording head The figure which shows the state which lifted the wiper from the state of FIG. 12, and was press-contacted to the cleaning liquid supply member The figure which shows the state which moved to the arrow A direction in the state which pressed the wiper to the cleaning liquid supply member from the state of FIG. The figure which shows the state which moved the wiper further to the arrow A direction from the state of FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating a state where the wiper is further moved in the direction of arrow A from the state of FIG. 15 and then the wiper is lowered and separated from the ink discharge surface. The figure which looked at the cleaning liquid supply member of a 2nd embodiment of the present invention from the lower part The figure which looked at the supply port group of the cleaning liquid supply member of 2nd Embodiment of this invention from the downward direction It is the figure which looked at the cleaning liquid supply member of 2nd Embodiment of this invention from the bottom, and the state which showed the state which supplied cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid supply port

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(First embodiment)
As shown in FIG. 1, a paper feed tray 2 for storing paper S (recording medium) is provided on the left side of the inkjet recording apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The paper S accommodated in the section is conveyed in order from the uppermost paper S one by one to a first transport unit 5 to be described later, a paper feed roller 3 for pressure feeding and a driven rotation in contact with the paper feed roller 3 A driven roller 4 is provided.

  A first transport unit 5 and a recording unit 9 are disposed on the downstream side (right side in FIG. 1) of the paper feed roller 3 and the driven roller 4 with respect to the paper transport direction (arrow X direction). The first transport unit 5 includes a first drive roller 6, a first driven roller 7, and a first transport belt 6 that is stretched over the first drive roller 6 and the first driven roller 7. When the first drive roller 6 is driven to rotate in the clockwise direction by a control signal from the control unit 110 of the recording apparatus 100, the paper S held on the first transport belt 8 is transported in the arrow X direction.

  The recording unit 9 includes a head housing 10 and line heads 11C, 11M, 11Y, and 11K held by the head housing 10. These line heads 11C to 11K are supported at such a height that a predetermined interval (for example, 1 mm) is formed with respect to the conveying surface of the first conveying belt 8, and as shown in FIG. A plurality (three in this case) of recording heads 17a to 17c are arranged in a zigzag pattern along the orthogonal paper width direction (vertical direction in FIG. 2).

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, an ink discharge region R <b> 1 in which a large number of ink discharge nozzles 18 a (see FIG. 2) are arranged is provided on the ink discharge surface F <b> 1 of the head portion 18 of the recording heads 17 a to 17 c. . Since the recording heads 17a to 17c have the same shape and configuration, the recording heads 17a to 17c are shown in one drawing in FIGS.

  In the recording heads 17a to 17c constituting the line heads 11C to 11K, inks of four colors (cyan, magenta, yellow, and black) stored in ink tanks (not shown) are respectively stored in the line heads 11C to 11K. Supplied for each color.

  Each of the recording heads 17a to 17c is transported while being sucked and held on the transport surface of the first transport belt 8 in accordance with image data received from an external computer by a control signal from the control unit 110 (see FIG. 1). Ink is ejected from the ink ejection nozzle 18a. As a result, a color image in which four colors of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black are superimposed is formed on the sheet S on the first conveying belt 8.

  The recording heads 17a to 17c are provided with a cleaning liquid supply member 60 for supplying a cleaning liquid. The cleaning liquid supply member 60 is disposed adjacent to the upstream side (right side in FIG. 3) of the wiper 35, which will be described later, with respect to the head unit 18. The cleaning liquid supply member 60 has a cleaning liquid supply surface F2 including a cleaning liquid supply region R2 in which cleaning liquid supply ports 60a (see FIG. 6) for supplying a cleaning liquid are arranged. The cleaning liquid supply member 60 is made of resin, and at least the ink discharge surface F1 of the head portion 18 is made of, for example, SUS (stainless steel).

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, an inclined surface 62 is formed on the upstream side (right side in FIG. 3) of the cleaning liquid supply member 60 in the wiping direction with respect to the cleaning liquid supply surface F2. A portion of the cleaning liquid supply surface F2 on the downstream side in the wiping direction (left side in FIG. 3) is formed in a thin plate shape, and is disposed so as to overlap the end portion of the ink discharge surface F1 of the head portion 18. In FIG. 5 and FIG. 10 described later, only a part of the recording heads 17a to 17c is shown for easy understanding.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 7, the cleaning liquid supply port 60a constitutes a plurality (here, four) of supply port groups G including two or more (here, four) cleaning liquid supply ports 60a. . As shown in FIG. 8, in each supply port group G, the cleaning liquid supply ports 60a are a plurality of (here, two) supply port arrays D1 arranged at the first pitch P1 in the wiping direction (arrow A direction). Is configured. In each supply port group G, the cleaning liquid supply ports 60a are arranged in a staggered manner.

  Further, the supply port group G is arranged independently in the head width direction (arrow BB ′ direction) orthogonal to the wiping direction (arrow A direction). Specifically, in each supply port group G, the center-to-center distance L1 between adjacent cleaning liquid supply ports 60a is such that the cleaning liquids supplied from the cleaning liquid supply port 60a to the cleaning liquid supply surface F2 are united. The first distance (for example, 0.5 to 0.8 mm) is set. The inner diameter (opening diameter) of the cleaning liquid supply port 60a is set to 0.02 to 0.1 mm, for example. Further, between the adjacent supply port groups G, the distance L2 between the centers of the cleaning liquid supply ports 60a arranged closest is larger than the first distance, and the cleaning liquid supply port 60a supplies the cleaning liquid supply surface F2. It is set to the 2nd distance (for example, 2-3 mm) in which the cleaning liquids which were made do not unite.

  For this reason, as shown in FIG. 9, the cleaning liquid 23 is unified in each supply port group G in the state where the cleaning liquid 23 is supplied from the cleaning liquid supply port 60a to the cleaning liquid supply surface F2, and the adjacent supply The cleaning liquid 23 is not unified between the mouth groups G. As a result, the cleaning liquid 23 is divided into a plurality (here, four), that is, for each supply port group G. 6 to 9, each supply port group G is illustrated as being configured by four cleaning liquid supply ports 60a. However, each of the supply port groups G has two to more than ten (or several). (Ten) cleaning liquid supply ports 60a.

  As shown in FIGS. 5 and 10, the cleaning liquid supply member 60 is connected to the downstream end of a supply path 70 made of a tube through which the cleaning liquid 23 passes. The upstream end of the supply path 70 is connected to a cleaning liquid supply mechanism (not shown). The cleaning liquid supply mechanism includes a tank (not shown) that stores the cleaning liquid 23 and a pump (not shown) that pumps the cleaning liquid 23 from the tank to the supply path 70.

  The supply path 70 is configured by one path at the upstream end, but repeats branching toward the downstream side and branches into 12 paths. The twelve paths are respectively connected to the cleaning liquid supply members 60 of the recording heads 17a to 17c.

  In the ink jet recording apparatus 100, in order to clean the ink ejection surfaces F1 of the recording heads 17a to 17c, the cleaning liquid for all the recording heads 17a to 17c is used at the start of printing after a long-term stop and between printing operations. The cleaning liquid 23 is supplied from the supply port 60a (see FIG. 9) to the cleaning liquid supply surface F2, and the ink discharge surface F1 is wiped off by a wiper 35 described later to prepare for the next printing operation.

  Returning to FIG. 1, the second transport unit 12 is arranged on the downstream side (right side in FIG. 1) of the first transport unit 5 with respect to the paper transport direction. The second transport unit 12 includes a second drive roller 13, a second driven roller 14, and a second transport belt 15 stretched over the second drive roller 13 and the second driven roller 14. When the two drive rollers 13 are rotationally driven in the clockwise direction, the paper S held on the second transport belt 15 is transported in the arrow X direction.

  The paper S on which the ink image is recorded by the recording unit 9 is sent to the second transport unit 12, and the ink ejected on the surface of the paper S while passing through the second transport unit 12 is dried. A maintenance unit 19 and a cap unit 90 are disposed below the second transport unit 12. The maintenance unit 19 moves below the recording unit 9 when performing the wiping operation by the wiper 35 described above, and wipes the cleaning liquid 23 supplied from the cleaning liquid supply port 60a of the recording heads 17a to 17c. The cleaning liquid 23 collected is recovered. The cap unit 90 horizontally moves below the recording unit 9 when capping the ink ejection surfaces F1 (see FIG. 3) of the recording heads 17a to 17c, and further moves upward to be attached to the lower surfaces of the recording heads 17a to 17c. Is done.

  Further, on the downstream side of the second transport unit 12 with respect to the paper transport direction, a discharge roller pair 16 that discharges the paper S on which an image is recorded to the outside of the apparatus main body is provided. Is provided with a discharge tray (not shown) on which the sheets S discharged outside the apparatus main body are stacked.

  The maintenance unit 19 supports a plurality of wipers 35 (see FIG. 12) movable along the ink ejection surface F1, a substantially rectangular carriage (not shown) to which the plurality of wipers 35 are fixed, and the carriage. And a support frame (not shown). A carriage (not shown) is supported so as to be slidable in the direction of arrow AA ′ with respect to a support frame (not shown).

  The wiper 35 is an elastic member (for example, a rubber member made of EPDM) for wiping the cleaning liquid 23 supplied to the cleaning liquid supply surface F2 from the cleaning liquid supply ports 60a (see FIG. 9) of the recording heads 17a to 17c. It is. The wiper 35 is brought into pressure contact with a cleaning liquid supply region R2 (see FIG. 4) of the cleaning liquid supply member 60 on a portion (here, the inclined surface 62) on the upstream side in the wiping direction. The cleaning liquid supply surface F2 and the ink discharge surface F1 are wiped in a predetermined direction (arrow A direction).

  Next, the recovery operation of the recording heads 17a to 17c using the maintenance unit 19 in the inkjet recording apparatus 100 of the present embodiment will be described. The recovery operation of the recording heads 17a to 17c described below is executed by controlling the operations of the recording heads 17a to 17c, the maintenance unit 19 and the like based on a control signal from the control unit 110 (see FIG. 1). The

  When performing the recovery operation of the recording heads 17a to 17c, first, as shown in FIG. 11, the control unit 110 (see FIG. 1) lowers the first transport unit 5 located below the recording unit 9. Then, the control unit 110 horizontally moves the maintenance unit 19 disposed below the second transport unit 12 so as to be disposed between the recording unit 9 and the first transport unit 5. In this state, the wiper 35 (see FIG. 12) of the maintenance unit 19 is disposed below the ink discharge surface F1 and the cleaning liquid supply surface F2 (see FIG. 12) of the recording heads 17a to 17c.

(Cleaning liquid supply operation)
Prior to the wiping operation (wiping operation described later), as shown in FIG. 12, the control unit 110 (see FIG. 1) supplies the cleaning liquid 23 to the recording heads 17a to 17c. The supplied cleaning liquid 23 is supplied by a predetermined amount from the cleaning liquid supply port 60a (see FIG. 9). At this time, as shown in FIG. 9, the cleaning liquids 23 come into contact with each other in each supply port group G, and the cleaning liquids 23 are not unified between adjacent supply port groups G. That is, in the present embodiment, the cleaning liquid 23 is divided into four parts. 12 to 15, the cleaning liquid 23 and ink 22 described later are hatched.

(Ink extrusion operation)
Prior to the wiping operation (wiping operation described later), as shown in FIG. 12, the control unit 110 (see FIG. 1) supplies the ink 22 to the recording heads 17a to 17c. The supplied ink 22 is forcibly extruded (purged) from the ink discharge nozzle 18a. By this purging operation, thickened ink, foreign matter and bubbles in the ink discharge nozzle 18a are discharged from the ink discharge nozzle 18a. At this time, the purge ink 22 is pushed out to the ink discharge surface F1 along the shape of the ink discharge region R1 where the ink discharge nozzle 18a exists.

(Wiping operation)
As shown in FIG. 13, the control unit 110 raises the wiper 35 to bring it into contact with the inclined surface 62 of the cleaning liquid supply member 60 of the recording heads 17a to 17c with a predetermined pressure.

  From the state where the tip of the wiper 35 is in pressure contact with the inclined surface 62 of the cleaning liquid supply member 60, the control unit 110 moves the wiper 35 along the cleaning liquid supply surface F2 in the direction of the ink discharge region R1 (arrow A) as shown in FIG. Direction). Thereby, after wiping off the cleaning liquid 23, the wiper 35 moves in the direction of the ink ejection region R1 while holding the cleaning liquid 23.

  As shown in FIG. 15, the wiper 35 moves to the left (in the direction of arrow A) on the ink ejection surface F <b> 1 while maintaining the state where the cleaning liquid 23 is held. At this time, the cleaning liquid 23 and the ink (purge ink) 22 dissolve the ink droplets (waste ink) that adhere to the ink ejection surface F1 and solidify, and are wiped off by the wiper 35. The wiper 35 further moves in the left direction (arrow A direction), and stops moving in the left direction when reaching the position opposite to the cleaning liquid supply region R2 with respect to the ink discharge region R1. The cleaning liquid 23 and waste ink wiped off by the wiper 35 are collected in a cleaning liquid collection tray (not shown) provided in the maintenance unit 19.

(Separation operation)
After execution of the wiping operation, as shown in FIG. 16, the control unit 110 lowers the wiper 35 and separates it from the ink ejection surface F1.

  Finally, the control unit 110 horizontally moves the maintenance unit 19 arranged between the recording unit 9 and the first conveyance unit 5 and arranges the maintenance unit 19 below the second conveyance unit 12 to place the first conveyance unit 5 in a predetermined manner. Raise to the position. In this way, the recovery operation of the recording heads 17a to 17c is completed.

  In the present embodiment, as described above, the cleaning liquid supply area in which the plurality of cleaning liquid supply ports 60a for supplying the cleaning liquid 23 are opened on the upstream side in the wiping direction (arrow A direction) with respect to the ink discharge area R1. R2 is provided. Thus, after supplying the cleaning liquid 23 from the cleaning liquid supply port 60a to the cleaning liquid supply region R2, the wiper 35 is moved along the ink discharge surface F1 from the upstream side of the cleaning liquid supply port 60a in the wiping direction. The ink discharge surface F <b> 1 can be wiped while the cleaning liquid 23 is held by the wiper 35. For this reason, the ink discharge surface F1 can be cleaned.

  The supply port group G is arranged independently in the head width direction (arrow BB ′ direction). In each supply port group G, the center distance L1 between the adjacent cleaning liquid supply ports 60a is the cleaning liquid. The cleaning liquid supply that is set to the first distance at which the cleaning liquids 23 supplied from the supply port 60a to the cleaning liquid supply region R2 are united with each other and is adjacently disposed between the adjacent supply port groups G is provided. The center-to-center distance L2 between the ports 60a is set to a second distance at which the cleaning liquids 23 supplied from the cleaning liquid supply port 60a are not united. As a result, the cleaning liquid 23 supplied to the cleaning liquid supply region R2 from the plurality of cleaning liquid supply ports 60a can be divided into a plurality (for each supply port group G), so that the cleaning liquids 23 are unified. Large droplets can be suppressed. For this reason, since it can suppress that the cleaning liquid 23 falls from the cleaning liquid supply surface F2, the loss of the cleaning liquid 23 can be reduced.

  Further, in each supply port group G, the cleaning liquids 23 supplied from the cleaning liquid supply port 60a are unified. Thus, unlike the case where the cleaning liquids 23 supplied from the individual cleaning liquid supply ports 60a constituting each supply port group G are not united, the necessary amount of cleaning liquid in each supply port group G is obtained. 23 can be easily secured.

  When the supply port group G is not arranged independently in the head width direction (arrow BB ′ direction), the cleaning liquids 23 are united to form one large droplet. At this time, the cleaning liquid 23 gathers at the center in the head width direction (arrow BB ′ direction). For this reason, it takes time for the cleaning liquid 23 to wet and spread throughout the width direction (arrow BB ′ direction) of the wiper 35 after the cleaning liquid 23 starts to be wiped by the wiper 35. Thereby, it is difficult to uniformly clean the ink discharge surface F1. However, in the present embodiment, the cleaning liquid 23 can be dispersed in the head width direction by disposing the supply port group G independently in the head width direction. As a result, it is possible to shorten the time from when the cleaning liquid 23 starts to be wiped off by the wiper 35 until the cleaning liquid 23 gets wet throughout the entire width direction of the wiper 35. For this reason, the ink discharge surface F1 can be easily and uniformly cleaned.

  Further, as described above, in each supply port group G, the cleaning liquid supply ports 60a constitute a plurality of supply port arrays D1 arranged at the first pitch P1 in the wiping direction. Thereby, in each supply port group G, since the number of the cleaning liquid supply ports 60a can be easily increased, the necessary amount of the cleaning liquid 23 can be secured more easily.

  Further, as described above, in each supply port group G, the cleaning liquid supply ports 60a are arranged in a staggered manner. Thereby, in order to set the distance L1 between the centers of the cleaning liquid supply ports 60a in the supply port group G as the first distance, it is possible to prevent the space for forming the cleaning liquid supply ports 60a from increasing in the wiping direction. .

(Second Embodiment)
In the inkjet recording apparatus 100 according to the second embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 17, the cleaning liquid supply port 60a includes a supply port group G composed of two or more (here, three) cleaning liquid supply ports 60a. A plurality (7 in this case) are configured. As shown in FIG. 18, in each supply port group G, the cleaning liquid supply ports 60a are a plurality (two in this case) of supply port arrays D1 arranged at the first pitch P1 in the wiping direction (arrow A direction). Is configured. In each supply port group G, the cleaning liquid supply ports 60a are arranged in a staggered manner. The supply port group G includes a plurality (here, two) of supply port group rows D2 (see FIG. 17) arranged at a second pitch P2 larger than the first pitch P1 in the wiping direction (arrow A direction). It is composed. Moreover, the supply port group G is arrange | positioned at zigzag form.

  Further, the supply port group G is arranged independently in the head width direction (arrow BB ′ direction). Specifically, as in the first embodiment, in each supply port group G, the center-to-center distance L1 between the adjacent cleaning liquid supply ports 60a is equal to the cleaning liquid 23 supplied from the cleaning liquid supply port 60a. The first distance to be unified (for example, 0.5 to 0.8 mm) is set. Further, between the adjacent supply port groups G, the distance L2 between the centers of the cleaning liquid supply ports 60a arranged closest is larger than the first distance, and the cleaning liquids 23 supplied from the cleaning liquid supply port 60a are in contact with each other. Is set to a second distance (for example, 2 to 3 mm) that does not unify.

  For this reason, as shown in FIG. 19, the cleaning liquid 23 is united in each supply port group G in a state where the cleaning liquid 23 is supplied from the cleaning liquid supply port 60 a, and between the adjacent supply port groups G. The cleaning liquid 23 is not unified. As a result, the cleaning liquid 23 is divided into a plurality (here, seven), that is, for each supply port group G.

  Other structures of the second embodiment and recovery operations of the recording heads 17a to 17c are the same as those of the first embodiment.

  In the present embodiment, as described above, the supply port group G constitutes a plurality of supply port group rows D2 arranged at the second pitch P2 in the wiping direction. Thereby, since the number of the supply port groups G can be increased easily, the required amount of the cleaning liquid 23 can be more easily ensured.

  Further, as described above, the supply port groups G are arranged in a staggered manner. Thereby, the space for forming the supply port group G is increased in the wiping direction in order to set the distance L2 between the centers of the cleaning liquid supply ports 60a arranged closest between the adjacent supply port groups G to the second distance. Can be suppressed.

  Other effects of the second embodiment are the same as those of the first embodiment.

  The embodiment disclosed this time should be considered as illustrative in all points and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is shown not by the above description of the embodiments but by the scope of claims for patent, and further includes all modifications within the meaning and scope equivalent to the scope of claims for patent.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the cleaning liquid supply member 60 including the cleaning liquid supply region R2 in which the cleaning liquid supply port 60a is opened is described as being provided separately from the head unit 18, but the present invention is not limited thereto. Absent. Instead of providing the cleaning liquid supply member 60, the head part 18 may be provided with a cleaning liquid supply region R2 in which the cleaning liquid supply port 60a is opened.

  In the above-described embodiment, an example in which the cleaning liquid supply operation is executed before the wiping operation has been described. However, the wiper 35 may be executed simultaneously with the wiping operation before the wiper 35 enters the cleaning liquid supply region R2. Good. In addition, although an example in which the ink push-out operation is performed before the wiping operation has been shown, the wiper 35 may be performed simultaneously with the wiping operation as long as the wiper 35 enters the ink discharge region R1.

  In the above embodiment, the recovery operation of the recording heads 17a to 17c is performed using the cleaning liquid 23 and the ink (purge ink) 22. However, the recovery of the recording heads 17a to 17c is performed using only the cleaning liquid 23. An operation may be performed. That is, it is not necessary to perform the ink pushing operation.

17a to 17c Recording head 18a Ink discharge nozzle 22 Ink 23 Cleaning liquid 35 Wiper 60a Cleaning liquid supply port 100 Inkjet recording apparatus D1 Supply port row D2 Supply port group row F1 Ink discharge surface G Supply port group L1, L2 Center distance P1 First 1 pitch P2 2nd pitch R1 ink discharge area R2 cleaning liquid supply area S paper (recording medium)

Claims (6)

A recording head having an ink ejection surface including an ink ejection area in which a plurality of ink ejection nozzles that eject ink onto a recording medium are opened,
A cleaning liquid supply area in which a plurality of cleaning liquid supply ports for supplying a cleaning liquid are provided is provided upstream of the ink discharge area in the wiping direction, which is a direction in which the wiper wipes the ink discharge surface. ,
The cleaning liquid supply port constitutes a plurality of supply port groups composed of two or more cleaning liquid supply ports,
The supply port group is independently arranged in the width direction orthogonal to the wiping direction,
In each of the supply port groups, the distance between the centers of the adjacent cleaning liquid supply ports is set to a first distance at which the cleaning liquids supplied from the cleaning liquid supply port to the cleaning liquid supply region are united. Has been
Between the adjacent supply port groups, the distance between the centers of the cleaning liquid supply ports disposed closest to each other is such that the cleaning liquids supplied from the cleaning liquid supply port to the cleaning liquid supply region are not unified. The recording head is set to a second distance.   2. The recording head according to claim 1, wherein in each of the supply port groups, the cleaning liquid supply port constitutes a plurality of supply port arrays arranged at a first pitch in the wiping direction.   The recording head according to claim 2, wherein the cleaning liquid supply ports are arranged in a staggered pattern in each of the supply port groups.   The recording head according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the supply port group constitutes a plurality of supply port group rows arranged at a second pitch in the wiping direction.   The recording head according to claim 4, wherein the supply port groups are arranged in a staggered manner.   An ink jet recording apparatus comprising the recording head according to claim 1.